Meg Tilly in Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf.
Performing Arts
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Oscar-nominated actress and author Meg Tilly - who hopped a Greyhound bus for New York after graduating from high school in Victoria, then returned to West Coast shores decades later - performs in a production of Edward Albee's deliciously uncomfortable classic, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? McPherson Playhouse in Victoria, July 5-17 ( rmts.bc.ca ).
Dancing on the Edge
The city comes alive with new dance works at the Dancing on the Edge Festival, featuring esteemed Israeli choreographer Arkadi Zaides's Quiet - which explores violence, mistrust and compassion in the Middle East - as well as works by top Canadian artists including Susanna Hood, Alejandro De Leon, Tara Cheyenne Performance, Move: the company and more. Various venues, July 7-16 ( dancingontheedge.org ).
Indian Summer Festival
Award-winning Indian actress Tabu, authors Yann Martel and Anosh Irani, violin virtuoso Dr. L. Subramaniam, and renowned journalist Tarun Tejpal - who was named among "India's 50 Most Powerful People" in Business Week - are just a few of the luminaries to appear at the first-annual Indian Summer Festival. SFU Woodward's, July 7-17 ( indiansummerfestival.ca ).
Theatre Under The Stars
Conrad Birdie is a 1960s-era Justin Bieber - and one lucky girl with one jealous boyfriend wins the chance to kiss him - in the favourite musical Bye Bye Birdie, which kicks off Theatre Under the Stars's season in Stanley Park, alongside the seafaring Cole Porter classic Anything Goes. Malkin Bowl, July 8-Aug. 20 ( tuts.ca ).
Music
Toots and the Maytals
They were groundbreakers in seventies reggae and ska, and their songs have been covered by artists from the Clash to the Specials; and now, nearly 50 years after they first formed, Jamaican national treasures Toots and the Maytals are still on the road bringing fans hits including Pressure Drop and Monkey Man. The Commodore, July 5 at 8 p.m. ( ticketmaster.ca ).
Summer Live
Vancouver gets an unforgettable birthday bash with live performances by indie superheroes Neko Case, the New Pornographers, Dan Mangan, Mother Mother, Spirit of the West, the Vancouver Symphony and more at Summer Live, a three-day fête to mark the city's 125th. Brockton Point, July 8-10 ( celebratevancouver125.ca ).
Vancouver Island MusicFest
Top musicians from Canada and beyond - including folk legend David Crosby, sacred steel artists the Lee Boys, bluegrass artist and Robert Plant collaborator Alison Krauss, Randy Newman, Arrested Development, Corey Harris, Yes singer Jon Anderson and dozens more - head to the beautiful Comox Valley to perform as part of Vancouver Island MusicFest. Comox Valley Exhibition Grounds, July 8-10 ( islandmusicfest.com ).
J. Roddy Walston and the Business
Seventies southern rock, old-time blues and Jerry Lee Lewis-style boogie-woogie piano collide in the beer-soaked sound of J. Roddy Walston and the Business, a Baltimore band whose rapid rise has included opening spots for the Black Keys and Weezer, and a buzz-heavy show at this year's Bonnaroo. The Media Club, July 9 at 8 p.m. ( ticketweb.ca ).
New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys
It's hard to know what's more unnerving: two teen boy bands reliving their 25-year-old glory days - Bieber, schmieber - or the gaggles of middle-aged women pulling out the quarter-century-old old acid wash and paying good money to see them. Still, New Kids on the Block and the Backstreet Boys are selling out stadiums two nights at a time. Rogers Arena, July 9-10 ( ticketmaster.ca ).