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GIFT GUIDE Seattle Gay News Issue 47, Volume 35, November 23, 2007 The holidays haven’t even start- ed, and already you’re tired of the tinsel and trimmings? Head to the Jimi Hendrix 65th Birthday Bash on November 27 and invigorate yourself by paying homage to the guitar god. Whether you’re a life- long fan or just now discovering his revolutionary music, come experi- ence his life and pioneering style with those who heard it firsthand in a fusion of fond remembrance and pure, unadulterated rock. by Liz Meyer SGN Staff Writer In the January edition of Vanity Fair, Christopher Hitchens wrote an infamous piece titled, “Why Women Aren’t Funny.” I’m guessing Lisa Koch and Peg- gy Platt would offer a pretty strong rebuttal. For years, the two Seattle come- diennes have teamed up to create a holiday show that might best be described as, well, “batshit crazy.” However, their show also features Jimi’s friends, family and fans get together to share stories about the native Seattleite and show their respect the only way they know how: soul-searing shreds and wicked licks. The Leon Hen- drix Mysterience, Ari Joshua & Up From The Skies, and Jimi’s childhood friend and first rhythm guitar player Sammy Drain head- line the tribute, with special guests B-3 grandmaster Joe Doria (Ari- sawkadoria), DP Staxx (of The a wide variety of hilarious charac- ters, from the rainbow-flag-wavin’ Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus to the Spudds, the duo’s staple satire on the Judds. This year, in the eighth install- ment of their Ham for the Holi- days show, Koch and Platt present Swine, Women and Song! Koch’s website says, “Swine is the usual concoction of screwball characters: the tiny Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus sing with GLBTQ pride; nonagenarian blues duo The Matrons of Blues battle terrorism at the Renton airport; country su- Jimi Hendrix 65th birthday bash Koch and Platt together again for Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and Song! Staxx Brothers), and Brad vocalist Shawn Smith, with more TBA. The all-ages event takes place at Seattle’s historic Columbia City Theatre (also known as the House of Hendrix), Jimi’s teenage per- formance space, located at 4918 Rainier Ave S. Music lasts from 7:00 p.m. to midnight with a $10 cover, cash bar access with ID. A Columbia City Theatre press release perstars The Spudds perform Ma- ma’s visionary blending of Gone With the Wind and It’s a Wonder- ful Life – “It’s a Wonderful Wind;” and George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Hillary Clinton are celebrity contestants on the game show, “Are You Smarter Than the Presi- dent?” Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and Song! plays Novem- ber 29 through December 30 at the Theatre Off-Jackson at 409 7th Ave. S. For tickets, visit Ticketwin- dow at www.tick- etwindowonline, or call 206-325-6500.

GIFT GUIDE Koch and Platt together again for Ham …sgn.org/sgnnews35_47/pdf/HolidayGiftGuideWEB_11-23-07.pdfKoch and Platt together again for Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and

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G I F T G U I D E

Seattle Gay News Issue 47, Volume 35, November 23, 2007

The holidays haven’t even start-ed, and already you’re tired of the tinsel and trimmings? Head to the Jimi Hendrix 65th Birthday Bash on November 27 and invigorate yourself by paying homage to the guitar god. Whether you’re a life-long fan or just now discovering his revolutionary music, come experi-ence his life and pioneering style with those who heard it firsthand in a fusion of fond remembrance and pure, unadulterated rock.

by Liz MeyerSGN Staff Writer

In the January edition of Vanity Fair, Christopher Hitchens wrote an infamous piece titled, “Why Women Aren’t Funny.”

I’m guessing Lisa Koch and Peg-gy Platt would offer a pretty strong rebuttal.

For years, the two Seattle come-diennes have teamed up to create a holiday show that might best be described as, well, “batshit crazy.” However, their show also features

Jimi’s friends, family and fans get together to share stories about the native Seattleite and show their respect the only way they know how: soul-searing shreds and wicked licks. The Leon Hen-drix Mysterience, Ari Joshua & Up From The Skies, and Jimi’s childhood friend and first rhythm guitar player Sammy Drain head-line the tribute, with special guests B-3 grandmaster Joe Doria (Ari-sawkadoria), DP Staxx (of The

a wide variety of hilarious charac-ters, from the rainbow-flag-wavin’ Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus to the Spudds, the duo’s staple satire on the Judds.

This year, in the eighth install-ment of their Ham for the Holi-days show, Koch and Platt present Swine, Women and Song!

Koch’s website says, “Swine is the usual concoction of screwball characters: the tiny Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus sing with GLBTQ pride; nonagenarian blues duo The Matrons of Blues battle terrorism at the Renton airport; country su-

Jimi Hendrix 65th birthday bash

Koch and Platt together again for Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and Song!

Staxx Brothers), and Brad vocalist Shawn Smith, with more TBA.

The all-ages event takes place at Seattle’s historic Columbia City Theatre (also known as the House of Hendrix), Jimi’s teenage per-formance space, located at 4918 Rainier Ave S. Music lasts from 7:00 p.m. to midnight with a $10 cover, cash bar access with ID.

A Columbia City Theatre press release

perstars The Spudds perform Ma-ma’s visionary blending of Gone With the Wind and It’s a Wonder-ful Life – “It’s a Wonderful Wind;” and George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Hillary Clinton are celebrity contestants on the game show, “Are You Smarter Than the Presi-dent?”

Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and Song! plays Novem-ber 29 through December 30 at the Theatre Off-Jackson at 409 7th Ave. S. For tickets, visit Ticketwin-dow at www.tick-etwindowonline, or call 206-325-6500.

3Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

Music always a cool gift, always in season Music is a perfect gift for anyone of any age. Consider these new titles for the music lovers on your list.by Albert RodriguezSGN A&E Writer

Luther VandrossLove, LutherAfter a paralyzing stroke and months of

rehabilitation efforts, the life of Luther Vandross came to an unfortunate close in 2005. The R&B icon got his start as a jingle writer, but caught the attention of fellow art-ists like Dionne Warwick early on with his silky smooth voice. By the time Vandross earned his first Grammy for the late ‘80s

ballad “Here and Now”, he’d already be-come a household name in Gay and African-American households – who noticed him much sooner than radio stations or industry award voters. As a keepsake for his fans, the legendary singer’s catalog of work is captured on a four-disc, 56-track deluxe box set that features every major hit, rare demo tracks, memorable duets, live versions, inti-mate rehearsal moments, and video footage stretching from 1973 to 2003. “A House is Not a Home” and “The Glow of Love” (with former band Change) are vintage Vandross pieces that highlight Disc One. “Anyone Who Had a Heart”, “Give Me the Reason”, “Stop to Love”, and the aforementioned “Here and Now” are found on Disc Two. On Disc Three, the gospel-tinged “Power of Love/Love Power”, “Never Let Me Go”, “Endless Love” (with Mariah Carey) and “The Closer I Get to You” (with Beyonce) are all included. Finally, Disc Four collects “The Lady is a Tramp” (with Frank Sina-tra), “A House is Not a Home” (live at Ra-dio City Music Hall) and his swan song, the Richard Marx co-penned “Dance With My Father”. Luther Vandross earned his leg-endary status, first as a respected songwriter and then as a hard-working balladeer. Love, Luther is that unique gift that only a devoted

fan would appreciate – and if only allowed to purchase one special something for your-self, invite the distinct sounds of Luther Vandross into your home this season.

Across the universe (originAL soundtrAck)Various artistsThis isn’t the soundtrack for a film based

on a musical. This is a soundtrack for a mu-sical based entirely on original songs by The Beatles. Across the Universe is the libretto to the Julie Taymor-directed motion picture starring Jim Sturgess, Evan Rachel Wood and U2’s Bono. The movie follows love struck teens (Sturgess and Wood) through the flower-power years of the ‘60s, from Liverpool to Vietnam. Surprisingly, cast members hold their own on renditions of Fab Four classics that include “Let It Be”, “ I Want to Hold Your Hand”, “Strawberry Fields” and “Helter Skelter”. Bono opts the solo route on “Lucy in the Sky with Dia-monds”, while Secret Machines revitalize “I Am the Walrus”. The soundtrack is a col-laboration of Oscar-winning composer El-liot Goldenthal (Frida) and Grammy-laud-ed producer T Bone Burnett (Walk the Line, O Brother Where Art Thou?). Fans of The Beatles and Hollywood musicals can “come together” this winter with a copy of Across the Universe.

the Bee GeesgreAtestBell-bottoms, butterfly collars and feath-

ered hair. These are some of our favorite things about the ‘70s, the disco years. And no other music group was more prominent during this glittery era than The Bee Gees, who built a catalog of number one singles and dance floor staples in less than a decade. The Australian sibling-trio, comprised of Barry, Robin and the late Maurice Gibb, celebrate the 30th anniversary of Saturday Night Fever with the re-printing of their

double-disc hits compilation, simply titled Greatest. The list of entries, reading like a party mix at a retro bash, includes “Stayin’ Alive”, “Night Fever”, “Jive Talkin’”, “More Than a Woman”, “How Deep is Your Love”, “Tragedy” and “Too Much Heav-en”. Bonus tracks include remixes of “You Should Be Dancing” and “If I Can’t Have You”. A bowl of eggnog and a copy of The Bee Gees’ Greatest makes for a totally fes-tive holiday.

simian moBiLe discoAttAck decAy sustAin reLeAseSo, you wanna burn off those high-calorie

meals during the holidays? Simian Mobile Disco can help you do that, no problem. The Manchester, England duo assembles a fabu-lous roster of beats-heavy, electronica-style tracks on Attack Decay Sustain Release that makes it a must-have for any dance music collector. The leadoff track “Sleep Depri-vation” is a pulsating, keyboard-pounding instrumental that begs to be listened to loud and preferably in a strobe light-filled room. Further on, “It’s the Beat” and “Hot Dog” are extremely fun, bouncy, and synth-sen-sational. “Tits & Acid”, another instrumen-tal, is a fusion of drum machines, sirens, digitalized grooves, and a thumping bass backdrop. If you throw New Order and Basement Jaxx in a blender, this is what you get. Whip them into shape this winter with the very danceable sounds of Simian Mobile Disco.

Keith urBangreAtest hits: 18 kidsBefore he became Mr. Kidman, Keith

Urban was a frequent visitor on Billboard’s country singles chart. The Grammy and CMA-winning Aussie has put out enough chart-topping hits to fill half a jukebox, and collectively they appear on the just-released Greatest Hits: 18 Kids. The compilation features 16 radio-edited tracks from Ur-ban’s impressive portfolio, nearly all are shorter and sweeter versions of the album cuts. Among the entries, “Making Memo-ries of Us”, “You’ll Think of Me”, “Raining on Sunday”, “Somebody Like You” and the fan-favorite “Days Go By”. Two semi-new tracks also show up here, a cover of Steve Forbert’s “Romeo’s Tune” and a remix of “Got It Right This Time (The Celebration)”. If the fireplace doesn’t warm those holiday stockings, Keith Urban’s big package (of hits, that is) surely will.

annie Lennoxsongs of MAss destructionHalf-Eurythmic, all-diva. Annie Lennox

returns with her first full-length recording since 2003’s Bare. On Songs of Mass De-struction, the Grammy-honored vocalist sinks her teeth into 11 emotional ballads, most of which reflect her social activism and untimely second divorce. “Ghosts in My Machine” and “Love is Blind” are a pair of standouts that combine Lennox’s lethal recipe: stark lyrics, grand arrange-ments and a voice that can halt traffic a mile away. Other strong tracks are “Dark Road”, “Womankind”, “Smithereens” and “Finger-nail Moon”. This isn’t an uplifting collec-tion of songs to put under the tree, though true Lennox fans will love you for it.

Josh turnereverything is fineAside from being tall and handsome, Josh

Turner boasts a huge … ahem … bass voice. Nominated deservedly for CMA’s Male Vocalist of the Year after scoring his first Grammy nod early in 2007, the South Caro-lina native is wowing industry critics again with his sophomore offering, Everything Is Fine. The initial single “Firecracker” is a fast-paced ditty that would make Johnny Cash proud, and could deliver another Grammy nomination to the blue-eyed hunk in December. Distancing himself from mainstream country (a trap for younger acts like Rascal Flatts and Sugarland), Turner grinds out more traditional fare like that found on Everything Is Fine, including “An-other Try”, “One Woman Man”, “The Way He Was Raised”, and the title track. On a

farm or residential city street, spend the hol-idays with this genuine cowboy.

