Things to Do in Vancouver this Weekend: August 24, 2017

It’s a very musical weekend with live acts every day from downtown to Playland at the PNE. There’s also a zombie walk, a Latin American film fest, and one Yaletown party that’s for dogs, their people, and everyone who loves them! This weekend is your last chance to catch some summer happenings this year – so scroll on down to the “ongoing” section to see what’s about to end – such as Theatre Under the Stars and morning yoga on Grouse mountain.

Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Ongoing

Friday August 25

Vancouver Latin American Film Festival
Where: Vancouver
What: This 11-day annual festival encourages dialogue among cultures, and explores and celebrates the art of contemporary Latin American and Latin-Canadian filmmaking.
Runs until: Sunday September 3, 2017

Vancouver Tap Dance Festival
Where: Vancouver
What: Recognized as one of the premier events of its kind, the Vancouver Tap Dance Festival history is one of dedication to the wonderment of the art form. Join classes, watch performances, and attend talks and workshops.
Runs until: Sunday August 27, 2017

Chicago
Where: The Fair at the PNE
What: After a day at The Fair – check out classic Chicago at the PNE.

Descendants
Where: Commodore Ballroom
What: Punk rock band formed in 1977 in Manhattan Beach, California.

Diamond Head
Where: The Rickshaw
What: British metal from the 70s.

Saturday August 26

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Vancouver Zombie Walk
Where: Downtown Vancouver
What: Dress like a zombie and amble around with your fellow undead!

Okavango African Orchestra
Where: The Imperial
What: Juno Award winners come to Vancouver with African sounds, beats, and instruments.

ArtStarts Presents: Fuzzy Bees and the Food Forest with Renée Sala
Where: ArtStarts Gallery
What:Artist Renée Sala from Crafty School of Art in Victoria uncovers the history and magic of wool. Use colourful unspun wool, lots of soap and water, and your own energy to create cute and cuddly, fuzzy bees. Groups of 8 kids at a time will be lead through the process, and the audience gets to learn, too. Ages 5 and up.

Colin James
Where: The Fair at the PNE
What: Hits such as Just Came Back, Voodoo Thing and more – free with admission at the PNE.

Home is Where the Habitat Is: Discovery Walk
Where: Stanley Park
What: Stanley Park is an island of forest on the edge of a city, surrounded by ocean, and isolated from other woods. Learn how Stanley Park provides habitat for many different animals amid these boundaries from nest cavities in a trunk to burrows underground.

Never Never Land 2: The Moon Dance
Where: Plaza of Nations
What: Fully interactive art installations, character dancers, and themed production. Come dressed up, or down and be ready to dance.

Swans
Where: Venue
What: Experimental, dark, strange and noisy.

Jedi Mind Tricks
Where: The Commodore Ballroom
What: Hip hop forged in Philadelphia, mid-90s.

San Cisco
Where: The Fox Cabaret
What: Pop music from the land down under.

Sunday August 27

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Pet-a-palooza
Where: 1100 Mainland
What: Go for the “running of the bulls” (French and English bulldog races) and wiener dog races and bring along your sociable pups to hang.

Birds of a Feather: Bird Babies
Where: Stanley Park
What: A walk to spot tiny bird babies as they begin to emerge from their nests.

Grizzly Bear Town
Where: The Cultch
What: Building upon aspects of Haida culture and language, and drawing influence from jazz, blues, folk, and rock, their music calls attention to a greater purpose: the need for all of us to work together over ethnic and cultural divides with deep love and creativity.

Alley Fest
Where: Red Gate Arts Society
What: An all-day, all-ages local music and performance festival.

Die Antwood
Where: Thunderbird Arena
What: Super quirky delightfully weird South African hip hop.

Voices at The Atrium
Where: 111 West Hastings
What: Music will be composed and performed to complement and incorporate the acoustics of this large reverberant space. The program will include the premiere of commissioned works by Jordan Nobles and Dean Thiessen as well as vocal works from the 16th and 17th century.

Charanga Habanera
Where: The Commodore Ballroom
What: A 14-person Cuban tropical exuberance against a background of Afro-Latin-Caribbean rhythms.

