The Must List: Sweet Honey in the Rock, Menorah Mania, Buttcracker II
By Seattle Magazine Staff December 14, 2016
Must Listen
Sweet Honey in the Rock
(12/15-12/18, 7:30 p.m.) Since 1973, this Grammy-nominated female a cappella quartet has delivered positive, socially conscious and relevant music: gospel, blues and spoken word. jazzalley.com
Must Celebrate
Menorah Mania
(12/17, 5:30-7:30 p.m.) A Hanukkah party with all kinds of festivities: cookie decorating, make your own menorah, a life-sized dreidel game, food trucks and performances from the Klezmatics and Shul of Rock. sjcc.org
Must Crack Up
Buttcracker II
(Through 12/18, 7:30 p.m.) Tchaikovsky meets Def Leppard, Ozzy and Aerosmith, and Clairol turns jailbird in this much-demanded reboot of the irreverent parody of the classic by serious local choreographers Diana Cardiff, Sara Jinks, Jana Hill and Matt Mulkerin. facebook.com/ericksontheatre
Must Hear
Seattle Men’s Chorus
(Through 12/22, times vary) In Silver & Soul, 250 melodious voices offer holiday favorites (“Sleigh Ride,” “O Come, All Ye Faithful”), a tender David Bowie tribute, a crowd-rousing karaoke sing-along, soulful gospel harmonies and a strong closer with a disco Santa finale. seattlechoruses.org
Must Watch
Holiday Stage Events at Bathhouse Theatre
Christmastown: A Holiday Noir (Through 12/24, 7:30 p.m.) A hardboiled gumshoe dreamed up by Seattle playwright Wayne Rawley encounters a sexy elf, a nosy reporter, a used-Christmas-tree salesman and a sharp cabbie in a show that’s as crazy as a pair of waltzing mice.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever (Through 12/24, times vary) The Herdmans’ annual family church pageant invasion is as chaotic as a pack of actual children and grown-up pro actors can possibly make it. seattlepublictheater.org
Follow Us
Little Ways to December in Seattle
A few (mostly) local things worth picking up, wandering through, or falling into as the year wraps.
December always sneaks up on me even though every year I convince myself I’m going to be organized (I’m not). So I’ve been collecting these simple outings and local spots that feel like unwrapped gifts. If you’re looking for a way to escape or lean in, here are some recommendations. A sip of history You…
Back to Gander
Seattle Rep revisits its original world premiere with a new staging that pulls you straight into the heart of the story.
When you walk into the theater, the cast is already onstage in what looks like a Gander high school gym—setting out dishes for a potluck, chatting, and then cleaning up. It feels like you’ve arrived in the middle of a reunion, which is the point. This run marks 10 years since Come From Away first…
Seattle’s Big Holiday Arts Guide
A full lineup of seasonal performances across local theaters and venues.
In the words of William Shakespeare, “All’s well that ends well.” Local theater and arts organizations are hoping for exactly that. Holiday productions often account for as much as half of their annual ticket sales. A 2018 Dance/USA survey found that The Nutcracker alone represented 48% of yearly revenue for many companies producing the Tchaikovsky…
Outside the Frame
In their first solo museum exhibition in Seattle, artist Camille Trautman uses photography to reclaim history, narrative, and self-expression.
You have probably seen Camille Trautman’s work without even realizing it. A huge photograph—20 feet wide—is currently hanging across the exterior of the Frye Art Museum, visible to passersby driving along Boren Avenue. The image is of a wooded landscape in black and white. Its edges are vacuous, with trees swallowed by darkness, but the…