Our music critics have already chosen the 38 best music shows this week, but now it's our arts & culture critics' turn to recommend the best events in their areas of expertise. Here are their picks in every genre—from a John Waters Christmas Past Event Like List to Jingle All the Gay! Past Event Like List , and from the Winter Beer Fest Past Event Like List to Ahamefule J. Oluo's new show, Susan Past Event Like List . See them all below, and find even more events on our complete EverOut Things To Do calendar.

---

Jump to: Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday

---

MONDAY

PERFORMANCE

Locally Grown: This Is Not (Y)Our History Past Event Like List
Seattle Public Theater's new reading series will present playwright Rachel Atkins's new music-filled piece about race relations in the suffragist movement. Atkins is a prolific local, with work seen at the Funhouse showcase, Theater Schmeater, Annex, and Book-It.

MONDAY & FRIDAY-SUNDAY

PERFORMANCE

Dice: Pride & Prejudice Past Event Like List
Eight actors have memorized the entire script of an original adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. At this performance, presented by immersive/experimental theater company Dacha, an audience member will roll the dice and decide who will play which character. When Dacha gave Shakespeare's Twelfth Night the same treatment in 2017, former Arts Calendar Editor Julia Raban wrote: "Based on the premise, you might expect a harried and unfinished production, but this show does not follow the rules of logic. There's beautiful blocking and choreography, constant and clever improvisation."

ALL WEEK

FOOD & DRINK

Miracle on 2nd Past Event Like List
In 2014, New York bar owner Greg Boehm temporarily transformed his space into a kitschy Christmas wonderland replete with gewgaws and tchotchkes galore. Now the pop-up has expanded to more than 100 locations all over the world and will be returning to Belltown’s Rob Roy this year. The specialty cocktails are no ordinary cups of cheer: Beverages are housed in tacky-tastic vessels (a drinking mug resembling Santa’s mug, for example), bedecked with fanciful garnishes like peppers and dried pineapple, and christened with irreverent, pop-culture-referencing names like the “Bad Santa,” the “Yippie Ki Yay Mother F**r,” and the “You’ll Shoot Your Rye Out.” New this year: At nearby Vinnie's Raw Bar, there will be a spin-off holiday-tiki-themed pop-up called "Sippin' Santa Past Event Like List ," which asks you to "imagine Santa on a surfboard instead of a sleigh and palm trees instead of pine." Drinks include the "Kris Kringle Colada" (dark Jamaican rum, Cynar, allspice, lime and pineapple juice, and cream of coconut) and the "Christmas Eve of Destruction" (dark overproof rum, herbal liqueur, nutmeg syrup, lime juice, and Angostura bitters). JULIANNE BELL

TUESDAY

FOOD & DRINK

Author Talk: Simply Real Eating by Sarah Adler Past Event Like List
Seattle nutrition coach, Simply Real Health blog founder, and The Simply Real Health Cookbook author Sarah Adler has made a career of helping people identify what healthy food actually is, and then helping them apply it to their daily lives in a way that’s both “sustainable and more joyful in the long haul, both in their kitchens and out in the real world.” The idea is that eating healthy isn’t hard, and she has a whole new cookbook with 100 simple and easily doable “#antidiet” recipes that are sometimes five ingredients or less and naturally gluten-free, with options to personalize for other dietary needs. It might sound unexciting, but recipes like Cozy Sausage and Lentil Soup, Flourless Chocolate Crinkle Cookies, and Butternut Squash and Sage Risotto are definitely worth earmarking, as are a slew of others my mouth is watering over. Adler will be in conversation with local author Sara Dickerman for this book-release event. LEILANI POLK

READINGS & TALKS

Filipinx Lives: Ricco Siasoco and Angela Garbes Past Event Like List
Celebrate two Filipinx writers: Angela Garbes, a former Stranger writer and author of the brilliant pregnancy memoir Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy, and NEA fellow Ricco Villanueva Siasoco, first-time novelist with The Foley Artist. 

