SGN Nov 22, 2019 - Part 2

Seattle Opera’s The Falling and the Rising a powerful and timely new chamber opera

by Sharon Cumberland

SGN A&E Writer

SEATTLE OPERA

THE FALLING AND THE RISING TAGNEY JONES HALL AT THE OPERA CENTER

November 15

Continues through 11/24

“The Falling and the Rising,” a terrific new chamber opera by composer Zac Redler and librettist Jerre Dye, made its Seattle premiere on November 15th in Seattle Opera’s equally new performance space, the Tagney Jones Hall. It’s only seventy minutes long, with an orchestra of eleven

see SEATTLE OPERA page 3

Seattle Rep’s Shout Sister Shout! a rousing introduction to Sister Rosetta Tharpe

SHOUT SISTER SHOUT!

SEATTLE REPERTORY THEATRE Through December 22

Damon and Bale rev up excitement in masterful Ford v Ferrari

by Sara Michelle Fetters

SGN A&E Writer

FORD V FERRARI

Now playing

Sprinting across the screen like a blast of pure unfiltered adrenaline, director James Mangold’s Ford v Ferrari is an outstand-

ing historical character study overflowing in energy, excitement, drama, heartache, euphoria and unbridled suspense. It hits the track running from the dropping of the green flag and only accelerates from there. This is a masterful drama that features the best performances of Matt Damon’s and Christian Bale’s

see FORD V FERRARI page 7

KEEPING IT REAL

Veteran stunt coordinator Robert Nagle chats about Ford v Ferrari

Did you know that “Down By the Riverside” was written by Sister Rosetta Tharpe? Did you know she was a prolific songwriter of significant gospel songs, aside from being a virtuoso guitar player who can be credited

see SEATTLE REP page 6

by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer

FORD

see NAGLE page 6

SEATTLE

and five singers who perform multiple characters. Yet the intimacy of this small work packs such a wallop that the audience is as swept up by the drama as they would be by any work on the main stage. The opera is in English, based on interviews with wounded soldiers and veterans who agreed to share their experiences for this project, and whose true stories are on display in the theater lobby. (Some of the soldier volunteers were present at opening night).

The “falling” part of the story is about a soldier who suffers a traumatic brain injury and is placed in a three-month induced coma. In this dream state she encounters the stories of other soldiers whose battle wounds have upended their lives. The “rising” part of the story is how each person – and ultimately the principal character – finds the courage to move on, even with the limitations their wounds have imposed. It’s a small opera on a very big subject, designed to fit into compact venues – high school auditoriums, community theaters – and to relate the experiences of real people who have suffered in the service of our country. It’s well written, beautifully performed, and extremely moving (to tears, in my case).

The main character, “Soldier,” was sung by soprano Tess Altiveros, well known to Seattle audiences from her performances in previous Community Engagement chamber operas (The Combat; O + E ) and Pacific MusicWorks’ production of Handel’s Samson. Her nuanced voice and warm personality set up the drama to come as “Soldier” skyped to her young daughter before going out on the patrol that would shatter her world. The audience laughed and sighed with her as she wore a funny hat, sang “Happy Birthday” and sent a mother’s love and advice through the computer to her child at home. When the tragedy happens, we know who she is and what she stands to lose, and we feel as desperate as she does for her to break out of her medical cocoon and return to her previous life.

The other people she encounters in her dream state tell her the story of her future by way of their own problems and insights: a cocky young soldier named “Toledo,” sung by the very compelling mezzo, Elizabeth Galafa; a paratrooper, “Jumper” sung with welcome humor by tenor Tim Janecke; the extremely moving “Colonel” sung by

is the subject of the opera, bring a literal quality to the lyrical and figurative devices that make the libretto so successful.

Two outstanding artists in a field of excellence are the librettist, Jerre Dye, whose expert pacing, lyrical language, and sensitive characterizations gave his composer the ideal text to set to music, and Pro -

bass Damien Geter (who is also cast as a compassionate medic); and the very moving “Homecoming Soldier” whose life in a wheelchair is conveyed with alternating humor and sadness by baritone Jorell Williams. Added to this cast is a wonderful veteran’s chorus – thirteen vets who enter at the climax to add their voices to the soldier/ spirits who are encouraging “Soldier” to have the courage to live on, even with her disabilities. These real-life vets, who have experienced in actuality the suffering that

jection Designer K. Brandon Bell, whose clever use of screens allowed simultaneous realities to co-exist on stage. His use of “Soldier’s” computer placed the audience in the position of her child at home; x-ray images signaled the onslaught of battle wounds; pixilated screens represented brain trauma, and the fading in and out of “Soldier’s” face showed us the state of her injuries. At the curtain call, a reversed camera showed us the orchestra that was hidden behind the set for the entire production.

Both artists’ approached their tasks with clever and effective solutions, supporting the composer and singers that brought out the best in everyone.

This was a great way to inaugurate the new Opera Center, which is east of McCaw Hall, and sports the large glass-walled performance space that is sometimes hidden behind two-story curtains, and sometimes exposed to the street. You’ve probably driven by it without knowing what it is, with the metal projections that line the exterior walls and the sparkling lights that come on at night. The Opera Center also houses the costume shop, the administration offices, and a 40-foot door that connects the scenery shop to the stage. But the new Tagney Jones Hall performance space – for recitals, competitions, classes and chamber opera – is a great new addition to the Seattle music scene.

So who is Tagney Jones, anyway? Charitable institutions in Seattle know the answer, but folks like you and me may wonder. So I asked the hive brain, and it turns out that Maryanne Tagney is a past President of the Board of Directors of Seattle Opera. She and her husband, David Jones, are generous donors through the Tagney Jones Family Fund to many charitable institutions including the Seattle Foundation, Town Hall, Washington Wildlife & Recreation Coalition, and a mind-boggling list of environmental, liberal-political, and arts organizations. David Jones made the family fortune as an early Microsoft employee, and this generous couple’s activities and gifts have made our fair city and region a much better place to live. I’m glad the new auditorium at the Opera Center is named for them. They should be remembered always for sharing their good fortune with generations of people they will never meet. Thank you, Mr. Jones and Mrs. Tagney Jones!

Though The Falling and the Rising is sold out, you may still be able to see it on a standing-room or cancellation basis. Give it a try! It’s well worth the effort. Showing through November 24th.

Pilobolus returns to Seattle to an enthusiastic crowd

by Sharon Cumberland

SGN A&E Writer

UW WORLD DANCE

PILOBOLUS MEANY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

November 14

It’s been five years since Pilobolus came to the UW World Dance Series – and by the reaction of last week’s sold-out audience, it’s been too long. The troupe of seven dancers, joined this year for the first time by the University of Washington Chamber Singers, performed five powerful and entertaining dance movements for the delighted audience. As ever, Pilobolus was oddly inventive and astonishingly athletic. It was a stroke of genius to have UW’s 36 young singers, led by Director Geoffrey Boers, perform their rhythmic and closely harmonized vocals to accompany the videos that Pilobolus customarily shows to segue from one dance to the next. Michelle Witt, Meany Center’s Executive and Artistic Director, suggested the collaboration,

which seems especially appropriate for a dance company founded by students at Dartmouth in 1971. Though Pilobolus is on the brink of its 50th birthday, its troupe is forever young, originating dance movement based on the physical strength and wild imagination of clever college kids. Pilobolus has always been the by-word for innovative, strength-based dance with a strong streak of humor and whimsy, and this year’s program was no exception.

“Eye Opening” (2018)

The first dance of the evening used a volunteer from the audience as a key performer in a hilarious pantomime about the origin of the eye. The energetic middle-aged audience member was asked to flip information cards (starting with “Hi! I’m Anne. I’m from the audience!”) as the dancers, wearing big eyeballs that covered their heads, enacted the sequence of evolutionary mutations that lead to binocular vision. Sounds crazy – it was – but it was also cute, funny, and fresh, as though the audience was magically transported back to the best sixth grade science class in the world.

