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COMMUNITY
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Local artists and creators are coming together this Friday to raise money for the Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA), which works to protect and improve the lives of children in Palestine and Syria through aid, empowerment, and education. You can enter to win a variety of prizes—tattoos, a massage, a tarot reading, and even a Cafe Flora gift card. Raffle tickets are $10 for one or $25 for three. The event will feature rune readings, cupping, mocktails, snacks, and more! SL
(Temple, Madrona, Donations encouraged)
LIVE MUSIC
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I’ll admit it; jazz can feel very intimidating! There are so many subgenres to learn, names to remember, and history that feels gatekept by Boomers with hi-fi equipment. However, nothing compares to hearing a skilled jazz ensemble play live. It’s truly transcendental. If you haven’t had the pleasure, Portland-based cosmic jazz troupe Roman Norfleet and Be Present Art Group is a wonderful place to start. The trio employs ethereal vocals and free-flowing percussion to boost their instruments (saxophone, drums, and organ) to an otherworldly plane. For this concert, the group will perform as an eight-piece in support of their Mississippi Records-released, self-titled album. AV
(Good Shepherd Center/Chapel Performance Space, Wallingford, $10-30 sliding scale)
PARTIES & NIGHTLIFE
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If you’re one of those people who likes to say “I like all music except for country and hip-hop,” then I have a message for you: GROW UP! Generalizing genres is so last season and this contemporary country dance party proves it. Do your best two-step to western music royals like Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain, Luke Combs, and the queen herself, Dolly Parton. Let’s go girls! AV
(Madame Lou’s at the Crocodile, Belltown, $15)
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The Pike Place Market’s newest hole-in-the-wall performance theater is celebrating its first anniversary with a swanky cocktail party and live music to match. Progressive cocktail pop band Lushy will fill the Rabbit Box with smooth, danceable bossa nova beats alongside DJ Wicked Strides. Don’t forget to dress for the occasion! Fancy garb is highly encouraged. AV
(The Rabbit Box Theatre, Pike Place Market, Suggested donation $10)
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Do you have a “Blank Space” in your calendar this weekend? Join your fellow Swifties as they congregate in honor of 1989 (Taylor’s Version). Typically referred to as her “party girl” years, the 1989 era gave us TayTay’s first venture into synth-pop, her obsession with the Kennedys, and the iconic Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. I, for one, can’t wait to sway along to the legendary vault track “Slut!” AV
(Neumos, Capitol Hill, $10)
READINGS & TALKS
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In multi-hyphenate music man Peter Jesperson’s debut memoir, Euphoric Recall, he chronicles his life and career as a passionate music lover, band manager of the Replacements, and creator of trailblazing indie rock label Twin/Tone Records. In honor of its release, Jesperson will sit down with his old pal Tommy Stinson (bassist of the Replacements) and music journalist Charles R. Cross for a thought-provoking conversation and Q&A about all things creative, the music business, and addiction.
(Easy Street Records, Junction, free)
COMEDY
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Virgos vs. Aquarians. Taurus vs. Pisceans. Anything’s game in this cage match-style improv show, because teams will be determined by their astrological signs. If you’re into astrology, Star Clash is a dream come true, and if you’re not, fine, whatever, just don’t ruin the fun for everyone by rattling on about astrology being “fake.” We don’t care! Moving on!! The show will aim to determine which Zodiac sign is best at improv, and I’m betting on Leos taking the prize—they’re typically the luminaries of the stage, right? LC
(Showboat, Fremont, $15)
COMMUNITY
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Continuing its annual tradition of Día de los Muertos celebration, El Centro de la Raza will honor the dead with an exhibition of ofrendas (altar offerings), a mercado, live music, children’s activities, and mouthwatering Mexican cuisine. This year’s theme, “Un Pueblo Sin Memoria es un Pueblo Sin Futuro” (which translates to “the people without memory are a people without a future,”) honors “those who have died from homelessness, mental illnesses, gun violence, and other environmental factors,” as well as the survivors of the 1973 military coup d’etat in Chile. LC
(El Centro de la Raza, North Beacon Hill, free)
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Diwali is commonly referred to as the “festival of lights,” but its meaning goes deeper than the twinkly nickname. The Indian holiday celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, and the human ability to overcome, which we could all use a little more of right now. Join the family-friendly celebrations at the Seattle Asian Art Museum for a day full of activities, including storytime in Hindi and English, live musical performances, henna tattoos, and a Bhangra dance workshop. Local artist Deepti Agrawal will lead a community mural painting and you can warm up with a hot cup of chai from Seattle chaiwalas Jaipur Avenue. SL