TUESDAY-SATURDAY

VISUAL ART

Dream the Combine and Clayton Binkley: Lure Past Event Like List
For the next few weeks, three of the floor-to-ceiling storefront windows are being left wide-open during business hours, three mouths of a giant steel structure constructed inside the gallery. The facade of the building is wrapped in blue construction netting, which extends into the space, covering all sides of the structure itself. The color and texture are meant to get your attention and call you inside. The structure-sculpture is a collaboration between Minnesota-based artist-architect duo Jennifer Newsom and Tom Carruthers—collectively known as Dream the Combine—and local artist-engineer Clayton Binkley. Together, they create inhabitable structures and installations that explore the body in relationship to space, light, and environment. They recently worked on a project funded by the Museum of Modern Art and MoMA PS1 called Hide & Seek. Lure, the MadArt exhibition, explores similar concepts, emphasizing how to bring different groups of people inside of the space, especially within the context of the techie playground of South Lake Union. JASMYNE KEIMIG
Closing Saturday

Listen Past Event Like List
In this show curated by Monica Tie, artists Natasha Marin, Yoona Lee, Rohena Alam Khan, and Carolyn Hitt create work based on "stories unheard," emphasizing personal experiences that go ignored or unvalidated.
Closing Saturday

TUESDAY-SUNDAY

PERFORMANCE

A Christmas Carol Past Event Like List
ACT Theatre's production of A Christmas Carol is a dependable, simple pleasure, with just enough variation to warrant returning year after year. Kelly Kitchens will direct.

Mrs. Doubtfire Past Event Like List
This is the world premiere of the musical Mrs. Doubtfire, a stage adaptation of the 1993 Robin Williams film. After its run in Seattle, it goes straight to Broadway. Mrs. Doubtfire is directed by Jerry Zaks, a Broadway legend who won a Tony Award for directing the revival of Guys and Dolls in 1992, and was nominated again for his revival of Hello, Dolly! with Bette Midler in 2017. CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

STOMP Past Event Like List
Eight adults bang on trash cans, swish brooms, clack poles, and more. Prepare for a rhythm to be drilled permanently into your brain, and for household objects to no longer hold quite the same (musical) meaning.

A Very Die Hard Christmas Past Event Like List
Marxiano Productions will restage last year's hit holiday musical from a script by the top-notch sketch comedy outfit the Habit (plus Jeff Schell), which peppers the rip-roaring action with songs, jokes, and more.

VISUAL ART

Recent Acquisitions: Toyin Ojih Odutola Past Event Like List
In Toyin Ojih Odutola’s portraits, skin moves, glows, shines, and radiates. The way she renders black skin—at the beginning of her career, she worked in ballpoint pen—gives her 2-D drawings a dimension that I’ve never quite seen before. Her work is dynamic, beautiful, and challenging. The Frye recently acquired a suite of prints by the Nigerian born, New York–based artist and plans to show it in the inaugural show of the new exhibition series Recent Acquisitions. Though Odutola’s practice has expanded beyond pens and into painting and printmaking, all of her work is informed by a sense of the tactile, the topographical, the subversive. JASMYNE KEIMIG
Closing Sunday

WINTER HOLIDAYS

Christmas Ship Festival Past Event Like List
The Puget Sound is filled with lights throughout the holiday season, but no vessel can compete with Argosy Cruises' Christmas Ship, which docks in 65 waterfront communities to serenade people onshore and onboard with its resident choir. Those who choose to board the ship will enjoy photos with Santa, a reading of "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," and kids' activities. For a less family-oriented option, you can trail behind in a 21+ boat with rotating themes each week. It's also free to watch from the shore.

Enchant Christmas Past Event Like List
Following a successful first year, Enchant Christmas will transform T-Mobile Park into a winter wonderland complete with an impressive light maze, light sculptures, a market curated by Urban Craft Uprising, and more. This year's theme is "Mischievous," so expect to see sly little elves roaming about.

WEDNESDAY

FOOD & DRINK

12th Annual Champagne Gala Past Event Like List
Sip fizzy champagnes while savoring a multi-course menu by chef Jeff McCartney.

cocopop! Past Event Like List
Take in a live musical performance by the Flavr Blue, explore interactive installations, and try chocolate-themed bites and drinks at this "immersive chocolate experience" benefiting local nonprofit Northwest Harvest.

