Seattle Gay News
Issue 50, Volume 43, December 11, 2015
Arts & Entertainment
Seattle Men’s Chorus delivers lots of comfort and joy in entertaining concert
Reflection and redemption: ArtsWest’s Wonderful Life by Paul Torres SGN A&E Writer
WONDERFUL LIFE ARTSWEST Through December 27
Seattle Men’s Chorus Artistic Director Dennis Coleman conducts the SMC’s “Home for the Holidays” concert – Photo by Conrado Tapado
by Albert Rodriguez SGN A&E Writer SEATTLE MEN’S CHORUS “HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS” BENAROYA HALL Through December 21
That girl from Kansas said it best, “there’s no place like home.” Home, a place that’s familiar and warm and safe. Home, a place to escape the frosty temperatures, an even colder political clisee smc page 4
Book-It’s Emma 2015 a holiday treat!
Sylvie Davidson as Emma and Meme Garcia as Harriet in Emma – Photo by Adam Smith
by Miryam Gordon SGN A&E Writer EMMA BOOK-IT REPERTORY THEATRE Through January 3 Books by Jane Austen provide excellent material for Book-It Repertory Theatre. And subscribers and audiences seem to eat them up, selling out several performances for adaptations of Persuasion, Pride and
Prejudice, and Rachel Atkins’ romcom adaptation of Emma. Reprising now, after a production in 2009, the show is reimagined in some lovely ways. Carol Roscoe, the director, creates a proscenium picture (last time was kind of in the round) of a grass-covered summertime romp. The sun is shining (courtesy lighting designer Andrew D. Smith) and the topiary rolls and can be sat upon (set design courtesy of Andrea Bryn Bush). All is ensee emma page 6
ArtsWest’s new twist on a classic film is honoring the Christmas season. Wonderful Life, written by Helen Pafumi and Jason Lott, is a one-man show with minimal stage effects. In contrast to other more festive productions this time of year, this play is insightful and self-reflective. In this modern retelling of Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life, ArtsWest dares to pare down from their more robust productions to this smaller, simpler, yet moving production. Andrew Lee Creech is an amazing stage presence. While Andrew Lee Creech in Wonderful Life – portraying several characters Photo by Michael Brunk from It’s a Wonderful Life, he embodies not only the characters, but their see wonderful life page 6
The 5th Ave. presents The Sound of Music
Maria (Kirsten deLohr Helland, center) with all the von Trapp children in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music at The 5th Avenue Theatre this holiday season – Photo by Tracy Martin
by Eric Andrews-Katz SGN A&E Writer THE SOUND OF MUSIC THE 5TH AVENUE THEATRE Through January 10 The Sound of Music is perhaps one of the best-loved, American stories that have ever been created. The stage production
(which can be quite different from the megahit movie musical) is currently being performed at The 5th Avenue Theatre for its family holiday presentation. The story is probably better known than any other stage musical or film plot. Warning: If you don’t know the story by now, there are spoilers ahead. Taking place in the last year before the Third Reich annexed Austria, it tells the story of a gresee sound of music page 6
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Celebrating 41 Years!
TAYLOR SWIFT GIVES $50,000 TO SEATTLE SYMPHONY TO SUPPORT MUSICIANS OF TODAY AND TOMORROW
Gift Supports Music Education and Musicians’ Pension Fund The Seattle Symphony has received a major donation in the amount of $50,000 from recording artist Taylor Swift, in support of the future of the orchestra’s musicians and musicians of the future. Swift’s donation to the Seattle Symphony will support two signature programs, Link Up: Seattle Symphony, which will reach over 12,000 third through fifth graders this year, and the musicians’ pension fund. Inspired by listening to the orchestra’s 2014 recording of John Luther Adams’ Become Ocean, Swift wrote to Music Director Ludovic Morlot to express her appreciation to the musicians who recorded the music. “I was thrilled to hear that Taylor was moved by Become Ocean, like all of us at the Seattle Symphony,” Morlot said. “This is a powerful piece with a unique soundscape. We’re especially thankful that she wishes to support our musicians, and that she shares our belief that all people should be able to experience symphonic music.” In her letter to Morlot, Swift also praised the beauty of the composition, the musicianship of the orchestra and reminisced about going to hear her local symphony with her grandmother and how important the experience was to her. Link Up: Seattle Symphony is the organization’s signature education program, which will reach over 12,000 students this year. In this highly participatory program, students learn to sing and play an instrument in the classroom using the Link Up curriculum, then perform with the Seattle Symphony from their seats during the culminating concerts at Benaroya Hall. In 2014, the initial year of the program, over 6,000 students participated, and last year, over 9,000 students took part. Additional information about Link Up: Seattle Symphony is available on the Seattle Symphony website (http://www.seattlesymphony.org/), including a 2014 video showing the impact of Link Up on teachers and students. Gifts to the Seattle Symphony’s musicians’ pension fund are made through the annual Holiday Musical Salute fundraising event. Over its 20-year history, the event has raised over $1 million, helping to provide a secure future for Seattle Symphony’s musicians. The 21st Annual Holiday Musical Salute was held this year on December 8 at
Taylor Swift – Jun Sato/Getty Images via abcnews.go.com
the Westin Seattle Hotel. The Seattle Symphony commissioned John Luther Adams’ Become Ocean in 2011 and gave the world premiere in June 2013, followed by a performance at Carnegie Hall in May 2014 as part of the Spring for Music Festival. The piece, which makes a powerful statement about climate change, won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Music. The Seattle Symphony’s recording won the 2015 Grammy for Best Contemporary Classical Composition, and also received a 2015 Grammy nomination for Best Orchestral Performance and Best (Classical) Engineered Album, iTunes Classical Album of the Year for 2014 and best-of lists from NPR, The New York Times, The Boston Globe and The Daily Beast. Visit the Seattle Symphony Orchestra website (http://www.seattlesymphony.org/) for more information on Become Ocean, which is available on the Cantaloupe Music label. The Seattle Symphony’s commission of Become Ocean was generously underwritten by Lynn and Brian Grant. Seattle Symphony’s Link Up program is supported by The Boeing Company, The Clowes Fund, Inc., the Elizabeth McGraw Foundation, Richard and Francine Loeb, the Peg and Rick Young Foundation, The Sheri and Les Biller Family Foundation and the Wyman Youth Trust, with in-kind support from music4life and
Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute. Holiday Musical Salute was sponsored by Delta Air Lines. About the Seattle Symphony The Seattle Symphony is one of America’s leading symphony orchestras and is internationally acclaimed for its innovative programming and extensive recording history. Under the leadership of Music Director Ludovic Morlot since September 2011, the Symphony is heard from September through July by more than 500,000 people through live performances and radio broadcasts. It performs in one of the finest modern concert halls in the world – the acoustically superb Benaroya Hall – in downtown Seattle. Its extensive education and community engagement programs reach over 65,000 children and adults each year. The Seattle Symphony has a deep commitment to new music, commissioning many works by living composers each season, including John Luther Adams’ recent Become Ocean, which won the 2014 Pulitzer Prize for Music and a 2015 Grammy for Best Contemporary Classical Composition. The orchestra has made nearly 150 recordings and has received 18 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and numerous other accolades. In 2014 the Symphony launched its in-house recording label, Seattle Symphony Media.
Best of Music 2015 and special interview with Allen Stone next week
by Albert Rodriguez SGN A&E Writer
It’s time to almost say goodbye to 2015. But before we do, we’re going to take a look back at the music we listened to and loved these past twelve months. Next week, we’ll reveal our choices for the year’s best
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albums, singles, live performances, hottest artists, and our picks for the worst music of 2015. Joining us for this special music feature is Washington state-based, singersongwriter Allen Stone, who released his third album (and first on a major label) in May called Radius. He’ll select a couple of his music favorites from this year. He’ll
also share his plans with us for the upcoming holidays, plus he’ll tell us what his best Christmas present was growing up. Grab a copy of Seattle Gay News on December 18 to find out what we’ve selected as the Best of Music 2015, and read a special interview with Allen Stone.
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Seattle Gay News 3
Seattle musicians Brandi Carlile, Death Cab for Cutie, and Seattle Symphony earn Grammy nominations by Albert Rodriguez SGN A&E Writer Seattle has a long tradition of receiving Grammy Awards and nominations. In its 58-year history, artists from the Emerald City have collected these golden grammophones, the music industry’s top prize, including Quincy Jones, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Heart, Soundgarden, and Diane Schurr. Several more have been nominated over the years, from Death Cab for Cutie to Gerard Schwartz to Bonnie McKee. On December 7, singersongwriter Brandi Carlile, rock trio Death Cab for Cutie, and classical ensemble the Seattle Symphony were all mentioned for the 2015-16 honors amongst fellow artists in 83 categories. Carlile, who performed at a restaurant-bar on Queen Anne in her early days, earned her first Grammy nomination for The Firewatcher’s Daughter (Best Americana Album), released in March. The folk musician, who welcomed a baby girl with wife Catherine Shepherd in 2014, posted a photo on social media holding a sheet of paper that read “speechless” shortly after learning she’d been nominated, while one of her band members held up another sheet of paper that said “#FirstTimeGrammyNominee”; the photo was snapped at an airport baggage claim area, indicating Carlile had likely just landed. She’ll embark on a brief tour with The Avett Brothers later
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continued from cover mate, and a world that’s become bitterly violent. For two hours, the Seattle Men’s Chorus entertained us with musical numbers at Benaroya Hall that not only allowed us to sing and laugh, but it also provided a communal atmosphere filled with politeness and cheer, which is uncommon amongst strangers living in this city. It felt good to be there, to be sung to and to be reminded that the holidays are most importantly about coming together. The chorus opened its “Home for the Holidays” show with half of its members filing into portable risers, while the other half strolled up the symphony hall’s main floor aisles and turned inward to face the seated audience as they sang “Noel.” Quickly, the ensemble gathered entirely on stage, dressed regally in dark suits with red ties and matching pocket sleeves, and jointly completed the African spiritual-inspired number. “We’re going to fill you with holiday glee, okay?” said Artistic Director Dennis Coleman to a packed house. A heavenly rendition of “Ave Maria” was followed by a witty performance of a
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Brandi Carlile – ATO Records
next spring that includes an already sold out date at NYC’s Madison Square Garden. Death Cab for Cutie has teeter-tottered between the alternative music, pop and rock fields over the years, scooping up multiple Grammy nods for their albums Plans, Narrow Stairs, and Codes and Keys, and their singles “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” and “I Will Possess Your Heart.” This time around, Kintsugi, the band’s newest effort – and their first as a threepiece minus Chris Walla – made the final cut for Best Rock Album. Meanwhile, the
Seattle Symphony and its musical director Ludovic Morlot received 3 nominations in the classical music field, including Best Orchestral Performance. But Monday morning, which began with Alicia Keys announcing nominees in the four General Field categories: Album, Record, and Song of the Year, and Best New Artist, belonged to Kendrick Lamar. The acclaimed rapper dominated with 11 mentions, including Album of the Year for To Pimp a Butterfly and Record of the Year for “Alright,” followed by Taylor Swift with
newer holiday favorite, “Text Me Merry Christmas,” performed by Captain Smartypants, that included the words “selfie,” “LOL,” and “emoji” in the lyrics. “Soul Cake,” an English carol dating back to the Middle Ages, was one of the show’s highlights that included select chorus members wearing vintage plaid trousers, vests, and snappy blazers as they danced at the front of the stage. Globe-trotting travel personality Rick Steves made a guest appearance on this night, to announce two of his tours that would be awarded as raffle prizes. But he also took the opportunity to calm fears of those wanting to visit Europe, particularly Paris, by saying “We should be more inclined to build bridges and less inclined to build walls.” “A P.C. Christmas” was a charming piece that featured chorus member Greg Bowman dressed as an office secretary attempting to type up a holiday party memo to company staff that would be sensitive to everyone’s religious beliefs, cultural backgrounds, and social-political stances. Rounding out Act I was a medley called “What If Carols,” which whimsically reimagined Christmas gems in the spirit and style of Stephen Sondheim (“Santa Claus is Coming to Town”), Lawrence Welk (“The
Manger Polka”), Kander and Ebb (“I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus”), and Jerry Herman (“We Three Kings”). Act II began with Coleman singing “’Twas the Night Before Christmas” to a cluster of ensemble members collected by his feet in onesies and pajamas, as the full chorus, still in suits but with nightcaps, chimed in behind them. And though the concert was chock full of glee, as the chorus master promised, there was also a serious moment when the choir vigorously sang “Not in Our Town,” recalling an incident in 1993 in Billings, Montana where a brick was thrown through the window of a 5 year-old Jewish boy’s bedroom; instead of dividing a community, it united it by neighbors displaying a full-page menorah in their windows that had printed in the town’s newspaper. An interactive session, in which the audience was asked to sing and jangle their keychains along to “Jingle Bells,” and then stand and shout their assigned portion of “The Twelve Days of Christmas” was a lot of fun. I’m pretty sure my group that belted out “six geese a laying” was the loudest inside the concert hall. I adored the chorus’ beautiful version of “Silent Night” that faded out, well, silently, as members recited the final verse and chorus in sign language.
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7, including head-to-head battles with Lamar for Album of the Year (1989), and Record and Song of the Year (“Blank Space”). The Weeknd also nabbed 7 nods, and will challenge Swift and Lamar for Album and Record of the Year with his full-length recording Beauty Behind the Madness and single “Can’t Feel My Face.” Aside from Lamar, Swift, and The Weeknd, the coveted Album of the Year category includes Chris Stapleton’s Traveller and Alabama Shakes’ Sound & Color. Competing for Record of Year, besides the aforementioned three, are “Uptown Funk” by Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars and “Really Love” by D’Angelo and The Vanguard. And for Best New Artist, the award will go to either Courtney Barnett, Sam Hunt, James Bay, Tori Kelley, or Meghan Trainor. In the always competitive Best Alternative Music Album category, the final five are once again impressive: Sound & Color by Alabama Shakes, Vulnicura by Bjork, The Waterfall by My Morning Jacket, Currents by Tame Impala, and Star Wars by Wilco. In a similarly close race, Best Dance Recording, the nominees are “We’re All We Need” by Above & Beyond featuring Zoe Johnston, “Go” by The Chemical Brothers featuring Q-Tip, “Never Catch Me” by Flying Lotus featuring Kendrick Lamar, “Runaway (U & I)” by Galantis, and “Where Are U Now” by Skrillex and Diplo with Justin Bieiber. The Grammy Awards will take place February 15, 2016 at LA’s Staples Center.
