Top 7 Arts & Culture Happenings in March
March is one of my favorite months in Seattle because it marks the beginning of cherry blossom season at the University of Washington. If you’re also impatiently waiting for those blooms to open, there are plenty of great arts & culture events this month to keep you happily distracted.
And remember, as you’re planning for your night out on the town, wash your hands regularly and stay home if you’re not feeling well.
If You’re Going to See One Thing This Month…
Jitney
Seattle Repertory Theatre
Feb 28 – Mar 29
$17-87
Written by two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, August Wilson, Jitney is the first play in Wilson’s 10-play cycle portraying 10 decades of African-American life in the Hill District of Pittsburgh. Set in the 1970s, Jitney follows a group of men trying to eke out a living driving unlicensed cabs (or jitneys) because licensed cabs refuse to service their predominantly black neighborhood. When the city threatens to close the business and the boss’s son returns from prison, the drivers struggle to confront an uncertain future. Jitney features Wilson’s signature jazz-inspired dialogue and eloquent monologues that elevate marginalized lives to monumental status. This production of Jitney is part of the national tour of the Broadway production that won the 2017 Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play.
One Thousand Pieces
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Mar 13 – 22
$30-190
Presented by Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB), One Thousand Pieces is a modern ballet choreographed by Alejandro Cerrudo, who has been called a “genius” by multiple critics and was just named PNB’s first resident choreographer. The piece is a large-scale ensemble work inspired by artist Marc Chagall and set to music by Philip Glass. The double-billed evening also includes David Dawson’s angular Empire Noir, a piece which PNB presented back in 2017.
If You Happen To Be In...
Georgia O'Keeffe, Music, Pink and Blue No. 2 (1918); Jacob A. Riis, “I Scrubs”—Little Katie from the West 52nd Street Industrial School, Courtesy of the Mid America Arts Alliance.
Downtown: Check out Georgia O'Keeffe: Abstract Variations
Seattle Art Museum
Mar 5 – Jun 28
Free - $29.99
This exhibit celebrates Seattle Art Museum’s acquisition of O’Keeffe’s Music, Pink and Blue, No. 1. Also on view are other O'Keeffe paintings and drawings gathered from museums around the country (including the companion piece Music, Pink and Blue, No. 2) and photographs of the artist by photographer Alfred Stieglitz (who was also her husband). The fact that Music, Pink and Blue, No. 1 was painted in 1918 and still looks incredibly modern is a testament to O’Keeffe’s enduring vision.
Admission to Abstract Variations also gets you into SAM's other exhibition, John Akomfrah: Future History, which is a collection of video essays that weave together scenery, archival footage, literary texts, and original interviews to encourage new ways of looking at history and imagining the future.
Ballard: Check out Jacob A. Riis: How the Other Half Lives
National Nordic Museum
Feb 1 – Mar 15
Free - $18
Riis, a Danish immigrant, was a photographer and newspaper reporter who documented the lives of immigrants living in the slums of New York City at the end of the 19th century. You’ve likely seen some of these photographs before, but this exhibit does a good job of acknowledging the tension between Riis’s work for social justice and some of the racial and ethnic stereotypes that nevertheless existed in his work. While you’re at the museum, also check out the companion exhibit, Legacy: Social Justice in Contemporary Danish Photojournalism, which features the work of three contemporary Danish photographers exploring issues of social justice.
If You're Looking for a Full Night Out...
Raja Feather Kelly, UGLY. Photo: Kate Enman and Maria Baranova.
Raja Feather Kelly’s UGLY
Washington Ensemble Theatre
12 Ave Arts
Mar 5 – 16
$15-25
Internationally recognized choreographer Raja Feather Kelly presents UGLY, part dance-theater, part pop-culture collage. In this solo show, which premiered at the Bushwick Starr in NYC in 2018, Kelly paints himself in yellow from head to toe and dances in a clear box to explore the lack of black queer subjectivity in the mainstream. You won’t see anything else like it this season.
**DISCOUNT OFFER: Be one of the first to see UGLY! Use code "KELLY" for 20% off Adult tickets for performances March 5-9.
Leslie Odom, Jr.: Stranger Magic Tour
Neptune Theatre
Mar 15
Sold out (but tickets available on resale websites)
If you’re a Hamilton fan, you probably know Leslie Odom, Jr., who won a Tony Award for playing the role of Aaron Burr. If you missed seeing him in person in his break-out role, check out this tour, which celebrates the release of his third full-length album. Tickets are sold out on Ticketmaster, but are still available from resale websites like StubHub.
NPR's How I Built This: Sub Pop Records
Benaroya Hall
Mar 26
$30-120
Guy Raz, Host of NPR’s How I Built This, talks with Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman, co-founders of the Seattle independent record label Sub Pop. You’ll hear about their start representing Nirvana and Soundgarden and their commitment to representing musicians they believe in. Will be fun for fans of Sub Pop, How I Built This, or anyone looking for inspiration to build something of their own.