(Seattle Asian Art Museum, Capitol Hill, Free with suggested admission)
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To cap off the third annual Seattle Forest Week, the Green Seattle Partnership invites you to volunteer in local parks and care for the urban forests. From Seward Park to Golden Gardens, there are over a dozen gatherings planned to plant native trees, shrubs, and groundcovers. We all know the planet is dying, so why not pitch in to help make our natural world a little healthier? You might just have fun and make some new friends while you’re at it. SL
(Various locations, free)
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Partake in a 50-year-old tradition and join Dom Polski for a fall bazaar. You’ll be able to browse the upstairs selection of amber, gifts, crafts, Bolesławiec pottery, and other wares and stop at a dessert booth with pastries and hot tea and coffee. Plus, enjoy a delicious Polish feast with options such as soup (pickle soup or white borscht), cabbage rolls, pierogi, sweet cheese crepes, kielbasa, and more. Best of all: They’ll have frozen bags of pierogi, pyzy, and meat or mushroom uszka for sale, so you can stock your freezer with comfort food for fall and winter. JB
(Dom Polski (Polish Cultural Center), Miller Park, free)
FESTIVALS
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In 2018, Stranger editor Rich Smith wrote of Short Run: “You’re going. You’re bringing at LEAST $50 cash. You’re picking up new art books, zines, buttons, and little strips of beautiful screen-printed ephemera from internationally/nationally/locally-renowned comics creators.” Challenge accepted! This year’s edition of the now-legendary DIY fest includes special guests Arantza Peña Popo, Simon Hanselmann, and others, plus cool creative exhibitors, art shows, a “draw jam,” and an after-party at Mini Mart City Park. LC
(Seattle Center, Uptown, free)
FOOD & DRINK
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Bay Area-born rapper and producer P-Lo, a founder of the HBK Gang (a hip-hop collective that counts a little-known up-and-coming artist named Kehlani among its members), is celebrating Filipino-American excellence with a tour across the country with stops at some acclaimed restaurants along the way. In Seattle, he’ll come to Kilig, Musang chef Melissa Miranda’s new “panciteria and bulalohan” in Chinatown-International District. The free event promises conviviality and community, with exclusive food and drink specials, music, and merch—it’s sure to be a joyful time. JB
(Kilig, Chinatown-International District, free)
PERFORMANCE
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The inaugural April Fool’s Day edition of The Foolish Oracle, a “brunch time news arts variety show,” has come and gone, and the event persists—so it must not be a prank, right? Old-school magazine hawkers Bulldog News play host to the show, which targets those of us who are too damn old/tired/annoyed for late-night poetry slams and dance parties. (The Foolish Oracle self-describes as “like the Internet come to life, but not all the bad parts, and more equitable. In other words, the Foolish Oracle is the antithesis of the Internet.” So, it’s for those of us who are sick of being online, too.) Best part? The performance is free, so you can snag a “fast espresso” and a magazine, too. LC
(Bulldog News, University District, Free, donations gratefully accepted)
SPORTS & RECREATION
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Hockey is back! Join your fellow fans to cheer on the Kraken from their practice facility with community skate and watch parties. Channel your inner Gourde and take a spin around the ice under a live broadcast of the game on a 32-foot screen. Don’t worry if gliding around on ice wearing tiny blades on your feet freaks you out; fans are also welcome to watch from the bleachers. SL
(Kraken Community Iceplex, Northgate, $14.97)
COMMUNITY
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Lately, it seems like there are a whoooole lotta dorks taking issue with two beloved institutions: the public library, and the drag show. Let’s invite them to get their hands off our books and eyeshadow and get a life, shall we? The Seattle Public Library’s central location will offer up a free variety show of queer comedy, drag eleganza, live music, and even circus acts and puppets. More than just mangos and bananas, the Fruit Salad Show views itself as “a port in the storm,” an “act of resistance,” and “a place for the community to come together to create, share, and laugh.” LC
(Central Library, Downtown, free)
SPORTS & RECREATION
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West Seattle roller derby team Rainier Roller Riot returns this weekend with a bout against Marysville’s Strawberry City. The colors will be black vs. red in this vampire-inspired clash, and all are encouraged to dress up for the costume contest and masquerade ball at halftime. The game is a fundraiser to support the Rainier Roller Riot’s upcoming season and make sure they can continue to provide an inclusive space for folks to learn how to play roller derby. Let’s get ready to rrrumble! SL
(Magnuson Community Center, Northeast Seattle, $8-$12)
EXHIBIT
