Seattle Blog

As I took my seat in the ArtsWest’s beautiful theater I was immediately was entranced by the set of The Mountaintop. Rain falling down windows transported me to another time and place. If I was at all distracted before, as soon as the lights dimmed in the theater, my mind was nowhere but right there in the Lorraine Motel with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the angel who comes to visit him the night before he is to die.

The lights come up on the well-known American hero, played by Reginald Andre Jackson. The Mountaintop begins as a raucous period comedy, complete with clever repartee between the two characters. But then about halfway through, it switches to an entrancing drama about the meaning of being a hero.

Each year, we gather together our friends, members, and partner organizations to recognize them for the hard work they do. It's a little party we like to call The Teeny Awards. And this year, IT RULED.

Not only did we throw a bangin' party fully equipped with cupcakes, a photo booth, carnival-style swag toss, and button making--we spent the night laughing our butts off with host Lindy West, got to give away an enormous raffle prize of an entire year's worth of arts tickets, generously donated by our partner orgs, and then we had a dance party to finish it all off. We are telling you, this party was almost as good as meeting Lil Bub. Or Taylor Swift. Forreal.

At once thought-provoking, action-packed, and moving, The Invisible Hand opens up a conversation. It tells the story of an American economist held captive in Pakistan and tackles hefty themes — the role of journalism, the relationship between money and God, tensions between America and the Middle East, the nature of greed, racial issues, political corruption, and the desire for power — along the way. As the play unfolds, it proves to be a study of the relationship between the protagonist and his captors, both in terms of prisoner versus warden and their larger, thematic representations, namely capitalism versus Islam.

To amplify the intensity of the setting, The Invisible Hand uses some very original techniques on stage. Immediately noticeable is the circular format of the stage, with the audience seated a full 360 degrees around it, creating an up-close-and-personal feel. Additionally, before the play even begins, the scene is set when the pre-play reminder to turn off cellphones is spoken in Punjabi with accompanying subtitles on a mounted TV screen. This preemptively gets the audience into the world of the play, setting the scene in a very impactful and original way.

The set is a stage within a stage. Red curtains flank a stark rock and tree — sparse and pathetic like a Charlie Brown tree — on a dull road. “There is no lack of void.” This is true of both the stage and the show. Waiting for Godot, written by Samuel Beckett, is a bizarre play in which nothing and everything happens. The plot goes in many circles from a nonsensical and hopeless beginning through many strange events and unexpected turns to an absurd but dismal end that in some ways leaves the audience wondering.

The story goes like this: Two miserable men, Didi and Gogo (played by Todd Jefferson Moore and Darragh Kennan respectively), find themselves waiting, endlessly, for someone named Godot. These two men try to pass the time in many ways, none of which seem to make time go any quicker. After a while, Pozzo (Chris Ensweiler), a proud and ridiculous merchant, arrives along with his exhausted and mistreated slave, Lucky (Jim Hamerlinck), who does Pozzo’s every bidding. A ton of crazy things happen, and Pozzo and Lucky leave. Soon a boy (Alex Silva) comes to tell Didi and Gogo that Godot cannot come today, but will surely come tomorrow.

It's America circa 1986, the land of the guilt-ridden and home of the closeted homosexual people. And it's the world of Tony Kushner's award-winning play, Angels in America. Subtitled “A Gay Fantasia on National Themes,” Angels in America might just be the saddest and hardest-hitting fantasia around – and it’s fantastic.

Part 1 of the play, Millennium Approaches, follows two couples in mid-1980s New York City. The first is Prior (Adam Standley) and Louis (Quinn Franzen), a gay couple working to keep Prior alive in his fight against AIDS and keep Louis from leaving in fear of what the future may bring. The second couple, Joe (Ty Boice) and Harper (Alex Highsmith), fight over Harper’s agoraphobia and Valium addiction, along with Joe’s emotional and sexual distance in light of a recent promotion at work. Along with other family and friends, these characters are forced into making unwinnable decisions in the face of death, infidelity, religion, and sexual orientation.

Unsurprisingly, the Seattle Art Museum does not fail to impress with their current Modernism in the Pacific Northwest exhibition.

Even with no knowledge of the title and just a few minutes in the gallery, anyone would know that this is artwork from the Pacific Northwest. There is a miraculous similarity in colors, mainly featuring darker earth tones that scream Pacific Northwestern. I was actually quite surprised at the overall completeness of the color scheme, even between artists.

Come and help us celebrate 10 years of empowering teen arts audiences. Much more information to come!

Chocolate: The Exhibition is a treat for one’s senses. The exhibition takes a ticketholder from bean to bar while chronicling chocolate’s history throughout civilization.

The first sense to be treated is smell. Entering the exhibition, one’s nose is met by the sweet scent distinct to cocoa. Eventually the aroma fades as one becomes accustomed to the sweetness, though a hint remains ever present. Having noted the exhibit’s scent, one adjusts their eyes. The lighting is dim, creating a relaxing sort of mood to offset that sugar buzz one’s bound to experience simply from the site of it all.

