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Must List: Upstream Music Fest + Summit, Bite of Greece, ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame’

Your weekly guide to Seattle's hottest events.

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MUST LOVE LOCAL MUSIC

Upstream Music Fest + Summit
(6/1–6/3) Paul Allen’s music and tech festival is back to Pioneer Square for a second year. Though regional music still remains the focus, national acts like The Flaming Lips, Miguel and Valerie June will be headlining. With more than 200 artists performing, how will you choose who to see? Check out our handy guide for the best acts on each day.  Times and prices vary. Pioneer Square, Occidental Square, Occidental Avenue S and S Main Street. upstreammusicfest.com

MUST SHOP

Oddmall Emporium of the Weird
(6/2–6/3) The weirdest craft show in the Pacific Northwest is this weekend. Vendors that make eclectic jewelry like raccoon teeth earrings or paintings out of coffee will be there pushing their bizzare wares to the public. Plus, there will be food trucks and a separate flea market for you to enjoy as well. Free. Times vary. 14405 179th Ave. SE, Monroe; oddmall.co


MUST BEEP

Honk! Fest West 
(6/1–6/3) Now in its 11th year, this nonprofit, grassroots music festival celebrates the global art of street music and busking. Watch local and international bands—from klezmer outfits to marching brass bands—take to streets across the city for a pop-up concert experience that’s all about sharing the love of mobile music. Free. Times and locations vary. honkfestwest.org

MUST EAT

Bite of Greece
(6/1–6/3) Get your fill of Greek food at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Assumption on Capitol Hill this weekend. This year’s menu includes gyros, chicken souvlaki, and tiropita, a buttery pastry filled with feta and egg. Take out is available, but you won’t want to skip the music and Greek marketplace. Free admission. Times vary. Capitol Hill, 1804 13th Ave; 206-323-8557; biteofgreeceseattle.com

MUST SEE

The Hunchback of Notre Dame
(6/1–6/24) The 5th Avenue Theatre is staging a new production of the Disney classic. Though many of the songs from the Disney film will be featured, this production is staying true to Victor Hugo’s original book from the year 1831, so it may not be suitable for all children. Unlike most productions of the story, deaf actor Joshua Castille will be playing the lead role of Quasimodo, the deaf bell-ringer in the center of Hugo’s book. There will also be eight ASL interpreted performances during the run of the show. Times and prices vary. Downtown, 1308 Fifth Ave; 206-625-1900; 5thavenue.org

Rearview Mirror: Spinasse at Home, a New Spa Experience, and Seattle Mag’s Reader’s Choice Awards 

Rearview Mirror: Spinasse at Home, a New Spa Experience, and Seattle Mag’s Reader’s Choice Awards 

Things I did, saw, ate, learned, or read in the past week (or so).

YOUR VOTE MATTERS Everyone has a favorite restaurant, coffee shop, or local boutique. Call me old-school, but I will die on the hill that Caffe Vita has the best coffee in town. Disagree with me? Now’s your moment to speak up. Each year, we survey Seattle magazine readers, asking them to weigh in on everything…

Studio Sessions: Ling Chun

Studio Sessions: Ling Chun

The Seattle-based artist brings playful color to ceramics and neon while exploring memory, transformation, and life between cultures.

For Ling Chun, creating begins with something sensed before it can be named. Working with clay, glass, light, and sometimes synthetic hair, the Hong Kong-born artist gives physical form to things that words cannot always hold. “For me, the magnitude of making goes far beyond the object that is eventually produced,” Chun says. “The object…

The Magic of PAX Is Stronger Than Ever

The Magic of PAX Is Stronger Than Ever

PAX West draws more than 100,000 people to Seattle each year. Co-founder Jerry Holkins reflects on what the gaming convention set out to change, how its community has grown and why gathering face to face still matters.

Access to game news as it was happening was difficult back in the day. Even with the advent of the internet, communication between game publishers and journalists was still a very elite affair.  I used to fake credentials—via fax machine!—to attend the Electronic Entertainment Expo, mostly just known as E3. It was simultaneously as loud…

Your Guide to Bumbershoot 2026

Your Guide to Bumbershoot 2026

Navigate Seattle’s wildest end-of-summer weekend with 20 picks spanning Death Cab for Cutie, Blood Orange, wrestling, skateboarding and—obviously—movies made in 48 hours.

Four years after Bumbershoot returned with its quirkiness revivified, Seattleites broadly acknowledge the two-day multimedia extravaganza as a welcome finale to the summer festival season. Fests like Bumbershoot are designed around a choose-your-own-adventure model, but if you’re the kind of person who looked at this year’s sprawling lineup—featuring multiple bands, artists, and exhibits happening at…