Arts Briefs

“Masquerade” art auction, “It’s Vashon Isle!”, Qigong classes, a book launch, and more.

September 28, 2023 1:30 am
Islanders are invited to attend the launch of “Into the All Empty,” by Susan Lynch, on Oct. 12, at Vashon Bookshop (Courtesy Photo).
Islanders are invited to attend the launch of “Into the All Empty,” by Susan Lynch, on Oct. 12, at Vashon Bookshop (Courtesy Photo).

VCA Auction

Vashon Center for the Arts’ gala art auction, “Masquerade,” will take place at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, at VCA.

The evening will begin with games, music, refreshments and more. Guests will be encouraged to bid on the more than 100 silent auction items until 6:30 p.m., when a live program begins in the Katherine L. White Hall.

Hosted by Martha Enson and Kevin Joyce, of EnJoy Productions, the program will include surprise performances, a live auction, and a special appeal for VCA’s Blue Heron Education Center. The night will end with dessert and a dance party featuring island favorite DJ Bowie/Rex.

All silent bidding, prior to 6:30 p.m., will remain online. Registered bidders (with a gala ticket) can participate in-person with their mobile devices. If you are unable to attend, you can still bid from the comfort of your home. Bidders do not need to be present to participate in the silent auction but must be registered here.

Purchase tickets here.

“It’s Vashon Isle!”

Tickets are now on sale for “It’s Vashon Isle!” running for four performances only on Oct. 13, 14, and 15, at Vashon Center for the Arts. The show — a benefit for Voice of Vashon and Vashon Heritage Museum — stars island emcee, voiceover artist and Voice of Vashon stalwart Jeff Hoyt.

The show is centered around a remarkable historical document — “It’s Vashon Isle,” a radio broadcast from 1926, created by Vashon News-Record editor and publisher P. Monroe Smock. Smock’s radio address served as one of radio’s first known examples of an infomercial, promoting the wonders of Vashon and inviting others to visit and move to the island.

Recreating Smock’s inventive radio address, Hoyt will welcome a rotating cast of favorite Vashon performers to the stage, as well as other special guests who will offer perspectives on the island’s challenges in Smock’s era and in the present day.

To find out more about the show and purchase tickets, visit vashoncenterforthearts.org.

Qigong Classes

Island movement coach and Pilates instructor Arlette Moody is now offering Tuesday evening classes in Qigong (pronounced “chi gong), a practice developed in China thousands of years ago as part of traditional China medicine. It utilizes flowing movement to optimize energy within the body, mind and spirit, with the goal of improving and maintaining health and well-being.

Classes, beginning on Sept. 26, take place from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. on Tuesdays, at Tree of Life Wellness Center, at 17331 Vashon Hwy SW. No experience is necessary to attend.

There is a sliding scale of $10 to $15 per class. For more information, contact arlettekehenquet@gmail.com.

Book launch

Island poet Susan Lynch will read from her new book, “Into the All Empty,” at 5 p.m. Thursday, October 12, at Vashon Bookshop.

The volume of poetry, published by Chatwin Books, is Lynch’s first book and a culmination of a rich creative life.

Lynch holds degrees in English from Reed College, with study at Oxford University, and an MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard. Before attending college in her 50s, she was a singer-songwriter with songs covered by Joan Jett in a Nora Ephron film, and Agnetha Faltskog of ABBA.

Her poems have appeared in numerous journals and poetry compilations; Lynch also served as the Poet Laureate of Vashon from 2019-2021.

Find out more about the book here.