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5 Things to Do in Vancouver this Week (October 17-23)

A Writer’s Fest, the Fall Home Show and a charity art auction.

By Kerri Donaldson /

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 kdonaldson@canadawide.com. 

 

Red and Blue Logo of Vancouver Writers Fest illustration with people under an open book block them from the rain

Credit: Photo courtesy of Vancouver Writers Festival

1. Get Literary at the 35th Annual Vancouver Writers Fest

October 17-23

And you thought the festival season was over! Not for word lovers. It’s about to kick off in a big way with the annual Vancouver Writer’s Fest: a week-long celebration of the written word. This year marks its 35th anniversary and features 80 different events happening all over Granville Island (with some being offered virtually). There’s something for everyone—from discussions on the state of modern journalism to an ode to ’80s lyrics as poems (complete with an ’80s dance party at the Fox Cabaret!). Turtlenecks are optional (but highly encouraged) (by me).

When: October 17-23
Where: Granville Island 
Cost: From $10 
More Info: writersfest.bc.ca

 

Living room with white couch and coffee table and Vancouver Fall Home Show detailsCredit: Photo courtesy of: Vancouver City News

2. Find Home Inspo at the 40th Vancouver Fall Home Show

October 20-23

Want some ideas for your next home project? This weekend in the West Building of the Vancouver Convention Centre, the 40th Vancouver Fall Home Show is bringing in a full house of expert speakers, exhibits and some inspiring cocktails and live music (shout out to the Coastal Lounge!). With all that home design, renovation and culinary expertise in one convention centre, it’s like Comic-Con for HGTV fans. 

When: October 20-23 
Where: Vancouver Convention Centre- West
Cost: From $8-$16
More Info: vancouverfallhomeshow.com

 

Woman standing in front of a dreamy blue-white screen with forest pine anchoring the foregroundCredit: Quentin Chevrier, courtesy of Cie d’Autres Cordes.

3. French Composer Franck Vigroux’s Genre-Defying Forêt

October 20-22

Franck Vigroux is an internationally acclaimed director, composer and multidisciplinary artist, and his Forêt is hard to define… but I’ll try my best. It’s a solo dance performance (Nina Berclaz) that intersects music (an electroacoustic score, specifically), sound, dance and video. Here’s what you’ll get in Forêt: movement inspired by butoh (a form of Japanese dance theatre), stunning projections, inspirational dance storytelling and some partial nudity and haze (at least that’s what the website cautions). It’s playing as part of The Global Dance Connections 2022-2023 series all weekend long.

When: October 20-22
Where: Scotiabank Dance Centre
Cost: $25-$34
More Info: thedancecentre.ca

Dark with blue highlighting image of 4 people with arms raisedCredit: Photo courtesy of DanceHouse

4. Watch the Evocative Premiere of Double Murder

October 21-22


Opening their 15th season, DanceHouse presents the Canadian premiere of Double Murder, a new double bill from internationally renowned, UK-based choreographer/composer Hofesh Shechter. The performance features two distinctly contrasting works colliding—you’ve got Clowns: a sarcastic and playful look at the growing indifference to violence; and then The Fix: a tender and fragile antidote to this aggression. With an equally compelling soundtrack, Shechter’s double-header could get you thinking (and feeling). 

When: October 21-22
Where: Vancouver Playhouse
Cost: From $35
More Info: dancehouse.ca

 

Girl in white dress standing (facing her back) in a forest
Blaine Campbell Photographic Services and Rachel Topham Photography Ltd.

5. Get Charitable at the Splash Art Auction and Gala

October 22

Want to support youth and the arts? Then give back at Arts Umbrella’s annual art auction, Splash. Proceeds from the auction (which features close to 100 artists from across Canada and beyond) go towards supporting young people across Metro Vancouver in the visual and performing arts. It’s the 40th Anniversary of Splash, too, so they’re going all out with a highly glam food and cocktail gala at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, featuring live entertainment, student performances and a live auction. But if you don’t feel like leaving the house, you can get in on the culture from the comfort of your own home, too: stream it online and even get treated to at-home catering. 

When: October 22
Where: Fairmont Hotel Vancouver
Cost: From $400 (or bid in the online auction)
More Info: artsumbrella.com