by Mercy Moosemuzzle - SGN Contributing Writer

The Violet Hour at Seattle Public Theater
Mercy and Cuteness enjoyed Richard Greenburg's The Violet Hour at the Bathhouse's Seattle Public Theater. The intriguing story is about a publisher who has to make a decision between publishing a friend's or a lover's book. This is complicated when he receives a machine which predicts the future. Rita Giomi's direction, Gerald Browning's sets and K. D. Schill's costumes capture the post-WWI era.

The acting by Eric Reidman, Shawn Law and Amber Wolfe Wollam was strong. Also pleasing was Evan Whitfeld in the very funny role of the publisher's assistant.

Shantala Shivalingappa
Mercy and Cuteness were delighted with the dancing of Shantala Shivalingappa in the UW World Series. Her choreography presented South Indian traditions beautifully. Her accompanists - Jetty Ramesh on vocals and chant, B. P. Haribabu on nattuvangan and percussion, Neelamani Ramikrshnan on mridangam and K. S. Jayaram on flute - showed equal mastery.

Her first number, "Prayer Song to the Vani, Goddess of the Arts," made prayer visible. The second one, "Pranakavakaaram," a poem in praise of Lord Ganesha, took flight. "Varnam," the third piece, had nice complexity. The rhythmic dialogue between B. P. Haribabu and Neelamani Ramikrshnan was an engaging contest. The love song "Jaavali" felt like a romantic Valentine's gift to Cuteness and Mercy. The dynamism of "Tillana" brought the audience to their feet.

Coming Up
The Triple Door is announcing a free film series which continues every Tuesday in their lounge. The idea is to combine vintage music, film and cocktails. The event is sponsored by SIFF and Remy.

Each series will have one city as its theme and will last four to six weeks. Chicago is the first city. The first film was His Girl Friday. The second will be Call Northside 777 with Jimmy Stewart.

Lisa Koch is debuting a new one-woman show at Theater Off Jackson as part of the solo performance festival. The title of the piece is Demonstrate the Place of My Abode. She will be sharing the stage with a host of other talents, including Peggy Platt (March 9). The other nights will be March 12, 17 and 30.

She is offering a discounted ticket price of $12 if you use the code word "sunscreen." Go to www.theatreoffjackson.org.

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