Likewise, their cover of Josh Groban’s “Believe” was wonderfully arranged and performed. “Christmas Rhapsody,” a holiday offspring of the Queen classic, was cute, but I thought it lacked a little punch. I’ve seen a few other choruses sing it, including the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles, with a bit more dazzle. For an encore, the ensemble rapidly went through a costume change, from suits and ties to Hawaiian shirts, shorts, sunglasses, and other tropical wear, and sang a lively rendition of “Mele Kalikimaka” to close out the performance, earning a much deserved standing ovation. If only for a couple of hours, the Seattle Men’s Chorus concert was a good distraction from the stress and madness, and the cold weather, that seems to come with the holidays. The ambiance was friendly, peaceful, and joyful; something that almost feels rare in these times. “Home for Holidays” continues with shows on December 13, 20 and 21 in Seattle (Benaroya Hall) and December 19 in Everett (Everett Civic Auditorium). For tickets and information, visit flyinghouse.org or phone 206-388-1400.
Celebrating 41 Years!
The Chainsmokers give Seattle fans a smoking, hot show by Albert Rodriguez SGN A&E Writer THE CHAINSMOKERS THE SHOWBOX MARKET December 4 Hot and smoky. Those are two words to describe last weekend’s concert by The Chainsmokers at The Showbox Market. It was the electronic duo’s final performance of their North American tour, and incredibly the first show that had entirely sold out. Needless to say, it was crammed tight inside the downtown music venue on Friday night when they went on stage just after 11 p.m. “Yo, Seattle! What the fuck is up?!”, shouted Andrew Taggart in jeans and black tee-shirt, standing on an elevated platform. The duo then ripped into its 90-minute set with a remix of Smallpools’ “Dreaming,” as smoke bombs at the edge of the stage went off. This would be a common occurrence during the concert; smoke bombs were used in almost every other song throughout the night. Sharp graphics and colorful light patterns, displayed on stageto-ceiling light panels in zigzag formation, were also utilized throughout the performance. The Chainsmokers, comprised of DJs/ producers Alex Pall and the aforementioned Taggart, performed much of their own material, either from the EP Bouquet,
such as “New York City,” or independently released tracks, like “Let You Go.” But they also infused their progressive house sound into snippets of familar hits, from OMI’s “Cheerleader” to NONONO’s “Pumping Blood” to Clean Bandit’s “Rather Be.” I loved the bouncy remix of Walk the Moon’s “Shut Up and Dance” and the duo’s techno-driven rendition of Zhu’s “Faded,” though I didn’t care much for their tinkering of Skrillex’s “Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites,” perhaps because I’m so over that song. “Kanye,” put out last year by The Chainsmokers, created a huge sing-along at The Showbox from the crowd, which leaned significantly college age with a reasonable percentage of Gay men in attendance. I think all of us Gay boys gasped, and drooled, when Taggart stripped off his wet tee-shirt, twirled it around, and slipped into a dry one. The usual items at a rave were visible on Friday night – glo sticks, spirit animal hats, neon accessories – but thankfully everyone left their whistles at home. “What’s going on?” Taggart asked the audience midway through. “I don’t know, but I’m drunk,” replied Pall. He probably wasn’t joking, as the pair were not only celebrating the final date on the tour, but also the first and only sold out concert on the slate. “I just want you to know that I love you,” Taggart said to everyone. Later in the show, near the finale, he yelled out, “This is the
The Chainsmokers – Disruptor Records
most ridiculous show we played this entire tour!” “Roses,” The Chainsmokers’ club smash from this summer, was saved for the end of the main set and everybody was ready for it, singing the lyrics jointly, dancing all over the place, and even hopping on each other’s shoulders, festival-style, to get a better look at the stage, which was a beautiful collage of pinks and reds. As a gift to fans, for filling the venue to its capacity, The Chainsmokers played a longer set, much to the chagrin of The Showbox’s stage hands, who shook their
heads in frustration when the crowd chanted and begged for “One more song!” The electronic act, of course, obliged and performed for another five minutes before leaving the stage, and then posed for selfies and signed autographs near the men’s restroom. Sweaty, yet happy, they finally went up to their dressing room, and I doubt they’ll ever forget this night, or this audience. Let it be known, Seattle was good to The Chainsmokers.
Intiman Theatre announces Valerie CurtisNewton as co-curator of the 2016 Intiman Theatre Festival Curtis-Newton will partner with Intiman’s Andrew Russell to program festival dedicated to black female playwrights Award-winning director and University of Washington School of Drama professor Valerie Curtis-Newton will serve as co-curator of the 2016 Intiman Theatre Festival, which will be devoted to great American playwrights who are also inter-generational black female writers. Playwrights under consideration for the 2016 festival include Alice Childress (Trouble in Mind), Lynn Nottage (Ruined), and Katori Hall (The Mountaintop). Intiman will produce these plays in a variety of venues throughout the greater Seattle area, working closely with community partners and venues with long historical roots in the community. “As a theatre for the public good, it’s our mission to reflect on the stage what is happening in our city and our world,” said Producing Artistic Director Andrew Russell. “We’re having critical conversations right now – locally and globally – about race and equity: how we see ourselves and others, how we communicate across our differences, how we develop empathy and compassion for others. Valerie Curtis-Newton has been a powerful voice in these conversations, and I’m proud to partner with her
– my longtime friend and fellow artistic leader – in programming what will surely be an extraordinary and thought-provoking festival.” “I believe Seattleites are hungry for work that pushes us beyond conversation. I want to meet them in that challenge by adding to the richness of our vibrant culture through the work of these amazing writers,” said Curtis-Newton. “There is a long line of powerful playwrights already out there – like Childress, Nottage, and Hall – women who have written great American plays and who deserve to be recognized and celebrated. I am honored to do just that with Intiman.” About Valerie Curtis-Newton Currently the Head of Performance – Acting and Directing at the University of Washington School of Drama, Valerie Curtis-Newton also serves as the Artistic Director for The Hansberry Project, a professional African-American theatre lab . She has previously served as Artistic Director of both Seattle’s Ethnic Cultural Theatre and Hartford’s Performing Ensemble, Inc. Curtis-Newton’s credits include three
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recent productions with Intiman – All My Sons (2011), Dirty Story (2012), and Trouble in Mind (2013) – as well as the premieres of Constance Congdon’s The Midwife’s Apprentice and Kia Corthron’s The Venus De Milo Is Armed and Slide Glide The Slippery Slope. In spring 2016, she will direct a new production of Trouble in Mind at the Guthrie Theater. In 2014, Curtis-Newton was awarded both the Stranger Genius Award in Performance and the Crosscut Courage Award for Culture. About Intiman Theatre Intiman is a professional and socially progressive theatre that produces an annual theatre festival that is exciting, relevant to our time, and as diverse as the community in which we live. Intiman’s most recent festival explored how communities treat those who live on the fringe, featuring Tennessee Williams’ Orpheus Descending; John Baxter is a Switch Hitter, a new play by Ana Brown and Andrew Russell; Lillian Hellman’s American classic The Children’s Hour; and a studio production of Robert O’Hara’s
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Bootycandy. In 2014, Intiman presented a 20th anniversary production of both parts of Tony Kushner’s epic Angels in America; and won a Seattle Times Footlight Award for Top Mainstage Play. In 2013, Intiman won the Seattle Times’ Footlight Awards for Best New Musical and Great Performances for its production of Stu for Silverton, a new musical about the first openly transgender mayor in America heralded by the Times as “groundbreaking.” Another 2013 festival play, Trouble in Mind – written in 1955 by celebrated African-American playwright Alice Childress – had one reviewer weeping through the curtain call, calling it theatre that “bring[s] us face-to-face with our collective humanity.” For more information, visit intiman.org and follow Intiman on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Courtesy of Intiman Theatre
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wonderful life continued from cover
souls. We all know about George Bailey, his wife Mary, Clarence the Angel, and the cruel Mr. Potter, but Creech gives new depth to the outlying characters like Ernie, the cab driver, and even the drunken pharmacist. Creech gives a winning and indefatigable performance. His physical nuances cue
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continued from cover hanced with the sumptuous costuming by Jocelyn Fowler, who is becoming a favorite of mine. The costuming was deceptively simple, but the embellishments made all the difference. When you attend, you must listen at all times for the music provided by Robertson Witmer. His cheeky sense of humor is embedded in violin renditions of very current popular music! Do you recognize “Call Me Maybe” or something from Adele? That’s Beyonce’s “Put a Ring on It,” right? It’s a definite plus to the evening! The casting is refreshing, diverse in ethnicities and backgrounds. The use of actors of color in completely unmentioned and essentially unremarkable ways, with relatives being different skin colors, is what we can hope theater will become, to the point
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continued from cover garious nun named Maria. Not being the best postulant in the convent, Maria is assigned to be governess for the seven (unruly) children of Captain Georg von Trapp. Persisting long enough to see through the children’s impish demeanors, Maria breaks through their icy exteriors (including that of the Captain), teaching them singing and music. The Captain and Maria fall in love and marry in time for the German occupation, and the family escapes to Switzerland and eventually, the United States. The Sound of Music is a tried and true family musical that is sure to delight most audiences. It just didn’t delight this one. The sets are good and the ensemble cast all do good supporting jobs, as their roles dictate. Maria is played by Seattle favorite, Kirsten deLohr Helland. She brings a good deal of stage presence showing the neophyte, optimistic Maria trying to find her place. She definitely has the voice and the persona comes through very well. There’s no doubt as to why her face is the literal face of The 5th Avenue Theatre’s The Sound of Music advertising campaign; Kirsten shines in the role of Maria. The only negative is that in every scene she’s in (and that’s most) she seems to be rushed and a bit winded. That’s probably because she is (without a doubt) carrying this show. The Captain is played by Hans Altwies. Mr. Altwies has the impersonal, cold, and flat-toned manners of the captain down perfectly as the role calls for. Unfortunately, he never shows us the alleged thawing that the Captain goes through and his impersonal performance remains the same throughout – monotonous and stiff. Maria could be playing to a cardboard cutout with the same results because the audience sees no chemistry between them at all. His voice is good enough and he does a very good job with the song “Edelweiss,” which always easily pleases the audience. Jessica Skerritt plays Baroness Elsa Shraeder. She is beautiful without a doubt and has a voice to match. There’s more to being an antagonistic character than wearing a smug expression, but that’s more an interpretation by director than the actress.
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the audience in on the dynamic and quick character changes. His modern everyday approach dressed with boots, jeans, and an iPad (watching It’s a Wonderful Life) on a bridge in the fog is as intriguing as it is compelling. It is pure Christmastime existentialism. Despite its straightforward approach, Erin Murray directs a challenging play. The only elements that keep the production really moving along are slight changes in
light, music, and fogginess. Unfortunately, these elements cannot carry this production over satisfyingly enough even when it comes together for the uplifting holiday ending. It comes across as a pastiche of its well-known and well-loved film that is shown on television ad nauseum this time of year. However, it is still a passionate project. Creech keeps up his energy and never fails the characters he is portraying or their story. Creech’s fine acting here is the
reason to not miss this one. While previous ArtsWest productions this season depicted the fevered lives of young disillusioned Americans and the hesitating aspirations of New York City bussers in the back kitchen, this production is their lost soul alone on a bridge tale. The true elegance of Wonderful Life is its essence; a seasonal story about the redemptive power of appreciating the love around us.
where we don’t have to ask about, think about or talk about the inclusion. It’s not there yet, so I mention it to celebrate it some more. While Austen’s life probably did not historically intersect with many people of color, there is zero reason to limit this kind of production in order to comply with history. This is fiction, and the lessons of the tale are to watch out for what you assume you know about people, and to keep some room for self-doubt about your judgments. Emma Woodhouse (Sylvie Davidson, who delightfully returns to our area to perform in this role once more) is a headstrong young woman who believes in her own infallibility, a character flaw that Austen exploits in demonstrating the folly of trying to manipulate other lives. Emma likes to arrange marriages and fancies herself the perfect matchmaker, having decided she set her governess up for that current happy marriage.
Watching with a jaundiced eye is her brother-by-marriage, Mr. Knightley (Sylvester Foday Kamara), whose brother married Emma’s older sister. He sees her downfall, though his advice is unheeded, and he is treated as a meddling brother. Emma undertakes a project with Harriet Smith (an adorable Meme Garcia), a young woman of uncertain background, deciding she should wed the local parson, while convincing Harriet not to marry a farmer she is in love with. Harriet is a biddable sort, to her own detriment. The play is best when done clearly as a romp. The timing at the opening performance was a bit too sedate, and the portrayals of the crass characters a bit too safe. Hopefully, they will all settle in and begin to play with more abandon, letting the fun fly. Every character has room to expand her or his range of emotions, and it would be all to the better.
The large cast includes the haughty and self-obsessed Mrs. Elton (Christine Marie Brown), her benighted parson (Jaryl Draper), a reserved and down-at-luck Jane (Sara Porkalob) that Emma is never quite sure she should like, and Brian Thompson as Emma’s cantankerous father. The play’s simple moral propels to a well-known happy ending and Emma realizes how wrong she has been. Fortunately, all her meddling has ended up with no one really having to suffer marrying the wrong person. All’s well that ends well. Oops, that’s a different tale altogether. For more information, go to www.bookit.org or call 206-216-0833.
