11 Arts events not to miss in February 2024



This February, experience an opera based on the classic Cinderella fairy tale, celebrate Lunar New Year 2024 at the UBC Botanical Garden, and enjoy a variety of talks and performances that highlight Black excellence.


UBC Opera: Cendrillon

Thursday, February 1-Sunday, February 4 | Chan Shun Concert Hall
Tickets: $15-$45

Jules Massenet’s opera in four acts, based on Charles Perrault’s 1698 version of the classic fairy tale Cinderella, finds our titular hero aching to go to the ball. With the help of some magic, she is whisked away on a carriage and transformed into an unknown beauty.


Lunar New Year Market 2024

Saturday, February 3-Sunday, February 4 | 10:00am-4:00pm | UBC Botanical Garden
Tickets: $8.88

Visit this year’s Lunar New Year market celebrating the year of the dragon, featuring over 30 local makers, artists, crafters and food trucks. UBC Botanical Garden will also be selling fresh flowers, dried floral arrangements, and potted plants. The UBC Kung Fu Club will showcase their lion dance and kung fu performance, and there will be also workshops to participate in: learn the basics of calligraphy, how to make sweet dumpling desserts, and understand more about the plants in the Asian garden.


Coffee with Dean Clare

Wednesday, February 7 | 11:00am | Arts Student Centre
Tickets: Free; RSVP required

Join Dean of Arts Dr. Clare Haru Crowston for coffee, tea, and treats and ask any questions you may have about the Faculty of Arts.


Between Reparations and Freedom with Dr. Rinaldo Walcott

Wednesday, February 7 | 12:00pm | Ponderosa Ballroom and Online
Tickets: Free; RSVP required

In The Long Emancipation, Dr. Rinaldo Walcott posits that Black people globally live in the time of emancipation and that emancipation is definitely not freedom. This talk tackles the question, ‘What is (Black) freedom?’.

In dialogue with Geography professor Dr. Peter James Hudson, Dr. Walcott will survey a range of recent events to begin to make sense of Black non-freedom, including present initiatives in Canadian postsecondary settings, such as programs designed to increase numbers of Black faculty. 

This event is part of the GRSJ Noted Scholars Lecture Series, and is co-presented with the Faculty of Arts, the Faculty of Education, the Public Humanities Hub, and the Equity and Inclusion Office.


MOA Unmasked

Thursday, February 8 | 7:00pm and
Friday, Febuary 9 | 4:30pm
Museum of Anthropology
Tickets: $12-$20

Join the Museum of Anthropology for the last Unmasked tour. These guided tours provide an intimate look at the Museum’s behind-the-scenes work, which allows visitors to engage in meaningful discussion with staff and invited guests. Capacity is very limited, so don’t miss out!


Critical Conversations: Lineages of Speculative Fiction

Thursday, February 8 | 3:00-5:00pm | Buchanan Tower 323 and Online
Tickets: Free

Critical Conversations is a faculty research series organized by both the UBC Department of English Language and Literatures and the UBC English Graduate Student Caucus. “Lineages of Speculative Fiction” is the second talk in this year’s Critical Conversations series.

In this installment, Dr. Sandra Tomc, Dr. Siân Echard, and Dr. Aren Roukema will discuss genres and literary moments that have informed the varied developments of speculative fiction.


UBC Bands: LEGENDARY

Saturday, February 10 | 7:30pm | Chan Shun Concert Hall
Tickets: Free

UBC Bands are distinguished by their high level of performance, creative thematic programming, and commitment to contemporary music through commissions, premieres, and composer residencies. “LEDGENDARY” features powerful performances by the Symphonic Wind Ensemble and Concert Winds.


The Undergraduate Exhibition

Thursday, February 1-Friday, February 16 | 12:00-4:00pm | AHVA Gallery
Tickets: Free

The Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory (AHVA) at the University of British Columbia is pleased to present The Undergraduate Exhibit 2024, featuring new student work from second- and third-year Term 1 Visual Art courses across many different media including paintings, prints, drawings, photographs, sculpture, and digital works.

Come out to support AHVA undergraduate student artists and see what everyone has been up to!


Shabaka // Kahil El’Zabar’s Ethnic Heritage Ensemble

Wednesday, February 21 | 7:00pm | Chan Shun Concert Hall
Tickets: $20-$35

Experience the meditative and ethereal music of Shabaka and the innovative sounds of multi-instrumentalist Kahil El’Zbar in this upcoming Chan Centre Exp.

Shabaka Hutchings, the band leader of Sons of Kemet, the Comet Is Coming, and Shabaka & the Ancestors, is leading the way for the renaissance of British jazz. Kahil El’Zabar founded the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble and since 1981, they have released over a dozen albums.


Accelerate your academics with UBC Library

Wednesday, February 28 | 12:00pm | Arts Student Centre
Tickets: Free; RSVP required

Wondering how to take your term papers to the next level? Come and get inside information from UBC Librarians about the resources and tools that will help you strengthen your research.

Arts Insider Tips is part of a series of events in The Compass: Arts Students Engagement Hub


Reading and Talk with Cartoonist Walter Scott about Wendy

Thursday, February 29 | 1:00pm | Online
Tickets: Free; RSVP required

Walter Scott will read from his beloved comic series, Wendy, and will discuss his creative process and career as a cartoonist and visual artist. Walter is an interdisciplinary artist working across comics, drawings, videos, performances, and sculptures. His comics series, Wendy, chronicles the continuing misadventures of a young artist in a satirical version of the contemporary art world.

This event is open to everyone, including UBC community and the general public.