Mexican singer Natalia Lafourcade and Canadian author Louise Penny headline the Chan Centre's 2025-26 season

Most decorated female Latin Grammy winner in history and mind behind the beloved Chief Inspector Gamache series will appear in Vancouver this fall

Natalia Lafourcade. Photo by Carlos Manuel

WITH A TOTAL OF 18 Latin Grammy wins under her belt, Natalia Lafourcade is the most decorated female recipient of the award to date. And she’ll make her premiere in Vancouver this fall at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, as one of two headliners unveiled today for the organization’s 28th season.

Lafourcade will perform on September 27 at 7:30 pm as part of the Chan Centre Presents series. The concert is a stop on her extensive Cancionera Tour, which will take her across North and South America from April to October. She’ll take to the stage with just her voice and her guitar for this uniquely intimate show.

For over two decades, Lafourcade has been a visionary force in reimagining Latin American music by infusing Mexican folklore with pop and jazz sounds. Since the release of her self-titled debut album when she was just 18 years old, her career has skyrocketed; her latest album, De todas las flores, confirmed her continued success when it won both a Grammy Award and a Latin Grammy Award.

Lafourcade uses her platform to advocate for Mexican folkloric music education through the Fundación Natalia Lafourcade, and was named the inaugural Ambassador of Music for Peace at the World Summit of Nobel Peace Prize Laureates in 2024.

The second just-announced Chan Centre headliner is best-selling Canadian author Louise Penny, the mind behind the beloved Chief Inspector Gamache book series. She’ll chat about her upcoming release, The Black Wolf, on October 29 at 7:30 pm as part of the Chan’s all-new Made in Canada series, which spotlights local talent across disciplines.

Penny is among the most celebrated mystery writers in the world. Her Quebec-based Chief Inspector Gamache series has sold over 18 million copies and been translated into 35 languages. She is a recipient of the Order of Canada and l’Ordre national du Québec, among numerous other accolades, and she established the Three Pines Foundation for literacy programs and dementia care.

The Black Wolf, which will be released the day before Penny’s Chan Centre appearance, is a follow-up to her latest release, The Grey Wolf. Penny will be discussing the novel as part of a larger tour. She recently cancelled all her American tour dates in light of the U.S. trade war, and will now host her book launch for The Black Wolf at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa instead of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

Tickets to see Lafourcade will go on sale April 3 at 12 pm for Chan Centre season subscribers, and on April 4 at 10 am for the general public. Tickets to An Evening with Louise Penny, meanwhile, will be up for grabs on April 10 at 10 am for season subscribers, and on April 11 at 10 am for the general public.

Expect more news on the Stir site soon about the other performances planned for the Chan Centre’s upcoming season.

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Emily Lyth

Emily Lyth is a Vancouver-based writer and editor who graduated from Langara College’s Journalism program. Her decade of dance training and passion for all things food-related are the foundation of her love for telling arts, culture, and community stories.

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