Unfortunately, the conflicts between Maria and Shraeder are instantly apparent and rushed with no time to develop. The audience is left wondering if there is some sort of past history between them, or if Maria maybe isn’t the sweet “postulant” she pretends and has alternative plans from the beginning. David Pichette plays “Uncle” Max Detweiler. His character was developed for the musical mainly for comic relief and it shows. Mr. Pichette’s choice to play Uncle Max this way (shall we say…very “heterosexually challenged”) has been done before, but it also allows the actor to bring humor to the role. That he does – Mr. Pichette brings the funny. The flamboyant persona adds weight when the character says (in
the (rather lengthy) first act. The nuns and the children all do good jobs. There isn’t a single child that tries to steal focus (and that’s saying something), and some of them can be quite cute. All seven of their voices blend well, and none overpower any of the others. When the nuns sing the opening Benedictine “Preludium,” it is easy to understand why this is a call to worship; it is beautiful and beautifully performed. The problem with the show lies in the directional choices of David Bennett. He, like many contemporaries, chose to cater to audience popularity and change the original script to include songs written exclusively for the film – that came out seven years after the original stage production!
the Captain and Maria expressing their desires for each other. If the song was good enough to help win the original production the Tony (1960) for Best Musical, then why change it? The musical’s original conception was good enough to beat Gypsy, Fiorello, and Once Upon a Mattress, as it was originally written, for its music/lyrics and book – so leave it alone! Maybe try educating audiences about the original production, and the differences between stage and screen instead of bowing down before them. Including these songs extends the playing time of the show – maybe that’s why the plotlines seemed rushed. The first act is over 100 minutes long, so really, was it necessary to include these songs? And News Flash for the movie purists: there are several different songs that were written for the stage (thankfully, at least two were left intact), and many songs appear in different order or are sung by different characters than in the movie; GET OVER IT! If you want to see the movie – stay home and watch it. It’ll be on TV soon enough, 24-hours ad nauseum! The 5th Avenue Theatre’s The Sound of Music is a good enough production and sure to please most audience members. But it didn’t thrill this one. Maybe that’s because I know this cast collectively possesses an immense amount of talent, and only a fractural mendacity of it was displayed that night on stage. The Sound of Music is based on the true story of the Von Trapp Family Singers, especially the autobiography of Maria von Trapp. Although having very little to do with the Von Trapps’ real story, the musical was adapted by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse, with the illustrious Rodgers & Hammerstein writing music and lyrics. Opening on November 16, 1959 it starred Mary Martin as Maria and Theodore Bikel as the Captain. Although considered the weakest work on stage written by R&H, it was nominated for nine Tony Awards and won five, including Best Musical. The film production was adapted in 1965 with Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer in the lead roles. It won five Academy Awards and was the last musical Rodgers & Hammerstein wrote together.
The company of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music at The 5th Avenue Theatre this holiday season – Photo by Mark Kitaoka
regards to the Nazi takeover) “Whatever is going to happen just be sure not to let it happen to you.” If the character wasn’t 100% fiction, we’d know what’s going to happen to Max – there’s a pink triangle waiting with his number on it. Anne Allgood plays The Mother Abbess and does a great job. She brings life to this otherwise dry role, and her voice is exquisite. When she hits that last note in “Climb Every Mountain,” there’s not a member of the audience that doesn’t want to leap up, applaud and head for the hills. It’s the perfect place and perfect note to end
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It’s not the movie, it’s the stage production, so why do it? “I Have Confidence” and “Something Good” were written for the film production – and although good songs – belong in the film version only! When movie songs are incorporated back into the original stage productions (strictly to please audiences) they often remove the original songs. This happens frequently with The Sound of Music and Grease – to name only two (and The 5th Avenue is guilty of this for both productions). “Something Good” replaced “Ordinary Couple,” a heartfelt song between
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Holly Woodlawn dies at 69 Trans entertainer inspired “Walk on the Wild Side” by Mike Andrew SGN Staff Writer Holly Woodlawn, star of Andy Warhol’s Trash and Women in Revolt, died December 6 at the age of 69. She died in the arms of her longtime friend and Trash co-star Joe Dallesandro as he read her messages of support from her fans. In addition to the films she made with Warhol, Woodlawn was immortalized in the first verse of Lou reed’s classic “Walk on the Wild Side”: Holly came from Miami F.L.A. Hitch-hiked her way across the U.S.A. Plucked her eyebrows on the way Shaved her legs and then he was a she. She said, hey babe, take a walk on the wild side, Said, hey honey, take a walk on the wild side. Born Haroldo Santiago Franceschi Rodríguez Danhakl in Juana Díaz, Puerto Rico, Woodlawn grew up in Miami Beach, identifying as female at a young age. In 1962 she headed north to New York City. “I hocked some jewelry,” she recalled in her memoir A Low Life in High Heels, “and made it all the way to Georgia, where the money ran out and [I] had to hitchhike the rest of the way…” Woodlawn took her name from Holly Golightly in the 1961 movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s, and in 1969 added the surname
Holly Woodlawn – Dan Tuffs via www.theguardian.com
from a sign she saw on an episode of I Love Lucy. After changing her name she began to tell people she was the heiress to Woodlawn Cemetery. She first met Andy Warhol at a 1968 screening of Flesh at the Factory, and through him met another Trans actress, Jackie Curtis, who got her a part in the play Heaven Grand in Amber Orbit in the autumn of 1969. Later in 1969, Woodlawn was cast in what was intended to be a bit role in Trash, but she made such an impression on director Paul Morrissey that he expanded her part into a much larger role. In 1970, the legendary director George Cukor launched a campaign to have Woodlawn nominated as Best Actress by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sci-
ences, but nothing ever came of this campaign. Throughout the ’70s, Woodlawn worked in theatrical and film productions, usually to rave reviews, but without financial success. In 1972, director Robert Kaplan and cinematographer Paul Glickman came up with the idea of a musical whose premise involved casting a Transgender woman as the lead in a film without revealing the sex of the actress. Woodlawn played a young, starstruck girl hoping for success as an actress in New York City. While daring, the film, Scarecrow in a Garden of Cucumbers, flopped at the box office. During this period Woodlawn also had trouble with the law. She was arrested for
shoplifting on a visit to Puerto Rico, and again in New York City for impersonating the wife of the French ambassador to the U.N. On that occasion she was first taken to the Women’s House of Detention but was shifted to a men’s facility when police discovered her assigned sex at birth. In 1978 she was jailed again for violating the terms of her probation. Her career was also faltering, and eventually she moved back to her parents’ house in Miami and found work as a busser at a local restaurant. After moving back to New York in the mid-’80s, she worked in nightclub acts and broke back into film in the ’90s with cameo appearances in Night Owl (1993) and Billy’s Hollywood Screen Kiss (1998). In 1991 she published her autobiography, A Low Life in High Heels, with writer Jeff Copeland. At the time of her death Woodlawn lived in West Hollywood, where she appeared in riot grrrl shows with Revolution Rising and recorded spoken word, songs, and experimental recordings with the band Lucid Nation. She was diagnosed with brain and liver cancer in June. “I felt like Elizabeth Taylor,” Woodlawn told The Guardian in 2007, recalling her heyday. “Little did I realize that not only would there be no money but that your star would flicker for two seconds and that was it. But it was worth it, the drugs, the parties; it was fabulous.”
Stripped-down Carl(a) a drama of self-discovery by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer CARL(A) Video-On-Demand Carla (Joslyn DeFreece) is an Internet Transgender sex worker living in New York. Her best friend, Cinnamon (Laverne Cox), is a prostitute earning bucks out on the street. Together, the pair go through their day-to-day travails with spirit and spunk, dreaming of a better life as they do whatever they can to afford hormone therapy, doctor’s visits and, hopefully, sexual reassignment surgery. It’s easy to see why micro-budget indie drama Carl(a) is getting a cursory theatrical release coupled with a decent-sized VOD rollout. In wake of the success of Tangerine, with “Transparent” winning Emmys, The Danish Girl garnering major league Academy Award buzz and co-star Cox tearing things up in “Orange is the New Black” and Grandma, why not throw another story about Trans characters trying to make their way through life’s hardships into the void and see if it can find an audience? It just makes sense, especially considering the largely positive notices that have followed co-writer/director Eli Hershko’s drama during its film festival run over the past few years. Thankfully, the movie is worthy of a look even outside comparisons to all of those thematically similar projects. Hershko, writing with Christopher Theokas, has managed to craft a fairly honest, dramatically incisive look at two Trans women in the middle to late stages of their individual transitions. A subplot involving Carla and a new boyfriend, Sam (Gregg Bello), a for-
Joslyn DeFreece in Carl(a) – gayletter.com
mer voyeur on her porn web channel, is insightful, the arguments they have in regards to her desires and wants to proceed towards final surgery particularly powerful. There’s also a great tangent involving her dreams of becoming a shoe designer, the filmmakers keeping things simple and direct during these portions, while DeFreece is never more naturalistic and composed than she is during a conversation with a mouthy fashion designer who marginalizes her talents practically at first introductions. The major crux of the film concerns Carla and her loving grandfather (a superb Mark Margolis), the latter, for reasons not particularly difficult to figure out, trying to reconcile his granddaughter with the rest of the family, mainly her mother (nicely portrayed by Janice Mann). He keeps setting up meals with the entire clan only to see them go horribly wrong, mainly because of the transphobic, hurtful ranting of grandson Frankie (Christopher Kloko). But the
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real problem is the quiet, simmering hatred emanating from Carla’s dad (Elliott Mayer), the man hiding an inner monster behind the face of a clueless oaf. There is some good stuff here, much of it insightful and honest, and I am absolutely certain there are plenty of Transgender children who will be able to relate to at least one moment of dialogue passing between Carla and her immediate family. Same time, these sequences are also heavy-handed and didactic, slamming points home with zero subtlety and no dimensionality. Frankie is especially off-putting, composed more to fit narrative designs than ones that fuel story realism. Hershko and Theokas have a point to make, but they do so utilizing a sledgehammer, marginalizing the bigger picture in ways difficult to sometimes get beyond because of it. I guess my problem is, and this is something of a weird one, the movie just tries too hard. It’s so concerned with depicting
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an “authentic” Transgender journey it loses sight of what a real one of those actually is. Unlike Sean Baker’s Tangerine, not at all like “Transparent,” if there is humor, it feels forced, while the dramatic permutations between Carla and her family are more often than not melodramatically leaden. It’s a case of good intentions trumping good screenwriting, and as such there are far too many points where I felt like the preaching in regards to the complexities of the Transgender experience trumped everything else of entertainment value. But DeFreece is excellent, delivering an intimate, finely detailed performance that’s sublime. She has moments with Margolis, an Emmy nominee for “Breaking Bad,” that are just sublime, while a third act showdown between her and Mann bubbles over with just the type of depth and emotional truth much of the rest sadly lacks. But DeFreece never gives up on the movie or her character, not for a single solitary second, the talented actress displaying an intensity of vision and focus that reminded me of Gena Rowland’s work for John Cassavetes in films like Faces and A Woman Under the Influence. Ultimately, Carl(a) wins me over for refusing to completely become a fairy tale, yet at the same time offering its main character some semblance of hope for future happiness. While the mechanics of this are a little schmaltzy, what Hershko and DeFreece do with them are anything but. A final scene between Carla and Sam actually brought passing tears to my eyes, a sense of possibility and accomplishment permeating the last seconds that made enduring the lumpier, more overdramatic bits worth the effort of doing so.
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Gangster melodrama Legend a forgettable misfire by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer LEGEND Now playing Adapted from John Pearson’s bestselling The Profession of Violence, writer/ director Brian Helgeland’s Legend chronicles the rise and fall of notorious London gangsters Ronald and Reggie Kray during the 1960s. The twins are portrayed by Mad Max: Fury Road and Locke star Tom Hardy in a remarkable dual performance, the actor cutting a magnetic swath as he composes two distinct characterizations that are continually easy to tell one from the other. Equally terrific is Emily Browning as Reggie’s bride Frances Shea, the beautiful young actress doing a splendid job of holding her own even if the film itself doesn’t always know quite what to do with her. But that is only one of the many problems haunting Helgeland’s latest directorial outing, the screenwriter behind masterworks like L.A. Confidential and Mystic River having a terrible time crafting a narrative that’s worth maintaining interest in. Far from being an outright disaster like
The Order, unlike his last effort, the Jackie Robinson biopic 42, it’s hardly noteworthy, either, the movie an oddly routine and rote crime opus that haphazardly follows a standard, Scorsese-esque template without seemingly a desire to do anything innovative with it. The movie is strangely forgettable, and even with someone as talented as Hardy giving all he’s got in a dual role there’s frustratingly little to get excited about. The story begins with the even-tempered Reggie manipulating government officials to get his psychologically unbalanced brother Ronald out of a mental institution and then proceeds to follow them as they centralize their growing criminal empire by buying up nightclubs and partnering with the American mafia on casino operations. Through it all they do their best to stay one step ahead of Scotland Yard, most notably obsessed detective Nipper Read (Christopher Eccleston), something that proves increasingly difficult as the years go by. Intermixed into all of this are a number of subplots, the most important of which is Reggie’s courtship of charming East End dynamo Frances. Their relationship is supposed to be the emotional crux around which all else revolves, the beating heart on
which the movie generates its energy and momentum from. But, while both Hardy and Browning are good, while they do exhibit a great deal of natural chemistry, the romance itself is tamely monotonous. Even a climactic twist feels forced and false, almost as if it were designed solely to allow the audience to accept Reggie’s acts of murderous violence in ways they do not as it pertains to Ronald. There are some nice moments sprinkled throughout. An uncredited Paul Bettany has a solid cameo as Kray rival Charlie Richardson, a scene where the police pounce upon him while he’s watching England in the 1966 World Cup priceless. Even better is the moment when Reggie brings Frances to meet Ronald for the first time, the latter so nonchalant about his homosexuality the whole sequence ends up having a compelling authenticity so much of the rest of the film exasperatingly lacks. The movie is also expertly shot by Dick Pope (Mr. Turner) and magnificently scored by Carter Burwell (Fargo), and from a technical standpoint I can’t say Helgeland drops the ball in any noticeable way. But it doesn’t matter. Eccleston is wasted, given so little to do his fixation on the Krays doesn’t make any sort of rational sense. David Thewlis, as the brothers’ chief
financial operator Leslie Payne, is equally underserved by Helgeland’s script, and while he’s got a couple of nice moments sparing with Hardy (as Ronald) the fact so little is done with him when his character is vitally important to the outcome is maddening to say the least. This is also the second film I’ve seen in the last week or so that borrows a thematic device from Billy Wilder’s Sunset Boulevard only, unlike Joy, fumbles the execution, the reveal not so much a shock as it is just plain stupid. Worse, it devalues Frances, as well as Browning’s performance, to nothing short of an afterthought, a thing that would have made me angry had the movie been even slightly more interesting than it actually is. Hardy deserves better. He’s excellent, almost making me want to give the film better marks based on his efforts alone. But Legend really does waste the majority of its potential, Helgeland never tapping into the story of the Kray brothers in a way that is essential or lasting. The whole thing is more akin to Gangster Melodrama 101 than it is anything else, the upside being it’s so unremarkable I’ll likely have trouble recollecting in the future just what about it that made me so unhappily disappointed in the first place.
