The show must go on.
The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts has announced its new season, with a host of performances lined up for January to May.
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Shadbolt is continuing with its dual live and livestreamed performances, giving audiences a chance to decide between attending live, in-person shows or watching virtually from their own homes.
The centre is also continuing to follow public health orders and has capped all in-person shows at 50% until directives change. Vaccine passports are required, and masks must be worn.
The new year of shows launches on Saturday, Jan. 29, with an evening of music featuring Lache Cercel and the Roma Jazz Ensemble. Cercel, a Romanian-Canadian violin virtuoso, teacher and composer, created the new musical genre “Roma jazz” by merging Eastern influences with Western classical traditions.
That show is followed on Thursday, Feb. 3 by Beau Wheeler. Wheeler is a queer, non-binary composer whose grandfather played piano with Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis Jr. Wheeler, who recently came out as trans, is about to release two new albums, and this concert will launch a music video.
Then, on Sunday, Feb. 6, audiences can enjoy a performance by jazz artists Lucy Yeghiazaryan and Grant Stewart.
Tickets are available for both live and livestreaming performances for all three concerts.
Other highlights of the season ahead:
ADVANCE THEATRE FESTIVAL
Monday, Feb. 7 to Friday, Feb. 11, 8 p.m. nightly – online only
Ruby Slippers Theatre, in partnership with Playwrights Guild of Canada and the Vancouver Fringe Festival, presents the Advance Theatre Festival, showcasing dramatic readings of five new plays, written and directed by diverse theatre artists.
- Monday, February 7: Bibliomancer, by Scheherazaad Cooper: A young girl with a love of books discovers a family secret that reveals a buried past - and hidden powers.
- Tuesday, February 8: In The Shadow of The Mountains, by Valerie Sing Turner: It's 1998. A family gathers to figure out what to do about Ester, a Chinese-Canadian Second World War veteran, as they can no longer ignore her growing dementia.
- Wednesday, February 9: Dil Ka, by Lee Nisar: Dil Ka (Urdu for “of the heart”) follows a potential bride-to-be, Zahra, a 26-year-old Pakistani woman who is attempting to make biryani for a potential suitor.
- Thursday, February 10: Black Skin Deep, by Shayna Jones: A real-life revelation of one woman's reckoning with her black skin, her mother and a mermaid.
- Friday, February 11: A Funny Thing Happened On My Way To Canada, by Grace Chin: An “epically everyday” Gen X immigrant tale.
JAZZ AT THE ’BOLT
Friday, Feb. 11 to Sunday, Feb. 13
The Shadbolt Centre joins forces with Cory Weeds and the Cellar Music Group to present this festival, featuring a lineup of 25 top acts from across the continent and from Vancouver’s own flourishing jazz scene – with headliners from New York City. Shows take place Friday evening, and through the day and evening on Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets are available for both in-person and online attendance. Prices range from $20 to $100 for individual concerts, all-day or all-weekend tickets.
MORE CONCERTS AND PERFORMANCES
And here’s what’s coming up later in the season …
February 23 to 26: Tuning
In this intimate duet, dance artists Alexis Fletcher and Ted Littlemore explore how we tune in to one another in our relationships.
February 26 to March 5: Gianni Schicchi and Pagliacci CANCELLED
Burnaby Lyric Opera has now cancelled its plans for an operatic double-bill in light of current circumstances.
March 16: Molly Johnson
Known as one of Canada’s greatest voices, Johnson – along with her band – brings an explosion of funk, soul and groove to the Shadbolt in this highly anticipated night of jazz.
March 31: Ndidi O
Women’s Country Music Artist of the Year, Ndidi Onukwulu brings her own unique combination of surf music, electric blues, gospel and country to the ‘Bolt.
April 20 to 23: Same Difference
Theatre Conspiracy delves into themes of self-alienation, isolation, togetherness and otherness in the immigrant and refugee experience.
April 27 to 30: Peace Country
Rice and Beans Theatre’s Peace Country is a topical play that follows the lives of childhood friends who grew up in small-town northern BC.
May 3 to 7: K Body and Mind – A Wake of Vultures / Conor Wylie
The story of a futuristic hero fighting to save her shareable bodies from a mind-stealer.
May 4: OKAN
OKAN is a women-led ensemble that fuses Afro-Cuban roots with jazz, folk and global rhythms in songs about immigration, courage and love.
May 25 to 28: Spooky Action
Inverso Productions presents Einstein’s quantum physics as interpretive dance in this witty re-interpretation of Spooky Action.
Follow Julie MacLellan on Twitter @juliemaclellan.
Email Julie, [email protected].
NOTE: This story was updated Jan. 21 with information about the cancellation of Burnaby Lyric Opera's production.
