Vancouver Adventures: Our Picks for June 2 to 8

This week: rock the arena with a Canadian icon, explore local crime + more

1. Jazz Meets Gospel – Saturday, June 2

Featuring hits made famous by legendary performers like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Nina Simone, Jazz Meets Gospel will be filled with uplifting jazz and gospel numbers, and feature guest artist Daniel Lapp on the flumpet. The concert will include 130 voices overall, with Holy Cross High School’s ViBE Senior Choir also taking part.
Christ Church Cathedral, 690 Burrard Street, Vancouver; 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.; Tickets $25 for adults, with students & seniors $20 and children $10

2. Off Key: The Improvised Musical – Saturday, June 2

Witness the opening (and closing) night of a unique musical. Instant Theatre Company performs original musicals based on audience suggestions, so the script, lyrics and music are all improvised on the spot. Anything can happen when the music starts! Maybe it’ll be a heartbreaking love song or a high-stakes rap battle.
Havana, 1212 Commercial Drive, Vancouver; 10:30 p.m.: Tickets $10

3. Tom Jones – Saturday, June 2

“It’s not unusual” to pay a lot to see musical legends in Vancouver but if you want to see the king of Welsh crooners—and original “sex bomb”—Tom Jones then you’re going to need pretty deep pockets to catch him at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre this weekend.
Queen Elizabeth Theatre, 630 Hamilton Street, Vancouver; 7:30 p.m.; Tickets from $349

4. West of Main Art Walk – Saturday, June 2 & Sunday, June 3

West of Main Art Walk, now in its 26th year, opens the door to the studios of 60 talented visual artists—painters, potters, sculptors, fabric artists, photographers and more—who live and work west of Main Street. Come along to experience and enjoy artworks in garden studios, work spaces, galleries and gathering places from Point Grey to Main Street and from Granville Island to 41st Avenue.
Between Point Grey & Main Street and Granville Island & 41st Avenue, Vancouver; 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Free admission

5. Negroni Week – Monday, June 4 to Sunday, June 10

Restaurants and bars across the world will be offering their creative riffs on classic Negroni cocktails as part of the annual Negroni Week celebrations, which has raised nearly $1.5 million for charitable causes since launching in 2013. Uva Wine & Cocktail Bar, Wildebeest, Tuc Craft Kitchen, Juke Fried Chicken and Boulevard Kitchen & Oyster Bar are just a few of the local venues that will be participating in this year’s event.
Various locations, dates, times and prices

6. Pidgin & Heritage Asian Eatery Collab Dinner – Tuesday, June 5

Felix Shou, executive chef and co-owner of Heritage Asian Eatery, will bring his signature modern Eastern cuisine to Gastown’s Pidgin for an exclusive guest chef dinner with Pidgin executive chef Wesley Young. This five-course family style dinner features unique, Asian-inspired dishes such as albacore tuna with asparagus, scallion sauce and Japanese charcoal; sturgeon with curried tonkatsu broth; and roasted duck breast with Peking sauce, stuffed morels, alliums and scallion pancake. Guests can reserve a preferred seating time, between 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.
Pidgin, 350 Carrall Street, Vancouver; $65 per person; Reservations at 604-620-9400 or via email at info@pidginyvr.com

7. Bryan Adams: The Ultimate Tour – Wednesday, June 6

Celebrating 40 years of hits and a new album, Canada’s favourite rock star returns to Rogers Arena as part of this countrywide arena tour. Everything he’ll do, he’ll do it for you.
Rogers Arena, 800 Griffiths Way, Vancouver; 8 p.m.; Tickets from $45

8. World Oceans Day Beach Clean Up – Friday, June 8

Take part in the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup, in partnership with CPAWS BC, and remove litter from our shoreline to keep the ocean healthy for wildlife and the communities that depend on it. Meet in front of the English Bay change rooms, located just east of the Cactus Club and register online in advance.
English Bay, Vancouver; 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m.; Free registration

9. Victim Impact – Friday, June 8 to Sunday, June 17

Former notary public Rashida Samji drew family, friends and their communities into a vast web of deceit between 2003 and 2012, during the province’s largest Ponzi scheme in history. Over 200 people were ripped off in the scam, which involved over $110 million. Victim Impact is Theatre Conspiracy’s live documentary style theatre, which investigates mysterious aspects of this case, following it through the courts and down the money trail, while looking at the fallout for those affected.
The Historic Theatre at The Cultch, 1895 Venables Street, Vancouver; Nightly at 8 p.m. with a 2 p.m. matinee June 16th and no show June 11th; Tickets $34 for adults

10. Body Language: Reawakening Cultural Tattooing of the Northwest – Friday, June 8 to January 2019

Prior to the 1885 potlatch ban, the art of tattooing and piercing was integral to Northwest Indigenous ceremony and social rank. Today, these traditions are re-emerging not as mere decoration, but to provide healing, protection and a meaningful sense of belonging. Guest curator Dion Kaszas of the Nlaka’pamux First Nation traces the deep-rooted traditions of Indigenous tattooing, piercing and personal adornment in this exciting new show.
Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art, 639 Hornby Street, Vancouver; Various times; Free admission