No toil, no trouble, Kurzel’s Macbeth a Shakespearean stunner by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer MACBETH Now playing “Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player / That struts and frets his hour upon the stage, / And then is heard no more. It is a tale / Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, / Signifying nothing.” Aussie filmmaker Justin Kurzel (The Snowtown Murders) has absorbed that key quotation from William Shakespeare’s Macbeth and taken it to heart, composing an adaptation of the Bard’s epic of murder, mystery, magic, mayhem and revenge and twisted it into a blood-curdling saga that gets under the skin and refuses to let go. His movie is a visual stunner that sits upon the viewer’s nerve endings as if it were a razor looking to slice and dice each of them one at a time. The fever-pitch of psychological upheaval is established right from the start, Scottish General Macbeth (Michael Fassbender) at a funeral for his youngest child standing alongside his equally distraught, grief-stricken wife the Lady Macbeth (Marion Cotillard) in a wind-swept wasteland subtly hinting at the calamity to come. The story should be familiar. After a major victory over a warlord attempting to overthrow Scotland’s King Duncan (David Thewlis), Macbeth is granted a vision of a royal future by a cadre of mysterious witches (Kayla Fallon, Lynn Kennedy, Seylan Baxter, Amber Rissmann). Revealing this prophecy to his ambitious wife, she in turn urges him forward, tasking him to take control of events by any means possible. With blood on his hands, Macbeth is crowned the new King, but insecurity and madness soon start to govern him, loyal soldier Macduff (Sean Harris) the first to realize things are amiss, much to his own personal regret and tragedy.
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One could wax poetic about the themes and ideas present in Shakespeare’s text for hours and not come close to dissecting them as fully as one would like to, because as simple as the story might appear the depth fueling all that transpires still remains mind-blowing. Kurzel streamlines things considerably, axing gigantic portions of the text, keeping things as minimalistic and as centralized as he can. He attempts to ground events in a hardened reality that’s practical and concrete while at the same time manufacturing an ethereal otherworldly mood. It’s a crazy balancing act, one that purists will likely have trouble with, but also one, for my part, I found hypnotically fascinating. The witches are the chief victims of the parsing down of the text, and those waiting for some “double, double toil and trouble” or pricking thumbs signifying something wicked is on the way will be severely disappointed by their absence. Thing is, as memorable as those moments are in the play, it actually makes sense that they’ve been excised, their tonal mysticism not playing as well with the psychologically unbalanced ecosystem Kurzel has composed for the characters to inhabit. Instead, he allows the feelings and the ideas driving those and other words integral to Shakespeare’s play to be conveyed by image, light and mood, bringing in dialogue only when it matters most. There is another variation on the source material, one that doesn’t so much change the text as it looks at a central character in a somewhat different light, and it’s safe to say this might just be the film’s most controversial, if also inspired, aspect. Lady Macbeth has always been portrayed as the epitome of evil, a harbinger of doom who manipulates and cajoles her loving husband to do things that will lead to damnation. She usually does this with an abandon bordering on gleeful, nothing more than a seductive demon reveling in death and destruction in
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Michael Fassbender in Macbeth – close-upfilm.com
pursuit of a type of power that, while addictive, is incredibly short-lived. Kurzel looks at Lady Macbeth from a different vantage point altogether, asking Cotillard to humanize this monster like I cannot say I have ever seen before. The two of them, while never shying away from her primary part in what will be Macbeth’s downfall, also show sympathy for this woman, allowing her a level of poignant sadness and regret that’s stunningly heartfelt. “Out, damned spot!” takes on an entire new meaning, as do hands covered in the blood of innocents, all of it conveyed skillfully by a determined Cotillard, the actress embodying these emotional complexities with remarkable ease. The streamlining can be frustrating. Macbeth’s right arm in battle and most trusted ally Banquo (Paddy Considine) isn’t as developed as well-developed as I’d hoped he would be, making what eventually comes to pass between the two of them less demoralizing than by all rights it should be. But he fairs better than Lady Macduff (Elizabeth Debicki), and while her arc – as does that of her children – remains the same as it does in the source material, the impact her journey had on me
was shockingly negligible considering the fiery nature of what transpires. She suffers eloquently but little more than that, and it almost feels as if key scenes between her and McDuff were left someplace on the cutting room floor never to be seen again. Still, Kurzel has composed a version of Shakespeare’s play that’s instantly essential. Playing like some visually dynamic homage to Stanley Kubrick, Terrence Malick and Julie Taymor, it’s all gritty and grimy in ways that stuck to me like a dagger of the mind, one that didn’t so much reveal a false creation as it did the cold, unassailable truth of the human condition almost all know yet few would like to admit having dallied with. With Jed Kurzel’s (The Babadook) stunning score and Adam Arkapaw’s (McFarland, USA) awesomely impressionistic cinematography leading the way, Macbeth casts a mighty spell. It screws the viewer’s courage to the stickingplace, forcing them to look into corners of themselves they would rather not peer, and much like the innocent flower there’s a serpent hiding here, one whose venom is a glorious cinematic elixir worth being poisoned by.
Celebrating 41 Years!
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Celebrating 41 Years!
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December 11, 2015
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Celebrating 41 Years!
Muddled Asthma a painfully clueless mess by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer ASTHMA Now playing Gus (Benedict Samuel) is a New York City loner who spends his days feeding his drug habit, chain-smoking and trying to avoid phone calls from his wealthy father (Jerry Zucker). One day he decides to steal a Rolls Royce, more because he can than for any real reason, and on a spur of the moment whim agrees to give free-spirited tattoo artist Ruby (Krysten Ritter) a ride into the country to the hippie commune of a semi-famous rock star. Along the way he plants the car into a ditch and claims to be going to see his sick, bedridden mother (Rosanna Arquette), when in fact he’s off to score some heroin and has long, existential conversations with an imaginary werewolf (Nick Nolte). Gus is pining for a world he’s too young to know a thing about, let alone have any memory of, Ruby driven close to mad wondering what it is she sees in this loser that makes her ponder trying to save him from his own selfish miseries. If there is a point to Asthma, the debut narrative feature for actor-turned-director Jake Hoffman (The Wolf of Wall Street), I’m not sure I get what it is. This is a ponderous, emotionally indulgent addiction melodrama that wanders around aimlessly,
desperately trying to find a reason to matter. It uses quirk and whimsy to mask just how one-dimensional and unappealing the main character is, never following through on any of its bigger ideas, content to showcase Samuel in all his skuzzy, smoke-covered glory and little else. The movie is a waste of time, and trying to figure out what drew anyone involved to be a part of it is way beyond me. As always, those kinds of statements are a bit unfair. Ritter is a striking, gawkily intriguing talent and, whether it is “Veronica Mars,” “Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23” or the excellent Netflix series “Jessica Jones,” she always finds a way to capture the attention no matter how banal or pointless things going on around her might prove to be. Her introductory scenes in a nightclub are kind of delightful, while her climactic verbal smackdown of Gus is an electrifying jolt the film itself had been frustratingly missing up to that point. I’m not going to say Ritter’s terrific, the movie around her is just too unsatisfying and dull, but she does make the most of every moment she is a part of, a thing almost no one else in the eclectic cast (which includes Goran Visnjic and Iggy Pop) can claim. I should also say that David J. Myrick’s stripped-down, cinéma vérité esthetic is oddly appealing, giving things a gritty, documentary-like sheen that’s wholly appropriate to both the subject matter as
Benedict Samuel and Krysten Ritter in Asthma – Aaron Epstein/seattetimes.com
well as the world Hoffman is attempting to create. Hoffman’s use of locations is also strong, suggesting that his directorial chops aren’t nearly as suspect as the overall mediocrity of the motion picture itself might lead some viewers to initially surmise. But it’s his writing skills I can’t help but question, Hoffman’s script a cloying hodgepodge of ideas and themes a gigantic barrelful of similar motion pictures have tackled far more successfully over the decades. Films like The Lost Weekend, Clean and Sober, Barfly, Sid & Nancy and this
year’s far more invigorating and impressive Heaven Knows What can’t help spring to mind, Asthma sorely lacking on all fronts when those comparisons are made. Gus just isn’t a guy I liked spending time with, watching him meander around gracelessly about as entertaining as having tiny hot needles poked into my eyes Clockwork Orange-style. The movie just isn’t very good, watching it about as much fun as the body-numbing hangover incurred after an all-night bender downing tequila shots sans chasers.
Naughty Krampus a Yuletide horror treat by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer KRAMPUS Now playing It’s December 23, and Max Engel (Emjay Anthony) isn’t happy. Not only is he belittled by his schoolmates thanks to his unwavering belief in Santa Claus, his older sister Beth (Stefania LaVie Owen) finds it pretty darn silly as well. He’s also noticed that his parents Tom (Adam Scott) and Sarah (Toni Collette) are having difficulties, and while neither of them say so out loud to him the signs of their marital dysfunction are obvious. Only Grandma Omi (Krista Stadler) can see what Max is going through, quietly urging him in her native German tongue to keep his Christmas spirit intact no matter how horrible things might on the outside appear. This proves impossible with the arrival of Aunt Linda (Allison Tolman) and her bellicose and belligerent husband Howard (David Koechner). Not only do they get on his parents’ nerves, they’ve also brought along his cousins Howie Jr. (Maverick Flack), Stevie (Lolo Owen) and Jordan (Queenie Samuel), all of whom love badgering and playing pranks on their impressionable relative. Throw in the presence of Great Aunt Dorothy (Conchata Ferrell), a notorious boozehound if there ever was one, and the stage is set to ruin Christmas all but good, Max so distraught by it all he’s tempted to give up on his family – let alone this holiday – once and for all. Back in 2007, veteran screenwriter Michael Dougherty (Superman Returns, XMen 2) made his feature directorial debut with the horror anthology Trick ‘r Treat. The film was unceremoniously dumped by Warner Bros, almost as if they had no idea what to do with it, barely releasing it
Krista Stadler in Krampus – Universal Pictures
before shuffling it off to DVD and Blu-ray with zero fanfare whatsoever. Funny thing? Movie was terrific, and over time it’s garnered a substantial cult following, one large enough that there’s talk of a sequel, one the filmmaker hopes to get into production soon. With that being so, it should shock relatively few that his second directorial effort, the Christmas-themed horror-comedy Krampus, is wonderful, this freaky Yuletide frolic an insidious creature-feature that plays out like the devilish lovechild spawned from the mating of Gremlins and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Dougherty, working with fellow screenwriters Todd Casey and Zach Shields, has composed a gem of a thriller, crafting a genuinely entertaining rollercoaster of suspense, tension and laughter that only gets better as it moves along. It builds to a final scene genre aficionados will uneasily chuckle over as if they were insane, the closing sequences an ingenious melding of “The Twilight Zone,” It’s a Wonderful Life and A Christmas Carol bordering on divine. It all revolves around a demonic force, an anti-Santa Claus, that does not take kindly to Max giving up on his Christmas spirit, even for a passing second, and decides to give him exactly what it was he
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momentarily wished for. But, as the old proverb says, one better be careful making careless wishes because they just might come true, this supernatural creature eager to pick off all those gathered in the Engel family home one-by-one, eager to drag them off into the underworld as punishment for forgetting the true meaning behind the holiday. Beautifully shot by Jules O’Loughlin (Wish You Were Here), featuring crackerjack production design by Jules Cook (Chappie), the real star is the superb practical creature and puppet effects, Dougherty pulling from a bag of visual tricks Joe Dante, John Carpenter and John Landis would likely stand up and applaud. Better, he takes his time unleashing them, using the viewer’s imagination as his primary weapon of anxiety. He keeps the focus on the creepy situations at hand, the characters’ growing terror planting seeds that will grow into solid thrills and chills later on. But what makes the film work is that Dougherty refuses to play things as farce, doesn’t allow the actors to take any of their characters into the realm of larger-than-life superficiality. Sure, Howard is an uncouth oaf, but he’s actually also a solid family man who adores his wife and passionately loves his children, the mistakes he’s made ones he’s somehow learned to live with. As
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for Tom and Sarah, they know their marriage is in trouble, but they equally understand what it is going to take for them to find a way to fix it, and while the fight will be difficult and long it is also one they are starting to realize they are willing to wage. The same could be said for everyone trying to survive until Christmas. All have their flaws. Each battles their own insecurity. Yet, at the end of the day, when all is said and done, they’re still a family, and as such they’re willing to do whatever it takes to keep one another safe. When one of their own is absconded by the devilish creatures knocking at the door there is real weight to the loss, and as such I found myself becoming more and more invested in the outcome as things progressed towards a conclusion. There are moments of stupidity, to be sure, twins Stevie and Jordan falling for an exceedingly obvious trick that had me rolling my eyes, and Howie Jr. hungrily reaching for a sugary snack that had mysteriously appeared as if out of thin air is dumb with a capital “D.” Yet somehow Dougherty manages to make these sequences work far better than they have any right to, mainly because the reactions on the parts of the parents are so heartbreakingly genuine. The tension that rises as each of them slowly but surely falls to the pesky demons assaulting the house is palpable, all of which makes Max’s understanding of the situation and what it will take to stop it all the more rousing. Krampus is a naughty little movie, and I mean that in a good way, and once again Dougherty proves himself to be a crafty genre-bending filmmaker willing to make old school high-concept thrillers the likes of which studios are now reticent to put into production. As Christmas miracles for horror fans go, this is one stocking stuffer certain to be enjoyed for many years to come.
