CONCERT

Feb 17
Damien Jurado’s Album Release Party
In many ways, Seattle’s indie folk boom started with Damien Jurado. Since the mid-’90s, he’s been turning out record after record of delicate, understated folk ballads. But his latest album, Maraqopa, is both a farewell to his singer-songwriter past and a step toward psychedelic fare and a fuller rock sound. Neptune Theatre, $15.

Feb 18
Saturday Family Concerts: THEESatisfaction
See it to believe it: Stasia Irons and Catherine Harris-White, one of Seattle’s top hip-hop acts, are playing a family show. Their sci-fi rhymes and space beats should have those kids bouncing around Town Hall. $5–$25.

Seattle Rock Orchestra Performs Muse
In the midst of a season that includes a tribute to the Beatles and original music inspired by Hunter S. Thompson, the 50-piece orchestra covers hits from the British rock band’s entire catalogue; expect to hear “Uprising” and “Starlight.” Moore Theatre, $18.

BOOKS & TALKS

Feb 17
Hugo Literary Series: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell
Is ignorance bliss? Hear new work that explores denial by poet and MacArthur fellow Heather McHugh; Portland author Lidia Yuknavitch; performance artist Chad Goller-Sojourner, star of Sitting in Circles with Rich White Girls: Memoirs of a Bulimic Black Boy; and violist Alex Guy of Led to Sea. Richard Hugo House, $25. This event is sold out.

FILM

Thru Feb 17
Pina (3D)
In this visually stunning documentary, director Wim Wenders pays tribute to the late German dance pioneer Pina Bausch with excerpts of her most elaborate pieces— The Rite of Spring performed on a stage covered in dirt. Bonus: On February 17, Wenders will attend a Cinerama screening, followed by a Q&A with Spectrum Dance’s Donald Byrd. Seattle Cinerama, $13–$30.

THEATER

Feb 15–19
10th Annual Seattle Festival of Improv Theater
Let’s break it down: 27 improv comedy troupes from around the world. Twelve shows (plus comedy workshops). Two theaters. Four days of laughs. Wing-It Productions, $15–$18; $50 festival pass.

Thru Feb 18
The Bells
Last chance to see the latest Strawshop production. In Theresa Rebeck’s drama, secrets haunt the miners and loners trying to survive Alaska’s Yukon Territory during the gold rush. Erickson Theatre Off Broadway, $15–$30.

VISUAL ART

Feb 18–Apr 8
Two solo shows open at the Frye—the final exhibits curated by Robin Held before she moves on to Reel Grrls. Check back for our writeup.
Li Chen: Eternity and Commoner
For his first U.S. museum exhibit, the Taiwanese sculptor transitions from monumental bronze Buddhas to more fragile, figurative bodies made of clay and rope. The exhibit’s centerpiece is a towering 12-foot-high wooden “god” surrounded by his entourage. Frye Art Museum, free.

Feb 18–Apr 15
Susie J. Lee: Of Breath and Rain
In Lee’s museum debut, one of Seattle’s most innovative mixed-media artists restages an immersive electronic rainstorm originally shown at the former Lawrimore Project space in 2007. Also on display: a selection from Still Lives, a series of emotional half-hour video portraits of local nursing home residents. Frye Art Museum, free.

Feb 17–Apr 7
Devouring Time
Western Bridge hosts a massive group show—one of the gallery’s last before shutting later this year—with mixed-media works by Kutlug Ataman, Walead Beshty, Raymond Boisjoly, Matt Browning, Roger Hiorns, Alex Schweder La, Amanda Ross-Ho, Matt Sheridan Smith, Kara Tanaka, Mungo Thomson, Dan Webb, Mark Wyse, and Amir Zaki. Western Bridge gallery, free.

P.S. Don’t forget that Fat Tuesday is next week, and Havana is hosting a ‘pretty epic’ Mardi Gras party. Thanks to Sauced for the heads-up.