“Gnomen” (1997)

Four men dressed only in black briefs that expose their amazingly strong bodies, move through an array of configurations that illustrate increasingly complex power poses. Two men turn a third man upside down and twist his rigid body around like a screwdriver while a fourth man, crouching in the distance, turns at the same rate, as though he is the screw being driven; three men catch a third man who repeatedly dives into the air as if diving into an invisible pool of water; one man drapes himself across the bodies of the other three who roll him to the floor at their feet, where they each stand on one foot while lifting the man on the floor with the other foot, swinging him back and forth as if he were in a cradle. These moments continue in a sequence of sustained gestures that require tremendous strength and a highly original, cockeyed vision. Is it choreography? I’m not sure – since there is neither implied narrative nor a flow of patterns that make a rhythmic dance. It’s more like thoughtful acrobatics that use the body in unconventional ways. But one thing is certain – it’s fascinating to watch.

“Warp and Weft” (2018)

Three women – fully as powerful as the four men in the previous dance – use drapery to make themselves appear to be giantesses, animals, and even, in one hilarious sequence, a single woman with a truly impressive bosom (the heads of the two other dancers). It was clever, strange, and funny – the warp and weft being all the ways a river of red fabric could be manipulated as three dancers transform themselves into unexpected visionary creatures.

“Symbiosis” (2001)

In this startling dance, a very tall, strong man and a smallish woman, both wearing dance belts (which is to say, they are very close to naked) engage in acrobatic movements that explore the possibilities of interaction in all the ways that would never occur to us. We’re so limited in how we think of men and women together that to see a near-naked couple entwine themselves in ways that are not sexual so much as other-worldly is both a surprise and a pleasure. It’s as if Adam and Eve were in Cirque du Soleil instead of Eden – and their

job was not to name the animals so much as to form the animals in a kaleidoscopic flow of shapes.

“Branches” (2017)

In a pre-performance interview Pilobolus artistic directors Renée Jaworski and Matt Kent described the origin of this dance as a walk through the woods, in which each dancer had to maintain distance from the others in order to experience the natural world without reference to each other; to bring back impressions of trees, shrubs, animals, and plants in ways that would inform their collaborative evolution of dance movements. The result by the whole troupe of seven – four men and three women – is “Branches,” in which the women’s movement is lyrical and soft whereas the men are like mating animals – showing off, flexing their muscles, and carrying the women away to form flower and animal shapes with ingenious configurations of arms and legs. Once again, we saw a surprising array of strength and imaginative movement – but is it dance?

Five years ago my dance buddy and I were thrilled with the Pilobolus we saw, but this year we were fascinated without being deeply engaged. We wondered whether we were seeing anything more than techniques that have not gone the next step into actual dance. Forming interesting shapes with the body, feats of strength, and ingenious combinations of groups are the tools of dance, but without patterns – even patterns as simple as circles or diagonals – interesting movements don’t resolve into dance. I think Pilobolus is a troupe of acrobats and strongmen/strongwomen, much more closely related to the circus than to the dance world. They are delightful entertainers and our Seattle audience loved them. But I felt as though I was watching performers in search of a really good choreographer, who could take the multitude of talent available and make something that goes beyond the clever and the weird – something complex and sustained. My best wish for Pilobolus is that they may someday find that choreographer. After almost fifty years, it’s time they evolve to the next level.

SEATTLE REP

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with creating “rock and roll” and who influenced Elvis, Little Richard, Johnny Cash and more? I certainly didn’t know this.

In a rousing introduction to Rosie-etta at Seattle Repertory Theatre, you can learn more about this extraordinary woman and her life’s journey. The cast is stellar. Many are new to the Seattle stage and have been drawn in as if they are getting ready to charge back into New York City and take it by storm. Maybe that’s the plan for this play-with-music, Shout Sister Shout!, by playwright Cheryl L. West, with support from her director Randy Johnson.

What you’ll experience is a pretty wallto-wall singing event with a few interruptions for bits of life story. With the talented Carrie Compere as Sister Rosetta Tharpe belting her pipes out and an ensemble of Alexis Tidwell, Nehemiah Hooks, Joseph Anthony Byrd (doing a mean Cab Calloway), Porcha Shaw, Allison Semmes (portraying Marie Knight), Chaz Rose (showing up as Dizzie Gillespie for a bit), Timothy Ware, Christin Byrdsong (as Little Richard), Jason Kappus, Lawrence Clayton, and Carol Dennis (as Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s mother, Katie Bell Nubin), it’s a rip-roaring evening.

There’s a gorgeous set (by GW Skip Mercier) of a wall of white guitar shapes (that

NAGLE

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Cobra, the Ford GT40 and ’60’s era Ferraris) driven throughout the film. The story of Ford Motor Company’s racing world battle against motorsports giant Ferrari in 1965 and 1966, notably focusing on custom sportscar designer Carroll Shelby (Matt Damon) and legendary driver Ken Miles (Christian Bale), the drama sprints across the screen like a high-octane blast of pure adrenalin.

Veteran stunt driver, stuntman and stunt coordinator Robert Nagle was the man tasked by Mangold to breath life into all of his film’s many racing and testing sequences. Doing so was a challenge he eagerly embraced. “Part of me still can’t believe this opportunity came my way,” Nagle quietly stated to me. “Mangold had a clear vision as to what he wanted but still gave me and my team a lot of freedom to create something incredible. I hope that’s what we did.”

I had the chance to chat with Nagle over the phone a day before the film’s nationwide release. Here are some edited excerpts from what he had to say:

Sara Michelle Fetters: So, I’m going to be totally unprofessional for about 60 seconds here and just say, “holy cow!” What an incredible job you and your entire team did on this film! I was blown away. Not gonna lie. I left the theatre gobsmacked.

Robert Nagle: [laughs] Why thank you! I really appreciate the recognition of the effort. We put a lot of work into this movie. A lot of work.

Sara Michelle Fetters: For you, as a veteran stunt performer and somebody who has just done some really extraordinary work in a lot of different films, when you came aboard this project, what was your vision for what you wanted to see accomplished? How did you work with James Mangold to make sure that that happened?

Robert Nagle: I really wanted, and it was important for James as well, that everything was grounded in reality and that we really conveyed to the audience what it was like to be in the middle of the race so they get a sense of what Ken Miles is dealing with. Also, each race had to have a different feel to it and there had to be an authentic reason for that. These were all ideas that were motivating us.

opens and closes at the back) and a frame of stage columns with regularly spaced bars that light up all different kinds of colors during the evening. There are some beautiful concert costumes by Emilio Sosa. Complex lighting schemes are contributed by Robert Wierzel and sound is made crisp by Joanna Lynne Staub.

Every once in a while, some singers bust out some choreography with the help of William Carlos Angulo, some of which

can’t help but make you smile or laugh at the exuberance. A tiny on-stage band (behind the wall of guitars) is led by music director talent, Sheilah V. Walker. There is no doubt that you can be engulfed by the power of the music and the singing. Even as some of the story is of sad experiences Sister Rosetta Tharpe went through, including an abusive first husband, and the need to hide what was clearly a lesbian love of her life period with Marie

Sara Michelle Fetters: How much research goes into making sure that you’re staging these races similarly to what they were historically but also presenting them in a way that, as you said, that the audience felt like they were becoming part of the experience?

Robert Nagle: It started with the Willow Springs race, which was a completely fictitious race. I had a clean palette to just write that action as we needed it, to make it fun and exciting. It’s like a street fight. The race is just a little messier than the ones that come later in the film, like the 24 Hours at Le Mans. That progresses into the next races. There were historical points we kind of wanted to stay true to, but at the same time we wanted to add some stuff. I come from the racing world, so I used my own experiences when choreographing these races. I also use some experiences from some of my guys driving those cars.

