Stage | The Spokesman-Review

A&E > Entertainment

Chris Porter will ring in 2022 at Spokane Comedy Club

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 30, 2021

Chris Porter avoids hot button topics such as politics and religion. The observational comic, who will perform Friday and Saturday at Spokane Comedy Club, is more likely to crack wise about artisanal cuisine. "I just want breakfast, you know what I'm saying?" Porter said during his his latest one-hour special.

A&E > Entertainment

Many happy returns: New Year’s Eve with Spokane Symphony includes Eckart Preu, Beethoven

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 31, 2021

Taking over at the last minute for James Lowe, former Spokane Symphony music director Eckart Preu will once again conduct Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony during Friday night's New Year's Eve concert at Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox in downtown Spokane.

A&E > Entertainment

Arts Wrap: Spokane Symphony is starting off 2022 with a full January

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 30, 2021

Pink Martini, “the little orchestra” from Portland, returns to the Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox once again to perform with the Spokane Symphony at 8 p.m. Jan. 29. Music director James Lowe will conduct. For more information, visit spokanesymphony.org and call the box office at (509) 624-1200.

A&E > Stage

Stage listings for Dec. 31-Jan. 7 – Ben Brainard, Adrienne Iapalucci, ‘New Year, New You’ and ‘I Make Stuff Up’

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 30, 2021

Ben Brainard – Los Angeles-based comedian. Brainard has done everything from work at a drive-through at Chick-fil-A to driving a bus for the YMCA after-school program, and now he takes the stage to tell all about everything he’s seen and done. Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. Spokane Comedy Club, 315 W. Sprague Ave.

A&E > Entertainment

Review: ‘Anastasia’ is a holiday season gift with spectacular performances, costumes and dance

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 30, 2021

The opening night performance was part of the STCU Presents the Best of Broadway series and wraps up a delightful run of shows for 2021. “Anastasia” stars up-and-coming powerhouse Kyla Stone as Anastasia, with support from Sam McLellan (Dmitry) and Brandon Delgado (Gleb).

A&E > Entertainment

Eckart Preu to step in for James Lowe in Spokane Symphony NYE concert; Nick Mason postpones tour

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 30, 2021

Eckart Preu, former Spokane Symphony music director and conductor laureate, will lead the symphony in its New Year’s Eve performance as James Lowe, the symphony’s current music director, is unable to fly to Spokane this week due to international flight cancellations because of COVID-19.

A&E > Entertainment

Harvey Evans, actor in Broadway’s golden years, dies at 80

UPDATED: Sun., Dec. 26, 2021

NEW YORK – Harvey Evans, an actor, singer and dancer who had a knack for landing roles in the original Broadway productions of such classics as “West Side Story,” “Follies” “Hello, Dolly!” and “Gypsy,” has died. He was 80. Evans died Christmas Eve at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, New Jersey.

A&E > Entertainment

Royal legend lives on: Russia’s lost princess is brought to life onstage in ‘Anastasia’

UPDATED: Tue., Dec. 28, 2021

The story of Anastasia Romanov, the Russian Grand Duchess who miraculously survived the night in 1918 when Bolsheviks murdered the entire Russian royal family, has been the stuff of legend for a century. It's also pure myth. DNA evidence confirmed that 17-year-old Anastasia died alongside her family.

A&E > Art

Arts Wrap: James McAuley retrospective and CdA Summer Theatre 2022 lineup and auditions

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 23, 2021

Spokane Public Radio KPBX will present a week of retrospectives of legendary poet James McAuley from Monday through Dec. 31. The founder and former teacher in Eastern Washington University’s Creative Writing program, who also was instrumental in creating EWP Press, died on Oct. 26 in Dublin, Ireland.

A&E > Stage

Stage listings for Dec. 24-31 – Chris Porter, Contra Dance and ‘Anastasia’

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 23, 2021

Chris Porter – Known for his third--place finish on season four of "Last Comic Standing," Chris Porter can also be seen on his own “Comedy Central Presents” special and “Live at Gotham." He is known for his raw energy and interesting perspective. Spokane Comedy Club from Thursday through Saturday.

