SAL/ON

A Blog of Seattle Arts & Lectures

Category: Behind the Scenes

Lindy West, hair braided and wearing a red ribbed sweater, stands at a podium, with both hands powerfully placed upon it. Dramatic light shines down onto her as she speaks into a microphone.

A WITS Student Reflects on Lindy West

By Akshaya Ajith, SAL Volunteer Even before the stage lights dimmed, the room was filled to the brim with pure excitement. There was not a shuffle or a cough, just a silent blanket of anticipation for the stage door to open and hearts to be filled. It was a kind of fierce joy that illuminated […]

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Natalie Howard is in her living room, holding her cat with one arm--her cat, a tabby, is wearing a miniature Vietnamese leaf hat.

Faces of SAL: Natalie Howard

SAL Box Office whiz Natalie Howard has been helping out over the past year—have you spotted her handing out tickets? We’re super excited to feature her in Faces of SAL, our on-going series about the volunteers, staffers, and other behind-the-scenes folks you should know about. Below, Natalie shares with us the experience that drew her […]

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Mary Ruefle gazes into the camera, head down, brows up, through her curly hair. Her hands are clasped in front of her, and the lapel of her navy blue blazer is decorated with a small pin.

Mary Ruefle: Impressions of a Sentence-Maker

By Bianca Glinskas As an emerging poet, I’ve been a bit clueless when it comes to considering how profoundly my writing process affects my work. I type in front of screens in noisy cafes. I am guilty of planning my poems out before I write them. For me, this has served as a sort of […]

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A close-up shot of Molly Suhr, smiling behind a backdrop of trees, wearing a purple plaid shirt.

Faces of SAL: Molly Suhr

We are fortunate to have a team of people who help make SAL happen—each of these people plays a very special role at SAL! Molly Suhr has been a behind-the-scenes grant writer with SAL since September 2018. Read on to learn what books she’s been loving lately and discover her hidden talent (hint: it involves […]

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Lindy West, wearing a red ribbed sweater, holds her book "The Witches are Coming" at a lectern, and reads from it while gazing up into the audience.

Introductions: Lindy West

By Ruth Dickey, SAL Executive Director I bet each one of you in this room remembers the first time that you fell in love with Lindy West’s writing. Mine was her Guardian essay about her wedding—“My wedding was perfect—and I was fat as hell the whole time.” I can’t even remember how I found it […]

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Mary Ruefle gazes into the camera, head down, brows up, through her curly hair. Her navy blue blazer is decorated with a small pin.

Introductions: Mary Ruefle

By Rebecca Hoogs, SAL Associate Director Twenty-five years ago, I jumped into a pool in Switzerland and when I got out of the pool, I went about my business, i.e. my life for a while—maybe a half hour?—before I realized everything was blurry. I’d jumped in with my glasses on and when I went back, […]

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Nicholas Kristof has his arm over Sheryl WuDunn as they stand in front of a grey backdrop. Both are smiling.

Six Reads by Nicholas Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn

New York Times Op-Ed Columnist Nicolas Kristof grew up on a cherry farm in rural Yamhill, Oregon, and it’s there that he and Sheryl WuDunn, his wife and co-writer, return in their latest reporting. In part, their book is about the lives of some of the children with whom Kristof grew up, about a quarter […]

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Amor Towles, in glasses and a bold blue suit, stands in the center of the picture, against a backdrop lit by multicolored, circular lights. He's smiling energetically and making direct eye contact.

Introductions: Amor Towles

By Ruth Dickey, SAL Executive Director A few years ago, everyone I knew began telling me about a book they absolutely adored and that I simply must read. But when I learned the book was about a Count who spends 30 years in a hotel in Moscow, I was first skeptical, and then outright resistant. […]

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Bianca Glinskas stands on a cliff amid a sunrise, mountains in the background. She's leaning against a rock, small in the frame of the photo.

Faces of SAL: Bianca Glinskas

We are so grateful for the many volunteers who make our world go round at the SAL headquarters. Bianca Glinskas is one such volunteer, and not only does she help out in the office—she also writes for our blog! Check out her recent pieces on poet Mary Ruefle here and here. To see what’s inspired […]

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Andrea Dimond stands at the top of the steps of an old, brick building, with her hands interlaced and her leg crossed behind her. She's wearing a checkered dress with black tights and boots.

Faces of SAL: Andrea Dimond

Numerous creative and brilliant people work on behind-the-scenes projects for SAL. Andrea Dimond is one of two freelance designers and has freelanced for SAL for over three years, where she uses her superb design skills to produce our Annual Report and other pieces. See some of her past work here. Read on to find what […]

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