Imagine that. After extended periods of attendance restrictions at cultural events, there are now no longer any capacity limits in B.C. Audiences can fill up the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, the Vancouver Playhouse, the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, and the Orpheum.

It means the arts are truly back live, if not exactly in your face. But keep in mind you still have to show proof of vaccination to enter theatres and other venues. Plus, you must wear a mask to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

With all of that in mind, here are some big events on the dance card in Vancouver during the next three months.

Reveal + Tell

Queen Elizabeth Theatre, March 3 to 5

Ballet BC is back with its second live show of the season. And it’s a doozy of a triple bill.

German choreographer Marco Goecke’s exploration of love, Woke Up Blind, will include seven dancers on-stage accompanied by Jeff Buckley songs. It’s his first show with Ballet BC.

Also in the lineup is The Statement, by Crystal Pite, with a script from Jonathon Young. It features four dancers, a boardroom table, and a whole lot of tension. Pite and Young are the dynamic Vancouver duo behind Betroffenheit, which blew audiences away on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean with its riveting exploration of trauma.

If that’s not enough to rock any dance fan, there’s also just BEFORE right AFTER by Ballet BC’s artistic director, Medhi Walerski. He’ll do what was unthinkable in 2021: put the entire company of 19 dancers on the stage of the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. It’s proof that miracles can still happen in the arts world, notwithstanding the Omicron variant.

A Dance Double Bill of Personal, Bold Solo Works

Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre, March 3 to 5

The Biting School presents this pair of shows by two local dancers in their prime. Kelly McInnes’s Blue Space offers her take on climate grief as she transforms from a human into other life forms. Arash Khakpour’s Melon Piece shows the many facets of his identity while paying homage to his roots in Iran.

Revisor

Vancouver Playhouse, March 30 to April 2

Kidd Pivot’s Revisor, also created by Crystal Pite and Jonathon Young, premiered to spectacular reviews in Vancouver in 2019. It’s back for another run.

BODYTRAFFIC

Vancouver Playhouse, May 5 and 6

Founded by Lillian Rose Barbeito and Tina Finkelman Berkett in 2007, BODYTRAFFIC has won rave reviews for its sizzling and daring contemporary dance shows. In 2015, the Obama administration named the troupe as cultural ambassadors. Soft power, indeed.

Passages of Rhythms

PAL Studio Theatre, May 19 and 20

Vancouver choreographer Alvin Erasga Tolentino is back with a cross-cultural collaboration to celebrate Asian Heritage Month. He’s merging three duets for three artists, bringing together flamenco, bharatanatyam, and voices for the body in a pan-Asian production. Jonathan Bernard and Ronald Stelting will provide live percussion music for Tolentino and fellow performers Kasandra La China, Sujit Vaidya, and Gabriel Dharmoo.