READINGS & TALKS

Silent Reading Party
The Silent Reading Party is one of the weirdest, most wonderful parties you’ll ever go to, because no one talks to you and you can get some reading done. You curl up on a couch or in a wingback chair with a book or magazine or whatever you feel like reading, while Paul Moore plays piano and waiters bring you things. Whenever Paul starts playing Erik Satie, I find myself staring into the fireplace or closing my eyes and melting into the couch. The reading party, which is now 10 years old, is so popular that there is often a line out the door just to get a seat. The people who know what they’re doing get there an hour before it starts. CHRISTOPHER FRIZZELLE

WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY

VISUAL ART

John Brophy: Sages and Sirens Past Event Like List
Perfectionist portraitist Brophy first plans his painting in a 3D rendering program, then uses this image as a model for an oil-on-panel piece, sometimes using paints he's made himself. He is, in fact, going for that uncanny-valley look, so don't be surprised if you feel an uneasy prickle at the back of your neck as you look on his depictions of Freddie Mercury, Abe Lincoln, and others. 
Closing Saturday

WEDNESDAY-SUNDAY

PERFORMANCE

Shout, Sister, Shout! Past Event Like List
Rejoice in the music and power of the "Godmother of Rock 'n' Roll," Rosetta Tharpe, the amazing singer and guitarist who transformed American music.

Wonderland Past Event Like List
Wonderland is divided into three short acts that make up a brisk 90-minute show. Hosted by the exceedingly charismatic JonnyBoy (Jonathan Betchtel), each act gets progressively naughtier, although the most scandalous thing an audience member sees is a jock-strapped ass and bare tits covered by pasties. The show has danger, but it's found in the cancan lines that occur mere feet from audience members' dinner salads. During the third act, two dancers perform an athletic duet that—when I saw it—nearly knocked over a birthday girl's wine glass. But it didn't. Everyone whooped. CHASE BURNS

WINTER HOLIDAYS

WildLights Past Event Like List
The Woodland Park Zoo will light up with thousands upon thousands of (energy-efficient) LED lights that recreate wild scenes and creatures. You can also throw fake snowballs at your friends, get up close with certain animal residents, and sip hot chocolate.

THURSDAY

FOOD & DRINK

Crazy Cocktails & Charcuterie Past Event Like List
Have you ever thought, “This cocktail is good, but it would be way better served in a tiny bathtub with a rubber ducky floating in it?” You probably haven’t, but Cure Cocktail’s Joe Wargo certainly has, and that’s why he was voted one of Seattle’s favorite bartenders in The Stranger’s 2019 Happy Hour Guide. If the “Bathtub Party” (top-shelf vodka or gin, house-made cucumber jalapeño syrup, elderflower liqueur, fresh lemon juice, and lemon foam for bubbles) brings up too many traumatizing memories of watching A Nightmare on Elm Street, there is also Joe’s “What’s Up, Doc?” made with brown sugar bourbon, fresh lemon juice, fresh carrot juice, pineapple juice, and ginger beer; a garnish of mint wrapped in orange peel gives it the full carrot effect. No matter what cocktail you get, however, at this ongoing Thursday night event, it will be served with a world-class board of meats and cheeses, and Wargo will have some fresh mixology concoctions on the menu, too. DAVID LEWIS

You Can't Eat Mt. Rainier - Seattle in the 1950's Past Event Like List
Taking its inspiration from the 1955 book You Can't Eat Mount Rainier by Seattle Times columnist and "self-made historian" William C. Speidel (known for inventing the Seattle Underground tour), this pop-up dinner will recreate recipes from bygone Seattle restaurants of the '50s.

