March 30, 2012

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Aerialist Sally Pepper



Just back from her European tour Ms Pepper returns once again for Moisture Festival. Sally exercises a dizzying array of vaudeville skills ranging from aerial expertise to hula hooping, tap dancing, stilt walking, tumbling, group acrobatics, and roller skating. Working for years with Seattle's famed Circus Contraption she also joined in on the singing and bottle-tootin' and has excelled at the art of costume making, a skill not to be taken lightly in the world of circus/variete. Welcome home Sally!

Hale's Palladium
March 31 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
April 1@ 7:30pm 

Moisture Festival Interview - Stage Manager Murphy Stevens



"Stage Manager Olympics" is how Murphy, one of our fabulous stage managers, discribes working at Moisture Festival. Imaging setting the stage and prepping performers who are doing 8-10 minute routines in succession during a two hour variety or burlesque show. Murphy is one of the best, always maintaining a cool head under pressure. People like Murphy are what make Moisture Festival shows such crowd pleasers.  

Moisture Festival Volunteers Make The Festival Possible



A brief interview with Moisture Festival Volunteers Grace Jones and Danica Sheridan, who talk about their experience working for the Festival. Without many volunteers like Grace and Danica there would be no Moisture Festival. We are extremely lucky to have some of the best volunteers in Seattle working with us each year. Thank you volunteers!


March 29, 2012

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Tank Karo



Tank is a nimble performer who brings both a wicked and beautiful side of circus onto the stage. She is a dancer turned aerialist, who has travelled clear across the globe in her quest to perform just about everywhere. She began learning in Chicago with the Aloft Aerial Dance Company, and then spent 4 years living and working in Melbourne, Australia. She has earned a Bachelors in Circus Arts at NICA, the National Institute of Circus Arts, focusing on dance trapeze, foot juggling and fire burlesque. Tank has been featured internationally, at festivals and cabarets, and in selected magazines. She is currently based in Chicago, were she teaches and performs.

March 29 @ 7:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
March 30 @ 10:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
March 31 @ 7:30, 10:30pm (Georgetown Ballroom)

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - AJ Silver



Angelo “AJ Silver” Iodice, combines his world class trick roping with bullwhip artistry and boleadoras to create a unique high energy variety act. With his ropes, whips and bolas flying through the air he presents a dramatic spectacle that is visually stunning. A versatile and creative artist, Angelo has fused his roping with dance, aerial arts, comedy, rhythmic/skipping rope, burlesque and other performance arts, creating acts that have proven successful in circuses, theater stages, sports arenas, nightclubs, television, and private events worldwide.

March 29 @ 7:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
March 30 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm  (Hale's Palladium)
March 31 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm (Hales's Palladium)
April 1 @ 3:00pm (Broadway Performance Hall Matinee 3pm)

March 27, 2012

Moisture Festival - Georgetown Ballroom Opens - It's A Three Ringed Circus

'It's a three ringed circus this week at Moisture Festival'

The Georgetown Ballroom venue opens this Friday night March 30th with an all ages show at 7:30pm. Then there are two shows on Saturday at the Georgetown Ballroom at 7:30pm and 10:30pm, and Sunday we will finish the run at the Georgetown Ballroom with an all ages variété Matinee at 3pm.

Broadway Performance Hall continues into its second week with Libertease Burlesque shows at 7:30pm and 10:30pm both Friday and Saturday night and a Sunday all ages variété show at 3pm. Hales Palladium opens the week on Wednesday night March 28th. There are nightly shows all week long at Hale's Palladium with two shows on Friday night, three shows on Saturday and two shows on Sunday including the matinees at 3pm on Saturday and Sunday.

Buy Tickets


See below for age restriction information.


Note: For the complete schedules of a particular show click here. Schedules are subject to last minute changes. Libertease Burlesque shows at BPH require that you be 18 or older. Nearly all of the variété shows and matinees are for all ages with the exception that Late Night variété shows at Hale's Palladium on Friday and Saturday nights at 10:30pm which require that you be 18 or older. Georgetown Ballroom Late Night Saturday show at 10:30pm on March 31st requires that you be 18 or older.

March 26, 2012

Moisture Festival Week Three - 'Three Venues At Once' - Variete And Burlesque Shows Galore - Georgetown Ballroom Opens

MC Armitage Shanks -  Photo John Cornicello
Week three begins Wednesday night with continuing Variété shows at Hale's Palladium and then Friday, Saturday and Sunday we open the Georgetown Ballroom. Libertease Burlesque shows continue at Broadway Performance Hall on Friday and Saturday.  We will then have achieved the trick of having festival shows in 'three venues simultaneously'.  Yikes! If it seems like there are an ton of shows to choose from think about how we feel.

Variété shows take place at Hale's Palladium all week long starting on Wednesday night March 29th. Then we open at Georgetown Ballroom on Friday April 30th followed by two shows on Saturday evening and a Sunday April 1st 3pm matinee. There is also a 3pm Matinee variété show at Broadway Performance Hall on Sunday April 1st.


The Libertease Burlesque Shows continue into their second week at Broadway Performance Hall on Friday and Saturday night at 7:30pm and 10:30pm. Tickets are available for most shows especially for the late night 10:30pm shows in all venues, so get your tickets NOW. This week's variété and burlesque shows will feature an abundance of entirely new super talented performers who've just arrived plus many of the usual returning suspects.


Here is a taste of some of the new variété acts arriving this week: Baby Gramps, Bronkar and Cyndi, Dana Smith, Della Moustachella, Elizabeth Rose, Ropeworks by René, Rubberband Boy Scot Nery, AJ Silver, David DeebleEric Schwartz, Kevin JoyceLelavision, Sara Felder, Tank Karo, Johnny Jetpack PropulsionNathan Arnold, Smerdyakov KaramazovClay Martin's Puppet TheaterAlex Zerbe, Quynbi,  Pinky d’Ambrosia, Tom Noddy, Sally Pepper, Daniel Forlano, Sisters, Tamara the Trapeze Lady and many more.


Finally, on Monday April 2nd we will have the FREE to the public special educational lecture and film event 'Silents Are Golden' at Hales Palladium featuring circus historian and legend Robert Mermin. 

