Spring Arts Preview: Music, dance, and theatre in Vancouver to welcome brighter days
Grab your calendar: Here’s a handful of the hottest shows hitting local stages this season
Mischa Maisky.
Revisor by Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young. Photo by Michael-Slobodian
Cirque du Soleil’s Alegria. Photo by MA Lemire.
SUNNIER DAYS CAN’T come soon enough, and Vancouver’s arts community is more than ready to welcome them on local stages. Here are some of the highlights in music, dance, and theatre to mark on your calendar over the next few months.
MUSIC
Ingrid Chiang. Photo via Turning Point Ensemble.
Bassoon! Vetta Chamber Music
March 18 at 2 pm at West Point Grey United Church; March 19 7:30 pm and March 20 at 2 pm at Pyatt Hall; and March 21 at 7:30 at ArtSpring
New to the Vetta stage, pianist Michelle Mares and bassoonist Ingrid Chiang join Vetta artistic director Joan Blackman on violin—a quirky combination of instruments to be sure, Blackman tells Stir—for a concert of fun and daring. Included on the mixed program are Glinka’s Trio Pathétique and the ensemble’s own arrangement of Ravel’s Bolero. Spring Mood: Open to anything and carefree.
Vancouver Chamber Choir.
Dixit Dominus, Vancouver Chamber Choir
March 20 at 2:30 pm at the Orpheum Theatre
Bach and Handel’s early choral works come to sparkling life in this afternoon extravaganza. Both of the legendary composers were just 22 years old in 1707, when Bach, as organist of the Blasius Church in Mühlhausen, performed the lush cantata Christ lag in Todesbanden (as part of his application requirements to marry his second cousin), while Handel, invited by Ferdinando de’ Medici to visit Rome, wrote some of his most energetic music, including the dazzling Dixit Dominus. Spring Mood: These exuberant works are just the thing to put some spring in your step.
The Celtic Tenors.
The Celtic Tenors, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
March 27 at 8 pm at the Orpheum Theatre
We love the way the trio’s buoyant approach is summed up on their homepage: “They just sing songs they love, and they most certainly don’t take themselves too seriously. It’s all about the music, the harmonies and the fun.” Whether it’s a traditional harmony, a pop song, or a classical aria, you can expect Matthew Gilsenan, James Nelson, and Daryl Simpson (who have sold more than a million CDs worldwide) to give it their heartfelt all. Spring Mood: Ready to party.
Yuja Wang, Vancouver Recital Society
March 30 at 7:30 pm Orpheum Theatre
Ready for your jaw to drop? Named Musical America’s Artist of the Year in 2017, Yuja Wang was born into a musical family in Beijing and studied in China before doing extensive advanced training in Canada and the U.S. Her big break came after a 2007 gig with Boston Symphony Orchestra, the artist going on to sign an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon. Superlatives like breathtaking and flawless follow her wherever she goes. Wang made her VRS debut in 2008 and has twice since returned; her most recent performance here sold out. Spring Mood: Triumphant.
Mischa Maisky.
Maisky plays Dvořák, Vancouver Symphony Orchestra
April 1 at 7 pm and April 3 at 2 pm at the Orpheum Theatre
Here’s a rare chance to experience the mighty talent that is Mischa Maisky. An Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music, Maisky, who was born in Latvia, educated in Russia, and repatriated to Israel, is the only cellist in the world to have studied with both Mstislav Rostropovich and Gregor Piatigorsky. A regular guest at festivals and with symphonies spanning the globe, he considers himself a citizen of the world: “I’m playing an Italian cello, with French and German bows, Austrian and German strings, my 6 children were born in 4 different countries, my second wife is half Sri Lankan – half Italian, I’m driving a Japanese car, wear a Swiss watch and I feel at home everywhere where people appreciate and enjoy classical music.“ He’ll perform Dvořák’s Cello Concerto, said to be the one of the composer’s innermost works. Spring Mood: Contemplative.
Rafal Blechacz.
Rafal Blechacz, Vancouver Chopin Society
April 5 at 7:30 pm at the Vancouver Playhouse
Polish pianist Rafal Blechacz is widely considered his generation’s greatest performer of Chopin’s works, performing on international stages as an exclusive recording artist of Deutsche Grammophon. His debut CD of Chopin Préludes won the Platinum Record status in his native Poland as well as a German Echo Klassik and French Diapason d’Or award. In addition to works by Bach, Beethoven, Franck, he will perform Chopin’s Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58, which Vancouver Chopin Society describes a “miraculous work, not only in its construction, but in the absolute wealth of beautiful melodies that fill its pages.” Spring Mood: Grateful.