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The first cohort to graduate from the Seattle Black Spatial Histories Institute will share their oral history and “Black memory work” in this culminating exhibition, which was inspired by interviews with Black longshore workers, barbers, dancers, educators, and beauticians. The opening of Honored to Tell will include an artist’s talk at 6:30 pm, followed by a dance performance by Akoiya Harris and Nia Amina Minor. I’m stoked to see Ricky Reyes, Eboni Wyatt, and Sierra Parsons’s Making.Wavs zine and immersive reading room, Ariel Paine’s barbershop installation, and Brenetta Ward’s quilted scrolls. LC
(Wa Na Wari, Central District, free, Saturday-Sunday; opening)
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Sound Check! The Music We Make is a new exhibit at the Wing Luke Museum that celebrates Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander musicians. Photos, artwork, audio and visual installations, and other artifacts recognize local greats such as Kim Thayil and Hiro Yamamoto of Soundgarden, Karen Maeda Allman of ’80s punk band Conflict US, and Geo Quibuyen of Blue Scholars alongside history-making peers including the Slants, the Portland-based Asian-American rock band who won the right to trademark their name in a 2017 Supreme Court case, and Fanny, an oft-overlooked rock band from the ’70s who inspired everyone from the Go-Go’s to Def Leppard. (The 2021 documentary Fanny: The Right to Rock is related required viewing.) STRANGER CULTURE EDITOR MEGAN SELING
(Wing Luke Museum, Chinatown-International District, $0-$17, Friday-Sunday)
FESTIVALS
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SPAM’s 2023 program began in August with an activation at Freeway Park by the University of Washington’s Digital Arts and Experimental Media (DXARTS) Ph.D. candidates. DXARTS students aren’t afraid to get weird with it, so the experience brought the park to life with sound performances, installations, videos, and “sculptural interventions” inspired by the idea of salvage, data sets, collective memory, and archives. The explorations will continue all month: SPAM’s tech-driven art “resonates with the notion of unlearning one’s privileges and positions of power,” and the festival’s free performances and exhibitions include collaborations with Henry Art Gallery, Mini Mart City Park, Method Gallery, Gallery 4Culture, Jack Straw Cultural Center, Georgetown Steam Plant, and Meany Hall at the University of Washington. Click here for a full list of events and head out with an open mind. LC
(Various locations, free, Friday-Sunday)
FILM
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SIFF Cinema Egyptian’s latest series offers a rare opportunity to catch 21 Seattle International Film Festival faves and Audience Award winners. Over the last five decades, the festival has screened over 10,000 films from all over the world, so seeing them all would be pretty much impossible. These screenings will help fill the gaps on your Letterboxd lists, though. The series starts with Eighth Grade, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, and The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum this week. I’m jazzed that they’ll screen the eerie Australian flick Picnic at Hanging Rock, a favorite of SIFF festivalgoers in 1979, later this month. LC
(SIFF Cinema Egyptian, Capitol Hill, Friday-Sunday)
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In one of Burial’s unreleased tracks, you will find a sample that makes this claim: “It’s like people had forgotten how to make a tune.” Something similar can be said about the cinema of the procedural. It’s hard to find a director who can do it right, who deeply understands the form. This is why Anatomy of a Fall, a French film by Justine Triet, is so remarkable: It’s 100% a thriller. There is a crime, an investigation, a suspect, and, of course, lots of drama in the court. Triet builds all of the questions (Who did it? What are we missing? Why is the man nearly blind? What about the music? The aspirin?) into a solid maze. And the tension increases the closer we get to its core. Anatomy of a Fall (what a great title) deserved the Palme d’Or it won at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. STRANGER SENIOR WRITER CHARLES MUDEDE
(SIFF Cinema Uptown, Uptown, $13-$14, Friday-Sunday)
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Night of the Hunter captures the simmering horror of an old fairy tale with an eerie sense of humor. Director Charles Laughton’s psychological masterwork follows a batshit traveling preacher with knuckle tattoos who unleashes hell on a sensitive widow and her children. The expressionist flick, which stars film noir player Robert Mitchum and iconic Hollywood mainstay Lillian Gish, is a must-see for any Letterboxd member—it continued to influence cinema auteurs like the Coen brothers and Spike Lee for decades after its release. LC
(Central Cinema, Central District, $12, Friday-Sunday)
VISUAL ART
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Just look at Mary Josephson’s beaded tapestries. They are incredible. Don’t you want to see them in person?! Seriously, this blurb almost writes itself. The lush foliage and color-drenched compositions of Josephson’s visual world as supplemented by her generous material usage, and each piece seems to scream and shout in celebration of life, animals, and texture. Although her multicolored works are forces to be reckoned with, I’m equally intrigued by Jacobson’s quieter etched glass pieces, which fill the frame with confident gestures. LC
(Traver Gallery, Downtown, free, Friday-Saturday)