In addition to supporting black-owned businesses and artists in Seattle, educating yourself through anti-racism resources, and donating to social justice causes, here are our picks for the best social distancing friendly things to do this week on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and other platformsâfrom the Seattle Jewish Film Festival to Speakeasy! with Callan Berry, and from Wa Na Wari's This Is WAK: A Virtual Post-Colonial Karaoke Jam to Juneteenth Week. Find even more events on our complete streaming events calendar and our resistance & solidarity calendar, and check back on Friday for a roundup of the best local virtual events this weekend.
Jump to: Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | All Week
MONDAY
COMMUNITYAnna Deavere Smith in Conversation with EW's Sarah Rodman
Ask questions live during this YouTube chat with MacArthur genius playwright and performer Anna Deavere Smith (who participated in the locally staged collaborative documentary play SEVEN in 2016 and A Rap on Race, which came to Seattle Rep in 2016). She'll be focusing on her currently streaming works Twilight: Los Angeles (the film version of her 1994 one-woman play on the 1992 Los Angeles riots, which will be aired on PBSâs Great Performances) and Notes from the Field (her 2018 film based on her play by the same name, which explores racial inequality in the justice system).
Good Planets are Hard to Find: 'Planet of the Apes'
Complex sociological themes run through this science-fiction classic about three astronauts marooned on a futuristic planet where apes rule and humans are slaves. The stunned trio discovers that these highly intellectual simians can both walk upright and talk. They have even established a class system and a political structure. The astronauts suddenly find themselves part of a devalued species, trapped and imprisoned by the apes. Watch the original 1976 film as part of MoPOP's new virtual movie series centered around environmental destruction and conservation.
The National - Live from Brooklyn
The National (an Ohio indie-rock band that Rich Smith has called "the musical equivalent of reveling in anxiety-depression, a mental condition common among urbanites") will play their new album High Violet live on YouTube, with all donations benefitting Red Hot, a pop culture-based nonprofit dedicated to fighting AIDS.
Stephanie Anne Johnson
Tacoma-bred R&B/soul artist Stephanie Anne Johnson (who was featured on the 2013 season of The Voice) will go live with support from #TacomaTogether, BLEACH TACOMA, and the Emergency Bandcast System to raise money for the Tacoma Mutual Aid Collective, which works with Sound Sound communities to "support resource, knowledge, and skill-sharing across our neighborhoods."
Waxahatchee
Tune in every Monday in June to watch Waxahatchee (the project of Alabama singer-songwriter Katie Crutchfield, "whose indie-rock style has a vaguely Liz Phair Exile in Guyville feel, while her lo-fi experimental-folk leanings are entirely of her own appeal," as Leilani Polk has written) perform each of her albums in full.Â
Min Jin Lee
National Book Award finalist Min Jin Lee is the author of Pachinko, a family saga set in Korea and Japan during the 20th century. Only the Seoul-born, Queens-raised writer's second novel, Pachinko was listed as one of the New York Times' Ten Best Books in 2017. Hear this literary luminary hold forth virtually on writing and life.
Virtual Event! Erica Bauermeister in conversation with Tara Conklin - House Lessons
As Bauermeister renovated a "trash-filled" house in Port Townsend, she discovered things about the "psychology of architecture" and the meaning of home, roots, and family. Hear her read from her book of essays, House Lessons, followed by a conversation with local writer Tara Conklin (The House Girl).
MONDAY & WEDNESDAY
BLACK LIVES MATTERAmerica In Black and Blue 2020, A PBS Newshour Weekend Special
With updated reporting from the original special that aired back in 2016, this program will feature interviews with key leaders and participants in the struggle for racial justice, accountability, and equity across the country, as well as voices from law enforcement.
TUESDAY
COMMUNITYThe Worldâs Largest Lesson Live
Millie Bobby Brown (aka Eleven from Stranger Things) and Sofia Carson (aka Evie from Descendants) will join UNICEF for an educational event on YouTube encouraging teens to "reimagine the world" post-COVID-19. Hosted by NBC News and MSNBC anchor Savannah Sellers, the live event will bring on leaders like United Nations Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed and the World Health Organization's Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove.
Opera Talks: American Opera
Seattle Opera dramaturg Jonathan Dean traces the history of American operas as they were presented on stage in Seattle. It's a rebroadcast of a conversation before the premiere of The (R)evolution of Steve Jobs.