James BLuntALL the Lost souLsAnyone who called James Blunt a one-

album wonder should begin washing their mouth out with soap. The British new-comer follows Back to Bedlam’s double-platinum success with a marvelous sopho-more effort, All the Lost Souls. The leadoff single “1973” is a slick pop number that grows on you with each listen. “Same Mis-take”, expected to be the second radio cut from the album, is Blunt’s best since 2005’s “High”. Other great tracks are “I’ll Take Everything”, “Give Me Some Love”, “Car-ry You Home” and “Annie”. All The Lost Souls re-teams Blunt with producer Tim Rothrock. Don’t be shy, get Blunt this sea-son and put smiles on the faces of your pop music lovers.

4 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

Pike Place Market

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Pike Place Market’s holiday magic

Seattle’s holiday season officially starts on November 24 when Pike Place lights up with holiday cheer as the thousands of twin-kling lights that line of market are turned on at 5:00 p.m. While the holiday theme will continue through December 22, there are some special events that you don’t want to miss.

The fun begins at noon on November 24 with the manufacture of hundreds of “snow-balls” from the ice machines of the Market’s fish stands. Revelers of all ages can enjoy pelting a replica of the Market’s iconic sig-nage with the (presumably) fish-free balls of frozen fun. To sweeten the pot, Pike Place’s event planners offer this cryptic teaser: “An-other snow activity will occur while snow lasts.” Your guess is as good as mine!

If playing in the snow makes your hands too cold, try making some crafts at the Kids’ Crafts tent, located near Rachel the pig, from noon until 4:00. Saint Nick him-self will be on hand to give candy canes and pose for photos from noon to 5:00. If you find yourself snubbed by Santa and need to get off his “naughty” list, from noon to 4:00

the Downtown Food Bank will be accepting donations of canned goods and giving away free Centennial t-shirts for four cans (while supplies last). Finally, Seattle’s professional caroling organization, The Dickens Carol-ers, will roam the Market from 2:00 to 5:00. True Scrooges might want to pocket a snow-ball or two early on.

In addition, a special Happy Holidays parking promotion for shoppers starts No-vember 24 and runs through December 22. On Fridays and Saturdays from noon to 4:00 p.m., shoppers can bring that day’s Market receipts (totaling at least $30) to the tent near Rachel the pig for validation. They’ll receive a pass good for that day’s parking if they parked at the Public Market Parking Garage at 1531 Western Avenue. Magic in the Market continues each Friday and Saturday, noon - 4:00 p.m., through Decem-ber 22 with the Food Drive, Dickens Carol-ers (12:00 - 2:00 p.m. Fridays, 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. Saturdays), and Santa (on Saturdays).

A Pike Place Market press release

For lovers of dark fantasy, Two Freelanc-ers Press has produced the first book by exciting new Seattle talent Cat Rambo, in collaboration with World Fantasy Award winner Jeff VanderMeer, The Surgeon’s Tale and Other Stories. The slim but love-ly volume, suitable for stocking stuffing, features a cover by Starchild comic book creator James Owen and interior art by New York artist Kris Dikeman that rang-es from the fantastically horrific to the dreamily evocative.

The Surgeon’s Tale and Other Stories fea-tures a world of rat suitors, severed arms, and Fungi Et Fruits de Mer, served up with prose both appetizing and uncanny. Dark Fantasy has never been quite so decadent. This book of six stories includes the Ram-

bo/VanderMeer collaborative novelette, The Surgeon’s Tale, as well as additional short stories by the individual authors: The Dead Girl’s Wedding March, The Farmer’s Cat, A Key Decides Its Destiny, Three Sons, and The Strange Case of the Lovecraft Café. The prose dances gracefully through the ter-ritory of imploded fairy tales, wishes gone awry, and expectations fulfilled in unex-pected ways.

John Barth has described Cat Rambo’s writings as “works of urban mythopoeia” – her stories take place in a universe where chickens aid the lovelorn, Death is just an-other face on the train, and a rodent’s wooing can affect the fate of an entire subterranean city. Rambo’s stories have been appearing for the last few years in Subterranean Mag-azine, Clarkesworld, and Strange Horizons, with work forthcoming in Weird Tales and Asimov’s SF Magazine. She also recently became co-editor of the highly-praised Fan-tasy magazine, which can be found at http://www.darkfantasy.org/fantasy/. Her website is available at http://www.kittywumpus.net

The talented and prolific Jeff VanderMeer is a two-time winner of the World Fantasy Award, who has also been a finalist for the Hugo Award, the Philip K. Dick Award, the International Horror Guild Award, the British Fantasy Award, the Bram Stoker Award, and the Theodore Sturgeon Memo-rial Award. His latest novel is Shriek: An Afterword. His short fiction has been trans-lated into fifteen languages and adapted by Sony Playstation into an animation by Joel Veitch. For more information on his work, visit http://www.jeffvandermeer.com.

The book, which runs $9.99, can be or-dered at http://www.kittywumpus.net/or-ders or through Amazon.com.

Submitted by Cat Rambo

Fantasy literature collaboration The Surgeon’s Tale and Other Stories

Volunteer at the 18th Annual Dunshee House Christmas tree & holiday greenery sale fundraiser

Dunshee House – Home of the Seattle AIDS Support Group – has announced their 18th annual “Christmas Tree & Holiday Greenery Sale” fundraiser. Over the years, many organizations and individuals have supported Dunshee House’s holiday fund-raiser with sponsorship and volunteer hours. Whether you are volunteering as an indi-vidual or as part of a team from your busi-ness, school or church, the thoughtful gift of your time will go a long way toward help-ing those affected by HIV/AIDS and others in the community. This year, two new sale locations have been added for the vital fund-raiser, both of which need to be staffed with volunteers.

The main tree lot is located at Dunshee House (303 17th Ave E) with new locations at the Rainier Safeway parking lot (3820 Rainier Avenue S, between S. Charlestown and S. Andover streets) and in Fremont at Urbanweeds (4302 Fremont Avenue N).

The greatest need for volunteers will be at the Rainier Avenue location which is

expected to be very busy, due to the heavy traffic flow, high visibility and other fac-tors. Individual volunteers and groups are encouraged to sign up to volunteer at the Rainier Avenue lot, although both other sale sites will be eagerly receiving staffers. There’s always good company, warm cocoa and plenty of cheer to liven up your Holiday season and make giving fun!

The Christmas tree sale begins November 23 (the day after Thanksgiving) and goes until approximately December 22. Many 3-hour volunteer shifts are available. To sign up please call (206) 322-AIDS, e-mail [email protected] or simply drop in to Dunshee House Monday through Friday between 3:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. To sign up as a group or team please contact the Volun-teer Coordinator directly at 206-322-2584. Thanks for your kind consideration and continued support of Dunshee House and its mission.

A Dunshee House press release

5Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

It’s autumn in the Northwest! With vine maples turning scarlet red and brilliant or-ange, huckleberry bushes full of ripened berries and alpine meadows displaying their autumn colors, why would you not want to hike amongst these with the Seattle Gay Hiking Group? Autumn in the Pacific Northwest can be almost as colorful as au-tumn in New England. With hikes to places such as the Iron Goat Trail, Mt. Pilchuck, Ingalls Creek, Burroughs Mountain, the Teanaways, Silver Peak, Yakima River Canyon, Alaska Lake, Mason Lake, Ollallie Meadows, Rattlesnake Ridge, Book Mtn, Kendall Katwalk and even a place called Adnar, the colors of autumn can be yours to behold, experience and enjoy. Hiking gives you the opportunity to be outdoors and to enjoy Mother Nature at her most colorful time of year!

The Seattle Gay Hiking Group is not a formally organized, dues-paying or mem-bership-charging group. It is an informal group of Gay guys who enjoy the great out-doors – every Sunday of the year and in any type of weather, rain or shine. Our hikes are day hikes. The autumn months are espe-cially wonderful to be outdoors hiking (or walking if you prefer); not only are the bril-liant autumn colors all around you, but the air is crisp and the panoramic views at the “designated lunch spot” can be spectacular.

From Mt. Rainier in the south to Mt. Baker in the north, from Mt. Walker in the west to the Columbia River in the east, the Seattle Gay Hiking Group will travel to find the sunniest spots, the driest trails and the most spectacular views.

You want to be outdoors, explore the Cas-cades and meet some new, friendly Gay guys? Bingo! We just may be what you are looking for. And besides all that, you’ll get some exercise, too! We have over 30 years of experience hiking the wonders of the Cascade and Olympic Mountain ranges and the lowlands in between.

We meet at the Uptown Espresso on the northeast corner of Republican and West-lake Avenue at 8:45 a.m. each Sunday, rain or shine. At that time, we decide where we are going to hike to, and then off we travel to another hiking adventure. The cost is no more than a ticket to the movies – only our entertainment driving to and from the hike is more fun, and the camaraderie along the trail much better than any dark movie the-atre could ever provide. Won’t you join us next Sunday? Our website is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TheSeattleGayHiking-Group, and a contact number for additional information is 206-323-8382. See ya out and about on the trail!

Submitted by Martin Flight

Gay hiking in the great Northwest

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The Kinsey Sicks’ Oy Vey! In a Manger coming to Seattle

The Kinsey Sicks, self-described as “America’s favorite dragapella beauty shop quartet,” are coming to town December 21 with their newest show, Oy Vey! In a Man-ger, a tradition-trashing holiday musical. The group’s fiercely loyal following is as dedicated as it is diverse, ranging from fans of high camp and a cappella harmonies to devotees of Yiddish song parodies.

For those not willing to wait until De-cember for their Sicks fix, a wide variety of Kinsey Sicks merch is on holiday sale at their website (www.kinseysicks.com),

which shamelessly crows, “Why waste your money on holiday gifts that people will ac-tually like? Your thoughtless gifting of Kin-sey Sicks CDs, DVDs, t-shirts and posters is sure to make your loved ones take you off their gift lists for next year, freeing you of the obligation to buy more crap for them!”

The Kinsey Sicks’ Oy Vey! In a Manger hits Seattle December 21 at The Triple Door, shows at 7:30 and 10 p.m. For tickets go to The Triple Door or call (206) 838-4333.

A Kinsey Sicks press release

Rainbow City Band presents Lights In Winter - A Holiday Concert

When the Rainbow City Band isn’t marching in the summer Pride parades, they give their feet a rest, sit down, and form one of Seattle’s premier community concert bands.

RCB will be welcoming winter with warm hearts and graceful melodies at Bastyr Uni-versity’s beautiful chapel (14500 Juanita Dr) in Kenmore at 3 p.m. on December 9. Lights in Winter – A Holiday Concert, con-ducted by Michael Clark, will feature harp-

ist Patricia Sereno as a special guest. Tickets are available online (www.rain-

bowcityband.com) or at the door for $15; $10 for seniors, students, and children. To honor the holiday spirit, please help the RCB help others this season by bringing a non-perishable food donation to the concert in support of LIFELONG AIDS Alliance.

A Rainbow City Band press release

6 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

Having a holiday party? Start with a perfect party locationSeattle Parks and Recreation offers fun, afford-able indoor locations for great holiday parties

To help you send off 2007 in style and give 2008 a great start, Seattle Parks and Recreation is offering up its more than 400 park locations and 40 indoor facilities for rent this holiday season.

For those who’d like to spend their holi-days reenacting Steve McQueen’s stint in the cooler in The Great Escape, rental fees for a “small room” are only $5 an hour (baseballs extra). Of course, if you have more room in your wallet and more grandi-ose plans for your celebrations, Magnuson Park has plenty of room, with its immense Hangar 30 able to hold over 1,500 people. Lake Union Park’s historic Naval Reserve Building, which has been home to every-thing from boat shows to haute couture fashion catwalks, would be a setting for a New Year’s Eve blowout nobody would forget, but that’s not meant to discount the myriad of secluded, rustic spaces where a more intimate get-together could be just as memorable.

All rental spaces are available on a first come, first serve basis, so hurry if you have your heart set on Camp Long’s vaulted ceil-ings and wood floors or the 1000 square foot deck proudly sported by the Yesler Commu-nity Center.

“Thousands of companies, churches and schools in the Puget Sound area want to cel-ebrate a year of hard work at a fun, central-

ly-located place,” says Eric Friedli, Parks’ Enterprise Division Director. “Seattle has a lot of special facilities located throughout the city and each one of them is affordable and available for the community to use.” If you do choose to take Seattle Parks and Recreation up on their generous offer, keep the following rules and regulations in mind before you indulge in your traditional holi-day bacchanalia:

• No liquor is allowed in or around the assigned premises without written permission from the Department. Additional fees apply. • No smoking is allowed inside the facility. • No indecent or illegal conduct of any kind is allowed. • Gambling is prohibited on Parks property. • Parking is allowed in legally marked areas only. If you can abide by those simple rules, you

and your guests will be free to enjoy some of the finest recreational spaces Seattle has to offer this holiday season. For more in-formation or photos, call 206-684-4075 or visit www.seattle.gov/parks/revervations/facrentalguide.htm.

