Bear Witness, A Tribe Called Red, and Jackson 2Bears are just a few of the DJs that will be spinning at the Vancouver Art Gallery (750 Hornby Street) after hours on Friday (February 24). The gallery’s latest FUSE event—called Beat Nation: Art Hip Hop, and Aboriginal Culture—brings live music, dance, and art to the city center for one night only from 8:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Beat Nation performers include Jackson 2Bears, a Victoria-based Kanien’kehaka (Mohawk) artist and DJ who will supply both music and visuals; multimedia artist and filmmaker Bear Witness, who will show off his DJ’ing skills at FUSE; DJ collective A Tribe Called Red, which remixes Native American drum circles with dubstep; Juno Award-winning Dedos, who is recognized as one of Canada’s graffiti and b-boy pioneers; Tlingit/Aleut multimedia artist Nicholas Galanin, who performs on guitar as Silver Jackson; and multidisciplinary Tsimshian/Gitskan and Cree artist Skeena Reece, who will bring humor through clowning.

FUSE tickets are $17.50 or free for VAG members. Tickets can be purchased in advance online as a General Adult Admission ticket for February 24, or at the doors upon arrival at the event.

It’s getting harder to remember a time when the Internet didn’t exist. A time before Tweeting, and Skyping, and hot yoga, and television. Ignorance, by The Old Trout Puppet Workshop, is puppet theatre about the evolution of happiness—namely, when we lost it and how we might get back to it again.

Ignorance looks to our prehistoric ancestors—grunting, bone-gnawing cavemen—to explain where we went wrong.

The Old Trout Puppet Workshop started in Alberta in 1999 when a group of friends began carving puppets and using their creations to tell stories. Ignorance is the Old Trout’s first attempt at open creation: the entire show has been written on the web for readers to comment, criticize, and contribute to.

Ignorance runs at The Cultch’s Historic Theatre (1859 Venables Street) from February 28 to March 4, 6 to 10 at 8 p.m., with matinee shows at 2 p.m. on March 3 and 10. Tickets start at $16 and can be purchased online or by calling the Cultch box office at 604-251-1363.

A treat for the eyes and ears in the truest sense, the Cinesonika 2 Film Festival not only celebrates movies, but the soundtracks that play along to what’s happening onscreen.

This year’s festival will be held at the Westminster Savings Credit Union Theatre, a 200-seat theatre at Simon Fraser University’s Surrey campus, on Sunday (February 19). The one-day festival brings together 42 films from 12 countries, with screenings from noon until midnight.

All of the films and videos chosen have unique soundtracks, sound design, scores, or approaches to the sound-image relationship. This year’s offerings include Alessandro Amaducci’s Fear of Me, Not With a Bang, Pagan Inner, and Shedding; James Cook’s Edo Bardo: Stream of Baubles in the Night; Rubaiyat Houssain’s MeherJaan; Amanda Belantara’s Ears Are Dazzled, Touched by Sound; Xuan Chen’s Out; and Roxy in the Box’s The Secret of Love.

Admission to the Cinesonika 2 Film Festival is free, with donations accepted at the door.

The 11th annual Talking Stick Festival takes place from February 20 to March 4 at various Vancouver venues including the Roundhouse Community Arts & Recreation Centre (181 Roundhouse Mews), The Cultch (1895 Venables Street), the Holiday inn Hotel and Suites Vancouver Downtown (1110 Howe Street), and Grandview School (2055 Woodland Drive).

The festival celebrates Aboriginal communities using various disciplines, including dance, comedy, music, and slam poetry. New to this year’s festival are three, critically acclaimed theatre pieces: Metis Mutt, Sheldon Elter’s one-man show, which runs from February 21 to 22; In a World Created by a Drunken God, by Canadian Frist Nations playwright Drew Hyden Taylor, which runs from February 23 to 25; and Chocolate Woman Dreams the Milky Way, a new show by Monique Mojica on from February 28 to March 3.

The 14-day festival also features an art exhibition at the Roundhouse with nine Indigenous artists, including Rebecca Belmore, Lance Cardinal, Merritt Johnson, Peter Morin, Dionne Paul, Michelle Sylliboy, Janice Toulouse, Charlene Vickers, and Xwalacktun (Rick Harry). Along with the many other diverse live performances are an artist talk series and workshop series for emerging artists.

