Apollo & the Muses

The​ Blue Heron Dance Company and the students of VCA’s Center for Dance will transport audiences to ancient Greece with “Apollo & the Muses,” set for four performances at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, June 5 and 6; and 2 p.m. Saturday, June 7 and 8, at Vashon Center for the Arts.

The Saturday matinee is a “sensory friendly” performance, billed as being especially great for seniors and little ones.

This original production uses the multiple dance forms — ballet, modern, contemporary, lyrical, jazz, and tap — to tell an otherworldly tale inspired by Greek mythology, showcasing all the students enrolled in VCA’s dance curriculum.

Find out more and get tickets at vashoncenterforthearts.org.

Tales of Mythical Creatures

The UMO School will present its spring student showcase, “Tales of Mythical Creatures, at 7 p.m. Friday, June 6, and 2 p.m. Saturday, June 7, at Open Space for Arts & Community, 18870 103rd Ave SW.

During the showcase, UMO School students of all disciplines will come together on stage in one story of myth and magic, designed to dazzle audiences with all they have learned and worked on during the spring semester.

Find out more and get tickets at openspacevashon.com.

Book reading

Writers Thomas Hitoshi Pruiksma and María Lourdes Victoria will present a free book talk on Juan Rulfo’s 1955 novel, “Pedro Páramo,” at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, June 7, at Vashon Library.

Pruiksma has long been at work on a translation of the book, which he describes as a “haunting Mexican masterpiece about love, power and the lives of the dead.” Another work-in-progress for Pruiksma is another book about his long journey to complete the translation.

Victoria is an award-winning author whose work has been published internationally in English and Spanish.

No registration is needed to attend the talk, which will also feature refreshments from the island restaurant, Zamorana. To find out more, read The Beachcomber’s previous coverage of the event at tinyurl.com/2z58wm7t.

Early Music

Salish Sea Early Music Festival will present a concert, “Folk Song from Three Centuries: Renaissance Psalms, Scottish Baroque and Folk,” at 12 p.m. Monday, June 9, at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit, located at 15420 Vashon Highway SW.

The concert will feature acclaimed early music players Oleg Timofeyev and Jeffrey Cohan playing music from the Renaissance, Baroque and Romantic periods. Timofeyev’s instruments will include renaissance lute, English guitar and a 7-string guitar from 1820. Cohan will play renaissance, baroque and 8-keyed flutes, also from 1820.

There is a free-will donation of $20-$30 to attend, with those 18 and younger admitted free of charge. For additional information about this and other upcoming performances in the series, visit salishseafestival.org/vashon.

STANCE

Celebrate Pride at VCA, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 13, when the Seattle Trans and Nonbinary Choral Ensemble (STANCE) will perform their spring concert, “Forever Here, Forever Queer.” This concert will joyously feature the works of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC composers, highlighting the history of queer music and resistance from across the musical ages.

“STANCE is a one-of-a-kind choir,” said Parker Dean, of The Evergreen Echo, “certain to leave you moved and empowered to keep fighting for trans joy every day.”

Get tickets and find out more at vashoncenterforthearts.org.

Folklife Fridays

In a new partnership with Seattle’s famed Northwest Folklife festival, Open Space for Arts & Community will launch a new series, “Folklife Fridays,” beginning with a performance by the Seattle-based Djeliyah Band, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 20, at Open Space, located at 18870 103rd Ave SW.

Led by the Djely Aboubacar “Boka” Kouyaté, from Guinea in West Africa, The Djeliyah Band connects a rich West African storytelling and music tradition to global music. The group’s harmonic fusion between traditional Griot music, afro beat and modern Guinea music coalesces in a vibrant, high-energy soundscape that invites both deep listening and joyful movement — a celebration of culture through rhythm, melody, and soul.

Find out more and get tickets at openspacevashon.com.

Black Cat Cabaret

The third annual Black Cat Cabaret — a night of one-of-a-kind song, dance and burlesque — will be performed at 6:30 and 9 p.m. Saturday, June 21, at Snapdragon.

The cabaret is a “burst of summer solstice sparkle,” said organizer Sarah Howard, and will include performances by Penny Banks, Bone Deep Bellydance, Taryn Luce, and many more. Hosted by the mystical and mischievous Vixy Post, the show is meant to give audiences a peek into the music and mayhem of Vashon after hours.

Get tickets and find out more at brownpapertickets.com.

Masters of Celtic music

A concert series of Masters of Celtic Music will continue at 7 p.m. Tuesday, June 24, at the Vashon Havurah, located at 15401 West Hwy SW, with an evening featuring Sean Gavin on Irish pipes and whistle, Johnny B. Connolly on button accordion and Cary Novotny on guitar.

Founder and director of the Irish Music Institute, Gavin is the the author of the popular instructional book, “The Tin Whistle Method.” He tours regularly with his critically acclaimed new concert series, “From Shore to Shore,” as well as with the groups Téada and Irish Christmas in America.

Connolly’s dexterity on the accordion earned him a slot with established Celtic ensemble Anam at the age of 17. For the next two years, he continued to build his reputation in Dublin’s traditional music scene and abroad, playing festivals throughout Europe and Ireland.

In 1996, he moved to the U.S., eventually finding himself in Portland, Oregon, where a friendship with Kevin Burke, legendary Irish fiddler, led to his signing with Green Linnet Records in 2001. His CD “Bridgetown” was released to universally glowing reviews.

Novotny was born in South Dakota and moved to Kentucky at the age of 12. There, he began to explore music via early classical guitar training and also absorbed the sounds of country, folk, and bluegrass music. After moving to the Northwest, Novotny began a career as a guitarist, singer and songwriter in the folk and popular music scene in the Portland and Seattle areas. Since 1995, he has performed in “Cul an Ti,” a traditional Irish band with hundreds of performances of a mixture of lively traditional Irish tunes and folk songs.

The suggested donation for the concert is $25 cash or check. Reservations should be made by contacting Jan Strolle at 206-228-0730 or emailing janstrolle@comcast.net.

Oleg Timofeyev, whose instruments include renaissance lute, English guitar and a 7-string guitar from 1820, will join flutist Jeffrey Cohan in an early music concert on June 9, at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Spirit. (Dmytro Lavrinenko photo)

Master of Irish music (left to right) Carl Novotny, Sean Gavin and Johnny B. Connolly will play a concert on June 24, at the Vashon Havurah. (Courtesy photos)