Huey Lewis and the News
Where: The Fair at the PNE
What: It’s hip to be square, so head to the carnival on a summer day and then check out this show – free with admission.

Pink Salmon Festival
Where: Across from the Maritime Museum
What: Enjoy pink salmon samplings donated by Canadian Fishing Company and prepared by well-known executive chefs including Robert Clark (The Fish Counter.) Barbeque will be available by donation with all proceeds supporting wild salmon conservation in British Columbia.

Sashiko Mending Workshop
Where: The Pie Shoppe
What: Explore the possibilities of Hitomezashi Sashiko (“one-stitch” style) as a form of functional embroidery. Students will learn pattern application and proper stitching technique by customizing their own tote-bags. These skills will then be used to repair or renew a garment brought from home.

Incredible Pie Championship
Where: Ontario St and 6th Ave.
What: Bring a pie or taste the pie and decide who are the champions. Besides all the people who get to eat pie.

Kidchella
Where: Langley Events Centre (Langley, BC)
What: Kidchella prides itself on being able to bring together quality children’s entertainment for families for an affordable price.

Ongoing

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Indigenous Plant Use
Where: Stanley Park
What: Walk through the forest with an experienced guide of Coast Salish descent and learn about the traditional and present-day Indigenous relationships with local flora and fauna. While there will be no collecting on these tours, Stanley Park offers a perfect setting to learn about sustainable harvesting.
Runs until: Friday August 25, 2017 (Fridays)

Theatre Under the Stars
Where: Stanley Park
What: Enjoy a delightful dose of entertainment this summer with two Broadway musicals. Mary Poppins and The Drowsy Chaperone will be performed live at the Malkin Bowl. A beloved Vancouver tradition since 1940, TUTS 2017 season promises song & dance in two family-friendly productions celebrating love and imagination.
Runs until: Saturday August 26, 2017

Story Walks
Where: The Shipyards and in Lynn Canyon Park
What: Free drop-in walks at The Shipyards are offered Saturdays and Sundays at 11 am and 1:30 pm. Meet at Lonsdale Ave. and Victory Ship Way. Free drop-in walks in Lynn Canyon Park are offered Wednesdays and Thursdays from July 6th to August 24th at 11 am and 1:30 pm. Meet across from the Lynn Canyon Café.
Runs until: Sunday August 27, 2017

Peak Yoga on Grouse Mountain
Where: Grouse Mountain
What: Enjoy 60 minute yoga classes led by YYoga instructors, every Saturday and Sunday from 10:00-11:00 am. Whether you need a great post-Grind cool down or would just love to experience a different yoga venue at one of the city’s most spectacular locations, these 60-minute class are bound to enhance your physical well-being and kick start your weekend.
Runs until: Sunday August 27, 2017

Social Sundays
Where: VanDusen Gardens
What: Summer sounds, signature cocktails, and lawn games.
Runs until: Sunday August 27, 2017

Dance in Transit
Where: Various outdoor locations
What: A continuous supply of dancing during the warm months —at no cost. Watch it, try it, and see if you love it.
Runs until: Sunday August 27th, 2017

Vancouver Tap Dance Festival
Where: Vancouver
What: Recognized as one of the premier events of its kind, the Vancouver Tap Dance Festival history is one of dedication to the wonderment of the art form. Join classes, watch performances, and attend talks and workshops.
Runs until: Sunday August 27, 2017

Architectural Walking Tours
Where: Various locations
What: The Architectural Institute of British Columbia offers architectural perspectives of six Vancouver neighbourhoods including vibrant Chinatown, historical Gastown, trendy Yaletown, contemporary Downtown, lively West End and diverse Strathcona, the first neighbourhood in Vancouver.
Runs until: Thursday August 31, 2017

Nomadic Tempest
Where: The shore of South-East False Creek near Cambie bridge
What: A free, all-ages show performed on a 90-foot long Tall Ship. Nomadic Tempest is a mythical saga of monarch migrants—embodied by aerial artists—searching for refuge on a drowned planet.
Runs until: Sunday September 3, 2017

Vancouver Latin American Film Festival
Where: Vancouver
What: This 11-day annual festival encourages dialogue among cultures, and explores and celebrates the art of contemporary Latin American and Latin-Canadian filmmaking.
Runs until: Sunday September 3, 2017