Tickets to all events are available online or by phone at either Tickets Tonight, the Cultch, or Full Circle.

Artists gather at the Norman and Annette Rothstein Theatre (950 West 41st Avenue) and select Metro Vancouver venues from February 11 to March 4 for the Chutzpah! Festival. The 12th annual event celebrates music, theatre, and dance with performances by internationally acclaimed troupes such as L.A.’s Body Traffic and Holland’s Noords Nederlandse Dans, and artists including Israel’s Hadag Nahash and New York’s The Sway Machinery.

The festival kicks off with A Blessing on the Moon, The Colour of Poison Berries, featuring the Warsaw Village Band. This world premiere based on Joseph Skibell’s novel, A Blessing on the Moon, blends music and theatre in the search for peace and wisdom in the afterlife. Meanwhile, fans of South African-born Warren Kimmel’s theatrical career won’t want to miss Don’t Call Us, We’ll Call You: A Musical Journey of Life in the Theatre starring Warren Kimmel. This cabaret-style show is directed by Wendy Bross Stuart and features vocalist Tess Neff, percussionist Phil Belanger, and bassist Alison Dalton.

On the dance program is the double bill Monger and Thank You, You’re Not Welcome. Nine dancers from Body Traffic will perform the Canadian premiere of Monger, a piece by one of Israel’s most celebrated choreographers Barak Marshall. Following Monger, Vancouver’s Noam Gagnon from Holy Body Tattoo, will perform his newest full-length work, Thank You, You’re Not Welcome, based on the Brothers Grimm. In another performance, fourteen dancers from Noord Nederlandse Dans will dance new work by Stephen shropshire and Israeli choreographer Emanuel Gat.

Tickets range from $16 to $40 and can be purchased online, by phone at 604-684-2787 or 604-257-5145, or in-person at the Chutzpah! Festival box office at the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver (950 West 41st Avenue).

Hunchback is a musical adaptation of Victor Hugo’s novel, but it bares no similarities to Disney’s take on The Hunchback of Notre Dame.

Decidedly darker and more romantic, Catalyst Theatre’s Hunchback is set in the shadows of the Notre Dame Cathedral. While the musical still centres around a tormented priest, a seductive dancer, and a deformed bell ringer named Quasimodo, Hunchback is a story about destiny, lust, fear, and obsession.

Hunchback is presented with and performed at the Vancouver Playhouse (600 Hamilton Street) from February 18 to March 10, with evening performances on selected days at 8 p.m., and matinee performances on selected days at 2 p.m. Tickets are available online or by calling 604-873-3311.

The worlds of video games and burlesque collided in Vancouver, and it was a pretty awesome sight.

Video Game Burlesque was put on at the Royal Canadian Legion on Friday (February 10) by the VanDolls burlesque troupe.

The show featured interpretations of Dance Dance Revolution, Portal 2, Tetris, and other hit games.

Photographer Robyn Hanson caught the second half, including a number based on Super Mario Bros.

You can see more photos from Video Game Burlesque on The Snipe.

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Robyn Hanson

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Civil-rights champion and celebrated performer Leon Bibb turned 90 on Tuesday (February 7), a milestone year for the veteran singer and actor who shows no signs of slowing down.

Bibb, who was born in Louisville, Kentucky, trained as a classical baritone singer in New York before making his first major theatre appearance in the original 1946 production of Annie Get Your Gun , alongside Ethel Merman.

He later branched into folk music, appearing at the inaugural Newport Folk Festival and as a member of the Skfflers with folk music legend Milt Okun.

He moved to Vancouver in 1969, and went on to put his indelible stamp on the B.C. arts scene, co-producing and appearing in a seven-month-long run of Jacques Brel is Alive and Well and Living in Paris at the Vancouver Arts Club Theatre. His choral cantata, One More Stop on the Freedom Train , become a highlight of the Canada Pavilion during Expo ’86.

He founded A Step Ahead, an anti-racism school program and foundation in 1992, which, 20 years on, continues to present to elementary and secondary school students through the country.

