Opera in the Park returns to Deer Lake with Verdi, Mozart, and Puccini, July 13
Music director Jacques Lacombe leads the Vancouver Opera Orchestra in an evening of Italian arias and duets
Opera in the Park brings arias and duets to Deer Lake Park.
City of Burnaby presents Opera in the Park in Deer Lake Park, Burnaby on July 13 at 7:30 PM
SITTING ON THE LAWN, surrounded by trees, your favourite snacks in hand from nearby food trucks—get ready to settle into your most comfortable position and enjoy a relaxing evening of arias and duets.
This July, Opera in the Park returns to Burnaby’s Deer Lake Park, offering a sneak peek of Vancouver Opera’s upcoming season.
Now in its fourth edition, the free event will feature selections from Verdi, Mozart, and Puccini—composers whose full-length masterpieces will be staged by Vancouver Opera under the baton of Jacques Lacombe in the months ahead.
Previously music director of orchestras and opera houses across Europe and North America, Lacombe brings broad experience in symphonic, operatic, choral, and dance repertoire. Yet the maestro, now concluding his second season with Vancouver Opera, finds the greatest beauty in the human voice.
At the open-air park concert, he will lead the Vancouver Opera Orchestra through highlights from Rigoletto, Così fan tutte, and La Bohème on the warm summer evening.
Aching music from Verdi’s tragic Rigoletto, a tale of jealousy and betrayal centered on a hunchbacked jester, will be heard alongside songs from Mozart’s sparkling comedy Così fan tutte, an opera buffa that follows two sisters and their lovers through a playful story of disguise and fidelity. Puccini’s beloved La Bohème, set in 19th-century Paris, introduces a seamstress and her bohemian artist friends navigating love and loss.
This is opera without having to dress up: the colourful chairs and blankets you bring will add their own charm to the timeless music. On the evening of July 13, this casual, family-friendly event invites all to gather and celebrate the power of opera under the open sky. ![]()
Helen (Yichun) Wu is a classical musician and music critic with an interest in the performing arts at large. Before moving to Canada to pursue a Master of Journalism at UBC, she received her degrees in piano for solo and chamber music, and comparative literature in the United States.
Related Articles
Fresh arrangements bring the enduring artist’s legacy to life at the all-new VanJazz festival
Montreal-based singer-songwriter talks about the dreamy layers of sound that went into her latest album—and stripping them away for her new EP and solo tour
Audiences can expect a heartwarming set, plus a merch table filled with homegrown garlic and handmade soap
The Mohawk musician’s career trajectory has taken him from bar shows to The Launch to Nashville, but he’s always stayed grounded in his Six Nations community
The pair of Grammy Award winners honour the jazz legend’s legacy in honour of his centennial
Program features the Canadian premiere of Tawnie Olson’s Missa Brevis, kicking off her tenure as Composer-in-Residence
The New York artist draws on everything from the guitar work of legends like Joe Pass and his own father to the unmistakable voice of Tony Bennett—the inspiration of his latest album
A new series of public performances and a cross-country collaboration with La Nef and Seán Dagher mark the choir’s 35th season
Japan’s Kuniko Kato Quartet opens the lineup as part of the VNM Festival: Open Frequencies, performing the music of Steve Reich
The singer-songwriter and Latin Grammy winner has collaborated with artists from all over the world, and she will perform with Vancouver’s own Black Dog String Quartet
Former artistic director Joan Blackman, esteemed pianist Jane Coop, and newly appointed artistic director Hung-Wei Huang join forces onstage
Singer-songwriter performs tracks off her latest album, playing guitar, piano, and autoharp
Nebula Performances stages a full production of Ruggero Leoncavallo’s famous work, with Wanshuai Yu in the leading role
Meditative piece is a collaboration between interdisciplinary artist Alex Mah and violinist Ilana Waniuk
Guitarist Cole Schmidt performs at a jazz-driven music-and-dance series reborn after the June passing of Tony Wilson
For 2026–27, the choir will premiere new commissions by Canadian composers Suba Sankaran and Alex Eddington, as well as revisiting works from its inaugural year
With the new CD Artemis Sleeps, the late composer’s former roommate celebrates chamber works that range from pithy to rhapsodic to enigmatic
Singer Krystle Dos Santos and her band celebrate the record label that brought us legendary performers including Aretha Franklin and Marvin Gaye
With songs from his latest album, the swing ambassador pays tribute to another great swinger
The daughter of the Band’s legendary drummer and singer Levon Helm is a musical force to be reckoned with in her own right
The eight-piece band blends reggae and Afrobeat, exploring singer Brian Baroda’s experiences as a South Sudanese refugee
Local singer puts her own improvisational spice on classic songs in ode to Anita O’Day’s iconic performance in the acclaimed, 1959 Newport Jazz Festival documentary
Highlights of the fest include a solo concert by acclaimed Argentine tango guitarist Máximo Diego Pujol, plus performances by a slate of B.C.–based musicians
Artistic director and founder Carrie Tennant says the choir helps its young members make authentic human connections in an era when that is more challenging than ever
In his first season as the ensemble’s artistic director, violist Hung-Wei Huang is bringing back a few familiar faces and tapping into the creativity of kids from local schools
The eclectic program mixes masterpieces by Renaissance composer John Dowland and Joni MItchell at Early Music Vancouver’s Summer Festival
