A&E briefs — Oct. 26, 2022

Sunshine art selected

The 2023 Sequim Sunshine Festival Committee selected artist Mahina Hawley from a pool of applicants last August to create a piece of artwork to be used as the central image on the 2023 festival marketing materials.

In a press release last week, Hawley said she loves what the Sunshine Festival represents: “a celebration of the sun, light and renewal at a time when we need it the most.” She said she hopes this painting captures “part of the magic in the world around us.”

This is the keystone art piece for the fourth annual Sequim Sunshine Festival. Highlights of the community event include the Sun Fun Color Run, Interactive Light Experience, Illuminated Drone Show, community art projects, music, food, and more. Learn more at visitsunnysequim.com.

For more information about the festival, see sequimsunshinefestival.com, contact City of Sequim Communications and Marketing Director Barbara Hanna at 360-681-3422 or bhanna@sequimwa.gov, or contact Marketing Coordinator Patsene Dashiell at 360-681-3421 or pdashiell@sequimwa.gov.

Local poet to celebrate release of colletion

Kate Reavey, a Peninsula College educator and local poet, will be celebrating the release of “Curve,” her poetry collection, from Empty Bowl Press, with a reading at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 1, at the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center, 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd., Port Angeles.

The event is free; copies of “Curve” will be available for purchase.

For the last three decades, Reavey has lived on Lost Mountain, taught college and raised a family, all with an eye and ear closely attuned to the intricate subtleties of her inner and outer landscapes. In poems both intimate and philosophical, she reveals a fascination with language matched only by her care for the world she deeply inhabits.

Reavey’s chapbooks are “Through the East Window” (Sagittarius Press), “Trading Posts” (Tangram) and “Too Small to Hold You” (Pleasure Boat Studio). She coordinates Studium Generale at Peninsula College and for many years was co-director of the Foothills Writers Series.

From 2014-2018, Reavey taught in ʔaʔk̓ʷustəƞáwt̓xʷ House of Learning, Peninsula College Longhouse, for the Native Pathways Program through The Evergreen State College.

Flamenco artists return to peninsula for shows

Seattle-based Flamenco dancer Savannah Fuentes and singer/multi-instrumentalist Diego Amador Jr. will present “Rayn: Flamenco for a New World at the Palindrome” at 7:30 to 9 p.m. on Sunday, Oct. 30, at the Gardiner Community Center, 980 Old Gardiner Road, Sequim.

Tickets are $12-$55. Fuentes’ latest production sees newly-designed costumes, choreography and a new dance floor constructed for this tour. “Rayn” symbolizes the fresh new start that comes after substantial rainfall while also paying homage to Savannah’s Seattle roots, concert tour organizers note.

Concert set for Friday at St. Luke’s

Aryeh Frankfurter and Lisa Lynne bring Celtic harps, rare instruments and stories at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 28, at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 525 N. Fifth Ave.

Lynne and Frankfurter are a multi-instrumentalist duo with Celtic Harps, Swedish Nyckelharpa, Ukrainian Bandura, Bouzouki, Cittern and more, according to the duo’s website. They hail from Oregon and tour extensively, both having successful recording and performing careers built from years of street performing and a background as rock musicians. Lynne is widely acclaimed for composing melodies on the Windham Hill/Sony music labels that have repeatedly placed in the Top 10 and Top 20 on the Billboard New age music charts. Frankfurter works full time as both a performer and audio engineer. He has 18 albums to his credit and two books.

Cost is a suggested donation of $20-$25; cheese plate and wine are $10. For more information, call 360-683-4862 or email to donnawilly@gmail.com.

Upper Room to host Contra Dance on First Friday

A community Contra Dance featuring Cayley Miranda Schmid on Irish-Scottish fiddle is set for Friday, Nov. 4, during the First Friday Art Walk Sequim, at the Upper Room Hall (upstairs), 138 West Washington St. B.

The event is by donation and is open to all ages. A beginners’ class is at 7 p.m., and the official dance will begin at 7:30 p.m.

Schmid is a professional fiddler playing in a multitude of musical groups, a fiddle instructor, a community event organizer of two major festivals in Bellingham, a dancer, writer, and event and program director for the Celtic Arts Foundation in Mount Vernon.

David Isaac Rivers will be returning on acoustic guitar, and multiple musical guests are “rumored” to be accompanying throughout the night, organizers said.