Bibb, who remains a regular performer on the B.C. and national scene, is an inductee to the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame, a recipient of the 2002 City of Vancouver Cultural Harmony Award, the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal, the Harry Jerome Lifetime Achievement Award and in 2009, he was made a Member of the Order of British Columbia. Last year, he received an honorary doctorate from UBC.

Part Charles Dickens novel; part “Choose Your Own Adventure”. The Mystery of Edwin Drood is the Tony Award-winning musical that lets the audience decide its outcome.

Set in Victorian-era Britain, The Mystery of Edwin Drood centres around John Japer, an eccentric Jekyll-and-Hyde-type character who is madly in love with his student, Miss Rosa Bud. When Miss Rosa Bud’s fiancé, Edwin Drood, goes missing on Christmas Eve, the audience must decide (during intermission) whodunit.

Presented by Fighting Chance Productions, Rupert Holmes’ musical stars Alex McMorran as John Jasper, Jennifer Doan as Miss Rosa Bud, and Sarah Wolfman-Robichaud as Edwin Drood. This production features musical direction by Vashti Fairbairn and choreography by Dawn Ewen.

The Mystery of Edwin Drood runs at the Metro Theatre (1370 South West Marine Drive) from February 18 to March 3 at 8 p.m. Tickets are between $10 and $30, and are available online, by calling 604-684-2787, and at the door.

The Scotiabank Dance Centre’s Global Dance Connections series presents the world premiere of Something(s) Relative, a new work by Science Friction co-artistic director Shannon Moreno.

Moreno is a Vancouver-born dancer and choreographer who has danced with ballet companies n Sweden and Germany, and performed with Vancouver’s link Dance and Wen Wei Dance. She is the Dance Centre’s artist-in-residence for its 2011-2012 season and was the recipient of the fourth Iris Garland Emerging Choreographer Award.

Something(s) Relative features local dancers Justine Chambers, Alison Denham, Farley Johansson, and Billy Marchenski, with lighting design by Rob Sondergaard, music by Marc Stewart, and dramaturgy by Ruth McIntosh.

Something(s) Relative will run at the Scotiabank Dance Centre (677 Davie Street) from February 16 to 18 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $18 to $25 and can be purchased online or by calling 604-684-2787.

If you haven't had a chance to catch Pina 3D , I'd highly recommending watching it on theatre screens, rather than at home, if you're able to. (It's currently playing at the Park Theatre.)

The film, directed by Wim Wenders, showcases the work of famed German choreographer Pina Bausch. Bausch unexpectedly died of cancer, only five days after she was diagnosed and a mere two days prior to the start of filming.

Although the future of the production was cast in doubt upon Bausch's death, Wenders eventually decided to continue on with the project (with the consent of Bausch's family).

The film allows viewers around the world (some of whom may have never been able to benefit from seeing the performances live on stage) to appreciate the work of this dance genius. What's more, Wenders takes great advantage of the fact that it is film, by shooting performances in unusual settings (from industrial landscapes, on a busy street, or within striking architecture) and even using the camera to assume the POV of some of the dancers.

It also boasts a gorgeous soundtrack, with songs by the English Chamber Orchestra, Thom Hanreich, Jun Miyake, René Aubry, and more.

Here are a few clips from the film to entice you and give you a better idea of what to expect.

The film begins with a performance of Le sacre du printemps ( The Rite of Spring ).

In this clip, dancers perform on a giant rock and in water.

Gender relations are a recurrent theme in many of the dances. This clip offers a lighthearted take.

And lastly, here's a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film.

You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at twitter.com/cinecraig.

Buddies in Bad Times Theatre presents Nina Arsenault’s one-woman show, The Silicone Diaries, at The Cultch’s Historic Theatre (1895 Venables Street) from February 14 to 19, 21 to 25 at 8 p.m.

The Silicone Diaries tracks Arsenault’s eight-year transition from an awkward man to a bombshell, which required 60 surgical procedures. The performance not only takes audiences into the world of a person obsessed with transforming his body, but also blurs the lines between what is fake and real, and the contradictions that come with the quest for beauty.