Rachel Fenlon. Photo via Festival de Lanaudiere/agence big jaw
Behind the Keys 2022, Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs
April 9 at 7:30 pm at the Orpheum Annex
The gala fundraising concert for VBC is back, this time cabaret-style, with works by Debussy, Messiaen, and Canadian composer Samy Moussa. Maestro Leslie Dala performs at the piano alongside soprano-poet-songwriter-pianist Rachel Fenlon. Selected for an artist residency at the Banff Centre for the Arts in 2021-22 and based in Berlin, Fenlon earned bachelor's and master's degrees in opera performance at UBC, started her career on the local opera stage, and has performed around the world. Spring Mood: Invigorated.
Vienna Piano Trio.
Vienna Piano Trio, Friends of Chamber Music
April 10 at 3 pm at the Vancouver Playhouse
One of the world’s leading chamber ensembles, the trio has put together a thrilling program to bid farewell, with Viennese pianist Stefan Mendl, Californian violinist David McCarroll (who plays a 1761 Gagliano violin), and Austrian cellist Clemens Hagen (on a Stradivari cello from 1698) retiring at the end of this season. They’ll share Schubert’s Notturno in E flat major, Opus 48, D897 and Piano Trio No.1 in B-flat major, Op.99, D898; and Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No.1 in D minor, Opus 49. Spring Mood: Exhilarated.
Kari Turunen.
Path of Miracles, Vancouver Chamber Choir
April 22 at 7:30 pm at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church
With international travel beginning to be back on the books after a pandemic pause, you may be starting to think about where to book that next getaway. An increasingly popular walking holiday is the Camino de Santiago, a network of ancient pilgrim routes throughout Spain, Portugal, and France that leads to the tomb of St. James in the northwestern Spanish town of Santiago de Compostela. If you’re not quite ready to hop on a plane but crave a taste of that journey, Vancouver Chamber Choir, under the guidance of artistic director Kari Turunen, provides it in its performance of British composer Joby Talbot’s Path of Miracles. The choral work from 2005 describes this very pilgrimage, with texts in multiple languages and a range of musical styles. Spring Mood: Hopeful.
Jorell Williams. Photo by Dahlie Katz
HMS Pinafore, Vancouver Opera
April 30 to May 8 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Vancouver Opera brings Gilbert and Sullivan’s comedic tale to life, the wildly popular operetta about forbidden love across class divides is full of laughs and shenanigans. Directed by Brenna Corner, conducted by Rosemary Thomson, and featuring the Vancouver Opera Orchestra and Chorus, the production stars Caitlin Wood as Josephine, Ernesto Ramirez as Ralph Rackstraw, and Jorell Williams as Captain Corcoran. Spring Mood: Devilish.
Nicolas Altstaedt, Solo Cello; Vancouver Recital Society
May 1 at 3 pm at the Vancouver Playhouse
The Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, National Orchestra of Spain, and l’Orchestre des Champs-Elysées are just a handful of organizations that have hosted French-German cellist Nicolas Alstaedt. He’s also a chamber musician and a conductor, working closely with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra. Here’s how The Australian summed up a performance: “As one would expect of an international soloist of his stature, Altstaedt has technique to burn, near perfect intonation, superb control of extreme registers and harmonics, and is physically at ease with his instrument. But what made his reading special was the directness of his communication. Such was the purity and warmth of his tone, and so impeccable his rhythmic nuance, that one hung on every note as if they were the words of a master storyteller.” Spring Mood: Imagine lying on your back on the grass and gazing at the clouds as they carry away your cares.
Jerusalem String Quartet.
Jerusalem String Quartet with soprano Hila Baggio, Vancouver Recital Society
May 7 at 7:30 pm at Temple Sholom
The same four members who founded the ensemble in the 1990s are still together, the Israeli musicians having grown up together in a way over the years. Violinists Alexander Pavlovsky and Sergei Bresler, violist Ori Kam, and cellist Kyrill Zlotnikov strike a fine balance between individual expression and respect for composers’ original vision; they also introduced a Yiddish program in 2018-19. They make a return visit to the West Coast thanks to Vancouver Recital Society for a concert of Mozart, Shostakovich, and Brahms. Spring Mood: That peaceful feeling that comes from knowing you’re in good hands.
