Nomadic Dance classes
Nomadic Dance offers adult partner and social dancing classes for all skill levels, all at Open Space, 18870 103rd Ave. All classes take place from 6-6:50 p.m.
• Lead & Follow 101, on Tuesdays, focuses on the fundamentals of partner dancing to all styles of music.
• West Coast Swing 2, on Wednesdays from May 21 through June 4, builds on skills from West Coast Swing 1 or equivalent to enhance fluidity and confidence while dancing with any partner.
• Salsa, on Wednesdays from June 11 to June 25, focuses on timing, connection, and musicality while enjoying the energetic Latin beats that make salsa a favorite.
Pre-registration required. Visit nomadicdance.com.
Vashon Opera’s ‘Falstaff’
This weekend, Vashon Opera will present Italian composer Giuseppe Verdi’s “Falstaff” — an homage to Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” but with a twist: The performance will be set in Las Vegas, in the 1970s. The action begins at the Windsor Hotel and Casino, with palm trees, poolside cocktails, and more.
The comic opera, sung in Italian with English supertitles, runs about 2 hours, 45 minutes with one intermission and one pause. Show times are 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 23, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 25, at Vashon Center for the Arts.
Grammy-nominated baritone Joshua Conyers will return as Falstaff — one of his signature roles — after electrifying the stage and terrifying the audience as Scarpia in Vashon Opera’s Tosca. Conyers has been singled out by Opera News for his “deliciously honeyed baritone that would seduce anyone.”
Marie Masters Webb, a Vashon favorite, also returns as the clever and scheming Alice Ford, after appearing in the title role of “Ariadne auf Naxos,” Santuzza in “Cavalleria Rusticana,” and Lady Billows in “Albert Herring.” She’s been hailed by The New York Times as “immensely likable” with a “warm, fresh soprano.”
Emily Pulley, who will make her company debut as Mistress Quickly, is now in the fourth decade of her singing career. She has also worked steadily as a stage director since making her professional debut with “La bohème” for Opera Ithaca in 2019. She has sung nearly 200 performances at the Met, where her roles have ranged from Marguerite in Faust to Gerhilde in Die Walküre to Valencienne in The Merry Widow.
Brendan Tuohy and José Rubio will return for the roles of Fenton and Ford, and Vashon Opera Artistic Director Allison Pohl will appear onstage for the first time since assuming her leadership position in one of her all-time favorite roles, Nannetta. Other returning artists include Nerys Jones, Michael Drumheller, and Nick Stevens in the roles of Meg Page, Pistola, and Bardolfo. Simon Petersson will make his company debut as Doctor Caius.
For tickets and information, visit vashonopera.org.
Student Art Showcase
Vashon High School’s 4th annual Student Art Showcase is coming up from 4:30-7 p.m. Thursday, May 29, in VHS’s main building.
The show features student art including painting, drawing, woodworking, jewelry, ceramics, sculpture, fiber art, and videography. Entertainment will include demonstrations on wheel-throwing pottery and jewelry making, and a new videography section.
Student musicians will also provide live music. Attendees can enjoy a free evening meal, dessert, and drinks, provided by the VHS kitchen staff and volunteers. All are welcome.
Women and the Wind
Enjoy a one-night showing of the documentary “Women and the Wind” at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 29, at Vashon Theatre. 25% of the tickets sales will benefit Vashon Women on the Water, which promotes sailing for women and is sponsored by Quartermaster Yacht Club.
In the documentary, three women ignite flames of curiosity and adventure — doing so in a radical way, through a voyage across the North Atlantic.
Find out more and get tickets at vashontheatre.com.
Drama Dock
Save the date for Drama Dock’s next production, “New Short Plays, Vol. 1,” featuring five new works by playwrights Lisa Peretti, Anne Brady, Jennifer Dice, Kelleen Conway Blanchard and the team of Mariah Lee Squires and S.W. Jones.
The plays are performed May 29-June 1 in Vashon High School’s theater. Find out more and get tickets at dramadock.org.
Harlem Gospel Travelers
The Harlem Gospel Travelers, an acclaimed quartet, will perform at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 30, at Vashon Center for the Arts.
The group’s music draws on the gospel quartet tradition of the 1950s and 60s, but also has a distinctly modern edge — reflecting the tumultuous years of pandemic anxiety, political chaos and social unrest. The songs carry a message of resilience and facing down doubt and despair with faith and perseverance.
The group’s songs are fueled by dazzling vocal arrangements punctuated with gritty bursts of guitar and crunchy rhythm breaks. According to Idefayo Gatling, one of the quartet’s members, the concert is meant to “move you, lift you up, free you from your burdens, and to take you someplace higher.”
Find out more and get tickets at vashoncenterforthearts.org.
Apollo & the Muses
The Blue Heron Dance Company and the students of VCA’s Center for Dance will transport audiences through time 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 at the UMO school.
Find out more and get tickets at openspacevashon.com.
Plan for Pride
Vashon Center for the Arts will celebrate Pride Month in June with two special performances.
The first show will be a one-night-only presentation of the critically acclaimed one-man show by Scott Zeller, “H@PPY F@GGⓍT—A Queer Love Letter from a Member of Generation-X, at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 11, at VCA.
The show, said Zeller, “is about my personal journey, but even more so, it’s a love letter to my generation (the X one), a desire for more communication and conversation between generations, and a big thank you to everyone in the LGBTQIA2S+ community who came before me and on whose shoulders I gratefully and proudly stand.”
The second Pride event, at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 13, will feature the Seattle Trans and Nonbinary Choral Ensemble (STANCE) performing their spring concert, “Forever Here, Forever Queer”. This concert will feature the works of LGBTQ+ and BIPOC composers and will highlight the history of queer music and resistance from across the musical ages.
Get tickets for both events and find out more at vashoncenterforthearts.org.
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, celebrating the longest day (and shortest night) of the year, with 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.
Prints from a previous student arts showcase at Vashon High School are displayed. The showcase returns to the high school on May 29 from 4:30-7 p.m. (Courtesy photo)