Tickets start at $21 and can be purchased online or by calling The Cultch’s box office at 604-251-1363.

Even if you never go to dance performances, chances are good that you've seen Dana Gingras's choreography.

Gingras, who splits her time between Vancouver and Montreal and who we just wrote about as the guest choreographer for the 605 Collective's New Animal, created all the moves in Arcade Fire's wistful ode to the suburban nightmare, "Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)", from The Suburbs.

Anyone who's seen the Animals of Distinction and Holy Body Tattoo veteran's work will recognize her surreal stylistic touches. As for the rest of you: bet you didn't think you were that up on contemporary dance, huh?

The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council released its decision regarding the infamous June 1, 2011 exchange on the Sun News Network between anchor Krista Erickson and contemporary dance icon Margie Gillis.

Despite the combative segment resulting in a flood of complaints--a record 6,676, according to the CBSC, though presumably there may have been more had the council not begged the public to stop their whining, already--the interview did not cross any of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Code of Ethics, the council decided.

In its decision, the CBSC panel did note "that Erickson was somewhat mocking when she waved her hands in imitation of Gillis’ dance style. The Panel concludes that these issues relate more to issues of courtesy and politeness and do not constitute Code breaches."

The CBSC's full decision can be found here.

The 11th annual World Community Film Festival—the largest social justice film festival in B.C.—runs from February 10 to 12 at Langara College (100 West 49th Avenue).

This year’s festival, which features more than 35 documentary films covering social justice and environmental issues, kicks off with an opening lecture by peak oil educator Richard Heinberg on February 10 at 5 p.m. The lecture will be followed by the Vancouver premiere of Just Do It, which takes an insider’s look at climate change activism in the UK.

Other festival highlights include the screening of White Water, Black Gold (February 11 at 2:30 p.m.), director David Lavallee’s three-year journey tracing a drop of water and a drop of oil across Western Canada; SpOil (February 11 at 4:30 p.m.), which looks at the protection of the Great Bear Rainforest; and The Pipedreams Project (February 11 at 5:15 p.m.), the story of three people who kayaked 900 kilometres in protest of the Enbridge pipeline.

Tickets can be purchased online, by phone at Langara (604-323-5323) or at CoDevelopment Canada (604-708-1495 extension 113), or in person at Langara College, CoDevelopment Canada (260-2747 East Hastings Street), People’s Coop Bookstore (1391 Commercial Drive), and Ten Thousand Villages (2909 West Broadway Street, 929 Denman Street, and Granville Island).

For most of my working life, I've been a hard-news reporter. But last night I put on my society columnist hat (eat your heart out, Malcolm Parry) and attended the opening reception of CIBC LunarFest at the Vancouver Art Gallery.

The annual outdoor festival takes place in downtown Vancouver until Sunday (February 5). There are games for kids throughout the event and a Korean pottery show on Sunday (February 5) from noon to 4 p.m.

One of the showcases is the Lantern Aquarium on the north side of the Vancouver Art Gallery.

The featured artist this year is Pai Jung-Cheng. ("Call me Bruce," he says in broken English.)

LunarFest organizer Charlie Wu told the Straight that most Taiwanese lantern artists are in their 60s and 70s. Pai, a 36-year-old former mailman, has taken the traditional concept into the 21st century by creating massive metal sculptures.

"He likes stuff that are huge and big—and it creates a lot of headaches for me," Wu quipped. "I have to transport them and ship them, but it's always fascinating when people see them."

Pai recently created a 40-metre dragon for the Taiwanese city of Taichung, where he lives. He also created the totem lanterns that were on display at the Vancouver LunarFest in 2010.

"He used to work in an aquatic centre," Wu said. "So he is really knowledgeable about marine life and conservation. He wants people to take away that message."

I also chatted with the honorary consuls for Barbados and Jamaica, who shared stories about how people from those countries have contributed to Canada.

Marilyn Moseley, who represents Barbados in Vancouver, mentioned that Major-General Richard Clement-Moody—the first lieutenant-governor of the Colony of British Columbia—was born in Barbados. The City of Port Moody is named after him.

The first governor of British Columbia, Sir James Douglas, was born in Guyana, but his mother came from Barbados, according to Moseley.