A&E > Entertainment

Difference Makers: Yvonne A.K. Johnson brings passion and crowds to Spokane Valley Summer Theatre

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 23, 2021

Born with a mind fit for business just as much as art, founder and executive artistic director of the Spokane Valley Summer Theatre Yvonne A.K. Johnson knew early on that when it came to theater, she was happiest in the director’s chair.

A&E > Entertainment

Review: ‘Home for the Holidays: A Big Band Christmas’ is an enchanting blast from the past

UPDATED: Sat., Dec. 18, 2021

The 16-piece band for "Home for the Holidays: A Big Band Christmas," consisting of brass, bass, percussion and conductor David Brewster on grand piano, is displayed onstage for this cabaret-style performance that harkens back to the ballrooms of WWII-era America.

A&E > Entertainment

SVST’s ‘Home for the Holidays: A Big Band Christmas’ opens Friday

UPDATED: Sat., Dec. 18, 2021

Spokane Valley Summer Theatre will take a “sentimental journey to the past” in this year’s Christmas show at Central Valley High School Theatre (821 S. Sullivan Road, Spokane Valley). Live for the first time, “Home for the Holidays: A Big Band Christmas” will feature a 16-piece Glenn Miller-style band.

A&E > Stage

Stage listings for Dec. 17-21 – Jonathan Kite, Ellen Travolta presents ‘Saving Christmas’ + ‘Excuse Me, What’s That?’

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 16, 2021

Jonathan Kite – Best known as “Oleg,” the hilarious, sex-crazed Ukrainian cook opposite Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs on the CBS comedy “Two Broke Girls,” Kite has studied improvisation and sketch comedy with Chicago’s Second City and the Groundlings in Los Angeles.

A&E > Entertainment

Don’t ask this blue comic (Josh Blue) for a magic trick

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 16, 2021

"It was really cool having the exposure, being on national television, but I was so upset that I lost to a magician," Denver-based comedian Josh Blue, 43, said while calling from Boise. "Magic sucks. It's not real! Being a magician is two steps below being a mime in my book."

A&E > Books

Santa baby: Cami Bradley, Whitney Dean sweep into the Fox for the Spokane Symphony’s ‘Holiday Pops’

UPDATED: Sat., Dec. 18, 2021

After nearly two years of coping with the coronavirus pandemic, songwriting duo the Sweepings – Cami Bradley and Whitney Dean – are thrilled to be back onstage and, for the first time, with the Spokane Symphony. “It doesn't feel like there are words to say how special this is to me,” Bradley said,

A&E > Entertainment

Veteran comic Jo Koy says ‘comedy is my passion’

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 16, 2021

While growing up in Tacoma during the 1980s, Jo Koy had no idea what he wanted to do with his life until he caught Eddie Murphy at the Seattle Coliseum in 1986. "I was blown away," Koy said while calling from his Los Angeles home. "He just killed it telling jokes in front of 15,000 people."

A&E > Entertainment

Review: Northwest BachFest dazzles with Zuill Bailey, Helen Hwaya Kim and Jasmin Arakawa

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 16, 2021

As we approach the winter solstice, we encounter a common symbol almost everywhere we look: the image of a light in darkness. We find it in the star of Bethlehem, the temple lamp burning for eight days, even in Rudolph’s nose. Last weekend in Spokane, light poured into the darkness at Barrister Winery.

A&E > Stage

Stage listings for Dec. 10-27 – Chase Myers and Travis Nelson, Josh Blue and Jo Koy

UPDATED: Thu., Dec. 9, 2021

Jo Koy: Just Kidding World Tour – Koy has come a long way from his modest beginnings performing at a Las Vegas coffee house. As one of today’s premiere standup comedians, Koy brings his infectious and explosive energy onstage. Dec. 17, 8 p.m. First Interstate Center for the Arts.

A&E > Entertainment

Arts Wrap: Spokane Jazz Orchestra Holiday Concert and SVST announces 2022 season auditions

UPDATED: Fri., Dec. 10, 2021

Celebrating its first live performance in two years, the Spokane Jazz Orchestra will take the stage during a holiday concert at Bing Crosby Theater at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. “It's been tough,” SJO music director Don Goodwin said. “None of us do this solely as our full-time job, of course, but we all depend on it."

Latest Stories