One of the crashes, Darrin Prescott, our second unit director, had been invited to participate in a celebrity race for Vipers by Dodge. I think this was probably eight, nine years ago. This huge wreck took place in front of him and a car was actually cartwheeling

Knight, the thrust is mostly about recognizing her as an undeniable musical talent. However, the story, starting from her late teens to her death, is very episodic and cursory. We learn the basic details, but there is more information on Wikipedia than you get from the script. In addition, you have to read the credits list in the program to learn that eight of the songs they play, including “Down By the Riverside”, are written by Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

There’s no sense of how she sat to write the songs or where in her soul she drew them from. While she’s portrayed as a clearly great guitar player, the only creative moments are her playing and singing.

If the sparsity of the story doesn’t bother you and you love to wallow in gospel music and rock-and-roll, then by all means, get yourself over to Seattle Rep for a great time. There’s nothing “wrong” with the category of musicals known as “jukebox” musicals where most of the reason you’re there is for the list of songs. In this instance, the show does seem to want to promise more, and as yet, it doesn’t quite deliver.

For more information, go to www.seattlerep.org or call 206-443-2222.

Discuss your opinions with SGNCritic@ gmail.com or go to www.facebook.com/ SeattleTheaterWriters. More articles can be found at MiryamsTheaterMusings. blogspot.com.

like we did in the film, debris going everywhere. He thought for sure he had just seen the driver die. It was that horrific.

[Darrin] was like, hey, let’s figure out a way to put this in the film, to convey how precarious this really is. It just seemed to fit what we were doing. At the start of these races, that’s why there’s so much tension. Just like that everything can just suddenly go wrong.

Sara Michelle Fetters: When you’re doing all of this, obviously safety is the number one concern, but it still felt like a lot of this was done practically. How do you balance safety doing all of these practical stunts and how do you go about later augmenting them with digital effects? Where is the line between illusion and reality?

Robert Nagle: Well, on a certain level it’s all an illusion. These aren’t real races. We choreograph everything.

But to answer your question, it’s about having the right people and doing a lot of preparation and planning. You just go through the choreography step by step so that everybody understands where they need to be at any given moment. As long as that’s adhered to we take most of the risk out of it.

But we’re still dealing with mechanical machines and things do go wrong sometimes. That crash that I just spoke about, we did two takes and on the second one the car that was cartwheeling suddenly righted itself on its wheels and chased down the camera car that was filming it. It T-boned it and slammed it into the concrete wall and then subsequently into a tire wall. That was a pretty hard hit to the driver.

Sara Michelle Fetters: Yikes! That sounds terrifying. I imagine that had you all worried a little bit.

Robert Nagle: It did. He rung his bell pretty good. I sent him to the ER and made sure to get him checked out and that everything was okay. Head injuries are not something you want to play with. I’d rather be safe than sorry. Thankfully, he came back with a clean bill of health.

Sara Michelle Fetters: Speaking of being safe, you worked with Christian for quite some time to ensure he was prepared to really play this character of Ken Miles. Do I have that correct?

Robert Nagle: You do. I was trying to put together options for his driver training. I felt the best way was to take him out to the Bob Bondurant School. It was kind of a twofold thing: It’s a great facility for training and it’s set up that way. They allowed me to shadow their instructor and guide the training the way I needed it.

But the big thing for me was that I wanted Christian to meet Bob Bondurant. He is from that era of racing. He’s a big player. He’s an icon. My hope was that we would be able to spend a couple of hours with Bob and Christian would get to meet him and that would be great because he actually knew Ken Miles. This was a great opportunity.

What ultimately happened is we would train from 7:00 in the morning till 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon and then we would spend the next four or five hours every day sitting down and talking with Bob. I thought they’d get like one conversation together and here we were doing this every single day.

One of the big surprises for me that I didn’t know was that he was very close friends with Ken Miles. I knew they were acquainted but I didn’t know just how much so. Bob had some amazing stories and information, and we got all of that. Just sitting see NAGLE page 10

FORD V FERRARI

respective careers, the film a rip-roaring symphony of screeching tires, terrifying collisions, checkered flags and complex friendships that’s nothing short of glorious.

Even though my father is a pretty extraordinary mechanic I can’t say I know a lot about cars. Even though he made his living fixing them up and making them purr as if brand new, I also admit that no one in my family spent a lot of time watching professional racing. All of this is my roundabout way of saying I knew little about custom car designer Carroll Shelby (Damon) and even less about renowned racer Ken Miles (Bale) before watching this movie. There’s just never been a reason for these two to end up on my personal radar, and I can’t say I’ve ever been bothered by having that hole in my sports trivia knowledge.

The great thing about what Mangold and screenwriters Jez Butterworth, JohnHenry Butterworth (Edge of Tomorrow) and Jason Keller (Escape Plan) do is that they manage to make Ford v Ferrari a mesmerizing drama whether one knows a lick about the history of these two men or if, like me, one enters into the theatre clueless. They ground the two characters into their late 1960s California world with ease, utilizing the subtlest of brushstrokes to cement who Shelby and Miles are and why as a viewer I was going to find it entertaining to spend roughly 150 minutes watching them build and race a spiffy new sportscar.

Why was that? Their friendship mattered, that’s why. It was hard. They faced numerous obstacles that led them to butt heads. They could yell at one another at the drop of the hat. Yet they were just as willing to stop everything and put it all on the line if the other needed them to, all of which makes a mid-story misstep by Shelby where he relents to the corporate powers that be all the more heartbreaking. But the competitive fire fueling both men cannot be contained, so watching them fail is every bit as captivating as seeing them succeed far beyond their wildest dreams. They are dreamers risking everything to achieve victory, and while their eventual triumph is never in doubt, watching them get there is every bit as exhilarating as I ever could have hoped it was going to be.

With auto sales stagnant, Lee Iacocca (Jon Bernthal) presents his boss Henry

Ford II (Tracy Letts) with a wild plan to make Ford cars and trucks cool again by having their company purchase Ferrari and then build a race car that could win at the fabled 24 Hours of Le Mans. But instead of letting the American auto giant buy his company Enzo Ferrari (Remo Girone) instead ridicules and insults Ford, vowing he’d never allow someone who makes “ugly cars” be a part of Ferrari.

Unsurprisingly Ford takes this personally, vowing to go to war with Ferrari and to beat them at their own game by winning Le Mans. Enter Carroll Shelby. The last American to win Le Mans, Iacocca convinces Shelby to help Ford build and design a car that will put Ferrari in its rearview mirror. He in turn brings vaunted, headstrong professional driver Ken Miles onto their team, utilizing his knowledge and expertise behind the wheel to help them put the finishing touches on the car that will be known all around the world as the Ford GT40. Miles isn’t easy to get along with and isn’t a cor-

porate stooge, which puts him at odds with Ford Motor Co. executive Leo Beebe (Josh Lucas), who for some strange reason makes it his mission to see that the driver never gets behind the wheel at Le Mans.

Beebe’s obviously unsuccessful, Mangold’s movie building up to the 1966 Le Mans where Shelby, Miles and Ford Motor Co. will make racing history. These aren’t spoilers, they’re historical facts, and it isn’t like a major Hollywood studio would greenlight a $100-million production had they felt audiences weren’t going to be madly cheering come the story’s climax. Yet the filmmaker eschews most of the inherent clichés of the inspirational sports melodrama mainly be grounding things in a gritty, hardedged reality that’s captivatingly authentic. Shelby and Miles breathe gas fumes like its oxygen and swim in motor oil and grease as if they were six-year-olds jumping into a swimming pool. This is their reality, their world, and because of that I found watching their friendship go through so many intense

permutations to be almost as thrilling as the three primary races staged in the film proved to be.