"From what I understand, Gov. Douglas encouraged the blacks to come up from San Francisco," she said. Many settled in the Victoria area during Douglas's time in office from 1858 to 1864.

Douglas also oversaw the negotiation of treaties with aboriginal people on Vancouver Island.

Mosely explained that a new book called Some Barbadian Canadians: A Biographical Dictionary tells the stories of 400 people from the Caribbean nation who've made a positive mark on Canada.

Douglas, however, was excluded "because there was a lot of controversy around his mother's nationality," she said.

Moseley herself is in the book, as are prominent local neurosurgeon Dr. Winston Gittens and B.C. Children's Hospital pediatric neurosurgeon Dr. Paul Steinbok, who both hail from Barbados.

Meanwhile, Jamaica will soon release a similar book to celebrate its 50th year of independence. Wilma King-Bennett, the local honorary consul, told me that Jamaicans in Canada—When Ackee Meets Codfish will feature more than 250 Jamaican Canadians, including former Vancouver NDP MLA and human-rights activist Rosemary Brown, who was born in Jamaica. Brown nearly won the federal NDP leadership in 1975. Later, she became chief commissioner of the Ontario Human Rights Commission.

"Ackee is our national dish," King-Bennett said. And codfish comes from Canada. Hence, the title of the book.

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Charlie Smith

Vancouver councillor Tony Tang, Taiwanese-Canadian community leader James Chou, and lawyer Jason Wang shared some laughs at the opening reception.

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DanceHouse presents UK choreographer Wayne McGregor, with work for his own company, Random Dance, in Entity, on at the Vancouver Playhouse from February 10 to 11 (performances at 8 p.m.).

Entity blends dance, lights, technology, film, and a soundscape created by Coldplay and Massive Attack collaborator Jon Hopkins and composer Joby Talbot for a boundary-pushing performance that defies categorization.

McGregor is artistic director of Wayne McGregor | Random Dance, and in January 2011, was awarded a Commander of the Order of the British Empire

Tickets to Entity start at $35 and can be purchased online.

UBC Opera presents Czech composer Antonin Dvořák’s most popular opera at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts (6265 Crescent Road) from February 9 to 12 (at 7:30 p.m. from February 9 to 11 and at 2 p.m. on February 12).

Rusalka is based on the story of The Little Mermaid. A water spirit named Rusalka wishes to leave her lake dwellings after she falls in love with a human prince. When her father, who rules the lake’s underwater kingdom, refuses to aid her transformation, Rusalka seeks out underwater witch Jezibaba in order to fulfill her wish.

UBC Opera’s Rusalka is directed by Nancy Hermiston, with choreography by Roberta Baseggio and musical direction by Norbert Baxa. UBC Opera Ensemble’s Kayleigh Harrison and Rebecca Paulding share the role of Rusalka the water nymph, Jihwan Cho and Scott Brooks play her father, Brian Lee and Zhang Xiao Dong play the prince, and Heny Janawti and Francesca Corrado play Jezibaba.

Tickets start at $20 and can be purchased online.

Don’t be fooled by its name. The Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival doesn’t take place on a mountaintop. Instead, the nine-day film festival screens unique outdoor and mountaineering movies that would otherwise not be seen by many of B.C.’s adventure enthusiasts.

This year’s 15th annual festival takes place from February 10 to 18 at three Lower Mainland venues: the Centennial Theatre (2300 Lonsdale Avenue, North Vancouver), the Rio Theatre (1660 East Broadway), and the Pacific Cinematheque (1131 Howe Street).

Josh Harlin III: Swiss Borders Adventure opens the festival on February 10 at the Centennial Theatre. This documentary film takes audiences to the icy Swiss boarder, where author and adventurer Josh Harlin set out to do a three-month, 1,200-mile journey in 2010. However, 11 days into his hike, Harlin broke both his feet during a 50-foot climbing fall.

Other VIMFF program highlights include a breathtaking film on climber and base jumper Steph Davis called Earth to Sky; the inspiring I Believe I Can Fly (Flight of the Frenchies), which looks at two friends who test the boundaries of free flight; Canadian director Ivan Hughes’ Soul of the Sea, which tracks 40-year-old Hayley Shephard’s solo kayak around the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia; and Jason Kruk: Alpine Artist and Hayden Kennedy: If you’re going to be dumb you better be tough, which both close the festival on February 18.

