5 Things to Do in Vancouver This Week (January 16-22)

Your weekly roundup of the top events in the city, including art exhibitions, local theatre, restaurant openings, concerts, film, markets and other to-dos we think you’ll love. If you have a Vancouver event you’d like to submit for consideration, send an email to [email protected].

1. New Art Anthology Launch What Are Our Supports?

January 21

From independent curator and writer Joni Low comes an anthology that reminds us how we can shape the future through simple gestures. The anthology is both an archive and a continuation of the ideas that originated in the innovative 2018 project of the same name curated by Low, in partnership with Or Gallery and Richmond Art Gallery. Featuring over 20 contributors, with commissioned poems, essays, and artists’ reflections, What Are Our Supports? is co-published by partners that span the country: Information Office, Doryphore Independent Curators Society, Richmond Art Gallery, and Art Metropole. The book launch will feature artist presentations, followed by a discussion and refreshments. To RSVP, visit bit.ly/WAOSlaunch.

When: January 21
Where: SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts
Cost: Free
More Info: eventbrite.ca

2. Experimental Theatre Dance and Circus with Sacre

January 17-21

Join Australia’s renowned contemporary circus company Circa in their Canadian premiere of Sacre at the Vancouver Playhouse, co-presented by DanceHouse and The Cultch. It’s rooted in contemporary circus but with a multidisciplinary twist that incorporates elements of theatre and dance and is inspired by one of the most shocking works of its time—Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring. Not sure what that means? Check out this trailer.

When: January 17-21
Where: Vancouver Playhouse
Cost: From $35
More Info: dancehouse.ca

3. Experience the Avant Garde at PuSh International Performing Arts Festival

January 19-February 5

Vancouver’s favourite experimental performing arts festival launches this week with mind-bending original theatre, dance, multimedia, music, circus and everything in between. This week there’s a packed roster that includes Jaha Koo’s Lolling and Rolling, a look at the loss of cultural agency through linguistic colonization, and Never Twenty One, Smail Kanouté’s tribute to young Black victims of gun violence and Moya Michael’s Coloured Swan 3: Harriet’s reMix, a unique brand of Afrofuturism, posing questions about spirituality, displacement and the non-linearity of time. There’s also a hip-hop freestyle workshop with Salomon Mpondo-Dicka of Compagnie Vivons. (Whew!)

Not sure what to watch? Check out our top five must-see shows or peruse the schedule for a taste of everything this festival has to offer. Buy a four-show ($120) or six-show ($180) pass for in-person or a digital pass ($100) to see your choice of five streaming performances. If you’re looking for something different to do and see in the coming weeks, consider this your push.

When: January 19-February 5
Where: Various venues 
Cost: From $34
More Info: pushfestival.ca

4. Expand Your Culinary Tastes With Dine Out Vancouver

January 20- February 5

Foodies and people with mouths: this is not a drill. This year’s Dine Out Vancouver is bigger and better than ever, with over 300 participating restaurants to explore. Make a reservation now (they go quickly and a lot of the weekend spots might already be booked up), and pick from many of Vancouver’s newly Michelin-starred and infamous culinary hot spots. With special three-course menus available at an even-more-special price, it’s an amazing way to try amazing food at an amazing rate. Happy Dine Out, one and all!

When: January 20- February 5
Where: Restaurants all over Vancouver
Cost: From $20
More Info: dineoutvancouver.com

5. An Evening of Music with The Weather Station featuring UBC Contemporary Players 

January 21

Join JUNO-nominated, Canadian folk music experimenters the Weather Station as they debut a special new collaborative performance with Toronto’s Tamara Lindeman (The New York Times and Pitchfork have both sung her praises) for the Chan Centre’s EXP Series. For this concert, the band will be joined by a 10-piece orchestral ensemble featuring members of UBC Contemporary Players, performing new arrangements of the Weather Station’s songs composed by award-winning Canadian composer Darren Fung, and Mark Marinic, UBC School of Music PhD candidate.

When: January 21
Where: Chan Shun Concert Hall
Cost: From $13.50
More Info: chancentre.com