OUTstages Festival

January 25 to February 5 OUTstages Festival returns for its ninth year to host twelve days of queer performance and adventurous programming with an eclectic and electric line-up of shows. Bask in the Cher-centric performance of Vancouver drag artist Thanks Jem, star of popstar Orville Peck’s Queen of the Rodeo, and laugh along to stand-up comedy from returning Fringe 2022 favourite Laura Piccinin. Let Vancouver’s The Library Performance Collective melt your heart with a coming-of-age story set to the soundtrack of a live rock band, and get swept along for the ride with Portland, Oregon’s most beloved grifters Carla Rossi and Pepper Pepper in the Canadian premiere of GLOOP fresh off a run in NYC, the tale of a psychedelic wellness seminar gone wrong—or right? OUTstages returns to heat up your winter this January and February, with shows from leading queer artists from Portland, Vancouver, and Toronto, alongside local performance-makers, plus the return of the Queer Youth Cabaret. Join us at the Metro Studio Theatre and the Intrepid Studio from January 25 to February 5 for twelve days of queer performance and pride. New this year is Intrepid Theatre’s Get Into It: Idea Series with workshops and pop-up performances woven throughout the festival designed to teach you something new, open up your mind, and keep the party going! There will be late-night cabarets on Fridays and Saturdays with libations and pop-up performances from local queer artists including drag scene-favourite, Eddi Licious; an opening Cinq à Sept co-hosted with Puente Theatre to kick-off the festival and a Happy Hour drag show at The Vicious Poodle; plus free online workshops in income tax for artists and a drag makeup tutorial with celebrated Vancouver drag artist, Rose Butch. Metro Studio, Intrepid Studio and online