A Seattle Parks & Recreation press release

Lake Union Park - Sails decorate the main hall of the Naval Reserve Building

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Like son, like father

the first time. “I was in Diverse Harmony then,” he says. “I was completely blown away by SMC’s holiday show. I was actu-ally on the edge of my seat the whole con-cert.” Leo was also impressed: “I had never heard so many voices sing at the same time. I thought it must be really cool to be part of something so huge and so powerful.”

Leo is no stranger to music. He is a singer, composer and musician in his own right, having recently released a CD of his own music. Remember the scenes from Twin Peaks in the Roadhouse when Julee Cruse is singing? The band Leo used to be part of is behind her on the stage. “We thought it would be our music being played in the series,” Leo says. “But David Lynch just wanted the look of our band, not our sound.” He is currently in the wine consulting busi-ness, helping area restaurants plan and buy their wine lists.

Zane is now in his senior year at Lake Washington High School. Even at 18 years old (the minimum age requirement to be a member of the chorus), he’s not the youngest member of Seattle Men’s Chorus — Zane mentioned another new member who is ‘several days’ younger than he is. The stage is a natural milieu for Zane, who has wanted to act for as long as he can remember. “I love it. That’s what I plan to study: acting and dance.” He was recently seen as Seymour in a studio pro-duction of Little Shop of Horrors at Seattle Children’s Theatre.

Is there anything else Zane would like people to know?

“My dad does a great Peter Griffin,” he said. Leo obliged with the best Peter Griffin I have heard outside of the actual Family Guy.

And Leo?“You know, I don’t want anyone to make

a big deal about me being straight. I don’t need to wear it on my sleeve.”

You can see Zane and Leo make their choral debut with Seattle Men’s Chorus in Home for the Holidays.

Courtesy of Flying House Productions

by Eric Lane BarnesSGN Contributing Writer

Frequently during rehearsals for Seattle Men’s Chorus, a member will announce that his parents are visiting. A number of SMC members’ parents have wanted to visit re-hearsals to watch the process of music being made. These are always proud parents, glad to be part of the process and share this expe-rience with their son.

This season we have gone one step fur-ther. Zane Cimino, brand-new first ten-or, is joined by his father, Leo Cimino, brand-new baritone.

When I auditioned Zane in late August, he had indicated that I’d be auditioning his father later on. “How will that be for you,” I asked, “if your dad is in the chorus, too?”

Zane shrugged. “He’s a great guy. He thinks this will be a good bonding experi-ence for us.” When I auditioned Leo I asked him the same question. “I want to support Zane,” Leo said. “And this seems like a really good way to do it. It’s something I can share with him, something we can both understand.”

I sat down with Leo and Zane over lunch to find out more about them and what must be a unique relationship. It was clear from the beginning that there is deep affection be-tween the two. They share a similar sense of humor (which I am tempted to term ‘zany’) and a very quick wit. I think we laughed more than anything else. More than a few times they burst into bits of spontaneous song, or quoted riffs from cult films. They’re a great team.

Because you all are wondering: Zane is Gay, and Leo is straight. What’s more: Zane’s mother is a Lesbian. And she’s Leo’s sister — she adopted Zane at a very young age when it became clear that Leo, due to various substance abuse issues at the time, could not raise Zane on his own. “We’re not the most traditional family on the block,” Zane laughs. After spending years out of state getting his life on track, Leo moved back to Seattle in 2003. That was the same year that Zane saw Seattle Men’s Chorus for

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(L-R) Leo Cimino & Zane Cimino

151 3rd Street, Downtown KirklandOpen daily 10-5:30, Sun 12-5

(425) 827-7443

shoP noW for the hoLidAys

7Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

Seattle Sheraton welcomes back annual Gingerbread Village,15 years of holiday creations

The Sheraton Seattle Hotel presents the 15th Annual Gingerbread Village, benefit-ing the Northwest Chapter of Juvenile Dia-betes Research Foundation.

Who: Sheraton Seattle Hotel’s 15th Annual Gingerbread Village What: Seattle’s top architecture firms will team up with Sheraton Seattle’s culinary staff to design, bake and build elaborate gingerbread displays and holiday creations reflecting this year’s theme: “Holidays Around the World.” Where: Sheraton Seattle Lobby1400 6th Ave.Seattle, Wash. 98101(206) 621-9000 When: Tuesday, November 20, 2007 through Tuesday, January 2, 2008 detaiLs: After being held at City Centre during the Sheraton Seattle’s $130 million expansion and remodel, the Sheraton Seattle is excited to welcome back the 15th annual Gingerbread Village. The Gingerbread Village is free to the public and annually draws more than 300,000 visitors. The village benefits the Northwest Chapter of Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF / www.jdrfnorthwest.org) and has raised more than $330,000 for JDRF over the past 14 years. Donations to JDRF will be accepted for the duration of the display.

This year, Seattle’s top architecture firms

and trade associations will team up with the Sheraton Seattle Hotel’s culinary staff to de-sign, bake and build gingerbread creations reflecting this year’s theme: “Holidays Around the World.”

Sheraton Seattle’s hotel staff donates more than 2,500 volunteer hours for this event. The constructing of the houses requires ap-proximately 400 volunteer hours by teams of Sheraton chefs and the local architecture firms and utilizes:

• 1200 pounds of dough• 800 pounds of icing• 200 pounds of white chocolate• 600 pounds of dark chocolate• 200 pounds of milk chocolate• 250 pounds of almond paste• 100’s pounds of candy for decoration

about sheraton seattle hotelThe Sheraton Seattle Hotel, recipient

of Meetings and Conventions Gold Key Award, is located at 1400 Sixth Avenue in downtown Seattle. The hotel recently un-derwent a $130 million expansion project,

making it the premier convention hotel in the Northwest with a total of 1,258 rooms. The expansion included the construction of the new, 25-story Union Street Tower (420 additional guestrooms) and extensive up-grades to the hotel’s meeting facilities that provide the Sheraton Seattle with a total of 47 meeting rooms and an additional 31,000 square feet of new meeting space for a total of 75,000 square feet. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the lead-ing hotel and leisure companies in the world with more than 850 properties in more than 95 countries and 145,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. For more information, please visit www.starwoodho-tels.com.

about JdrFJDRF is the leading charitable funder and

advocate of type 1 (juvenile) diabetes re-search worldwide. The mission of JDRF is to find a cure for diabetes and its complica-tions through the support of research. Since inception, JDRF has awarded more than $1 billion to diabetes research, including more than $123 million in 2006. In 2006, the Foundation funded 500 centers, grants and fellowships in 20 countries. More than 80 percent of JDRF’ expenditures directly sup-port research and education about research.

Seattle Sheraton Gingerbread Village

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8 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

Salish Lodge at Snoqualmie Falls, a quick and sumptuous escape

by Richard KennedySGN A&E Writer

I have to start by saying that I was a huge fan of the television show Twin Peaks, which predominately featured the Salish Lodge in the opening credits in addition to many of the episodes. Not only were my partner and I looking forward to a relax-ing and romantic weekend getaway, but we were also excited to see the breathtaking Falls and gorgeous lodge that were the cen-terpiece for the saga of “Who Killed Laura Palmer?” It’s autumn in the Pacific North-west, thus making it difficult for couples who both work full-time jobs to get away for a vacation. We were looking for a get-away that would let us forget city life, work, and Gay drama without wasting most of the weekend at an airport or stuck in traffic. We figured at just 45 minutes away, this destina-tion would be perfect! Last year alone, Sal-ish Lodge hosted more than 130 weddings, 500 honeymoons and 1500 anniversaries, making it the perfect spot for your special occasion or romantic getaway. It’s not really a stop for the budget-minded traveler (since you are bound to spend time in the spa and dining room in addition to the cost of your luxurious room), but if you enjoy the seclu-sion and tranquility of a resort-type lodge, you’ll find your money well spent here.

In other Outbound features you’ll no-tice a section labeled “Journey”, but there is only one way to get to the Salish Lodge: Get in your car, gas up, and head 30 miles east on I-90 until you find yourself at the

At Snoqualmie Falls, Salish Lodge is 45 minutes east of Seattle on I-90

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front entrance of Snoqualmie Falls, nestled in the foothills of the Cascades. Then, hand your keys over to the valet (included in the room fare) and forget all your troubles! Here’s what to expect when you visit Salish Lodge.

accomodationsYou can actually hear the Falls as you

go into the modest entrance, only giving a hint to the sweeping view that awaits. Im-

After we settled in and nibbled on a fruit and cheese plate from room service, my partner and I decided to wander around the grounds before our spa appointment. Just outside is the Snoqualmie Falls National Park with various trails, from simple to chal-lenging, that lead you away from the lodge to get a bird’s eye view of the 268-foot drop of the Falls (100 feet higher than Niagara Falls). It was a crisp day, but that didn’t stop me from standing on the viewpoint, breath-ing in the misty air and taking in the scenery as the sun went down. We are lazy vacation-ers and our little hike down to see this was all we wanted to do. If you are staying for a whole weekend and enjoy a little more ex-citement thrown into the mix, the lodge has a huge amount of activities they can arrange for you. They offer guided hikes in addition to self-guided ones, also biking, snowshoe-ing, skiing, tubing, snowmobiling and their famous Bald Eagle float trips. The spring and summer months offer fly fishing, rafting and kayaking.

FoodA visit to Salish Lodge would not be com-

plete without a dinner experience in The Dining Room. It’s modeled in “Northwest rustic” fashion, with wood rafters and walls complementing views that overlook the dra-matic Falls. Dress up for elegance, or dress down for comfort, just be sure to make a reservation! We selected a private room il-luminated by the evening lights that shone on the mist of the Falls. The menu is season-ally-inspired regional cuisine with an hom-age to French style. A sommelier is present in The Dining Room seven days a week and will navigate you through the extensive wine list to the perfect wine to accompany each meal. We started with one of the chefs’ recommendations, the “Autumn Quince ‘Tasting’”. The sommelier put an array of garnished quince (a unique pear-like fruit) in a row, then poured ice wines in three dif-ferent glasses. We enjoyed our quince with whatever specific ice wine was designated for it. We were already having the best time and we were still on appetizers! When look-ing at the entrees you’ll see seafood, farm-raised pheasant, lamb, elk, partridge and even vegetarian ravioli or gnocchi. It was a tough choice, as you can guess, but I went with the herb-crusted John Dory filet with ozette potatoes and foraged mushrooms,

see OUTBOUND page 11

Seattle Men’s Chorus & Seattle Women’s Chorus launch holiday raffle

When you support the Seattle Men’s Cho-rus and the Seattle Women’s Chorus by pur-chasing raffle tickets at their holiday shows, you’re not only doing your part to help the largest community choruses in America this season; you’re liable to pick up a truly fantastic prize. You might find yourself the proud owner of a 2008 Scion XB, taking a cruise on Holland America, traveling first class on Alaska Airlines, pocketing $1,000, or the owner of a Chorus Fan-atic Package.

The grand prize: A 2008 Scion XB has been provided by Burien Toyota/Scion at their price. Perfect for transporting you and

off that holiday credit card bill? Sometimes cold, hard cash is just the ticket.

• If first-class treat-ment is more your style, then check out the Alaska Airlines first class tickets for two. Did you know that they now fly nonstop to New York City, Boston and Washington, DC?

• If you can’t get enough of a good thing, our fourth prize is a complete CD set of all music performed by Seattle Men and Chorus and Seattle Women’s

Chorus, the DVD of the Seattle Men’s Cho-rus PBS Television Special Swellegant Ele-gance, chocolates, wine, gourmet treats, spa products and much more.

The SMC and SWC would like to remind you that everyone who buys a ticket is a winner, because supporting the choruses is a winning proposition. It feels great to know you’re supporting the programs that bring joyful music to Seattle all through the year. Tickets can be purchased at SMC/SWC hol-iday shows or by calling (206) 323-0750.

mediately you feel calm as you see guests walking around in a relaxed stroll. With just 89 rooms (including four suites), the lodge promises the highest quality accommoda-tions for each visitor. Every room includes a bedside wood-burning fireplace, two-per-son spa tub, goose down comforter, feather bed, signature pillow menu and a balcony or window seat with a view of the river or Falls below. The room alone is all about ro-mance!

all of your stuff, this second-generation Sci-on is what all the kids are driving! If your driveway is full, you can opt for $10,000 in cash.

• A perennial favorite, the first prize is a seven-day trip for two, compliments of Hol-land America Cruise Lines. By January, many in Seattle are about ready to set sail to warm, sunny climates.

