The Cultch has announced the line-up for its sixth annual Femme Festival. With seven performances from women in music, theatre, dance, comedy, and circus, The Cultch’s Femme Festival will fill its three stages April 15-May 14, 2023.
April 26-30 The Cultch’s York Theatre features the Festival centrepiece, Raven, a contemporary circus act from German circus collective still hungry, a company made up of acrobats Romy Seibt, Anke van Engelshoven, and Lena Ries. Raven is a show that presents the balancing act of being a mother and an artist. It explores the German concept of “Rabenmutter” (raven mother—a selfish, neglectful mother) with high-flying acrobatics.
April 15th, the Festival opens with a performance from Juno-nominated artist, Jill Barber, who kicks things off as part of the tour for her new album Homemaker.
May 11-14, wrapping the Festival, Amanda Sum presents her “part pop-up book, part performance”, New Age Attitudes: Live in Concert with Theatre Replacement.
Photo: Andy Phillipson
April 18-22, comedy comes to the Vancity Culture Lab stage with Bird by Kylie Vincent. Following an 8 month tour the US and a month-long run at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the New York standup comedian stops in Vancouver to present her memoir/comedy show which offers big laughs about the hard topic of Kylie’s personal childhood abuse.
May 3-6, another show bringing comedy to the festival is the dance show Body Parts from local choreographer Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg. Known for her unique style of performance, combining comedy and dance, Friedenberg’s Body Parts is a look at how body dysmorphia plays a role in how we all perform in society, while also a celebration of what our bodies can do.
May 4-13, The Cultch offers something for those who love straight-up theatre with ?tszan (to make better), a story about Indigenous language reclamation created by Ucwalmicw artist Yvonne Wallace, and produced by Ruby Slippers Theatre. This play tells the story of a young women who starts to pursue language fluency when her auntie, who is at the end of her life, decides to stop speaking English.
The Femme Festival will also include one digital production on The Cultch’s digital playground, RE/PLAY. In Response to Alabama was presented in person at the 2022 Femme Festival. Folks who missed this powerful look at true stories of abortion, and folks that would like to see it again, will be able to view this show on-demand during this year’s festival.
“We are so excited to bring you this year’s Femme Festival,” says Cultch Executive Director Heather Redfern. “It is going to be a huge celebration of female-identifying voices. The biggest in the city!”
The sixth annual Femme Festival runs April 15-May 14, 2023 at The Cultch’s three East Vancouver stages; the Historic Theatre, Vancity Culture Lab, at 1895 Venables Street and The York Theatre 639 Commercial Drive, as well as RE/PLAY, online. For festival and show details or to buy tickets, visit thecultch.com/femme-festival or call The Cultch Box Office at 604-251-1363