I'm in the process of contacting the department of health about my little shellfish incident last week. Can someone who lives in Bellingham swing by the Beaver and find out which shellfish items they serve? I wouldn't know since I went there to drink.
Accelerant- Fuel for Ignition Sunday, June 1, 2008- 7-11 pm Ouch My Eye Gallery 1022 First Avenue South, Seattle www.ouchmyeye.com
Please mark your calendars and spread the word.
Accelerant will be a hip, funky, and fun party to support Open Flame Dance Theater. We're still busy nailing down the final details, but expect a special sneak peak performance by the company, a silent art auction featuring some of Seattle's most innovative artists and live music to groove to.
With our inaugural performance, Ignition, premiering on August 1-2, 2008, we are actively seeking contributions to fuel our vision. Under the fiscal sponsorship of the Allied Arts Foundation, all charitable contributions are tax-deductible. Proceeds from the bar, auction, and raffle will benefit the company.
I keep hearing from all of you how excited you are to see the show. We’ve been cooking up some hot and fun dances for the Ignition, and now we need some volunteers to help us get to the next stage of our production. Our volunteers get to say “They couldn’t have done it without me?” You could even brag you made history with us by being a volunteer for the first contemporary dance and fire performance EVER! Best of all, you’d be helping a fledgling non-profit take flight.
I need one or two people to collaborate with Dylan and each other to plan a special fund raising event in May. This would be perfect for some one who likes to throw parties and see people having a good time. It probably also wouldn’t take a whole lot of time out of your schedule- maybe just a few hours a week.
ASSISTANT: (One person)
While I take care of most of the work, I need someone for just a hour or two a week (or less) to help me pick up the slack. Task would include helping with mailings and correspondence, keeping track of rehearsals and scheduling, and generally helping me get the paperwork done so I can spend more time creating art. It may sound boring, but it is really essential to the success of the project. And I’ll provide the cookies!
The caucuses are over, but the election sure is not. With the race this close, the show is not over until the curtain comes down. Regardless of who or if you voted/ caucused, I think it's important for people to be informed about The FACTS. With all the heightened emotions and opinionated talk going around, it's really easy to get lost in political spins of each campaign and the media. So before you start going off on who is better (or worse) than who, you might want to check their actual record on the issues.
That said, as many of you know, this year's Democratic elections may actually come down the personal endorsements of the Superdelegates. Wouldn't it be sad if after all the struggle we've gone through, the popular vote doesn't count? Sound familiar?
If this bothers you, then I encourage you to write to your Democratic Superdelegates and ask them to heed the voice of the people. After all, that is their sworn duty as an elected officials. Remind them that they are up for election in the next 12-18 months. Remind them what happened when Bush was appointed in 2000. Think about how pissed their constituents will be if they are "that official" who tipped the balance between fairly elected and not.
What's better, you can write to them even if you didn't vote in the caucuses/ primary. You can write to them even if you aren't an American citizen or eligible to vote.
Aside: I wrote to Congressman Jim McDermott before the caucuses to urge him to withhold endorsement until all the votes are counted, then accurately represent his district's choice at the National Convention.
It seems that art in Seattle is on my mind, particularly dance. I'm sure this has everything to do with my own twirling creations happening feverishly behind closed doors, but I'd rather talk about what's happening in full public view these days.
Last weekend, I attending Seattle Dance Project's Project One. While I mingled through the crowds of Seattle ballet elite, I couldn't help thinking about my own endeavors. If all goes well, I, too, will be debuting my company at the same theater just a few months from now. I found myself feeling sympathetic nervousness for Julie Tobiason and Tim Lynch. Would their first production be successful?
In my opinion, yes, their first production was successful. Was it as ground-breaking and amazing as it was hyped up to be? Well.. no. None of the four pieces was really "ground-breaking" choreography. And like all (former) PNB dancers, the cast was technically beautiful, but often lacked the emotional quality to captivate the audience's hearts. The last piece, "Intimacy of Strife" by Pat Catterson was by far the most lovely work on the company, showing off both their skill and their emotional range.
Donald Byrd's "Tatum Dance #2" was a swingingly entertaining set of duets, but again, not a very fresh idea and not even done in an original way. I couldn't help but feel like I'd seen almost every moment of that dance before. Perhaps with Ginger Rogers or Fred Astaire, or even choreographed by Twyla Tharp?