The Fair at the PNE
Where: The PNE
What: The PNE, which has been on for over a century, offers a range of new and classic family entertainment, including more than 55 thrilling rides (including Canada’s largest pendulum ride, “The Beast,”) the Summer Night Concert series (featuring headliners such as The B52s, Mother Mother, The Pointer Sisters, The Doobie Brothers and ZZ Top), a craft beer festival, mouth-watering food from around the globe, the beloved Superdogs and more.
Runs until: Monday September 4, 2017

Xi Xanya Dzam – Those Who Are Amazing At Making Things
Where: The Bill Reid Gallery
What: Xi Xanya Dzam (pronounced hee hun ya zam) is the Kwak’wala word describing incredibly talented and gifted people who create works of art. The exhibition is both a showcase and a critical exploration of ‘achievement’ and ‘excellence’ in traditional and contemporary First Nations art.
Runs until: Sunday September 4, 2017

Pictures From Here
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Featuring photographs and video works from the early 1960s to the present that capture the urban environment of the Greater Vancouver region, its citizens and the vast “natural” landscape of the province.
Runs until: Sunday September 4, 2017

Jaad Kuujus: Meghann O’Brien
Where: Bill Reid Gallery
What: Meghann takes materials from the natural world and transforms them into pieces of high-level human expression. Working with traditional materials such as mountain goat wool and cedar bark has given her a deep connection to the supernatural world, a connection to her ancestors. She describes working with cedar bark as, “travelling back in time” or “touching the cosmos”. Her creations have a profound impact within contemporary Northwest Coast art and beyond.
Runs until: September 2017

Sunday Art Market
Where: Jim Deva Plaza
What: Local artists, vendors and makers, largely from Vancouver’s West End, along with musical and other live performances and artist-led workshops to drop into.
Runs until: September 2017

Panda International Night Market
Where: Richmond, BC
What: A diverse market in Richmond, with shopping, food, beverages, and a game zone.
Runs until: Monday September 11, 2017

Flora and Fauna: A Summer Art Show
Where: The Fall Tattooing and Artist Studio
What: An artistic summer celebration of all vibrant, colourful, living things.
Runs until: Friday September 15, 2017

Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival
Where: Vanier Park
What: What do you say to watching a live production of Much Ado About Nothing, The Winter’s Tale, The Merchant of Veniceor The Two Gentlemen of Veronain a custom-built tent on the beach while sipping wine, beer, and munching on a picnic lunch themed to the play? Yes! Right? After 28 years, this festival has hit a stride of near perfection (and don’t even get us started on the amazing costumes.)
Runs until: Saturday September 23, 2017

A Sublime Vernacular: The Landscape Paintings of Levine Flexhaug
Where: Contemporary Art Gallery
What: The first overview of the extraordinary career of Levine Flexhaug (1918 – 1974), born in the Treelon area near Climax, Saskatchewan. It brings together approximately 450 of the artist’s paintings as well as several of his mural-sized works. An itinerant painter, he sold thousands of variations of essentially the same landscape painting in national parks, resorts, department stores and bars across western Canada from the late 1930s through the early 1960s.
Runs until: Sunday September 24, 2017

Unbelievable
Where: The Museum of Vancouver
What: This exhibition poses provocative questions about our perception of stories by assembling iconic artifacts, storied replicas, and contested objects for a mind-bending exploration of the role stories play in defining lives and communities – and what happens when we question the tales we’ve long relied upon. Unbelievable objects include the Thunderbird totem pole that appeared in controversial filmmaker Edward Curtis’ 1906 work In the Land of the Head Hunters; contemporary ‘totems’, each with contrasting stories about a point in time in Vancouver; and artifacts illustrating the complex narrative around Vancouver’s relationship with First Nations communities.
Runs until: Sunday September 24, 2017

Uninterrupted
Where: Under the Cambie Street Bridge
What: After dusk, audiences will witness the extraordinary migration of wild Pacific salmon in a 30-minute cinematic spectacle that explores the connection between nature and our urban environments.
Runs until: Sunday September 24, 2017

