Kay White Choral Fest

The Kay White Choral Fest, featuring notable choral groups from the Pacific Northwest, has several upcoming performances following its opening earlier this week.

The Choir of the West, Pacific Lutheran University’s premier choral ensemble, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 24.

Opus 7 Vocal Ensemble, specializing in 19th to 21st-century choral music, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 25.

Mirinesse Women’s Choir, performing at 12 p.m. Saturday, April 26, is known for the beautiful sound of its classically trained adult women’s voices singing repertoire from historic and contemporary sources throughout the world.

Choral Arts Northwest will perform at 3 p.m. Saturday, April 26. Focusing on justice, empathy, creativity, and diversity, the choir uses its platform to engage to champion social causes and highlight the music of composers who identify as BIPOC, female, or LGBTQIA+.

Vashon Island Chorale will perform at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 27. The 74-member choir, accompanied by pianist Linda Lee and under the direction of Dr. Gary D. Cannon, will sing music inspired by two great poets. Island composer Bill Wood will bring a suite of songs on verse by Emily Dickinson. Soprano Mary Lawrence has a solo and four passages will be recited by members of the Chorale.

The Chorale’s repertoire will also include “The Lovers,” by Samuel Barber, celebrating the poetry of Pablo Neruda, with baritone Andrew Krikawa as soloist, and the world premiere of a new work by Chorale singer Bev Reil, commemorating the Lahaina wildfire of 2023.

Described as “pure and radiant” (Gramophone) and “immensely impressive” (Early Music Review), the Byrd Ensemble will perform the closing program of the Choral Fest at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, April 27.

Get tickets and find out more at vashoncenterforthearts.org.

“Wild Cucumber” launch

Vashon’s Inaugural Poet Laureate Ann Spiers will launch her new book “Wild Cucumber/New and Selected Poems” at 4 p.m. Sunday, April 27, in the Land Trust Building’s back garden, located at 10014 SW Bank Rd. The book was published by Empty Bowl Press. John Pierce and Holly J. Hughes will be celebrating and selling books.

Read The Beachcomber’s review of the book at tinyurl.com/2wu4f3sh.

Shoot to Show

Island photographer Ray Pfortner will once again offer his long-running annual photography workshop, Shoot to Show.

The workshop is open to ages 15 and older, and for all skill levels.This year’s theme is the “Science and Art of Tramp Harbor.”

Participants will explore Vashon’s Tramp Harbor and learn about wildlife above and below the water with Maria Metler, of Vashon Nature Center, and take that knowledge on location in a group photo shoot with Pfortner. Then, they’ll continue to shoot individually around Tramp Harbor for one month, sharing their results for feedback on flickr.com and in person.

Class sessions are on Saturdays, April 26 and May 3, from 9-11:30 a.m. and Thursday, May 29, from 7-9 p.m. The workshop will culminate in a big screen presentation of the juried results on June 17 at Vashon Theatre.

Find out more and sign up at tinyurl.com/yrswp74a.

She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry

Women Hold the Key will hold a special screening of “She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry” as a fundraiser at 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 29, at Vashon Theatre.

The powerful documentary brings to life the untold history of the bold and brilliant women who launched the modern women’s movement from 1966 to 1971. Tickets for the event are available by donation, ranging from $15 to $100.

The film, said Women Hold the Key director Tina Shattuck, is a call to action, highlighting the struggles and triumphs of the past while illuminating the ongoing fight for reproductive rights, justice and equality. The screening aims to inspire all genders to engage in the movement for feminism and human rights.

Don’t miss this opportunity to witness history, spark conversation, and support a cause that uplifts women everywhere. There will be time for a community discussion after.

To reserve a ticket, visit womenholdthekey.com.

VIVA Studio Tour

Vashon Island Visual Artists will hold its Spring Studio Tour, featuring 43 art studios and galleries, from 10 a.m to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sunday, May 3-4 and 10-11.

For an interactive map showing the studios and exhibits by more than 140 participating artists and craftspeople, visit vivartists.org. Tour locations are tucked away throughout the island, from the town center to outlying farms and shores.

A new addition this year is the VIVA Tour Info Center and Gallery, located at 17816 Vashon Hwy SW and staffed by docents include noted island artists Brian Fisher, Lynn McClain, Ilse Reimnitz and Marla Smith. The center offers tour brochures, public restrooms, a mobile phone charging station, and a display of four island artists.

Brochures will also be mailed to each home on Vashon and can also be picked up at many local businesses.

Summer, 1976

Vashon Rep will stage the West Coast premiere of “Summer, 1976,” by Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning playwright David Auburn, with a pay-as-you-can dress rehearsal at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 1, followed by 7:30 p.m. performances on Friday, May 2 and 3, and 2 p.m. matinees on Saturday and Sunday, May 3 and 4, at Vashon Center for the Arts.

The play tells the story of two Ohio women who become unlikely friends over play dates with their young daughters during the summer of 1976, the American Bicentennial. As the Bicentennial is celebrated nationwide, these two women navigate motherhood, ambition, and intimacy — helping each other discover their own independence.

The playwright will be in attendance at the 2 p.m. show on Sunday, May 4, and will participate after the show in a talkback with performers Cate O’Kane and Dedra Whitt, and director Charlotte Tienchken

Find out more and get tickets at vashoncenterforthearts.org. The play is not suitable for children under 16.

Calls for artists

Vashon Center for the Arts has two calls out for artists. The first, with a deadline of May 4, is for “The Secret Garden,” an exhibit of work suitable for display in gardens and patios. The exhibit, in VCA’s gallery, will run June 4-29 — a month that includes VCA’s annual Garden Tour.

VCA’s second call is for art to be displayed in its annual Summer Arts Fest — a extravaganza of rotating art exhibits opening on July 3 and running through Aug. 31.

Find out more at gallery.vashoncenterforthearts.org.

Early Music

Salish Sea Early Music Festival will present a concert, The Music de la Chambre of Lousi XIV, at 12 p.m. Monday, May 5 at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit, 15420 Vashon Hwy SW.

Players include Caroline Nicolas, on viola da gamba, William Simms, on theorbo & baroque guitar, and Jeffrey Cohan, on baroque and renaissance flutes. This is part of series of concerts on the King’s court musical establishment is to be represented by Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre, Marin Marais, Robert de Visee, Francois Chauvon and others special guests from New York and Baltimore.

There is a suggested donation of $20-$30 (pay as you wish), with ages 18 and younger admitted free.

Salish Sea Early Music Festival now also mourns the death of Olena Kohut, a treasured soloist, organist and keyboardist for the Sumy Regional Philharmonic in Ukraine, and a beloved teacher and pianist with the Shchepkin Theater in Sumy. She was killed in a Russian strike on Palm Sunday morning. Kohut was a colleague of the music festival’s friend Olena Zhukova in Kyiv.

Work by Gretchen Hancock can be seen in Vashon Island Visual Artists’ Spring Studio Tour. The tour features 43 art studios and galleries, and will take place from 10 a.m to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sunday, May 3-4 and 10-11. To find out more, visit vivartists.org. (Courtesy photo)