READINGS & TALKS

David Guterson: Turn Around Time Past Event Like List
It's been five years since we've seen a new book from David Guterson, famed local author of New York Times best-selling novel Snow Falling on Cedars. But now he's breaking that silence with a new book-length narrative poem called Turn Around Time, which he says offers "a poetic take on the qualities of foot travel and of, among other things, birds, bats, fungi, flora, and fellow travelers." With poem titles like "Barthes and Barth," Guterson's poetry more readily appeals to academic types who are absolutely sure how to pronounce both of those writers' names. But this hiker-poet is at his best when he's writing about Washington's environs, so I have high hopes that these poems will be more grounded (ha-ha, kill me). Plus, press materials indicate that the long poem is sort of about a midlife crisis, which is always a fun time to check in on an author. And come on, people: He's the guy who wrote Snow Falling on Cedars. Show up and chant for the poem about bats. RICH SMITH

Eli Saslow: The Awakening of a Former White Nationalist Past Event Like List
Washington Post reporter Eli Saslow's book Rising Out of Hatred explains how Derek Black, the son of the founder of the white supremacist internet site Storm Front and grandson of KKK Wizard David Duke, was forced to confront his beliefs when he was outed to his liberal college community as a racist radio host. Against the odds, Black renounced the white nationalist movement. Learn how Black came to declare independence from his family's legacy of hate—and what it means for America today.

Great Souls: Pacific Northwest Dreamers Past Event Like List
The Seagull Project's reading series will venture into alternate realms and the future with actors reading sci-fi and fantasy by brilliant PNW writers Octavia E. Butler ("Speech Sounds"), Ursula K. Le Guin ("The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas"), and Ted Chiang ("What's Expected of Us").

A John Waters Christmas: Filthier & Merrier Past Event Like List
John Waters comes every Christmastime, doesn’t he? It feels like it. The potty-mouthed, anarchist-fetishizing, original daddy of filth is putting in his time again this year, and we’re lucky to have him. If you ever wanted your face or butt or tampon to be signed by the troubled mind behind the films Hairspray, Pink Flamingos, and Female Trouble and books like Role Models and Mr. Know-It-All, he’ll do it here—as long as you buy some merch. It’s worth it. The write-up of his one-man show promises that Waters will be "delving into his love for the annual December warning list of 'Unsafe Toys to Give Your Child' and his hatred for e-mail Christmas cards, the Easter Bunny, and any kind of holiday 'food issues.'" CHASE BURNS

Swipeless in Seattle: How to Live Without a Smartphone Past Event Like List
Life without iPhones is possible, even in a city like Seattle, where the mandatory uniform is earbuds and a lack of eye contact because you’re staring at your device while you walk across the road. Or at least, that’s what 13-year flip-phone veteran Michael Valeri says, and that an app-free life is not just possible, but can even be fulfilling. During this free General Assembly presentation, Valeri offers tips and tricks on how to get by without Lyft, Uber, Car2Go, LimeBike, OneBusAway, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, GPS, and all the rest. As to how to get by without Slog? That’s just not possible. KATIE HERZOG

VISUAL ART

Pioneer Square Art Walk
Once a month, Seattleites flock to the streets in Pioneer Square for a chance to stroll, sip on booze, and attend as many art openings as possible at First Thursday. It's the city's central and oldest art walk, and takes place in a historic neighborhood known for its abundance of galleries. Wine and hobnobbing steal the scene for some, but at its core, it's an impressive communal unveiling of new artwork. Check out our list of suggested art openings here.

SAM Lights Past Event Like List
Fight the gloom of night in the illuminated sculpture park, featuring luminarias, art-making activities, hot drinks and sweet treats for sale, and more.

THURSDAY & SATURDAY

COMEDY

The Bliss Family of Radical Acceptance Final Communion & Open House Past Event Like List
Local improvisers Camilla Franklin, Darrin Schultz, Graham Downing, and others will help you reach "Spiritual and Emotional Enlightenment." 