Seattle Gay News 13
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FOR A CALENDAR LISTING: Send details to: SGN, Attn: Community Calendar, 1605 12th Ave, Ste 31, Seattle, WA 98122. SGN phone: 324-4297. Fax: 3227188. E-mail: sgn2@sgn.org. INCLUDE: Date, time, location, contact phone # for publication (if possible), brief description of event & sponsoring organization. DEADLINE: Tuesday 5pm. ACCESSIBILITY: Is your event accessible to LGBTQ people with disabilities? See Jean’s List webpage www. scn.org/activism/calendar/disabilities.html for Marla Nonken’s disabilities accommodations lists. NOTE: Phone numbers accompanying listings are within area code (206) & locations of meetings/ events are in Seattle unless otherwise noted.
community calendar
SATURDAY - December 12
A Gathering of Men in Edmonds. 8:15-11:30am. Edmonds UUC, 8109 224th St SW, Edmonds. Meets 2nd Saturday each month. Men gather monthly for drumming, singing, storytelling & sharing of life experience. www.agatheringofmen.org Seattle Frontrunners Fun Run. 9am. Greenlake (outside Evans Pool). Every Saturday. GLBT running & walking club sponsors weekly runs, monthly potlucks, track & field activity, annual Run With Pride. 448-8518. www.seattlefrontrunners.org. Oasis Youth Center in Tacoma - For Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning Youth, Ages 14-25. 6pm-12 midnight. Call for location & details. Every Saturday. (253) 671-2838. www.oasisyouth center.org. (Also meets Thursdays & Fridays 4-10pm.) Rainbow Duplicate Bridge. 6pm. Bus-accessible Central Area location. Every Saturday. Games also on Tuesdays & Thursdays. $4 fee includes coffee & snacks. For more information visit www.rainbowbridgeclub.org or email rainbowbridgeclub@gmail.com “A Conversation with Kevin Powell.” 6:30-9:30pm. Seattle Public Library, Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave, Level 1, Microsoft Auditorium. SPL will host a community dialogue with writer and activist Kevin Powell. He will lead a discussion with event attendees and invited guests. Resource tables will be set up by communitybased organizations. “The Library is very excited to team up with Kevin Powell to celebrate the tremendous work of local artists and community members who are working on social justice and imagining solutions to community problems together. This will be an inspiring conversation about creating the world we want to see.” Powell is considered by many to be one of the most acclaimed political, cultural, literary and hip-hop voices in America today. FREE. Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary & takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season Rainbow City Band: “Once Upon a Time.” 7pm. Broadway Performance Hall, 1625 Broadway. Featuring the miusic of our favorite stories. Tickets: $15 advance & $20 at the door; $12 seniors & students; $5 kids 12 and under. www.rainbowcityband.com “Snowball 2015.” 7-10pm. Seattle City Hall, Bertha Knight Landes Room, 5th Ave & Cherry St. Celebrate with Ingersoll Gender Center. Food, drink, raffle & entertainment. Tickets: $25 individual in advance and at the door. ingersollsnowball2015.brownpapertickets.com Handel’s “Messiah” (12/12 & 12/13). Sat 12/12 - 8pm; Sun 12/13 - 2pm. UW Meany Theater. Pacific MusicWorks Orchestra with UW Chamber Singers. For tickets & information visit www.pacificmusicworks.org “Pictures With Santa.” 8pm-midnight. The Cuff Complex, 1533 13th Ave. Seattle Men in Leather’s annual fundraising event. Get an individual or family portrait with a hunky Santa and his elves and reindeer. Proceeds benefit SML’s current beneficiary, Seattle Area Support Groups. www. seattlemeninleather.org “Thunder From Down Under.” 8pm. Snoqualmie Casino, I-90 East to Exit 27; I-90 West to Exit 31. Tickets: snocasino.com
rienced meditators. Sponsored by Dharma Buddies. Contact Forrest Rode, 920-6117, Mike Chin (509) 990-0007, or Doug Allison, doug.l.allison@gmail.com. www.dharmabuddies.org. (Women may wish to contact our sister meditation group at www.LotusSisters.org.) Just for Today. 12-1:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Sunday. Drop-in 12-step (Narcotics Anonymous) group open to anyone in recovery. 322-2437; www. sasgcc.org Paths to Recovery Al-Anon Family Group. 12-1:30pm. Seattle University Student Center, 901 12th Ave, Room 122. Every Sunday. LGBTQ supported. The Al-Anon Family Groups are a fellowship of relatives & friends of alcoholics who share their experience, strength & hope in order to solve their common problems. We believe alcoholism is a family illness & that changed attitudes can aid recovery. Greater Seattle AIS 24-hour number 625-0000; www.seattle-al-anon.org Seattle Tennis Alliance Sunday Social Doubles. 12noon. Tennis Center Sand Point. Cost: STA members $12, non-members $15. To REGISTER visit seattletennisalliance.org Rain City Soccer Club - Ripple Effect. Sunday afternoon. Location varies. Ripple Effect soccer team plays an almost weekly recreational scrimmage game for LGBTQ players in Seattle. Perfect for individuals looking for more relaxed play, who are just getting back into soccer, just learning the game and/or want to supplement their competitive play with a recreational team. To sign up visit www.raincitysoccer.org SUNDAY - December 13 Handel’s Messiah (12/12 & 12/13). Sat 12/12 - 8pm; Gay Men’s Bowling in Lynnwood. 9:30am. Brunswick Sun 12/13 - 2pm. UW Meany Theater. Pacific MusicMajestics Lane, Lynnwood. 9:30am Every Sunday. Works Orchestra with UW Chamber Singers. For tickets Spectators welcome. Join us for lunch afterwards! & information visit www.pacificmusicworks.org Sponsored by the Snohomish County Gay Men’s Task Force. For info email John at johndmarsh@mac.com; Orca Swim Team Workout. Sun: 5-6:15pm; Mon/Weds/ Fri: 7:30-8:45pm. Seattle University, Connolly Athletic www.gaysnohomish.org Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. Every Sun, Mon, Wed Seattle Sunday Bowling. 10:30am. West Seattle Bowl, & Fri. Pre-registration required. Orca Swim Team 4505 39th Ave SW (at SW Oregon St). Open bowl every workouts are for both competitive & recreational swimSunday for the GLBT community & friends. You don’t mers. www.orcaswimteam.org have to worry about how you bowl! $6.50 + $2 shoe Shame to Grace Sunday SAA. 6-7:30pm. SASG, 303 rental. (425) 785-4725. 17th Ave E. Every Sunday. SAA is a fellowship of men Lotus Sisters Guided Meditation. 11am-1:30pm. & women who share their experience, strength & hope SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Meets 2nd Sunday each month. with each other so they may overcome their sexual Senior students lead the meditation, provide dharma addiction & help others recover from sexual addiction talks or reflections & lead discussion. 329-5908; www. or dependency. Seattle SAA helpline 237-8828, SAA LotusSisters.org; www.sasgcc.org (Meets in 2nd floor International Service Organization 1-800-477-8191. meeting room; no elevator.) SASG 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Meditation for GBT Men. 11am-1pm. Cal Anderson Ski Buddies Monthly Potluck. 6-8:30pm. Meets 1st House, 400 Broadway. Suitable for beginning & expe- or 2nd Sunday each month (Oct-Feb). Come & hear
14 Seattle Gay News
December 11, 2015
about all the great ski trips & winter activities Ski Buddies has planned. Whether you snow board, downhill, cross-country, or telemark, there are trips & events for you. Bring a potluck dish to share. www.skibuddies.org Pride League Bowling. 6:30pm. West Seattle Bowl, 4505 39th Ave SW. Every Sunday (except during the summer). Regular league bowling. Jeff, 932-3731. Three Dollar Bill Cinema’s Cineoke! 6:30pm doors; 7pm show. Re-bar, 1114 Howell St. Meets 2nd Sunday each month. It’s like Karaoke - only better! You’re the star of your favorite movie musical. Pick any scene to sing along to, while the film and lyrics are projected onto the screen. There are hundreds of songs to choose from, or you can bring your own special request (on DVD). $8 cover ($5 for Three Dollar Bill Cinema members). www. threedollarbillcinema.org. Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary & takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season Knights of Mantra Monthly Meeting. 7:30pm. The Cuff, 1533 13th Ave. Meets 2nd Sunday each month. A fun-loving leather/Levi social & charitable organization that raises money for various causes & organizations. 329-0886, mailbox@jetchapterkofm.com “Fab-YULE-ous” - An EmpeROAR Fabulous!!! Christmas Special. 7:30pm. Gilda’s Club, 1400 Broadway. A madcap ‑musical party with award-winning cabaret/burlesque performer EmpeROAR Fabulous!!! & pianoman Victor Janusz. Tickets: $13 in advance, $15 at the door. 21+. Partial proceeds to Gilda’s Club. www. brownpapertickets.com/event/2469469 Seattle Men’s Chorus “Home for the Holidays” (12/13, 12/20 & 12/21). 7:30pm. S Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave & University St. The proud voices of SMC will envelope you in harmony for an evening of heartfelt holiday magic. Tickets $25$78. www.seattlemenschorus.org Noche Latina - Latino Night. 10pm. Neighbours, 1509 Broadway. Every Sunday.
MONDAY - December 14
December 12 thru December 20 SOBER - On Meds. 1-2pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Monday. 12-step group open to anyone in recovery & living on a medicine regimen. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Strength Over Speed. 2-3:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. FREE drop-in support group (not a 12 step) for Gay & Bi men who desire recovery from meth. For information visit www.strengthoverspeed.org. SASG 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org LCS Foster Care Monthly Information Meeting. 6-8pm. 433 Minor Ave N. Meets 2nd Monday each month. LCS is a non-profit foster care program in King & Snohomish counties. LCS does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion or sexual orientation. Couples & singles encouraged to apply. RSVP to April at 694-5713. Bearing Witness: Performing Arts Program for Queer Youth of Color & Allies. 6:30-8:30pm. Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute, 104 17th Ave S. FREE. No experience necessary. For youth up to age 22. Snacks provided. The program ends with the Showcase on December 16. Receive a $50 stipend for performing. For information contact Randy at 883-6110. randy.wiger@seattle.gov Pozitively Me! 6:30-8pm. Gay City Health Project, 517 E. Pike St. Every Monday. A group and conversation about HIV for Gay & Bi men newly diagnosed and for Gay & Bi men facing the challenges of living with HIV longterm. www.gaycity.org. Freely Speaking Toastmasters. 7pm. FredLind Manor, 1802 17th Ave. Every Monday (except holidays & the last Mondays in August & December). Seattle’s only LGBT speaking club. www.FreelySpeaking.org Orca Swim Team Workout. 7-8:15pm. Seattle University, Connolly Athletic Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday listing at 5pm.) PFLAG/Seattle Monthly Meeting. 7-9pm. Seattle First Baptist Church, 1111 Harvard Ave. Meets 2nd Monday each month. 206-325-7724 or info@pflagseattle.org; www.pflagseattle.org. PFLAG/Skagit County Monthly Meeting. 7pm. Skagit Valley Food Co-op Bldg, Room 309, 202 South 1st St., Mt. Vernon. Meets 2nd Monday each month. PFLAG/ Puget Sound: 325-7724. Trans Youth Group. 7-8:30pm. Lambert House, 1818 15th Ave. Every Monday. A chance for youth to talk with others about their experiences & concerns related to identifying as Transgender. www.lamberthouse.org Lambert House Art Night. 7:30-9:30pm. 1818 15th Ave. Every Monday. Bring your ideas & let’s have some fun. 322-2515, www.lamberthouse.org Washington Gender Alliance Support Group Meeting in Shoreline. 7:30pm. Center for Human Services, 17018 15th Ave NE, Shoreline. Meets every Monday. For information email info@washingtongender alliance.com Queers, Crackpots & Fallen Women AA. 8-9pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Monday. Open women only AA group. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org.
