A film crew is coming to Fauntleroy, starting this Saturday. As a few WSB’ers have mentioned in e-mail, notices have been distributed to nearby homes, and “No Parking” signs are up; we also have spoken with location manager Dave Drummond, who shares this information:
The independent feature film “After the Ghost” will be filming scenes at a residence in Fauntleroy, a short distance north of the ferry terminal. Filming will occur on February 12-16 and Feb 19-21, both during the day and sometimes at night. The production is coordinating with the Fauntleroy Community Association and all nearby residents regarding parking, noise, and other potential impact to the area. Traffic on Fauntleroy Way should not be significantly impacted during daytime and peak hours. Minor traffic delays may be experienced late at night in that area, as Seattle Police will be conducting intermittent traffic holds for some scenes.
“After the Ghost” will be directed by Seattle’s Skip Moody and is being produced and shot entirely in Western Washington. For more information about the production or the impact to the Fauntleroy area, please contact Location Manager Dave Drummond at dave@drummondmedia.com
“After the Ghost” is described online as a “present-day supernatural drama”; you can find out more about it here.
(Photos by Ellen Cedergreen for WSB)
Ready to tour the new Knowing the Spring Courtyard at the Seattle Chinese Garden on the campus of South Seattle Community College on Puget Ridge? It’s ready for visitors, Wednesdays-Sundays noon-4:30 pm, after a “soft opening” on Sunday afternoon.
That’s program director Julia Freimund welcoming visitors at the garden’s also still-in-the-formative-stages Discovery Center. More garden photos after the jump:Read More
I am pleased to invite the West Seattle community to an upcoming benefit concert on Saturday, February 19, at 6:45 pm at the Chief Sealth International High School Auditorium. Mr. Pimpleton, our amazing band director, has put this together as a fundraising event for our students. He and I have a goal that every student can go on every music trip-without exception. This fantastic benefit concert is something he has organized to help send all of the Dolphin musicians to California this year. I hope that you, your family, and friends can join us for this event-I know it will be great.
(Courtesy Aguero Photo)
This is the third year of Avalon Glassworks‘ “Feed the Core” fundraiser for White Center Food Bank, and it’s getting close to a milestone, according to a news release we received today – 34 more apples to sell till the amount of money donated hits $10,000. The apples sell for $80, with half of that covering the production costs and the other half – $40 per apple – going to WC Food Bank, which can buy up to 200 pounds of food for that sum. So far, they have sold 216 apples! Once they hit 250, and therefore the $10,000 mark, AGW owners Shannon and Jon Felix are planning a celebration – and hoping that’ll be possible by early summer. P.S. If you can’t get to Avalon Glassworks in person (2914 SW Avalon Way), the apples are available online.
(Video and photo by Ellen Cedergreen for WSB)
Three more stage productions in our area this weekend (in addition to ArtsWest‘s ongoing “Emilie“) – and two of them open tonight. “Age Only Matters if You’re Cheese” – the romance/musical co-created by 90-year-old Yvonne Belshaw, featured here earlier this week – starts a three-show run at Fauntleroy Church, and the Saturday matinee is already sold out. We dropped in on last night’s dress rehearsal; that’s Shellie Moomey and Jenny Mandt in the video above – they star along with Kevin Finney:
As of last night, some tickets remained for the performances at 7:30 pm tonight and Saturday – call 932-5600 – any tickets that remain will be sold at the door, but there’s no guarantees. (1:44 PM UPDATE: Tonight’s show is now sold out, but call to ask about Saturday night.)
HIGH-SCHOOL PLAYS: Two schools have crime comedies on deck. Tonight West Seattle High School‘s Drama Club opens a three-night run of the student-directed “A Little Murder Never Hurt Anybody,” 7:30 pm, tickets $7 with reservations (call 206-252-8834) or $12 at the door … Tomorrow night the Chief Sealth International High School After-School Drama Club presents “The Real Inspector Hound,” 7 pm in the Little Theater, admission free.