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - The 'Internationally' Famous Rubberband Boy



In 2011 the Moisture Festival scheduled the Famous Rubberband Boy for the festival but an earthquake in his hometown of Christchurch, New Zealand and a bureaucratic performer visa process stopped it from happening. But persistance has paid off and we are so pleased to have him here finally for this year's festival.

His act of facial contortion and pogo stick straight jacket escapology has been viewed in 15 countries including as the New Zealand representative at "The World Gurning Championships" in Japan. Shay is the holder of The Guinness World Record for facial contortion. His act demonstrates an exceptional degree of originality and extraordinary creativity. He is in high demand due to his international reputation as one of the funniest Varietè performer in the world. The rave reviews from his 2011 tours of Europe and Canada have us hopeful that the Visa will come through ... 'The Rubberband Boy, Man or Monster? You decide!


March 28 @ 7:30pm
March 29 @ 7:30pm
March 30 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 31 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm (Georgetown Ballroom)
April 1, 2012 @ 3:00pm, 7:30pm

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Sourdough Slim 'The Yodeling Cowboy'



Ten gallon funny-man Sourdough Slim, transports us to a whimsical world where vaudevillian camp and cowboy lore intermingle to produce grins galore. Slim, aka Rick Crowder, is a well traveled veteran of stages ranging from The National Cowboy Poetry Gathering to The Lincoln Center's Roots of American Music Festival and the Carnegie Hall Folk Festival. His fast-paced stage show finds him crooning Western classics, playing accordion, guitar and harmonica, dancing a jig, twirling a lariat, dishing out hilarious comedic sketches and letting loose with his absolutely mind boggling yodeling. His truly astounding yippie-ti-yi style won him the Academy of Western Artists 2001 Will Rogers Award for "Yodeler of the Year" and 2009, 2010 and 2011 nomination for "Entertainer of the Year" from the Western Music Association.

March 24, 2012

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Trixie Little & The Evil Hate Monkey


Trixie Little & the Evil Hate Monkey are the award-winning acrobatic burlesque superduo that has been flipping and stripping for audiences since 2002. With highly skilled sexy-smart antics and a charming love-hate dynamic, Trixie and Monkey showcase trapeze, striptease, acrobatics and physical comedy in jaw-dropping burlesque, cabaret, variety and theater shows. Mixing years of high level circus training, brilliant comedy and electric onstage chemistry their act defies description chemistry, and expectation.

Hailing from the shamelessly eccentric city of Baltimore (aka "Charm City"), Trixie and Monkey have performed with John Waters, The Flaming Lips, four consecutive Virgin Mobile Music Festivals, Rothbury Music Festival, the Philly, DC and Brighton, England Fringe Festivals, Tease-o-rama 2/3, all seven New York Burlesque Festivals, have earned a "Best of Baltimore" vote and are the winners of Las Vegas' 2006 Exotic World Best Burlesque Duo trophy. They also performed in the premiere episode of"The Gong Show with Dave Attel" on Comedy Central and on season 4 of"America's Got Talent".

In New York City, the two are regular late-night fixtures everywhere from uber-exclusive nightclubs like The Box to long-running burlesque shows like The Slipper Room, and have been called "the only way to end the party"by the Village Voice.

March 23, 2012

Post Show Party March 25 at Clever Dunne's Irish House on Capitol Hill

Are you attending to the Sunday March 25 variété show at  Broadway Performance Hall? Come to the post show party at Clever Dunne's Irish House and mingle with performers, volunteers, and patrons! The pub is a short four-block walk from the theater.

Clever Dunne's is an authentic Irish pub (it's owned by a real live Irishman) with a laid-back vibe, a full bar, and tasty snacks and sandwiches. (The BLT is highly recommended.)

Food and drink specials will be on offer to Moisture Festival patrons, and Happy Hour deals will be available all day.

Paintings by street artist Darryl Ary -- whose work you may have already encountered if you spend much time in the downtown / Capitol Hill area -- will be on display.

Come join us for good food, good drinks, and good times!

Sorry, no minors allowed; this is a 21-and-over event. 




Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Duo de Luna



The Moisture Festival is privileged to have these powerful and beautiful aerialists join us for this year's festival. When we put their publicity photo up on our blog and facebook page it nearly crashed the internets.

Marina and Cameron began performing together in June of 2011. In August they performed in San Francisco at Teatro ZinZanni's "Cabaret Lunatique." In December they traveled to Europe to perform in Cascade's "Equi-Libre" in Utrecht, Netherlands, then rang in the New Year performing at Supperclub Amsterdam. Regulars at Supperclub SF and with TrapezeWorld production company, Duo de Luna consistently thrills their audience.  You can see them At Broadway Performance Hall this weekend.

Broadway Performance Hall: 
March 23 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm  
March 24 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm 
March 25 @ 3pm (Grand Variété all ages)  
Tickets

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Equilibrium Circus - Paz & Leah



Equilibrium Circus is an award winning duo that specializes in the art of partnering. Paz and Leah are honored to be a part of the 2012 Moisture Festival line-up and will be performing "Caliente" - a fast paced, sensual salsa on trapeze. This spicy duo has been seen around the world performing in film, television, and on the live stage. Paz and Leah's breathtaking salsa in the air is not to be missed.

See them at Hale's Palladium: 
March 23, 2012 @ 10:30pm  
March 24, 2012 @ 7:30pm
March 25, 2012 @ 3:00pm 

Tickets

March 22, 2012

Moisture Festival - Performer Interviews - Tom Murphy



Knock 'em down, drag 'em out, laugh till you cry slapstick sketch comedy. Think: Buster Keaton meets Robin Williams. He co-founded two international touring comedy troupes: Mountain Mime and Klown Shoes. For the past 20 years he has performed and taught around the world. He was a winner at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris and twice awarded "Artist of the Year Award" by Kuenstler Magazine in Germany. He has appeared on Broadway in his solo production called MetaMURPHosis. For the past 15 years he has been touring in Europe where he was dubbed "The Chaos Poet." He has been a mainstay in the Variete scene in Germany, chiefly the GOP Varietes in Hannover, Essen, Bad Oeyenhausen, Munster and Munich.