• Think you’ll be overextended by holiday spending? If so, our third prize is for you. Who couldn’t use $1,000 in extra cash to pay

9Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

see THOM FILICIA page 10

From J-Lo’s house to hotel suites, Queer Eye guy Thom Filicia is on a decorating mission

by Albert RodriguezSGN A&E Writer

Over cups of green and Earl Grey tea at Seattle’s W Hotel, I spent a sunny after-noon gabbing with Thom Filicia. The home decorating guru on TV’s Queer Eye for the Straight Guy was a star attraction at this

year’s Seattle Home Show 2, where he participated in a presentation called “From the Ground Up”. Filicia was sweet as pie and kept our conversa-tions upbeat, not to men-tion turning his head a few times to spot eye-candy hanging around the lobby. The New York resident also hosts Style Network’s Dress My Nest, aside from soon launching his own line of furniture, textiles, and decoration essentials. He’s also refurbishing several W Hotels around the country. If that weren’t enough, he’s writing a book tentatively sched-uled to appear on store shelves in the fall of 2008. Oh, and one more thing: He decorated Jennifer Lo-pez and Marc Anthony’s Long Island estate.

While in Seattle, Filicia and two of his working

partners took time to include self-guided tours of Capitol Hill, Alki Beach and Lake Washington. I asked Filicia for tips on holi-day decor, and he was glad to do so for Seat-tle Gay News readers. From a plush couch at the W Hotel – sipping his cup of tea – here’s

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10 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

THOM FILICIA continued from page 9

cisco, put them in a blender and reduced the size, you’d get Seattle.

rodriguez: What will Thom Felicia’s house look like for the holidays?

Filicia: First of all, what I do every year is come up with a theme – my sort of con-cept for the holidays. This year I’m calling it “Holiday on the Rocks.” The idea is that I’m using these beautiful recycled rock crystal pieces. I bought a box of them. And I’m us-ing them as the foundation of my holiday décor. I’m using things like mirrors, small beautiful square mirrors – I’m doing like three of them down the center of my dining table with the rocks on them. And then I’m using silver candlesticks and creating this mirror-glass-icy look, and then bringing in all-organic things I find outside my house, branches that I’m going to paint white and things that have naturally fallen in the out-door element. I’m painting them all white, not perfectly, but kind of whitewashed. The idea is I’m mixing glass, mirrors, and all-organic elements. Depending on what it is, the one foundation can work from Thanks-giving through New Year’s. And you can change it or add to it.

rodriguez: What’s a basic item to have on hand during the holidays?

Filicia: Simple things, like finding beauti-ful silver candlesticks that you can use all year long. I think candles make a huge dif-ference. Soy candles are really great; they smell beautiful and very natural and they come in little clear glass jars that don’t have any petroleum in them, so they burn re-ally clean. You can use standard candles as well, but that’s just sort of a nice sidebar for anyone who’s interested. If you’re going to over-decorate with anything, over-decorate with candles because it makes the night spe-cial – it adds that extra layer of warmth.

rodriguez: What simple tips can you give us in terms of decorating for the holi-day season?

Filicia: I do love the idea of changing the rooms for the holidays, bringing in a rug that’s warmer that feels really fun. Kara-stan [www.karastan.com] has really great rugs that are a take on the antique rugs and rugs from Northern India, and you can layer those on the rugs you already have to add more warmth. Bring color to the space - don’t be afraid to bring flashes of color in.

Rodriguez: What advice do you have for hosting parties?

Filicia: For me, when I’m entertaining, the first thing I think about is sound. Picking the right sort of music for the right sort of feeling. For dinner parties or cocktail par-ties, where are you going with this event? Do you want people to dance on the tables or do you want them to sit in a chair? You pick your music based on that. Figuring out what you’re going to serve, from drinks to hors d’oeuvres, is really important. And, of course, the presentation is important as well.

rodriguez: Some people are leaning to-wards a more eco-friendly holiday.

Filicia: I love the “Holiday on the Rocks” theme because it’s a combination of what I love about this time of year, it’s chilly and icy but then I’m mixing it with warm, or-ganic elements. If you’re the type of person who wants to be more organic or more natu-ral, you can bring in elements like berries or branches with berries on them to make it feel more natural. I’ve been collecting beau-tiful branches that have been falling from my trees, and I’m going to arrange them and wash them in a silvery-white wash. It’s all environmentally friendly and a great con-trast to the glass and mirrors, and the can-

what Thom Filicia said about decorating for the winter season.

albert rodriguez: Is Jennifer Lopez pregnant? You must know.

thom Filicia: I signed a contract. I’m not sure about that.

rodriguez: Have you been to Seattle be-fore?

Filicia: No, this is my first time. And I love it. If you take New York and San Fran-

11Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

while my partner opted for the sweet Ha-waiian blue prawns. I can’t begin to tell you how delicious our main course was! Little did I know the dessert menu would offer various chocolates, teas and coffees of the world, in addition to handcrafted ice creams and sorbets.

For a more casual dining experience, try the cozy Attic Bistro. (Yes, it too includes that spectacular view of the Falls.) Like the Dining Room, it offers a wide selection of entrees as well as lunch earlier in the day and a bar with seasonal live music for the perfect nightcap. Don’t forget that once you settle in for the evening at the lodge, room service and restaurants stop serving at 10:30 p.m. If you’re planning a late night, you will not find food or snacks anywhere else on the grounds.

reLaxAfter wandering around the park a little

more and reaching the extent of physical activity that I planned on doing, we headed back in the lodge for our Duet Stone Mas-

OUTBOUND continued from page 8

dles. A rock crystal wreath is something I’m actually making when I get back from LA.

rodriguez: What should we avoid, so that we don’t overspend?

Filicia: First of all, try to use what you have. I’m sure you have crystal pieces or vo-tive candles that you use all year long. Little orange juice glasses with votive candles work, martini glasses with votive candles work. You can put votive candles in cham-pagne glasses and run them down the center of the table, and for New Year’s Eve that’s a great look. Think about it the same way you think about clothing; you might have a favorite pair of pants or shoes that you love but you buy a new shirt to go with them. You might wear a watch you don’t use every day and mix it with a new blazer. It’s about lay-ering, and taking what you have and adding something new to it. So it’s not about run-ning out and buying all new holiday décor; you can use what you have and add to it. If you do have to go out and start from ground zero, buy things you can use for the holidays and possibly for other times of the year – so then it doesn’t feel like such an expense.

rodriguez: You definitely seem to be on a natural kick, in terms of decorating for the holidays.

Filicia: I’m a big fan of bringing natu-ral elements in. This time of year, I love to buy beautiful little gourds and I use them throughout the whole year and then I give them back to the squirrels. I live in the city, but I have a house on the lake in upstate New York, so I go to my lake house for the holi-days. I love to pick berries, nice red berries. Sometimes I put berries inside small glasses and line them up on the dinner table during the summer.

rodriguez: Thanks for the tea and the tips. We’re all set.

Filicia: Have a great afternoon and holiday!

sage. When you book your spa treatment (The Spa at Salish Lodge), you’re asked to arrive at least 30 minutes early to transition from the stress of the outside world into a realm of silent meditative tranquility. I sug-gest getting there even earlier because the spa is truly an experience of its own. Deco-rated in a Northwest-inspired Asian fusion, you enter through handcrafted shoji doors onto natural inlaid slate and madrona floors, housed in aromatic cedar ceilings created in the likeness of a forest canopy. There is a eucalyptus steam room and a dry sauna in addition to two gorgeous therapeutic sit-ting pools (one with a relaxing waterfall). They offer a huge menu of massages, fa-cials, organic treatments and body renewal therapies. Since our main goals were ro-mance and relaxation, we opted for the dual stone massage. To our surprise, we found ourselves in the same room, but our tables were a considerable distance apart. Not so romantic, but definitely relaxing with the signature-heated river rocks accompany-ing a basic full body massage. We relaxed in the waterfall pool for a while after our massage, running into another Gay couple who were just arriving for a dual massage of their own.

For more information on Salish Lodge, visit www.salishlodge.com.

toy donation drop-off & holiday open house

december 1 & 8Drop-off donations of new, unwrapped toys for local homeless children, tour

Family Services Baby Boutique, and enjoy festive treats and activities.

Visit www.family-services.org for more details on needed donations.

10AM - 2PM, 1100 Virginia St., Suite 211, Seattle.

206-826-3050. [email protected]

151 3rd Street, Downtown KirklandOpen daily 10-5:30, Sun 12-5

(425) 827-7443

shoP noW for the hoLidAys

13Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

Compiled by Rick McKinnonSGN Staff

arts & craFts

“arboretum Foundation’s Greens Ga-lore sale” - 12/1 ONLY, 10am-3pm. pres-ents handmade, one-of-a-kind wreaths, freshly cut greens, gifts, crafts and more for holiday decorating and shopping. A variety of fresh and dried botanical treasures for decorating, such as evergreen branches and boughs, berried branches, hollies, cones, redtwig dogwood, hydrangeas, corkscrew willow, eucalyptus and more will be on sale. 10am-3pm, Washington Park Arboretum’s Graham Visitors Center, 2300 Arboretum Drive E, Seattle. 206-325-4510; www.arbo-retumfoundation.org

“Georgetown’s annual holiday art-walk” - 12/8 & 12/9, 11am-5pm. A festive tour of Georgetown businesses and art stu-dios along and near Airport Way S between Corson Ave S and Carleton Ave S., Seattle. www.catherinegill.net

“Pratt holiday art sale” - 12/7, 6-9pm ($20 admission for opening night party); 12/8-12/16, 10am-7pm (free admission). Pratt Fine Arts Center, 1902 S Main St, Se-attle. 206-328-2200; www.pratt.org

“st mark’s cathedral’s annual christ-mas Boutique” - Gifts for all ages, includ-ing books, ornaments, nativities, CDs, cards, candles, local gourmet foods, fair trade coffee and more! St Mark’s Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave E, Seattle. Thur 12/23. Mon-Thurs, 11am-5:30pm; Fri-Sat, 11am-3pm; Sun, 9am-1pm. 206-323-1040; www.sho-patsaintmarks.org

“seattle sampling holiday tour of crafts” - 11/30, 4-9pm; 12/1 & 12/2, 10am-5pm. Visit 12 homes and studios of partici-pating artists during this self-guided holiday sale and open house tour. www.seattlesam-pling.com

“Vashon island art studio tour - holi-day 2007” - 12/1 & 12/2 and 12/9 & 12/10, 10am-4pm. Come see a myriad of artwork - paintings, printmaking, sculpture, ceram-ics, glass, jewelry, photography, garden art - hosted by more than 100 Vashon Island artists. Take a virtual tour and get a map at www.vashonislandartstudiotour.com. Maps are also available at Island businesses and galleries, once you’re on Vashon Island.

“Winter Festival” - 12/1 & 12/2.

10am-5pm. Attracting more than 4,000 people, this event features two build-ings filled with 115 high quality, juried crafts booths, live entertainment on two stages, a quilt raffle, a huge bake sale and lunch items. Phinney Ridge’s biggest holi-day event! Phinney Neighborhood As-

sociation, 6532 Phinney Ave N, Seattle. Admission is $4 for nonmembers, $2 for members, plus a can of food for local food banks. Children 12 & under free. See web-site for list of artists & entertainment sched-ule. 206-783-2244; www.phinneycenter.org

GinGerBread ViLLaGe

“holidays around the World” - Sheraton Seattle Hotel presents their 15th Annual Gingerbread Village, benefiting the Northwest Chapter of Juvenile Diabetes Re-search Foundation. Seattle’s top architectur-al firms will team up with Sheraton Seattle’s culinary staff to design, bake and build elaborate gingerbread displays and holiday creations reflect-ing this year’s theme. The Gingerbread Village will be back at the Sheraton Seattle Hotel this year - 6th Ave & Pike St, Seattle. The display is FREE and open to the public. Dona-tions will be accepted. These gingerbread houses are fantastic and a pure delight to look at! on dis-play thru Wednesday, 1/2.

PiKe PLace marKet

Seattle’s Pike Place Market, 1st Ave & Pike St, becomes a winter wonderland when thousands of lights are turned on on satur-day, 11/24, at 5pm. Join in the festivities earlier in the day as the Dickens Carolers

serenade market goers from 2-5pm with traditional holiday tunes. Donate cans of food for the Downtown Food Bank. Bring 4 cans and get a free Centennial t-shirt while they last, noon-4pm. Santa hands out candy canes and poses for photos, noon-5pm.

o’christmas trees

If you like to look at beautiful and imaginatively decorated Christmas trees, you will defi-nitely enjoy this event. Profes-sional designers have decorated dozens of trees to be auctioned off at the O’Christmas Trees Gala Dinner and Auction. on monday, 11/26, 3-8pm, the Christmas trees will be on dis-play for FREE public viewing in the Westin Seattle Grand Ballroom, 1900 5th Ave @ Stewart St, Seattle. Bring the entire family and enjoy the fes-tivities of the season with live entertainment, pictures with Santa, refreshments and crafts for the kids.

