Howe Gelb
(LIVE MUSIC) Howe Gelb released his first solo cassette, Incidental Music, in 1983. Since then, either solo, with Giant Sand, or with OP8, Howe has put out a minimum of one album annually: Followers of his work have been witness to a prolific and impressive career. Consistent with Howe's other solo work, his latest record, Confluence, is full and atmospheric--founded in spare acoustic guitar and then textured by additional instrumentation to include "warbling Casio," pedal steel, and Wurlitzer piano. But Gelb's wet, sandy voice is his work's true center. According to the Crocodile, Gelb will play this show without any accompaniment, which should allow his cracked, gorgeous lyricism to carry the evening. JEFF DeROCHE
Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave, 441-5611, 9:30 pm, $12.
Stray
(THEATER) Heidi Schreck drew raves for her performances as the aspiring and probably doomed actress Nina in Chekhov's The Seagull and the frustrated, ambitious title character of Ibsen's Hedda Gabler--a one-two punch of classic roles. But she's also writing her own works: Stray was developed in collaboration with the cast and other company members of Printer's Devil Theatre. It's about a young woman nearing 30 who wants to start her life over in a new town--only her pregnant younger sister follows her out. As the older sister gets embroiled in a lesbian love triangle, the pregnant sister's boyfriend shows up and the parents-to-be start taking over the house. But the play is likely to be much less straightforward than this summary of the plot; Schreck's writing is filled with off-kilter imagery, roundabout narratives, and a sweet, yearning sense of humor. BRET FETZER
New City Theater, First Christian Church, 1632 Broadway, Third Floor, 860-7163. Wed-Sat at 8; Wed pay-what-you-can, Thurs $10, Fri-Sat $12. Through June 30.
Why? Why? Why?
(SHADOW PUPPETS) Imagine entering a large white box filled with pillows, on which you will lounge like an Arabian potentate, packed tightly in with other warm, sprawling human bodies, while all around you--and I mean all around you: all four walls and the ceiling--the most dirty, squalid, and utterly obscene stories are told through a combination of delicately cut paper puppets and the silhouettes of full-sized naked people. Imagine that all these tawdry, comic tales are taken straight from the depths of Greek mythology, giving them the respectable patina of "culture." Why, you've just imagined Why? Why? Why?, the latest shadow puppet extravaganza from the twisty mind of Scot Augustson, playwright and puppetmaster, the evil genius behind Sgt. Rigsby & His Amazing Silhouettes. Fans of his perverse work will delight at being truly immersed in his imagination. BRET FETZER
Consolidated Works, 410 Terry Ave N, 381-3218. Fri-Sat at 8 & 10:30 pm; $14 general, $12 members. Through June 23.
PhenomANON
(ART) In a way, there's nothing purer than guerrilla art: acts of art imposed on our everyday lives, often anonymous, often political, often with great good humor. It encompasses all manner of the visible, such as bumper stickers, amended billboards, pamphlets--anything that's out there where we're most likely to see it. The IMC has taken the strange step of legitimizing (gallery-izing?) examples of this stealth project from 1980 until now; the exhibition includes a "free wall" for viewers to stencil and spray paint their own guerrilla work into life. Participants include PARS, Artists for a Work Free America, the Guerrilla Girls (the grand high priestesses of art terrorism), and other artists you've probably never heard of. Brave! Funny! Art! EMILY HALL
Independent Media Center, 1415 Third Ave, 262-0721. Through July 31. Opening and multimedia arts festival Sat June 9, 2-10 pm.
Deming Logging Show
(WOOD) Every year I convince one friend, preferably someone phobic about rural towns, to go to the Deming Logging Show. It's a rodeo in shadows, a macho vaudeville show celebrating a fading, rich, and controversial culture. For two days, June 9 and 10, you can see loggers compete with saws of all sizes and vintage: from bucking saws to custom-built monster chain saws. Watch burly men in short pants shimmy up greased cedar poles, roll logs in murky ponds, and back up Mack trucks around snakelike curves. You can eat cheap hot dogs, win a pig in a raffle, sit in the cab of a cobalt blue super crane, chat with the NRA.... The event benefits busted-up loggers and their families. I swear you'll have a good time. TRISHA READY
Log Show Grounds, 3295 Cedarville Rd, Bellingham, 360-592-3051, 11 am-4 pm, $6 general/$3 seniors & children under 12.
