Moisture Festival | A Visit To Art Zone

I had a fun visit with our friends over at the Seattle Channel, specifically "Art Zone with Nancy Guppy", shooting a segment about our 10th year of Moisture.  Nancy and her producer, Sheila Mullen, are so much fun.  The set they had put together for the interview consisted of a tower of donuts topped with birthday candles (to signify Moisture Fest's 10th birthday), 2 champagne glasses (so what if it was 9am) which all sat atop a mini, toy size, grand piano (see photo below - I so want one of those).  These gals have flare!  Here's the video! 

Reserve the Nimbus Lounge for your Continuous Moisture Party

A once-in-a-festival experience! Reserve the Nimbus Lounge during Continuous Moisture - A Variete Downpour, Saturday April 13, 2013.

Bring your Moisture Festival-ing to its ultimate culmination! We have a very unique opportunity for one lucky Moisture Festival group to reserve the best seats in the house.  On April 13th, for the entirety of our " Continuous Moisture - A Variete Downpour" extravaganza, we are converting our VIP booth, which sits above the bar area at Hale's Palladium, into the Nimbus Lounge.

This exclusive area will be outfitted with comfy chairs and cocktail tables, complimentary snacks throughout the day & evening and will include one of our fabulous Door Babes as your server.  The area will be reserved only for your group starting at noon until the 10:30pm show comes to its end. Up to six guests (total) can be accommodated.

Price to reserve these lux accommodations for 12+ hours is $600.  This includes all of the above, plus six "Continuous Moisture" passes. These passes are non-transferable and must be assigned to specific guests at time of reservation.

This offer is for one group only, so don't delay!  For more information contact jennifer@moisturefestival.org.

Late Night Cabaret at Teatro ZinZanni: “St. Patti's Night Out”

Teatro ZinZanni invites Moisture Festival fans to St. Patti's Night Out with a $5 savings on General Admission seating.  

If you've never been to the Teatro ZinZanni spiegeltent do it now! It's a staple in the Seattle cirque scene and a must for any lover of variety entertainment. We have a fantastic opportunity for you! Our friends at ZinZanni proudly present St. Patti's Night Out, an all-lady show featuring some Moisture Festival favorites: Lily Verlaine, Inga Ingenue, Della Moustachella and aerialists Vivian Tam and Sara Sparrow (Aerialistas) with Dos Fallopia - Lisa Koch and Peggy Platt, the outrageous comedy duo who produce an evening of wickedly funny commentary from a woman's point of view.  The Seattle Irish Dance Company, Irish drink specials, festive food, comedy, circus, burlesque, clowning, all in the beautiful ZinZanni mirror-topped tent!

To purchase dicount tickets go to St. Patti's Night Out and click "Buy Tickets".  Scroll down the price list until you find "Enter a Password or Discount Code".  Click that link, enter the password "variete" (no quotation marks), and click "Show Available Tickets".  The screen will refresh and you will see the "MF Fan Rate".  These tickets are limited and the discount is only available until March 1st, so don't wait!

These are will call tickets, so once you purchase your tickets you will not receive a physical ticket.  Just check in with the maitre d' when you arrive at Teatro ZinZanni.  Know that the ticket price includes a $20 food and beverage credit for which you will receive a voucher for when you check in.  Use your voucher toward your payment to your server at the end of the night. 

One Night Only - March 16, 2013 - doors at 11:15pm - must be 21+

World Class Contortionist and Aerialist Maria Margiyeva to Perform at Moisture Festival

Moisture Festival is honored and excited to be able to bring Maria Margiyeva to the Moisture Festival.

Maria began her career in Ukraine as as athlete performing rhythmic gymnastics, eventually becoming a member of the prestigious gymnastics team Club Dynamo of Kiev, coached by the legendary Vera Kremer.  She was a member of both the Soviet Union and Ukrainian National Junior gymnastic teams.  In 1996, at 16 years old, Maria joined the Club Rhythmic in Barcelona, Spain, and helped the organization with third place in the Spanish Championship competition for rhythmic gymnastics.  In 1997 Maria was recognized as a Master of sports by the Ukraine government.