Great FiGGY PuddinG

street cornercaroLinG

contest xxi

The Great Figgy Pudding Caroling Com-petition, held on Friday, 12/7, is one of the most looked-forward-to holiday events in Seattle, attracting over 5,000 attendees ev-ery year. 40+ caroling teams compete in this zany competition where you will see every-thing from dancing lawyers to costumed co-workers to Von Trapp-like families. The

event will be held in and around Westlake Park, 4th Ave & Pine St, Seattle, and the retail core along Pine St between 3rd Ave & 7th Ave, and along 5th Ave near Pine St. 6:30-7:30pm (caroling), 7:30-8:30pm (awards ceremony and community sing-along) FREE.

seattLe center WinterFest

Seattle Center Winterfest enlivens the holiday season with magical experiences for all ages with an eclectic mix of perfor-mances, events and activities ranging from fine arts and cultural offering to traditional family fun and festivities. For six glorious weeks, the season comes alive with world-class entertainment, cutting-edge perform-ers and cherished reminded of the past. Winterfest offers dozens of FREE and low-cost events, performances and activities that will stir your soul and energize your spirit. From 11/23-12/31, The celebration contin-ues into the New Year with extended dates from 11/23-1/6 for the Winterfest Ice Rink and Classic Carousel. Visit www.seattlecen-ter.com/winterfest for complete details and schedule.

music

(See theatre & dance section for details on Intiman Theatre’s production of “Black Nativity” and Seattle Repertory Theatre’s production of “Back Home Again: A John Denver Holiday Concert” starting on page 17.)

november 28

“Lauda!” - Songs of celebration and praise highlight the University Chorale and Chamber Singers’ program, including Otto-rino Respighi’s Laud to the Nativity, Claudio Monteverdi’s Ave Maris Stella, Cesar Geof-fray’s Fille de ton fils, Dominick Argento’s The Masque of Angels, Brazilian folk melo-dies in Suite Nordestina, Aaron Copland’s Three Old American songs, Leonard Mark Lewis’ setting of a Robert Frost poem in Now Close All the Windows, three anony-mous Chilean carols, and Noche de lluvia by Sid Robinovitch. 7:30pm. Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, University of Wash-ington, Seattle. Tickets: $10. 206-543-4880; www.meany.org

november 29, 30 & december 2

“delights of the holiday season” - The Seattle Symphony performs Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, Barber’s Die Na-tali, Choral Preludes for Christmas, Viv-aldi’s Concerto for Two Cellos in G minor, RV 531, Grainger’s Molly on the Shore, Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Green-sleeves, and selections from The Nutcracker by Tchaikovsky. 11/29-7:30pm; 11/30-8pm; 12/2-2pm. Benaroya Hall, S. Mark Ta-per Foundation Auditorium, 3rd Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $17-$95. 206-215-4747; 866-833-4747; www.seat-tlesymphony.org

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14 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

november 30

“trio mediaeval” - The Norwegian vo-cal trio brings in the holiday season with a rich program of French and English me-dieval carols, Norwegian folk songs, and contemporary music inspired by ancient models. Trio Mediaeval is a more-than-worthy successor to Anonymous 4, return-ing to Seattle by popular demand after a spectacular Early Music Guild debut. 8pm. Town Hall, 8th Ave & Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: $40/$35/$25 depending on seating location. Free pre-concert lecture at 7pm. 206-325-7066; www.earlymusicguild.org

november 30 & december 1

“south american connections” - The Seattle Peace Chorus will present the U.S. premiere of the Mass for Peace and Justice (Misa por la Paz y la Justicia) by composer Ariel Ramirez from Argentina, and present stories and songs from their trip to Venezu-ela last summer as ambassadors of peace. Celebrating their 25th season this year, the Seattle Peace Chorus mission is to further the cause of peace and justice. Tickets: $15 with discounts for groups, students, and se-niors. 7:30pm. Seattle First Baptist Church, 1111 Harvard Ave, Seattle. 206-264-5532; www.seattlepeacechorus.org.

december 1

“8th annual celtic holiday concert at Bastyr university” - The elegant and acoustically spectacular Bastyr Univer-sity chapel once again provides the perfect seasonal ambiance for this annual Celtic holiday tradition. Irish and Scottish music launch the holiday season with rousing in-strumentals, vocals and energetic dance. Performers this year include the Scottish music ensemble, Oran Nan Car, nationally acclaimed Northwest musicians Stanley and Kip Greenthal, along with fiddler Joel Bernstein and the Irish Dance Troupe. 7pm. Bastyr University Chapel, 14500 Juanita Drive NE, Kenmore. Tickets: $15-general; $12-students/seniors. 425-602-3272; www.bastyr.edu.

“all is Bright!” - Cantare’ Vocal Ensem-ble presents their first true Christmas Con-cert featuring works from the Renaissance to the present; traditional arrangements of timeless seasonal classics and fresh new set-tings of familiar carols. Harp and percussion accompaniment for several songs will cap-ture the spirit of the season. Taking full ad-vantage of the entire performance space, the singers will be positioned in the four corners of the sanctuary as well as in the balcony above the audience for several songs, treat-ing the audience to a spectacular “surround-sound” effect. 8pm. St. Mark’s Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave E, Seattle. Tickets: $18-gen-eral; $15-senior; youth ticket 17 & under FREE with paid adult. 206-246-6040; www.nwassociatedarts.org

“Gloria” christmas concert - The Northwest Chamber Chorus opens their 40th anniversary season by celebrating Christmas with the glory of brass. They are joined by the Mosaic Brass Quartet for Daniel Pinkham’s Christmas Cantata for choir, brass and organ, and other Christ-mas pieces by composers Schutz, Scheidt, Poulenc, Grieg, Ives, Ellington and more. 7:30pm. Phinney Ridge Lutheran Church, 7500 Greenwood Ave N, Seattle. Tickets: $18 adv-general; $16 adv-student/senior; all tickets $2 more at the door; $12-active singer; FREE-children 6-12 with paying adult. 206-523-1196; www.northwestcham-berchorus.org; ticketwindowonline.com

“trans-siberian orchestra christmas concert.” 3pm & 8pm. Key Arena, Seat-tle Center, Seattle. Tickets: $38 & $48. All Ticketmaster outlets; www.Ticketmaster.com; www.livenation; 206-628-0888.

“home for the holidays” - seattle men’s chorus in concert. The men take you home for the holidays with the glitter and glamour that have been their trademark for nearly 30 years. New songs, splashy production numbers and fresh takes on stan-dards like Silver Bells and Winter Wonder-land are all wrapped up with a festive holi-day bow. 8pm. Everett Civic Auditorium, 2415 Colby Ave, Everett. Tickets: $18-$38.

206-388-1400; www.fly-inghouse.org (Also 12/9 & 12/21, 22 & 23-in Seattle.)

december 1 & 2

“a Brandenburg christ-mas” - The Seattle Baroque Orchestra celebrates the ge-nius of Bach, Handel and Telemann with some of their most festive works: Bach’s monumental fifth Branden-burg Concerto, Handel’s joy-ous opus 3 no. 3 Concerto Grosso, and Telemann’s fiery E Minor Concerto for flute and recorder. You’ll also en-joy the Handel harp concerto and Bach’s double concerto for oboe and violin. The all-star line-up of soloists in-cludes Maxine Eilander, Ma-han Esfahani, Debra Nagy, Courney Westcott, Vicki Boeckman and Ingrid Mat-thews. 12/1-8pm; 12/2-3pm. Illsley Ball Nordstrom Re-cital Hall, Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave & Union St, Seattle. Tickets: $35-adult; $30-se-nior (65+); $10-student (full-time). 206-322-3118; www.seattlebaroque.org

“christmas in america” - Rousing early American shape-note songs and fug-ing tunes by William Walker and William Billings are contrasted by medieval texts in sublime contemporary settings by Rob-ert Young (There is a Rose), Kevin Sieg-fried (Adam Lay Ybounden), and Morten Lauridsen (O magnum myserium). Also on the program are Charles Ives’ charming A Christmas Carol, and selections from the beloved carols of Alfred Burt. The con-certs feature a tribute to composer Daniel Pinkham with his exciting Christmas Can-tata for chorus and brass, on the 50th anni-versary of its composition. Other Pinkham works include his poignant A Cradle Hymn, the simple and moving Evergreen, with organ and bells, and several more. Special guests Cascadia Brass add their exciting in-strumental counterpoint to the performance. 12/1-7:30pm @ Trinity Lutheran Church, 6215 196th SW, Lynnwood; 12/2-3pm @ St Margaret’s Episcopal Church, 4228 Facto-ria Blvd SE, Bellevue. Tickets: $18-adults; $14-students/seniors; $9-juniors (12 & un-der). 425-881-0445; www.BellevueCham-berChorus.net.

“ourania: dreams that reach across the heavens” - The final concert of The Esoterics’ fourteenth season will look to the firmament for its inspiration - from the tributes to Apollo, whose legendary chari-

ot draws the sun across the sky in Richard Strauss’ Der Abend and Donald Skirvin’s Song of Apollo, to the soporific and stimu-lating settings of Augustine by John Jou-bert: Sleep Canticle and Let There Be light. The vision of Jacob’s ladder is chorally de-picted in Heinrich Poos’ marvelous Hypos-tasis, and the heavens rejoice the return of his prodigal son in Strauss’ hyper-Romantic Hymne. Danish composer Bo Holten’s set-ting of Edith Sodergran’s Triumf att Finna Till pays its vigorous respect to the all-nourishing sun and the indefatigable vault of stars, as Skirvin’s Hymn to the Moon sets another of Shelley’s lustrous translations of Homer. Eric Banks’ a cappella map of the stars of the zodiac (Tabula Siderum Zo-diaco) and intonation of the moons in their orbits (Onomata Planeton) will complete the over-arching scope of this celestial pro-gram. 12/1-8pm. Trinity Lutheran Church, 12115 Park Ave S, Tacoma. 12/2-3pm. St Thomas Episcopal Church, 8398 NE 12th St, Medina. Tickets: $18 adv-general; $15 adv-student/senior; all tickets $20 at the door. 206-935-7779; www.theesoterics.org. (See 12/8 & 12/9 listing for Seattle area per-formances.)

december 2

“Gloria! music for chorus and harp” - Gloria! Thus sang the angels at the first Christmas celebration, and choirs have been

15Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

echoing their song every since. Join Master Chorus Eastside as they present carols an-cient and modern, accompanied by the in-strument of the angels and sung in their sig-nature heavenly rich sound. 3pm. Kirkland Performance Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland. Tickets: $20-adult; $15-senior & youth. 425-893-9900; www.kpcenter.org

“handel’s Messiah” - Presented by Or-chestra Seattle & Seattle Chamber Sing-ers. 3pm. First Free Methodist Church, 3rd Ave W & W Dravus St, Seattle. Tick-ets: $25-general; $20-senior; $10-student; FREE-youth (7-17 with accompanying adult). 1-800-838-3006; www.osscs.org; www.brownpapertickets.com; and at Silver Platters stores.