TUESDAY - December 15
Safe Schools Coalition Monthly Meeting. 3-5pm. Planned Parenthood, 2001 E Madison. Meets 3rd Tuesday most months (schedule varies in summer). A Public-Private Partnership in Support of LGBT youth. All are welcome at meetings; lots of volunteer opportunities are discussed. 632-0662 ext 49; CRISIS LINE: 1-877-SAFE-SAFE; www.safeschoolscoalition.org. LGBTQ Questioning & Allied Youth Drop-in Group in Renton. 6-8pm. Renton Area Youth Services (RAYS), 1025 S 3rd St, Renton. Meets every Tuesday. Confidential. Snacks provided. Bring friends or come alone - anyone 12-18 is welcome. Questions? Call Sarah Hardin, 425-271-5600 ext 155, or email sarahh@rays.org Strength Over Speed. 6-7:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. FREE drop-in support group (not a 12 step) for Gay & Bi men who desire recovery from meth. For information visit www.strengthoverspeed.org. SASG 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Diverse Harmony. 6:30-9pm. Seattle First Baptist Church, 1111 Harvard Ave. Every Tuesday. Diverse Harmony is the nation’s first Gay/Straight Alliance Youth Chorus. Youths ages 13-22 are welcome regardless of sexual orientation. www.diverseharmony.org Queer Young Females Group - For Female-Identified Youth, Ages 22 & Under. 6:30-7:30pm. Lambert House, 1818 15th Ave. Every Tuesday. Topics range from family issues to school happenings to like/lust/love relationships. All Queer females welcome. Come discuss how smart. strong Queer women live their lives. 322-2515, www. lamberthouse.org Tuesday Night Sex Addicts Anonymous (GLBTQI). 7-8:30pm. All Pilgrims Christian Church, 500 Broadway E (enter at 509 10th Ave E; buzz in, Dickson room). Every Tuesday. SAA is a fellowship of men & women whose primary purpose is to stop addictive sexual behavior & help others recover from sexual addiction. Seattle SAA helpline 237-8828. SAA International Service Organization 1-800-477-8191. Over 40’s Group - For Lesbian Women 40 & Older. 7-8:30pm. University Congregational Church, 4515 16th Ave NE, Pilgrim Room. Every Tuesday. Open group for Lesbian women, 40 & older, in every stage of coming out or being out. Lots of social activities in addition to Tuesday meetings. 545-3521. Rain City Jacks. 1st & 3rd Tuesday each month at 7pm; 4th Sunday each month at1pm. West Queen Anne/ Interbay. Location & membership details provided upon
Celebrating 41 Years!
request. Membership required. Adult men only. Enroll at the door. www.raincityjacks.org, email info@raincity jacks.org or call 1-888-809-5035. Rainbow Duplicate Bridge. 7pm. Bus-accessible Central Area location. Every Tuesday. (See Saturday listing at 6pm.) Different Drummers. 7:15-8:30pm. Every Tuesday. Hand drumming classes for Gay men. Learn traditional African & Afro-Caribbean rhythms & basic hand drumming techniques. Drums are provided. For info & location call Dennis at 363-4500 or www.outdrum.com What About Me? 7:30-9pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Tuesday. Drop-in social, support & discussion group for Gay & Bi men of all ages. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Here & Now Gay & Lesbian AA Meeting in Tacoma. 7:30pm. Christ Episcopal Church, 310 N “K” St, Tacoma. Every Tuesday. Spiritual Empowerment. 7:30-9pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. A group for all LGBT & friends of any spiritual belief to explore how spiritual practice can enrich their life. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Seattle Otters Water Polo Team. 8-9:30pm. Medgar Evers Pool, 500 23rd Ave E (at E Cherry St). Every Tuesday & Thursday. GLBT & GLBT-friendly co-ed water polo team is open to all who want to play. Otter Hotline 414-8797. www.otterpolo.com. Seattle Poetry Slam. Doors 8pm, Show 8:30pm. Rebar, 1114 Howell St. Every Tuesday. A spoken word poetry event that features a weekly open mic, feature poet, and slam (poetry competition). Come out and express yourself. LGBTQ- & QTPOC-friendly; all genders welcome. $5. 21+. seattlepoetryslam.org
community calendar
WEDNESDAY - December 16
Mature Friends Morning Exercise/Health & Fitness Get-Together. 10am. Ballard Odd Fellows Hall Bldg, 1706 NW Market St. Every Wednesday. An hour of health-related activities, followed by a walk around Greenlake & lunch at a local restaurant. www.maturefriends.org True Colors: Connecting LGBTQ Teens in Shoreline. 4-5pm. Every Wednesday. Discussing your important issues, building a supportive community. For information, location & to REGISTER call Lindsay Bagley 362-7282 x 8018 or email lbagley@chs-nw.org GLOBE (GLBTQ Loving Ourselves, Becoming Empowered): A Support Group & HIV/STD Prevention for Youth (14-20) in Everett. 6-8pm. CCA Building, 3331 Broadway - Bottom Floor, Everett. Every Wednesday. Sponsored by PFLAG Everett chapter. David/Brenda, (425) 263-2908. globeleaders@hotmail.com The Rowing Team Peer Recovery Group. 6-7:30pm. All Pilgrims Church, 500 Broadway E. Meets every Wednesday. This peer recovery group provides a safe & supportive faith community to share your recovery journey with, God answers our prayers & sends us a boat. Sometimes rowing furiously for yourself & sometimes for others. All are welcome. Seattle Gay & Lesbian Book Club. 6-7:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Wednesday. Discuss the best LGBT novels with other book-lovers in a safe, comfortable conversation. http://faculty.washington.edu/swittet/ SGLBookClub/ SASG 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Lotus Sisters Meditation & Dharma Discussion North. 6:15-8pm. Ravenna Bryant neighborhood. Meets every Wednesday. Call 525-7295 for location. www. LotusSisters.org. Seattle Frontrunners Fun Run. 6:30pm. Volunteer Park (in front of Black Sun across for museum). Every Wednesday. (See Saturday at 9am.) “Kevin’s Room” - Community Film Series: Films Exploring the Impact of HIV in the Black Community. 6:30pm doors; 7pm movie. Columbia City Ark Lodge Cinema, 4816 Rainier Ave S. Every 3rd Wednesday. Kevin, a black social worker starts a Gay men’s support group. As a group they discuss such issues as HIV testing, relationships, AIDS, and sexual risk taking among black Gay men. FREE admission. (Next event: 1/20: “Endgame: AIDS in Black America.” Bearing Witness: A Queer Youth of Color Performing Arts Showcase. Doors 6:45pm; Show 7pm. Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute, 104 17th Ave S. FREE. For more information visit www.seattle.gov/ parks/LGBTQ HIV/AIDS Support Group. 7-8:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Wednesday. Please arrive by 7:00pm. FREE peer-facilitated emotional support group for HIV+ men who are newly diagnosed or newly dealing. 3222437; www.sasgcc.org Ingersoll All-Trans Drop-In Support Group. 7-9pm. Seattle Counseling Services, 1216 Pine St, Suite 300. All Transgender, Gender Variant, Gender Queer, Gender Questioning, allies, family & friends are welcome. This is a drop in group to get & give support, social interaction & information for the whole Gender community. www. ingersollcenter.org Seattle Movie Bears Movie Night. Check website for details. Every Wednesday night. Gay & Bi men enjoy a movie at a local theater with opportunity to socialize before & after movies. More info: http://groups.yahoo. com/group/seattlemoviebears; or e-mail: seattlemovie bears-subscribe@yahoogroups.com Mature Friends Weekly Bridge Group. 7:30pm. Call for location. Every Wednesday. All levels welcome. MF is a social organization for Gay men & women, 40 years & over. www.maturefriends.org Orca Swim Team Workout. 7:30-8:45pm. Seattle University, Connolly Athletic Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday listing at 5pm.) Washington Gender Alliance Open Support Meeting in Everett. 7:30-9pm. Everett United Church of Christ, 2624 Rockefeller Ave, Everett. Every Wednesday. Trained peer facilitators lead a structured support meeting helping people deal with issues of gender identity
Except, No Bowling:
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& expression. All adults are welcomed, including those who are questioning, allies, or identify as FTM, MTF, Transgender, Queer, or Intersex, among others. (360) 445-2411; www.washingtongenderalliance.com. Border Riders Motorcycle Club Meet & Greet. 8-9pm. The Cuff Complex, 1533 13th Ave (at E Pine St). Meets the Wednesday before the 3rd Saturday each month. BRMC provides a social & educational fraternity for individuals interested in recreational motorcycle touring. www.borderriders.com
THURSDAY - December 17
Alcoholics Anonymous “Safe & Sober Group.” 12noon-1pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Open meeting of AA. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org. BABES Women’s Support Group/Lunch Meeting. 12 noon-2pm. Call for location. Every Thursday. The BABES Network is a peer led agency; a sisterhood of women facing HIV together. 720-5566 or 888-292-1912; www.babesnetwork.org. Seattle LGBTQ Employees for Equality (SEqual). 12noon. Seattle Municipal Tower, 700 5th Ave, Room 4070. Meets the 3rd Thursday of every month. Open to the public. Oasis Youth Center in Tacoma - For Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning Youth, Ages 14-25. 4-10pm. Call for location & details. Every Thursday. (253) 671-2838, www.oasisyouthcenter.org (Also Fridays 4-10pm & Saturdays 6pm-12 midnight.) Q Hour. 4:30-5:30pm. Orion Center, 1828 Yale Ave. 1st & 3rd Thursday each month. A group for LGBTQ youth 13-21 & their allies. Sponsored by Youthcare. FREE. 622-5555 x 212. Shifting Gears. 6-7:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Thursday. Drop-in support group (non 12-step) for anyone of any orientation or gender who desires recovery from drugs or alcohol. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org B-GLAD (Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Trans & Questioning Adolescent Drop-In Group). 6:30-8pm. Call for location. Every Thursday. Sponsored by Youth Eastside Services, which offers many programs for GLBT youth. (425) 747-4937. Seattle Commission for Sexual Minorities. 6:308:30pm. Municipal Bldg, 600 4th Ave, Room 221. Meets 3rd Thursday each month. SCSM is made up of 15 volunteer members who work to ensure that the City of Seattle fairly & equitably addresses sexual minority concerns. Meetings open to the public. 684-4514. Boys’ Group - For Male-Identified Youth, Ages 1422. 7-8:30pm. Lambert House, 1818 15th Ave. Every
Visit us online www.sgn.org
Thursday. Youth take the opportunity to talk about issues that relate to their everyday lives, with the facilitation of a male volunteer. 322-2515 ext 16. www.lamberthouse.org GLBT Legal Clinic. 7-9pm. Meets the 3rd Thursday each month. QLaw Foundation holds a monthly legal clinic addressing the legal needs of LGBT individuals & couples. Volunteer attorneys provide FREE 30-minute consultations. For information and to schedule an appointment, call 235-7235. Clinic volunteers return calls on Tuesdays between 12noon-3pm. For information, visit www.q-law.org/legalclinic Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary & takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season PFLAG Bellevue/Eastside Monthly Meeting. 7-9pm. First United Methodist Church, 1934 108th Ave NE, Bellevue. Meets 3rd Thursday each month. See http:// community.pflag.org/PFLAGBellevue. Contact us at info@bellevue-pflag.org or 425-483-6642. Rainbow Duplicate Bridge. 7pm. Bus-accessible Central Area location. Every Thursday. (See Saturday listing at 6pm.) Buddhism & Recovery. 7:30-9pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Every Thursday. A meditation/recovery group. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Gay Fathers Association of Seattle. 7:30-9pm. Group Health, 201 16th Ave E, Central Bldg, Lower Atrium. Every Thursday. Support meetings for Gay fathers & Gay men who are currently or previously married. For information, community events & “questioning” visit www.gfas.org or our message board at http://groups. yahoo.com/groups/gayfathersseattle Gay Male Sexuality & Relationships. 7:30-9pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave. E. Every Thursday. A discussion group that is strictly focused on sexual topics and relationship issues related to being a Gay male. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Debauchery. Doors 7:30pm, Show 8pm. Neighbours Nightclub, 1509 Broadway. Queers stripping for Queers in a hot, anti-oppressive space, raising money for organizations that serve the Queer community. A portion of the proceeds goes to non-profits providing health & social
December 11, 2015
services within the Queer community. Tickets: $10 in advance; $15 at the door. www.lilydivine.com Seattle Otters Water Polo Team. 8-9:30pm. Medgar Evers Pool, 500 23rd Ave E (at E Cherry St). Every Tuesday & Thursday. (See Tuesday listing at 8pm.)
