Malaspina Theatre

News Stories

Six actors on the left reach out to one of their cast mates while another stands in fear on the right.

Beyond the boy wizard’s limelight – PUFFS offers a hilarious twist on a beloved magical world

February 27, 2024

What: PUFFS, or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic When: March 7 to 16 at 7:30 pm, Opening Gala March 7, 7:30 pm Where: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310), Nanaimo campus For seven years, a bespectacled boy wizard with a scar went to a certain wizard school and conquered evil. But this isn’t his story. This is the story of the puffs who happen to be at... Read more


A Christmas Carol poster sits on a stand in front of a Christmas tree.

VIU Theatre department presents A Christmas Carol, a live radio play

December 12, 2023

What: A Christmas Carol – Live Radio Play  When: Sunday, December 17 at 7 pm, doors open at 6:30 pm Where: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre lobby (Building 310), Nanaimo campus  Immerse yourself in the enchanting story of Ebenezer Scrooge from A Christmas Carol as it comes to life at Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Malaspina Theatre. “Don’t miss this magical experience that will leave you with a... Read more


Six actors stand in two lines holding their arms up over their heads while rehearsing a scene at Malaspina Theatre.

VIU Theatre Department presents the dark parody Collateral Damage

October 13, 2023

What: Collateral Damage, VIU Theatre Department fall play When: October 19 to 21 and 26 to 28 Where: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310), Nanaimo campus Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Theatre Department presents playwright Jackie Crossland’s Collateral Damage this fall. Collateral Damage explores and reimagines the ancient Greek myth of Medea. In the original myth, Medea’s husband... Read more


A performer on the stage during Drag in the Theatre.

Drag show offers a night of jaw-dropping and dazzling performances

September 29, 2023

What: Drag in the Theatre When: Wednesday, October 4, 8 to 10 pm Where: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310), Nanaimo campus Experience a fabulous night of drag, live vocals and jaw-dropping performances during Drag in the Theatre. The show is presented by Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Positive Space Alliance and Vancouver-based drag queen and VIU alum Darrian Tolerance, Host, Performer... Read more


Lexi Barudin, who wears a crown of pink roses and a pink outfit, holds onto Brandon Caul's hand.

VIU’s Theatre Department presents the dramatic comedy She Kills Monsters

February 15, 2023

What: She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen – presented by VIU’s Theatre Department  When: March 2 to 11 Where: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310), Nanaimo campus Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Theatre Department presents the hysterical dramatic comedy She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen as this year’s spring production. The play tells the story of Agnes Evans as she comes to terms with the... Read more


An actor at centre stage has their hands thrown up in the air while they look off in the distance. Numerous cast mates stand behind them in various poses.

VIU’s Theatre Department presents A Good Person

October 24, 2022

WHAT: A Good Person by Ross Desprez – a play by VIU’s Theatre Department WHEN:  October 27 to November 5 WHERE: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310), Nanaimo campus Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Theatre Department presents A Good Person by Ross Desprez, which is a comedic adaptation of Brecht’s The Good Women of Szechwan. In A Good Person, God comes to Earth in search of one good person... Read more


Six VIU students practice a scene onstage at Malaspina Theatre.

VIU’s Theatre Department Presents an Adaptation of Durrenmatt’s Play – The Visitor

February 22, 2022

WHAT: The Visitor – a play by VIU’s Theatre Department WHEN: March 2-5 at 7:30 pm WHERE: VIU’s Malaspina Theatre (Building 310) What would you do for a billion dollars? Can ridiculous amounts of money buy the scruples of an entire population? Join Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Theatre Department to explore these questions and more in the new adaptation of Friedrich Durrenmatt’s classic... Read more


Dr. Jennifer Griffiths smiles while crossing her arms.

Colloquium Series Shines Light on the Importance of Arts and Humanities in Today’s World

September 21, 2021

Lectures return to the stage at VIU’s Malaspina Theatre this fall. Vancouver Island University’s (VIU’s) Arts and Humanities Colloquium Series returns this fall with an engaging lineup that explores women’s contributions within the avant-garde movement, gender roles and expectations of strong female characters and how the T. Eaton Company’s marketing strategies commodified youth culture. The... Read more


Zombies and Shakespeare Collide in VIU Theatre Department's Spring Play

March 3, 2020

Theatre Department presents William Shakespeare’s Land of the Dead as its spring production, which opens March 5. To be, or not to be … a zombie? Zombies shuffle through the streets of medieval London as historical characters deal with their own human schemes and woes while trying to avoid becoming one of the undead during the Vancouver Island University (VIU) Theatre Department’s production of ... Read more


VIU Satyr Players Club Presents Six Shows During One-Act Play Festival

January 20, 2020

Student theatre club premieres never before seen plays during annual festival. The Satyr Players one-act play festival runs the gambit of emotions this year, offering satirical comedy, high-energy slapstick and some serious moments. “There is something for everyone in this year’s one acts. All the plays are very different,” says Ariel Pretty, President of VIU’s Satyr Players Theatre Club. “We... Read more