Tom Murphy is a Moisture Festival veteran having performed at the festival several times during our nine year run. He was last here in Seattle for the festival 2 years ago and quickly became a audience favorite. We are so pleased to have him back.

March 21, 2012

Moisture Festival - Free Circles Of Sawdust Lecture And Film Presentation - Monday March 26th

Moisture Festival is thrilled to present a special event Circles Of Sawdust which is free to the public at Hale's Palladium at 7:30pm on Monday March 26th with the founder of award winning Circus Smirkus Rob Mermin.

If your interested in the history of circus and "the mud, the myth, and the mayhem of circus" this event is for you. The program includes rare European film footage and clips from Hollywood circus films.

Circus Smirkus is a non-profit, award-winning international youth circus founded in 1987 with the mission to promote the skills, culture and traditions of the traveling circus and to inspire youth to engage in life-changing adventures in the circus arts.





March 20, 2012

Moisture Festival - Absinthe And Burlesque Together Again - Have A Glass Of Absinthe At The Burlesque Show Bar

Of course, absinthe and burlesque are old friends, so it made perfect sense to seize the opportunity to put them together! At this year's Moisture Festival Libertease Burlesque shows you’ll be able to order a glass of Marteau Absinthe from the Broadway Performance Hall lobby bar. It may add a little magic and mystery to your perception of the evening. 

The Burlesque scene in Seattle is ripe with immense creativity. These local performers relish the edge and fearlessly explore sexual humor. They’ve consistently garnered a top spot in the Las Vegas Miss Exotic World Pageant. Combine these local burlesque stars with national and international headliners in this genre, add varietè artists whose material and humor not only cross the line but mock the idea that there is a line, and you have Moisture Festival’s Libertease Burlesque.

You must be 18 or older to attend Moisture Festival Libertease Burlesque shows. All proceeds from liquor sales at the Broadway Performance Hall go to benefit the Moisture Festival. Thank you to Marteau Absinthe for their support in helping make it happen. 

Moisture Festival - Performer Interviews - Gazzo



The Moisture Festival is so please to have Gazzo here in Seattle performing at the festival for the first time. He's from England so it's understandable that his act is a little bit condescending. He also is a master variété performer, hilariously funny, and skilled at his magic. The witty banter he carries on with an audience is something special and always entertaining. Gazzo is a legend in variété performer circles and really represents an example of what the genre is all about. He will be performing at Moisture Festival Hale's Palladium shows this weekend March 22 @ 7:30pm, March 23 @ 7:30pm and 10:30pm and  March 25 @ 3:00pm and 7:30pm

Moisture Festival - Wednesday Night Festival Lounge - It's Party Time - Everyone's Invited


Wednesday Night's Moisture Festival Shows at Hale's Palladium are a little extra special because of the party we throw at Hale's Brew Pub after the show. Everyone is invited to party with the performers, producers, patron of the arts and fans of the festival after every Wednesday night show at Hale's Palladium during the festival.

It's a way for festival performers, producers, festival staff, volunteers and festival fans to come together after the show relax, hangout and have some laughs. Whether your attending the show that night or not your still invited. We call it the Wednesday Night Festival Lounge. The dates for the Festival Lounge meetups are March 21st, 28th and April 4th. The party happens from 10pm till midnight. There also will be special happy hour food and drinks available. So come on down to Hale's Pub and have some fun!

March 19, 2012

Moisture Festival Libertease Burlesque Host Kevin Joyce Offers A Preview Of Broadway Performance Hall Shows

Moisture Festival Libertease Burlesque opens this Friday night March 23rd at Broadway Performance Hall, with shows on Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30pm and 10:30pm. Madam X and her lawyer will host the opening weekend of burlesque shows.

The always gregarious and hilarious Kevin Joyce will host the Moisture Festival Libertease Burlesque for the 2nd weekend of shows at Broadway Performance Hall on March 30th and 31st. Below he gives us a preview of what to expect. Plenty of tickets are available for these shows as we write but the shows do tend to sellout. So buy your tickets early. Burlesque shows require that you be 18 or older.

Moisture Festival - Week Two - Libertease Burlesque & Variete Shows Begin At Broadway Performance Hall - Continue At Hale's Palladium - A New Cast Of Performers Arrive


What a WEEK ONE with all the sold out shows at Hale's Palladium and the unforgettable experience of the Kamikaze FireFlies audience surfing in giant plastic bubbles, as well as the fantastic variété and aerial performances that left audiences amazed.

Now we move on to WEEK TWO of the festival with the continuation of Variété shows at Hales Palladium starting again Wednesday night March 21st (which is a regular festival show with the proceeds going to benefit the Fremont Arts Council).

Libertease Burlesque and variété shows also open at a second brand new venue for the Moisture Festival at the Broadway Performance Hall on Friday March 23rd with two burlesque shows Friday and two burlesque shows Saturday night March 24th at 7:30pm and 10:30pm and a variété show matinee on Sunday March 25th at 3pm. We are thrilled to be coming to the Capitol Hill neighborhood for the first time with the 2012 festival. Burlesque shows in a great theater on Capitol Hill would appear to be a perfect match. Lots of tickets remain for these shows although they tend to sellout quickly. So buy your tickets early

Here's a peek at some of the performers you'll see in Moisture Festival Libertease burlesque shows at Broadway Performance Hall this weekend. These shows include the following performers:

Bellini Twins, Blanche DeBris, Booby Trap Players, du Caniveaux Dancing Bears, Duo de Luna aerial, Kaleb Hagan-Kerr, Lily Verlaine, Host: Madame X and her Lawyer , Moist-ettes, Paris Original, Shanghai Pearl, Sinner Saint Burlesque, Terry Crane aerial, Trixie Little & the Evil Hate Monkey, Waxie Moon, Zebra Kings Fuchsia FoXXX, Heavenly Spies, Miss Indigo Blue, Lady Tatas, and more. Show band: The Zebra Kings.