“mother & child” - Embrace the joy of the holiday season as Opus 7 explores the mystical relationship between the Virgin Mary and her son with an outstanding ar-ray of British and European choral music. Featured works include Gerald Finzi’s lyri-cal and celebratory Magnificat and two ex-quisite works by Pierre Villette: Hymne a la Vierge and O magnum misterium. The cen-terpiece of the concert is Benjamin Britten’s Christ’s Nativity, written while he was still a college student. Don’t miss this opportunity to hear this rarely-performed choral master-piece as well as the opulent music of Pierre Villette, whose genius as a choral composer has only recently been recognized. Addi-tional works will round out the program. 7:30pm. St James Cathedral, 804 9th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $18. 206-782-2899; www.opus7.org; www.brownpapertickets.com

december 3

“carolFest” - Seven choirs - the Cham-ber Singers, University Chorale, University Singers, the Men’s Glee Club, Women’s Chorus, the Vocal Jazz Ensemble, and the Gospel Choir - join together for a festive evening of seasonal classics and beautiful music. The Harp Ensemble will perform seasonal music prior to the concert in the Meany Hall lobby. 7:30pm. Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, University of Wash-ington, Seattle. Tickets: $10. 206-543-4880; www.meany.org

december 4

“the oak ridge Boys’ christmas cook-ies tour” will spice up your holiday spirit with a tasty recipe of classic hits (Elvira, Bobbie Sue and Thank God For Kids) and holiday harmonies. Featuring songs from the Oaks’ four best-selling Christmas CDs, beautiful sets, falling snow and a special ap-pearance by Santa to delight kids of all ages, the Oak Ridge Boys and the holidays go to-gether like eggnog and Christmas Cookies! 7:30pm. The Moore Theatre, 1932 2nd Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $40 & $48. 206-467-5510; www.theparamount.com

december 6, 7, 8 & 9

“holiday Pops” - Join Seattle Sym-phony for an evening of holiday favorites, including the best of Christmas and Hanuk-kah. 12/6-7:30pm; 12/7-8pm; 12/8-2pm & 8pm; 12/9-2pm. Benaroya Hall, S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, 3rd Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $17-$82. 206-215-4747; 866-833-4747; www.seat-tlesymphony.org

“Breath of aire,” an inspirational North-west regional choir led by Dr. J. Bayard DuBois, will fill the stunning Bastyr Uni-versity chapel with holiday and seasonal favorites appealing to families of all faiths and backgrounds at this FREE holiday mu-sical celebration open to the public. 7:30pm. Bastyr University Chapel, 14500 Juanita Dr NE, Kenmore. www.bastyr.edu.

december 8

“Kosher red hots.” Enjoy Klezmer music with Sheila Fox and the Kosher Red Hots at the museum’s Family Day Chanu-kah celebration. 1-4pm. Tacoma Museum of Glass, 1801 Dock St, Tacoma. www.ko-sherredhots.com

“Gloria” christmas concert - The Northwest Chamber Chorus opens their 40th anniversary season by celebrating Christmas with the glory of brass. They are joined by the Mosaic Brass Quartet for Dan-iel Pinkham’s Christmas Cantata for choir, brass and organ, and other Christmas pieces by composers Schutz, Scheidt, Poulenc, Gr-ieg, Ives, Ellington and more. 7:30pm. Lake Washington United Methodist Church, 7525 132nd Ave NE, Kirkland.

“northern Lights ii” - Experience winter in Russia and the Baltic countries in Seattle Pro Musica’s sequel to their 2005 Northern Lights concert. This program of lush, spir-ited choral music from Russia, Estonia, Lat-via and Lithuania evokes the northern lights of the winter season, from traditional holi-day carols to works by Tchaikovsky, Veljo Tormis & Arvo Part. Deepen the meaning

with a free pre-concert lecture by conductor Karen P. Thomas. 3pm (shorter family pro-gram/no pre-concert lecture) & 8pm. Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave @ Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: Call box office or see website for range of ticket prices. 206-781-2766; www.seattlepromusica.org (Also 12/15 at Chapel at Bastyr University, Bothell.)

december 8 & 9

“a Baroque christmas” - Make you hol-iday season merry and bright with Gallery Concert’s performance of lovely music for voice and instruments performed by Linda Tsatsanis, Courtney Westcott, Kim Zabelle, Nathan Whittaker, and Jillon Stoppels Du-pree. 12/8-8pm. St Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 4805 NE 45th St, Seattle. 12/9-3pm. Queen Anne Christian Church, 1316 3rd Ave W, Seattle. Tickets: $25-adult; $20-se-nior (65+); $10-back bench. 206-726-6088; www.galleryconcerts.org

“ourania: dreams that reach across the heavens” - The final concert of The Es-oterics’ fourteenth season will look to the fir-mament for its inspiration - from the tributes to Apollo, whose legendary chariot draws the sun across the sky in Richard Strauss’ Der Abend and Donald Skirvin’s Song of Apollo, to the soporific and stimulating set-tings of Augustine by John Joubert: Sleep Canticle and Let There Be light. The vision of Jacob’s ladder is chorally depicted in Hei-nrich Poos’ marvelous Hypostasis, and the heavens rejoice the return of his prodigal son in Strauss’ hyper-Romantic Hymne. Danish composer Bo Holten’s setting of Edith So-dergran’s Triumf att Finna Till pays its vig-orous respect to the all-nourishing sun and the indefatigable vault of stars, as Skirvin’s Hymn to the Moon sets another of Shelley’s lustrous translations of Homer. Eric Banks’ a cappella map of the stars of the zodiac (Ta-

bula Siderum Zodiaco) and intonation of the moons in their orbits (Onomata Planeton) will complete the over-arching scope of this celestial program. 12/8-8pm. St Joseph’s Catholic Church, 732 18th Ave E, Seattle. 12/9-3pm. Holy Rosary Catholic Church, 4139 42nd Ave SW, Seattle. Tickets: $18 adv-general; $15-student/senior; all tickets $20 at the door. 206-935-7779; www.thee-soterics.org. (See 12/1 & 12/2 listing for Ta-coma and Medina performances.)

december 9

“Lessons and carols” - The Trinity Choir performs favorite carols combined with familiar texts to light the Advent jour-ney in this beautiful and traditional service. 2pm. Trinity Parish Church, 609 8th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: A suggested donation. 206-624-5337; www.trinityseattle.org

“Gloria” christmas concert - The Northwest Chamber Chorus opens their 40th anniversary season by celebrating Christmas with the glory of brass. They are joined by the Mosaic Brass Quartet for Dan-iel Pinkham’s Christmas Cantata for choir, brass and organ, and other Christmas pieces by composers Schutz, Scheidt, Poulenc, Grieg, Ives, Ellington and more. 3:00pm. Plymouth Congregational Church, 6th Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $18 adv-general; $16 adv-student/senior; all tick-ets $2 more at the door; $12-active singer; FREE-children 6-12 with paying adult. 206-523-1196; www.northwestchamber-chorus.org; ticketwindowonline.com

“Lights in Winter” - rainbow city Band’s holiday concert. An elegant win-ter concert. Enjoy the warm and graceful sounds of the season with featured guest, harpist Patricia Sereno. 3pm. Bastyr Uni-versity Chapel, 14500 Juanita Drive NE, Kenmore. Tickets: $15-general; $10-stu-dents/seniors/children. www.brownpaper-tickets.com; 866-841-9139 ext 2126; www.rainbowcityband.com

16 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

“home for the holidays” - seattle men’s chorus in concert. The men take you home for the holidays with the glitter and glamour that have been their trademark for nearly 30 years. New songs, splashy production numbers and fresh takes on standards like Silver Bells and Winter Won-derland are all wrapped up with a festive holiday bow. 8pm. Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $15-$70. 206-388-1400; www.flyinghouse.org (Also, 12/1-in Everett; 12/21, 22 & 23-in Seattle.)

december 10

“Good for Jews” - Rob Tannenbaum (cre-ator of “What I Like About Jew,” VHI com-mentator and star of VH1’s “So Jewtastic” special) and David Fagin (guest on Dennis Miller’s TV show and Howard Stern’s radio program, leader of the extraordinary power-pop band The Rosenbergs) in a hilarious show filled with Jewish themed comedy and song! 7:30pm. The Triple Door, 216 Union St, Seattle. Tickets: $15-adv/$18-day of show. 206-838-4333; www.thetripledoor.net

december 11

“Bronn and Katherine Journey” return to KPC with their 26th Annual Christmas Concert for the whole family. Performing on the concert harp, Bronn brings a warm and casual approach to a classical instrument, accompanied at times throughout the eve-ning by Katherine’s glorious, angelic voice and by several guest musicians. 7:30pm. Kirkland Performance Center, 350 Kirk-land Ave, Kirkland. Tickets: $17.50-adults & seniors; $15-youth. 425-893-9900; www.kpcenter.org

december 11 & 12

“dan hicks and his hot Licks” will per-form their celebrated musical extravaganza Holidaze in Hicksville. This much-loved and one-of-a-kind musical evening features an entertaining view of the holiday season told through the group’s original songs and dance, as well as Dan’s signature eclecticism and humor. Songs will include such “Hicks-ian” gems as “Somebody Stole My Santa Claus Suit,” “Rudolph the Bald-Headed Reindeer” and “Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Christmas Card.” 7:30pm & 9:30pm. The Triple Door, 216 Union St, Seattle. Tickets: $20-adv; $22-day of show. 206-838-4333; www.thetripledoor.net

december 13, 14, 15 & 16

“handel’s Messiah” - Seattle Symphony presents Handel’s classic masterpiece with Celena Shafer, soprano; Charlotte Hel-lekant, mezzo-soprano; David Ossenfort,

tenor; Harold Wilson, bass. 12/13-7:30pm; 12/14-8pm; 12/15-1pm; 12/15-8pm; 12/16-2pm. Benaroya Hall, S. Mark Ta-per Foundation Auditorium, 3rd Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $20-$60. 206-215-4747; 866-833-4747; www.seat-tlesymphony.org

december 14, 15 & 16

“celestial Greetings” - The Seattle Women’s Chorus travels light years away with “Celestial Greetings,” showcasing car-ols from galaxies far, far away and carols from terra firm, with tongue firmly planted in cheek. Dennis James, a leading virtuoso on the glass harmonica, will lend a bewitch-ing, other-worldly sound to the women’s out-of-this-world voices. Resistance is fu-tile. 12/14 & 12/15 @ 8pm; 12/16 @ 2pm.

Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, Uni-versity of Washington, Seattle. Tickets: $17.50-$50. 206-388-1400; www.flying-house.org

“christmas is for children” - Burien’s favorite holiday concert returns with a show sure to fill you with child-like wonder and joy! From the opening peal of a handbell choir to the closing notes of White Christ-mas, ChoralSounds Northwest pulls out all the stops to create an unforgettable musi-cal experience for your entire family. 12/14 @ 8pm; 12/15 & 12/16 @ 2pm. Highline Performing Arts Center, 401 S 152nd St, Burien. Tickets: $25, $18 & $15; youth ticket 17 & under FREE with paid adult. 206-246-6040; www.nwassociatedarts.org

december 14 & 15

“holiday rhapsody” - Hear the Seattle Metropolitan Glee Club, The Offbeats Vocal Ensemble, and The Prelude Glee Club sing seasonal favorites. 12/14 @ 7pm - Shore-line Unitarian Church, 14724 1st Ave NE, Shoreline; 12/16 @ 4pm - Peace Lutheran Church, 8316 39th Ave SW, Seattle. Tickets: $15-general; $12-seniors (65+) and children 16 & under. 260-260-7393.

december 15

“seattle Jazz holiday” - The music of jazz in the Pacific Northwest and on the West Coast has taken on a new dimension with the appearance of one of the most ex-citing vocal groups on the scene today ... the Seattle Jazz Singers. Join them for an after-

noon of holiday favorites performed in their signature style. 2pm. The Driftwood Play-ers, 950 Main St, Edmonds. Tickets: $20. 425-774-9600; www.driftwoodplayers.com

“magical strings celtic Yuletide con-cert” - An unforgettable evening of sea-sonal music, dance, song, story-telling and juggling. This grand gala united three gen-erations of performing artists and weaves the music of different lands into a beautiful tapestry symbolizing the timeless Yuletide journey from darkness to light. Enjoy the sounds of Celtic harps, hammered dulci-mers, whistles, concertina, strings, Scottish fiddle, piano, Uilleann pipes, vocals, guitar, and cittern. 3pm. First Covenant Church, 400 E Pike St, Seattle. Tickets: $25 adv/$27 at the door-reserved; $18/$20-general; $12/$14-youth (12 & under) in general seat-ing area. 800-838-3006; www.brownpap-ertickets.com. More info: 253-857-3716; www.magicalstrings.com (See website for additional concerts in Puget Sound area.)

“northern Lights ii” - Experience winter in Russia and the Baltic countries in Seattle Pro Musica’s sequel to their 2005 Northern Lights concert. This program of lush, spir-ited choral music from Russia, Estonia, Lat-via and Lithuania evokes the northern lights of the winter season, from traditional holi-day carols to works by Tchaikovsky, Veljo Tormis & Arvo Part. Deepen the meaning with a free pre-concert lecture by conductor Karen P. Thomas. 3pm & 8pm. Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave @ Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: Call or see website for range of ticket prices. 206-781-2766; www.seattlepromusica.org (Also 12/8 at Town Hall, Seattle.)

“nowel syng We: an english christ-mas” - Guest conductor Nancy Zylstra leads the Medieval Women’s Choir, with soloists Ann Glusker, Marian Seibert, and Stacey Sunde, in a program of 15th-century English music: celebratory carols with their intricate rhythms, punctuated by the lush harmonies of Lionel Power and John Dunstable, the two most famous English composers of the period. 8pm. St James Cathedral, 804 9th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $20-adult, $15-senior (62+), $10-youth (under 25). 206-264-4822; www.medievalwomenschoir.org

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december 17

“seattle mandolin orchestra’s annual holiday concert.” 6:30-7:45pm. Ballard Branch, Seattle Public Library, 5614 22nd Ave NW, Seattle. The orchestra will play holiday music in a variety of musical genres, including classical, jazz and folk. FREE.