THURSDAY-SUNDAY

COMEDY

Kermet Apio, Josh Chambers Past Event Like List
A road-tested veteran of stage, radio, and small screen, Seattle comic Kermet Apio has won the Great American Comedy Festival and Seattle Comedy Competition contests. Yet in some circles, he’s not very respected. Maybe that’s because Apio’s work lacks edginess and exudes an eminently palatable patina of middlebrow relatability. But within those narrow parameters, Apio excels in the profanity-free realms of family-oriented, self-deprecating humor. Sometimes we need clever truth bombs dropped about the lamentable condition known as being in your 40s or a riff on how absurd it seems now for students in 1970s-era grade-school art class to be making ashtrays. DAVE SEGAL

FOOD & DRINK

Big Wood Past Event Like List
This festival exclusively featuring barrel-aged beers and ciders will boast over 40 barrel-aged creations on tap.

PERFORMANCE

Ahamefule J. Oluo: Susan Past Event Like List
Following up on his well-received memoir and jazz musical show Now I'm Fine, Ahamefule J. Oluo is back with a new show about his mother, Susan. Oluo's Nigerian father left the United States and left Oluo's Midwestern mother with a couple of kids to raise. He investigates that part of his past, and tells the story of his travels to Nigeria, the home his father left the family for. For Now I'm Fine, the New York Times praised Oluo for his "ingratiatingly self-deprecating manner," his facility with several storytelling modes, and his seemingly effortless skill as a conductor and musician. Expect all that and a little more polish in this new piece. RICH SMITH

Head Over Heels Past Event Like List
Tunes by the Go-Go's [sic] pepper this musical loosely based on a 16th-century narrative poem by Sir Philip Sidney. A royal family learns of a fateful prophecy that may disrupt "the Beat" that supplies the rhythm to their kingdom. Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q, Bring It On: The Musical, the screenplay for Can You Ever Forgive Me?) wrote the book and lyrics.

Hershey Felder: Beethoven Past Event Like List
Former Stranger writer Sean Nelson described Felder as an "astonishingly gifted vocalist and pianist, not merely in terms of pure technique, but in his capacity for restraint." In this show, he takes on the roles of both Ludwig van Beethoven and his student Gerhard van Breuning while playing such beloved pieces as Moonlight Sonata and Pathetique Sonata, as well as excerpts from the famed Fifth and Ninth Symphonies.

Scott Shoemaker's War on Christmas Past Event Like List
Scott Shoemaker (Ms. Pak-Man) and illustrious friends like Mandy Price, Waxie Moon, Adé Conneré, and Faggedy Randy will lead a fearless investigation into the War on Christmas. Their weapons: "ALL NEW hilarious comedy, songs, dance numbers, amazing videos and partial nudity!"

FRIDAY

FOOD & DRINK

Adult Milk & Cookies Past Event Like List
From the word "adult" in the title, I thought Adult Milk & Cookies was some obscure fetish that nobody (not even anyone at The Stranger) knew about. Turns out, it’s an event hosted by the Growler Guys along with TV writer/cook Scottie Jeanette Madden, author of Recklass in the Kitchen, during which Fremont Brewing beer is paired with cookies. Fremont Brewing’s 13.1 percent ABV Imperial Oatmeal Stout already tastes like an incredible cookie, but this is an exciting opportunity to learn about (and enjoy) some less obvious pairings. DAVID LEWIS

READINGS & TALKS

Jeff VanderMeer: Dead Astronauts Past Event Like List
Jeff Vandermeer novels (e.g. Annihilation, Borne) are kind of hard to describe succinctly, but here goes: In a post-apocalyptic landscape overrun with biotech, three shapeshifting quasi-human/animal/landscape hybrids—a blue fox, a giant fish, and a homeless woman—try to avoid destruction and the tyranny of the sinister Company. At this event, hear the acclaimed author talk about Dead Astronauts, his newest novel (released last year), in conversation with Paul Constant.

Susanna Ryan and Nathan Vass Past Event Like List
Chase Burns writes on Ryan's Seattle Walk Report: "Seattle Walk Report is exactly what it sounds like: reports of walks in Seattle. Popularized on Instagram (@seattlewalkreport), the project was started in 2017 by an anonymous illustrator (now known to be Susanna Ryan). Seattle Walk Report's 150-plus pages of twee, guidebook-style comics create an endearing collection of the small details that make Seattle a home." Ryan will be joined by Nathan Vass, a Seattle metro bus driver (you may have met him on the 7/49 line) and filmmaker/photographer who documented vignettes of Seattle on the blog The View from Nathan's Bus. These in turn were collected in the photoessay book The Lines That Make Us.

