RAGE AGAINST HOPE
In Michele Riml’s provocative script, RAGE , a teenager named Raymond visits his guidance counsellor—and brings along a gun. He gives Laura, the counsellor, two options: shoot him or get shot. Laura had recently delivered a moving pacifist speech in response to a local girl’s death. That made Ray, who goes by the nickname Rage, hopeful. And hope hurts. David Beazley and Leslie Jones deliver knockout performances. This Green Thumb Theatre production, copresented with the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival, runs at the Waterfront Theatre from this Tuesday (January 30) until February 11.

FRANCO-IRISH FUSION
There are strong links between Dublin and Montreal—both are major ports of the north, whose formerly Catholic populations share a love of rough and florid language and nurture brilliant theatre. The wild spirits of these two great cities combine in Théí¢tre de la Manufacture’s Montreal production of Howie le Rookie by young Irish dramatist Mark O’Rowe. The caustic tale, structured as a pair of energetic one-act monologues, takes you straight into the dives of Dublin and a feud of honour between two men. Translated into French (with surtitles in English) , the play runs from Tuesday to next Saturday (January 30 to February 3) at Studio 16 as part of the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival and is copresented with Vancouver’s Théí¢tre la Seizií¨me. Hold onto yer kneecaps, tabarnak .

DOG SHOW
Dog eat dog isn’t actually about cannibalism among our furry friends. It’s about survival. Artists Kendra Fanconi and Eric Rhys Miller explore the idea using characters that include a refugee from Hurricane Katrina and a competitive eater who finds Jesus in a fish stick. The appropriately named The Only Animal presents its latest innovative work from tomorrow until next Saturday (January 26 to February 3) at Performance Works as a satellite show in the PuSh International Performing Arts Festival.

SONIC PATHWAYS
Music and walking go hand in hand—as long as you’ve got headphones and an iPod. But at St. Paul’s Anglican Church on Friday (January 26) you can leave the earbuds at home and enjoy the natural sound of a double string quartet as you pace the downtown venue’s labyrinth path. Sponsored by the Canadian Music Centre’s New Music in New Spaces program, Harmonic Labyrinth features the compositions of Jordan Nobles, John Burke, John Sherlock, and Colin MacDonald—and better still, it’s free.

Vancouver VoicesSONGS OF THE CITY
It’s getting hard to keep up with all the new music that’s being produced in our fair town, but with Vancouver Voices, the Erato Ensemble is doing its part to keep us well-informed. Focusing on vocal music, this survey concert finds singers Catherine Laub, Kresha Faber, and William George interpreting works by an array of Canadian composers, including Larry Nickel (pictured here). With organist Darryl Nixon and saxophonist Julia Nolan among the accompanists at St. Andrew’s-Wesley Church on Saturday (January 27), there are many sound reasons to attend.