Marisa Gaetanne. Photo by Diamond’s Edge Photography
Summersing!, Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs
May 8 at 4 pm at Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
Prepare for a choral kapow: All of the choruses in the Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs perform in this show full of upbeat, jazzy arrangements. The concert features conductors Leslie Dala, Marisa Gaetanne, Catherine Campolin, and Shane Raman, as well as artists Stephen Smith, Kin Ming Wong, Aslan Aslanov, Shifra Day, and Ziwan Yi, piano. Spring Mood: Wowed.
Emerson String Quartet.
Emerson String Quartet, Friends of Chamber Music
May 8 at 3 pm at the Vancouver Playhouse
“With musicians like this, there must be some hope for humanity,” The Times of London once said of the nine-time Grammy-winning New York-based ensemble. We sure need them now. Made up of cellist Paul Watkins, Violinist Eugene Drucker, Violinist Philip Setzer, and violist Paul Watkins, the quartet-in-residence at Stony Brook University has released more than 30 acclaimed recordings and, in 2015, received the Richard J. Bogomolny National Service Award, Chamber Music America’s highest honour, for its significant and lasting contribution to the chamber music field. In Vancouver, the ensemble named after American poet and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson will perform Bartók’s String Quartet No.1 in A minor, Opus 1, Sz40; Mozart’s String Quartet No.22 in B-flat major, K589; and Beethoven’s String Quartet No.15 in A minor, Opus 132. Spring Mood: Humbled.
Leonids’ member Eric Alatorre.
A Sound Like This: Chor Leoni & the Leonids, Chor Leoni
May 12 and 13 at 7:30 pm at St. Andrew’s-Wesley United Church
The Leonids are a new “supergroup” ensemble, its members elected by Chor Leoni artistic director Erick Lichte. Among the organizations these luminaries have sung with are Chanticleer, Cantus, Roomful of Teeth, New York Polyphony, Conspirare, Theatre of Voices, Seraphic Fire, Trinity Church Wall Street, Clarion Choir, and Phoenix Chorale. Named after a brilliant meteor shower, the Leonids will perform independently and alongside Chor Leoni for their grand debut. Spring Mood: Bedazzled.
Chor Leoni.
VanMan Summit Concert, Chor Leoni
May 14 at 7:30 pm at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts
Hear them roar: On the heels of A Sound Like This (see above) comes this heavenly concert featuring the Leonids, Chor Leoni, Chor Leoni’s MYVoice youth choirs—and the spectacle of 300 singers joining together as one in this male choral festival. Spring Mood: Empowered.
Angela Cheng.
Angela Cheng With Vetta Chamber Players, Vetta Chamber Music
May 14 at 7 pm at Christ Church Cathedral
Vetta closes its 2021-22 season with a bang: this gala concert features revered Hong Kong-born Canadian concert pianist Angela Cheng in an all-Dvořák program. Considered a national treasure, Cheng has appeared as a soloist with more than 100 orchestras all over the world and has toured with the Zukerman Chamber Players, invited by none other than Pinchas Zukerman himself. Joining Cheng are Alvin Chow (piano), Joan Blackman and David Gillham on violin, Yariv Aloni (viola), and cellist Zoltan Rozsnyai. Spring Mood: Inspired.
Elektra Women’s Choir
Lake of Stars, Elektra Women’s Choir
May 14 and 15 at Pacific Spirit United Church
Elektra celebrates life and nature in a program of uplifting works with guests the Sitka String Quartet of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. The concert features three world premieres: the title work by Argentina’s Santiago Veros, Teachings of the Water by Patrick Carrabré with Squamish text by Rebeccca Duncan, and Two Shakespeare Songs by Stephen Smith. Rounding out the program are Marie-Claire Saindon’s stunning Blinded by a Leafy Crown and Night by Ramona Luengen in a new version with string quartet. Spring Mood: Mindful, grounded.
Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs.
Rossini’s Petite Messe Solonnelle, Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs
May 14 at 7:30 pm at the Vancouver Playhouse
Gioachino Rossini wrote some 40 operatic triumphs in less than 20 years, then shifted to other musical works, such as Petite Messe Solennelle. Written for a small audience at the town home of a Parisian countess, the dramatic “little solemn mass” combines religious musical tradition with deep humanity. At the end of the manuscript, Rossini wrote: “Dear God, there you have it, finished, this poor little mass. Is it really sacred music or is it damned music that I have created? I was born for opera buffa, as you well know! Little technique, a little heart, that is all. So may you be blessed and grant me Paradise.” Spring Mood: Inquisitive.