Laura Mé Smith will be calling the dance. A local veteran caller from Kirkland, she’s been leading dances since 1980.

Poet laureate applications open

Clallam County and the North Olympic Library System (NOLS) are now accepting online applications at nols.org/poet for the first Clallam County Poet Laureate position.

County residents 18 and older who have a passion for bringing poetry to their community are invited to apply for the inaugural position. Submissions close on Friday, Dec. 2.

The Poet Laureate will bring poetry to residents of the county by participating in events, leading workshops and championing the community power of the written and spoken word. They will be expected to participate in or host about two events per month during their term at locations throughout Clallam County.

The laureate will be selected by a committee of community arts leaders, practitioners, and enthusiasts from across the county. Notification of the appointment will be made by March 2023, and the Laureate will serve a two-year term from April 2023-March 2025. The position comes with a $5,000 annual stipend ($10,000 in total).

For more information about this program, visit nols.org/poet, email to PoetLaureate@nols.org or call 360-417-8500.

Sequim Accordion Social

Players Jeannie and Steve Berg of Yelm are the featured players at the Sequim Accordion Social, set for 1-4 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 13, at the Sequim Shipley Center, 921 E. Hammond St.

A $5 admission donation is requested at the door to pay for the room.

All Accordion players are welcome to play a selection or two. Accordion lovers and dancers are invited to attend and hear some great music.

Trivia Nights series kicks off Oct. 28

Join the North Olympic Library System (NOLS) for fun trivia nights on Zoom. Play on your own or make a team. Sign up at nols.org/trivia to receive the Zoom link and information for team play.

“Trivia Nights @ NOLS” is held on the final Friday of each month at 6:30 p.m.

This fall, trivia kicks off on Friday, Oct. 28, with a Halloween theme of horror pop-culture and movies.

On Nov. 25, participants will test their knowledge and learn about the histories, cultures and traditions of Indigenous peoples of Washington.

Then, the topic shifts to food and drinks on Dec. 30 with trivia about regional cuisines, cooking techniques, ingredients, and more.

For more information about library programs and services, visit nols.org, email to discover@nols.org or follow North Olympic Library System on Facebook and Instagram.

Crafters prepare for Nov. 19 bazaar to support nonprofits

Hundreds of holiday decorations, table linens, knitwear, note cards and jewelry are among the locally crafted items already ready for the Nov. 19 Yuletide Bazaar at Dungeness Valley Lutheran Church, 925 N. Sequim Ave.

Combined with a bake sale that includes such Scandinavian favorites as krumkake and lefse, a vintage table and an appearance by local author Gene Bradbury, the bazaar raises thousands of dollars each year for area nonprofits.

The 2021 fundraiser provided support for: Peninsula Behavioral Health; First Step Family Support Center; Sequim Food Bank; Forks Abuse Program/Mariposa House; North Olympic Foster Parents Association; ParentLine; Clallam-Jefferson Pro Bono Attorneys, and The Answer for Youth (TAFY).

Big Library Read spotlights ‘A Snake Falls to Earth’

North Olympic Library System (NOLS) patrons can join readers around the world during Big Library Read, the world’s largest digital book club. From Nov. 2-16, booklovers can access an eBook or eAudiobook of Darcie Little Badger’s Indigenous fantasy novel, “A Snake Falls to Earth,” with no waitlists or holds, and can participate in an online discussion.

Visit anytime.overdrive.com or download the Libby app to borrow the Newbery Award-winning young adult novel. The free program only requires a NOLS library card to get started.

Program organizers say that “A Snake Falls to Earth” tells the story of Nina, a Lipan Apache girl who always felt there was something more out there. She still believes in the old stories. Meanwhile, Oli is a cottonmouth kid from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he’s been cast from home. He’s found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake. Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli’s best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven’t been in centuries. And there are some who will kill to keep them apart.

Big Library Read is an international reading program that connects millions of readers around the world with an eBook through public libraries. “A Snake Falls to Earth” is the 29th selection of this program, which began in 2013 and takes place three times per year.

For more information or assistance to get started, visit nols.org/big-library-read, call 360-417-8500 or email to discover@nols.org.

Photo courtesy of North Olympic Library System/ Local library readers can enjoy “A Snake Falls to Earth” as an eBook or eAudiobook for free with no waiting during the Big Library Read, held Nov. 2-16.