Alliteration on Tap -- The organizers of the Peaceful Valley Picnic taking place this Sunday, are having a heyday with the letter "P." In addition to pointing out that their event is a "power potluck" with plentiful portions of poetry, the Peaceful Valley Picnic people have invited Mayor John Powers, poets Charles Potts, Jasmine Paul and Scott Poole, as well as Pauline Flett from the Spokane Tribal Indian Culture Office. Other poets whose last names begin with the letter "P" are invited to attend, although we're sure poets whose last names start with "M," "D" or "H" won't be thrown out on such a minor technicality.
In all seriousness, the Peaceful Valley Potluck Picnic is a celebration of the Peaceful Valley neighborhood, of family, and of the river. An open mike will take place after the featured readers, and attendees are invited to read or recite their own work or the work of a favorite author. The event starts at 1 pm and takes place at the Peaceful Valley Community Center, 214 N. Cedar St. For more information, call Tom Davis at 624-1281.
Hitting the Big Time -- Last year's Get Lit was looking kind of hard to beat. After all, they brought in Lynda Barry, David Sedaris and Jack Prelutsky, not to mention some of the region's finest writers. But check out next year's roster. In addition to Garrison Keillor, Dave Barry, and the return of Lynda Barry (hooray!), Get Lit is bringing none other than Kurt Vonnegut to Spokane.
It's true. Everyone we've told has said "Kurt Vonnegut?" but indeed, the 81-year-old author of Slaughterhouse 5, Cat's Cradle, Breakfast of Champions and many more novels will be appearing at the Met on Saturday, April 17, 2004. Ticket packages go on sale Monday, Sept. 1, with festival passes (good for all three Get Lit ticketed events) running $94-$121, and the Sunday-only shows (Dave Barry and Garrison Keillor, respectively) going for $63-$90. Individual tickets go on sale Oct. 1. Call: 325-SEAT or visit www.ticketswest.com.
Operatic Sneak Preview -- If you're wondering what to expect from the upcoming opera-in-Usk, Iolanta, a Hymn to the Light, there's a chance to find out this Friday at the Art Spirit Gallery in Coeur d'Alene. The Frog Island Singers will be on hand to perform a selection of excerpts from Tchaikovsky's one-act opera about both physical and metaphorical blindness at 6 pm. Check it out!
Live at Brix -- Rumor has it Brix in Coeur d'Alene is serving up some mighty fine live music these days. Jude Bowerman, a funk-and-blues man from Seattle, plans to bring his San Francisco-honed craft to the Inland Northwest this Friday and Saturday night from 9 pm-1 am.
Publication date: 08/21/03