Be Polite
Where: Contemporary Art Gallery
What: Working closely with the Estate of Gordon Bennett and IMA Brisbane the exhibition will comprise a selection of rare works on paper including drawing, painting, watercolour, poetry, and essays from the early 1990s through to the early 2000s.
Runs until: Sunday September 24, 2017

Works by Anna Milton
Where: VanDusen Gardens
What: Anna has been exhibiting and selling her work internationally since her college years. She trained and worked as an art therapist for many years and is interested in symbols and metaphor that are present in visual art.
Runs until: Wednesday September 27, 2017

Shipyards Night Market
Where: Lonsdale, North Vancouver
What: Food, art, music, entertainment, shopping, a beer garden, and you can bring your dog!
Runs until: September 29, 2017

ZimCarvings
Where: VanDusen Botanical Garden
What: Patrick Sephani along with visiting artist Peter Kananji will be showcasing works from over 30 Zimbabwean stone sculptors on the beautiful garden grounds and carving stone sculptures on site. All works will be available for purchase.
Runs until: Saturday September 30, 2017

Downtown Eastside Women’s Summer Fair
Where: Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre
What: Over twenty-five vendors and artisans from within the community, entertainment from local performers, an area for children to play, information booths about the different resources available in the community, and a wide variety of goods and services for purchase.
Runs until: Saturday September 30, 2017 (Saturdays)

Claude Monet’s Secret Garden
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: The most comprehensive exhibition of French painter Claude Monet’s work in Canada in two decades, Claude Monet’s Secret Garden will trace the career of this pivotal figure in Western art history. This exhibition will present thirty-eight paintings spanning the course of Monet’s long career from the unparalleled collection of the Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris.
Runs until: Sunday October 1, 2017

Stephen Shore: The Giverny Portfolio
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Twenty-five photographs by contemporary American photographer Stephen Shore produced during several visits to Impressionist painter Claude Monet’s famous gardens at Giverny, France. Showing concurrently with the exhibition Claude Monet’s Secret Garden, Stephen Shore: The Giverny Portfolio offers a contemporary perspective on the tranquility originally captured in Monet’s iconic paintings.
Runs until: Sunday October 1, 2017

Persistence
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Persistence draws together three recent contemporary installations to explore the surprising and creative ways that technologies, physical objects and natural processes endure and transform.
Runs until: October 1, 2017

Elad Lassry
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Investigating the nature of perception with a special focus on the photographic image within the digital era, the exhibition includes more than seventy works—films, photographs and sculpture—produced by Lassry over the last decade.
Runs until: Sunday October 1, 2017

Mount Pleasant Farmers Market
Where: Dude Chilling Park
What: Amble over and pick up some afternoon picnic supplies, groceries for the week, and Sunday dinner fixings from 25+ farms and producers. Each week you’ll find a fresh selection of just-picked seasonal fruits & veggies, ethically-raised meats & sustainable seafood, artisanal bread & prepared foods, craft beer, wine, & spirits, handmade craft, and coffee & food trucks.
Runs until: Sunday October 8, 2017

Traces of Words: Art and Calligraphy from Asia
Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology
What: Words and their physical manifestations are explored in this insightful exhibition, which will honour the special significance that written forms. Varied forms of expression associated with writing throughout Asia is shown over the span of different time periods: from Sumerian cuneiform inscriptions, Qu’ranic manuscripts, Southeast Asian palm leaf manuscripts and Chinese calligraphy from MOA’s Asian collection to graffiti art from Afghanistan and contemporary artworks using Japanese calligraphy, and Tibetan and Thai scripts.
Runs until: Monday October 9, 2017

Richmond Night Market
Where: Richmond, BC
What: There’s a dinosaur park! Anamatronic dinosaurs! Also – live performances, carnival games, over 200 retail stalls and over 500 food choices from around the world.
Runs until: October 9, 2017

Onsite / Offsite Tsang Kin-Wah
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: This large-scale composition transforms English texts to form intricate floral and animal patterns. The work draws from discriminatory language that appeared in newspapers and political campaigns in Vancouver during the 1887 anti-Chinese riots, the mid-1980s immigration influx from Hong Kong and most recently, the heated exchanges around the foreign buyers and the local housing market.
Runs until: Sunday October 15, 2017

