Also, Female of the Species debuts at ACT and Open Circle presents Terry Pratchett’s Wyrd Sisters!
Theater season has definitely quieted down the last few weeks; the summer doldrums have kicked in for many local companies who tend to gear up in the fall, but a handful of shows open this weekend including a couple of well timed works for Pride Weekend and both featuring themes or talent that emphasize Queer youth.
Washington Ensemble Theatre is a brilliant theater company from an artistic standpoint, but they’re also responsible residents of the human “village” required to raise our children and they’ve devoted the last few summers to a summer project that provides an important artistic outlet for queer teenaged artists. QTET, the Queer Teen Ensemble Theatre has already had a couple of summer’s work under their dance and tool belts and they’re ready to debut this summer’s edition, Breaking Character, TONIGHT, June 24 at 7:30pm at the Washington Ensemble Theatre at 608 19th Avenue East on Capitol Hill. Created and performed by local LGBTQ teens, Breaking Character “will take you on a life changing field trip, challenge what you see when you look in the mirror and may even get the boy with purple hair just within reach… or land you in the middle of a full blown tornado. The good kind.” They promise to “blow your rainbow socks right off your feet!” The show runs tonight, tomorrow and Saturday at WET.
Also teen oriented and also queer oriented, Zanna Don’t! is one of those little musicals that has achieved cult status and it’s no surprise that Contemporary Classics is bringing back the beloved show for an encore presentation at the Seattle Repertory PONCHO Forum starting tomorrow, June 25 and running through July 3. If you’re not familiar with the show, Zanna is:
is a hip musical fairy tale about a matchmaking teen who turns relationships upside down, challenges our point of view, and changes the world forever. In a world where it’s normal to be gay and taboo to be straight when Kate and Steve fall in love it’s up to Zanna, the local love fairy, to search for the right spell to make the world safe for the two lovers. But Zanna’s spell has a bigger impact than he planned. Is this new world really what he wanted? With a little magic and a fresh pop score, ZANNA celebrates the discovery of love in a world of adversity.
It sounds ADORABLE…and it’s a great family alternative for Pride Weekend since it’s a bit difficult to get your 11 year old kid inside the beer garden parties at the Cuff and Wildrose…
For the grown up theater lover, there’s also a couple of options this week if you’re not really into the whole standing in the hot sun in a rainbow t-shirt, drinking over priced beer and ogling members of the same-sex aspects of Pride, (which is how SOME people celebrate their Pride; I’m making NO judgements here, or, at least no more than I usually make…). ACT continues their season with the local premiere of Joanna Murray-Smith’s The Female of the Species, a satirical look at an opinionated feminist writer and her descent into writer’s block and one of those Days From Hell, that we all have once in awhile…only, most of us aren’t held captive by a crazed groupie/disciple/fan. Loosely based on a real incident that happened to feminist icon Germaine Greer, who wasn’t very pleased about this play or it’s barbed commentary on the state of the feminist movement, it’s showcased the comedic prowess of such celebrated actresses as Annette Benning and Dame Eileen Atkins. ACT’s production of the play opened last weekend and runs through July 18 in The Falls Theatre and it has a GREAT local cast including the very, very talented Paul Morgan Stetler, Mark Chamberlin, Renata Friedman and the utterly divine Suzy Hunt as the female lead, Margot Mason. I’m checking this one out tonight and will report back later this weekend…I’m looking forward to it, so hopefully my hopes and dreams will not be crushed (as they so frequently are…)
Lastly, if you’re more of a fanboy/girl, then you’ll want to check out Open Circle’s production of Terry Pratchett’s fantasy classic Wyrd Sisters, his version of the three witches from Shakespeare’s MacBeth and what they REALLY did behind the scenes of the Scottish Play…It starts tomorrow night, June 25, and runs through July 17 at Open Circle Theater, 2222 2nd Ave (2nd Floor) in Belltown. Opening night is FREE; just call 206-382-4250 for reservations for that show, otherwise buy your tickets for the rest of the run, HERE! Check it out, this fine Pride weekend!
About the Author: Michael Strangeways