But only almost. Mangold and his crackerjack team of stunt performers and effects wizards have gone above and beyond in their staging of the race, testing and training sequences in the film. As spellbinding as Ron Howard’s Rush was, Ford v Ferrari leaves it in the dust. Not since John Frankenheimer revved up his engines to bring 1966’s Grand Prix to life have I watched a motion picture that made me feel as if I was sitting in the seat right next to the driver. I was continually gobsmacked as Miles navigated all of the various tracks all of which built up to his marathon brilliance at Le Mans. From the immersive sound design, to Phedon Papamichael’s (Nebraska) splendid cinematography, to Michael McCusker (Walk the Line) and Andrew Buckland’s (The Girl on the Train) dynamite editing, to Marco Beltrami (The Hurt Locker) and Buck Sanders’s (Warm Bodies) virtuoso score, every element of this production is superb, all of which makes the finished product an eyepopping marvel I thoroughly enjoyed.

Bernthal doesn’t get much to do as Iacocca, and other than a great scene inside Enzo Ferrari’s Italian offices he doesn’t make much of a lasting impression. Same goes for Caitriona Balfe as Ken Miles’ wife Mollie. While at first it appears as if the movie is going to give her character substantively more to do than just sit at home and worry about her husband, about the halfway mark that’s exactly what happens, and as great as Balfe initially is I couldn’t help but wish Mangold did something less stereotypical with her. As for Lucas, his Leo Beebe is a smarmy corporate caricature that’s so cartoonish it felt like he stepped in from a different, far less wellmade motion picture, and whenever he was up on the screen I felt like his presence ground things to a frustrating halt.

Thankfully Damon and especially Bale kill it as Shelby and Miles. Both are so dialed in even though they’re huge, instantly recognizable movie stars I still found they managed to disappear into the characters they were portraying. Mangold has them firing on all cylinders, each actor going for broke and mining fascinating emotional interiors I instantly responded to. They are nothing short of sensational, and if I had my say in the matter here’s hoping Oscar voters nominate both men for Best Actor as Damon and Bale are equally deserving of the recognition. They are the engine that powers Ford v Ferrari to the victory lane, and as magnificently made as this picture is, without them I’m not so certain turning the key on this film’s ignition would be nearly as essential as it happily ends up proving to be.

Mesmerizing The Report a pulse-pounding political procedural

by Sara Michelle Fetters SGN A&E Writer

THE REPORT

Now playing

Under the direction of his boss California Senator Diane Feinstein (Annette Bening), Senate investigator Daniel Jones (Adam Driver) begins detailing a report on the Bush administration’s use of “Enhanced Interrogation Techniques” or EITs after the tragic events of 9/11. Holed up in a secure underground windowless room deep inside the Central Intelligence Agency, Jones and his team spend the next five years compiling roughly 6,700 pages highlighting countless instances of abuse of power, torture and even accidental death, none of which led to any actionable intelligence that could be used during the so-called “War on Terror.”

Facing pushback from Republicans on the Select Committee on Intelligence, officials at the CIA and even from the Obama administration, it becomes an open question if Jones’ finished report will see the light of day. Torn between duty to his country, confidence in his boss Senator Feinstein to not buckle to political pressure and an intense desire to make sure the truth becomes public, the emotionally unflappable investigator flirts with the idea of leaking the document to the press. After spending so much time analyzing the ins and outs of so much violent abhorrence Jones is having serious doubts about the integrity of the political process, the questions he now has about his government ones that did not exist before he started his investigation.

Writer and director Scott Z. Burns’ (Side Effects, Contagion) docudrama The Report is a mostly apolitical procedural chronicling the creation of the 2014 Senate Select Committee on Intelligence’s Report on the Detention and Interrogation Program, a.k.a. “The Torture Report,” written by Daniel Jones and his assistants. It is an All the President’s Men-style analyzation of what it took to create this massive document and the psychological duress doing so triggered in its authors. The film is superbly made and magnificently acted by both Driver and Bening, the former so strong it’s a wonder why Burns ever allows the story or cinematographer Eigil Bryld’s (Ocean’s Eight) camera to

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down with him and talking, it was an incredible experience.

Sara Michelle Fetters: You’ve worked with a lot of actors preparing them to drive. Where does Christian rate?

Robert Nagle: Christian did an amazing, amazing job. I’ve told everyone he’s hands-down the most accomplished driver I’ve trained as an actor to work in front of the camera. [laughs]

Honestly, though, he’s an incredible actor. It’s a testament to his talent that he took to the training as he did. He’s constantly challenging himself, but he does so incrementally and balanced with the proper dose of common sense. But he’s constantly pushing himself a little bit more, a little bit more, a little bit more and then a little bit more. He just did an amazing job.

I think one of the things that makes a great actor are the subtleties that they bring that you can’t always point to but that the subconscious picks up on. There is a difference from the beginning when they’re putting the car together to later on in the story inside the GT40. There is a difference in how Christian drives in the car and how he acts in it. That transformation is happening right there on the screen.

look away from him for even a second.

That’s not quite as much hyperbole as it sounds. Driver commands the screen. He fidgets and squirms with determined intent, and over the five years he spends researching The Torture Report you can just see how spending so much time in the muck and mire of this unimaginable human carnage is ripping him apart. Yet Jones remains committedly resolute, and the actor makes certain to give this rigorous determination the significance it deserves. Driver’s scenes with Bening, no matter how brief they tend to be, are electrifying, the two working together with a shrewd conviviality that’s outstanding.

Some of the flashbacks depicting events discussed in the report can be a little heavyhanded. Burns doesn’t have to hammer down with all that much forcefulness to make his point, so coloring many of those responsible for making EITs a thing the American government tried to give legal authority to risible one-dimensional villains isn’t exactly necessary. If anything,

Sara Michelle Fetters: I hesitate to ask, but this is reportedly a $100-million or so production. Even with a budget like that and even with a major Hollywood studio backing the film, there is no way those were real Shelby Cobras and Ford GT40s and period Le Mans-era Ferrari’s. No way at all, right?

Robert Nagle: If they had been, the budget for the film would have likely been more like $700 or $800 million. [laughs] So, yeah, those are not the real cars. There’s no way you could afford vehicles like that to make a movie like this one.

As much as I would love to have had the real cars, no, these were all replicas. The Cobras you see were provided by Superformance and they’re an exact licensed replica. They’re an exact copy of what existed at that time. They gave us some of the GT40s as well. They’re licensed copies so they’re exactly the same. They had the 427s in them, the suspension, everything was period correct for the GT40s.

The Ferrari’s were from a different company and some of the other GT40s were from a third company. The Porsche’s were from a different company as well. Everything was replicated for Daytona and Le Mans. Every single vehicle.

However, for the Willow Springs race we did have real period-correct Corvettes that were made race-ready for us. That was defi-

making them out to be an assortment of fools, ideologues or greedy profiteers eager to exploit a horrific tragedy to line their own pocketbooks almost diminishes just how heinous this policy of torture on the military and the CIA’s parts proved to be. Still, many of the actors do a fine job, Maura Tierney, Michael C. Hall, Pun Bandhu and an unrecognizable Ted Levine particularly worthy of polite accolades.

Better are those portraying characters on the other side of the coin, ones who either knew before EITs began that torture wasn’t going to provide any useful intelligence or instead quickly discovered this was not a program they wanted to remain a part of. Fajer Kaisi makes a memorable impression as an FBI interrogator who, just as he’s on the verge of making inroads with a major terrorist, finds himself off the case so the CIA can try their new techniques, his anger at the stupidity of their actions viscerally palpable. Also great is veteran character actor Tim Blake Nelson as a medical

nitely a thrill. Also, I personally test drove just about every car. I wanted to get a feel for how they were going to handle and what they were going to do before we completed choreographing each race. It’s interesting how those cars work or don’t work compared to something more contemporary.

Sara Michelle Fetters: How do you compare, or can you even compare, what your stunt team did here in relation to what John Frankenheimer accomplished on a picture like 1966’s Grand Prix where they didn’t have the same kind of safety controls or the digital-augmentation resources that you have now?