Maria's training and extraordinary talent as a gymnast led her to a remarkable career as a performer, acrobat, aerialist, contortionist and dancer in the circus and variety arts.  Maria has performed with the National Academy of Dance, and Theatre Circus Bingo in Ukraine as well as around the world including venues in Spain, Portugal, Greece, Norway, Germany, Brazil, Hong Kong, and the United States.

Maria will perform in a number of Moisture Festival variety shows at Hale's Palladium as well as burlesque shows at Broadway Performance Hall.  Dates to be posted on our website very soon!

Moisture Festival performers pull a little high jinx at The Neptune

Last Friday, our dear friends from Leftover Salmon played their first concert in Seattle in a very long time.  Many of the Moisture Festival performers and producers have a long history of trading pranks and shenanigans with this group of extraordinary musicians.  We simply couldn't pass up the opportunity to once again make a splash.  Members of one of our Moisture Festival bands, The Sancapators,  gathered to create a small marching band.  Thanks go to Heather Weihl for pulling that part together.   Moisture Festival producers, Katherine Bragdon and Rhonda Sable, led the band - Mardi Gras style - complete with costumes and parasols, up on to the stage in the middle of the first set.  The Cheshire Cat grin on the band members faces was our payoff.  The "boys" joined in, playing along with the marching band and we welcomed our friends back to Seattle - vaudeville style!  Then we spent the rest of the evening joyfully dancing and grooving to this incredible band.  Sooo much fun!!!

Burlesque Local Legends - March 25

Monday, March 25th, Moisture Festival will host a very special event brought to you in collaboration with Miss Indigo Blue's Academy of Burlesque and BurlyCon .  Burlesque Undressed: the Stories Behind the Glitter will offer an intimate evening with local burlesque luminaries sharing their personal stories.

Immerse yourself in this rich history told by the performers who danced in the Northwest in days gone by, as well as those who currently grace our Seattle stages.  Along with Paula the Swedish Housewife, Tamara the Trapeze Lady, Inga Ingenue, and Miss Indigo Blue, this special evening will feature Local Legends Velvet Ice and Eartha Quake.

Eartha Quake "9.9 on the Richter Scale, it wasn't San Andreas' Fault!" was born and raised in tremor capital San Francisco. Her first brush with striptease was as a cashier at the Follies on 16th & Mission.  An unsuccessful trip across the Canadian border landed her in Seattle, where friends talked her in to dancing. The next thing she knew, she was hooked!  She developed a classic style evocative of Gypsy Rose Lee, but her favorite act was a Reverse Strip and she often worked to Blues, Rock, and Big Band sounds.  She worked all over the West Coast from Los Angeles to Alaska, and danced with contemporaries Camile 2000, Sonia Lane, Velvet Ice, Viva La Fever, Baby Lulu, Baby Marie, Diamond Sapphire, Anita Mann, Phonda Peters, and Harlan Fairbanks.  She now lives north of Seattle with her wonderful extended family and her long haired Dachshund.

"The Sleaze with Ease, The Tower of Power, the Torrid Velvet Ice"

Velvet Ice was born at the old Follies in San Francisco, 1973 in to Rock & Roll Hippie Burlesque. She fell in love with the art form, learning from the greats who came through SF. Her biggest influences were Tori Lynn, Ellion Ness, Joi Jessard and Blaze Starr, to name a few. Her career has taken her to LA, Vegas, Micronesia, Canada, and Seattle. Her acts were heavily influenced by the music she loved, such as Jazz/Blues, 70s Funk, and Led Zeppelin! Velvet knew she was fulfilling her calling when told by a fan, “You make me want to go home and make love to my wife!”.

