Amour, acide et noix (Love, Acid and Nuts) | Daniel Léveillé | DanceHouse | Vancouver Playhouse | October 24 – 25, 2025 Four dancers stomp onto the stage and perform jump squats. Their feet slap down on the stage amidst the darkness and stark silence. The long pauses leave plenty of time for the audience to ponder the nudity that confronts us and consider its purpose. While there is a certain element of shock, it is quickly overtaken by the choreography’s meditative effect. Daniel Léveillé’s Amour, acide et noix is stark, daring, and visceral. Despite an overall serious tone and lack of facial expression, there are moments of humour that pop up throughout, all the more prominent amidst such a pared-down display of physical feats. As Vivaldi’s Four Seasons begins to play, the
Author: Tessa Perkins Deneault
The performance of a lifetime: all the Bard’s plays in 90 minutes
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] [again] | Bard on the Beach | Douglas Campbell Theatre | July 1 – September 20, 2025 “Attention Bard staff: code red. There is a goose behind the concession.” As we take our seats, the audience listens to staff trying to manage a goose incident over their radios. “Attention Bard staff: code green. The goose has been dispatched.” This is the perfect show for Bard regulars who can snicker at all the inside jokes, peer at props from past performances, and laugh at Christopher Gaze’s hilarious audio diary. A panel of
The Dark Lady cleverly illuminates a theory about Shakespeare’s creative partnership with Emilia Bassano
The Dark Lady | Bard on the Beach | Douglas Campbell Theatre | July 3 – September 19, 2025 “It smells like what knowledge should smell like,” says Emilia Bassano as she holds a book up to her nose. Emilia is a strong contender to be the infamous ‘dark lady’ referred to in Shakespeare’s sonnets. This story imagines them as lovers and creative partners. They are both passionate about the arts, poetry, and each other. Jessica B. Hill’s writing is quick-witted and full of smart references. This is the kind of play that would be worth reading to take it all
Two Gentlemen of the 1980s: Nostalgia and pop culture references at Bard on the Beach
The Two Gentlemen of Verona | Bard on the Beach | BMO Mainstage | June 13 – September 19 Mullets, 80s music, and a dog…in a Shakespeare play? This unconventional production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona directed by Dean Paul Gibson is infused with nostalgia and fun; it’s going to be Bard’s hit of the summer. Right off the top, we’re thrust into a 1980s mood with rousing music, colourful lights, and dancing. The fun continues with references and soundtracks from classic 80s movies sprinkled throughout, including the iconic “Oh Yeah” from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Carmen Alatorre’s costume design firmly
Comedy gold and a revised ending in Bard on the Beach’s Much Ado About Nothing
Much Ado About Nothing | Bard on the Beach | BMO Mainstage | June 10 – September 20, 2025 The transformative power of love is on full display in this new staging of Much Ado About Nothing, directed by Johnna Wright. Additional text by Erin Sheilds is seamlessly added in a final scene to provide a modern ending that more realistically aligns with today’s values. Jennifer Lines is back as the smart and stubborn Beatrice, engaging in a “merry war” of banter with Benedick (Sheldon Elter). Lines’ sunny smile and breezy delivery add a certain lightness to the role and to
Good vibrations and impressive duets in Joshua Beamish’s 20th anniversary gala
Joshua Beamish/Move The Company 20th Anniversary Gala | Vancouver Playhouse | May 29 & 30, 2025 Joshua Beamish/Move The Company brought together an impressive group of dance artists for this celebration of the company’s first 20 years. Presenting an array of works from across Beamish’s choreographic career, the earliest from 2007 and the most recent from 2022, the evening showed off the range of his choreographic styles, including a tender duet and an upbeat group number set to a Beach Boys compilation. In a most impressive reprisal, Amber Barton returns to the stage in Trap Door Party to reprise
Peeping Tom’s Diptych combines innovative choreography with surreal alternate realities
Diptych (The Missing Door and the Lost Room) | Peeping Tom | DanceHouse | Vancouver Playhouse | April 24 – 26, 2025 A man sits slumped over in his chair. A woman lies face down on the floor; she’s suddenly dragged away through a door. We are immediately drawn into the surreal world of Diptych, where the laws of gravity are flexible, and the boundaries of reality are stretched. In a setting where everything is a bit off kilter, the characters on stage grapple with their own personal demons while struggling to understand the events around them. The man who
Contemporary dance on ice: Le Patin Libre’s Murmuration is mesmerizing
Murmuration | Le Patin Libre | DanceHouse | Kerrisdale Cyclone Taylor Arena | March 20 – 23, 2025 A flock of 15 skaters glide effortlessly from one formation to another, crisscrossing and swirling around the rink. It’s mesmerizing to watch, incredible in its precision and awe-inspiring in its artistry. Murmuration is the latest creation from Montreal’s Le Patin Libre, a company melding figure skating with contemporary dance. In a gliding kaleidoscope of interwoven patterns, the skaters form concentric circles and move together and apart. At times they seem to glide slowly without moving their feet at all, imperceptible movements allowing them
Belle Spirale Dance Projects explores our interconnected place in the universe
Universus | Belle Spirale Dance Projects | Chutzpah Festival, Vancouver International Dance Festival, New Works | Vancouver Playhouse | March 21 – 22, 2025 Dancers walk down the theatre aisles carrying small plants lit with a single, small bulb and bringing life and breath into the space. Slowly, they ascend to the stage, gently placing the plants down to set the tone for a work that demonstrates the connection not only among all humans but among all living beings. Marisa Gold’s spoken word poetry makes clear the theme of interconnection in Alexis Fletcher’s Everything and Nothing: We hear a familiar voice emerge
Feathers fly in Circa’s Duck Pond
Duck Pond | Circa | DanceHouse | Vancouver Playhouse | January 22-25, 2025 Acrobatic feats, physical humour, emotive contemporary movement, burlesque, and sequined duck feet: Duck Pond is a true spectacle. Australia’s preeminent dance-circus company returned to Vancouver with another … adaptation of a classic ballet. Duck Pond is an artful mashup of Swan Lake and The Ugly Duckling. The company first wowed Vancouver audiences in 2023 with Sacre, a new version of the Rite of Spring — both co-presentations between DanceHouse and The Cultch. When an ugly duckling falls in love with a prince, the feathers fly — quite literally.