Robert Nagle: My goal was to at least come close to what they did for Grand Prix They did an amazing job. It was something I looked at several times before I sat down and started writing some of the stories for the races. There was always this nagging thing in the back of my mind wondering how can we make it look that great. It’s just the bell standard for this kind of movie.

I got a huge compliment, and I apologize because I can’t remember the gentleman’s name, but he was an editor for Cinematographer Magazine and was close friends with Frankenheimer. He opened my interview and, off the record, just said he wanted me to know Frankenheimer would have been a huge fan of our work. That made the hair on my arms stand up. It was amazing to hear that.

professional initially charged with looking out for the health of those being interrogated, his aghast emotional dissolution as he watches what transpires during these EIT sessions brutally devastating.

For all of Burns’ attempts to make the outcome of the story uncertain, it’s not like where The Report ends up is a secret. Diane Feinstein released a 525-page version of The Torture Report in 2014, the late Republican Senator from Arizona John McCain giving one of his most famous speeches in support of this action on the Senate floor. Even with the outcome part of the historical record, a level of unnerving suspense does pump through the motion picture’s veins for almost every tick of its almost two-hour running time. Burns has delivered a pulse-pounding procedural I could not resist, and I can’t help but think that audiences of all political persuasions will end up feeling the same just as long as they can put their differences aside in order to give the film a look.

Sara Michelle Fetters: What was your relationship like with James Mangold?

Robert Nagle: It was a really good relationship. He gave Darrin and I basically a free reign for the races. I just wrote a story for all three races, obviously with his approval, and we tweaked them a little bit so they could easily fit inside the larger story. These became the basis for all three races.

I would also talk to him about the racer mentality. This is how they think. These are the mind games they play. Stuff like that. It gave him a different perspective. He would come back at me and ask, “How do I convey this to the audience? How do I tell that story?” It became a challenge for me to figure the answers to those questions out. I would come back to him with all these options based on our discussions. I absolutely loved working with James. It was amazing.

Sara Michelle Fetters: For you, personally, what was this experience like making this movie?

Robert Nagle: I pinched myself every morning. I couldn’t believe it was really happening. It was an amazing experience. It was arduous. It was a lot of work. All of which made it super rewarding. I loved every minute of it.

Meetings Events Activities

TO GET A CALENDAR LISTING: To have your meeting or event considered for the Community Calendar, please mail, fax, or drop off details to: SGN, Attn: Community Calendar, 1707 23rd Ave., Seattle, WA 98122. SGN phone: (206) 324-4297. 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 visible or hidden disabilities? See Jean’s List webpage www.scn.org/activism/calendar/disabilities. html for Marla Nonken’s disabilities accommodations lists.

NOTE: 10-digit dialing has come to the Seattle area. The (206) area code must now be used to dial local calls. Location of meetings/events is in Seattle unless otherwise noted.

SATURDAY - November 23

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. (206) 4488518. www.seattlefrontrunners.org.

Positively Living Coffee Social. 10am-12 noon. Cupcake Royale, 1111 E Pike St. Every Saturday. Casual social get-together for the HIV community. (206) 9571600. Sponsored by LIfelong. New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100, Room 3. Meets daily. Sex and Love Addicts Anonymous is a 12-step/12-tradition-oriented fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope to overcome sex and love patterns of addiction. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org.

EQUALUX Taste of GSBA - A Benefit for the GSBA Scholarship Fund. 5pm. Westin Hotel, 1900 5th Ave. Enjoy silent auction, wine district, caterer showcase, live auction, entertainment, four-course dinner, program. Tickets $295. More info: equalux.org.

Mature Friends Monthly Potluck. 6pm. Wallingford Community Senior Center, Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Ave N, Suite 140. Monthly potluck meets last Saturday most months. MF is a social organization for Gay men & women, 40 years & over. www. maturefriends.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.oasisyouthcenter.org. (Also Thursdays & Fridays 4-10pm.)

SUNDAY - November 24

Ravenna United Methodist Church. 8:30am. “Seattle’s most dangerous Sunday school” - 9:45am Worship. 5751 33rd Ave NE. A reconciling congregation, fully inclusive and affirming of LGBTQ persons. (206) 525-7988. Center for Spiritual Living. 9am meditation; 9:30am & 11am services. The Mountaineers, 7701 Sand Point Way NE. Blessings & we hope to see you soon! (206) 527-8801 ext 203, www.cslseattle.org

Seattle Unity Church. 9am & 11am Sunday Services. 200 8th Ave N. “Come join our Gay & Lesbian-friendly, spiritual family at Seattle Unity Church. Our mission is to bring love, miracles & spiritual awakening into everyday life!” (206) 622-8475; www.seattleunity.org.

Seattle Soto Zen. 9:15am Zazen Instruction, 9:30am Zazen. 101 Nickerson St, Lower Level. Follow the traditional forms of the Soto school of Zen in a spirit of warmth & inclusion. Anyone interested in meditation, whether new or experienced in Zen practice or other traditions, is welcome. (206) 323-1659, www.seattlesotozen.org

Gay Men’s Bowling in Everett 9:30am. Glacier Lanes, 9630 Evergreen Way, Everett. Every Sunday. Spectators welcome. Join us for lunch afterwards! Sponsored by the Snohomish County Gay Men’s Task Force. For info email John at johndmarsh@mac.com; www.gaysnohomish.org Tacoma First United Methodist Church. 9:30am Worship, 11am Adult Education. 423 Martin Luther King Way, Tacoma. This reconciling congregation welcomes with warm hands, warm hearts & open minds GLBT persons seeking a spiritual home. (253) 627-0129, www. fumctacoma.org

University Lutheran Church. 9:30am Worship, 10:30am Coffee Fellowship, 11am Adult Forum & Education Hour. 1604 NE 50th St. All are welcome. We choose love. (206) 525-7074. universitylutheranseattle.org Central Lutheran Church. 10am Worship. 1710 11th Ave (just north of E Pine St). An open & affirming church, which in Lutheran churches is called “Reconciled in Christ.” “We seek to share God’s love with all people regardless of race, age, gender or sexual orientation.” All are welcome. (206) 322-7500. East Shore Unitarian Church. 10am Sunday Service. 12700 SE 32nd St, Bellevue. An open & affirming congregation. (425) 747-3780. Gethsemane Lutheran Church. 10am Worship. 911 Stewart St. A downtown faith community centered in justice. An open & affirming congregation. (206) 682-3620. Plymouth Church United Church of Christ. 10am Worship. 1217 6th Ave. Love your (LGBTQ) neighbor as yourself. (206) 622-4865, plymouthchurchseattle.org

Queen Anne United Methodist Church. 10am Worship. 1606 5th Ave W. (206) 282-4307. Unity Church of Kent. 10am. 218 State Ave S, Kent. A welcoming congregation open to people of all races, religions, creeds & lifestyles. Join us any Sunday for an

community calendar

inspirational message, joyful fellowship & a fresh spiritual outlook. (253) 854-9747.

University Congregational United Church of Christ. 9am all ages education; 10am Worship. 4515 16th Ave NE. UCUCC is an open & affirming congregation. (206) 524-2322; www.universityucc.org.

Wallingford United Methodist Church. 10am Worship. 2115 N 42nd St. A progressive congregation. In 1984 Wallingford UMC became the 9th reconciling Methodist church in the U.S. (206) 547-6945 (office); (206) 2855077 (George).

All Pilgrims Christian Church. 10:30am Worship. 500 Broadway E. Come as you are. All are welcome. A congregation of the Disciples of Christ & the United Church of Christ. (206) 322-0487, www.allpilgrims.org

Columbia City Church of Hope. 10:30am Worship. 3818 S Angeline St. We are a progressive faith community rooted in God’s grace and acceptance growing together toward justice, love and wholeness. (206) 722-5651. www.ColumbiaCityHope.org.

