The Vancouver Symphony, shown here performing Gustav Mahler's 8th symphony during a dress rehearsal on Jan. 29, 2010, will set up at the Orpheum next week for a special screening of Francis Ford Coppola’s classic The Godfather.Lyle Stafford/The Globe and Mail
City: There's a Your Future Home exhibition-themed "pub style" quiz show at the Museum of Vancouver this week. Become a participant (on your own or with a team) to answer questions on housing affordability, urban density, transportation and public space. As the museum explains: "While original and creative (if not totally accurate) answers are entertained from contestants, the show invites the audience to learn more about their city and the critical issues framing its future as a home for present and future generations of Vancouverites." Heads up, the bar opens at 6 p.m. and sometimes a little libation inspires genius.
March 24, 7 p.m., Museum of Vancouver (1100 Chestnut St.), $15, museumofvancouver.ca
Godfather: Heads up for next week, the Vancouver Symphony sets up at the Orpheum for a special screening of Francis Ford Coppola's classic The Godfather. How could you possibly improve upon Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Talia Shire and Diane Keaton's performances in this masterpiece? How about with the soundtrack played live by an orchestra while you watch? From the VSO: "See – and hear – this film masterpiece as you have never seen or heard it before …" Telling you about this a few days early because it's just the sort of event that sells out and leaves people sad, and we don't want that.
March 30, 7 p.m., Orpheum Theatre (601 Smithe St.), $29-$75, vancouversymphony.ca
Satire: Take a trip out to the charming Jericho Arts Centre for a quick drama fix via Nikolai Gogol's The Government Inspector – a play of errors that pokes fun at political corruption, human stupidity and greed by way of a case of mistaken identity. From the United Players of Vancouver: "The corrupt officials of a small Russian town react with terror to the news that an incognito inspector will soon be arriving to investigate them. The flurry of activity to cover up their considerable misdeeds is interrupted by the report that a suspicious person is staying at the inn. That person, however, is not an inspector; it is Khlestakov, a civil servant with a wild imagination." A touch of satire is a fine way to get in a chuckle and gain perspective at the same time.
March 25-April 17, 8 p.m., Jericho Arts Centre (1675 Discovery St.), $12, jerichoartscentre.com
Mexico Noir: Gangsters, starlets, seduction and betrayal – hit the Vancity Theatre this week and get acquainted with the golden age of Mexican cinema. From the mid-1930s to the early 60s, Mexican films "… dominated Latin America and made significant inroads into Spanish-speaking communities throughout North America. At its height, in the decade during and following World War II, Mexican popular filmmaking achieved a level of quality comparable to Hollywood." That's some serious volume! Various times, days and films are scheduled; check the full lineup online.
March 25-April 3, various times, Vancity Theatre (1181 Seymour St.), $11, viff.org
History: In 1845, two British boats headed to the Canadian Arctic to chart the Northwest Passage never to return. Many search parties were dispatched to learn the fate of Captain Franklin and his crew of 128 men, but it wasn't until 2014 that a discovery was made. If you're a fan of science, mysteries, history or shipwrecks and you're keen to check out some of the items found at the site, you're in luck. This week there's a Franklin Expedition themed pop-up of sorts going down at the Maritime Museum. Take a look at historical photographs, read about the expedition, get up close and personal with replicas of artifacts rescued from Sir John Franklin's HMS Erebus and, on Thursday night, sit in on a lecture about the story of the discovery and what it means to find this lost piece of Canadian history.
March 24, 5:30 p.m., Vancouver Maritime Museum (1905 Ogden Ave.), vancouvermaritimemuseum.com