On Sunday at Broadway Performance Hall there will be a 3pm Moisture Festival Variété show which is open to all ages.

Meanwhile Variété shows will continue at Hales Palladium starting again Wednesday March 21st at 7:30pm and continue through Sunday. Once again there is a variété show Sunday Matinee at Broadway Performance Hall. Many of the acts from week one will join with the a host of new performers arriving in town for week two. New acts arriving this week include: 


As if that were not enough, on Monday March 26th at Hales Palladium 7:30pm we kick off week 3 with  a special Moisture Festival FREE TO THE PUBLIC lecture and film event 'Circles of Sawdust' hosted by the founder of Circus Smirkus Robert Mermin. Circus, variété and vaudeville fans will not want to miss this special educational evening.

(For the complete schedules of a particular show click here. Note: Schedules are subject to last minute changes. Burlesque shows require that you be 18 or older. All variété shows are for all ages with the exception that late night variété shows at Hale's Palladium on Friday and Saturday nights at 10:30pm which require that you be 18 or older.)

March 18, 2012

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Uncle Bonsai



Uncle Bonsai performs original, contemporary folk/pop music. With their soaring and intricate 3-part vocal harmonies and biting humor, accompanied by only an acoustic guitar, Arni Adler, Patrice O'Neill, and Andrew Ratshin deliver poignantly unflinching portrayals of life, love, and a guy named Doug. The trio's influences range from the Beatles to Stephen Sondheim. Some say Zappa cross-bred with Peter, Paul and Mary. Loudon Wainwright III, the Roches. Three tightly tiered and adhered voices, acoustic guitar. That's it. Nearly naked folk-pop for everyone.

Moisture Festival Performer Interviews - Amy G.



Amy Gordon is a revolutionary comedienne. The granddaughter of The Little Giant, a vaudevillian acrobat/ukulele playing song and dance man of little renown but vast appeal, she took to the stage at an early age as The Tall Midget. Amy performs physical, musical, stand-up and improvisational comedy. Her credits include: Broadway's New Victory, Sydney Opera House, The Kennedy Center, Adelaide International Festival, Festival International de Teatro de Bogota, Montreal's Just For Laughs, Dance Theatre Workshop, Symphony Space, GOP Varieté, Palazzo Amsterdam and Britain's Rude Tube. She's been seen around the world with the Olivier Awarded circus cabaret, La Soirée (voted Best Entertainment 2009); including long runs on London's West End, The Sydney Festival, and in Paris' iconic music hall, Bobino. Her current solo show, Round She Goes, played NYC at Joe's Pub, Spiegelworld, and the Bard Spiegeltent. Amy was born and raised in Seattle and Moisture Festival audiences fell in love some years back when she roller skated into our hearts. We're thrilled to have her back.

March 17, 2012

Moisture Festival - Become One In One Thousand And Help Us Achieve Our Goal

Give $100 or more to become One in One Thousand and help us maintain excellence throughout the 2012 festival and prepare for our 10th-Anniversary Season in 2013! Reaching our fundraising goals will mean booking the best acts from around the world, paying dedicated staff and ensuring our continued expansion of the festival throughout Seattle. In true Moisture Festival fashion, reaching our goal also means celebration. We're going to throw our biggest party yet once we reach our goal and everyone who gives $100 or more will be invited to an unforgettable 10th-anniversary bash!

Donate Now!
Donating online is easy and secure. Every donation helps!

For your generous support, you will..

  • receive a ticket to our 10th Anniversary Bash!
  • get a star with your name hung on the Palladium's big sky wall!
  • see your name on our donor appreciation webpage!
  • be entered into a drawing for two tickets to the 2013 festival's opening night (1 in 25 will win)!
  • be a Moisture Festival STAR! As we roll out our plans for 2013, you'll be in the loop and will receive announcements and exclusive deals!
Contact our development team to learn more about how you can help the festival you love reach its fund raising goals!

March 16, 2012

Spotlight on Kris Raftis, Moisture Festival Board Member and Fundraiser Extraordinaire

Kris Raftis was all smiles last night, and for good reason: opening night sold out and the post-show gala she organized was packed with exhilarated volunteers, artists, and patrons.

Kris is on the festival’s 12-person Board of Directors, and she’s forthright about her role in the organization: “I’m a fundraiser,” she said. “I ask people for money.”

But for her, soliciting donations means more than filling up an organization’s coffers.

“I joke about it, but fundraising is really a matter of connecting people who want to give back with their passion. It’s really rewarding.”

Kris was recruited for the board by Deborah Person, another Moisture Festival board member. “I hadn’t heard of the Moisture Festival until Deborah told me about it,” she said. “The first show I saw, I was so impressed, and I thought, “How is that I haven’t heard of these people before?’”

Kris, who works at United Way, said that the festival is the perfect counterbalance to her day job. “My tagline is ‘Serving the community by day and playing with the circus at night.’”

Moisture Festival - 'Crack Timing And A Near-Riotous End Of The Show' - Opening Night Performer Interviews

We had a chance to interview the Kamikaze Fireflies (Rob Williams and Casey Martin) and Comedian Bill Robison after the show opening night. They offered their insights on the evening. The Seattle Times review of the night called the Fireflies act "a near-riotous end to the show" and said Bill's act "kicked things off with a routine that was a marvel of crack-timing".




Moisture Festival - Cathy Sutherland Aerial and Burlesque Coordinator Talks About Upcoming Shows

We took a moment to talk with Cathy Sutherland, aerial and burlesque coordinator for the festival, at the opening night after party at Hale's Palladium last night. Cathy gave us a small preview of what to expect in upcoming shows. Cathy is also one of the Northwest's leading aerial performers and personalities and will performs with the aerial troupe Aviatrix in this year's Moisture Festival

Moisture Festival Opening Night Audience Reactions - WOW!

We took a moment at the after party Gala to speak to some of the audience members who attended the opening night performance of Moisture Festival 2012 at Hale's Palladium.