West End Farmers Market
Where: 1100 Comox St
What: Located in the heart of Vancouver’s busy West End, this laid-back Saturday market looks onto beautiful Nelson Park and adjacent community gardens. Each week, shop for the best in local, seasonal produce, artisanal bread & prepared foods, craft beer, wine, & spirits, ethically raised meat, eggs, & dairy, sustainable seafood, wild crafted product, and handmade craft. Hot food & coffee on-site as well.
Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (Saturdays)

Trout Lake Farmers Market
Where: Trout Lake
What: This is where you’ll find the vendors who have been doing it since the beginning; what started as 14 farmers ‘squatting’ at the Croatian Cultural Centre back in 1995 has grown into Vancouver’s most well-known and beloved market. Visitors come from near and far to sample artisan breads & preserves, stock up on free-range and organic eggs & meats, get the freshest, hard-to-find heirloom vegetables and taste the first Okanagan cherries and peaches of the season.
Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (Saturdays)

Kitsilano Farmers Market
Where: Kitsilano Community Centre parking lot
What: A great selection of just-picked, seasonal fruits & vegetables, ethically raised and grass fed meat, eggs, & dairy, sustainable seafood, fresh baked bread & artisanal food, local beer, wine, & spirits, and beautiful, handmade craft. Kids and parents alike can enjoy entertainment by market musicians, a nearby playground and splash park, and coffee and food truck offerings each week.
Runs until: Sunday October 22, 2017 (Sundays)

The Lost Fleet Exhibit
Where: Vancouver Maritime Museum
What: On December 7, 1941 the world was shocked when Japan bombed Pearl Harbour, launching the United States into the war. This action also resulted in the confiscation of nearly 1,200 Japanese-Canadian owned fishing boats by Canadian officials on the British Columbia coast, which were eventually sold off to canneries and other non-Japanese fishermen. The Lost Fleet looks at the world of the Japanese-Canadian fishermen in BC and how deep-seated racism played a major role in the seizure, and sale, of Japanese-Canadian property and the internment of an entire people.
Runs until: Winter 2017

Bill Reid Creative Journeys
Where: The Bill Reid Gallery
What: Celebrating the many creative journeys of acclaimed master goldsmith and sculptor Bill Reid (1920–1998), this exhibition provides a comprehensive introduction to his life and work.
Runs until: Sunday December 10, 2017

Amazonia: The Rights of Nature
Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology
What: MOA will showcase its Amazonian collections in a significant exploration of socially and environmentally-conscious notions intrinsic to indigenous South American cultures, which have recently become innovations in International Law. These are foundational to the notions of Rights of Nature, and they have been consolidating in the nine countries that share responsibilities over the Amazonian basin.
Runs until: January 28, 2018

Emily Carr: Into the Forest
Where: Vancouver Art Gallery
What: Far from feeling that the forests of the West Coast were a difficult subject matter, Carr exulted in the symphonies of greens and browns found in the natural world. With oil on paper as her primary medium, Carr was free to work outdoors in close proximity to the landscape. She went into the forest to paint and saw nature in ways unlike her fellow British Columbians, who perceived it as either untamed wilderness or a plentiful source of lumber.
Runs until: March 4, 2018

Chief Dan George: Actor and Activist
Where: North Vancouver Museum
What: An exhibition exploring the life and legacy of Tsleil-Waututh Chief Dan George (1899- 1981) and his influence as an Indigenous rights advocate and his career as an actor. The exhibition was developed in close collaboration with the George family.
Runs until: April 2018

In a Different Light
Where: Museum of Anthropology
What: More than 110 historical Indigenous artworks and marks the return of many important works to British Columbia. These objects are amazing artistic achievements. Yet they also transcend the idea of ‘art’ or ‘artifact’. Through the voices of contemporary First Nations artists and community members, this exhibition reflects on the roles historical artworks have today. Featuring immersive storytelling and innovative design, it explores what we can learn from these works and how they relate to Indigenous peoples’ relationships to their lands.
Runs until: Spring 2019

What are you up to this weekend? Tell me and the rest of Vancouver in the comments below or tweet me directly at @lextacular