Must List: PNB Presents Romeo et Juliette, Design Center Sample Sale

Must Hear
Seattle Improvised Music Festival
(2/4 to 2/6, 7:30 p.m.) Seattle musicians put their talents to the test during the 31st Seattle Improvised Music Festival. During the three-day event at Wallingford’s Good Shepherd Center Chapel, you can catch on-the-spot and off-the-cuff collaborations between the city’s bravest vocalists, saxophonists, guitarists, bassoonists, violinists and other musicians.

Must Plie
PNB Presents Romeo et Juliette
(2/5 to 2/14, times vary) Jean-Christophe Maillot’s spare, emotional interpretation of Shakespeare’s famous love story, set to the stirring score by Sergei Prokofiev, is once again part of the Pacific Northwest Ballet season. Maillot’s romantic take on love, family strife and death has become an enduring part of the company’s repertoire.

Must Shop
Seattle Design Center Sample Sale
(2/6, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) This once-a-year, open-to-the-public sample sale is packed with lighting, rugs, bedding, furniture and beyond from luxe designer showrooms such as J. Garner Home and Mafi International. Snag perfect pad-sprucing furnishings with wallet-friendly price tags.

Must Make
How to Shop Asian Markets to Create a Chinese New Year Feast
The eve of Year of the Monkey falls on February 7, and that’s when Asian families will gather for what’s called the reunion feast. Here, contributing writer Hsiao-Ching Chou navigates the uninitiated through the aisles of our plentiful Asian markets.

Must Listen
Amber Tamblyn Poetry Reading at Town Hall
(2/10, 7:30 p.m.) Writer and actress Amber Tamblyn reads her poetry and prose as her mother, Bonnie Tamblyn, plays guitar. Together they will weave together an intimate evening of music and storytelling.