No such thing as a slow week in Seattle, but this weekend presents a much needed break in the barrage of new productions. Still, there’s plenty to do, so…
COMEDY
Pocket Theater spends the last of its three month long rollout in Belltown; specifically they are taking over the Rendezvous for the month of April. This weekend features showings of improv classic Quiz Show, sketch competition show Iron Sketch and a new showing from Ubiquitous They.
Also this Sunday, it’s this month’s iteration of Weird and Awesome with Emmett Montgomery at Annex Theatre, which will feature stories from Meg Van Huygen, music from Tai Shan, and an undefined “something wonderful” from Bushwick Book Club’s Geoff Larson.
DANCE
The BOOST Dance Festival, which is curated by co-directors Kristen Legg of Redd Legg Dance and BadMarMarDance’s Marlo Martin, is the rare festival whose sole purpose is to present the world’s in progress from dance acts both established and new. Just some of the choreographers featured in this year’s fest: Catherine Cabeen, Kaitlin McCarthy + Jenny Peterson, Erica Badgley, among others. At the Erickson Theater on Capitol Hill.
Deborah Hay is a hugely influential choreographer in the experimental dance movement. Over the years she has worked with Merce Cunningham, John Cage and Mikhail Baryshnikov, while her approach — which favors the blurring of lines between artistic disciplines, performer types and presentational styles — became further and further entrenched in Dance’s DNA. For Who’s Afraid of Deborah Hay?, a pair of local dancers (Shannon Stewart and Mary Margaret Moore) were commissioned to rehearse one of Hay’s pieces for a year and spend that time working to make the piece their own for an audience. Each performance will be followed by a forum featuring local dance luminaries Peggy Piacenza, Kris Wheeler and Amelia Reeber, who have all collaborated with Hay in their careers. (At Washington Hall)
THEATER
The talented folks at New Century Theater Company grace us with the world premiere production of Tails of Wasps by local playwright Stephanie Timm. The story revolves around a politician and his slow decent into deeper grips of sexual transgression, and features the work of some of Seattle’s more popular actors.
Speaking of auspicious world premieres, Brownbox Theatre’s The Negro Passion Play is something to contend with. Mixing elements from the traditional passion play — just in time for Easter — with history and archetypes from the American Civil Rights movement while borrowing from other disciplines like Gospel and movement, Passion‘s creator Tyrone Brown seeks to create a new immersive experience in the African American storytelling mold. The production takes place all over Seattle University’s Campion Ballroom, home of Seattle’s Fighting Jesuits, fittingly enough.
That’s it in terms of new productions, so in lieu of the usual barrage, this week we feature a large number of staged readings being done by a few companies about town. Both Saturday and Sunday, Mirror Stage’s Feed Your Mind, a series designed to present newer thought provoking scripts, bring us Dominique Morisseau’s Detroit ’67 at the Ethnic Cultural Center.
Saturday afternoon, a reading of Seth Tankus’ Trenchmouth is being presented by the folks at MAP Theater as part of their MAPCast series, in which they record said reading and lead a discussion for the creation of a podcast episode. This Sunday we have Seattle Playwright’s Collective who present a new adaptation of Booth Tarkington’s The Magnificent Ambersons at Elliott Bay Books. Finally, on Monday, the Endangered Species Project — who specialize in reviving once-hit plays that have been ignored through time — bring us a non-operatic version of The Barber of Seville at ACT.
MUSIC
The UW World Series has brought Trio con Brio Copenhagen to perform at Meany Hall this coming Tuesday. Consisting of a violinist, a cellist and a pianist, the trio has become internationally renown for their renditions of select chamber pieces. The performance on Tuesday will consist of pieces from Nørgård, Mendelssohn and Beethoven. The evening is part of the Series’ Free Youth Tickets program, where for every adult ticket purchased, up to two children between five and 17 could be obtained for free.
OTHER
Weirdly, nothing new to share with you in the world of “non-traditional” entertainment, so may we recommend going to visit our beloved Dina Martina and her Greatest Videos Ever!? We think you’ll enjoy…
NEXT WEEK
Prom Queen at Vito’s? Don’t mind if we do…
