Our music critics have already chosen the 19 best concerts in Seattle this week, but now it's our arts critics' turn. Here are their picks for the best events in every genre—from a civic talk on What Every American Should Know to the free, popular Sculptured Dance show, and from a Twin Peaks drag show to Pink Party Prime. See them all below, and find even more events on our complete Things To Do calendar.

Get all this and more on the free Stranger Things To Do mobile app—available now on the App Store and Google Play.


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MONDAY-SUNDAY

FILM

70mm Film Festival
Put down your phone and surrender to the splendor of actually-epic-scale cinema in the cathedral that is the Cinerama. Not much unites the films in this 10-day festival other than a commitment to MAGNITUDE, but several are essential viewing. I know you’ve heard it before, but I’ll say it again: Seeing a film in a darkened theater with strangers is a secular sacrament. The fact that you can't pause, talk, text, or tweet until it's over is a feature. Please enjoy it while it's still available. (And if you must pick one, the answer is always Lawrence of Arabia—a film that couldn’t be more timely.) SEAN NELSON
GEEK & GAMING

Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor
When the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, was buried, he wasn't entirely alone—less than a mile from his mausoleum stood a flock of life-size terracotta warriors, offering protection for the afterlife. Eventually they were slowly swallowed by the earth, and went unnoticed for thousands of years...until 1974, when they were rediscovered by local farmers. Since then, a few of the warriors have been on tour (The British Museum in London had its best attendance in 2008, when 12 of the figures and assorted artifacts were displayed there) and now, some of them are at the Pacific Science Center. It's a great chance to learn a little history while observing large, unique, and very old (210 BCE) sculptures.
This exhibit closes next Monday.

TUESDAY-SATURDAY

ART

Einar & Jamex de la Torre
Sibling duo Einar and Jamex de la Torre are Mexican artists who "juxtapose popular and religious icons and combine elements from the arts' and the arts & crafts' worlds," and in this show they'll exhibit their (often eerie and ominous) works in glass as well as lenticulars: prints that warp and shift depending on the viewing angle.
This exhibit closes on Saturday.

Martin Lewis
View the work of Australian-born artist Martin Lewis, who worked largely with intaglio-style prints to chronicle urban and suburban New York life in the twentieth century.
This exhibit closes on Saturday.

Reduction Woodcut Masters (Contemporary Department)
See a number of examples of reduction woodcuts—essentially, layered relief prints that often have rich, deep colors and complicated patterns.
This exhibit closes on Saturday.

WEDNESDAY

COMMUNITY

What Every American Should Know
Brush up on your civics as prominent Seattle thinkers and cultural figures share their top 10 list of what they think all Americans should know. Panelists include the Stranger's own Charles Mudede, spoken-word artist Ebo Barton, rapper Jamil Suleman, and activist Serafina Day. Eric Liu of Citizen University will moderate, and you'll be invited to list your own top 10 via tweet. This SPL event will be co-presented with The Aspen Institute, Citizenship and American Identity Program and Citizen University.

FOOD & DRINK

La Spiga's Porchetta Feast
For a mere $35, you can join Osteria La Spiga for their end of summer porchetta feast. Porchetta, for the uninitiated, is a pork belly wrapped around a pork tenderloin and roasted for several hours. It is an opulently sensual experience, but it is also a huge pain in the ass to make yourself. Like, you only do it if Jesus was born that day or you're giving thanks for all the land we stole from indigenous Americans. La Spiga, however, is graciously doing it for you, and doing it on a day you don't have to spend with your terrible Republican relatives. Join them on their lovely patio for "freshly roasted porchetta, house mixed salad, a medley of vegetables, roasted potatoes, and piadina romagnola (Italian flatbread)." TOBIAS COUGHLIN-BOGUE

PERFORMANCE

The Shadow Council
The "mudpie lobbed into the halls of power" known as Brett Hamil's Seattle Process show has been so successful that it now has a spin-off: the Shadow Council's panel will lead the "people's legislative body" to vote on proposals, which will be submitted afterwards to elected officials.

READINGS & TALKS

Caroline Gerdes
Twelve years ago, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. The Bush administration's slow, dysfunctional, and frankly racist response increased the pain and anguish of the communities affected by the disaster and flooded the rest of the nation with horror stories. I'll never forget the photos of bodies floating down the street, of National Guardsmen training their rifles on citizens who they were supposed to be saving, of "Xs" representing the dead spray-painted on houses, and the reports of reporters shitting in the hallways of the Superdome. We're still not done sifting through the wreckage, as attested by journalist Caroline Gerdes's new book, An Oral History of the New Orleans Ninth Ward. If you weren't of thinking age during Katrina, go learn the people's history of this thing. If you were, go add unto your stores of memory. RICH SMITH

WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY

ART

Deborah Faye Lawrence
In 2014, Jen Graves wrote, "Lifelong, die-hard leftist Deborah Faye Lawrence tends her politics like a gardener and a folksinger: with her hands and her voice. The Seattle collage artist has an alter ego named Dee Dee, a high-foreheaded pre-modern creature who wreaks subversion across Lawrence's brightly cobbled together landscapes. Together they commandeer and remake maps, histories, and laws written and unwritten in bravura performances—but the means couldn't be more humble, just bits of paper cut and glued to form mandalas, new galaxies." This new exhibit will feature works in which Deborah Faye Lawrence (or Dee Dee) will use "satirical collage as a political and psychological tool."

WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY

PERFORMANCE

Much Better
What if you could take one drug to optimize your life and make you a better robot worker person? That's the emotional and cultural terrain Elisabeth Frankel explores in this premiere of Much Better, which was a semifinalist at this year's Eugene O’Neill Playwrights Conference. A brand-new New York–based theater company called Really Really is producing the show—its first—right here in Seattle. RICH SMITH

THURSDAY

ART

Coast Salish Art of Central Puget Sound: Lecture Series
Lydia Sigo (curator and archivist of the Suquamish Museum) will examine "historical utilitarian art from tribes around the Puget Sound area," and the three lectures in the series will focus on stone, textile weaving, and carving/woodworking.

PERFORMANCE

Sculptured Dance
Huge crowds are expected for this year's Summer at SAM showcase of local dancers in site-specific pieces, so show up early—even RSVPing isn't a guarantee of a spot. But do show up! Though the sheer number of people at this event might feel overwhelming, think of it as an art walk but for dance, a civic event where you can snack around at food trucks, have a picnic, and take in whatever you want to on your terms. There will be plenty of goodness to take in. Stranger Genius Award nominee Noelani Pantastico, Dani Tirrell, Eva Stone, and Price Suddarth have all choreographed brand-new pieces, which will be performed by dancers from Pacific Northwest Ballet, Au Collective, and the YC. SAM pairs each company with a sculpture from the Olympic Sculpture Park, such as Richard Serra's Wake or Alexander Calder's Eagle. Over the course of the evening, they run through each routine a couple times, so make sure to pick at least two you absolutely want to see and prioritize those. Last year, the whole thing humanized contemporary dance artists and the art in a way that observing their grace-in-motion from a distance never quite does. I expect the same this year. RICH SMITH

QUEER

Dungeons & Drag Queens: A Live Comedy Adventure
Gird your loins for PAX weekend with a majestically strange new comedy show. Four local drag queens gather together to play a D&D adventure, DMed by yours truly live onstage—and neither the players nor the audience will have any clue what’s in store for them. Who thought it was a good idea to give Harlotte O’Scara a short bow? Also in the party is Butylene O’Kipple as a Tiefling charlatan, Fraya Love playing as a trident-wielding Water Genasi Cleric, and Arson Nicki with a spell called “Tasha’s Hideous Laughter,” which certainly checks out. It’s drag queens unleashed at last with magic, fantasy, and no shortage of role-play. MATT BAUME

READINGS & TALKS

Refined Reads Book Club
Refined Reads, The University Book Store's new book club in partnership with KOMO's Seattle Refined, will discuss Rachel Khong's Goodbye, Vitamin. The novel is told in the form of a 30-year-old woman's diary, chronicling her return to her childhood home after quitting her job and breaking off her engagement. Refined Reads members will get the chance to participate in on-camera discussions for the show.

THURSDAY-SATURDAY

ART

Patrick Kelly
See dark, oily, and suggestive drawings made from layers of black graphite by artist Patrick Kelly.
This exhibit closes Saturday.

Seven Bodies: New Members' Show
Seven new members of SOIL Gallery (Ko Kirk Yamahira, Jono Vaughan, Markel Uriu, Philippe Hyojung Kim, Leon Finley, Emily Counts, and Colleen RJC Bratton) will explore notions of the body in relation to themes of community and connection.
This exhibit closes Saturday.

FRIDAY

PERFORMANCE

Fish in the Percolator: A Twin Peaks Drag Show
Presented and hosted by Jenna St. Croix, Fish in the Percolator will play on Twin Peaks themes, characters, and novelties for a night of North Bend drag. The Lynch-loving queens of the evening will include Princezz Monochokeme as co-host, Butylene O'Kipple, Old Witch, Mr. Dr. Professor MD, Irene Dubois, Mona Real, and Stacey Starstruck.

READINGS & TALKS

Nate Dern
Funny or Die senior writer Nate Dern will discuss his new book, Not Quite a Genius, a collection of essays and stories about everything from Charles Manson to a spin class taught by Walt Whitman. Dern will also be sticking around after the talk to sign copies of the book.

FRIDAY-SUNDAY

PERFORMANCE

Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike
Lamplight Productions presents the 2013 Tony Award-winning comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, a Chekhov-inspired (but timely!) family quibble.

SATURDAY

QUEER

ArtHaus 4.0: Uh Oh! Danger!
ArtHaus is back and better than ever in its fourth season. Last season's losers, the House of Urchin, will preside over the festivities, with a drag competition between Light Haus and Amanda Black & Cannoli, hosted by Uh Oh and special guest Mona Real, special performances by Strawberry Shartcake, Jenna St. Croix, and Bubba, and DJs holding it down between sets.

Bacon Strip
The drag company Bacon Strip, helmed by Sylvia O'Stayformore and Mizz Honey Bucket, sets a gaggle of mischievous queens to shocking shenanigans every month. On Saturday, see Sci Fi Queens In Space.

Pink Party Prime 9
This is it: the boss fight of queer geek parties, and the real reason we look forward to PAX every year. Relax in the "Gayming Lounge" with geek-themed drink specials, a massive cosplay contest with serious cash prizes, and dancing all night long. No PAX badge required.

SUNDAY

COMMUNITY & CIVICS

Sparklefest 2017 at Old Chaser Farm
Bar Ferdinand's second annual wine festival is back, and once again features multiple vendors, food, and games. The event takes place at the lush and pastoral Old Chaser Farm on Vashon.

Get all this and more on the free Stranger Things To Do mobile app—available now on the App Store and Google Play.