The Best Arts and Culture Events of 2024, According to Our Editors

We’re lucky enough to have Kerri Donaldson on staff here at Vanmag, putting together amazing lists each month, telling us exactly what great events are happening in the worlds of music, comedy, drag and theatre. What she refuses to do for us, though, is help us rank exactly what the best of those events actually were, now that we’re here at the end of the calendar year. (Rude.) Below, our editors try their very best to pick a fave show, festival or party from a long, very fun list of 2024 happenings. And if we get it wrong, blame Kerri for leaving us on our own.

The Cultural Events of 2024 That Our Editors Can’t Stop Thinking About

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Mike Birbiglia (@birbigs)

Mike Birbiglia at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre

I know it’s not exactly breaking news that Mike Birbiglia is a master storyteller, but this is not a round-up of the best hidden gems or hot new comics, is it? It’s a list of the best cultural events we attended this year, so I’m allowed to say something really obvious: Birbiglia is very funny and very charming and poignant and silly I had a great time watching him back in January ruminate on fatherhood and heater repair and what it means to age. He’s tragically not on this year’s Just for Laughs Vancouver lineup, but next time he rolls through, grab that ticket—we came home from the Queen E just in awe of his sweet mix of dad-joke goofiness and deft storytelling and spent the next few days rewatching his specials. The gift that keeps on giving? —Stacey McLachlan, editor-in-chief 

Home By Midnight‘s Early Riser Dance Party at the Anza

A sleeper hit (pun intended), this night of dancing and debauchery in the early evening hours was memorable because I actually remember it—meaning I didn’t drink so much that I forgot everything, including the non-stop dancing from the moment I walked through the Anza doors and hung up my coat. With only a few breaks (mostly to dance in line for a drink), this event is a godsend for anyone in their 30s—or anyone who needs to be up before 10 a.m. for kids, pets, work or the daily battle against existential dread. It’s responsible partying: it starts early, so you can still get a little wild but within a more respectable time frame. I covered it in our So Fun City feature, so you can read all about DJ Danice Carlson-Malena (aka DJ WhySoSerious) and her no-skip banger setlist (Beyoncé, Robyn, ABBA—you get it), and the fun, wedding-reception dance vibes. See you at the next one!—Kerri Donaldson, assistant editor

Brewery and the Beast

I know a lot of people will talk about which concerts they went to (my fave was Weezer) or festivals (my fave wasn’t in Vancouver, so I shall not mention it!), but I watch my inbox like a hawk when Brewery and the Beast pre-sale tickets are released—this is my favourite event of the year, every year. Despite the heavy downpour and the fact that I was freezing cold, in every picture of my water-logged face, I am smiling from ear to ear. It was by far still most delicious day of 2024, and that’s saying a lot because I sort of eat (and write about it!) for a living. If you haven’t been, I’ll give you the briefest of overviews: the city’s top chefs all come together and barbecue their hearts out, making one-off treats that are mind-blowingly good (my partner and I still gush about the Rueben-ish dish the Boulevard did in 2022). But if you want more info, Alyssa Hirose wrote up a fabulous guide to get the best bang for your buck at the event next year. —Dani Wright, managing editor

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Ballet BC (@balletbc)

Crystal Pite’s Frontier with Ballet BC

If there’s a Crystal Pite dance premiering on any given year, then chances are it will make my Best Of list. The three dances that Ballet BC presented for its series, Dawn, in early November, were all captivating tales that explored human nature, sexuality and more—and Ballet BC’s company has an elegant athleticism that’s truly jaw-dropping no matter who’s choreographing them. But as soon as black-hooded dancers crawled out of the front row for the final act in the series, Pite’s 24-dancer-strong Frontier, it was clear why the Vancouverite is one of the most in-demand choreographers in the world (and made our Power 50 list this year. “I want to portray something that cannot be portrayed—something that by its very nature demands that it be unknown,” Pite noted in the program. “What the audience will see onstage is just an impression of what the unknown looks like, feels like, to me.” It was the kind of ephemeral experience that had my heart pounding in my chest: the way she manages to characterize dark matter—”the personification of shadows”—has stuck to me like those self-same shadows that follow us through life. —Anicka Quin, VP content