Home to the Vancouver Opera and Ballet BC, and hosting many guest artists, the Queen Elizabeth Theatre is located in a 1960s-built, Modernist venue. Adjacent to it, in an urbane yet cozy space, the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company hosts the Friends of Chamber Music, DanceHouse, and the Vancouver Recital Society.

Commodore Ballroom sign

The Commodore has been around for more than 75 years. Its eclectic national and international acts have included Talking Heads, Tina Turner, and Dizzy Gillespie, as well as Canada’s hottest bands and solo artists, and world music performers. Tickets required (For further details see Commodore Ballroom).

This 1930s movie house was restored to its former elegance in the 1990s. It is now home to the Arts Club Theatre Company’s classic and contemporary dramas, comedies, and musicals. The Stanley is one of the city’s most nostalgic venues, remembered fondly by many oldtimers.

This huge venue is home to the Vancouver Canucks National Hockey League team. The arena is also one of the busiest entertainment venues in North America: since 1995, the venue has hosted some 170 concerts and events each year.

BC Place

A Vancouver landmark, this stadium opened in 1983. Its covering, which is now retractable, is the largest air-supported roof in the world. Football is the main attraction, featuring the BC Lions, as well as major concerts and trade shows. The stadium converts in a few hours from a 60,000-seat football field to a 30,000-seat concert bowl.

Canadian and international theater and dance, as well as local and world music, are all presented in this renovated 1909 Methodist church, which now has a studio stage. The “Cultch” is one of the first LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified arts centers in Canada.

Restored to Baroque grandeur, the Orpheum is a lush, former Vaudeville palace built in 1926. Vancouver-born Hollywood star Yvonne de Carlo was an usherette here briefly in the late 1930s. Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and choral concerts, rock shows, and other quality musical events are performed here in the acoustically upgraded space.

This heritage fire station, circa 1906, is now an innovative Gastown theater. Modern plays, many by home-grown talents, reflect cultural diversity through comedy and drama. The 175-seat studio theater includes an outdoor stage. A cozy, licensed lounge offers a chance to mix with local theater-goers.

The Arts Club Theatre Company’s 440-seat Granville Island Stage and its more intimate 198-seat Revue Stage, prove theatre doesn’t have to be formal. New and classic comedies, dramas, and musicals are featured at both venues.

In this striking, cylindrical, three-venue center music is performed in the glorious 1,200-seat Chan Shun Concert Hall, whose adjustable acoustic canopy allows all types of music to sound their best. A small, experimental theater and a cinema round out the entertainment venues.