Rickie Wang and Sharon Crandall in Elf: The Musical, 2023: set design by Brian Ball; costume design by Christine Reimer; lighting design by Itai Erdal; photo by Moonrider Productions for the Arts Club Theatre Company
In The Community
Current and Ongoing
The Arts Club makes theatre accessible to our communities through our Open Theatre program. This program offers complimentary tickets to Arts Club shows to organizations that work with equity-deserving communities who face financial barriers to enjoy live theatre.
For the 2021–2022 season, we provided over 400 Open Theatre tickets to a variety of communities. Here are some testimonials from participants:
"It was wonderful to get the opportunity to see a live play, and to be at the beautiful Stanley theatre. I felt very pampered. Thank you for a wonderful night out!"
"I would like to thank the Arts Club for making tickets available to the Kettle Society, and myself, for Made in Italy. I would not have been able to attend this performance without the generosity and community spirit of the Arts Club. It is much appreciated."
To submit an Open Theatre ticket request, please contact Mikenzie Page, Education Coordinator, at mpage@artsclub.com. Tickets are given on a case-by-case basis.
Other community engagement programs for youth include the Arts Club Drama Club, which offers students from equity-deserving communities access to drama education on their home turf, and the Grant Burnyeat Student Series, which provides VSB secondary schools with complimentary tickets to Arts Club shows.
Past Events
You used to call me Marie…
In celebration of our presentation of You used to call me Marie..., we hosted an Artist Market featuring three local Indigenous artisans! and we offered a free workshop: Land, Body, and Spirit- A Métis Workshop with Ceanna Wood & Jill Goranson.
Spring Workshop Series 2025
The Spring Workshop Series offered an amazing array of AFFORDABLE pay-what-you-choose workshops for youth and adults at the BMO Theatre Centre.
Fates Fest 2024
Fates Fest was a theatre festival/celebration dedicated to the advancement of femme and non-binary voices in key creative roles. Promethean Theatre programmed three brand NEW femme works in development that were showcased at the BMO Theatre Centre. During the daytime, the ACTC Youth Committee, Bramble Theatre Collective, Momentum 180 Collective, and YVR Fat Clothing Swap offered free workshops, panels, and events for the community to engage, learn, and come together while celebrating the strength and joy of femme and non-binary voices.
Summer Workshop Series 2024
The Summer Workshop series offered AFFORDABLE pay-what-you-can workshops such as: Acting Is Embarrassing!, Desk Jokes to Survive Dark Times and Devising Theatre.
Spring Workshop Series 2024
The Spring Workshop Series specialized class was designed to empower participants by addressing their concerns and challenges in dance auditions, ensuring a transformative learning experience.
Fat Clothing Swap 2023
The Arts Club partnering with YVR Fat Clothing Swap and Steffanie Davis, playing Isabelle in Someone Like You, hosted a plus-sized clothing swap. Participants were able to browse and pick items from the donated clothing and browsed local size inclusive vendors.
Summer Workshop Series 2023
The Summer Workshop series offered seven FREE workshops, taught across three days such as: Enhancing your acting skills, Channeling your inner villain, Learning how to juggle and perform magic tricks.
Spring Workshop Series 2023
The Spring Workshop Series offered FREE theatre workshops for youth and adults: Climate theatre: embodying the world around us, Finding character in choreography, Speaking and Singing in a character voice, The director’s first steps, The generous playwright and Three-ring theatre.
Deaf-Led Theatre Workshop
In 2023, the Arts Club was proud to offer a free workshop series for Deaf community members who wanted to learn how to create and develop work for the theatre.
This 9-week workshop was led by Christian Vasquez, a Deaf theatre maker and performer. There was a cabaret-style showcase at the Newmont Stage at the BMO Theatre Centre on July 30, 2023. Here is just one sample of the work that was shared at the showcase.
Indigenous Stew Pot
Indigenous Stew Pot celebrated Indigenous voices at this cabaret-style event. It featured a variety of performances from local Indigenous artists, and was hosted by Gregory Coyes (Métis/Cree). This event complemented the production Rubaboo at the Granville Island Stage.
Disability Artists Market 2023
Five local artists who live with various disabilities showcased their artwork from hour before showtime and post-show for 30 minutes in the Newmont Stage atrium for the production of Teenage Dick.