First Church - First United Methodist Church of Seattle. 10:30am. 180 Denny Way. (Enter on 2nd Ave N for worship.) Welcome to First Church, a progressive community advocating for the homeless and hungry, and creating a refuge of inclusive Christianity. First Church is a proud member of the Reconciling Ministries Network. (206) 622-7278; firstchurchseattle.org Northminster Presbyterian Church. 10:30am Worship. 7706 25th Ave NW. A village church in the city open to all. (206) 783-3402. www.northminsterpres.org (Conveniently located a block from the Metro #40 bus route.)

St. Clement’s Episcopal Church. 10:30am Worship. 1501 32nd Ave S. Great music. Dynamic preaching. Holy communion. Encountering the transformative and unconditional love of God in Christ. Join us! www. stclementseattle.org

Seattle Sunday Bowling. 10:30am. West Seattle Bowl, 4505 39th Ave SW (at SW Oregon St). Open bowl every Sunday for the GLBT community & friends. You don’t have to worry about how you bowl! $6.50 + $3 shoe rental. (425) 785-4729.

Welcome Table Christian Church. 9:45am Meditation; 10:30am Worship; Labyrinth 2nd Sundays 1-4pm. 1322 S Bayview St. Where people of all genders and sexualities, and families of all shapes & sizes are welcome and celebrated. A welcoming and affirming community since 1987. welcometablecc.org

Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation. 10:30am. 7141 California Ave SW. (206) 935-0418, office@wsuu.org, www.wsuu.org

Emerald City Metropolitan Community Church Seattle. 11am Worship. Chapel at University Temple United Methodist Church, 1415 NE 43rd St. MCC is a progressive Christ-centered faith community committed to providing a nurturing environment for individual & community growth thru Jesus Christ while celebrating unity in diversity. MCC is Seattle’s oldest Gay-friendly church. (206) 325-2421, www.mccseattle.org. Meditation for GBT Men. 11am-1pm. Cal Anderson House, 400 Broadway. Suitable for beginning & experienced meditators. Sponsored by Dharma Buddies. Contact Forrest Rode, (206) 920-6117, or Doug Allison, doug.l.allison@gmail.com. Find us under “Dharma Buddies” on Meetup.com or at DharmaBuddies.org. (Women are invited to contact our sister meditation group at www. LotusSisters.org.)

St. Paul’s United Church of Christ. 11am Worship. 6512 12th Ave NW. An “open & affirming” congregation. “We celebrate our diversity in religious background, sexual orientation, race, age & abilities.” (206) 783-6733; www.stpauluccseattle.com.

St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. 11:15am (also 7:30am, 9am, 5pm). 15 W Roy St. We are an accepting, progressive, Anglo-Catholic parish, renewing its people for their Christian lives in today’s world through worship, spiritual formation, engagement in the arts, and acts of compassion. www.stpaulseattle.com

Just for Today (NA). 12-1:15pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100. Every Sunday. Drop-in 12-step Narcotics Anonymous group open to anyone in recovery. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org

New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.)

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 (206) 625-0000; www.seattle-al-anon.org

Seattle Prime Timers Rap Group. 1:30pm. Generations Aging with Pride (GenPRIDE), 401 Broadway E #223 (above QFC in Broadway Market). Meets 4th Sunday each month in the Ian MacKintosh Room. This month’s topic: Open Sharing. Info: www.seattleprimetimers.org

Orca Swim Team Workout. Sun: Afternoon; Mon/ Weds/Fri: Evenings; Tues/Thurs: Mornings. Seattle

University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. Pre-registration required. Orca Swim Team workouts are for both competitive & recreational swimmers. www. orcaswimteam.org

Rain City Soccer Club Kickabout. Sunday afternoon usually at 3pm. Location varies. Join us for Seattle’s mostly-weekly mostly-LGBTQ pickup soccer game. We play an organized, 2-hour scrimmage on nice fieldturf surface. Sometimes there is a brief training/practice session before we play. Usually there is a “one-beer” after the scrimmage. To sign up visit www.raincitysoccer.org Shame to Grace (SAA). 6-7:30pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100. Every Sunday. Sex Addicts Anonymous is a fellowship of men & women who share their experience, strength & hope with each other so they may overcome their sexual addiction & help others recover from sexual addiction or dependency. Seattle SAA helpline (206) 237-8828, SAA International Service Organization 1-800-477-8191. (206) 322-2437. www. peerseattle.org

Pride League Bowling. 6:30pm. West Seattle Bowl, 4505 39th Ave SW. Every Sunday. Regular league bowling. Jeff, (206) 932-3731; leagues@wsbowl.com. [EXCEPT no bowling June, July & August.]

Integrity/Puget Sound. 7pm Worship & Fellowship. St. Mark’s Cathedral, Thomson Chapel, 1245 10th Ave E. Integrity is an international ministry of Gay & Lesbian Episcopalians, their friends & families, dedicated to education, support & service within the Church & the GLBT community. (425) 226-2746.

MONDAY - November 25

New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.)

SOBER On Meds. 1-2pm. Peer Seattle 1520 Bellevue Ave #100. Every Monday. 12-step group open to anyone in recovery & living on a medicine regimen. (206) 3222437; www.peerseattle.org

Strength Over Speed (SOS). 2-3:30pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100. Peer support for Gay and Bisexual men recovering from crystal meth addiction. www.strengthoverspeed.org. (206) 322-2437, www. peerseattle.org

Orca Swim Team Workout. Evening. Seattle University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday afternoon listing.)

Meditation Class for LGBTQ Seniors. 6:30pm. GenPride Senior Center, 401 Broadway E, Suite 223. Free class every Monday for LGBTQ seniors, their caregivers and allies. Beginners welcome. www.gapseattle.org Freely Speaking Toastmasters. 7-8:30pm. Gay City, 517 E Pike St. Find your voice with Seattle’s safe speaking space for the LGBTQ community. Individuals of all orientations and identities are welcome. Meets 2nd and 4th Mondays each month (except holidays and December break). For more info email contact@freelyspeaking. org or just drop in and visit.

Lotus Sisters South Seattle/Columbia City Meditation & Dharma Discussion. Gather at 6:45pm; sit at 7pm. Meets 4th Monday each month. Short presentation with discussion to follow. Oriented to LBTQ sisters. Email us or call (206) 550-5587 for details and location; www. LotusSisters.org. (Wheelchair accessible.)

PFLAG/South King County Monthly Meeting. 7pm. Unitarian Universalist Church, 25701 14th Pl S, Kent Meets 4th Monday each month. Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays is a national support organization for parents, spouses & families of GLBT persons, as well as those sexual minorities. PFLAG/Puget Sound: (206) 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 Destiny/Unity AA Meeting in Tacoma 7:30-8:30pm. Christ Episcopal Church, 310 N “K” St, Tacoma. Every Monday. LGBTQ-friendly AA meeting. (253) 474-8897. (Also meets Fridays.)

Lambert House Art Night. 7:30-9:30pm. 1818 15th Ave. Every Monday. Bring your ideas & let’s have some fun. (206) 322-2515, www.lamberthouse.org

Washington Gender Alliance Support Group Meeting in Shoreline 7:30pm. Center for Human Services, 17018 15th Ave NE, Shoreline. Every Monday. www. washingtongenderalliance.com

TUESDAY - November 26

Orca Swim Team Workout. Morning. Seattle University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday afternoon listing.)

New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave #100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.)

LGBTQ+ Group. 1:15-2:15pm. Orion Center, 1828

Yale Ave. Every Tuesday. A group for LGBTQ youth ages 13-24 & their allies. Sponsored by YouthCare. (206) 622-5555.