It’s clear throughout The Internet’s Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz that director Brian Knappenberger is partial to his documentary’s subject. But who can blame him? The blossoming programming prodigy turned enemy of the system is lovable from the moment he steps on screen.

Though Swartz has all the makings of a hero, he carries it with dorky accessibility. Friends and family describe him encouraging his brother to dress as a computer for Halloween, predating Wikipedia in his bedroom, and collaborating to develop Creative Commons at 14 years old.

Walking into the 5th Avenue Theatre, I thought that I would be sitting down for a concert with small bits of scripting between songs, so I was not ready at all for what I saw, and I was, quite literally, overwhelmed. Lights flashed, disco balls spun, and then the curtain rose, revealing a screen that carried a message of hope. By this point I was completely curious as to what would happen next, and I wasn’t disappointed. Swinging from one Queen tune to the next with witty quips, pop-culture references, sassy dancing, and fantastic set changes, I enjoyed myself and felt quite entertained by this take on one of the most classic, beloved bands in the history of rock and roll.

The outlawing of music has been a plot point in a few musicals, namely Footloose. That is repeated again in We Will Rock You. However, the thing that sets this apart from having a stereotypical plot and expectedly feel-good dance numbers is the rock-solid directing, the classic music from Queen, the concert-like lighting, and the fact that the lead characters — Galileo and Scaramouche — don’t know what they are supposed to do about Galileo’s dreams and differences until almost halfway through the musical.

The photo on Ai Weiwei’s Wikipedia page is reverent. Luminous against a stony backdrop, he looks stoic, resilient. It’s an image fitting of a lone artist taking on the Chinese government, the sort that would win the praise of Ai’s media following and fans.

It would also make a great cover for a film. But that’s not the story Andreas Johnsen tells in his new documentary, Ai Weiwei: The Fake Case. In the film, Johnsen takes no pains to glorify Ai Weiwei. His goals were to spend as many hours with Ai as possible and to depict the artist’s vision of China. Johnsen never sits the family down for a heart-wrenching interview. He doesn’t propel Ai’s actions with music or effects.

About the DJ: Hailing from Queen Anne, but truly belonging on Capitol Hill, you can find me having my nightly Game of Thrones marathon, or jumping up and down in my room to ear-bleedingly loud music, while I avoid practicing my viola by pretending I can play the guitar. Everyone I admire is either dead or a high school drop out, but I don’t plan on becoming either anytime soon. I love people, and if you have a story to tell, I have the ears to listen.

1. The Rocky Horror Picture Show Fresh off my 16th birthday, I had the aaaabsolute pleasure of attending a midnight revival of 1970s cult classic, The Rocky Horror Picture Show with my best friend at the Egyptian Theatre on Capitol Hill. At a true showing of this film, your average movie going props like popcorn, Red Vines, and soda pop are replaced with fishnets, sequins, toast, squirt guns, and a lot of shouting. Before becoming a film, the show was originally an off-Broadway production, written by Richard O’Brien as a rebellion, after he had been fired from the set of Jesus Christ Superstar. It became the longest running theatrical release in movie history. Starring Tim Curry as saucy drag queen Dr. Frank-N-Furter and Susan Sarandon as the fretful-gone-freaky Janet Weiss, there’s a reason we keep coming back over and over to do the time warp again.

About the DJ: Isabella is currently a freshman at Garfield High School who enjoys spending her time analyzing musicals, staring at maps, learning new things, and playing Casanova, her lovely violin, any chance she gets.

1. Stephen Sondheim Being a huge Sondheim lover, I felt that I needed to include all of his musicals in this list — which unfortunately wouldn't fit into only five slots — so I've decided to talk about how wonderful his work is. Stephen Sondheim is a composer and lyricist known for his stunning musical works on Broadway he's been contributing for over 50 years. So yeah, he's not new, but definitely notable. A few of my favorites include A Little Night Music, Company, and Into The Woods. If you're looking for a change of pace in the musicals you watch, consider watching a Sondheim musical; they're filled with complexity, witty tongue-twister lyrics, and important messages you'll never forget.

About the DJ: My name is Evelyn, and I am an almost-senior attending Inglemoor High School. I love to read, watch movies, listen to Broadway musical soundtracks on my “down” days, or go out for a cup of coffee just for the sake of it. Overall, I’m just an easy-going person who appreciates small things in life. 1. Joe Hisaishi Joe Hisaishi is a film composer who composed soundtracks for pretty much all of the Studio Ghibli films. The soundtracks from famous Ghibli films such as Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, Princess Mononoke, and Howl’s Moving Castle are all composed by the ever talented Hisaishi. I take delight in listening to those soundtracks pretty much all the time; there’s always a piece that fits your mood for the day. I recommend listening to Merry-Go-Round of Life or Path of the Wind, as they’re my favorites. 2. Les Miserables I absolutely love all forms of Les Miserables, from the original novel written by Victor Hugo to the Broadway musical, and further on to the movie starring Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean. My favorite element of the work is the music composed by Claude-Michel Schönberg, as it moves one into sympathizing with the characters who attempt to overcome their personal obstacles in life. My ultimate favorite song is “One Day More” as the title itself holds different meanings for the characters. 3. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries This YouTube program got me hooked from the first episode, probably because I’m such a die-hard Jane Austen fan. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is the modern reenactment of the Jane Austen’s most well-known novel: Pride and Prejudice. The show tells the story through a series of video blogs with Lizzie (Elizabeth) Bennet retelling us the major events of the story with few modern twists. Her way of recreating the story is especially hilarious if you have read the book, and it is refreshing to hear the story from a different perspective. 4. Eric Whitacre Eric Whitacre is my ultimate composer “crush” ever since I came across his name when our band chose to play his piece titled "Sleep." His creation of a virtual choir is what truly got me into his music. He gathered thousands of people to submit videos of themselves singing his work and then compiled all of their voices into one giant, virtual choir singing the song at the same time. How awesome is that? Pretty awesome. 5. Food photography I am a foodie — that means that I enjoy anything food related, including taking pictures of food. There is actually a lot of effort when it comes to taking the perfect picture, like the lighting, arrangement, and freshness of the food. Food photography is one of my therapeutic methods of getting by through the day; it helps me relax as my put my concentration into framing the perfect photo.

