The annual Queer Arts Festival (QAF) is returning to Vancouver this June with three weeks of events.
The 18th edition of the festival runs from June 6 to 28, with everything from arts shows to screenings to jazz shows to a clothing swap. This year's theme is portals.
"Portals are gateways to transformation—liminal spaces of transition, possibility, and change," reads the festival's website. "For the 2025 Queer Arts Festival, Portals explores queer and trans experiences of crossing thresholds, stepping into new identities, and imagining futures beyond imposed boundaries."
This year the festival will have multiple visual art shows running, offering a variety of views on queer experiences.
Fest highlights include Erica Roozendaal from the Netherlands performing her Night Owl piece; a special screening of the new series Long Live Kings, which looks at the local drag king scene; and a collaboration with the Vancouver International Jazz Festival with three shows on Granville Island.
The festival will be based at Centre A and the Sun Wah Centre in Chinatown, with events at venues there and elsewhere in Vancouver.
Queer Arts Festival: Portals
When: June 6–28, 2025
Where: Centre A/Sun Wah Centre - 268 Keefer St, Vancouver (and other locations)
Cost: Ticket prices vary. Some are pay-what-you-wish