“claudio monteverdi’s 1610 vespers” - Presented by Orchestra Seattle & Seattle Chamber Singers. 7pm. First Free Methodist Church, 3rd Ave W & W Dravus St, Seattle. Tickets: $25-general; $20-senior; $10-stu-dent; FREE-youth, 7-17 with accompany-ing adult. 1-800-838-3006; www.osscs.org; www.brownpapertickets.com; and at Silver Platters stores.

december 21

“a Festival of Lessons & carols” - Fea-turing the Northwest Boychoir and Vocal-point! Seattle. Patterned after the Christmas Eve observance at King’s College in Cam-bridge, England, “A Festival of Lessons & Carols” has become an annual holiday tra-dition for thousands of families in the Puget Sound region. This classical performance consists of holiday readings, each followed by a traditional holiday carol performed by the choirs and a carol sung by the choirs and the audience members. 7:30pm. St. Mark’s Cathedral, 1245 10th Ave E, Seattle. Tick-ets: $20-adult, $15-senior; $10-student. 206-524-3234; www.northwestchoirs.org (Additional performances on 12/8-Mag-nolia; 12/14-Medina; 12/15-U-District; 12/16-Lynnwood; 12/20-West Seattle; 12/22-Meany Hall @ UW. See website.)

“oy Vey in a manger” - The Kinsey Sicks return for a holiday like no other. This self-described Dragapella Beauty Shop Quartet is in the best sense a contemporary vaudeville act: singing, dancing, comedy and costumes. Even the “drag” component is in the tradition. “This show is R-rated and adult. It is not for the faint-hearted.” 7:30pm (17+) & 10pm (21+). The Triple Door, 216 Union St, Seattle. Tickets: $30-adv/$35-day of show. 206-838-4333; www.thetripledoor.net

“a tale of two cultures: music from heaven and earth” - Baroque Northwest celebrates the celestial (Christmas music from Germany) and terrestrial (secular mu-sic from Italy). 8pm. Good Shepherd Cen-ter, 4649 Sunnyside Ave N, Seattle. Tickets: $25-general; $20-senior/EMA; $10-stu-dent. Free pre-concert event @ 7:15pm. 206-368-0735; www.baroquenorthwest.com

“Breath of aire” has filled the streets of Leavenworth, WA with a beautiful variety of Christmas and holiday music during the spectacular tree lighting ceremony enjoyed by thousands each year. Now they come to Edmonds with a holiday repertoire to warm the heart and set the table for a season of celebration. 8pm. The Driftwood Play-ers, 950 Main St, Edmonds. Tickets: $20. 425-774-9600; www.driftwoodplayers.com

december 21, 22 & 23

“home for the holidays” - seattle men’s chorus in concert. The men take you home for the holidays with the glitter and glamour that have been their trademark for nearly 30 years. New songs, splashy production numbers and fresh takes on standards like Silver Bells and Winter Won-derland are all wrapped up with a festive holiday bow. 12/21 & 12/22 @ 8pm; 12/23 @ 2pm & 8pm. Benaroya Hall, 3rd Ave & University St, Seattle. Tickets: $15-$70. 206-388-1400; www.flyinghouse.org (Also, 12/1-in Everett; 12/9-in Seattle.)

december 22

“handel’s Messiah” - The Tudor Choir and the Seattle Baroque Orchestra present Handel’s masterpiece. 12pm (family mati-nee/abridged one-hour version) & 7pm (full performance). Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave @ Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: 12pm-$5 adult, kids 12 & under free with accompany-ing adult; 7pm-$20 adv/$23-general; $17

17Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide

adv/$20-Town Hall members, seniors & students. 800-838-3006; www.brownpaper-tickets.com

“a Festival of Lessons & carols” - Fea-turing the Northwest Boychoir and Vocal-point! Seattle (with professional orchestra this performance only). Patterned after the Christmas Eve observance at King’s Col-lege in Cambridge, England, “A Festival of Lessons & Carols” has become an annual holiday tradition for thousands of families in the Puget Sound region. This classical performance consists of holiday readings, each followed by a traditional holiday carol performed by the choirs and a carol sung by the choirs and the audience members. 7:30pm. Meany Hall for the Performing Arts, University of Washington, Seattle. Tickets: $25-adult, $20-senior; $15-student. 206-524-3234; www.northwestchoirs.org (Additional performances on 12/8-Mag-nolia; 12/14-Medina; 12/15-U-District; 12/16-Lynnwood; 12/20-West Seattle; 12/21-Capitol Hill. See website for details and ticket prices.)

“the Bobs - too many san-tas!” Come see your Christ-mas favorites reinvented, Bob-style. Known for their incred-ible live show, witty original material and outrageous cov-ers of classic songs, The Bobs - Richard Greene, Matthew Bob Stull, Amy Bob Engle-hardt and Dan Bob Schmacher - are a contemporary a cap-pella quartet that fuses music, theatre and comedy with the spirit of the season. The Bobs are a “band without instru-ments” using just their voices and body percussion to fill the theatre with an orchestra of harmonious holiday sound, accompanying themselves on songs that range from soul-ful to satire, from amazing to moving, from familiar to unimaginable. 8pm. Kirk-land Performance Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland. Tick-ets: $33-adult; $29.50-senior; $15-youth. 425-893-9900; www.kpcenter.org

January 12

“arctic Light: orthodox music in Finland” - Composer and conductor Ivan Moody returns to direct Cappella Romana in a program of music rarely heard outside Finland, music that combines the shining clarity of the northern choral sound with the sonic richness of Russian and Byzantine singing. Moody was recently named chair-man of the International Society of Ortho-dox Church Music in Joensuu, Finland, and will give a pre-concert talk at 7pm. 8pm. Town Hall, 8th Ave & Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: $30, $27, $22, $15 ($5 student rush). 866-822-7735; 800-838-3006; www.cappellaromana.org

theatre & dance

“a christmas carol” - ACT Theatre’s annual presentation of Charles Dickens’ classic, adapted by Gregory A. Falls. runs 11/23-12/24. ACT Theatre, Kreielsheimer

Place, 700 Union St, Seattle. Tick-ets: $25 to $45. 206-292-7676; www.acttheatre.org

“a (n improvised) christmas carol” - Unexpected Productions takes the Charles Dickens’ classic and replays it based on suggestions given by the audience throughout the play. A holiday favorite for over 20 years. runs 11/22-12/23. Market Theater, Pike Place Market, 1428 Post Alley, Seattle. Tickets: $12. 206-587-2414; www.ticketwindowonline.com

“a christmas carol: scrooge & marley” - An ingenious and theatri-cally dazzling new adaptation of this great classic by one of our theatre’s most inventive and respected play-wrights. Dickens himself narrates this

tale of the miserly Scrooge and his journey from damnation to redemption, stepping into the story as various characters to move the story along in a fresh and exciting manner. Destined to be a new classic in The New Ev-erett Theatre repertoire! runs 11/23-12/9. The New Everett Theatre, 2911 Colby Ave, Everett. Tickets: $10-$20. 425-258-6766; www.everetttheatre.org

“all i Want For Whatever” - The sing-ers of Diverse Harmony visit Aunt Arnaldo! in this one-act Generic Non-Denomina-tional Holiday musical dinner show. Drag chanteuse Arnaldo! has wowed audiences in appearances with the Seattle Men’s Chorus and in solo cabarets, most recently at The Duplex in New York City. In the elegant Crepe de Paris Restaurant, you’ll be treated to a three-course dinner and a show quite dif-ferent from any Diverse Harmony has ever performed. Diverse Harmony and Arnaldo!, together on stage at last! runs 11/29 & 11/30. Tickets: $65. Crepe de Paris Restau-rant, 1333 5th Ave, Seattle. 206-623-4111; www.diverseharmony.org

“Back home again: a John denver holiday concert” - From the creators of It Ain’t Nothing But the Blues and Fire on the Mountain comes a holiday concert special featuring the music of John Denver, one of our most beloved singer/songwriters. “Back Home Again” features modern and tradi-tional Christmas carols, as well as some of John Denver’s most memorable hits, in-cluding “Thank God I’m a Country Boy,” “Grandma’s Feather Bed,” and, of course, “Back Home Again.” A perfect entertain-ment for family and friends, “Back Home Again” will take you to a place where life is sweet and full of promise. Seattle’s Dan Wheetman brings a winning authenticity to the concert - for seven years, he was a member of Denver’s band. The LA Times wrote: “Back Home Again” has the linger-ing glow of an instant holiday classic. runs 12/5-12/24. Seattle Repertory Theatre, Bagley Wright Theatre, 155 Mercer St, Se-

attle. Tickets: $15 to $64. 206-443-2222; www.seattlerep.org

“the Best christmas Pageant ever” - As the infamous Herdman clan take over the church pageant, everyone’s traditional no-tion of Christmas are challenged. See how a story can transform us all, even when told by a misfit group of kids in bedsheets. runs 12/6-12/24. Seattle Public Theater at the Bathhouse, 7312 W Greenlake Dr N, Seat-tle. Tickets: $24-adults; $20-seniors (65+); $15-youth (-25). 206-524-1300; www.se-attlepublictheater.org

“Black nativity: a Gospel song Play” - Directed by Jacqueline Moscou and cho-reographed by Kabby Mitchell III, “Black Nativity” is a celebration of faith, expressed through exuberant performances of song, story and dance, reaching audiences of all ages, backgrounds and beliefs. The first act of “Black Nativity” retells the Christ-mas story through the words of the great American poet, Langston Hughes. In the second act, Intiman is transformed into a joyous “nondenominational church” pre-sided over by Pastor Patrinell Wright and the Reverend Dr. Samuel B. McKinney. The production features gospel performances by the Total Experience Gospel Choir and the Black Nativity Choir, modern and tra-ditional choreography performed by an en-semble of dancers, and an on-stage band. runs 11/28-12/28. Intiman Theatre, 201 Mercer St, Seattle. Tickets: $10 to $42. 206-269-1900; www.intiman.org

“a child’s christmas in Wales” - Stone Soup Theatre presents their adaptation of Dylan Thomas’ exquisite and magical memoir of his childhood Christmas. runs 12/7-12/23. Stone Soup Theatre, 4035 Stone Way N, Seattle. Tickets: $14-general; $10-group and family rate (4 or more peo-ple). 206-633-1883.

“christmas on the red eye!” - It’s that time of year again ... time to head home for the holidays! And this airplane has more than a little drag, as the Snow Sisters take flight in an all-new musical comedy about the true meaning of Christmas, and fam-ily! Always crude and always entertaining, these flight attendants deliver extra help-ings of laughs and leave the lip-syncing on the tarmac (that doesn’t mean they can sing either). And in the true spirit of the season, canned food will be collected at the door and all proceeds go to charity, This show is meant for an ADULT AUDIENCE ONLY. runs 12/8 onLY @ 8pm. KTUB The-ater, 348 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland. Tickets: $7 (suggested donation). www.christma-sontheredeye.com. Presented by Dream-catcher Productions.

“the dina martina christmas show!” - Get ready for the most hilarious and wonder-fully bizarre holiday gift ever. A perennial favorite of the likes of John Waters, Marga-ret Cho, John Cameron Mitchell and Kids in the Hall’s Scott Thompson, Dina Martina’s shows have long been a favorite holiday tra-dition for those who want something other than the usual holiday fare. Brimming with

presents atDIMI TR IOU ʼS

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Chick Corea w/ Hubert Laws,

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Mike Stern Band with Dave Weckl,

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December 6-9Fusion Guitarist

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Ain’t Misbehavin’ featuring

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One show each night at 7:30pm.

Taj Mahal Trio November 23-25

Two shows each night7:30pm and 9:30pm

Moutin Reunion Quartet

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Beatlejazz featuring Dave Kikoski & Brian Melvin December 4-5Jazz Trio Plays Beatles Classics

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Black Nativity

18 Seattle Gay News November 23, 2007 Celebrating 34 Years!

botched carols, ungraceful dances, over-burned costumes and truly bizarre audience gifts, this ALL NEW (including brand-new video) holiday extravaganza guarantees Dina Martina’s side-splitting blend of low-brow, top-notch comedy and near-acid-trip surrealism. runs 11/23-12/31 @ 8pm. Re-bar, 1114 Howell St, Seattle. Tickets: $20. Must be 21 or over. 206-325-6500; www.ticketwindowonline.com.