Tickets available HERE

Dr. Patch Adams to Bring Humor & Health to Moisture Festival

"Humor & Health", Monday April 1st, 7:30pm

Dr. Patch Adams, one of today's most inspirational medical authorities and powerful medical social activists, will present "Humor & Health"at Moisture Festival April 1st at 7:30pm.  In this funny and inspirational lecture Patch discusses his 30+ years of clowning experience and looks at the relationship between humor and the health of the individual, community or society.

Patch is both a medical doctor and a clown, but he is also a social activist who has devoted 30 years to changing America's health care system, a system which he describes as expensive and elitist.  He believes that laughter, joy and creativity are an integral part of the healing process and therefore true health care must incorporate such life.

 "Extraordinary! One man I can look up to and respect," "Incredibly mind blowing and memorable," and "Incredibly inspiring, amazing human being, invaluable to hear him first hand" are among the words heard from participants after experiencing Patch Adams, the real person behind the hit movie Patch Adams, starring Robin Williams.

While it may be  April Fools Day, we'll have the real Patch on the Palladium stage - no joke!


Click HERE for tickets.  Choose 4/1 from the list for Patch.

Festival Show to Benefit Hands For a Bridge

Moisture Festival is very dedicated to giving back to the generous community we are a part of in Seattle.  Each year we choose several shows in which a portion of ticket sales is donated directly to a community 501(c)3 organization. 

Moisture Festival is pleased to announce the Saturday, March 23rd, 3:00pm matinee show will benefit Hands for a Bridge which provides high school youth with opportunities to explore issues surrounding social justice in their local, regional and international communities.

One of the accomplishments of HFB is an established class in the daily schedule at Roosevelt High School. Hands for a Bridge is not solely about travel; it is about dialogue, how express and, more importantly, how to listen. Students meet daily as scholars, artists, teachers and activists. The course focuses on aspects of social justice, using the arts and literature as lenses through which critical questions may be examined.

All funds raised will go to giving Seattle area high school students the opportunity to engage with students from South Africa and Northern Ireland, regions where the history of oppression and civil strife has impeded essential dialogue between traditionally separated groups. HFB does not travel to these regions to teach, or to “show the way.” America has its own difficult history of institutional segregation. Our students travel abroad to learn, to form questions and to participate in dialogue that helps to promote peace and understanding. Students raise their own funds to support travel to these destinations and the HFB Foundation raises money to support the exchange to Seattle for our resource-poor communities in South Africa and Northern Ireland. This component of HFB is equal to, if not more valuable than, our travel there as they help bring the dialogue to our schools, to become our bridge.  The HFB Foundation works to enhance the program so that it’s not simply a travel opportunity for students, but an investment in deep dialogue, personal growth and lasting social change. 

HFB 10 year Anniversary Movie

Continuous Moisture! 5 Shows, 1 Day, 1 Pass!

On the penultimate day of our 10th annual festival we present to you: "Continuous Moisture - A Varietè Downpour!" Five back-to-back varietè shows on Saturday April 13th, starting at Noon and running past Midnight. 

In the early 1900's, because of popular demand, theatre owners developed a paradigm of continuous vaudeville performances often lasting up to 12 hours, featuring a little something for every taste.  In honor of our 10th year, we feel it is only proper to give a nod to these early purveyors of variety entertainment. 

We are offering a "Continuous Moisture - A Varietè Downpour" pass to attend all five shows on April 13th.  Pass holders will receive preferred seating, a souvenir keepsake and eternal bragging rights. You may want to bring your pajamas and slippers for the late show!

A limited number of Continuous Moisture day passes are available HERE. 
Can you handle it?! 

April 13th Show Schedule:
Early Varietè - noon
Varietè Matinee - 3:00pm
Varietè "Wee Show" - 5:30pm *note this show runs 1hr
Evening Varietè  - 7:30pm
Late Varietè (18+) - 10:30pm
Detailed performer listing to be posted soon




(Tickets are also available for individual shows HERE.)

Collaboration with Seattle International Film Festival, the Seattle Composers Alliance, & the Seattle Jazz Composers Ensemble

Moisture Festival is pleased to present The Sound of Silents with a Side of Schtick in collaboration with SIFF, the Seattle Composers Alliance, and the Seattle Jazz Composers Ensemble.
 
