Visual Art 

David Huchthausen: A Retrospective Selection

David Huchthausen is a welcome outlier among Seattle’s hot glass–crafting tradition. Using cold working techniques like engraving, sawing, polishing, and laser cutting, he creates layered sculptures bursting with color and embedded angles that make each work look like the otherworldly treasure of advanced aliens or Marvel supervillains. Around 30 pieces show off his geometrically atypical creativity in A Retrospective Selection.
July 23–Jan 8 Museum of Glass, museumofglass.org

Theater

Shakespeare in the Park

To see, or not to see: That should not be the question. Of course one should take the time to check out Seattle Shakespeare’s Wooden O productions of Hamlet and Love’s Labour’s Lost. The company’s consistent quality means that the tales of tragic royal revenge and love-struck young men comically at odds with their tenuous vows of temporary chastity should energize the parks this summer.
July 7–Aug 7 Various parks, seattleshakespeare.org

Comedy

Arj Barker

“I never smoke pot and drive my car. Because no matter how many letters I write to the people that build the roads, they still refuse to start designing highways with second-chance exits.” —Arj Barker 

The underrated comedian (Flight of the Conchords) brings his slightly stoned perspective to the Parlor for some summer standup.
July 7–9 Parlor Live Comedy Club, parlorlive.com

Concert

Modest Mouse & Brand New

In the age of social media, there’s a certain allure to bands that keep their admirers in the dark. Before album hashtags and official Snapchat accounts were a thing, Modest Mouse and Brand New were already cultivating fan bases that always wanted more. It took eight years for Modest Mouse’s 2015 Strangers to Ourselves to emerge, and enigmatic Brand New continues to hint at a follow-up to 2009’s (Modest Mouse–influenced) Daisy. The bands coheadline at KeyArena with full sets and no openers.
July 30 KeyArena, keyarena.com

Classical & More

In the White Silence: John Luther Adams' Alaskan Landscapes

When the Seattle Symphony teamed up with John Luther Adams in 2013, the resulting modern masterpiece netted a Pulitzer, a Grammy, and even a pop star’s admiration (Taylor Swift donated $50,000 to Seattle Symphony after hearing Adams' Become Ocean). For the latest entry in the late-night [Untitled] series, the symphony ventures back in time with Adams’s 1998 tribute to the sparse wintry majesty of Alaska, In the White Silence.
July 1 Benaroya Hall, seattlesymphony.org

Want more? 

Check our Summer Arts Guide and our events calendar for a comprehensive look at what’s happening in and around Seattle.