FRIDAY-SATURDAY

COMEDY

Uncle Mike Ruins Christmas Past Event Like List
Mike Murphy and Jet City cast members reenact and trample over your fond Christmas memories with gleeful vulgarity. Not for the squeamish.

FOOD & DRINK

Holiday Tea Past Event Like List
Instead of gazing at a virtual Yule log video, take your tea beside an actual roaring, crackling hearth at Hotel Sorrento’s Fireside Room, a Mad Men–worthy old-school vision in opulent ochre mahogany paneling. You can nosh on posh teatime fare—like freshly baked chocolate-filled croissants with butter and jam, cucumber and cream-cheese finger sandwiches, and chocolate espresso pots de creme with strawberries—as you sink into a squishy high-backed leather chair and enjoy sounds played on a baby grand piano. If you’re lucky, you might even spy the ghost of Alice B. Toklas, who is said to roam the halls of the hotel. JULIANNE BELL

2019 Winter Beer Fest Past Event Like List
There are so many places brewing craft beer in Washington, it is almost ridiculous. But there are fewer places where you can get a taste of this breadth of beers all in one place. Enter the nonprofit trade association Washington Brewers Guild and its winter tasting event/fundraiser. More than 50 local and regional breweries will be represented, pouring sips that range from “dark malty stouts” and “robust winter warmers” to seasonal IPAs and barrel-aged “rarities.” Food trucks and vendors will be on hand serving warm eats, and attendees can vote on their favorite beers and booth decorations for each of the three tasting sessions (one on Friday, two on Saturday), with award winners selected daily. LEILANI POLK

FRIDAY-SUNDAY

COMEDY

The Judy Garland Christmas Special Past Event Like List
Crabgrass Productions portrays the dress rehearsal of Judy Garland's deeply uncomfortable 1963 Christmas television special, with Judy overwhelmed by terrifying alcohol-induced hallucinations and wreaking havoc on sugary Christmas tunes. Troy Mink plays Judy in this mean but reportedly very funny Christmas trainwreck.

PERFORMANCE

The Christmas Killings at Corgi Cliffs Past Event Like List
Butch Alice once again stars as Becky June Beasley-Jones in Scot Rigsby Augustson's drag-filled send-up of Agatha Christie-type whodunits, directed by Jasmine Joshua (artistic director of Reboot Theatre Company). 

The Dina Martina Christmas Show Past Event Like List
Watching Seattle drag legend Dina Martina perform is a bit like having a Christmastime flu. You will sit there, confused and warm, your thoughts disassociating, a fever addling your brain, while the holiday cheer twinkles all around you. Truly, there’s no performer who is more like a strong dose of Nyquil than Dina Martina. She is cozy but disorienting. You will laugh without knowing why. Take her with alcohol and double the danger. CHASE BURNS

George Balanchine's 'The Nutcracker' Past Event Like List
If you haven't seen this Christmas classic since you were a kid, give it a go this year. In 2014, Pacific Northwest Ballet replaced its beloved Maurice Sendak set with one by Ian Falconer, who did the Olivia the Pig books, and I'm glad that they did. The new set is gorgeous in a Wes Anderson-like way, and it reflects the genuine weirdness and beauty in the story. I mean, the last 45 minutes of this thing is a Katy Perry video starring dancing desserts and a glittery peacock that moves like a sexy broken river. Bring a pot lozenge. RICH SMITH

The Hard Nut Past Event Like List
The brilliant ballet choreographer Mark Morris's update of The Nutcracker, now a 28-year-old classic in itself, transports E.T.A. Hoffman's story from 19th-century Germany to 1970s America. With production design inspired by the great Fantagraphics-published comics artist Charles Burns, this Broadway staging is gonna be weird, queer, and perhaps even John Waters-esque.