All screenings start at 7:30 p.m., with doors at 6:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. depending on the venue. Single tickets are $18 in advance and $20 at the door. Tickets can be purchased online or by phone at 604-984-4484.

In Vancouver, Black History Month has usually been overshadowed by Chinese New Year festivities.

That's usually because both events take place in February. This year, however, the Lunar New Year took place on January 23. So that gives some breathing room for attention to shift to Black History Month.

Canada didn't recognize Black History Month until December 1995, following a motion by the first black Canadian woman elected to Parliament, Jean Augustine, MP of Etobicoke-Lakeshore. B.C. recognized BHM in 1996.

Some may wonder why we, here in Vancouver, need to consider Black History Month when the local black community is smaller than other ethnic groups. According to the 2006 census, the black population in Vancouver was only one percent (20,670) of the total population. That's significantly lower than Chinese (381,535 or 18 percent), South Asian (207,160 or percent), or Filipino (78,890 or 4 percent) populations.

On the other hand, while you might not even interact with a black person at work, at home, or among friends, there's something else to consider. Think about the movies or performances you watch. The music you listen to. The books you read. The athletes you cheer on. Think about the president of the United States. Consider how pervasive African-American culture is in Canada through the media and more.

Whether it's listening to Drake or Kardinal Offishall, watching Halle Berry or Denzel Washington movies, or laughing at Dave Chappelle, the influential force of African-North American culture is unavoidable.

Consider that Sir James Douglas, who was part black, was the colony of British Columbia's first governor and has been deemed the "Father of British Columbia". There's also Joe Fortes, the city's first official lifeguard who now has a restaurant and library branch named after him. There's also local track-and-field star Harry Jerome, one of Canada's greatest athletes.

For all these reasons and more, the third floor council chamber of Vancouver City Hall was primed to kick off Black History Month today with a full house.

Park Board Commissioner Constance Barnes hosted the lively event, full of laughs and a few poignant moments.

Barnes got things going with a talking drum performance by Yoro Noukoussi, followed by a spoken word performance by Kevan "Scuffmouth" Cameron.

Barnes then took time to speak about how life in Canada has changed over the years. She pointed out that things are so much different now for her children, compared to when she was growing up and had to contend with bullying and racial insults on a daily basis.

Mayor Gregor Robertson had his own stories to share, including his experiences with Nigerian drummer Babatunde Olatunji who came to Vancouver. Robertson briefly became choked up, talking about Olatunji's funeral.

Robertson then read the declaration that February is Black History Month in Vancouver. He presented the declaration to Nalda Callendar, executive director of the National Congress of Black Women Foundation, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary.

Maurice Earl of Canada Post helped to unveil commemorative stamps for Black History Month, featuring Viola Desmond (who worked with Nova Scotia civil rights activist to lobby the provincial government to repeal its segregation laws) and famed Albertan cowboy John Ware who helped develop the province's ranching industry.

The first Black History Month stamps were released in 2009. They featured two historical figures. The first was Rosemary Brown, who was elected to B.C.'s legislative assembly in 1972, becoming the first black woman in Canadian history to become a member of a Canadian parliamentary body. The other was Abraham Doras Shadd, who was an Underground Railroad conductor, National Convention for the Improvement of Free People of Colour president, and a participant in the American Anti-Slavery Society.

The council chamber was then transformed by the music, songs, and dancing of Cameroon dancer Jacky Essombe, and drummers Yoro Noukoussi (from Benin) and Kurai Mubaiwa (from Zimbabwe).

Watch as Essombe tries to get everyone on their feet and dancing, including Mayor Gregor Robertson.

The event concluded with a reception featuring Caribbean food from Calabash Bistro and dessert.

Numerous events will be held throughout the month, including film screenings and much more. Visit this City of Vancouver webpage for details, and watch for forthcoming coverage in the Georgia Straight .

You can follow Craig Takeuchi on Twitter at twitter.com/cinecraig.