MUSIC
If you’re all alone this Valentine’s Day, there’s no need to wallow: Let Lemolo be your dreamy dream pop date. It’s hard to not fall head over heels for Meagan Grandall’s floating vocals, piano leads, and ripping reverb-heavy guitar lines. It’s the band’s first Seattle show since last summer, so new tunes from its upcoming third LP might try to steal your heart. The night also serves as the album release show for Some Space, the new record by local indie pop outfit OK Sweetheart. SETH SOMMERFELD Neumos, neumos.com. $13. 7 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 14.
Need a little more soul in your life? Seattle septet The Dip is here to help with the album release show for The Dip Delivers. With throwback vibes, crisp playing, the easy square-jawed swagger of frontman Tom Eddy, and this fresh collection of 10 tunes, the band continues to expand its local fan base, and hope this night is the start of a very big 2019. SS Neumos, neumos.com. $16–$18. 8 p.m. Fri., Feb. 15.
All hail our new benevolent musical overlord, Kacey Musgraves! In a rare feat, the Grammys actually got it right last weekend and bestowed Album of the Year honors on her stunning Golden Hour. The album is less pure country than adult pop with sweet country undertones (though it’s still maddening that mainstream country radio ignores her), employing the softness and sass in her voice to shift effortlessly among gorgeous serenity (“Slow Burn”), twangy playfulness (“Velvet Elvis”), and boot-shaking disco (“High Horse”). And if you managed to score a ticket, show up early to catch indie singer/songwriter Soccer Mommy, whose Clean also ranks among 2018’s best albums. SS The Paramount, stgpresents.org. Sold out. 8 p.m. Tues., Feb. 19.
STAGE
Book-It adapts Tom Hansen’s memoir of heroin-laced Seattle in the ‘90s, American Junkie. GAVIN BORCHERT Center Theatre at the Armory, bookit.org. $26–$50. Previews Feb. 13–15. Feb. 16–Mar. 10.
Lexi Chipman and Maya Burton’s ongoing performance series Raisins in a Glass of Milk examines how white supremacy operates in the theater through interviews with theater-makers of color. GB Taproot Theatre, lgtheater.org. $5–$30. 8 p.m. Feb. 14–16, 2 p.m. Sun., Feb. 17.
Village Theatre’s Beta Series season—staged readings of new musicals, with audience discussion and workshopping throughout the run—opens with David Darrow’s mystery tale The Passage. It’s autobiographical, he says, drawn from his own family experience—even though VT is promoting it as “Stranger Things meets Pan’s Labyrinth.” That must have been some childhood… GB Village Theatre (Issaquah), villagetheatre.org. $25–$30. Feb. 15–24.
The Deaf Spotlight Short Play Festival features the premieres of six new 10-minute plays brought to life by deaf playwrights, actors, and directors. Topics range from signing dogs to Deaf Pride to sci-fi. GB ACT Theatre, acttheatre.org. $20–$35. 7:30 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 14–Sun., Feb. 17
COMEDY
Stand-up comedian Jen Kirkman offers the perfect blend of the inherent dark cynicism of everything in this garbage world and a scrappy Bostonian attitude. In addition to killing it on Conan and Colbert and being one of the most delightful Drunk History storytellers, she’s also a writer for the award-winning Amazon Prime hit The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. And in case you fear a going to a comedy show on a certain heart-related holiday, Kirkman writes on her website to assure you: “This is a great night out for couples, singles, friends, everyone! Don’t worry. I am not doing jokes about Valentine’s Day.” SS The Neptune, stgpresents.org. $30–$35. 8 p.m. Thur., Feb. 14.
CLASSICAL, ETC.
Three renowned singers in two days reach beyond classical: Lawrence Brownlee & Eric Owens, tenor and bass-baritone, combine spirituals and arias in their joint recital, while soprano Joyce DiDonato draws from her new crossover album Songplay, on which Vivaldi meets George Shearing. GB Brownlee/Owens: $25–$123, 2 p.m. Sun., Feb. 17. DiDonato: $25–$100, 7:30 p.m. Mon., Feb. 18. Benaroya Hall, seattlesymphony.org.
DANCE
Australian dance-theater artist Nicola Gunn shows off two pieces over the course of a couple weekend at On the Boards. First up is the kinetic solo performance Piece for Person and Ghetto Blaster (Feb. 14–16), with her satirical performance lecture In Spite of Myself to follow (Feb. 21–23). GB On the Boards, ontheboards.org. $26–$70.
As the Eastside’s premier showcase for new dance, Chop Shop continually delivers fresh choreographic ideas. This edition features works by Julia Antinozzi, Eva Stone and the Stone Dance Collective, and others. GB Meydenbauer Theatre, chopshopdance.org. $15–$28. 7:30 p.m. Sat., Feb. 16, 3 p.m. Sun., Feb. 17.
FILM
“1959: The Greatest Year in Film History” is the name of Scarecrow Video’s screening series (second and fourth Saturdays through May 11); this weekend, SW film critic Robert Horton makes the case with Hitchcock’s urbanely paranoiac thriller North by Northwest. (Just how strong was 1959? Some of the films not included in this series are Ben-Hur, Anatomy of a Murder, Black Orpheus, Pillow Talk, and Disney’s Sleeping Beauty.) GB Free, but RSVP at blog.scarecrow.com/scarecrowacademy. Scarecrow Video. 1 p.m. Sat., Feb. 16.
SIFF’s annual mini-fest Noir City boasts 20 features that uncover “The Dark Side of Mid-Century America.” Titles include Killer’s Kiss and Touch of Evil. GB SIFF Cinema Egyptian, siff.net. $15; passes $100–$150. Feb. 15–21.
VISUAL ARTS
Love Is in the Air: 70 Years of Berlin Airlift, a traveling exhibit from the Allied Museum in Berlin, celebrates the “Raisin Bombers” that air-dropped food and raw materials for a year during the Russian blockade of Berlin in 1948. GB Gothe Pop Up Seattle (1424 11th Ave., Suite 101), gothe.de. Opening reception 5 p.m. Thurs., Feb. 14. Feb. 14–Mar. 14.
Marking the christening of UW’s art space after the iconic Northwest painter, the Jacob Lawrence Gallery 25th Anniversary Celebration features DJ sets by SassyBlack and Felisha Ledesma and much more. GB Jacob Lawrence Gallery, School of Art + Art History + Design, UW campus, art.washington.edu. $5–$15. 7 p.m. Sat., Feb. 16.
BOOKS & SPEAKERS
Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James opens the new epic fantasy realm of the Dark Star Trilogy, which led to a recent The New Yorker profile for the author. GB Third Place Books Ravenna, thirdplacebooks.com, 1 p.m. Sat., Feb. 16; Elliott Bay Book Company, elliottbaybook.com, 7 p.m. Sat., Feb. 16.
Citizen Jean: Riots, Rogues, Rumors, and Other Inside Seattle Stories recounts Jean Godden’s decades as a local columnist, politician, and icon. GB Third Place Books (Lake Forest Park), thirdplacebooks.com, 6 p.m. Sun., Feb. 17; University Book Store, ubookstore.com, 6 p.m. Tues., Feb. 19.
