Invictus Games Opening Ceremony and other things to do in Vancouver this weekend

Vancouver's skyline at sunrise is shown in this undated handout photo. (Destination BC/Albert Normandin via The Canadian Press)

The second weekend of February brings more than just Super Bowl Sunday. Here are some of the events and activities taking place in Metro Vancouver over the next three days.

Invictus Games Opening Ceremony

Katy Perry and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin headline a two-hour spectacle planned for BC Place beginning at 1 p.m. Saturday.

The opening ceremony will welcome more than 550 competitors from 23 countries who will take part in adaptive sports across Vancouver and Whistler for the following eight days.

Other scheduled performers include Noah Kahan, Nelly Furtado and Roxane Bruneau, among others. The opening ceremony will be broadcast live on CTV and TSN and livestreamed here on CTVNewsVancouver.ca.

Opera and ballet performances

Also opening on Saturday is Vancouver Opera’s “Flight,” a modern masterpiece by Jonathan Dove that tells the true story of an Iranian refugee “bureaucratically marooned in Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport for 18 years.”

Saturday’s performance takes place at 7:30 p.m. at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver, and additional performances are scheduled for Feb. 13 and 16.

Elsewhere on Saturday, New Westminster’s Massey Theatre will present Ballet Jörgen’s Sleeping Beauty. The one-night-only performance of the company’s rendition of the classical ballet begins at 4 p.m.

Vancouver craft markets

Three notable craft markets are taking place in Vancouver this weekend, with the Eastside Flea Valentine’s Market taking place Saturday and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m.

The event features 6,500 square feet of vendors, flash tattoos, food and drink, a photo booth and more, according to organizers. Admission is $5.

Elsewhere on Saturday, Vancouver Etsy Co. will host its Too Cute Pop-Up Market at the Heritage Hall on Main Street from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $3, and 50 per cent of ticket proceeds will benefit the organization’s 2025 charities of choice – which have yet to be decided.

On Sunday, it’s Got Craft’s turn. The group will host a Lunar New Year market with Dragon Boat BC at Creekside Community Centre from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

In addition to 29 local makers and small shops selling their wares, the free event will feature lion dance performances by Hon Hsing Athletic Club.

Primary Trust

This weekend is also the first weekend of the Canadian premiere production of Eboni Booth’s “Primary Trust,” which won the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The play tells the story of 38-year-old bookstore clerk Kenneth, and his experiences after being laid off in a small town in Upstate New York.

The show opens Thursday and runs through March 2 at the Arts Club Granville Island Stage in Vancouver.