LGBTQ Questioning & Allied Youth Drop-in Group in Renton 6-8pm. Renton Area Youth Services (RAYS), 1025 S 3rd St, Renton. 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 (SOS). 6-7:30pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Peer support for Gay and

Bisexual men recovering from crystal meth addiction. www.strengthoverspeed.org. (206) 322-2437; www. peerseattle.org

ALISS - Aging Lesbians in South Seattle Evening Gathering. 6:30-8pm. Southeast Seattle Senior Center, 4655 S Holly St, Rainier Ave S & S Holly St., Social Hall. Meets 2nd & 4th Tuesday each month. This is a group primarily for Lesbians but all are welcome to attend. Facilitator: Fai Coffin; Cost: FREE. Metro route 7. Wheelchair accessible. Kate, (206) 722-0317; www.sessc.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. Youth ages 13-22 are welcome regardless of sexual orientation. www.diverseharmony.org

LGBTQ MS Connection/National MS Society. 6:308pm. Swedish Conference Center, Cherry Hill Campus, James Tower, 550 17th Avenue, Room E, 1st Floor. Meets 2nd & 4th Tuesday each month. MS Connection is a support group with the goal of providing a safe environment for the LGBT community to express their experiences and the impact of MS on their lives and the lives of their loved ones, as well as provide support for one another. Contact Kim at (425) 785-8593 or lgbtmsconnections@comcast.net.

No Man’s Land - For Female-Identified Youth, Ages 22 & Under. 7-8:30pm. 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. (206) 322-2515, www.lamberthouse.org

PFLAG/North Seattle Monthly Meeting. 7-9pm. Haller Lake United Methodist Church, 13055 1st Ave NE. Meets 4th Tuesday each month. (206) 325-7724 or northseattle@pflagseattle.org. PFLAG, a national organization founded in 1972, provides support, education and advocacy for families and friends of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer persons and is committed to moving LGBTQ equality forward.

Tuesday Night Sex Addicts Anonymous (GLBTQI).

7-8:30pm. All Pilgrims Christian Church, 500 Broadway E (enter at 509 10th Ave E; buzz in, Colonial 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 (206) 237-8828. SAA International Service Organization 1-800-477-8191. Men’s Discussion Group. 7:30-9pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Every Tuesday. Peer group for Gay & Bi men. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.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. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. A vibrant drop-in workshop for those of any spiritual belief. (206) 322-2437; www. peerseattle.org

Washington Gender Alliance Open Support Meeting in Bellingham 7:30-9pm. St James Presbyterian Church, 910 14th St., Bellingham. Every Tuesday. (360) 445-2411; www.washingtongenderalliance.com. (See Wednesday listing at 7:30pm for details.)

Seattle Otters Water Polo Team. 8-9:30pm. See website for location and to confirm details. Every Tuesday & Thursday. GLBT & GLBT-friendly co-ed water polo team is open to all who want to play. Beginners & experienced players welcome. Check our website for up to the minute details, or call the Otter Hotline (206) 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

WEDNESDAY - November 27

Mature Friends Walk Around Greenlake. 11am. Meet up at 10:50am with a group of older men gathered at the north end of the parking lot that is next to the boathouse along the southwest side of Greenlake. Every Wednesday. Walk around Greenlake followed by lunch at a local restaurant. www.maturefriends.org

Mature Friends Dining Out Luncheon. 12 noon. Jimmy’s on Broadway, Silver Cloud Hotel, 1100 Broadway @ E Madison St. Meets 2nd & 4th Wednesday each month. Just drop in - no RSVP required. MF is a social organization for Gay men & women, 40 years & over. www.maturefriends.org

New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.)

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 (206) 362-7282 x 8018 or email lbagley@chs-nw.org

Living Positively. 5-7pm. Lifelong, 1016 E Pike St., 3rd Fl. Every Wednesday. Social and support group for the HIV community with various topics for discussion and conversation. (206) 957-1600 or www.lifelong.org. Sponsored by Lifelong.

GLOBE (GLBTQ Loving Ourselves, Becoming Empowered): A Support Group for GLBTQ+Youth (14-20) serving Snohomish County & surrounding communities. 6-8pm. Phone or email for location. Every Wednesday. Sponsored by PFLAG Everett. Brenda, (425) 263-2908. globeleaders@hotmail.com Lotus Sisters Meditation & Dharma DiscussionNorth. 6:15-8pm. Ravenna Bryant neighborhood. Every Wednesday. Call (206) 525-7295 for location. www. LotusSisters.org.

community calendar

Seattle Frontrunners Fun Run. 6:30pm. Volunteer Park, 14th Ave E & E Prospect St. Every Wednesday. Meet at Black Sun sculpture across for museum. (See Saturday at 9am.)

Orca Swim Team Workout. Evening. Seattle University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday afternoon listing.)

Ingersoll All-Trans Drop-In Support Group. 7-9pm. Seattle Counseling Services, 1216 Pine St, Suite 300. Every Wednesday. 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. No fee, donations welcome. www. ingersollcenter.org

Mature Friends Weekly Bridge Group. 7pm. Wallingford Community Senior Center, lower level of Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnywide Ave N. Every Wednesday. All levels welcome. MF is a social organization for Gay men & women, 40 years & over. www. maturefriends.org

SEAMEC Monthly Meeting. 7pm. 1605 12th Ave, Suite 21. Meets 4th Wednesday each month. SEAMEC interviews, researches & rates candidates for public office on issues of concern to the LGBT community. www. voteseamec.org

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 & 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.

THURSDAY - November 28

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

[NOTE: Because of the Thanksgiving holiday many of these regularly scheduled meetings and activities will not be taking place today. Please check with meeting and activity organizers to confirm.]

Orca Swim Team Workout. Morning. Seattle University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday afternoon listing.)

Aging Ballard Lesbian Exchange (A.B.L.E.) Monthly Lunch Get-Together. 12 noon. Ballard NW Senior Center, 5429 32nd Ave NW. Meets 4th Thursday each month. Look for the A.B.L.E. sign on the table. We are Lesbians, 60 years (generally) and up, living (mostly) in the north half of Seattle. The purpose of this group is to connect, socialize, and support each other. We have been meeting since 2015. The group hosts evening potlucks, outings and get-togethers. Co-sponsored by Puget Sound Old Lesbians Organizing for Change. (PSOLOC).

BABES Women’s Support Group/Lunch Meeting. 12-2pm. Call for location. Every Thursday. The BABES Network is a peer led agency; a sisterhood of women facing HIV together. (206) 720-5566 or 888-292-1912; www.babesnetwork.org.

New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.)

Safe and Sober (AA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Open meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org 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.)

Everett-Snohomish County Friendship Dinner for persons living with HIV/AIDS, their friends, and for those who want to support them. 6pm. Trinity Lutheran Church, 2324 Lombard Ave, Everett. Meets last Thursday each month. For further information, please call 360-202-3978. Sponsored by AIDS Project Snohomish County (APSC) and Gay Men’s Task Force.

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. Boys Group - For Male-Identified Youth, Ages 1422. 7-8:30pm. Lambert House, 1818 15th Ave. Every Thursday. Youth take the opportunity to talk about issues that relate to their everyday lives, with the facilitation of a male volunteer. (206) 322-2515 ext 16. www. lamberthouse.org

21st Century Bowling. 7pm. West Seattle Bowl, 4505 39th Ave SW. Every Thursday. Regular league bowling. Jeff, (206) 932-3731; leagues@wsbowl.com. [EXCEPT no bowling June, July, August.]

Buddhism & Recovery. 7:30-9pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100 Every Thursday. A meditation/ recovery group. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.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. Safe, anonymous, non-judgmental environment of caring fathers & friends. You are not alone. 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. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Every Thursday. Ongoing support group open to Gay and Bisexual men. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org [NOTE: Please contact the facilitator prior to attending.]