By far the most bothersome thing about the whole performance was how self-congratulatory it was. 5 bows per piece? Promotional videos between dances? Come on! Yes, it is wonderful that individuals who have had such successful careers as ballet dancers can continue to dance beyond their twenties in more mature and abstract ways. I also think it's wonderful that they even finally discovered the depth and juiciness of modern dance.
But guess what? Thousands of dancer have already been doing this and what more, in Seattle! This city has produced some of the more innovative and celebrated dancers and choreographers for several decades. Merce Cunningham, Ann Reinking, Bill Evans, Mark Morris, Mary Sheldon Scott... all originated in Seattle. So while I welcome Tobiason and Lynch for their leap into the modern dance world, I also want to caution them from being too arrogant. Maybe they should be a little more considerate of their new colleagues. You know, the one's that have already been doing this for years.
Well, not actually. But things could begin to suck a lot more soon. From Matthew at Capitol Hill Arts Center: If you've even gone to an art show, performance, musical show, or just plain like art, please at least write to the big-wigs in Olympia. There is an easy link at the bottom.
Unless you take action now, funding for the arts in King County is about to be cut from $35 Million per year to less than $2 Million per year.
Let's face it, you get a lot of calls and emails to get up and do something about the arts: if you choose one thing to do this decade, get on the bus with us to Olympia next week!
The issue is this: King County's Lodging Tax has supported the arts for the last 18 years through providing granting, education, advocacy and support. If we don't step up to the plate, this money will be GONE forever.
Do you care about the arts? Are you willing to vote with your feet? That's all we have to do, folks! Resist the urge to complacency! Legislatures in the City, County and State have said over and over again that the arts are losing money and support because nobody supporting the arts is showing up in Olympia and City Hall(?) Let's show em. If you care, this is your time: 1 day a decade, that is what we are asking for you to do.
Here's what you need to do:
GET ON THE BUS (choose one date below or both for extra credit)
HOW: Buses and Vans will be available for transport
A statement regarding the recent stabbing of Shannon Harps from the King County Prosecutor's Office: http://www.metrokc.gov/proatty/news/2008/Williams.htm
For those of you in the know, Oddfellows Hall, home to Velocity Dance Center, the Century Ballroom, and The Freehold Theater, was recently bought in a back-door deal by a developer. At the time of the sale, he swore up and down he was interested in preserving the arts in that building. Turns out he lied. Velocity Dance Center is closing it's door. So is Freehold. The century Ballroom has a lease through April 2009, but it won't be resigned.
The Seattle Arts community wants to hold a very public funeral/ protest. Very public. We thing this developer should know that he is not only affecting the lives of thousands of artists, but that he's damaging the vibrant art community in the greater Seattle are. Who wants to help?
I think it would be even better if we could get a lasting campaign going- kind of like the t-shirts everyone wore that said "The Real World Suck!" when MTV was in town in the late-90s. MTV could barely film in public because of those shirt. I think this developer's should feel the pinch when his condos are done- as in no one would want to live someplace built by the guy who killed the major performing arts center in Seattle.
I have a short 5 minute video that I need a little help with for new website. The job involves some simple cutting and cropping. There is no sound. I don't anticipate it taking long.
I can't pay, but I can give a professionals a tax-deductible receipt for their donated time.
Thank you to those of you who offered suggestions regarding my post yesterday. I appreciate all of your help, even if it's something I've already tried. I'm sorry if I came across as pissy about it. After over 6 months of searching, I've tried all of the conventional theaters, venues, and spaces. I am now looking for the unusual places. If you think of anything else, please let me know. It never hurts to try.
Does anyone know of a space in Seattle, preferably a theater but a warehouse can work, where I might be able to hold my show? I know. I'm making an act of desperation, but I keep running into road-block after roadblock.
Please? Anything? Warehouse in Georgetown?
Seats 150, performance space about the size of Broadway Performance Hall stage. Must allow fire!!
Grrr.
EDIT: Places I've already tried. 1. CHAC- Competition from Oddfellow drama means me the little guy got squished out just hours before the contract was signed. 2. Langston Hughes- Nope. 3. Little Red Studio- Franklin space not workable. New space, no fire. 4. Columbia City Theater- Could work but very far away and lots of build out on stage with no "wings". 5. Youngstown- nope. 6. Anything in Oddfellows Hall- nope. 7. Broadway Perf. Hall- Nope 8. Theater Off Jackson- Ceiling too low 9. Seattle Center (all spaces)- nope 10. Magnuson Park- one space may work but it would require complete build-out. Auditorium may work, but we're not sure if it's fire approved and it seats 450 (too big?).
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swingsyren's journal
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