Firehall Arts Centre Announces 2024-2025 Season

The Firehall has announced the programming for its 2024-2025 season, aptly named “The Reflections Season” by Artistic Producer Donna Spencer.

“This season, we are inviting our audience family to join us as we look in the theatrical mirror to see reflections of love, laughter and loss,” says Spencer. “With these works on our wonderfully intimate stage, audiences will enter into the worlds of fantasy and fact; stories from Canadian history; and movement and musical storytelling, all while being entertained and learning something both old and new about the world and about themselves.”

The Firehall launches its 42nd season October 2-5, 2024 with the world premiere of The Biting School's Empty-Handed. In this new work, choreographer Arash Khakpour and company conjure up images of everyday life that transcend cultural and historical boundaries. The use of live and pre-recorded projections to create a voyeuristic experience adds a unique layer of engagement for the audience, inviting them to witness a transformation they should not be privy to, blurring the lines between observer and participant. 

Set in the trenches of the First World War, Brendan McLeod and The Fugitives bring music and storytelling to the intimate Firehall stage with The Ridge, running October 26-November 3. The Ridge remembers and reflects on how The Battle of Vimy Ridge, where over 10,000 young Canadian soldiers died, came to play such a significant role in shaping Canada's national identity. The Ridge was named a Top 10 Arts Event of the Year (2020) by The Globe and Mail, and spawned the JUNO-nominated album Trench Songs.

Ann Mortifee's Reflections on Crooked Walking returns to The Firehall November 30-December 22. In this JUNO Award-nominated family musical, four unlikely friends go in search of a magic word that will allow them to escape the games of a mysterious manipulator named Opia and try to follow the lead of a strange presence who keeps encouraging them to open doors to new dimensions in their quest. A Firehall Arts Centre production. 

The Firehall rings in 2025 with I remember… from January 15 to 18. Combining dance, storytelling, and video in an emotional, amusing and relatable reflection on aging, this Joe INK production is inspired by choreographer Joe Laughlin's memories and lessons learned from 40 years as a dancer. His message – to keep moving and to remember… you are never too old to do what you love. 

Audiences are invited to celebrate Women of the Fur Trade from February 8 to 23. Set in eighteen hundred and something-something, somewhere upon the banks of a Reddish River in Treaty One Territory, three very different women with a preference for 21st century slang find themselves stuck in a fort having tea and sharing their views on life, love, and Louis Riel. Playwright Frances Koncan shifts the focus in this powerfully funny satire from the male gaze on history to the power of women and their place in the rapidly changing world of the Canadian fur trade. A Firehall Arts Centre production.

Enemy Lines, a live dance performance, runs March 12-15. Choreographer Mayumi Lashbrook looks back at the actions taken against Japanese Canadians during WWII when they were suddenly deemed a threat after the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Her family, along with over 22,000 Canadians of Japanese heritage, were forcibly moved from the coastline of British Columbia – their lives forever altered. Enemy Lines is a reminder of the fractures of our collective past and the possibilities for our shared future. A Powell Street Festival and Firehall Arts Centre co-presentation.

Experience the soulful sounds of Motown April 2-13 in a mesmerizing concert starring the award-winning Krystle Dos Santos. A History of Motown takes audiences of all ages on a musical journey through the legendary hits that defined an era and shaped the sound of a generation. From the infectious rhythms of The Supremes to the timeless melodies of Stevie Wonder, Dos Santos brings the magic of Motown to life with her powerhouse vocals and captivating stage presence.

Zahida Rahemtulla (The Wrong Bashir) brings another comedic drama, The Frontliners, to the Firehall stage May 1-12. The Frontliners takes audiences to an East Vancouver hotel in early 2016 where three beleaguered employees scramble to find homes for new families from Syria in the midst of a housing crisis. A Blackout Theatre, Firehall Arts Centre, and Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre production.

The Firehall closes its 42nd season with Inner Elder from May 21 to June 1st. Inner Elder recounts one woman's transformation from a young girl navigating the shambles of her family life to becoming a Gemini Award-winning actor. Cree artist Michelle Thrush weaves the seemingly disparate anecdotes from her life into a powerful and hilarious testimony that will open your eyes, sear your heart, and have you laughing out loud.

Early Bird passes (4-show Pass, 4-Ticket Flex Pass, and 6-Show Super Pass) and single tickets go on sale Friday, August 16 and will be available online at www.firehallartscentre.ca or by phone at 604.689.0926. Passes range in price from $105 to $199 and single tickets range in price from $25 to $55. Wednesday afternoon performances are pay-what-you-can (PWYC).

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