Seattle Otters Water Polo Team. 8-9:30pm. See website for location and to confirm details. Every Tuesday & Thursday. GLBT & GLBT-friendly co-ed water polo team is open to all who want to play. Every Tuesday & Thursday. www.otterpolo.com. (See Tuesday listing at 8pm.)

FRIDAY - November 29

Ageless in Recovery (AA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Every Friday. A drop-in AA group for 55+. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org New Beginnings (SLAA). 12-1pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100, Room 3. Meets daily. (See Saturday listing at noon for details.) Road to Recovery (SLAA). 12-1:30pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Every Friday. Ongoing 12-step group for sex and love addicts. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org

Lake City Seniors LGBTQ2+Allies Peer Support Group. 1-2:30pm. Lake City Community Center, 12531 28th Ave NE. Meets last Friday most months. Please call to confirm. Small group of mostly 50+ come together to connect, share and learn from one another. For questions or more information, please contact Claudine Wallace, (206) 472-5471 or claudinew@soundgenerations.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.)

LGBTQ & Allies 18+ Free Friday Night Drop-In Volleyball. 6-7:45pm. Miller Community Center, 330 19th Ave E. Every Friday. (206) 684-4753. Orca Swim Team Workout. Evening. Seattle University, Redhawk Center, 14th Ave & E Cherry St. (See Sunday afternoon listing.)

Strength Over Speed (SOS). 6-7:30pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100. Peer support for Gay and Bisexual men recovering from crystal meth addiction. www.strengthoverspeed.org. (206) 322-2437; www. peerseattle.org

Game Night. 7pm-11pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100 Every Friday. Card games, board games and fellowship. (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org

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. (206) 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.

Destiny/Unity AA Meeting in Tacoma 7:30-8:30pm. Christ Episcopal Church, 310 N “K” St, Tacoma. Every Friday. LGBTQ-friendly AA meeting. (253) 474-8897. (Also meets Mondays.)

LGBT Friday Night Al-Anon Family Group. 8-9pm. Peer Seattle, 1520 Bellevue Ave, Suite 100, Room 3. 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 (206) 625-0000; www.seattle-al-anon. org; (206) 322-2437; www.peerseattle.org

SATURDAY - November 30

(See previous Saturday for ongoing activities.)

2019 Seattle Anarchist Book Fair (11/30-12/1). 10am4pm. The Vera Project, Seattle Center, is located north of the Key Arena near Republican St & Warren Ave N. and next to the SIFF Film Center. The Seattle Anarchist Book Fair is an annual event, now in its 11th year, that features anarchist publishers, authors, and projects from around the Pacific Northwest and across North America. The book fair includes talks and workshops about anarchist ideas and current struggles against the state and capitalism. This November 30th marks the 20th anniversary since the 1999 N30 demonstrations against the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Seattle. In honor of this, the book fair will host a panel of speakers, several workshops, and an archival exhibit to highlight and learn from 1999. For more information and a schedule of events, visit www.seattleanarchistbookfair.net.

SUNDAY - December 1

WORLD AIDS DAY

(See previous Sunday for ongoing activities.)

2019 Seattle Anarchist Book Fair (11/30-12/1). 10am4pm. The Vera Project, Seattle Center, north of the Key Arena and near Republican St & Warren Ave N. (See 11/30 listing at 10am for details.)

Knights of Mantra Monthly Meeting. 3pm. The Cuff, 1533 13th Ave. Meets 1st Sunday each month. K of M/ Jet Chapter is a fun-loving leather/Levi social & charitable organization that raises money for various causes & organizations. (206) 329-0886. www.facebook.com/ kofmjetchapter/

The AMP: AIDS Memorial Pathway World AIDS Day Commemoration Event. 4pm. Richard Hugo House, 1634 11th Ave. The short program will include videos and communtiy members sharing more about the AIDS Memorial Pathway. It will conclude at 5pm after a musical performance and procession to the future site of The AMP at the north end of Cal Anderson Park for a communal moment of silent reflection and remembrance. RSVP to info@theamp.org. This event will be ASL interpreted. PFLAG/Whatcom County (Bellingham) Monthly Meeting. 5pm. Community Food Co-op Bakery, 405 E Holly St, Bellingham. Meets 1st Sunday each month. Parents & Friends of Lesbians & Gays is a national support organization for parents, spouses, & families of GLBT persons, as well as those minorities. www.whatcompflag.org; PFLAG/Puget Sound: (206) 325-7724. Seattle Jazz Vespers. 6-8pm. Seattle First Baptist Church, Seneca St & Harvard Ave. Meets 1st Sunday each month (October-June). The historic Gothic sanctuary of Seattle First Baptist Church is offered to the best jazz groups in the city to perform 100 minutes of their own popular music. FREE. For info (206) 325-6051, www.seattlefirstbaptist.org/sjv

COMMUNITY RESOURCES

Allyship - an organization of LGBTQ individuals fighting for economic and social justice. www.LGBTQAllyship. org, allyship@yahoo.com, (206) 279-8169.

American Veterans for Equal Rights - www.aver.us Another Gay Social Club! - www.meetup.com/AnotherGay-Social-Club/ Bellingham/Whatcom County - www.theslowlane. com/guide.html

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

Cascade Rainbow Community Center (Mount Vernon) - (360) 840-8499 and on Facebook.

COLAGE unites people with LGBTQ parents and caregivers into a network of peers and supports them as they nurture and empower each other to be skilled, self-confident, and just leaders in our collective communities - www.colage.org

Central Washington University GALA Hotline: (509) 963-1994.

DIFFA/Northwest (Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS). (206) 763-8885; www.diffanorthwest. org

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE & SEXUAL ASSAULT: Crisis Clinic, (206) 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 Networksupport & advocacy for Bisexual, Trans, Lesbian & Gay Survivors of Abuse & Dating Violence, (206) 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, (206) 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 - (206) 324-2570; www. equalrightswashington.org Everett/Snohomish Cty - www.gaysnohomish.org Freely Speaking Toastmasters - www.freelyspeaking.org

Gay City promotes wellness in LGBTQ communities by providing health services, connecting people to resources, fostering arts, and building community. Gay City Health Project’s Wellness Center provides anonymous & confidential HIV/STD testing. 517 E Pike St. More info or to schedule an appointment, (206) 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.

Generations Aging With Pride empowers elder LGBTQ adults to live with pride and dignity by promoting, connecting, and developing innovative programs and services that enhance belonging and support, eliminate discrimination, and honor the lives of older members of our community - (206) 393-3400; info@gapseattle.org; gapseattle.org

GLSEN/WA - Gay, Lesbian, Straight Education Network - (206) 330-2099; www.glsenwa.org

Greater Seattle Business Association (GSBA) - (206) 363-9188; www.thegsba.org

HIV/AIDS Program, Seattle/King County Dept of Public Health, provides confidential/anonymous information about & testing for HIV/AIDS. (206) 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, (206) 328-8979.

Imperial Sovereign Court of Seattle & the Olympic & Rainier Empire - www.facebook.com/ISCSORE; www. imperialcourtofseattle.com Lambert House - (206) 322-2515; www.lamberthouse. org

LGBT Library - 517 E Pike St. Open Mon-Fri 2-8pm; Sat 2-5pm. A wide range of fiction and non-fiction for the LGBT community and allies can be borrowed free of charge.

LGBT MS Connection - (425) 785-8593; lgbtmsconnections@comcast.net. Support group for LGBT persons with MS and their partners and their caregivers. Sponsored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Lifelong - (206) 328-8979, www.lifelongaids alliance.org

10 [HOUSEMATES] 11 [FOR RENT] 14 [HELP WANTED]

19

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38 [MEN]

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FREE & ANONYMOUS HIV & STD COUNSELING/TESTING Walk-In or by Appt GAY CITY HEALTH PROJECT 517 E. Pike St. M-F: 3pm-8pm; SAT: 12:30pm-5pm More Info & to Schedule Appt 206-860-6969