Articles — Stir

Larger-than-life outdoor theatre adventure Me & The Forest comes to Granville Island, May 29 to June 14

Boca del Lupo returns to the outdoor stage in partnership with Korean puppet masters for five-metre-tall spectacle

Rising stars take the stage as Opera West honours Old Auditorium’s centenary, May 30

Finale of the storied UBC venue’s 100th-anniversary celebrations features celebrated soprano Simone Osborne and bass-baritone Gordon Bintner

WHAT'S STIRRING, OPERA, MUSICJanet SmithMay 22, 2026Opera West Society, UBC Opera

Tomoki Sanders Quartet brings its rich avant-garde sound to the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, June 25

New York–based multi-instrumentalist, the child of legendary saxophonist Pharoah Sanders, is joined by their band and the Todd Stewart Trio

Khatsahlano Street Party announces musical lineup for Wonderland-themed July 11 event

Performers at the 2026 edition include Uncle Strut, Felisha and the Jazz Rejects, Art d’Ecco, Brass Camel, Rich Hope, and many more

FESTS, MUSIC, NEWSJanet SmithMay 21, 2026Khatsahlano Street Party, West 4th BIA, Summer 2026

Vancouver Folk Music Festival gears up for versatile summer lineup, July 17 to 19

Artists hitting Jericho Beach Park range from Denmark’s Tina Dico and Ukraine’s Yagódy to Portland’s Anna Tivel and Jeffrey Martin

Hear the Orpheum’s original Wurlitzer accompanying The Lodger on May 25

The theatre’s organ was installed in 1927—the same year Alfred Hitchcock released his first thriller, about a Jack the Ripper–esque killer

SCREEN, WHAT'S STIRRINGJanet SmithMay 20, 2026Vancouver Civic Theatres, Orpheum Theatre

At the Museum of Anthropology, Jut-ke-Nay–Hazel Wilson weaves Haida history into robes

New exhibition I Use My Haida Eyes features 51 of the artist’s intricate works, which hold layers of cultural knowledge

ART & DESIGNJanet SmithMay 20, 2026MOA, Museum of Anthropology, UBC, Haida, Homepage feature

FakeKnot’s Ballroom culture–infused MY HOUSE premieres at The Dance Centre, June 19 and 20

Ralph Escamillan’s subversive, playful new work brings the Ball from the runway to the stage

Stir Cheat Sheet: 4 artists to check out at Art Vancouver 2026

These are just a few of the highlights at the 10th annual edition of the showcase of Canadian and international artists

ART & DESIGNStir VancouverMay 19, 2026Art Vancouver, Homepage feature

The Cinematheque hosts Love, Sex, Religion, Death: The Complete Films of Terence Davies, May 21 to June 28

Retrospective unites the late British filmmaker’s feature-length works, including A Quiet Passion and Distant Voices, Still Lives

SCREENStir VancouverMay 19, 2026Partner Content, The CInematheque, The Cinematheque, Summer 2026

Stir Cheat Sheet: Acrobatic officers to glowing islands, 4 shows to catch at the 2026 Vancouver International Children’s Festival

Event’s top works from across the country and the globe leap between juggling, circus, art installation, concert, and more

FESTS, MUSIC, THEATREStir VancouverMay 19, 2026Vancouver International Children's Festival

Bard on the Beach opens 2026 season with The Merry Wives of Windsor on the BMO Mainstage, starting June 9

Laugh-out-loud, music-filled production sets Shakespeare’s play in a fictional soccer-obsessed Vancouver suburb

THEATRE, FESTSStir VancouverMay 19, 2026Partner Content, Bard on the Beach, Shakespeare, Summer 2026

Jade Circle brings together dance, music, projections, and storytelling, at the Kay Meek Arts Centre May 20 to 22

Artist Jasmine Chen relearns Mandarin and discovers lost family history in multidisciplinary, personal show

DANCE, MUSIC, CULTURE, WHAT'S STIRRINGJanet SmithMay 17, 2026Kay Meek Arts Centre, rice & beans theatre

Outpouring of grief at news of cello innovator Cris Derksen's death

Reports are emerging that the musician, composer, and pillar of the Indigenous classical community passed away in car accident after father’s funeral in Northern Alberta

MUSIC, NEWSJanet SmithMay 16, 2026Cris Derksen, cello

Glitch Theatre showcases D/disability-identified artists with podcast recording on May 23

At the Roundhouse, Arc One will feature 10 short performances by new and emerging artists and will include poetry, stories, and essays

Stir Q&A: The Biting School’s Aryo Khakpour on Offending the Audience

The Vancouver director says there’s something “extraordinarily intimate” about Nobel Prize laureate Peter Handke’s 1966 “anti-play”

THEATREJanet SmithMay 15, 2026The Biting School, Tyrant Studios

In Corporeal Imago's Drift, an otherworldly landscape prevails over human bodies

At The Dance Centre, world premiere by Gabrielle Martin and Jeremiah Hughes moves away from aerial arts and toward conceptual innovation

DANCEJanet SmithMay 15, 2026THE DANCE CENTRE, The Dance CEntre, The Dance Centre, Corporeal Imago

Keith Alessi’s award-winning show draws on an inspirational true story at Western Gold Theatre, June 11 to 14

Tomatoes Tried to Kill Me But Banjos Saved My Life documents the creator’s retirement, cancer diagnosis, and pursuit of a long-deferred passion for music

THEATREStir VancouverMay 15, 2026Partner Content, Western Gold Theatre

Ballet BC unveils a 2026–27 40th season with works by Crystal Pite, William Forsythe, Imre and Marne van Opstal, and more

Principal dancers from the National Ballet of Canada perform a guest duet and artists-in-residence Margaret Grenier and Starr Muranko share a creation after their five-year collaboration with the troupe

DANCE, NEWSJanet SmithMay 14, 2026BALLET BC, Ballet BC