March 15, 2012

Moisture Festival - Get Wet! - It's Opening Night - A Fantastic Festival Follows March 15th - April 8th

Some think Spring begins on the Spring equinox, but it's not so. The Spring official begins in Seattle with the Opening of Moisture Festival tonight. The producers and our dedicated army of volunteers have worked their butts off for an entire year to bring you what we know from our experience from doing this for nine years is going to be one of the best Moisture Festivals ever. So get your tickets early and often and come along for the ride!  Laughter is the key, see you at the shows! 

The Scoop on 'Sold Out' Shows

Wow, you really like us! It's strange to be writing my annual,"so you want tickets to a sold out show..." before Opening Night, but response to this year's festival has been stonger than ever. Thank you! We are already seeing shows sell out (or get down to just a few tickets), so... here's how Sold Out shows work:

Advance tickets for all our shows are available through Seattle's own Brown Paper Tickets. We highly encourage advance purchase since so many of our shows do sell out. When a show is listed as "Sold Out" on Brown Paper Tickets. It really does means that we have sold the maximum amount of tickets we are willing to sell in advance to ensure everyone gets a seat. Sadly, we don't have any secret stashes of tickets beyond what’s been sold on Brown Paper Tickets.

To try to get tickets to a sold out show, come to our on site box office one hour before the show you’re interested in seeing. We'll evaluate how many seats are set, if we can add more, and if anyone has released any tickets. .

IF we are able to release any tickets for sale, we will do so when the on site box office opens one hour before showtime. Only tickets for that show will be available at that time. If we have no tickets to release right away (or when the released tickets sell out) we will begin a waitlist. We will start to work through the waitlist about 10 minutes before showtime, but understand we may still be working on it when the show starts.

There are no guarantees. At some shows we don't have any tickets to release and on many others we are able to release some. You can also follow our Twitter feed to keep up to date with breaking ticket news.

We hope to see each and every one of you at this year's festival, so get those tickets early

Three Shows to be ASL Interpreted

Moisture Festival will again partner with our friends at TADA! Theatres, Allies, and Deaf Audiences this year to provide several American Sign Language interpreted shows. TADA! interpreters will lend their skills to the following shows:

Sunday, March 18th, 7:30pm at Hale's Palladium (Variete)

Friday, March 23rd, 10:30pm at Broadway Performance Hall (Burlesque) (18+ only)

Sunday, March 25th, 3:00p at Broadway Performance Hall (Variete Matinee)


We are so pleased to be able to offer these shows again this year and want to thank TADA! immensely for partnering with us.

We encourage anyone interested in attending these shows to purchase advance tickets as shows tend to sell out. When you arrive at the theater for the show please let the Box Office know you will be sitting in the ASL section and a host will show you to your seats.

March 13, 2012

A Letter From A Fan - '7000 Miles Away, I Mentioned The Moisture Festival'

Jessica and Brian
We just had to share the following letter we just received from one of our fans Jessica Montgomery. It made us a little misty eyed and it certainly proves that magical things happen at the Moisture Festival.

Hi Rhonda,

First I want to say that this will be my second year in attending this awesome show! I was blown away the first time by the amazing performers and wonderful atmosphere back in 2010. The reason I am writing you this is because I wanted to share with you and the rest of Moisture Festival people this great story.

In March 2010, I was active duty Army getting ready to deploy to Iraq for a year, I went to the Moisture Festival to celebrate my birthday and to do something fun before I left. During the show, a performer with a unicycle and a tutu called up a volunteer from the audience.  The volunteer was a very charismatic man and easily gained the audience's approval and the performer and volunteer both were hilarious.  Fast forward six months and I am in Iraq taking care of the military working dogs amidst daily mortar and rocket attacks.

Someone said once that you can't find love in a war zone. I never believed that. So I reached out and went online with Eharmony. Not expecting much, maybe a penpal until I returned to the states, instead I found a wonderful man was willing to wait for me to return.  One night, talking to each via Skype, 7000 miles away, I mentioned the Moisture Festival.  We soon discovered that we had both attended a show during the same month. Brian asked me if I remembered the "schmuck" who got on stage and danced around with the performer in a tutu. I did recall that and laughed at how funny he was. It never dawned on me that Brian was the guy called on stage. We both were just astounded at the coincidence.  I was sitting in the balcony section and he was very close to stage. What are the odds? Here is a woman sent to a foreign country 7000 miles away from home, got on the world wide web and found someone who had been to the same show and fate pointed him out. In a tutu no less. :)

Brian and I are going this year as I have returned from Iraq this past September. The tickets were a birthday present from Brian and they are very special. I truly believe it was fate and I am glad to be home safe and sound to enjoy them with Brian once again. :)

Sincerely,
Jessica Montgomery

The Moisture Festival - The World's Largest Comedy Variete' And Burlesque Festival Opens Thursday In Seattle

Entrance To Hale's Palladium - Laughter Is The Key
Seattleites your one good spirited group of people we think because you love and support the genre of comedy, variété' and burlesque. Years before America's Got Talent came into being along with a host of other similar television talent shows you brought tickets to see the Moisture Festival during our annual showcasing of comedy,  variété and burlesque acts from around the world.  Over the years you've grown with us in your love, appreciation and support of this unique art form and our non-profit. Now the journey is about to continue again.

On Thursday March 15th we begin our ninth annual festival with our opening night show and Gala at Hale's Palladium. The festivités will continue through April 8th with 50 shows in 4 venues involving nearly 200 performers, over 200 hardworking and beloved volunteers, staff and a host of festival sponsors. This year the festival will also offer a night of cinema at SIFF and two special free to the public lecture film and educational events that represent our continuing effort to enrich the public's understanding of the genre.

People tell us all the time that once they have been to a Moisture Festival show they're hook. We know the feeling well.

The seeds for the festival were planted at the Oregon Country Fair, and the Moisture was added by the vaudeville/circus/music scene in Seattle. In 1996 Tom Noddy the Bubble Guy, a regular at the Oregon Country Fair, surprised Ron W. Bailey with an invitation to attend a Comedy/Varietè Festival in Berlin. The event was created by Hacki Ginda, a notorious German clown. The trip was thrilling because it was a great time for the creative performers in Berlin and it was a festival that inspired everyone involved. Every day and night there was unique and wonderful entertainment in two tents, one large theater "The Chameleon" and several smaller venues in mid-town Berlin. Tom Noddy, Ron and Hacki dreamed about someday bringing a festival like that to the people in Seattle.

