Article

The Top Things to See or Do in July

See: Sir Paul McCartney at Safeco Field. Hear: Star Wars in iambic pentameter.

By Laura Dannen July 1, 2013 Published in the July 2013 issue of Seattle Met

CONCERT
All Hail “The Cute One”
There’s going to be one guaranteed hit at Safeco Field this season, and it has nothing to do with the Mariners: Sir Paul McCartney will inaugurate the ballpark as a concert venue with a career-spanning set—from the early Beatles to his solo album Wings—said to last nearly three hours. Only “the cute one” has the nerve to bring two 60-foot LED screens with him.

July 19 Safeco Field, ticketmaster.com

CLASSICAL & MORE
Stringed Crusader
By day, James Ehnes reenergizes the Seattle Chamber Music Society—and its annual Summer Festival—as its new artistic director. By night, he defends the fine arts, performing in more than half of the festival’s concerts armed with a single superweapon: a 1715 Stradivarius. He’s Violin Man.

June 29–July 26 Benaroya Hall, seattlechambermusic.org

**Carry On** Buster Simpson, Woodman, 1974

VISUAL ART
Agitator Artist
Seattle’s Buster Simpson isn’t a provocateur, a guerrilla artist, a rascal—even if he did attempt to neutralize the acid rain in the Hudson River by dropping in giant antacid tablets. He’s an artist, simply put, much deserving of a look back at his site-specific, eco-minded, and public works.

Thru Oct 13 Frye Art Museum, fryemuseum.org

BOOKS & TALKS
The number of hours a Neil Gaiman book signing has been known to last. (Being a nerd icon is exhausting.) The creator of The Sandman comic series and eerie animated feature Coraline claims the tour for his new, magic-filled novel, The Ocean at the End of the Lane, will be his last.

July 2 Town Hall, townhallseattle.org

NERDERY/BOOKS & TALKS

“Thou art a Master, Darth, I know ’tis true, But only evil hast thou Master’d yet.”

—Obi-Wan Kenobi in William Shakespeare’s Star Wars by Ian Doescher, out July 2. The Portland scribe unites geeks and nerds with his retelling of Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope in iambic pentameter; Elliott Bay Books hosts a staged reading. May the force be with Thee.

July 21 Elliott Bay Book Company, elliottbaybook.com

CONCERTS
The Ideal Music Festival For...