Robert M. Gates with Pete Chiarelli: Exercise of Power
Former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates served under Presidents Bush and Obama and also directed the CIA. Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom. He belongs to another era. Tonight, he'll argue that the current state of our country is the result of the failure of political leaders to understand the complexity of American power, "its expansiveness, and its limitations," drawing from his book Exercise of Power: American Failures, Successes, And A New Path Forward In The Post-cold War World.
Write with Hugo House with Alma GarcĂa
Jack Straw Resident Alma GarcĂa will lead this free, multi-genre writing workshop for fiction, poetry, and nonfiction writers alike. Participants will be given a prompt, followed by an hour-long free-write, followed by breakout sessions.Â
TUESDAY-SUNDAY
FILMSeattle Jewish Film Festival
This annual film festival, which will take place virtually after having initially canceled due to COVID-19, explores and celebrates global Jewish and Israeli life, history, complexity, culture, and filmmaking. It showcases international, independent, and award-winning Jewish-themed and Israeli cinema, and the audience votes on their favorites. The opening film this year will be A Picture of His Life, which follows the daring nature photographer Amos Nachoum as he sets out to snap a photo of a polar bear while swimming next to it.
WEDNESDAY
COMMUNITYJuneteenth: Ijeoma Oluo in Conversation with Ahamefule Oluo
The Oluo siblings have immeasurably improved the minds and hearts of this city. In addition to acting and writing and creating tremendously successful pop operas, Ahamefule plays trumpet in the Stranger Genius Awardâwinning group Industrial Revelation. Ijeoma runs the Establishment and occasionally breaks our website with insightful commentary, as she did with her piece on Rachel Dolezal. If you want to learn to be even half as cool, thoughtful, creative, and politically engaged as these two are, then you should go hear them share their life stories. RICH SMITH
Fade to Black: Candyman Watch-party with Tony Todd
As part of its Fade to Black series, join Langston for a virtual watch party of Candyman, the 1992 chiller that casts Tony Todd as the terrifying bee-gargling specter. Todd himself will join the wonderfully dark-minded burlesque maven and host Isabella L. Price for a Q&A after the screening.
STEM: Virtual Wine Tasting
What's the science behind the transformation of grapes into wine? This live tasting, for which the Pacific Science Center recommends that you order two varietals from Eleven Winery for delivery or pickup, will get into it.
Virtual Planetarium Show: Astrobiology in the Solar System
Learn about the moons in our solar system and recent astronomy discoveries from Pacific Science Center educators, then go for a social distancing walk after dark to see if you can apply your newfangled knowledge.Â
The Royal Room Staycation Festival - American Beauty/Workingmans
On the 50th anniversary of the Grateful Dead albums Workingman's Dread, American Beauty, and Vintage Dead, hear members of the Golden Road and other special guests performing psychedelic covers in a prerecorded concert at the Royal Room.Â
This Is WAK: A Virtual Post-Colonial Karaoke Jam
Join a cathartic anti-racist virtual soiree and karaoke party featuring a playlist of cherished black songwriters and performers with the self-described "post-colonial conceptual karaoke collaborative" Weird Allan Kaprow, hosted by Central District black arts space Wa Na Wari.
The Vixen Presents: Black Girl Magic
Chicago-based drag queen the Vixen will head up this virtual variety show celebrating black talent from across the country, including all-stars like Asia O'Hara, Dida Ritz, Heidi N Closet, Honey Davenport, and Widow Vondu.Â
Wednesday Night Live: Dear Prudence LGTBQ Edition
Daniel Mallory Ortberg, Slate advice columnist (Dear Prudence) and founder of the much-missed The Toast, will answer LGBTQ-focused questions about relationships, home, work, and more on Facebook Live.Â
Seattle Police Out of Our Labor Council
As the Martin Luther King County Labor Council meets to vote on whether the Seattle Police Officers Guild can remain in our labor movement, District 3 DSA councilmember Kshama Sawant will host a rally calling for SPD's disaffiliation.
Seattle Labor Council (Downtown)
THURSDAY
BLACK LIVES MATTERCharleena Lyles Remembrance Vigil
On the third anniversary of the death of Charleena Lyles, a Sand Point resident who was shot by SPD, community members will hold a vigil honoring her memory and demanding justice.
Magnuson Park (Sand Point)
Dick's Celebrates Class of 2020
Check out a virtual slideshow of 2020 grad photos while you, a grad, enjoy a free hamburger or cheeseburger from Dick's Drive-In (available for cap and gown-clad people at every Dick's location through June 21).Â
The Round
Local musicians Katie Kuffel, Shaina Shepherd, and Dravus House will link up with spoken-word poet Kayla Kim and painter Suzi Spooner for an interactive roundtable discussion, followed by a post-show virtual party.