Enter Maque Davis of Cirque de Flambe, The Fremont Players and ex-President for Life of the Fremont Arts Council. Maque helped organize the Fremont Solstice Parade and created "Trolloween." Maque and Ron had often talked about bringing some of the acts from the Oregon Country Fair to Seattle, so in 2003 they joined ideas.

Realizing the grand scope of a festival they brought in Tim Furst, aka Fyodor Karamazov of The Flying Karamazov Brothers, along with Sandy Palmer and Simon Neale of the Fremont Players to help organize the event. In 2004, with the help of Fremonstor Theatrical and Du Caniveaux and the contributions of many artists and sponsors, they created "The Moisture Festival" to bring Comedy/Varietè to the center of the universe and the greater Seattle area.

The first festival was only five days long and held in a tent in Fremont, rented at a discount from His Reverend Chumleigh. Fortune was on the festival's side when many of our favorite artists responded to the request to perform in the tent and help us create and christen the first shows. It has continued to be the generosity and willingness of the comedy/varietè artists that keeps the festival alive. Also, it should be mentioned that there is much more to a festival than performing in it. There have always been many volunteers who work hard and share in the fun of making it happen.

There were key sponsors who came on board with early enthusiasm. One was the Utilikilts company, Megan Hass and Steven Villegas. Another sponsor, an unassuming guy delivering the kegs to the tent for Hale's Brewery, turned out to be Mike Hale. He would end up bringing his wife Kathleen to an evening show and later they would offer to help in any way they could. This led to the Hale's Brewery warehouse space being converted to The Palladium for the two week 2005 festival, at which 13 of 19 shows sold out. Hales Palladium has been a venue each year since and serves as the heart of the festival to this day. The 5th anniversary in 2008 was a wonderful celebration and the Moisture Festival continued to evolve. We achieved our goal of becoming an official 501©(3) nonprofit organization.

Looking ahead to 2013, which will be the festival’s 10th anniversary, we are ever mindful of all the help from our volunteer staff. We would have no history at all with out the hundreds of volunteers who work hard, play well with others and spread some real joy to the people of Seattle.

We as producers of the festival continue to believe that the way to a better life is through lightheartedness and parody and that creating laughter is the key to it all.

Have a great 2012 festival!

The Moisture Festival Board of Directors

March 12, 2012

A Saturday Matinee At Moisture Festival - Kids - Popcorn - Hot Dogs - Laughter - Fun - What Could Be Better?



Why not Bring the kids to a matinee this Saturday at 3pm at Hales Palladium? Kids always love the Saturday and Sunday matinee shows at Moisture Festival.


Bill Robison will be featured at the Special Clowns Without Borders benefit matinee show opening weekend at 3pm March 17th at Hales Palladium as well as at several other shows throughout the festival (see below for Bill's scheduled performances).

Bill's performances are hilarious.

His performances are a synthesis of outlandish comedy, an elastic face, a penchant for the absurd and a reckless sense of abandon. He has been touring internationally as a solo artist and with the highly acclaimed comedy duo "The Shneedles" with their show "Luggage" They have also performed in numerous comedy festivals and German Variety theaters.

Bill has toured extensively as a solo act to fairs and festivals across the US and Canada for over 20 years, where he has been the warm-up act for over 150 concerts including Bill Cosby, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra and many, many more. He is very happy to be back in Seattle and is delighted to be part of the Moisture Festival. Enjoy!

March 15 @ 7:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
March 17 @ 3:00pm (Clowns Without Borders Benefit Hales Palladium)
March 28 @ 7:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
March 29 @ 7:30pm (Hale'sPalladium
March 30 @ 7:30pm (Georgetown Ballroom)
March 31 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm (Hale's Palladium)
April 1 @ 3:00pm (Broadway Performance Hall)
April 5 @ 7:30pm (SIFF Cinema, Queen Anne)


Tickets

March 11, 2012

Moisture Festival - Jessie Sawyers' Dancing Sure to Amaze Opening Weekend Festival Goers



The Moisture Festival is honored to have the talent of Jessie Sawyers grace the stage at Hales Palladium the first weekend of the festival.  Jessie will be tapping her way into your heart throughout the festival this year. (see her schedule below) She's certainly loved by tap aficionados and now it's everybody else's turn to see what they're talking about.

Jessie has a unique blend of experience in both the entertainment industry and in business. She began tap dancing at the age of eleven under the direction of Cheryl Johnson and Anthony Peters in Seattle. She has had the honor of studying with tap masters Arthur Duncan, Dianne Walker, and the late tap greats Cholly Atkins, Gregory Hines, Fayard Nicholas, and Jimmy Slyde among others.

Taking this knowledge and subsequent experience, she has applied it to the entertainment industry in several forms. Jessie has produced 4 evening length shows that blend tap dance with live music. Most recently was With You We Dance at the Georgetown Ballroom in Seattle (co-produced with Dayna Szyndrowski). Others include Stark Pulse at CanCan; Flow: An Evening of Music, Dance, and Visual Art at Triple Door; and Jessie Sawyers: Solo Show at Egan’s Ballard Jam House. 

She has also been working on the production team with world-renowned tap dancer Mark Mendonca in preparation for his soon-to-launch touring show. Whatever the project Jessie seems to have a knack for bridging the gap between idea generation and manifestation, which enables her to share her ideas and spirit with the world. Oh yeah ... and she worked for Ivar’s as their tap dancing clam mascot (ask to see pictures sometime, they're hilarious).

Hale's Palladium

March 17 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm 
March 22 @ 7:30pm
March 23 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
April 7 @ 10:30pm


Tickets

March 10, 2012

Moisture Festival - Watching Lelavision Perform Is Always A Magical Experience


The Moisture Festival is thrilled to have the unique talents and creativity of Lelavision back with us again for the 2012 Festival. The name Lela is more than a play on the names of the founders; derived from two Sanskrit terms meaning "creation" and "creative spark", with references to "play," it denotes the spirit of this unique performance group. 