Jingle All the Gay! Past Event Like List
Last year, after seeing the new revamp of the beloved institution Homo for the Holidays, Chase Burns wrote: "The new performers are the standouts in Jingle All the Gay. Kitten N' Lou brought in Markeith Wiley and Randy Ford, two breakout dancers/performance artists who've been having a great couple of years performing around Seattle. Wiley plays the mailman, an important figure in any holiday story, and he's got to deliver lots of big, uh, packages. Ford plays Lil' Fruitcake, a femme voguing fruitcake who fucks shit up in the best way possible. Ford and Wiley's duets are highlights, as are the numbers from Seattle drag artist Abbey Roads, who brings solid musical theater chops and good comic timing. Also in this cast: New York City's Mr. Gorgeous, serving his uniquely tall and hilarious boylesque as the Little Drummer Boy." These favorites return, along with the UK's Reuben Kaye.

SHOPPING

Urban Craft Uprising 15th Annual Winter Show Past Event Like List
You'd be hard-pressed to find zilch for your loved ones at Urban Craft Uprising's tried-and-true indie craft show. With over 150 vendors selling a huge variety of hand-crafted goods—from jewelry to clothing to paper goods to candles to housewares—you're bound to find unique gifts for the holidays.

WINTER HOLIDAYS

Christmas Lighting Festival Past Event Like List
Holiday cheer abounds in Washington's own Bavarian-style village of Leavenworth, which celebrates the season with live Christmas music, visits from both St. Nickolaus and Santa Claus, sledding, and more—all culminating in glorious lighting ceremonies every Saturday and Sunday.

SATURDAY

COMEDY

The Dope Show Past Event Like List
Tyler Smith presents the Dope Show, which offers two performances by a lineup of comedians: one delivered sober, then another delivered several (smoky) minutes later, totally baked.

Fat Cats and Cloud Cover Past Event Like List
Fat Cats describe themselves as "two fat feminist women who own fat feminist cats, but are not wealthy political donors." They've performed at Femprovisor Fest '19 in San Francisco and Detroit Women of Comedy Festival and at many venues throughout Seattle—in fact, they're one of the hardest-working duos in the city. They mix vulnerability and sweetness with a foundation of blunt, pessimistic honesty, a combination that gets right at your heart. They'll be joined by Cloud Cover, two angels having fun in the clouds. 

The Roast of The L Word: A Comedy Show Past Event Like List
Jenny may be forever kaput, but The L Word lives on. In anticipation of the 10-year reunion to Showtime's lesbian drama, join local comic Max Delsohn will host a night of queer and trans standup culminating in a roast of the characters you love to hate. 

FOOD & DRINK

5th Annual Champagne Showcase Past Event Like List
Sample a symphony of sparklers at this tasting, which will feature 48 different kinds of bubbly wine from a dozen vendors.

Art Market, Phorale and Beer Release Past Event Like List
Peruse pottery, jewelry, aprons, cards, paper mache, ornaments, and more from local vendors, try a surprise beer release from Tin Dog Brewing, and nosh on Asian Tex-Mex fusion fare from Phorale.

Captain's Reserve Bourbon Launch Party Past Event Like List
Chambers Bay Distillery is working to create a distinctively Northwest bourbon that will finally strip Kentucky of one of the few things that state is famous for. Following the success Fran’s had with salted caramels in the world of Seattle chocolate, Chambers Bay is perfecting a salted-caramel bourbon. The sweet caramel flavor comes from Grant County wheat, and the slight saltiness from aging the bourbon in barrels stored in a floating boathouse on Puget Sound. While their regular Chambers Bay Straight Bourbon has already won the double gold from Sip Northwest magazine, the distillery is finally launching its Captain’s Reserve, the first bottled-in-bond whiskey released by a Washington distillery since craft distilling became legal in 2008. DAVID LEWIS

Stout Fest Past Event Like List
Chuck's Hop Shop pledges to pour the "biggest, booziest Imperial Stout we can get our hands on."

PERFORMANCE

You Don't Have To Go Home, But You Can't Stay Here: Vol. 3 Past Event Like List
Through live music, spoken word, performance art, drag, dancing, and more, a troupe of Indigenous Turtle Islanders will share their stories, experiences, and histories. Hear from Fabian Romero, Hailey Tayathy, Delia Gomez, raktahcu’ reewaki, and Jasmine Manuel.

