1. It seems like it was only yesterday that Death Cab for Cutie was wearing sloppy T-shirts and playing to 100 equally sloppy people at the Starfi sh Room. Now the Pacifi c Northwest band is headlining Rogers Arena Oct. 21, frontman Ben Gibbard is married to actress Zooey Deschanel and the band looks like proprietors of a hip new Prohibition-inspired bar/deli/butchershop/ haberdashery in Gastown. Who knew? The always rockin' Hold Steady opens. Tickets at Red Cat, Zulu Records and all Ticketmaster locations.
2. Vancouver Opera kicks off its new season by easing up on the opera and going Broadway with its production of Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story. The high-energy show, which premiered on Broadway in 1957 and was adapted for fi lm in 1961, transplants the tale of Romeo and Juliet to 1950s New York City, where the Sharks and the Jets are rival gangs who, conveniently enough, are also great singers and dancers. It all goes down Oct. 22 to 29 at Queen Elizabeth Theatre. For tickets, call 604-683-0222 or go to vancouveropera.ca.
3. Considering the current occupation of Wall Street, not to mention the grounds of the Vancouver Art Gallery, Sean Devine's new play Re: Union seems particularly timely. Presented by Pacifi c Theatre and Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, Re: Union tells the story of Emily Morrison who returns to where her father set fi re to himself in opposition of the Vietnam War and wonders if she can continue his legacy of protest 36 years later. It runs Oct. 21 to Nov. 12 at Pacifi c Theatre. For tickets and info, call 604-731-5518 or go to pacifi ctheatre.org.
4. Headlines Theatre's 30th year anniversary production Us and Them is apparently inspired by the recent Stanley Cup riots, the London riots and the Occupy Wall Street protests, and tackles a whole whack of social issues from homophobia and immigration to poverty, religion and Roberto Luongo's inconsistent goaltending. We may have made that last one up. The "edgy, multilayered" play runs Oct. 21 to Nov. 12 at the Cultch. Tickets at thecultch.com.
