The Top Things to Do This Weekend: May 7–10
Marc Maron and his cynical wit take the stage at the Neptune for two shows on Friday.
Image: Photo Courtesy David Broach
COMEDY
Fri, May 8
Marc Maron
"I think the reason Jesus is so popular, just on a celebrity level, is that he died at the peak of his career." —Marc Maron. The comedian’s brand of cynical introspection has made his WTF podcast a smash hit and garnered him his own self-titled IFC series, Maron. Neptune Theatre, $28
VISUAL ART
Thru June 20
Ethan Murrow: Jurassic
In his large-scale graphite drawings, Ethan Murrow manages to ground the surreal. His latest exhibition, Jurassic, showcases the artist’s photographic eye, which helps frame his meticulously detailed scenes in a way that imbues them with a sweeping, almost cinematic sense of place. Winston Wächter, Free
May 7–June 27
Erin O'Keefe: Natural Disasters
In the age of digital photography, it’s sometimes hard to trust our own eyes. We ask ourselves, Was this picture tweaked or retouched in Photoshop? Erin O’Keefe’s Natural Disasters series plays on this mistrust and manipulates our perspectives further with surreal still-life photos designed to look like they’ve been manipulated with digital effects. Platform Gallery, Free
May 9–June 7
Jamie Moakes: You Will Be Rare
Scarcity drives value. UK performance artist Jamie Moakes knows this and has taken the principle to absurdist extreme with his economic experiment You Will Be Rare. For years, Moakes has been buying original Ram Man (an obscure He-Man character) action figures in the hopes of turning what might otherwise be seen as a piece of junk from the ’80s into legitimate currency. Behold the opulence as Interstitial morphs into a showroom to display Moakes’s collection. Interstitial, Free
FILM
May 7–10
Translations: The Seattle Transgender Film Festival
Between Amazon’s Golden Globe–winningTransparent and the critically acclaimed punk of Against Me!’s Transgender Dysphoria Blues, 2014 was a huge year for transgender art recognition. Now in its 10th year, Seattle’s Translations Film Festival continues to champion the cause by offering up positive visual representations of the trans community. Northwest Film Forum, single tickets free–$10, festival pass $70
Now Streaming
Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck
Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck is not a Nirvana documentary. It's a story of art, family, and pain. When director Brett Morgen was granted access to Cobain's drawings, journals, and home movies, the film became an archival portrait of an artist and his raw emotions mostly in his own words. Using animation methods he showcased in the superb Robert Evans documentary The Kid Stays in the Picture, Morgen brings the art of Cobain back to life. Montage of Heck doesn't feed the Cobain mythos but tells his story in a style befitting the man: visceral, unrelenting, and loud. Streaming on HBO Go.
THEATER
Thru May 18
The Tall Girls
Against the bleak backdrop of the Dust Bowl, a group of young women from the fictional town of Poor Prairie find camaraderie and a sliver of hope on the hardwood in Washington Ensemble Theatre's production of Meg Miroshnik's The Tall Girls. In the context of their small high school basketball team, this character study shows five girls dealing with the somberness of the Great Depression and their limited future prospects. 12th Avenue Arts, $25
CONCERTS
Thu, May 7
Ivan and Alyosha: It's All Just Pretend Release Show
Seattle may seem already oversaturated with folk pop's smooth and soulful male harmonies and lively acoustic guitar backing, but Ivan and Alyosha do it right. The five-man group heads to Neumos to release its second album—It's All Just Pretend—which features more of its spirited, yearnful, bittersweet, and compelling melodies. Neumos, $15
May 7–9
Sleater-Kinney
Apparently nobody told Sleater-Kinney that comeback albums after long hiatuses usually suck. After 10 years away, the Olympia-formed trio of riot grrrl pioneers returned in January with an amplified vengeance on No Cities to Love. Sleater-Kinney kicks out the jams and shreds away for three nights in its long-awaited Seattle return. The Showbox, Sold out
Thur, May 7
They Might Be Giants
After creating the unique song delivery platform back in the early '80s, playfully experimental alt-rock band They Might Be Giants started 2015 by bringing back Dial-A-Song. The service allows fans to call a number (844-387-6962) and hear a new song every week for an entire year. The band has complied 15 of the new Dial-A-Songs for its 17th studio album, Gleam. Neptune Theatre, Sold out