Life Feels Good, directed by Maciej Pieprzyca, is a feature-length Polish film chronicling the adventures of a man named Mateusz, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at a young age despite his mother’s best efforts to convince her family and the doctors that he is more than a vegetable. Narration makes clear from the beginning the truth of his mental capabilities as he struggles to tell the outside world of his understanding in order to gain access to the world of being known and knowing the world that he sees his siblings enjoy.

Rather than simplify or romanticize, the film portrays the complexity of Mateusz’s ordeal and the experience of his family around him. While often emotional, Pieprzyca directed a sometimes uncomfortable, often charming, and overwhelmingly witty and whimsical film. The combination of what feels like a futile struggle to be understood and an understanding of life gleamed from a sheltered and somewhat unconventional exposure to it leaves one unexpectedly fascinated.

If you ever wondered what happened when Charlie Brown got to high school, then you have to see Dog Sees God. The characters go by different names and love interests have been moved around, but it is easy to make the connections. That said, Dog Sees God goes down a completely different path than any Charlie Brown shows you have ever seen.

The play starts with CB dealing with the death of his dog, a beagle, which had to be put down because of rabies. After this loss he begins to ask his friends whether they believe in an afterlife, but none of them give satisfactory answers. His sister changes her personality every week, his friend Van is following the ways of Buddha, his ex-girlfriend (who is also Van’s sister) is in the mental ward for setting a girl’s hair on fire, his friend Matt is obsessed with sex and bullying Beethoven every chance he gets, and his friends Tricia and Marcy are too drunk to think straight. One day he finds himself in the music room, where Beethoven spends his lunch practicing piano because he cannot eat lunch in the lunchroom without being called gay, and after talking with Beethoven begins to think differently about his life and all he has ever done.

​It's that time again! Find something for every artistic endeavor on this complete list of classes, workshops, and programs for teens this summer.

Know about a summer opportunity that isn't on this list? Email Leah at [email protected] and she'll add it right quick! DANCE

Two BIG things are coming this Fall for teens interested in pursuing writing. Does that sound like you? Read on!

"What is criticism and why does it matter?" Explore this question and more in the Young Critics Workshop! In short, it's an arts criticism seminar open to 11th and 12th graders who are interested in exploring arts journalism. In YCW, you'll take classes, field trips to see art that you'll then review, and have discussions with a panel of real-life arts journalists. This class has been going strong since 2007--join and you'll be a part of the next generation of young arts critics.

Wetlands Screenings: May 30 and June 6 Not for the queasy or the prude, Wetlands is a bizarrely tuned exploration of the teenage psyche in the aftermath of trauma. Seventeen-year-old Helen’s hygienic and sexual habits frame her story. She’s an average teenager, except that she does a lot of things with her body that would make anyone else sick. Somehow Wetlands makes these happenings (often involving bodily fluids) intriguing, laughable, and maybe even understandable. It’s a compelling watch, if you can stomach it. - Kali S.

Ballet 422 Screenings: June 2 and 3 There’s no doubt that ballet is absolutely fascinating. The limber bodies, flowing costumes, and synchronized music of even the most standard ballet performance can leave viewers in awe. But what does it take to create that effect? Ballet 422 offers some insight. The documentary follows choreographer Justin Peck as he creates the New York City Ballet’s 422nd original piece. Not too surprisingly, the creative process rivals the result. - Kali S.

B for Boy is a powerful film about one strong woman’s struggle between staying true to herself and following her Igbo culture. Amaka is a 40-year-old Nigerian woman who is pregnant with her second child. Her first child is a daughter, so during this pregnancy there is pressure from her culture and her husband’s family to bear a son. If she does not bear a son there is the possibility that her husband will take a second wife.

During the third trimester of her pregnancy, a few days after she learns she is having a boy, the baby dies in utero and she learns she cannot conceive any more children. To add to that struggle, her husband’s brother dies, leaving her husband as the sole heir of the family name, putting even more pressure on Amaka to have a boy. As the movie continues it shows the story of how she deals with that knowledge and how much outside pressure she receives to have a boy and what it pushes her to do.