Compiled by Miryam Gordon
Theater in the parks is winding down and August is a bit on the quiet side, but there are three shows opening that you can consider. People In The Square is a sweet music-and-narrative new show in a new/old space. There used to be a Skid Road Theatre, and now the folks at Beneath the Streets have opened their location to include stage events, again! So it’s the NEW Skid Road Theatre. At 65 minutes, it is an homage to Pioneer Square and all the various sorts of people who populate it, visit it, and swing through it.
Pork-Filled Productions has a swashbuckle show to check out, She Devil of the China Seas, with a female pirate who truly was the most formidable bad-ass ever known, I think. Centerstage is focused on the Pacific Northwest with The Oregon Trail.
People In The Square: The Pioneer Square Musical, Creative Hiatus Prods., 8/4-27/22 (at The New Skid Road Theatre, 102 Cherry St.)
People in the Square is a cabaret-style musical revue which invites the audience a glimpse into the many different inhabitants, past and present, of Pioneer Square. A four-member cast and three-piece band bring to life this musical history lesson through time. Based on historical people and events, the show is a collection of songs and short scenes, celebrating the diversity and fascinating stories of Seattle’s first neighborhood. This musical ranges in time from the original inhabitants of the Duwamish and Suquamish Tribes, early pioneers and gold miners, fast-forwarding to those who frequent Pioneer Square today. Converging on the Square are the wealthy, the poor, occupants, visitors, sports fans and art dealers, most never being truly aware of the other, despite occupying the same three acres together. Join us to experience this incredible journey through time of the ever-evolving melting pot in the heart of Seattle!
https://www.beneath-the-streets.com
She Devil of the China Seas, Pork-Filled Prods., 8/11-27/22 (at Theatre Off Jackson)
Pirate queen clashes with immortal sorceress in a mashup of true history, sword/sorcery and Marvel Comics! She Devil is based on the real-life figure, Zhang Tse, history’s most successful pirate. She defeated both Imperial Chinese and European fleets in her spectacular career in the 19th Century and ruled over a fleet of hundreds of thousands of pirates!
Tse knew one thing: survival. She clawed her way up, using any means possible to aid her injured sister, Hei. But when China’s pirate king, Zhang Ngoi, offers her a chance for more, the sorceress Moh and her dark forces gather to destroy her before she can even accept…and fulfill a destiny from the gods!
https://pork-filled.ticketleap.com/shedevil/
The Oregon Trail, Centerstage Theatre, 8/19/22-9/11/22
Funny, provocative, and intelligent, The Oregon Trail follows 90’s kid Jane from Middle School, where she takes solace in her favorite 8-bit video game, to adulthood, where the game seems to follow her with its all-knowing gaze, helping her navigate her growing pains. As she grapples with what it is she truly wants, Jane meets someone entirely unexpected: her own great-great-grandmother, on the Oregon Trail…in 1848.
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