Articles — Stir

Daily human cost of the Russo-Ukrainian war revealed in PuSh Fest’s Eight Short Compositions

The starkly moving show by the Czech Republic’s Archa Centre of Documentary Theatre recounts true stories of lives upended by the conflict

House of Folk: A Lost Canadian Folk Show premieres at the Firehall Arts Centre, February 14 to March 8

Production by Tracey Power transports audiences back to the time of coffeehouse open mics that nurtured musicians like Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen

THEATREStir VancouverJanuary 15, 2026Partner Content, Firehall Arts Centre, Firehall Arts CEntre, Tracey Power

Fierce fiddling to contra dance, as Festival du Bois unveils program for March 6 to 8

Aleksi Campagne, Bagatelle, Nicolas Pellerin et les Grands Hurleurs, and the Jocelyn Pettit Band are among offerings at celebration of Maillardville’s francophone roots

MUSIC, NEWSJanet SmithJanuary 15, 2026Festival du Bois, francophone, Quebecois

Vancouver Bach Family of Choirs presents intimate Valentine's event Behind the Keys, February 13

Annual fundraiser features a romantic piano recital by Leslie Dala, along with wine, chocolate, and optional charcuterie

Nina Davies’s dance-focused show Image Syncers explores blurry boundaries between reality and simulation

After years in the U.K., the Vancouver-born artist returns home with a deeply speculative work at Western Front

ART & DESIGNJanet SmithJanuary 14, 2026Western Front, Homepage feature, Image Syncers

Luna Llena channels Mediterranean melodies at Alliance Française Vancouver, January 17

Bruno Allary leads the Marseille, France–based Compagnie Rassegna as it plays songs from Sicily, Spain, Western Algeria, and Occitania

Théâtre la Seizième hosts Parler mal at Alliance Française Vancouver, February 6 and 7

Théâtre Gauche production probes into linguistic insecurities and the stigma of being a “bad francophone”

Recirquel’s postapocalyptic Paradisum conjures visual worlds out of fabric and light

Producer Natália Fábics says the Hungarian work, co-presented by DanceHouse and The Cultch, is as much a contemporary artwork and philosophical epic as a fusion of circus and dance

DANCEJanet SmithJanuary 14, 2026DANCEHOUSE, DanceHouse, The Cultch, THE CULTCH, circus, Vancouver Civic Theatres, Homepage feature

The Dance Centre and PuSh Festival present Justine A. Chambers in The Brutal Joy, February 5 and 6

Choreographer’s latest creation is a dazzling blend of dance, lighting, and sound that draws on her Black matrilineal heritage

Capture Photography Festival unveils 2026 selected exhibitions

Marian Penner Bancroft, Angela Grossmann, Vance Wright, Maya Fuhr, and Simranpreet Anand among names showing at galleries and museums around town

Dozens of musicians and dancers take the stage for Celebrate Africa! at BlueShore at CapU, January 30

Big bands play West African music with guests Dawn Pemberton, Khari McClelland, and others

Photo exhibition shows breathtaking silhouettes at Le Centre culturel francophone de Vancouver, opening January 15

Between Lines and Horizons by French photographer Matthieu Rocher features images from his travels around the Pacific Northwest and Europe

Surrey Art Gallery highlights ancestral connections in remember the earth, remember the sky, launching January 17

On to March 22, group exhibition pairs pieces by early-career artists connected to Surrey with works by Salish artists

Cassie and Maggie bring rousing East Coast rhythms to the West, January 15 to 17

At the Kay Meek Arts Centre, Nova Scotian siblings blend old Celtic sounds with new influences

MUSICJanet SmithJanuary 12, 2026Kay Meek Arts Centre

Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park lands at Metro Theatre, January 24 to February 14

Romantic comedy set in 1960s New York City follows newlyweds navigating marriage, compromise, and the beautiful mess of learning how to live

THEATREStir VancouverJanuary 12, 2026Partner Content, Metro Theatre

Cellist Marina Hasselberg invites 35 listeners into the cozy world of a winter art-gallery concert

The intimate event takes place at VisualSpace Gallery on Dunbar Street, where an exhibition called Seasons is on view

MUSIC, ART & DESIGNJanet SmithJanuary 12, 2026Marina Hasselberg, VisualSpace Gallery

Dark comedy The Baking Show Show: The Play premieres with Ruby Slippers Theatre in February

Presented with the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts and Presentation House Theatre, Faly Mevamanana’s play centres on a cultural obsession with competition