The company combines modern and aerial dance, music, theater, and large interactive musical sculptures to create innovative works of awe and whimsy. Their work is about the transfer of energy, the emanations of the soul, and the common denominators of the human experience. Mann and Lamblin work with a synthesis of form, space, movement, and music in a collaboration that draws on the unique contribution of each. 

Ela Lamblin is a sculptor/musician who is known locally and internationally for his past collaborations with the likes of UMO Ensemble and Tacoma's Museum Of Glass, to only mention a few. Lamblin's musical instrument/sculptures represent a harmony of sound, form, and movement meant not solely to be looked at and walked around but to be sounded and intimately experimented with. They appeal both to the ear and to the eye and, because they are thematically indicative, to the soul and to the consciousness.

March 29, @ 7:30pm Hale's Palladium
April 1 @ 3:00pm Matinee Broadway Performance Hall

March 9, 2012

Moisture Festival - Gazzo "'Master Of Magic" Will Headline Opening Weekend Of Festival At Hales Palladium



“In my opinion, Gazzo is one of the best entertainers in the world. He makes you laugh at him and at yourself and you love him for it. He’s earthy and yet almost regal. He’s sassy and gracious, impudent and courteous. Gazzo makes eveybody in a room, whether they’re kids, kings, farmers, dowagers or captains of industry, into one raucous, uproarious family. His magice seems so effortless, it’s hard to realize how masterful it is mostly because you’re having such a good time. When you see Gazzo you feel like you’re watching a showbiz legend.”- TELLER of PENN and TELLER
If you have friends who know a little about magic performance, tell them that the British magician Gazzo is coming to Moisture Festival. I can then be silent and let them persuade you to take this opportunity to see a master at work. The Moisture Festival is honored to present this marvelous performer.

March 16 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 17 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 22 @ 7:30pm
March 23 @ 10:30pm
March 25 @ 3:00pm, 7:30pm 

March 8, 2012

Help Spread The Word About Moisture Festival And Win Fitted Utilikilt Worth $200 In Our Online Twitter Contest

Moisture Festival - Special Free Educational Lecture Film Event And Collaboration Honoring Silent Films

Rob Mermin founder of Circus Smirkus 
in collaboration with
Moisture Festival 
presents 
The story of early silent films
'Silents Are Golden'
Monday April 2, 7:30pm
Hale’s Palladium
A celebration of silent cinema with clips from 100 silent films 
Free to the public - donations accepted
The Moisture Festival is honored to present this full evening one-man show, an educational and entertaining "Picturesque History" lecture lavishly illustrated with a dazzling array of clips from 100 silent films! It is divided into film sections with live commentary in between: Slapstick, Romantic Comedy, Adventure, Foreign Drama, American Drama, and Comedy.

Rob Mermin is the founder of Circus Smirkus, the nation’s most renowned youth circus, providing circus skills training for children and adults.

The intent is to shed new light on the acting style of the silent era while giving modern audiences a fresh and entertaining look at the talents of the silent stars. It is a celebration of the art of physical acting—what Rob's mentor Marcel Marceau called the "silent language of the soul"—seen through the lens of silent cinema.

Moisture Festival - Rachel Strickland Aerial - A Ballet In the Sky - On St Patrick's Day


Classically trained in ballet since the age of three, Rachel is a ballerina turned aerialist and innovative variety performer. Modern, belly dance, and lyrical jazz make up some of her versatile background, as well as four years of aerial acrobatic training at the Circus Center of San Francisco and Emerald City Trapeze Arts in Seattle. Rachel’s cross training gives her the ability to deliver a wide range of movements from lithe and ethereal to earthy and visceral.

Rich, extravagant movements and strong, multifaceted technique are her trademarks. Captivating audiences with an eloquent musculature and a capacity to deliver roles from comedy to mystery, she is based out of Seattle, Washington.

March 17, @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm 
Tickets

March 7, 2012

Moisture Festival Adds Free Special 'Circles of Sawdust' Educational Lecture And Film Event To 2012 Schedule

Rob Mermin founder of the renowned Circus Smirkus 
presents 
“Circles of Sawdust”
Monday March 26 7:30pm
A Special Lecture And Film Event 
Hale’s Palladium 
Free to the public - Donations accepted
The Moisture Festival's continuing mission is to educate our audiences and the general public about the history and experience of circus, vaudeville, burlesque and variete' performing. We are excited and pleased to announce this special lecture and rare film event during our 2012 festival featuring Circus Smirkus founder Rob Mermin.
"Humorous, engaging, eye-opening insight to a culture of legend we spectators know very little about. An evening that shouldn't be missed" - Cultural History Center of Rhode Island 
Rob Mermin is an award-winning performer, with Copenhagen’s Gold Clown, Russia’s Best Director Prize, and the Governor’s Award of Excellence, Vermont’s highest honor in the arts. Mermin trained with the renowned mimes Marcel Marceau and Etienne Decroux, and is also a former Dean of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College.

He ran off to join the circus as a teen in the late 60’s. During the next forty years his circus adventures took him clowning with tent shows in Wales, mule wrangling in Lapland with Sweden’s Circus Scott, riding with the Magyars in the Hungarian State Cirkusz, three years with the famous Benneweis Circus Building in Copenhagen, and entertaining royalty in the circus palaces of Europe and Russia.

In 1987, he founded Circus Smirkus, which The Boston Globe called “one of New England’s most treasured cultural and educational resources.”

March 6, 2012

Moisture Festival - Terry Crane Highlights Festival's Opening Week Of Unique Aerial Performers


Having languished long enough in higher education, Terry Crane finally surrendered to restless urges that lead him to walk calmly away with the circus at the tender age of 20. Since then, his thirst for movement and performance mentoring has been a zigzag constellation of off the beaten path destinations, taking him to the San Francisco Circus Center, Montreal's National Circus School (of Cirque du Soleil fame), and the Beijing International Acrobatics School. He has now performed in countless countries, on 3 continents. Terry is a longtime practitioner of capoeira, contact improvisation, hip hop dance, physical theater, and tree climbing. He infuses his work with these influences as well as his own fiercely unique style. Terry loves the sublime experience of circus performance, and daring to reach across the fourth wall to share with all his audiences.

