Bob Frazer as Judas Iscariot and Todd Thomson as Jesus star in The Last Days of Judas Iscariot playing at the Tremors Festival in Vancouver.Handout
God of Carnage
Bid a sad adieu to the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company at its final production, God of Carnage, which tells the tale of two young boys who duke it out in the schoolyard, then watch on as the mature adults step in and the fur really flies (at the Playhouse until May 5, vancouverplayhouse.com).
Tremors Festival
See the next generation of brave theatre makers at the Tremors Festival, where Bob Frazer plays history's most infamous sinner in the scathingly funny The Last Days of Judas Iscariot, a young man tries to control his destructive imaginary friend in Giant Invisible Robot, two artists explore the lengths people will go to find the perfect life in A Last Resort and more (at the Cultch until April 28, thecultch.com).
Vancouver Vaisakhi Parade
Join thousands of Sikhs from across the Lower Mainland at the Vaisakhi Parade and Celebration, which marks the New Year and celebrates the establishment of the Khalsa with music, dance and incredible food, from sweets to samosas (starts at the Ross Street Temple at 10:30 a.m. Saturday).
Joel Plaskett Emergency
He and his band wrote, recorded, mixed, mastered and released a song a week for ten weeks – and now you can check out the results as favourite East Coast singer, songwriter and producer Joel Plaskett and his band perform songs from their latest album, Scrappy Happiness (at the Vogue Saturday, voguetheatre.com).
Hard Rubber Orchestra
Like your music even bigger? Get blown away as the 18-piece Hard Rubber Orchestra performs the music of John McLaughlin's famed Mahavishnu Orchestra, which mixes jazz, Indian ragas and larger-than-life rock 'n' roll (at SFU Woodward's Saturday, hardrubber.com). Or if you want your sound to go, try one Vancouver New Music's Spring Soundwalks (Sundays, newmusic.org).
Stephen Lewis
Be inspired by esteemed humanitarian Stephen Lewis as he delivers a keynote address at the Howe Sound Women's Centre 30th Anniversary Gala, which also features Pivot Legal Society's Katrina Pacey (at the West Coast Heritage Railway in Squamish Saturday, hswc.ca).
Gilbert Gottfried
Celebrate the reopening of Yuk Yuk's with loud-mouthed American comic Gilbert Gottfried, who has appeared on Leno, Letterman, SNL, as the voice of Iago in Aladdin, and telling a truly unmentionable joke in The Aristocrats (Saturday, yukyuks.com). For humour with an insatiable appetite, don't miss John Pinette as he headlines the Just For Laughs comedy tour (at the Centre Saturday, ticketmaster.ca).
Reel 2 Real Festival
Got a pint-sized film buff on your hands? Catch top features and shorts for kids and teens, including a Canadian puppet animation about two brothers who move to the big city and a Colombian film about soccer-obsessed boys in the middle of a war zone at the Reel 2 Real International Festival for Youth (at Vancity and the Roundhouse until April 20, r2rfestival.org). And don't miss the Alloy Orchestra playing alongside The Phantom of the Opera and Fritz Lang's Metropolis (Saturday and Sunday, viff.org).
Cats
Purr along to one of the longest-running musicals in Broadway history as Cats– which was inspired by a book of T.S. Eliot poems – returns to Vancouver (at the Queen E through Sunday, ticketmaster.ca). Or if you want to bust a move yourself, learn the routine online then join the Cherry Blossom Umbrella Dance flash mob (at the Vancouver Art Gallery Saturday, vcbf.ca).
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Unsinkable
Can't make it to the new Titanic museum in Belfast? Catch the next best thing at the Surrey Museum's Unsinkable: Remembering the Titanic, 1912-2012, a 100th anniversary exhibition that features meticulously recreated first- and third-class cabins as well as fashions from the era (until June 12, surrey.ca). And while you're in that neck of the woods, don't miss two new exhibitions at the Surrey Art Gallery that explore the area where technology and art meet (until June 10, surrey.ca/arts).
Okanagan Fest-of-Ale
Sample fine lagers, ales, porters and stouts from over 18 microbreweries at the Fest-of-Ale in Penticton, which also comes with live entertainment and a beer lover's dream menu that includes beef dip, donairs, fresh pretzels, sliders, pizza and more (at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre, fest-of-ale.bc.ca). Headed even further east? Send off the winter season at Fernival, featuring a big mainstage concert by a surprise guest (fernie.com).
GardenFest
Get a jump on your spring planting at GardenFest, a green-thumbed Surrey celebration where you can learn how to plant veggies, attract birds and remove invaders, take the kids to the L'il Sprouts Zone, then go home with a flat full of plants and create your own garden paradise (at the Surrey Nature Centre Saturday, surrey.ca).