5 things to do in Vancouver on the first weekend of March

A cocktail is shown in this image from the Vancouver Cocktail Week website. (thealchemistmagazine.ca/vcw)

A job fair for health-care workers, a week-long celebration of cocktails and a 1970s-themed dance party are some of the events on tap for the first weekend of March in Vancouver. Here are five to consider checking out.

Opera on Commercial Drive

City Opera Vancouver is presenting "Song from the Uproar: The Lives and Deaths of Isabelle Eberhardt" in three performances at the York Theatre on Commercial Drive this weekend.

The opera tells the story of Isabelle Eberhardt, who lived a nomadic lifestyle in North Africa in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and was, according to organizers, "a passionate romantic and one of the most adventurous women of her era or any other."

Showtimes are Thursday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. More information and tickets can be found on the City Opera Vancouver website. 

Sample Japanese Seafood

The Japanese government's External Trade Organization (JETRO) is holding what it calls a "Japanese Seafood Fair" in Vancouver beginning Friday and continuing through March 10.

Nine Japanese restaurants, most of them downtown or on the West Side, will be offering diners free samples of one-bite plates made with Japanese seafood products, while supplies last.

The samples are only provided to parties ordering at least one regular menu item per person, and JETRO recommends making reservations in advance. There will also be a special sampling booth at Kawaii Japan Market on Robson Street from Friday through Sunday. No purchase is necessary at that location.

More information on the participating restaurants and the dishes they're offering can be found on the JETRO website. 

Vancouver Cocktail Week begins

Also beginning this weekend and continuing through March 10 is Vancouver Cocktail Week, "a toast to the art of the cocktail" that is now in its third year.

Organized by The Alchemist magazine, the week-long event features ticketed tastings, seminars and neighbourhood cocktail crawls, as well as drop-in happy hours at bars and restaurants across the city.

More information can be found on the VCW website. 

Health-care job fair

Health-care professionals looking for job opportunities should head to UBC this weekend for an event that bills itself as "Canada's premier recruitment event for medical, nursing, midwifery & allied health employment opportunities both at home and abroad."

The event takes place at the university's Robert H. Lee Alumni Centre from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Registration and admission are free for job-seekers. More information can be found online. 

'70s-themed dance party

"Saturday Night Fever" is the theme of an "immersive costume party experience" in South Vancouver this weekend.

Organizers Passion and Performance Arts Inc. are inviting party-goers to step back in time and embrace the diverse and dynamic fashion of the 1970s at the South Hall, 8270 Ross St., on Saturday night.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for "pre-show roller disco babes and some local vendors," followed by "an immersive dance spectacle" from 7:30 to 8:30 p.m.

"The party will kick off after the show completes at 8:30 p.m.," the event listing reads. "There will be dancing, a photo booth, activity games, incredible food and more."

Tickets can be purchased online for either the show and the party or just the party.