Hot Entertainment

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Hot Entertainment: Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival

Cherry blossom tree photo by Tom Ryan courtesy Tourism BC

Snow may be falling elsewhere in Canada, but here on the West Coast only cherry blossom petals are falling. In the 1930s, Japan gave Vancouver more than 37,000 ornamental cherry trees. An additional 3,000 trees were planted last year for the city’s quasquicentennial (125th birthday). The annual Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival (Apr. 5 to 28) celebrates the delicate pink blooms with a bouquet of special events, everything from zen yoga to heritage walks to bike tours.—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Elvis Costello Plays Vancouver

Musician Elvis Costello

At 57 years old, Declan Patrick MacManus—better known to the world as Elvis Costello—shows no signs of sitting back and taking it easy. The English punk/new wave singer, who was banned from Saturday Night Live for 12 years after his infamous unplanned performance of “Radio Radio,” is still shaking up the status quo decades later. During his Spinning Songbook Tour, which kicks off Apr. 10 at the Orpheum Theatre, no two concerts are alike: fans come on stage to spin a wheel that determines the evening’s set. Bonus track: keep an eye out for Costello and his wife, jazz singer Diana Krall, out and about in Vancouver, as the musical pair keeps a home here.—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Motown Meltdown

The Higgins

Get up offa that thing and head down to the Commodore Ballroom for some movin’ and groovin’ at the Motown Meltdown, Mar. 31. Over 25 Canadian vocalists and a scorchin’ 12-piece band crank up the heat for an evening of hot soul music and solid-gold hits. Shake it to classics such as “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone” and “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” performed by the likes of award-winning country music band The Higgins (pictured), local singer-songwriter Ali Milner and many more.—Caitlin Dawson

Hot Entertainment: Canoe Culture

A Squamish canoe at Vancouver Maritime Museum

Explore the full life cycle of a Squamish canoe—from a majestic tree standing in the local temperate rainforest, to being painstakingly carved by a Squamish craftsman, to launching into the Salish Sea—in Chátwilh: The Craft and Culture of the Squamish Canoe at the Vancouver Maritime Museum (to May 21).—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Cabaret with Ute Lemper

Ute Lemper

Sultry, seductive Ute Lemper seems to have stepped straight out of a 1920s European cabaret. She’s dazzled audiences in Germany and around the world with her concerts and musical-theatre roles, and is also a talented dancer and painter. See the celebrated chanteuse in Berlin Nights/Paris Days: The Art of Chanson at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts (Mar. 24).—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Road to Richmond

Photo: Toyohara Kunichiki, 1879, Woodblock print, The Actor Kaharazaki Shasho in the role of General Yoshitsune Minamoto

Bursting with Asian eateries and quirky stores, nearby Richmond is also home to a thriving arts and culture scene. Check out Edo: Arts of Japan’s Last Shogun Age (pictured) at the Richmond Museum (to May 21), which examines Japanese society from 1603 to 1868. Also in Richmond this month: comedian Jay Mohr (Mar. 30) and psychic Sylvia Browne (Mar. 23), both at the River Rock Show Theatre.—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Spirit of the West

Spirit of the West

Forget drinking hokey green beer: there’s no better way to spend St. Patrick’s Day than by hearing Canada’s unofficial national anthem, “Home for a Rest,” performed by Canada’s favourite folk-rock-Celtic band. Spirit of the West has been singing that crowd favourite—along with “Save This House,” “The Crawl” and other ones you already know all the words to—for decades, never losing their energy or sense of fun. Get ready to sing along as you bounce the night away on the springy dance floor of the beautiful old Commodore Ballroom (Mar. 17).—Sheri Radford

Hot Entertainment: Lady Antebellum in Vancouver

Did you hear the one about the singer who was rejected for American Idol not once but twice, then went on to form a chart-busting band and net six Grammys? It’s not a joke—it’s what happened to Hillary Scott, frontwoman of Nashville-based trio Lady Antebellum, which brings a high-energy blend of infectious country-pop and polished harmonies to the Pacific Coliseum as part of the Own The Night 2012 World Tour (Mar. 19). The three-piece and their dynamite band crank up the Southern charm and belt out crowd-pleasing hits such as the sweet and soulful “American Honey” and the wistful ballad “Need You Now.”—Caitlin Dawson

Hot Entertainment: CelticFest Vancouver

The Gothard Sisters

Bring along your wee lad and lass to celebrate all things Irish at the 8th annual CelticFest Vancouver (Mar. 10 to 18). Choose from over 50 free and ticketed events, including dancing, scotch tastings and concerts, with performances by the talented trio The Gothard Sisters (pictured)—not only musicians, but Irish dancers, too—and the much-ballyhooed Dehli 2 Dublin, who mix bhangra beats with Celtic fiddles. Head to the massive parade on Mar. 18, a fitting end to St. Patrick’s Day weekend.—Jennifer Patterson

Hot Entertainment: Ballet BC Presents Walking Mad

Photo by Chris Randle

Call us crazy, but watching dancers descend into madness is entertaining, especially when it’s set to the frenzied strains of Ravel’s Boléro. Ballet BC presents Johan Inger’s Walking Mad at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre (Mar. 8 to 10), plus new works by Aszure Barton and Emily Molnar.—Kristina Urquhart