Art to Combat Gentrification Wa Na Wari
Last Saturday, February 3rd, Wa Na Wari opened an art exhibit of three Black artists, Marin Burnett, Brandon Donahue-Shipp, An artist called DK and Christopher Iduma. Wa Na Wari is situated in a fifth-generation Black-owned home in the Central District on a block without Leggoland development, and proudly displays this sign.
Kent Stowell’s Swan Lake re-opened for the 2024-25 season at Pacific Northwest Ballet on Friday, and it is as opulent as it is sublime.
Art that is Personal, Political, and Queer
At Artswest, in conjunction with the “truly amazing” production of Born with Teeth, is a truly amazing art exhibit by Scott Coffey, a painter printmaker, graphic designer and collage Artist from Seattle. 
Will Will or won’t Will?
Born with Teeth, a truly amazing production of a truly amazing script, was full of wit, intrigue, dramatic action and high-stakes suspense. Written by Liz Duffy Adams, directed by Matthew Wright, starring two exceptional actors, Michael Monicatti as the playwright Christopher Marlowe and Ricky Spaulding as William Shakespeare, Born with Teeth is a tribute to Artswest.
strong>Fifteen years after Nora Helmer walks out, she comes back
Written by Lucas Hnath , A Doll’s House Part 2, a sequel to Henrik Ibsen’s 1879 A Doll’s House, opened at Tacoma Little Theatre this past weekend. Nora Helmer, the heroine of the original, walks in through the same door, she walked out of 15 years before, at the end of Ibsen’s original play. Although it has a parallel theme to the original, Part 2 lacked the drama and suspense of the original.
Seattle Rep debuted its first play of the new year this weekend at Bagley Wright Theatre with an outstanding production of Quixote Nuevo. Written by playwright Octavio Solis, this play is a bold modern remix of Miguel de Cervantes’ 17th-century literary masterpiece, Don Quixote, an epic story of an old man’s quest for love and fight against reality. Solis’ contemporary adaptation fully grasps the stakes and scale of Cervantes’ original work, claiming the world as its own on the stage. With Lisa Portes’ direction, Quixote Nuevo is positively brought to life, conjuring the spirit of Cervantes’ original work, while retaining its own unique life and rhythm. Quixote Nuevo commands the stage, reminding audiences what it means to be epic.
Get ready, Shakespeare fans, for a play about the legacy of the legendary playwright in The Book of Will created by Lauren Gunderson, the author of Silent Sky and the Christmas at Pemberley series. Originally commissioned and produced at the Denver Centre Theatre Company, this production was directed by Karen Lund and produced by the Taproot Theatre Company.
Breaking the fourth wall in its opening lines, Becoming Dr. Ruth is a one woman show—but you wouldn’t know it until the curtain falls after the 90 minute, no-intermission new production at The Village Theatre, the lights go dark, and it hits you: that was all her. And if opening night’s standing ovation had anything to say, Naomi Jacobson’s phenomenal performance is pure theatricality and verve. In that dark, in that applause filled silence, the whole of Dr. Ruth’s life seemed to hover, a silently turning magnet still resonating in the heart.
Something for Everyone-but mostly for the Boomer Generation
Drunken Owl Theatre’s third production, Marine Mammals and their Mythical Mates, opened Friday night at what one can only say was a vintage bar; it was such an interesting place that I felt like a tourist in an ancient foreign city, which more or less describes that little corner of Georgetown. The buildings on that section of Airport way were old and rather attractive, with a 19th century brick warehouse opposite, along with the old Rainier brewing. Inside, everything was wood paneling and lots of pictures on the wall and a non P.C. stuffed animal head.
Directed by Mario Orallo-Molinaro, XXX Island is a comedic homage to reality TV that produces lots of laughs at its star, Amethyst Crystal, who is played by Pearl Lam. After failing to read her contract, Amethyst finds herself on a deserted island for a survival challenge instead of a dating show. With no survival skills and utmost confidence, Amethyst stays alive by telling herself that 60 proof alcohol is 40% water and that she doesn’t need food because she doesn’t eat anyway. Jokes aside, XXX Island also features a foray into Amethyst’s psyche which is induced by bath salts but is nonetheless compelling.
