Art Beat: Ballet, a Grammy nominee guest, an author event, plus Driftwood tickets on sale now 

Happy early Mother’s Day to all the moms, or those who are in a mothering role. I hope you feel seen and celebrated this weekend.

Celebrate Mother’s Day weekend with the Olympic Ballet Theatre

Photo by Into Dust Photography

Saturday and Sunday, May 13 – 14

Edmonds Center for the Arts 

410 4th Ave. N., Edmonds

The Sleeping Beauty opens in a few days, on Mother’s Day weekend! Celebrate a special Mom in your life and treat her to this spectacular OBT production.

The story of The Sleeping Beauty offers fun entertainment for audiences of all ages and is perfect for the whole family. From the royal family and courtiers, to the beloved fairytale characters Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots and Bluebird, to kind fairies and evil witches, this production showcases magic, romance and the timeless beauty of classical ballet.

Enjoy gorgeous costumes, stunning sets by Jeanne Franz, Tchaikovsky’s beautiful score, and choreography by Mara Vinson and Oleg Gorboulev influenced by Marius Petipa. Get tickets for your mom here.

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Don’t miss three-time Grammy nominee Melanie DeMore 

Melanie DeMore

Vespers Service, Friday, May 12, 7-8 p.m.

Vocal Workshop, Saturday, May 13, 10-11:30 a.m.

Sunday Service, Sunday, May 14, 10-11 a.m.

Edmonds Unitarian Universalist Congregation

8109 224th St. S.W., Edmonds 

Melanie DeMore is a three-time Grammy-nominated singer/composer, choral conductor, music director and vocal activist who believes in the power of voices raised together. She will be coming to Edmonds the weekend of May 12 through 14 as a guest artist at the Edmonds Unitarian Universalist Congregation.

In her presentations, DeMore beautifully brings her participants together through her music and commentary. During her weekend in Edmonds, DeMore will facilitate a vocal workshop open to the public, as well as lead the Vespers and Sunday services with the Rev. Eric Kaminezky at the Edmonds Unitarian Universalist Congregation.

DeMore works with professional choirs and community groups and directs numerous choral organizations across the U.S, Canada and beyond. She is a featured presenter of SpeakOut! – The Institute for Social and Cultural Change, the Master Teaching Artist for Music at UC Berkeley/ CalPerformances, works with everyone from Baptists to Buddhists, and was a founding member of the Grammy-nominated ensemble, Linda Tillery and the Cultural Heritage Choir. She became music director for Obeah Opera by Nicole Brooks as part of the Luminato Festival in 2019. She is a charter member of Threshold Choirs, founded by Kate Munger and conducts song circles with an emphasis on the voice as a vessel for healing. In her own words: “A song can hold you up when there seems to be no ground beneath you.”

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Catch author Stephanie Kerschbaum at the Edmonds Bookshop during Art Walk

Stephanie Kerschbaum

Thursday, May 18, 6 p.m.

Edmonds Bookshop 

111 5th Ave. S., Edmonds

Edmonds Bookshop is pleased to announce an author event with Stephanie Kerschbaum on Thursday, May 18th at 6 p.m.  Kerschbaum is an associate professor in the Department of English at the University of Washington and author of Toward a New Rhetoric of Difference.  She will be discussing her latest book, Signs of Disability (December 2022 , NYU Press) in which she uses real people’s stories to open up a better understanding of disability and how it is perceived. Kerschbaum has been honored for her work in inclusion and accessibility, and more information about her can be found in this University of Washington news article.

“We see indications of disability everywhere: yellow diamond-shaped “deaf person in area” road signs, the telltale shapes of hearing aids, or white-tipped canes sweeping across footpaths. But even though the signs are ubiquitous, Stephanie L. Kerschbaum argues that disability may still not be perceived due to a process she terms “dis-attention.”’ (NYU Press Website)

The event will be in person at the Edmonds Bookshop, live-streamed on the Bookshop’s Facebook page, and also available to watch later.

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Get tickets to ‘Unnecessary Farce’

May 26 – June 11

Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. – Sundays at 2 p.m.

Wade James Theatre

950 Main St., Edmonds

Two cops. Three crooks. Eight doors. Go. In a cheap motel room, an embezzling mayor is supposed to meet with his female accountant, while in the room next-door, two undercover cops wait to catch the meeting on videotape. But there’s some confusion as to who’s in which room, who’s being videotaped, who’s taken the money, who’s hired a hitman and why the accountant keeps taking off her clothes. The play is written by Paul Slade Smith and directed by David Alan Morrison

Content warning: Unnecessary Farce contains adult language and mild adult situations including implications of sexual interactions, use of fake guns and use of adult attire (actors are at times in undergarments, but there is no nudity). This show is recommended for adults.

Run time: this production is anticipated to be two hours including a 15-minute intermission.

Get tickets here.

— By Elizabeth Murray

Photo by Brittany Gross

Elizabeth Murray is a freelance writer thankful to call Edmonds home. When she’s not busy wrangling her two kids (and husband), you can find her playing ukulele and singing with The Band LeLe.

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