FRIDAY - December 18
AA Ageless in Recovery. 12noon-1pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Meets every Friday. A drop in AA group for older & wiser people 55+. www.sasgcc.org Re-Parenting Ourselves. 12noon-1pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Meets every Friday. A peer support group for adult children of any addiction. www.sasgcc.org SLAA Road to Recovery. 12noon-1:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Meets every Friday. Ongoing 12 step group for sex & love addicts. www.sasgcc.org Oasis Youth Center in Tacoma - For Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender & Questioning Youth, Ages 14-25. 4-10pm. Call for location & details. Every Friday. (253) 671-2838, www.oasisyouthcenter.org (Also Thursdays 4-10pm & Saturdays 6pm-12 midnight.) Strength Over Speed. 6-7:30pm. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. FREE drop-in support group (not a 12-step) for Gay & Bi men who desire recovery from meth. www.strengthoverspeed.org. SASG 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org First Fridays in Yakima. 7-9pm. 223 N 1st St, Yakima. Meets 1st & 3rd Fridays. Social, support, education & advocacy group for the Yakima area GLBTQ community & their allies. All are welcomed & invited. (509) 576-0276. www.gayakima.com/1stfridays.html Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary & takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season Lambert House Queer Movie Night. 7-9:30pm. Lambert House, 1818 15th Ave. Every Friday. Lambert House is a nationally-recognized activities & resource center for GLBT & questioning youth, ages 14-22. 322-2515, www.lamberthouse.org Rain Country Dance Night. 7-11pm, lessons at 7:15pm. The Cuff, 1533 13th Ave. An evening of country-western dancing for the LGBTQ community. FREE. www.raincountrydance.org. Orca Swim Team Workout. 7:30-8:45pm. Seattle University, Connolly Athletic Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday listing at 5pm.) LGBT Friday Night Al-Anon Family Group. 7:45pm. Seattle Counseling Service, Rainbow Room, 1216 Pine St at Melrose Ave. Every Friday. The Al-Anon Family Groups are a fellowship of relatives & friends of alcoholics who share their experience, strength & hope in order to solve their common problems. We believe alcoholism is a family illness & that changed attitudes can aid recovery. Greater Seattle AIS 24-hour number 625-0000; www.seattle-al-anon.org GaYme Night 4 the LGBT Community. 8pm-1am. SASG, 303 17th Ave E. Meets the 3rd & 4th Friday of every month. Board games, cards & fun. www.sasgcc.org
SATURDAY - December 19
(See previous Saturday for ongoing activities.) Lambert House Queer Rec. 1pm. 1818 15th Ave. 3rd Saturday each month. Outdoor & indoor adventures for youth ages 22 & under. www.lamberthouse.org Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary & takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season Imperial Court of Seattle - A Christmas Cabaret Jewelbox Revue. Doors 6pm. R Place, 619 E Pine St. Suggested donation $5. Seattle Men’s Chorus “Home for the Holidays” in Everett. 7:30pm. Civic Auditorium, 2415 Colby Ave, Everett. The proud voices of SMC will envelope you in harmony for an evening of heartfelt holiday magic, sprinkled with a pinch of fairy dust. Tickets $25-$78. www.seattlemenschorus.org
SUNDAY - December 20
(See previous Sunday for ongoing activities.) Ethyl Forever Car Club, Pacific NW Region Lambda Car Club Monthly Tire Kick/Social. 10:30am. Randy’s Restaurant, 10016 E Marginal Way S (south of the Museum of Flight). Meets the 3rd Sunday each month. Open to all LGBTQ persons & friends who have an interest in the automobile, not just collector or performance vehicles. ethylforever@hotmail.com Seattle Men in Leather Monthly Brunch. 11am. Meets 3rd Sunday most months. All members of the leather community are invited to attend. www.seattlemenin leather.org Gay City Arts Presents: “Mom-O-Logues” (12/1012/13 & 12/17-12/20). 7pm. Gay City Calamus Auditorium, 517 E Pike St. Did your mom tuck you in at night? Whisper “I love you” into your ear? Bake cookies for your birthday? Call to see how you are? That’s great! But those are not our stories. Our stories are about how to love yourself even when you have non-traditional & fucked-up families. It can be radical, revolutionary &
Seattle Gay News 15
takes a lot of damn work. Tickets: general admission $15, students/seniors $12, sponsors $20. www.gaycity. org/arts-season Seattle Men’s Chorus “Home for the Holidays” (12/13, 12/20 & 12/21). 7:30pm. S Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave & University St. The proud voices of SMC will envelope you in harmony for an evening of heartfelt holiday magic, sprinkled with a pinch of fairy dust. Tickets $25-$78. www.seattlemens chorus.org
community calendar
COMMUNITY RESOURCES
Allyship - an organization of LGBTQ individuals fighting for economic and social justice. www.LGBTQ Allyship. org, allyship@yahoo.com, 279-8169. American Veterans for Equal Rights - www.aver.us BiNet Seattle is a mixed gender, social group for Bisexuals, their partners & other Bi-friendly folks - www. binetseattle.org. Bremerton/Kitsap County - www.outwestsound.org Capitol Hill Alano Club - www.chacseattle.org Central Washington University GALA Hotline: (509) 963-1994. DIFFA/Seattle (Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS). 763-8885; www.diffaseattle.org DOMESTIC VIOLENCE & SEXUAL ASSAULT: Crisis Clinic, 461-3222 (24 hour line); King County Sexual Assault Resource Center (KCSARC) - 24-hour crisis line for information, support, & medical & legal assistance: 1-888-99-VOICE; Northwest Network - support & advocacy for Bisexual, Trans, Lesbian & Gay Survivors of Abuse & Dating Violence, 568-7777 (voice), 517-9670 (tty), www.nwnetwork.org; Pierce County Domestic Violence Helpline: Teresa, (253) 798-4166; Seattle Counseling Service for Sexual Minorities - offers on-going support groups for men: 323-1768; Seattle Police Dept Domestic Violence Unit, 684-0330; State Wide Domestic Violence Hot Line, 1-800-562-6025. In an emergency call 911. Report domestic violence and sexual assault. Equal Rights Washington - 324-2570; www.equal rightswashington.org Everett/Snohomish Cty - www.gaysnohomish.org Freely Speaking Toastmasters - www.freely speaking.org Gay City organizes events & activities for Gay & Bi men & offers anonymous & confidential HIV/STD testing at the Center for LGBT Health, 517 E Pike St. More info or to schedule an appointment, 860-6969. www.gaycity.org Gay & Lesbian National Hotline (GLNH): 1-888-THEGLNH (1-888-843-4564). Non-profit, peer-counseling, information & local resources telephone hotline for GLBT people across the country. GLSEN/WA - Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network - 330-2099; www.glsenwa.org Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) - 3639188; www.thegsba.org HIV/AIDS Program, Seattle/King County Dept of Public Health, provides confidential/anonymous information about & testing for HIV/AIDS. 205-7837. For a comprehensive list of HIV/AIDS service organizations see the GSBA Guide or visit www.thegsba.org or call Lifelong AIDS Alliance, 328-8979. Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle & the Olympic & Rainier Empire - www.facebook.com/ISCSORE; www. imperialcourtofseattle.com Lambert House - 322-2515; www.lamberthouse.org LGBT Library - 517 E Pike St. Open Mon-Fri 2-8pm; Sat 2-5pm. LGBT MS Connection - 250-5002; LGBTMS Connection@gmail.com. Support group for LGBT persons with MS and their partners and their caregivers. Lifelong AIDS Alliance - 328-8979, www.lifelongaids alliance.org MEN: Gay City: 860-6969, www.gaycity.org; Knights of Mantra: 329-0886, www.jetchapterkofm.com; Mature Friends: Gay men & women 40 & over, www.mature friends.org; Northwest Bears: www.nwbears.com; The Olympians: www.TheOlympians.net; POZSeattle: www.pozseattle.org; Q-Squared: www.qsquared.org; Rain City Jacks: 888-809-5035, www.raincityjacks. org; Seattle Gay Couples: www. seattlegaycouples. org; Seattle Men in Leather: www.seattlemeninleather. org; Seattle Prime Timers: Gay & Bi men 40 & over, www.seattle primetimers.org. MUSIC: Diverse Harmony: www.diverseharmony.org; Rainbow City Band: 1-866-841-9139 ext 2126; rainbowcityband@onebox.com; www.rainbowcity band.com; Seattle Men’s Chorus and Seattle Women’s Chorus: 388-1408, 323-0750. www.flying house. org. Northwest Lesbian & Gay History Museum Project - gayhistnw@aol.com Northwest Rainbow Alliance for the Deaf - www. nwrad.org Out & Equal Workplace Advocates/Seattle Regional Affiliate supports the work of LGBT employees and the growing number of ERGs (Employee Resource Groups) making a difference within local companies. www.outandequal.org/affiliates/seattle PARENTHOOD: Families Like Ours provides a gateway for LGBT families interested in adoption: 441-7602, www.familieslikeours. org; Family Works offers support, information & activities for LGBT families: 694-6727, www.familyworksseattle. org; Gay Fathers’ Association of Seattle offers support groups & social activities: www.gfas. org; Proud & Loud Families - Northwest, www.meetup.com/proud-and-loud-families-northwest, plfnorthwest@aol.com; Queer Parent Networking Dinners: 568-7777, info@nwnetwork.org; Rainbow Families of Puget Sound: www.rainbowfamiliesps.org PFLAG is the national organization for parents, families, allies, and LGBTQ people united for equality with
16 Seattle Gay News
chapters in Seattle, Bellevue/Eastside, the Puget Sound region and across Washington state. PFLAG Seattle: 206-325-7724, info@pflagseattle.org, and www.pflag seattle.org; PFLAG Bellevue/Eastside: 425-4836642, info@bellevue-pflag.org, http://community.pflag. org/PFLAGBellevue; PFLAG Pacific Northwest: www.pnwpflag.org; PFLAG Washington state: www. pflagwsc.org. PEOPLE OF COLOR: Asian/Pacific Islander Queer Network Program at API Chaya, 467-9976; Center for MultiCultural Health, 461-6910, www.multiculturalhealth.org; Entre Hermanos, GLBT Latinos/as, 322-7700, www.entrehermanos.org; Ile LaiLai, 7813565, iya@ilelailai.org; Men of All Colors & Cultures Together (MACCT), 923-8313, macctseattle@yahoo. com, www.macctsea.org; Nubian Pride Productions, nubianpride@gmail.com; People of Color Against AIDS Network (POCAAN) offers rapid HIV testing, M-F, 10am-5pm, 322-7061, www.pocaan.org and on Facebook; Seattle Two Spirit, SeattleTwoSpirit@ hotmail.com; Sistah 2 Sistah, LBT women of African descent, 322-7061, 255-8951; Sistah Sinema, www. sistahsinema.com, info@sistahsinema.com; TrikoneNorthwest, GLBT South Asians, (425) 985-4376, www. trikonenw.org; Two-Spirit Honor Project, 1-866-6850164; U.T.O.P.I.A. Seattle. Pride Foundation - 323-3318; www.pridefoundation. org Project NEON is a program of Seattle Counseling Service providing FREE information & services to Gay & Bi men to reduce health risks associated with methamphetamine use. 323-1768. www.crystalneon.org Public Health-Seattle & King County Online Comprehensive Health Information for Sexual Minorities: www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/personal/ glbt.aspx Q Law: The GLBT Bar Association of WA - 682-6711; www.q-law.org Q Law GLBT Legal Clinic - 235-7235. Resource & Referral Line can connect you to LGBTfriendly resources throughout Puget Sound and beyond. Call 323-LGBT Mon-Fri 2-8pm; Sat 2-5pm. At other times leave voice mail and your call will be returned. Or visit www.gaycity.org to view list of resources online or through Facebook. Safe Schools Coalition - www.safeschoolscoalition. org; 451-SAFE (451-7233). SEAMEC interviews, researches & rates candidates for public office on issues of concern to the LGBT community. 905-9941, www.seamec.org
December 11, 2015
Seattle Area Support Groups & Community Center (SASG) is a non-profit organization that builds community and cultivates powerful, healthy lives by providing emotional support and personal development services to those affected by HIV/AIDS, the Queer communities, and those who love them. 322-2437; www.sasgcc.org Seattle Commission for Sexual Minorities - 684-4503. Seattle Counseling Service for Sexual Minorities is a community mental health service for GLBT persons & their families. 323-1768. Seattle Out & Proud - 206-322-9561; www.seattle ‑pride.org Seattle Police Department Sexual Minorities Community Advisory Council: kim.bogucki@seattle.gov Seattle PrideFest - www.seattlepridefest.org Servicemembers Legal Defense Network - (202) 328-3244; www.sldn.org SHIFT: A Peer Recovery Network - www.shift recovery.org Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, The Abbey of St. Joan - 860-3666; www.theabbey.org Snohomish Health District HIV/AIDS Program provides free confidential/anonymous HIV counseling & testing 9am-5pm Monday-Friday, until 7pm Tuesdays. (425) 339-5298. Social Outreach Seattle (SOSea) - www.facebook. com/socialoutreachseattle South Sound Q Calendar - LGBTQ events in Tacoma, Olympia & Sound Puget Sound area; www.South SoundQCal.com SPORTS & RECREATION: Bent Car Guys: www. bentcarguys.org; Border Riders Motorcycle Club: www.borderriders.com; Bottom Dwellers Scuba Club: www.bottomdwellers.org; Capitol Hill Cyclers: join their Facebook group or email capitolhill ‑cycling@ groups.facebook.com or jordan.l.simonson@ gmail. com; Cascade Flyers: www.cascadeflyers.org; Different Spokes Bicycling Club: www.different spokes. org; Emerald City Mudhen Rugby: www.mudhenrugby. com; Emerald City Softball Association: www.emeraldcitysoftball.org, www.eteamz.com/womensecsa; Ethyl Forever Car Club: ethylforever@ hotmail.com; Olympic Yacht Club: www.oycnw.org; OutVentures: outdoor education & recreation activities, www.outventures.org; Pacific Northwest Gay Rodeo Association: www.pacificnwgra.org; Puddletown Squares: www. puddletownsquares.org; Rain City Soccer: www.raincitysoccer.org; Rain Country Dance Association: a country-western dance organization catering to the LG-
BTQ community but open to all, www.raincountrydance. org; Sea Dawgs: LGBT ice hockey - SkateSeaDawgs@ gmail.com and on Facebook; Seattle Frontrunners: www.seattlefront unners.org; Seattle Gay Basketball Association: www.seattlegaybasketballassociation. com; Seattle Orca Swim Team: www.orcaswimteam. org; Seattle Otters Water Polo: www.otterpolo.com; Seattle Quake Rugby: www.quakerugby.com; Seattle Tennis Alliance: www.seattletennisalliance.org; Seattle Unified Bowling Association (SUBA): magee98106@ aol.com, www.teamseattle.org/bowling.htm, www. theprideleague. com, Century 21 League; Seattle Volleyball Club: www.seattlevolleyballclub.com; Ski Buddies: www. skibuddies.org; Team Seattle Gay Sports Network is an umbrella organization for a wide range of local GLBT sports activities, 367-4064, www. teamseattle.org (see website for comprehensive list of sports clubs); Triangle Recreation Camp at Bender Creek: recreational camping for GLBT folks. Must be 21; ID required. trc@camptrc.org, www.camptrc.org, 1122 E Pike St #1069, Seattle 98122-3934. Strength Over Speed - www.strengthoverspeed.org Tacoma/Pierce County - Rainbow Center, 2215 Pacific Ave, Tacoma, a resource center for the LGBTIQA community of Pierce County, (253) 383-2318, www. rainbowcntr.org TRANSGENDER: Emerald City Social Club: (425) 827-9494; Gender Alliance of the South Sound: www. SouthSoundGender.com; Gender Justice League: www.genderjusticeleague.org; Gender Odyssey: www.genderodyssey.com; Hermanos Trans Latino & Foreign-Born Support Group: 322-7700; Ingersoll Gender Center: 329-6651, www.ingersollcenter. org; The New BoyZ Club: www.olympiaftmgroup. webs. com; Olympia Trans Discussion Group: www. facebook.com/pages/Olympia-Trans-DiscussionGroup/262449878114; Washington Gender Alliance: (360) 445-2411, www.washington genderalliance.com WOMEN: Aging Lesbians in South Seattle (ALISS): Fai, 722-0729, alissquestions@gmail.com; BABES: support groups for HIV+ women. 720-5566, 1-888-2921912; Festival of the Babes: www.festivalofthebabes. com; Lesbians Over 40: 722-0729; Mature Friends: Gay men & women 40 & over, www.maturefriends.org; Older Lesbians Organizing for Change/WA State Chapter: gloria@oloc.org, mary@oloc.org, www.oloc. org; Pacific Northwest Lesbian Archives: www. pnwlesbianarchives.org; RainshadowWomen: RainshadowWomen@aol.com; Seattle Girls of Leather: www.sgol.org; Tacoma Lesbian Concern (TLC): www. tacomalesbianconcern.org; Women of West Seattle (WOWS): a fun, member-driven social group for Lesbians, http://groups.yahoo.com/group/womenofwestseattle; YWCA Women’s Health Outreach: providing low or no-cost mammograms for income eligible 40+ LBTQ individuals. Follow us at http://lbtqhealth-ywca.blogspot. com, twitter.com/ingridWHO or email lbthealth@ywcaworks.org, 461-4493. Yakima: First Fridays - (509) 576-0276. www.gayakima.com/1stfridays.html YOUTH: B-GLAD (Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Trans & Questioning Adolescent Drop-In Group): Youth Eastside Services offers many programs for GLBT youth, including B-GLAD, (425) 747-4937; Diverse Harmony: www.diverseharmony. org; GLSEN/Washington State (Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network) & Washington State GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) Network: GLSEN works to create safe schools for LGBT students. WA GSA Network supports youth-led GSA’s to fight harassment & homophobia in Washington state schools. 330-2099; www.glsenwa. org; www.wagsa. org. GLOBE (GLBTQ Loving Ourselves, Becoming Empowered): a support group & HIV/STD prevention program for GLBTQ youth, 14-20, in Everett, (425) 263-2908, www.globeyouth.org; It Gets Better Project: www.itgetsbetter.org; Lambert House: an activities & resource center for LGBT youth, 14-22, in Seattle, 322-2515, www.lamberthouse.org; Lifelong HEYO (Health Education Youth Outreach): for LGBTQ youth, ages 16-24: 957-1665; www.llaa.org/HEYO; www.MatthewsPlace.com; The Mockingbird Society: 323-KIDS (5437), www.mockingbirdsociety.org; Oasis Youth Center: for GLBTQ youth, ages 14-25, in Tacoma, (253) 671-2838, www.oasisyouthcen ter.org; Parents, Family & Friends of Lesbians & Gays (PFLAG)/Puget Sound: 325-7724, www.seattle-pflag.org; Peace for the Streets by Kids from the Streets (PSKS): 7268500; www.psks.org; Pizza Klatch: weekly lunchtime support groups for LGBTQ youth in Thurston County, www.pizzaklatch.org; Prism: for LGBTQ youth, 14-21, in Puyallup - Cherise.Alexander@ multicare.org; www. facebook.com/PuyallupPrism; Proud Out Wonderful (POW!): for LGBTQ youth, 13-21, in South King County, 206-326-9112, www.facebook.com/proudoutwonderful; Q Youth Resources: in Kitsap County - 360-698-3335; www.kchaf.org; Renton Area Youth Services (RAYS): LGBTQ, questioning and allied youth drop-in group, ages 12-18 - Sarah Hardin, 425-271-5600, ext 155; sarahh@rays.org; Safe Schools Coalition: www. safeschoolscoalition.org; 451-SAFE (451-7233) (nonemergency), 1-877-SAFE-SAFE (1-877-723-3723) (crisis line); Seattle Young People’s Project (Queer Youth Resource Board): 860-9606, www.sypp.org; Street Youth Ministries (SYM): 524-7301 ext 111; www.streetyouthministries.org; Teen Link: 461-4922, 1-888-431-TEEN; The Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor; www.thetrevorproject.org; True Colors - Connecting LGBTQ Teens: in Shoreline, 362-7282 x 8018, lbagley@chs-nw.org; Vista Youth Center: for LGBTQ, questioning and allied youth, ages 14-21, in Kennewick, 509-396-5198, www.vistayouthcenter.org; YouthCare/ Isis Program (Transitional Living Home for LGBTQ Young Adults, 18-22): 522-8412; YouthCare/Orion Center: 622-5555; Youth in Focus: 723-1479; www. youthinfocus.org; Youth Suicide Prevention Program (OUTLoud-GLBTQ): 297-5922, ext 116, 1-800-273TALK, www.yspp.org
Celebrating 41 Years!
