April 9, 2020
In our latest episode of SAL/on air, our literary podcast featuring talks from across Seattle Arts & Lectures’ thirty years, we hear from poet Ross Gay. In a time like this, where do you look to for joy? In an episode of Krista Tippett’s podcast, On Being, poet Ross Gay recently said, “It is joy […]
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September 29, 2017
Ronica Hairston, the mother of 2016-17 Youth Poet Laureate Ambassador Joseph Hairston–whose poetry you can find here and here–generously made these warm remarks in support of Writers in the Schools at our 2016-17 WITS Anthology Launch. At this celebration, over 60 K-12 students shared the poetry, stories, comics, and memoir from the brand new WITS […]
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June 12, 2017
On May 23 at Town Hall Seattle, Emmy and Golden Globe-winning actor Jeffrey Tambor spoke about his new memoir, Are You Anybody?, to close our 2016/17 SAL Presents Series. SAL Associate Director introduced the evening, and the night’s conversation was moderated by Seattle entertainment writer Melanie McFarland, who wrote about the experience on Salon.com. By […]
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May 22, 2017
Our Parents Are a Lost Cause I told you to take our mother into your timeless hands. It takes effort for her to move her lips, so let her tell you that she loves you, let her ask you how school was, and hide your leathered palms, as you will your calloused fingers. Take her […]
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May 11, 2017
By Erin Langner The first review I ever wrote was of the soundtrack for Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet. It was for Jefferson Junior High School’s Patriot newspaper in 1997. To say I was obsessed with the movie is a dramatic understatement. It’s still the only film I’ve seen in the theater three times. The […]
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May 10, 2017
By Alex Gallo-Brown, WITS Writer-in-Residence When I walked into Ms. Simmons-Rice’s class at Nathan Hale High School last month, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I had taught writing at the community college level, but never to high school students, and certainly not to high school freshman, a time I remember with regret and a […]
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May 8, 2017
This essay was commissioned by SAL for the occasion of the final event in our 2016/17 Sherman Alexie Loves Series on Thursday, May 11, at Town Hall Seattle. First Loves: Patricia Park, Ariel Schrag, and Sunil Yapa will feature these debut novelists that Sherman Alexie loves, as well as dramatic readings by three local actors. For more […]
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May 5, 2017
Ever since Helen Oyeyemi gave her panoramic talk, “Shine or Go Crazy,” about Korean television dramas on April 25th, we’ve been wanting to binge-watch this distinctive genre with all its unlikely twists and turns, imaginative narratives, and soapy addictiveness. Some of you must feel the same, as we’ve gotten audience requests for a complete list of all the […]
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May 4, 2017
On Tuesday, May 2nd at McCaw Hall, cerebral poet of the flesh, Carl Phillips, read us a stunning array of poems old and new. SAL Associate Director Rebecca Hoogs introduced and interviewed Carl for this event, which brought SAL’s 2016/17 Poetry Series to a beautiful, breathless close. By Rebecca Hoogs, SAL Associate Director It is […]
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May 3, 2017
By Cody Pherigo, WITS Writer-in-Residence I’ve become semi-obsessed with checking the weather channel website several times a week for the last 3 months. It’s like Facebook without friends. I want it to tell me spring is here to stay, the sun exists, and temperatures will rise steadily to a glowing, saturated peak. But do I? […]
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