Hales Palladium
March 15 @ 7:30pm 
March 17 @ 10:30pm
Tickets


March 5, 2012

Moisture Festival - Reid Belstock Consummate Variete' Performer Confirmed For Festival's Open Week

Reid Belstock began juggling at the age of 15, as a way of overcoming gross and fine motor skill impairment. Following high school, Reid went off to study with Ringling Brothers, and Barnum and Bailey Circus Clown College, where he learned the fine art of Slapstick and Physical Comedy. From that time, Reid has performed across the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, China and Japan . He has performed in almost every venue that exists, from Theaters, Theme Parks, Cruise Ships, Casinos, Colleges, Conventions, Street Performing Festivals, Comedy Clubs, and Hotel Review Shows and Seattle's Moisture Festival where his performance and MC skills have delighted our audiences. It's great to have him back at Moisture Festival 2012!

March 15 @ 7:30pm
March 16 @ 10:30pm
March 17 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 18 @3:00pm
March 18 @7:30pm

March 4, 2012

Moisture Festival - KamiKaze FireFlies Will Bring WOW Factor To Festival's Opening Weekend



Sexy meets circus! Bludgeoning audiences with wit, crushing them with whimsey, and tearing them a new laugh hole ... It's the Kamikaze Fireflies! Rob Williams is a Moisture Festival favorite. He joined us as a solo act and blew everyone away by making hilarious entertainment while making a baloney sandwich ... with his feet. Then he put together his former legendary vaudeville team from Texas and wowed everyone with the Flaming Idiots. Now he's teaming up with the delightful and frightening Casey Martin, sometimes billed as Super Spacey Casey. But in this case we'll know them as Kamikaze FireFlies, "bringing peace to the world at an affordable price".

Rob Williams and Casey Martin Are The KamiKazi FireFlies

Hale's Palladium

March 15 @ 7:30pm 
March 16 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 17 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 18 @ 7:30pm 


March 3, 2012

Moisture Festival 2012 Preview - Duo de Luna - Aerial Perfection

Duo de Luna When the two ladies of this stunning and sexy new duo met, it was trapeze love at first sight. Together, Cameron and Marina as Duo de Luna, relay through their movements the complexities of any relationship; the light and the dark, and in particular, the challenges of being in love with your art.
Circus is a hard task-mistress, she will bruise you and break you in a second. And yet, if you put in the work, if Circus blesses you...well, that's just the start of the story. As Duo de Luna, Marina and Cameron began performing together in June of 2011. In August they performed in San Francisco at Teatro ZinZanni's "Cabaret Lunatique." In December they traveled to Europe to perform in Cascade's "Equi-Libre" in Utrecht, Netherlands, then rang in the New Year performing at Supperclub Amsterdam. Regulars at Supperclub SF and with TrapezeWorld production company, Duo de Luna consistently thrills their audience.

Venue: Broadway Performance Hall

March 23 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm (Burlesque)
March 24 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm (Burlesque)
March 25 @ 3:00pm (Family Friendly Variete')

March 2, 2012

Moisture Festival Audiences Love Comedian Amy G Headlining Festival's Opening Week Of Variete' Shows


Moisture Festival audience favorite Amy Gordon is a revolutionary comedienne.  She returns to this year's festival to the delight of many who have not stopped talking or laughing about her hilarious previous festival performances. We are absolutely thrilled to have her back for 2012.

The granddaughter of The Little Giant, a vaudevillian acrobat/ukulele playing song and dance man of little renown but vast appeal, she took to the stage at an early age as The Tall Midget. This 'comic powerhouse' (The Australian) performs physical, musical, stand-up and improvisational comedy. Inspired by and reminiscent of Lucille Ball, Carol Burnett, Liza Minelli, Julie Andrews and the Muppet Show; she is very much one of a kind.

Her Credits include Broadway's New Victory, Sydney Opera House, The Kennedy Center, Adelaide International Festival, Festival International de Teatro de Bogota, Montreal's Just For Laughs, Dance Theatre Workshop, Symphony Space, GOP Variete, Quatch Comedy Club (Berlin), Palazzo Amsterdam, RTL's World of Comedy and Britain's Rude Tube.

She's been seen around the world with the Olivier Awarded circus cabaret, La Soirée (aka La Clique- Absinthe – but by any name, voted Best Entertainment 2009); including long runs on London's West End, The Sydney Festival, and in Paris' iconic music hall, Bobino.

She lives in Brooklyn, ostensibly, but calls anyplace home that comes with keys and a bicycle.

March 15 @ 7:30pm, March 16 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm
March 17 @ 7:30pm, 10:30pm, March 18 @ 7:30pm

March 1, 2012

Moisture Festival Week One Will Offer Magical Line-Up Of Comedy And Variete' Performers - Opening Night Gala - Special Benefit - Laughter And Thrills


The Moisture Festival talent bookers have worked hard over the Summer, Fall and Winter to make week one of the 2012 Moisture Festival a fantastic experience for our fans. They've booked some of the finest comedy and variete' talents available anywhere. The internationally renowned performers who will populate the stage at Hale's Palladium during our opening week, commencing with our Open Night Gala on Thursday March 15th, will leave you laughing and amazed.  Here's a list of week one's lineup: 


The opening week also includes a special benefit for Clowns Without Borders at the 3pm Matinee Performance (great for adults and kids) on March 17th, with the proceeds from the show going to support this unique organization's mission. We also invite you to consider our late night 10:30pm shows on Friday and Saturday nights, they offer a special flavor of mature free wheeling late night entertainment. Each Moisture Festival Show is different from the next, which means you can go every night and you'll still  be seeing something you haven't seen before. 

Every year we hear the same refrain from our fans about how they missed out on seeing critically acclaimed Moisture Festival Shows they wanted to attend because they didn't buy their tickets before it was too late, and when they finally acted they found the shows they wanted to attend were already sold out. We urge festival fans to get their tickets early to avoid this inevitable ticket crunch.  

*Show lineups are subject to change