Volunteer Park
• BACON MANSION
E. PROSPECT ST. • SHAFER MANSION E. ALOHA ST.
12TH AVE. E.
E. ROY ST.
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• B&B ON BROADWAY E. ROY ST. • UNDER U 4 MEN
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• CLUB Z BATHS
• THE STRANGER
NAGLE PL.
Cal Anderson Park
• LAMBERT HOUSE
BROADWAY
Seattle Central Community College
HARVARD AVE. E.
• LINDAʼS • BILLʼS OFF BROADWAY
C.C. ATTLEʼS• TOMMY GUN• THE SOCIAL•
B&O ESPRESSO • BOYLSTON AVE.
BELMONT AVE.
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• THE LOBBY • PLATINUM RECORDS
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GAY CITY HEALTH PROJECT •
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• BAUHAUS • BALTIC ROOM
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• AURIFICE • R PLACE • HONEY HOLE SANDWICHES • TOYS IN BABELAND
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METRO CLOTHING CO. • STUDIO 229 • PANACHE • LAUGHING BUDDHA TATTOO •
BELLEVUE AVE.
• SEATTLE COUNSELING SERVICE FOR SEXUAL MINORITIES MELROSE AVE.
HAIR CONNECTION•
E. OLIVE ST. THE SGN GLSEN ONYX LEATHER • SEA-MEC
BATHS
CLUB Z - (men) 1117 Pike near Boren - 622-9958 HOT HOUSE SPA & SAUNA - (women) SW corner of Pike & 11th (stairs behind Wildrose) - 568-3240 STEAM WORKS - (men) 1520 Summit - 388-4818
RESTAURANTS & BARS
88 KEYS - 315 2nd Ave. S. - 839-1300 BALTIC ROOM - 1207 Pine St. - 625-4444 THE BOTTLENECK LOUNGE
2328 E. Madison St. - 323-1098 C.C. ATTLE’S BAR & GRILLE 1701 E. Olive Way - 726-0565 THE CANTERBURY - 534 15th Ave. E. - 322-3130 CHANGES IN WALLINGFORD 2103 N. 45th - 545-8363 THE CRESCENT - 1413 E. Olive Way - 720-8188 THE CUFF COMPLEX 1533 13th Ave. - 323-1525 DIESEL BAR - 1413 14th Ave. - 322-1080 DOUBLE HEADER - 407 2nd Ave. S. - 464-9918 GLO’S - 1621 E. Olive Way - 324-2577 JAZZ ALLEY - 2033 6th Ave. E. - 441-9729 JULIA’S - 300 Broadway Ave. E. - 860-1818 KREMWERK - 1809 Minor Ave. #10 - 682-2935 THE LOBBY - 916 E. Pike St. - 328-6703
•WILDROSE • HOT HOUSE
ON
E.
E. PIKE ST. • CHOP SUEY • MADISON PUB • DIESEL BAR • PONY
MAE’S CAFE 6412 Phinney Ave. N. - 782-1222 MADISON PUB - 1315 E. Madison - 325-6537 NEIGHBOURS - 1509 Broadway - 324-5358 OUT WEST - 5401California Ave. SW POCO WINE ROOM 1408 E. Pine St. - 322-9463 PONY - 1221 E. Madison St. - 324-2854 PURR - 1518 11th Ave. - 325-3112 R PLACE - 619 E. Pine - 322-8828 RE-BAR - 1114 Howell at Boren - 233-9873 SEATTLE EAGLE - 314 E. Pike - 621-7591 TOMMY GUN - 1703 E. Olive Way WILDROSE - 1021 E. Pike - 324-9210
RETAIL SHOPS
CASTLE SUPERSTORE #17 206 Broadway Ave. E. - 204-0126 THE CRYPT - 1516 11th Ave. 325-3882 DOGHOUSE LEATHERS 1312 E. Pike St. - 257-0231 EMERSON SALON - 909 E. Pike St. - 323-7437 METRO CLOTHING CO. 231 Broadway Ave E - 726-7978 ONYX LEATHER - 1605 12th Ave. #8 - 328-1965 PANACHE - 225 Broadway E. - 726-3300 STAN’S ADULT SUPERSTORE 9630 16th Ave. SW - 762-3299 TABOO VIDEO - 1012 1st Ave. - 622-SEXY TOYS IN BABELAND - 707 E. Pike St. - 328-2914 UNDER U 4 MEN 709 Broadway Ave. E. - 324-6446 WILD AT HEART 1111 NW Leary Way - 782-5538
IS AD
ST.
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E. UNION ST.
LA CONNER
THE HERON INN & WATERGRASS DAY SPA 117 Maple Ave. - (877) 883-8899 info@theheron.com
OLYMPIA
DARBY’S CAFE 211 5th Ave. S.E. - (360) 357-6229 LOVER’S 3959 Martin Way E. Suite D - (360) 456-7300 JAKES - 311 4th Ave. E. - (360) 956-3247 URBAN ONION 116 Legion Way - (360) 943-9242
PORT ANGELES MAPLE ROSE INN 112 Reservoir Rd - (800) 570-2007
SPOKANE
ANDY’S 1401 W. 1st Ave. - (509) 747 - 0304 IRV’S (Drag Shows) 415 W. Sprague Ave. - (509) 624 - 4450 NYNE BAR AND BISTRO 232 W. Sprague Ave. - (509) 474 -1621 SPOTLIGHT LOUNGE 321 W. Sprague Ave. - (509) 624 - 0722
TACOMA
BAR MYX - 1212 California St. - 425-610-4071 LOVER’S - 112 SE Everett - (425) 353-3607 LOVER’S - 3402 Broadway - (425) 252-8754
CASTLE SUPERSTORE 6015 Tacoma Mall Blvd. - (253) 471-0391 CLUB SILVERSTONE 739½ St. Helens Ave. - (253) 404-0273 THE FANTASY SHOP 2301 6th Ave. - (253) 272-6640 LOVER’S 7002 Tacoma Mall Blvd., #F - (253) 475-2271 THE MIX - 635 St. Helens Ave. - (253) 383-4327 RAINBOW CENTER 2215 Pacific Ave. - (253) 383-2318 SHAKABRAH JAVA CAFE 2618 6th Ave. - (253) 572-2787 TANDEM FOR GEAR, CLOTHING AND ACCESSORIES 3019 6th Ave, Ste. B - (253) 301-3026
KENT
TUKWILA
BELLINGHAM
LOVER’S 193 Telegraph Road - (360) 752-1862 RUMORS CABARET 1119 Railroad - (306) 671-1849
EVERETT
LOVER’S 25801 104th Ave. S.E. - (253) 852-1720 THE VOYEUR 604 Central Ave. S. - (253) 850-8428 NASHVILLE’S SPORTS BAR (Drag Shows) 114 - Railroad Ave. N. - (253) 852 - 0909
Visit us online www.sgn.org
• POCO WINE ROOM
• THE CUFF COMPLEX E. PINE ST. • PURR • THE CRYPT • POST OPTIONS • DOGHOUSE LEATHERS
E. UNION ST.
SEATTLE
• THE GASLIGHT INN
December 11, 2015
LOVER’S 530 Southcenter Blvd. - (206) 248-5085
WENATCHEE
THE CELLAR CAFE 240 N. Mission St. - (509) 662-1722
Seattle Gay News 17
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10 housemates
14 Help wanted
10 housemates
14 help wanted
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11 for rent
11 FOR RENT
19 19 home services
HOME SERVICES
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12 12 housing wanted WANTED HOUSING
20 health & health & well being
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13 13 housing for sale
HOUSING FOR SALE
_______________________________ real estate REAL ESTATE _______________________________ SEATTLE’S TOP GAY REALTORS Buying a Home? Choose a Top Seattle Gay Realtor Offering FREE Buyers Representation! Relocating anywhere in the country? Visit: WWW.GAYREALESTATE. COM 37/6 _______________________________
20
WELL-BEING
_______________________________ ENERGY/BODYWORK Therapeutic massage. 29 years experience. Relaxation, major/ minor injuries, chronic muscle pain. Small Queen Anne home office/studio. Massage table or massage chair. Convenient parking. (I’m a Gay-friendly straight male graphic artist, web author.) First session 50% off = $45/1.5 hours (travel extra). By appointment only. References available. Chris Pringer, Reiki Master, 206286-0899. If you get a voice message mentioning “extension #,” please hang up and call back again. Brochure, testimonials, etc. via chalicebridge.com/BMIBrochure.html. 44/21 _______________________________
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21 licensed LICENSED massage MASSAGE non-sexual
- NON-SEXUAL
_______________________________ EXCEPTIONAL BODYWORK Given by highly trained LMP. I specialize in injury treatment, acute, chronic, and repetitive stress motion. I have a studio on CapHill, and one just north of the UW. Insurance accepted. Matt Shafer, LMP, 206-235-7766. 09/12 _______________________________ RELAXATION and DEEP TISSUE massage on Capitol Hill. Last minute appointments w¥elcome until 9 pm. Jeff, LMP, 206-6500542. www.broadwaymassage. com. 51/3 _______________________________ 22 for sale
22 FOR SALE
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18 Seattle Gay News
December 11, 2015
37 BODYWORK
38 MEN
37 bodywork
38 men
_______________________________ AMAZING BODYWORK! Deep tissue, erotic bodywork by handsome, hairy-chested, hung therapist. Reasonable rates. Photos, phone number and reviews at website: www.amazingbodywork. com. Robert. 03/6 ________________________________ DADDY BEAR Magic touch bodywork. 12 noon-8pm. 206-328-5828. 52/3 _______________________________ EROTICALLY CHARGED nude full body rubdown from playful top, stimulating the senses. Get seduced. Incalls in Renton area. Scott, 206-355-4469. 49/3 ________________________________ GREAT MASSAGE given by highly-trained, clean-cut, handsome guy. I have two private studios, one on CapHill, and one just north of the UW. Call/ text Matt, 206-235-7766. In/out calls. 09/12 ________________________________
________________________________ RAIN CITY JACKS Seattle’s own JO Club, RCJ hosts three group jack-off events every month. Hot, friendly, safe fun! Adult men only. 888-809-5035. info@raincityjacks.org; www. raincityjacks.org. 03/12 _______________________________ FREE & ANONYMOUS HIV & STD COUNSELING/TESTING Walk-In or by Appt GAY CITY HEALTH PROJECT 517 E. Pike St. MON-FRI: 3pm-8pm SAT: 12:30pm-5pm More Info & to Schedule Appt 206-860-6969 _______________________________ SEATTLE PRIME TIMERS A social organization for Gay and Bisexual Men over 40 and their admirers. www.seattleprimetimers.org; info@seattleprimetimers. org SGN/ _______________________________
Celebrating 41 Years!
Visit us online www.sgn.org
December 11, 2015
Seattle Gay News 19
20 Seattle Gay News
December 11, 2015
Celebrating 41 Years!