Badminton! Suddenly it’s trendy! Or, better than kickball, the sport served as a perfect draw for On the Boards’ season-opening party last night, as several badminton courts and food vendors commandeered a parking lot opposite OtB’s location in the Uptown neighborhood. Dollar beers, cheap hot dogs and Korean food, plus two dozen enthusiastic badminton teams from various local arts groups–these all made for a rowdy, noisy, welcome incursion on an otherwise warm and sleepy night in Lower Queen Anne. The cheerful event served to launch OtB’s 2009-2010 season, which begins–indoors, at least–with Young Jean Lee’s The Shipment on October 1.Outdoors, the round-robin badminton tournament was played on a strictly non-regulation gravel surface, many players clutching a beer in one hand, racket in the other. And despite an absence of explanatory signs on West Roy Street, the arts/sporting spectacle drew many curious passers-by. As all Seattle arts organizations are trimming their budgets, cutting staff and programming, the little-publicized block party was a nice example of lo-fi community outreach. Those (21 and over) wondering at the hullabaloo were invited inside, given a program for the new OtB season, and encouraged to follow the competition to its final round–held indoors on the OtB stage. Admission price: free. If not exactly street theater, the affair amounted to sidewalk sports with a theatrical twist. And on a beer budget that’s friendly to new theater-goers. Other venues and arts organizations would be wise to take note.