Crip Cabaret: A Reclamation! 2023
Come experience disability art and justice as we gather to tell our stories through song, poetry, monologues, and so much more! A one-night only event of artists from the disability community showcasing their talent, this event complemented the production of Teenage Dick. It was hosted by Amy Amantea, a creator/performer who lives with legal blindness, neurodiversity, chronic illness, and pain.
Photo by Moonrider Productions
The Big Question: Barriers to Theatre Faced by the Deaf and Disability Community 2022
Why aren't there more people with disabilities/disabled people in the arts was a panel of theatre makers and creatives on how to make the theatre community more inclusive and accessible, and how we can increase representation of the Deaf and disability community in all that we do. We share our experience of barriers to all things theatre and celebrate our successes.
Artists for Afghanistan
In collaboration with Carey Perloff, the director of the American Conservatory Theater's production of A Thousand Splendid Suns, and Haysam Kadri, the director of the Arts Club's, we’ve produced this video to help the theatre community support the ongoing crisis both within Afghanistan and amongst refugees. Three short sections of the novel A Thousand Splendid Suns are being read that speak to this moment. Reading these sections are Afghan-American actors Fatima Wardak, Yousof Soultani, and Kris Zarif.
We encourage you to take the time to watch this video and learn more about organizations supporting Afghan refugees.
afghancoalition.org
rescue.org/country/afghanistan
jfcs.org
lirs.org
catholiccharitiesusa.org/our-vision-and-ministry/immigration-refu
Unacceptable Views Amongst Friends 2022
"Unacceptable Views Amongst Friends" was a cabaret-style event featuring some of Vancouver's finest musicians, poets, and performers presenting pieces about talking to friends who hold opposing viewpoints. How do we disagree with people we love in ways that are agreeable?
Hosted by Redbone Coonhound co-playwright and co-director Omari Newton, this event celebrated the premiere of the show. Performers included Chelsea D.E Johnson, Sonya Littlejohn, Scribbly doodle, Ndidi Cascade, and David Morin!
Good Epiphany Cabaret 2022
Rose Butch; photo by Ray McEachern Photography
To kick off Pride Week, we brought a selection of this city's most exciting drag performers to the Arts Club. Hosted by Rose Butch, the Good Epiphany Cabaret featured the talents of Jaylene Tyme, Mx Bukuru, King Fisher, Kara Juku, and even some members of the Kinky Boots company.
Master Workshop Series 2021–2022
Photo by Albert Normandin
The Master Workshop Series was a unique program offered by the Arts Club and Arts Umbrella! This eight-class series offered budding actors aged 13–18 a chance to hone their skills and learn from the industry’s best as they explore podcasting, puppetry, fight choreography, physical theatre, and more!
The Shoe Project (2019–2020, 2021–2022, 2023–2024, 2024-2025)
Photo by Jenn Walton
The Shoe Project is an inspirational night of storytelling about immigration and resilience. It brings to the stage twelve amazing women who share their stories of arrival and adaptation to Canada—through a pair of shoes.
From India, Kurdistan in Iran, Eritrea, Bangladesh, Syria, Sudan, Ukraine, Afghanistan and more, the performers have been coached by writing and performance professionals. Their stories of migration will walk you far beyond your daily experience, as they speak to minds and hearts.
The Shoe Project is generously supported by The Fund of Gender Equality. The Fund for Gender Equality is supported by a collaboration between Community Foundations of Canada and the Equality Fund, with support from the Government of Canada.
Symposium: Theatre and Accessibility in a Digital World, October 2019
Photo by Moonrider Productions
“How can we use digital technology to provide access for theatre patrons, artists, and community members living with disabilities who currently encounter barriers to the traditional theatre experience?” This question was explored during the symposium, organized jointly by the Arts Club and Bard on the Beach, in October 2019.
This symposium was made possible by the generous support from the Canada Council’s Digital Strategy Fund
Culture Days, September 2019
Photo by Hila Graf
Our special Culture Days event aimed to spread the joy of theatre with the Arts Club Fun House at the BMO Theatre Centre, an interactive session for adults and children. Our amazing staff presented costumes, props, and special effects and shared the magic of theatre-making!
Citizenship Ceremony (2018, 2019)
Photo by Dan Toulgoet
It has been an honour for the Arts Club to host Citizenship Ceremonies. In 2019, we celebrated with 36 new Canadians at the BMO Theatre Centre.