BOW’T TRAIL RETROSPEK. Photo by Kevin Calixte
DANCE
Vancouver International Dance Festival
To March 26 at various venues
The annual fest features a full roster of livestream and live-in-person shows across multiple venues. Two bold works stand out in the live lineup: acclaimed Nanaimo-born Daina Ashbee, who won a 2019 New York Bessie Award for Outstanding Breakout Choreographer, brings her powerful J'ai pleuré avec les chiens (Time Creation Destruction), a hypnotic work for five intergenerational women, to the Dance Centre March 9 to 12; and Haitian-Montrealer Rhodnie Désir travels into the dark historical terrain of slavery with the multimedia, African-rhythm-driven BOW’T TRAIL RETROSPEK, at The Cultch Historic Theatre March 23 to 26. Other highlights include our own Company 605 and Kokoro Dance. Spring Mood: Daring and diverse.
Ballet BC dancer Rae Srivastava. Photo by Marcus Eriksson.
Reveal + Tell
March 3 to 5 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Ballet BC greets spring with a knockout trio of new works. Amid the offerings: Vancouver dance icon Crystal Pite’s The Statement, built to a text-based score by her Betroffenheit cocreator Jonathon Young, and the Canadian debut of German sensation Marco Goecke’s Woke Up Blind, tapping the deep emotions of Jeff Buckley’s songs. There’s also a ton of buzz around artistic director Medhi Walerski’s atmospherically lit new creation, developed in Luxembourg earlier this year. Spring Mood: Versatility, virtuosity, and three fully realized visions.
Revisor. Photo by Michael Slobodian
Revisor
March 30 to April 2 at the Vancouver Playhouse
DanceHouse brings back the dynamic dance-theatre hybrid that Kidd Pivot took across the world before the pandemic hit. Choreographer Crystal Pite and writer-director Jonathon Young put their own artfully warped pantomime of Nikolai Gogol’s classic 1836 satire The Inspector General (also known as The Government Inspector). It’s a dazzling mix of text, flickering movement, upended theatre tropes, and—as it goes along—almost dreamlike warped reality. Spring mood: Heady, high-concept, and often farcically hilarious.
Rebel Grace
May 12 to 14 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre
A world premiere by Dumb Instrument Dance choreographer Ziyian Kwan unveils a premiere that explores rupture and repair as intrinsic actions within life’s many cycles. Spring Mood: Seasonal fix-ups.
Joe Ink Dance:Craft
May 20 to 22 at a venue to be announced
Dancers Heather Dotto and Joey Matt interact with various craft objects in a non-traditional venue in this new work by veteran Vancouver dance innovator Joe Laughlin. The cross-discipline performance puts the choreographer in dialogue with five BC craft artists, and features original music, video design, six virtual-reality films, and even diorama-type scenery. Spring mood: Crafty.
A Million Voices
BODYTRAFFIC
May 5 and 6 at the Vancouver Playhouse
The honed L.A. troupe treats local audiences to a mixed repertoire, including Hofesh Shechter’s dark and all-too-timely look at power and its blind followers, and Matthew Neenan’s whimsically humorous A Million Voices. Spring mood: Energy, physicality, and style to burn.
Figure Eights
May 26 to 28 at the Scotiabank Dance Centre
Radical System Art’s Shay Kuebler and tap artist Danny Nielsen riff inventively on the golden age of tap and jazz—especially Max Roach and Buddy Rich’s iconic 1959 “duelling drums” piece of the title. Spring Mood: Mad rhythms.
Story, story die
Story, story, die
June 22 and 23 at the Vancouver Playhouse
DanceHouse had to postpone this show by Norway’s Winter Guests—and it will be worth the wait. The seven-dancer dance-theatre work is a haunting, swirling and spiralling look at need, narcissism, and the brutality of social rituals—all driven by a questioning voice. Spring mood: Pure, striking dance cut through with urgent ideas.
What If
May 12 to 14 at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre
Ballet BC closes its season with a look to the future, with three commissions by rising artists who have never created works for the company before: Felix Landerer, Vancouver’s Out Innerspace Dance Theatre, and Emily Molnar Emerging Choreographer Award-winner Dorotea Saykaly. Spring mood: Works as fresh as an April breeze.
Kim’s Convenience. Photo by David Cooper
THEATRE
Kim’s Convenience
February 24 to March 27 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage
Revisit the hit play that sparked a popular sitcom, as James Yi plays a Korean shopkeeper who’s facing a gentrified neighbourhood and a growing disconnect with his second-gen children. Spring Mood: Lots of laughs, but more tears than you might expect.
