Acquired last year by non-profit group Historic Seattle, the gabled red pile of bricks being celebrated at this weekends Washington Hall House Party has a fascinatingly mixed ethnic history. It was built in 1908 for the Danish Brotherhood Society. Later, as the Squire Park neighborhood diversified, it hosted concerts by Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday and Jimi Hendrix. Then it became home to the Sons of Haiti (who leased space to On the Boards). Purchased with funds also from 4Culture and the City of Seattle, the newly landmarked hall reopens tonight with a jazz set led by tenor saxophonist Hadley Caliman, followed an omnibus of dance, music, and theater featuring the likes of choreographer Dayna Hanson and accordionist Richard Svensson. Sunday offers family-friendly crafts activities and storytelling, plus dance lessons by Savoy Swing, a stage excerpt from Nu Black Arts West Theatre, and music from Jimmy and Grace Holden. Renovations are ongoing, and the dowager now even has a Facebook page (!) to solicit donations and volunteer labor. Or you can rent it for your next avant-garde theater production, bar mitzvah, or wedding and become a part of its polyglot history. BRIAN MILLER
Sat., May 1, 7-11 p.m.; Sun., May 2, 1-4 p.m., 2010