If it were just 30 degrees warmer, all that sunshine would feel just like summer. Something else that might put you in the mood: Looking ahead to summer outdoor fun. Two notes:
WEST SEATTLE SUMMER FEST: Checking the WSSF website, you’ll see the West Seattle Junction Association is already taking applications for vendors and exhibitors at this year’s festival (July 8-9-10) – the applications are linked here. And applications for musicians and other performers are promised next Monday (February 7th). But another big summer event is taking musician applications already …
SUMMER CONCERTS AT HIAWATHA: The Admiral Neighborhood Association has extended the deadline for musicians to apply to be part of this year’s series on the east lawn of Hiawatha Community Center – a free series that drew thousands last year. The dates run from late July through early September; ANA hopes to have the slate set by April. You can get full details on applying by going here.
(Photos by Christopher Boffoli for WSB)
It wasn’t a ribboncutting or “speechifying” occasion – just a casual gathering in the breezeway between Northwest Art and Frame and Puerto Vallarta in The Junction on Monday afternoon, to dedicate the three-panel art installation now gracing the breezeway, with the placement of a plaque:
Among those on hand for the occasion: Maureen O’Neill and Ron Davis from Parks, Roxanne Brown, Brian Judd, and Rebecca Hall from High Point Community Center, which partnered on the project, with a Seattle Housing Authority grant. It all started last summer, when we covered two milestones along the way: In August, we showed you the panels being created, and then the three panels being installed. 40 local youths between 10 and 17 took part along the way, choosing to tell the story of their “Past, Present, and Future”:
Here’s what the dedication plaque says:
As youth, we envision a diverse world that accepts everyone without judgment and allows us to explore our options. Our work is open to interpretation – we hope to inspire and open your eyes to the diversity and aspirations of the youth living in the West Seattle community.
So don’t just breeze through the breezeway – stop and take a look:
According to Liz Schroeder (above) from the West Seattle Junction Association, also involved with the project, the next step for beautifying the breezeway – which is privately owned (yes, the owner gave permission for the murals) – is new surfacing for the walkway.
Budget-mandated staff cuts at Alki Community Center have put the annual Alki Art Fair in jeopardy, as reported here previously. But volunteer power, and the Alki Community Council, might be able to save it. As announced at alkinews.com, there’s a meeting this Thursday, 5 pm, at the center, for anyone who wants to find out how to help.
Yvonne Belshaw is the president of a manufacturing company, an artist with a current show at the Fauntleroy YMCA, a gardener, the writer of a new musical opening this week – and she just turned 90 years old. When you ask people about Yvonne Belshaw, they stop you and say, “You mean the amazing Yvonne Belshaw.”
Yvonne married into the Belshaw family, which owned Belshaw Brothers Bakery Equipment, in 1941. She says, “If you’ve eaten a donut recently, it was probably made on a Belshaw machine.” She headed the advertising department, designing layouts and “writing copy for machines they hadn’t invented yet” including the “Donut Robot.” This is an automated donut machine, one of which is used by the Daily Dozen Donut Company in Pike Place Market. She enjoyed the creativity of her work, adding, “I loved watching the machinery.”
Though the Belshaw company was sold, Yvonne remains in the food equipment manufacturing business and heads Food Equipment Design, headquartered in White Center. They produce the “Pancake Chef” — an automated pancake dispenser.
Yvonne remembers the exact day she moved to West Seattle: August 1, 1942.
Thanks to Susan Eng for sharing the photo of West Seattle author Paul Schmid signing his new children’s book “A Pet for Petunia” as it launched Thursday night at Secret Garden Books in Ballard. She says he cited daughter Anna as inspiration for, and consultant on, the book, which he wrote and illustrated. (Previously, he was published as illustrator of “The Wonder Book” by Amy Krouse Rosenthal.)