“the Farndale avenue housing estate townswomen’s Guild dramatic society’s Production of A christmas carol” - When the ladies of the Farndale Dramatic Society get their hands of A Christmas Carol, any-thing can happen, and does. Missing actors, an appearance by Santa and audience par-ticipation make it a night audience members will never forget! This hilarious play-with-in-a-play brings a comedic twist to the be-loved Dickens’ classic. runs 11/16-12/29. Taproot Theatre Company, 204 N 85th St, Seattle. Tickets: $26/$28 to $30/$33; stu-dent/senior $2 off discount. 206-781-9707; www.taproottheatre.org

“ham for the holidays: swine, Women and song!” - Seattle favorites Lisa Koch and Peggy Platt (aka Dos Fallopia) serve up another steamin’ portion of pork with “Ham for the Holidays: Swine, Women and Song!” “Swine” is the usual concoction of screwball characters: the tiny Sequim Gay Men’s Chorus sing with GLBTQ pride; Sister Mary Agnes offers her new course, “Shakespeare for Dummies;” country su-perstars, The Spudds, perform Mama’s vi-sionary blending of Gone With the Wind and It’s a Wonderful Life - a work called “It’s a Wonderful Wind;” and George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Hillary Clinton are celeb-rity contestants on the game show, “Are You Smarter Than the President.” Directed by Kit Harris, and featuring Andrew Tasakos and D.J. Gommels. NOTICE: No hams are ever harmed during the production of this show.... runs 11/28-12/30. Theatre Off-Jackson, 409 7th Ave S., Seattle. Tickets: $20 to $23; $3 off for senior/student/TPS/equity with ID. 206-325-6500; www.tick-etwindowonline.com

“it’s a Wonderful Life” - Town Hall and Seattle Radio Theatre present a live, one-hour radio production of “It’s A Won-derful Life,” complete with live music and sound effects, and a cast featuring John

Curley, Tracey Conway, Steve Wilson, Bill Stainton, Greg Palmer, Pat Cashman, Chris Wedes (J.P. Patches), and Jim Dever. runs Friday, 12/7 onLY @ 8pm. Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave @ Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: $13-adv general/$15 at the door; $10-adv student/senior/Town Hall members/$14 at the door; $5-12 & under. 206-652-4255; www.townhallseattle.org

“Jersey Boys” - Broadway’s smash hit, is the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Sea-sons and how a group of blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks became one of the biggest American pop music sen-sations of all time. They wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide - all before they were thirty. It features their hit songs, including “Sherry,” “Big girls don’t Cry,” “Rag Doll,” “Oh, What a Night” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You.” runs 12/5-1/12. 5th Avenue Theatre, 1308 5th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $28-$88. 206-625-1900; 800-5TH-4TIX; www.5thavenue.org; or in person at the box office.

presents.com

“meet me in st. Louis” - Based on the heart-warming movie starring Judy Gar-land, “Meet Me in St. Louis” is a rare trea-sure in the musical theater world. Join the Smith family (Esther, Tootie, Grandpa, et al.) at the 1904 World’s Fair, and see how their love and respect for each other is tem-pered with the genuine humor that can only be generated by such a special family. Like the 1944 film, the stage version features a

magical score of memorable musical num-bers, including “The Boy Next Door,” “The Trolley Song,” “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and several songs created especially for the strage version of this cel-ebrated family classic. runs 11/30-12/16. Tacoma Musical Playhouse, 7116 6th Ave, Tacoma. Tickets: $23-adults; $21-seniors (60+), students/military; $16-children (12 & under). 253-565-6867; www.tmp.org

“mrs. Bob cratchit’s Wild christ-mas Binge” - Laugh that holiday stress into oblivion at Burien Little Theatre with Christopher Durang’s affectionate parody of everyone’s favorite Christmas stories. In Durang’s playful take on Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, Scrooge’s journey to re-demption is torpedoed by an out-of-control Mrs. Cratchit, who has had enough of all of the suffering in her life. Not suitable for au-dience members ages 10 and younger due to mature themes. runs 11/23-12/16. Theater in the Burien Community Center, 4th Ave SW & SW 146th St, Burien. Tickets: $18 & $15; except $5 on Five Buck Friday, 11/30. 206-242-5180; www.burienlittletheatre.com

“the nutcracker” - The International Ballet Theatre’s production is extraordi-nary, preserving the original style and char-acter of the ballet as it was first created by Tchaikovsky and Petipa in St Petersburg in 1892. runs 12/7 @ 7:30pm, 12/8 @ 2pm & 7:30pm, 12/9 @ 2pm. Kirkland Perfor-mance Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland. Tickets: $45-adults; $35-students/seniors. 425-893-9900; www.kpcenter.org

“the nutcracker” - The Pacific North-west Ballet’s “Nutcracker” has been daz-zling the young and the young-at-heart each holiday season for 24 years. Treat your fam-ily and friends to the memories and magic of PNB’s inimitable “Nutcracker.” Created by PNB Founding Artistic Director Kent Stowell and world-famous children’s author and illustrator Maurice Sendak (Where the Wild Things Are), “Nutcracker’s” brilliant blend of costumes, sets and choreography creates a magical storybook world enjoyed by children and adults alike. PNB’s master-ful holiday production is the highlight of the holidays. runs 11/23-12/29. Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, 321 Mercer St, Seattle. Tick-ets: $20-$115. 206-441-2424; www.pnb.org.; in person at the PNB Box Office, 301 Mercer St; 206-292-ARTS; www.ticket-master.com

“o’henry’s the Gifts of the magi” - A musical version of the classic O. Henry story about a young married couple, flat broke, but rich in love. runs 12/5-12/23. ArtsWest, 4711 California Ave SW, Seattle. Tickets: $32; $10-under 25. 206-938-0339; www.artswest.org

“Joseph and the amazing technicolor dreamcoat” - The Biblical saga of Joseph and his coat of many colors comes to vibrant life in this delightful musical parable. Jo-seph is a boy blessed with prophetic dreams, and his father’s favorite son. When he is sold into slavery by his jealous brothers and taken to Egypt, Joseph endures a series of adventures in which his spirit and humanity are continually challenged. But Joseph is a dreamer and his dreams hold the key to free-dom; for himself and his family. Memorable characters, and lots of adventures make this an ideal holiday musical of forgiveness and redemption as Joseph embarks on his excit-ing journey from pauper to prince. runs 11/16-12/16. The Driftwood Players, 950 Main St, Edmonds. Tickets: $20-general; $17-seniors/students. 425-774-9600; www.driftwoodplayers.com

“KZoK Bob rivers show twisted christmas Party” - A night of non-tradi-tional holiday shenanigans. KZOK’s Bob Rivers Show brings together a multi-gener-ational lineup of talent that is sure to shake those holiday blues and keep you rocking into the New Year. “Twisted Christmas” has it all... classic rock, contemporary comedy, magicians, a question and answer session with the Bob Rivers Show and MORE! runs 12/13 onLY @ 7:30pm. Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St, Seattle. Tickets: $30-$55. 206-292-ARTS; Ticketmaster out-lets; www.theparamount.com; Paramount Theatre box office.

“Land of the sweets: the Burlesque nutcracker” - After four standing-room only shows last year, Lily Verlaine and jas-per McCann are back with the holiday show that’s jollier than ever! A spectacle of ecdy-siastic pageanty, “Land of the Sweets” sets the Nutcracker to a swing-era soundtrack and gives the ballet a bawdy makeover. Featuring an all-star cast from Seattle’s Bur-lesque A-list, including Miss Indigo Blue, Kitten La rue, The Swedish Housewife, Babette La Fave, Waxie Moon, Wes Brock-bank and Lily Verlaine. runs 12/18, 12/19 & 12/20 @ 7pm (17+) & 10pm (21+). The Triple Door, 216 Union St, Seattle. Tickets: $23-adv/$25 day-of-show. 206-838-4333; www.tripledoor.com

“Love is Love” - This new musical con-ceived and directed by Maartin Charnin (co-creator of Annie) and presented by Village

Theatre follows the stories of 12 unique women as they grap-ple with the myster-ies and complica-tions of love. “Love is Love” is presented on a simple and ele-gant set as a musical revue. The musical numbers and mono-logues spotlight different aspects of love, addressing that elusive feel-ing in a compelling manner - from the undeniable flutter of love at first sight to

the responsibilities of keeping love alive. runs 11/29-12/16. First Stage Theatre, 120 Front St, Issaquah. Tickets: $20 to $25. 425-392-2202; www.villagetheatre.org

“martini Brothers’ (Posthumous) holiday showcase.” The Martini Broth-ers’ death defying holiday showcase (a spectacle of daredevil entertainments and holiday cheer) has enthralled audiences for years with their flaming edge-of-your-seat holiday mayhem. This year, however, something has gone awry at the last tech-nical rehearsal and the Martini’s explosive finale finally gets the best of them. Three intrepid and bumbling fellows attempt to re-create the extravaganza with a little help from the audience. This fun, fast-paced and all-ages performance takes on dozens of popular Christmas shows, stories and tradi-tions to create a new holiday extravaganza complete with singing, dancing, audience participation and puppets. runs thurs/Fri 11/29-12/21 @ 8pm. Historic University Theater, 5519 University Way NE, Seattle. Tickets: $10. 206-352-8291; www.wingit-

“Peter Pan” - “All children, except one, grow up.” More than a century ago, J.M. Barrie launched one of the most famous and enduring classics of children’s literature with this line. Using Barrie’s beautiful, but little known prose, Book-It Repertory The-atre is excited to bring a fresh look at this beloved children’s tale this winter. runs 11/27-12/23. Center House Theatre, Seattle Center, Seattle. Tickets: $15 to $32 (open-ing night $40). 206-216-0833; www.book-it.org

“the santaland diaries” - For those who like a little spice with their Christmas sugar, this hilarious one-person play written by David Sedaris chronicles a man’s experi-ence working as an elf in Macy’s Santaland. Sedaris is a genuine American voice - witty, sardonic and unpredictable, mercilessly cut-ting through the Christmas spirit to point out what crazy things we do as human beings during the holidays. (For mature elves only.) runs 11/29-12/24. Seattle Public Theater at the Bathhouse, 7312 W Greenlake Dr N, Seattle. Tickets: $24-adults; $20-seniors (65+); $15-youth (-25). 206-524-1300; www.seattlepublictheater.org.

“the santaland diaries” - Strap on your pointy snowshoes,

sharpen those candy canes and join us for this locally-produced rendition of David Sedaris’ “Santaland Diaries.” A sardonic, merrily subversive tale, Sedaris’ humor-ous and acerbic account of working as an elf at Macy’s in Manhattan has become an “anti-holiday” cult classic. runs 12/15 @ 8pm. (Not recommended for youth under 16.) Tickets: $24-adults; $21.50-seniors; $10-youth. Kirkland Performance Center, 350 Kirkland Ave, Kirkland. 425-893-9900; www.kpcenter.org

“short stories Live: tradition, With an edge” - Seattle favorite John Aylward reads Read Ryder nails the Cleveland Street Kid; local historian and raconteur Paul Dorpat intones O. Henry’s Gift of the Magi; and Ju-lie Briskman takes on William Trevor’s An-other Christmas - a corrosive little antidote for the season. Presented by ACT Theatre. runs sunday, 12/23 onLY @ 4pm. Town Hall, 1119 8th Ave @ Seneca St, Seattle. Tickets: $15-adv general/$18 at the door; $13-adv Town Hall members/$15 at the door. 800-838-3006; www.brownpapertick-ets.com

“striking 12” - A cross between a rock concert and a holiday show (for those who aren’t sure if they even like holiday shows). Featuring an eclectic score by NYC’s GrooveLily that combines pop, rock, jazz and more. runs 12/14 & 12/15. Capitol Hill Arts Center, 1621 12th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $25 (before 12/1) to $75. 800-838-3006.

“uncle mike ruins christmas” - A very unsilent night from the little elves behind Jet City Improv. “He IS the naughty list.” runs saturdays 11/11-12/22 @ 12:30am (30 minutes past midnight). Historic Uni-versity Theater, 5519 University Way NE, Seattle. Tickets: $8 at the door 1/2 hour be-fore showtime. 206-352-8291; www.wing-itpresents.com

“Whistle down the Wind” - The 5th Avenue Theatre presents the U.S. premiere touring production of “Andrew Lloyd Web-ber’s best show since The Phantom of the Opera.” (London Daily Telegraph). Featur-ing a host of award-winning songs including the Boyzone smash hit “No Matter What,” “Whistle Down the Wind” tells the story of a young Louisiana girl who finds a mysteri-ous stranger hiding in her barn. When she asks his identity, the first words he utters are “Jesus Christ,” and it’s as if all her prayers have been answered. While the townspeo-ple are determined to find the escaped felon, she and her friends vow to protect him from the outside world. runs 11/13-12/2. The 5th Avenue Theatre, 1308 5th Ave, Seattle. Tickets: $20-$77. 206-625-1900; 800-5TH-4TIX; www.5thavenue.org; or in person at the box office.

Love is Love

19Seattle Gay NewsNovember 23, 2007SGN Holiday Gift Guide