Little Red Warrior and His Lawyer. Photo by Emily Cooper
Little Red Warrior and His Lawyer
March 3 to 13 at the York Theatre
Governor-General’s Award-winning playwright Kevin Loring writes and directs this outrageous land-claims farce that takes its cues from Trickster Coyote. Spring Mood: Uncomfortable humour meets Indigenous storytelling and politics.
Clean/Espejos
Clean/Espejos
March 10 to 19 at the Historic Theatre
Award-winning Vancouver playwright Christine Quintana debuts a new play that blends English and Spanish, with subtitles in both languages. Presented by The Cultch and Neworld Theatre, Clean/Espejos weaves together the lives of two women from different worlds at a Mexican resort: Sarah, a Canadian wedding guest, and Adriana, a hotel floor manager. Paula Zelaya Cervantes provides adaptation and translation. Spring Mood: Bilingual and culture-crossing.
Krystle Dos Santos jumps from jazz to freedom songs in Hey Viola! Photo by Emily Cooper
Hey Viola!
March 16 to 27 at the Anvil Theatre
Krystle Dos Santos and Tracey Power’s critically acclaimed musical about Viola Davis, the Canadian civil-rights hero who now adorns your $10 bills, is back with its live band and retro tunes like “Mississippi Goddam” and “Sinnerman”, with a dream-cabaret setting. Spring Mood: Personal and empowering.
Made in Italy
March 17 to April 17 at the Granville Island Stage
Edmonton actor Farren Timoteo's one-man show Made In Italy is loosely based on the life of his father— the only Italian kid growing up in rural Alberta. He finds his way thanks to '70s flicks like Rocky and Saturday Night Fever, not to mention food, family, and a golden singing voice. Spring Mood: Fuggedaboutit.
Ominous Sounds
Ominous Sounds at the River Crossing; or, Another Fucking Dinner Party Play
March 6 to 13 at Performance Works
Touchstone Theatre director Roy Surette helms the world premiere of Ominous Sounds at the River Crossing; or, Another Fucking Dinner Party Play by Governor-General Award-winning playwright Jason Sherman. Think provocative dark comedy and a metatheatrical experience where six actors grapple with appropriation and who has the right to tell which stories onstage. Spring Mood: Smart and acerbic.
Emma Slipp in Bunny. Photo by Emily Cooper
Bunny
March 17 to 27 at the Vancity Culture Lab
Standout Canadian playwright Hannah Moscovitch (Little One) tells the story of a Victorian literature prof who looks back on her relationships with men. Part of The Cultch’s Femme Festival, The Search Party production stars the always-compelling Emma Slipp in a brave and brutally honest look at female sexuality and inhibitions. Spring Mood: Funny, brave, honest, and literate.
Men Express Their Feelings
March 18 to April 3 at the Firehall Arts Centre
Zee Zee Theatre Company tackles award-winning Toronto playwright Sunny Drake’s comedy about two dads and their sons, forced to stay in the hockey dressing room until they’ve talked through their feelings about a fight in the rink—between the fathers. A comedy that takes a sly look at masculinity, gender, and identity. Spring Mood: Raucous laughter.
White Noise
April 16 to May 1 at the Firehall Arts Centre
Vancouver actor, spoken-word poet, and playwright Taran Kootenhayoo died suddenly on January 31, 2020, but one of the meaningful legacies the young artist left behind was this comedy about two families having dinner together during Truth and Reconciliation Week. It’s a gently funny look at the way Canadians internalize racism. The Firehall and Savage Society copresent. Spring Mood: Thought- and laugh-provoking.
‘Da Kink in My Hair
April 14 to May 15 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage
Black women come into a beauty parlour in Toronto and tell their stories to sympathetic hairdresser in Trey Anthony’s hit musical. Spring Mood: Heart-warming with beautiful harmonies and booty-shaking dance.
Alegría
Alegría
Opens March 25 at the Big Top at Concord Pacific Place
Cirque du Soleil’s most upbeat show—its title translates as “joy” in several Latin languages—brings back the spectacle that premiered in 1994 and went on to become one of its most successful shows. Elaborate sets and costumes are all-new. Spring Mood: Gravity defying.
Kinky Boots
June 9 to July 31 at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage
Cyndi Lauper’s Tony Award–winning musical about the drag queen Lola, who saves a working-class shoe factory with the titular, size-12, stiletto-heeled footwear. Spring Mood: Fabulous with extra glitter.
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