A rare sunny midwinter weekend afternoon … perfect for kids to go to the playground or maybe the beach, right? Instead, about 40 girls and boys ages 3-12 took time out at mid-afternoon to brighten the day for residents at The Kenney. Jenna Lutton from Gildenfire Dance brought her young students to the big lower-level community room, which filled with proud family members as well as Kenney-residing audience members, all of whom combined for quite the ovation. Three Gildenfire groups performed one dance each – above, the 3-4-year-olds (with two 5-year-olds, Lutton noted) did a kiddie can-can, coached by their teacher off to screen-left. Lutton says you can expect to see her students turn up elsewhere around the peninsula in the months ahead: “As part of our ever evolving mission, we hope to bring joy and happiness to our community through dance. This spring we are planning ‘guerrilla’ dance performances all over West Seattle.” Home base for her West Seattle dance classes is the Highland Park Improvement Club.
Just announced by the mayor’s office, a January 29th “open house” at City Hall downtown, with street-food trucks and live music – and one well-known West Seattleite is on the bill: Rocker Chris Ballew in his alter-ego as kids-music-maker Caspar Babypants. Here’s the full schedule for the January 29th event.
The “William Tell Overture” – by steel drums! That was just one of the highlights in a night full of music by Denny International Middle School students, performing their Winter Concert across SW Thistle Street at Chief Sealth International High School‘s remodeled auditorium – next door to the new school Denny will occupy later this year. We also have video highlights from seven more of the groups that performed Thursday night as the culmination of four months of hard work – click ahead!
(WSB photos by Ellen Cedergreen) South Seattle Community College‘s food and wine programs are famous in their own right – perhaps because they’re open to even international education, with guests like the team from Spain that came in on Thursday. Among the team that led cooking and wine classes and presentations almost all day was guest sommelier Jesús Sanguino Collado (above). The featured wines and foods were from the Castilla y León region of Spain. Click ahead to see what they tried, and how:Read More
Thanks to Sha’ari from Inner Listening for sharing that photo from tonight’s Westside Symphony rehearsal, during the first West Seattle Community Orchestras sessions of the year. That’s founder Toni Reineke conducting, at top left. Sha’ari says, “Lots of strings but we still need another French horn, trombone, a couple trumpets, another bassoon, two oboes, a bass trombone and a couple celli. No more flutes please – we’ve got a whole cocktail already. It’s fun! Join us next Tues.” The orchestras rehearse on Tuesdays, Chief Sealth International High School – the schedule can be found, with lots more info, on their website.
If you are not part of the local writing scene, you might know West Seattle poet Nicole Hardy best for her work at Circa in the Admiral District. One week ago, a national/international audience got to know her because of her essay published in the New York Times, “Single, Female, Mormon, Alone.” Tonight, Nicole Brodeur of the Seattle Times (WSB partner) follows up with Hardy and reports that the essay was received so sensationally, she now has an agent and a new book deal. (She’s already published two books of poetry, which you can read about on her website.)
As the CD release party for Pearl Jam‘s “Live on Ten Legs” got going at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor) less than an hour ago, it was so wall-to-wall, we barely had room to get Shawnte, Mollie, and Melissa to pose with their newly purchased copies of the CD and vinyl versions. Easy Street Recordsis there selling the album, Ten Club is there selling merchandise, and The Feedback has on-loan rare PJ memorabilia on display (in addition to their existing collection):
We’re told the party continues the rest of the night. Or till closing, whichever comes first. Next special event, Fiasco plays live, as a benefit for a nonprofit helping multiple-sclerosis patients, January 29th.
“We keep getting bigger and better, but would like to fill in some of our smaller sections,” says Toni Reineke of West Seattle Community Orchestras, with days to go till their first rehearsal of the year (last week was “snowed out”). She elaborates:
We especially need cellos, string basses, trumpets, and percussion—and oboe and bassoon, of course!
If you are a beginner or haven’t played for a while, don’t be shy! We have three orchestras spanning beginning to advanced levels.
Pre-register online at wscorchestras.org, then be ready to rehearse on Tuesday night at Chief Sealth International High School. E-mail Toni with questions, tonireineke@comcast.net.
(Photos by Ellen Cedergreen for WSB)
Besides the monthly West Seattle Art Walk (see our previous report), Thursday night brought another major art event – the West Seattle High School Winter Art Expo, a juried show. Here’s a group of WSHS ceramics students and their teacher – from left: Korina, Nelsy, Silvee, teacher Michelle Sloan, Regine, and Justice:
Parents, jurors, and students perused a vast array of “Me Boxes,” one of three featured mediums:
What’s in a “Me Box,” you ask? They are process boxes the students make and decorate.
