As the season of the coronavirus drags on (and on, and on, and on) islanders are now seeing a sad second wave of cancellations of cultural events scheduled for this summer and fall.
Seattle Dance Collective, a new company filled with some of Seattle’s most acclaimed dancers, has announced that it will not return to Vashon Center for the Arts as planned, for their second annual program this summer.
And last week, Vashon Opera announced it will not present a fall offering at the arts center. Previously, the Opera had moved its May 2020 production of “Cavalleria Rusticana preceded by Pastoral Rhapsodies,” to May 2021.
For opera buffs, some consolation can be found in nightly Met Opera streams, LA Opera Living Room Recitals, Seattle Opera broadcasts and Seattle Opera Artist Recitals. Find them all online.
Here are this week’s other recommendations for artful experiences to enjoy from the comfort of your own sofa, from both local and international presenters. And don’t forget to donate after the shows, if you’re able.
Acclaimed drama from New York
Don’t miss “What Do We Need to Talk About?” a play written specifically for Zoom and made available on YouTube, through June 28, by New York’s Public Theater. The play — a family drama set in the age of coronavirus — was called “infinitely poignant” by The New York Times theater critic Ben Brantley, and reader comments on the play’s YouTube page are ecstatic.
“The theatrical impulse — to celebrate and capture a moment in real-time as it passes — is so strong here that I actually felt I was attending a play,” wrote Brantley.
Find the play on the YouTube channel PublicTheaterNY.
London calling with another hit
The National Theatre, of London, will present “This House,” a West End smash about the workings of British politics by James Graham, from Sunday, May 28 through June 4. The play, set in 1974, was called “funny and cliff-hangingly suspenseful” in London’s Daily Telegraph.
Reggae dance party
Seattle reggae king Clinton Fearon has headlined numerous concerts on Vashon, drawing throngs of exuberant dancers to the grass of Ober Park and the dance floors of multiple venues. But with his touring schedule stopped in its tracks by the pandemic, Fearon has taken to streaming himself into his fans’ homes at 10 a.m. every other Sunday morning, playing music, telling stories and jokes, and opening up the shows for questions and song requests. The shows are aimed at attracting an international audience, in a wide variety of time zones. And at 10 a.m. Thursday, June 4, the Jamaican-born and bred artist will present “Show Me Love,” featuring artists from all over the world who have recorded covers of his songs. To find out more about Fearon is doing to keep it funky during quarantine, visit facebook.com/clintonfearonmusic or subscribe to youtube.com/ClintonFearon.
Vashon Readers Theatre goes solo
On May 18, Vashon Readers Theatre, a company helmed by Chris Boscia, presented “The Monologuists” — an hour-long pre-recorded set of multigenerational actors performing solo in their own homes. The format follows the format of other presentations of monologues nationwide in response to theater shutdowns. Vashon’s version featured local and Seattle theater stalwarts Michael Barker, Dedra Dakota, Gabriel Dawson, Jeanne Dougherty, Tami Brockway Joyce, Jonathan Kuzma, Catherine MacNeal, Julia Prud’homme and Lucy Rogers, with Boscia serving as emcee. Catch the intimate, dramatic results by searching Vashon Readers Theatre on YouTube, where the evening on online theater is now posted.
Check the calendar at Vashon Theatre
Don’t forget, don’t ever forget, that the island’s own beloved movie theater is now a digital multiplex. Check vashontheatre.com to see what new, must-see indie, foreign and arthouse films are on offer for extended home rental.
