The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts

Beautiful theatre. Comfortable seating but aisles are way too far apart for seating in main floor centre. Disturbing so many people to get to middle seats. Also the bathrooms for men/women/other are WAY over on one side of the theatre. In a short intermission if you’re seated stage right (audience on left) you have no chance of using the bathroom. For a venue built in the last few decades it certainly didn’t get thought through from a user-experience perspective. On top of that the urinals in mens room are close together and have no blinders between them. After watching a beautiful performance of the VSO it was a stark and uncomfortable contrast to be in a chorus line of open urinating men staring awkwardly upwards. Secondly the bathroom sinks had no mirrors. Like a prison or high school. Again for a modern venue it’s a disappointment that history hasn’t improved venues like this. The bar service was almost laughable as the staff seemed untrained in making coffee drinks or serving wine/beer. Management needs to refocus on the customer experience.

Terrific acoustics. Arguably not a bad seat in the house. Staff are excellent! Washrooms would benefit from some updating. Poor cellular connection meant a missed note that my parking purchase did not complete, resulting in a $56 ticket.

Went to see Vivaldi Four Seasons which was very nice. Only issue is the clapping between movements is very distracting. There should have been an announcement prior to the performance letting people know to enjoy the silence between movements.

We had to wait in a large lineup before entering to watch our son’s grad ceremony. The seats were general admission. We decided to sit in the upper balcony so we had a good view of everything. The grads were going to sitting on floor seats in the center of the building. Family’s had good views from where ever they were sitting. The acoustics were good and it was very easy to hear speakers and the music also sounded great! This theatre is a great place to listen to a concert or hear a talk as we had a long time ago from a travel guide! We’d come back here anytime for an event!

Place is simple and modern. Compare to downtown centre, quite small but more cosy and close to performers even sat on close to way out side. Also connected to parking lot so easy to get to the centre

The Chan Centre for the Performing Arts was our destination for The Early Music Vancouver Performance and the entire sold out venue was on their feet very proudly singing the “O Canada National Anthem” and then The EMV’Pacific Baroque Orchestra with the Vancouver Cantata Singers and the Director Alexander Weismann staged an amazing Mozart Requiem concert that led to another heartwarming standing ovation by the entire audience….the whole experience was incredible and we have continued to discuss the parts of the Mozart Requiem that we appreciated so much…

This is only the 2nd time I've been at the Chan Center in 30 years. Very cozy and nice. Being on the balcony to watch my daughter's high-school convocation was awesome. I had the best view in the house, so glad downstairs was full so it forced me to go upstairs. Beware, parking costs $22 til midnight!

I think the Chan Centre is by far the most elegant and acoustically well designed venue for live performances, be it music, public speaking or plays. I have heard Mr. David Suzuki speak there, heard earth shattering American black gospel music, and the ever so humorous 2set Violin play classical music at this prestigious stage. Which all blew my mind with their incredible talent and charm. This venue brings a feeling of community and reverence. For its simple interior architectural beauty, or the fact it's nestled in a wild forst with tall floor to ceiling glass exteriors. The staff are professional and ever so helpful, just remember tickets are all final sale, and they only allow refund if you are deathly ill. Parking is plenty and affordable. I can't wait to see their future programming. 😍

I have not been back in ages. I had my graduation ceremony here. I came here to attend a graduation ceremony recently. The inside looks just as nice as I remembered. Except.... it seems a whole lot smaller than what I remembered. The sound effect or surround sound equipment was really nice. At the start of the ceremony, UBC music school had a band playing acoustic music in the background. That was very nice. You can hear each sound very nice and crisp. It is a lovely venue no doubt. They have two tier limited seating balconies. From the look at it, you might be able to sit around 300 people max.

Updated review! They do credit cards and apple pay now, at the bar :)

Really lovely venue. We came to see the awesome comedian Danny Bhoy. Funny as hell. The box seats are worth it and you get more room than others in the rows! The set up is lovely. Loss of star for the atrocious parking system. You'll wait 30 mins in your car trying to get out the one lane exit. Everyone sitting their idling. I think 8 polar bears must have died in the time we took to get out of there.

I've been here twice now for Highschool Grad ceremonies. Both times it was very un-organized. Borderline pandemonium. Everyone was running around trying to get a seat. Unfortunately it was first come first served. No assigned seating. Almost every seat has a good view of the stage. Acoustics are amazing. The Staff needs an attitude adjustment. They are ill informed and quite often contradict each other. Just plain rude and cranky. Not pleasant in the least.

I love this venue. It is a modern facility but what I like about it is the 3 level tiered side balconies. This is very similar to the old European set up. I don't think there is another three tiered balcony in Vancouver. The real bonus is the back balcony! It is behind the stage. Wow oh Wow (sounding like Usher)!! I purposely sat in the back once to see that pianist rock star from China, Lang Lang play La Campanella from the Paganini Etudes. He was effing amazing to watch. His fingers blazed on the keyboard and he didn't miss a note. The acoustics are wonderful and I've been here for operas, professional performances, as well as student performances.

