Fall in Vancouver: Arts & Culture

October 3, 2019
DV
ByDestination Vancouver
4 min read
Credit: Clint Trahan/ Tourism Vancouver

Fall marks the beginning of a colourful season for the arts in Vancouver. There is certainly no shortage of things to see and experience in the city this upcoming year. The Vancouver Art Gallery kicked off fall with the introduction of two new exhibitions: Transits and Returns and Cindy Sherman.

Transits and Returns, an Exhibition of Twenty-One Indigenous Artists from BC and Beyond, is a collaboration with the Institute of Modern Art, Brisbane that connects Indigenous art practices from across the Pacific. The Exhibition features local First Nations artists, as well as those from communities located as far as Alutiiq territory in Alaska to the Māori lands in the south. Transits and Returns includes works in photography, installation, weaving, sculpture, video, and more. The exhibition is on view to the public now until February 23, 2020.

The Vancouver Art Gallery presents Cindy Sherman in collaboration with the National Portrait Gallery, London on view to the public from October 26 to March 8, 2020. Cindy Sherman is an acclaimed retrospective of more than 170 works by the American artist known for her conceptual portraits. This exhibition focuses on Sherman’s manipulation of her own appearance and her deployment of material derived from a range of cultural sources, including film, advertising, and fashion. This is the first retrospective of Sherman’s work in Canada in twenty years.

Vancouver TheatreSports recently announced the lineup for the 2019 International TheatreSports Institute Festival, taking place on October 15-20, 2019 in Vancouver. Theatre-goers can catch the festival on Granville Island at VTS' home theatre The Improv Centre, as well as The Waterfront Theatre, and The Nest (with the exception of El Jaguar, which takes place on a bus!).

The International TheatreSports Institute (ITI) is the largest improv network in the world, representing 90 improv companies, schools, and universities from 22 countries on six continents. The ITI conference and festival takes place every two years, bringing together improvisers from around the world. This year’s festival features more than 50 public performances from improvisers from Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Germany, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland, UK, and the U.S.A. For complete festival details, click here.

The annual Lumière Festival returns to light up Vancouver for its sixth year from November 1 – 3, 2019. The event showcases over 25 interactive artistic light installations throughout downtown and the West End. Lumière is family-friendly and can be spotted at four main Vancouver sites: English Bay, Jim Deva Plaza, Lot 19, and šxʷƛ̓ənəq Xwtl’e7énḵ Square (formerly known as the North Plaza of the Vancouver Art Gallery). Each of the site’s interactive art installations has its own theme: Nature, Pride, Local, and Interactive. There will be a free outdoor dance party each night of the festival hosted by Public Disco at Deva Plaza in Davie Village. Guests can view the installations from 5:00 PM – 10:00 PM each night of the event, however, select installations will remain on display for the remainder of the fall season for spectators to enjoy.

Lastly, Vancouver’s The Clutch presents East Van Panto: Pinocchio (Theatre Replacement Vancouver) at the York Theatre on Commercial Drive from November 20 – January 5, 2020. This is East Van Panto’s seventh consecutive year following last year's performance of The Wizard of Oz. The production is a reimagination of the classic Pinocchio, that puts an “East Van” flare on the beloved story. “When a lonely old ice cream vendor named ‘Gelatto’ is given a puppet by the mysterious ‘Beckwoman’ of Commercial Drive, his dreams of having a child suddenly come true. Join a locally famous cricket, an angry orca, and a dastardly fox as poor Pinocchio does his best to tell everyone the truth and become a real boy. But why are Pinocchio’s limbs always growing? Will there be a Cappuccino War between the ‘Abruzzos’ and the ‘Calabrias’? And why are all those kids ditching class to go to Hastings Racecourse? Don’t worry, Pinocchio – just follow your nose!

For an extensive list of festivals and events, click here.

Vancouver fall arts
Vancouver Art Gallery
Indigenous art
Cindy Sherman exhibition
Lumière Festival
Vancouver TheatreSports
East Van Panto
cultural events