Support the Market!
Help ensure that Pike Place Market vendors come back strong post-COVID at this virtual fundraiser supporting the market's recovery campaign. They promise music, stories, and images of the market.
World Refugee Day Virtual Discussion
Participants of the International Rescue Committee in Seattle Youth Mentorship Program will share their experiences in this virtual discussion for World Refugee Day.
Motherload Virtual Community Screening and Q&A
The Cascade Bicycle Club presents a screening and post-film discussion of Motherload, a crowdsourced documentary about a new mother's quest to cope with the isolation of the digital age, its planetary impact, and how cargo bikes could be an antidote.Â
Nine Hats Wines Virtual Bingo
Order your Nine Hats Bingo Box (a parcel containing select Nine Hats wines and five or more bingo cards) and tune into a virtual bingo night.Â
Angel Olsen presents: Cosmic Streams
The Missouri-born singer-songwriter will lull you into a dream state with this performance of her album Half Way Home, recorded by Ashely Connor at the church at Echo Mountain Recording in Asheville, North Carolina. "A friend once dismissed her as the sort of vocalist who demands a reaction, and heâs not wrong, but her show-stopper of a voice fully earns it," wrote Kathy Fennessy. A portion of the proceeds from this stream will be going to YWCA Asheville, whose mission is to "eliminate racism, empower women, and promote peace, justice, freedom, and dignity for all."
Live on KEXP at Home: Phoebe Bridgers
Cinematically somber singer-songwriter Phoebe Bridgers will play live on KEXP's YouTube channel.Â
Nectar Virtual Concert Series presents: All Star Opera
Multi-piece hip-hop ensemble and artist collective All Star Opera will perform live on Nectar's YouTube channel. Pay what you can;Â a portion of proceeds will go to Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County.Â
R. Strauss Also sprach Zarathustra
Watch a free rebroadcast of the Seattle Symphony performing the iconic Richard Strauss work Also Sprach Zarathustra, originally recorded in September of 2019.
Yacouba Sissoko
Discover West African oral traditions at this livestreamed concert with master kora player Yacouba Sissoko. Presented by Seattle Sacred Music & Art and Seattle Theatre Group.Â
Speakeasy!
Former Stranger staffer Callan Berry, the creator of Police Reports Illustrated and a person who is good at making cocktails, will teach you how to mix up a boozy concoction and draw a little comic every other Thursday. He'll also answer your most pressing questions.
Max Brooks Discusses 'Devolution'
Max Brooks, the author of Devolution: A Firsthand Account of the Rainier Sasquatch Massacre, will join Seattle Public Libraries for a chat about "Sasquatch, zombies, and other monsters."
Michael Connelly: Fair Warning
Bestselling mystery writer Michael Connelly will read from his new novel about the exploits of Jack McEvoy, a journalist who's bent on tracking down a serial killer slowly emerging from under the radar. He'll be joined in conversation with local author Andrea Dunlop (We Came Here to Forget).Â
Shin Yu Pai's "EnsĆ: A Book Celebration
Hear local author Shin Yu Pa read from new poetry collection EnsĆ, which includes reflection on motherhood and immigration. She'll be joined by kora player and griot-trained jeli (aka a West African storyteller) Ibrahim Arsalan.Â
ALL WEEK
BLACK LIVES MATTERJuneteenth Week 2020
For a whole week on Facebook, celebrate black American history and culture with Black Lives Matter Seattle-King County and FW Black Collective. The kid-friendly events include a virtual watch party of the 2016 documentary 13th, guided meditations, DJ sets, a food-related event with James Beard Award-winning Chef Edouardo Jordan, raffles, and more.
Seattle International Dance Festival
In lieu of the Khambatta Dance Company's annual in-person festival, this two-week-long virtual event will bring interviews, full-length performance videos, behind-the-scenes looks, and more to your computer screen. All the videos (including performances from Sweden's Virpi Pahkinen Dance and a Seattle spotlight with local dancers Hope Goldman, Leah Mann, Lucie Baker, Sojung Lim, Elise Beers, and Cameo Lethem) have been uploaded, so you can watch them in whatever order you please.Â
Northwest Fine Arts Competition Virtual Show
Check out work by over 20 Northwest visual artists (including Jurorsâ Choice winner Martha Thomas and others like Lauren Black, Lana Blinderman, Meg Carlson, and Marty Chakoian) at this virtual art exhibition. If you fall in love with a piece, you can buy it straight from the website.Â
