Anticipation of Summer show at Gallery North

Cat on Green, Carmen Dance, and Roster Life, by Leanna Leitzke

Reception on Saturday, June 3, 3-5 p.m.

Gallery North

401 Main St., Edmonds

For the month of June 2023, Gallery North proudly announces Leanna Leitzke’s featured show: Anticipation of Summer. An award-winning artist, Leitzke has been a well-known painter in oils and acrylics in the Seattle area for more than 15 years. She began drawing at age 3 and being self-taught, she enjoys the freedom of learning different styles and mediums. Her inspiration comes from people who love her artwork and their gratitude keeps her painting.

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Disney Pride in Concert with the Seattle Men’s Chorus 

Friday, June 9, 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, June 10, 2 p.m.

Paramount Theatre

911 Pine St., Seattle

Seattle Men’s Chorus celebrates LGBTQ Pride with the iconic music of Disney. Over 40 songs from classics like The Little Mermaid, The Lion King and Mary Poppins, as well as modern favorites from Coco, Zootopia, Wreck-It Ralph and many more. The show features 200-plus members of Seattle Men’s Chorus, a 25-piece orchestra and memorable video clips from your favorite Disney and Pixar films. Solos and personal stories add connection to Disney’s timeless and universal message of love and acceptance, making this a truly magical experience.

You don’t have to be a Disney fan to find something to love. No matter your age, background, or sexual orientation, the selection of songs will touch your heart. Disney concerts offer a new world of wonder and possibility for those who have felt unworthy, struggled with self-acceptance, or wondered about their purpose in life.

The performance on Friday, June 9 will feature ASL interpretation placed house left/stage right. Get tickets here.

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Driftwood to present an original staged reading – one night only

Sunday, June 18, 7 p.m.

Join Driftwood Players for a free staged reading of Ghost Girl by James Lyle, directed by Kristina Hauptfuehrer. Part of the FIRST DRAFT staged reading series, presented by the Edmonds Driftwood Players and Driftwood After Dark.

Twenty-something Zoe drifts aimlessly through today’s high-tech gig economy, supporting her boyfriend Noah as he tries to publish Ghost Girl, his latest superhero webcomic. But her latest gig, processing random training data for a secret artificial intelligence project, threatens to tear the fragments of her life apart when she begins to see strange patterns in the data, patterns somehow connected both to Ghost Girl, and to the tragic story of the Radium Girls, a group of young industrial workers from a century ago killed by radiation poisoning on the job. Is Zoe losing her mind? Or are these lost spirits from the past somehow reaching out to her through the web of time, calling for justice?

*Content warning: This play contains some adult language and themes of gaslighting and economic injustice.

Admission is free, but advance reservations are required.

To reserve your free seats: Click HERE!

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The Pan Wizards Steel Orchestra upcoming performances

Sunday, June 11, 5 p.m.

Edmonds Center for the Arts

410 4th Ave. N., Edmonds

Saturday, June 17, 2 p.m.

Edmonds Vision Center

201 5th Ave. S., Edmonds

Saturday, June 24, 2 p.m.

Victoria Ska and Reggae Festival

Wharf Street and Broughton Street, Victoria, BC

The Pan Wizards Steel Orchestra, the top youth group of the Edmonds-based non-profit steelband organization, Steel Magic Northwest, is opening for some big names at the Victoria Ska & Reggae Festival on June 24, the first stop on their Vancouver Island Tour. They are the only youth/student group to perform at the festival. The group, which has slowly been gaining a national reputation, was noticed by the festival’s director last fall in one of their YouTube videos, and extended the invitation to the group to perform on the festival’s biggest day, Saturday, June 24. See more details and get tickets here. 

The group consists of youth players ranging from ninth through 12th grade who have worked their way up the organization’s “ladder” system of steel bands to the top level. Most of the players started playing steelpan in the fifth or sixth grade.

Apart from other performances throughout the year, the group takes an annual regional tour. The director of the group – and founder of the organization – is Edmonds resident Gary Gibson. Gibson has ambitions beyond local and regional performances for this group. “We hope to find ways of taking the group to Japan in the coming three or four years,” Gibson says. “Of course, getting a 35-piece steel orchestra across an ocean can be a challenge, but we’re always up for a challenge.”

The group, along with the other youth groups from the organization, can be seen locally at their “Here Comes the Sun” annual concert at the Edmonds Center for the Arts (tickets here), and on 5th Avenue South in front of the Edmonds Visitor Center on June 17, after the summer market.

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Olympic Ballet Theatre announces new season lineup and auction date

Olympic Ballet Theater (OBT) wrapped the season on Saturday with their Summer Performance, and is thrilled to announce the upcoming 2023-24 performance season.The next season starts with the holiday favorite, The Nutcracker, in December, showcases innovative new works in February’s Debuts, brings back the comedic adventures of Don Quixote in May, and celebrates modern and classical ballets in June’s Summer Performance.

To purchase season subscriptions, call OBT Box Office at 425-774-7570. More information and online ticket sales will be available soon.

Save the date to join OBT on Nov. 11, 2023, for the Autumn Auction & Costume Ball. This event is OBT’s biggest fundraiser of the year to support the upcoming season’s productions. OBT is looking for auction sponsors and item donations. If you know a business that is willing to donate unique items or exciting experiences (dining, travel, arts, entertainment, etc.), consider asking for their support. For more information, send an email.

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.