Seattle Animal Shelter's Furry 5K
(DOG RACE) Who doesn't love hundreds of cute dogs running around? Nobody, that's who. This compassionate/potentially hilarious event benefits the Seattle Animal Shelter's "Help the Animals" fund, providing veterinary care and food for sick, injured, or abused animals--most of them strays and some of them seized from violent asshole owners. The hour-long race--which will be timed with a high-tech computer chip attached to dog owners' shoes (fancy!)--will cover lots of ground throughout scenic Seward Park and along Lake Washington, which should give all participants plenty of opportunities to pant excitedly, tug at leashes, and sniff asses. It doesn't get any better than that. (Please: No females in heat, no puppies under six months, and no aggressive dogs. And everybody should be current on their vaccinations.) Fabulous prizes from corporate sponsors will be available for all sorts of categories; and if you don't have a dog, show up and join the chaos anyway! Tax-deductible donations and pet food donations will be happily accepted. Just... watch your step. MIN LIAO
Seward Park, 5900 Lake Washington Blvd S; 7-8:30 am registration, race starts at 9 am; pre-registration is $20/day-of registration is $25. Call 615-0820 or go to www.furry5K.com with questions or to pre-register.
Strange Fruit
(CABARET) First of all, don't call him a drag queen. This is not about wigs and makeup. This is about performance art. Capisce? "A drag queen is a stupid word for a person," Joey Arias once told Paper magazine. "I'm about singing and performing. Drag is my element. I'm an actor, doing my part. I call myself a 'she-male of the 21st century.'" For the next few weeks, we'll get to see the amazing Arias glow in his element with Strange Fruit, his loving homage to Billie Holiday in which Arias "channels" Holiday, performing her classics and talking between songs in a voice and manner that UNCANNILY mirrors the tragic chanteuse's (no, you don't understand--Joey Arias becomes Billie Holiday). While he's an A-list superstar among New York City's nightlife audiences, Seattle crowds rarely get the Joey Arias experience. His live shows are fun, sassy, and a testament to sheer fabulosity. MIN LIAO
Re-bar, 1114 E Howell St, 323-0388. Mon-Wed at 8; $15. Through June 20.
Colson Whitehead
(READING) Colson Whitehead's last book, The Intuitionist, told the story of a black elevator inspector whose nervous empathy with machines made her the focus of two warring philosophical factions. Set in the blank palette of "the future," the book had an allegorical beauty that carries over to the narrator of Whitehead's newest novel, John Henry Days. John Henry Days occurs around a festival celebrating the eponymous folk hero; the narrator is a "junketeer": a journalist who goes from event to event scamming free food and lodging. His passive pursuit of "a story" becomes the broken driving force of the narrative, which is interspersed with fractured myths about John Henry. Whitehead's a stylish writer, and echoes of Ralph Ellison's surreality are coupled here with a gift for perfect, powerful last lines. TRACI VOGEL
Elliott Bay Book Company, 101 S Main St, 624-6600, 7:30 pm, free (advance tickets at store).
Still Doing the Safety Dance
(FILM) Warren Etheridge, the Gilbert Gottfried of free Seattle movie passes, presents the fifth installment of Distinguishing Features, a series of screenings of locally produced films that you can't see elsewhere. Good man. Safety Dance is an alleged comedy that tells the story of the Air Apparents, a lip-synch group from the '80s that reunites in the 'oughts for a big contest. This is a total digression, but did you know that Allen Fawcett, host of the '80s lip-synch TV show Puttin' on the Hits, is in a SIFF movie? It's called Jackpot, and it shows next weekend. Fucking weird, right? SEAN NELSON
Seattle Art Museum, 100 University St, 654-3100, 7:30 pm, $7.
Ladybug Transistor
(LIVE MUSIC) Here's something inexplicably refreshing: bald-faced borrowing. With its retro-sounding orchestral sound, New York City's Ladybug Transistor joins bands such as the Shins, Of Montreal, and tonight's bill-mate Aislers Set as members of the indie-rock fan club passionately dedicated to slickly arranged, '60s-influenced, shimmering pop. None of these bands seems bent on reinventing the wheel here, rather, each aims simply to play the kind of music its members like to listen to the most. And that provides like-minded audiences with buoyant, memorable shows that are sure to put a smile on everyone's sunny face. What more could you ask for on a night such as this? KATHLEEN WILSON
Graceland, 109 Eastlake Ave E, 374-9492, 9:30 pm, $7.
Linda's Summer Movies
(OUTDOOR FILMS) A loaf of nachos, a jug of Weinhard's, and thou in the courtyard is all well and good, but add local treasure Jon Behrens' heroic film collection and you've got yourself a night on the town. Linda's fabulous summer movie series gets off to a rollicking start tonight with Classroom Classics, a program of short subjects that were designed to make the public-school youth of yesterday into the frightened, self-loathing, hygienically neurotic grownups they are today. Scary and hilarious. SEAN NELSON
Linda's, 707 E Pine, 325-1220, movies begin at dusk, free.
