Strategic collaboration is sweeping across Seattle’s performing arts
Theatres continue on their mission to combine resources, fun is the name of the game at Seattle Children’s Theatre and Seattle Rep, and Seattle Opera commemorates Freedom Day.
Change is in the air for a growing handful of Seattle’s vaunted performing arts organizations, and perhaps for once it feels less like the old familiar struggle-to-survive story, and more like signs of strength, life, and new growth in the theatre arts industry. The name of the game is strategic collaboration.
Over the summer, longtime Seattle Center neighbors Seattle Rep and Seattle Children’s Theatre joined forces by way of a phased rollout, sharing box office and administrative services. The move was precipitated by extensive studies and months of internal conversation. One of those studies was produced in partnership with ArtsFund, which has long supported the arts sector in Washington through leadership, advocacy, and grantmaking, distributing more than $115 million to arts organizations since its founding in 1969.
“Arts organizations are confronting shifting realities with new and innovative solutions that rely on collaborative approaches.” — Michael Greer
On the Stage
This week it is all about celebration: hop on over to Seattle Children’s Theatre for a Cuban festivity; commemorate the Fisk Jubilee Singers at Seattle Opera; and honor the day of the dead at Seattle Symphony.
Havana Hop
Theatre | Seattle Children’s Theatre
Now – November 16 | Tickets
Come meet young Yeila who visits her grandmother in Cuba to add a salsa flavor to her own hip-hop style! The audience gets to dance along in this dynamic participation play where one actress creates three generations of lively women.
More Events
- Jubilee | Seattle Opera | Now – October 26 | View the Program
- Mrs. Loman is Leaving | ACT Contemporary Theatre | Now – October 27
- Día de Muertos | Seattle Symphony | October 19
- Camelot | Village Theatre Everett | October 19 – November 10 | View the Program
Next Line
Celebrate Freedom day; an exciting collaborative performance has four performances left; and pop over to Seattle Rep for shopping and games.
- Seattle Opera joins Northwest African American Museum for Freedom Day on October 19. Freedom Day commemorates the day in 1960 when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and 51 others were arrested in Atlanta for refusing to leave their seats at segregated department store lunch counters. Enjoy a musical tribute to this day from a Seattle Opera artist and hear from a panel of experts as they discuss the role of music in the civil rights movement.
- The Story of Edgar Sawtelle is breaking hearts at Vashon’s Center for the Arts. The collaboration with Book-It Repertory Theatre is closing this Sunday and there are four performances left of this world premiere.
- This week Seattle Rep hosts a community pop-up before the October 20th performance of The Skin of Our Teeth. Explore a market of local artists and small businesses in Seattle Rep’s lobby in a carnival-like atmosphere with arcade games and more.
