Canada’s longest running Japanese Canadian festival is back after COVID-19 hiatus

One of the largest and longest-running community arts festivals in Canada is back after a forced break due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Powell Street Festival, held in Vancouver’s historic Japanese Canadian neighbourhood, Paueru Gai, which is now known as the Downtown Eastside, begins Saturday.

Featuring dancers, workshops, theatre, crafts, and a range of food trucks and booths, the festival is commemorating its 46th year of the cultural celebration.

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Executive Director Emiko Morita told CityNews she’s happy to see the event fully back in its signature location this year, after going partially virtual in 2021 and fully digital the year before.

“It’s going to feel profoundly good, and right, and like a reunion,” she explained. “There is a tremendous amount of anticipation actually, and particularly because we’re also back in Oppenheimer Park, which is a very meaningful place for the festival.”

Morita says to have the festival back in-person this year after the pandemic hiatus is a sort of acknowledgment and “an empowered act of cultural expression.”

“It is the place Japanese people had settled and were forcibly displaced, removed, and their property was taken during the Second World War.”

Taking some lessons from sharing the festival online during the pandemic, Morita says if folks can’t make it to Oppenheimer this weekend, they won’t miss out.

“You can still enjoy the festival through a live stream, Festival Connect. There will be some on-the-scene reporting and also some programs shared in full.”

The Powell Street Festival runs Saturday, July 30, and Sunday, July 31. Tickets are free and more information can be found on the festival’s website.