WSB contributor Ellen Cedergreen, who covered the expo, explains that each panel represents a different part of the student, in the following layout: The outside top of the box represents who the students appear to be to the world; the inside is meant to show how the student sees her/himself; the four outer walls represent one of four emotions – peace, sadness, anger, and joy. WSHS student Socheata Thon told Ellen that the inside of hers is primarily dedicate to speed since she is fast, “like a cheetah”:
Here are WSHS students Jordan Jackson and Tyler Johnson with their “Me Boxes”:
Retired Ballard High School art teacher Jane Morris (in the next photo with WSHS student Maxwell Zimmerman), was a juror:
Jane told WSB that students were judged primarily on how well they executed their own artistic intent, which they wrote out as “artist statements.” Jurors read the statements before sitting down with students for one-on-one critiques. The expo included 10 professionals judging more than 200 students; winners will be announced in class today.
Not only is next Thursday night — one week from tonight — the monthly West Seattle Art Walk, it’s also a chance to celebrate student art at West Seattle High School.
Fine arts teacher Martha Tonkin says the WSHS Winter Art Expo is set for 4-8 pm next Thursday in the school library:
We will have 200 Drawing & Painting/Ceramics students exhibiting their artwork and ceramic pieces in a large show, judged by 10 professional artists/art instructors. Music, food, a beautiful setting, and a feeling of “celebrating the arts” makes this a fun event to drop in on, as the teen artists are available to speak about their work, similar to an art opening in a gallery setting.
Meantime, another set of student artists showed their work last month. 10 professional photographers judged the work of 60 high-school students at the WSHS Photo Expo in December. Among them, Highland Park’s Dina Lydia Johnson, who also put together a Flickr gallery with more than 60 photos of participants and their work. Here’s one of the winners:
That’s Zaya Wylde-Page, whose work was honored as “most professional.” Next on the winner list shared by the school, Francisco Morseletto, for “most ethereal”:
The rest of the winner list, and the judges and coordinators, after the jump:Read More
(12/15/2010 video of Westside Symphony performing “Nutcracker” selections)
From Rob Duisberg with West Seattle Community Orchestras – one week from tonight, your chance to join!
The West Seattle Community Orchestras are beginning their spring season on Tuesday evening, January 11th, at Chief Sealth International High School at 2600 SW Thistle.
The orchestras welcome all musicians. There are three different orchestras to suit your individual skill level, from our beginning strings ensemble to the Westside Symphony playing the great standard orchestral repertoire, and each group is open to all ages.
We are particularly interested in recruiting string, double reed and percussion players. So if your instrument has been in the closet too long, make this New Year the time to reconnect with the joy of fine music-making in a fun, inclusive atmosphere!
Visit us at wscorchestras.org and click on the Registration Page, or e-mail us at westsidesymph@gmail.com, or call Toni Reineke at 206.243.6955 for more information.
If you go play trivia tonight at Feedback Lounge (WSB sponsor), wish Charlie Beck luck at the upcoming 14th annual Seattle Elvis Invitationals. He’s the second West Seattleite to enter the Kingly fray, according to Marlow Harris, who notes that Charlie not only hosts Tuesday night “Entertainment That Rocks” trivia at The Feedback, he also performs with the popular local band Memphis Radio Kings. According to Marlow, he’s got a hunka-hunka “Burnin’ Love” on tap for the contest. At left, she provided a photo of him from The Feedback’s Elvis Death Day event last August. Also contending, Bret Wiggins, who came in second last year – here’s video from that almost-winning performance. You can see them face off (along with more than two dozen other Elvises – or if you prefer, Elvii) — fringe, sequins, sideburns and all — at Club Motor in SODO this Saturday – the day The King would have turned 75. Marlow notes that the treats on sale will include fried peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches (“with and without bacon”).
Yvonne Belshaw is the president of a manufacturing company, an artist with a current show at the 
If you go play trivia tonight at
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