Travel back to a bygone era when cinema and vaudeville shared the bill for a brief moment in history at this one-night-only event that will be bursting at the seams with entertainment! Moisture Festival has joined forces with three fantastic partners to present a unique evening combining classic silent cinema, live music and unconventional vaudeville performance.
 
For your viewing pleasure, revel in an exceptional collection of both early cinema and contemporary silent work! We will be presenting a number of films from the first part of the last century, mixed in with films from local filmmakers made specifically for this event. Each film is accompanied by a newly written original score by members of the Seattle Composers Alliance and the Seattle Jazz Composers Ensemble and performed live by our chamber orchestra! The locally produced films, as well as all of the original scores will all be having their world premiere at this event!

 In between films, Moisture Festival performers transport us even further into this singular era of entertainment history with a carefully curated and curious collection of nationally recognized varietè acts.  With the inimitable Kevin Joyce as our Master of Ceremonies, the evening will include live performances by world renowned star of stage and screen, Avner the Eccentric, the surreal Seattle acrobalancing duo of Dr. Calamari & Acrophelia, unexplainable illusion from San Francisco magician, Paul Nathan and nostalgic 1920's melodies from the lovely Sandy Neale.

Ladies, dust off those flapper dresses! Both men and women are encouraged to dress for this occasion in your finest early 20th century attire. Expect the unexpected!

Films:
Bliss, dir. Harold Lloyd (UK 1917) The count is a charlatan in this film and so is the 24 year old Harold Lloyd.
Bound To Be Different, dir. Stefan Hajek (USA 2013) Not everything is exactly what it seems to be….
Centerfuge, dir. Cameron Fletcher (USA 2013) The center cannot hold.
Good Glue Sticks, dir. Georges Méliès (France 1907) A peddler of "the best glue" sets up his outdoor stall.
Little Loving Gestures, dir. Miranda Troutt (USA 2013) The small touches of time last forever.
Remnant, dir. Max Cleary (USA 2013) Remnant is a photographic exploration of the concept of reality and what it means to exist.
Subito Dolce, dir. Sarah Vest (USA 2013) A sweet summer afternoon.
Washing Clothes (1920's) Two Young women put up a washing line, strip off and wash their clothes.
The Wonderful Living Fan, dir. Georges Méliès, (France 1904) The king of France receives a marvelous fan, which opens to reveal plain lace. This lace becomes pictures of women, which then come to life and move in unison as their clothing changes.

Tickets: $20 
As a Moisture Festival patron you can use the code FLAPPER for $5 off your ticket price. Click HERE to buy tickets!

10 Years of Moisture Festival!

Festival Special Event: Burlesque Undressed, The Stories Behind the Glitter 3/25

The Moisture Festival is thrilled to partner with Miss Indigo Blue's Academy of Burlesque and BurlyCon to offer a titillating evening with local Burlesque luminaries!

Join us for Burlesque Undressed: The Stories Behind the Glitter on Monday, March 25th at Hale's Palladium.

You've watched them peel away layers of clothing to entertain you, now comes the unique opportunity to be entertained from a totally different angle - their personal stories, live from their very own painted mouths!  Immerse yourself in this rich history told by the performers who danced in the Northwest in days gone by, as well as those who currently grace our Seattle stages.  Local Legends Velvet Ice and Eartha Quake are joined by Burlesque stalwarts Paula the Swedish Housewife, Tamara the Trapeze Lady and Miss Indigo Blue, to reveal a delightful narrative with tales of glamour, glory and the intrigue of burlesque.

Stretch your arms and your imagination with the lovely Miss Inga Ingenue, aka as Miss Viva Las Vegas 2011 and Atomic Bombshells troupe member, as she treats you to an interactive tutorial on how to manipulate your very own feather boa - a skill we know you've wanted to add to your repertoire!  Bring your own boa or you can buy one at the event.

Tickets on sale now!