Acoustics here are incredible, man! Before this venue, I never knew orchestras could sound so good. I shuddered in awe at the intensity of the orchestra as an ensemble but was luckily also able to distinctly isolate the unique parts, whether it be the different strings, brass, woodwinds, etc. I had the pleasure of hearing the World Doctors Orchestra at this venue in Vancouver as well as in Seattle's Benaroya Hall. To my ears, I think Chan Centre's sound signature is more to my liking except for the fact I thought piano cut through more in the Benaroya performance (in a pleasant way). However, this may very well be due to different positioning for the piano in relation to the orchestra or another unforseen factor, so it is difficult to make an all else equal comparison. Regardless, I recommend Chan Centre as a worthwhile place to enjoy an orchestra concert. Give the place a shot when you're in the area.

We came last night to see Tig perform. The parking is stupid. I get that they don't want it jam packed so they designed it so the parking lot access doesn't actually go directly to the front of the Chan. It was dark and confusing as hell. We ended up parking a little ways away. One complaint about the parking lot: WTF is the Honk app? I have never seen this app except on US TV. I didn't even know we had it in Vancouver until last night. Why couldn't they use Verrus like the rest of the city? The venue is beautiful. I really liked how many entrances there were which helps alleviate cramming everyone into only a few entrances/exits. The bathrooms also had plenty of stalls which was much appreciated. I also like how they played what was on stage outside in the atrium area (I'll go back to this). Why not 5 stars? I debate between the benefit of this and it being a huge nuisance. There is absolutely no reception inside the theatre. Once you walk down any hallway into the actual seating area, you get zero reception. It's fantastic because it means no one can disturb the performance with their annoying phone. It's bad because if you need to be reached and were being a good boy/girl (by having it on vibrate), you're out of luck. So the reason I really liked being able to watch and hear the show in the atrium/outside theatre area was because I was stuck there until about 10pm. Yeah I know the show started at 8:30 but I had work that couldn't wait so I was stuck outside in the atrium texting and calling because there's zero reception inside to even enjoy and then duck out. Luckily I caught some of the show while texting. Also, please know that the alphabet row starting with A does not mean actual first row from the stage. A is actually 3-4 rows behind the front. We were stoked we got row B thinking we'd be staring straight up Tig's nostrils but no such luck, we were several more rows back. In any case, they were great seats. I love the seats (very comfortable and not perfectly straight backs which means you can actually relax a bit) and the acoustics are great. I would avoid the very top balcony seating because the sides really just appear like you're staring at the top of her head.

Wow the acoustics in this room are epic, what a space! I attended an instrumental concert at the Chan Centre last night and had a lovely experience from start to finish. Parking as others are noting is close by, parkade or cheeky pay parking lots (which we didn't) if you care to risk it. Nice staff, large open concept washrooms, diligent pages and chill, warm lighting. If you are looking to really enjoy the acoustics of any performance, this is the location for you!

As a UBC Alumni, I have a special place in my heart for the Chan Centre. I use to daydream out the window in the arts building beside it and always think how great it would be to go there instead of being in class. At convocation, the long walkway into the centre was beautiful, and the entire area is surrounded by beautiful gardens and trees ans blooming flowers. The auditorium is vast and the accoustics are great for opera and choral performances. At Christmas time, the annual concert is always sold out. The stage is very spacious as well. The neatest thing is probably the women's washrooms, so cool. All concrete, the grey and glass bathroom is circular with a communal wash area in the middle. Chrome and shiny all over, the lighting is ideal.

I get excited at the idea of going to the Chan Centre for a performance. There's something special about walking down the flight of stairs from Crescent Road to the lobby. It's similar to the way church architects make the doors quite small to enhance the effect of the ornate and vaulted ceilings. It gives us commoners the feeling of reaching heaven, I've had tour guides tell me. So I'd liken going to the Chan Centre to this same sense of discovery -- entering the rabbit hole only to discover an entire warren of tunnels, rooms and warm space. The Chan Centre is a beautiful building and welcomes musicians who make beautiful music. And how about the women's washroom! It's worth the visit alone. See it here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/26614719@N07/2534855068/in/set-72157605327634007/

Love the interior design and all the build-in sound engineering work. Fantastic concerts given by UBCSO and UBC Bands regularly.

I came here to see the kids I nanny for graduate (yes I am old). First time here. The place is medium in size, clean, however, no real personality. Modern structure. The acoustics are good, staff on the other hand seemed a bit clueless and were of little to no help at all. The staging is basic, almost looks like a convention center than a modest concert hall. Seats are very very comfy with reasonable leg room.

Well, parking, beautifully decorated and comfortable chairs. Nice staff. Nothing much else to add. It's a good place to watch a performance.

Beautiful Centre that Chan built for performing arts. A great excuse to get all dressed up and go out on a date. I wonder if Chan has to EVER purchase tickets again. Or does he have a seat only he can sit on it?

I've been here a number of times to watch concerts, speakers (Romeo Dallaire, Mohammad Yunus, Dan Savage to name a few), and every time I've had a good experience. The seats are comfortable enough to sleep in (temporarily). The sound is pretty good. And the decor is nice. I think the next time I will be here is when I say adieu to this university as a student!

Venue ok. Looks beautiful. Seats are pretty tight. I find the staff useless and rude all the times I went. I'm glad I don't have to go here often.

I had my graduation here! It's beautiful and expansive. Photos were taken in the rose garden prior too, and after the event. The womens bathrooms are so utterly cool! The seating inside the auditorium is comfortable enough, and the giant screen will display your photo (or anything else for other events) as you walk up. I was sitting in the second row with my graduating class, however the view from the balcony would be much more beautiful as you could get the whole view of the majestic space.