SHOPPING

More Fats More Femmes Holiday Market Past Event Like List
Celebrate your babely bod while shopping for plus size vintage and pre-owned clothing and accessories at this stacked size-inclusive holiday market hosted by Indian Summer owner Adria Garcia, ex-IS manager (and current Stranger music calendar editor) Kim Selling, and current IS shopkeep Abby Cooke. They'll have pieces from a wide variety of styles, from size 12 to 32+, as well as jewelry and zines from local vendors Mona Real, Nomi Helene, Eve Sanford, Unruly Patchouli, Cordelia Funk, Knead Kink, and Archive Six.

VISUAL ART

Drawing Jam Past Event Like List
This is not one naked person trying not to breathe too hard in front of a handful of art nerds. No, this is a whole crowd of art nerds with an entire building full of models, naked, clothed, in drag, holding instruments, and/or wearing funky costumes. Your ticket includes art supplies and access to many instructor demonstrations. If you get hungry, grab something from Off the Rez food truck. There will also be a holiday market to shop from if you get hand cramps.

E.T. Russian: Double Clear Past Event Like List
Seattle-based author and artist E.T. Russian shows a multisensory video comic installation combining animation, sculpture, and poetry that follows gargoyle apparitions as they fly about and experience a series of surreal events.
Opening Saturday

Saturday University: Silk Roads Past and Present Past Event Like List
Visiting academics will deliver talks on topics in Asian art, archaeology, history, and culture. This week, it's Northern Arizona University's Zsuzsanna Gulasci with Zoroastrian and Manichean Arts Past Event Like List .

SUNDAY

COMEDY

Winter Wonderprov Past Event Like List
Jet City Improv's stars will put their powers of goofiness to good use at this benefit show for the Seattle Times Fund for the Needy, which in turn helps fund Childhaven, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Asian Counseling and Referral Service, and other socially active nonprofits. This year's edition will offer laughs from delightful indie groups Super Mega Art Show, Cotton Gin, Bad Breath, The Woggles, and Mr. Snake. 

FOOD & DRINK

addo Themed Brunch (December): Nightmare Before Christmas Past Event Like List
Tuck into chef Eric Rivera's festive yet spooky brunch inspired by the Tim Burton classic.

Cookbook Social & Holiday Bazaar Past Event Like List
At this gathering at the Palace Ballroom, you can sip wine, browse wares from local vendors, purchase cookbooks, sample recipes inspired by the titles on display, get autographs, and visit with the authors of some of the season’s most vaunted cookbooks.

Wild Ginger's 30th Anniversary Dinner Series Past Event Like List
To celebrate 30 years of business, Seattle's Southeast Asian mainstay Wild Ginger will host a multi-course meal with favorite dishes from over the years, vintage wine pairings, and tales from their past.

Winter Feast Food Truck Fest Past Event Like List
Snap up some street food while you shop for gifts at this holiday festival, with food trucks galore and a market with over a hundred local vendors.

READINGS & TALKS

Karthika Naïr: Until the Lions Past Event Like List
Esteemed Paris-based Indian poet Karthikia Naïr will come to Seattle with her new collection Until the Lions: Echoes from the Mahabharata, which gives a voice to female and other marginalized voices in the ancient Indian religious text.

Write-o-Rama Past Event Like List
Get the maximum amount of instruction from Hugo House's excellent prose writers and poets at this annual event featuring five hours of mini-workshops and talks.

VISUAL ART

Crystalline Picnic Past Event Like List
Rich Stevens, Kate Wiebe, and Skylar Fleming—who collectively inhabit alter egos called the Rock Candy Mountain Siblings—use sculpture and painting to elaborate a mythology about the children of a mad soda scientist, who've hidden in a secret cave eating rock candy for 25 years before emerging in the outside world. As usual for Jeremy Buben's gallery, expect work that's both witty and appetizing (and inedible, but the opening reception will have snacks and drinks).
Opening Sunday