Things to Do and See

This information is mainly from Northwest Best Places, by Stephanie Irving (Sasquatch Books , Seattle, 1998). For more information, please see web sites such as Sidewalk.com or Seattle Yahoo.

Seattle is a charming metropolis grown up in the middle of an evergreen forest. It's a city famous for its enduring relationships with Boeing and Bill Gates, for the Space Needle (within the Seattle Center) and Pike Place Market (down the hill, toward the water, and 1-2 blocks north from the Convention Center), and for coffee, available in steaming cups from mobile espresso carts that sprout on street corners.

This is a town where cops ride bikes, farmers and fishmongers hawk their wares at open-air markets, gardeners putter be it January or July, and early-morning kayakers paddle in the wake of log booms and container ships that ply the city's busy waterways. Situated between sparkling Puget Sound and Lake Washington, and dotted with lakes, Seattle is nearly surrounded by water, with mountains just about everywhere you look. On clear days, Mount Rainer's distant snowcapped presence has even been known to halt commuter traffic--which has grown worse as the population grows and the city's bedroom communities spread farther afield.

But rapid growth and international sophistication have brought this city outstanding restaurants, thriving cultural organizations, impressive athletic teams, and fabulous citywide festivals. What follows are a few highlights of Seattle's entertainment.

Music

The Seattle Symphony has been a barometer of the city's growing stature in the music world, reaching a new level of consistency and artistic mastery under maestro Gerard Schwarz. During the period before, during, and after ICASSP '98, varied performances are scheduled, including pianist Emanuel Ax in Recital.

For more information, call (206) 443-4747 or visit . Sellout audiences have come to expect fresh and innovative productions from the Seattle Opera, which has become a top-flight company under the leadership of Speight Jenkins, general director since 1983. The opera La Boehme is scheduled for May 8 and May 13. For more information call (206) 389-7676.

Concert series presented by the Early Music Guild, the Northwest Chamber Orchestra, and the International Chamber Music and President's Piano Series at the University of Washington's Meany Hall for the Performing Arts (206) 543-4880, plus a burgeoning number of performances by fine local groups, round out the winter and spring seasons. Choral music is experiencing an upsurge, as evidenced by fine performances of the Tudor Choir, Seattle Men's Chorus, Seattle Choral Company and many others.

Theater

Touring Broadway blockbusters take the stage at the glamorously refurbished Paramount Theater, while at the splendid 5th Avenue Theatre, the house mainstay is new productions of classic musicals (and an occasional Broadway-bound experiment). The nationally acclaimed Seattle Repertory Theatre ("The Rep") mixes recent off-Broadway and regional theater successes with the occasional updated classic and Broadway-bound "commercial" fare. A Contemporary Theatre (ACT), now at the remodeled Eagles Auditorium, sticks mainly to contemporary plays, particularly new works by young American and English playwrights.

An explosion of experimentation has occurred among the dozens of smaller theater companies around town, resulting in funky, campy, classical, and avant-garde theater worth checking out. Half-price tickets are available to both fringe and larger theaters through Ticket/Ticket, by walking up to either location (Capitol Hill and downtown) on the day of the show, call (206) 324-2744 for directions.

Dance

Under the guidance of artistic directors Kent Stowell and Francia Russell, Pacific Northwest Ballet has evolved into one of the top regional companies in America. Its regular season mixes masterworks with new pieces (206) 292-2787. Dance and other contemporary performance (dramatic, comic, musical, multimedia) can be seen at On the Boards (various venues) (206) 325-7901; and the World Dance Series presents an ever-thrilling roster of touring companies at the University of Washington's Meany Hall (206) 543-4880.

Visual Arts

The Robert Venturi-designed Seattle Art Museum (SAM), with Jonathan Borofsky's towering sculpture Hammering Man, at the main entrance, has by now become an established part of the downtown skyline. The building on University Street between First and Second Avenues houses the museum's permanent collections, while the Seattle Asian Art Museum, in the former SAM location in Volunteer Park, offers one of the most extraordinary collections of Asian art in the country; contact both museums at (206) 654-3100. The Henry Art Gallery at the University of Washington mounts thoughtful and challenging shows; (206) 543-220.

The city's main commercial art galleries are found predominantly (though not exclusively) in the Pioneer Square area and along First Avenue; most gallery openings are the first Thursday of every month.

Nightlife

There are clubs all over town, but Seattle's much-bally-hooed music scene is neighborhood-centered. Pioneer Square offers various acts, from jazz to Cajun to rock 'n' roll; Ballard brings in the blues, as well as traditional and new folk music; the alternative music scene makes its mark in the Denny Regrade and Belltown neighborhoods; and DJ-controlled club music has bodies pulsating on Capitol Hill. Dimitriou's Jazz Alley, one of the West Coast's finest jazz clubs, provides an intimate venue and draws an international roster of well-known performers. There are good coffeehouses everywhere, but particularly in the University District and on Capitol Hill (which is also the unofficial playground for Seattle's sizable gay and lesbian community). Fremont, with its many brewpubs, taverns, coffeehouses, and inexpensive restaurants, offers much in the way of nighttime haunts and hangouts.

Exhibits

The Woodland Park Zoo is a world leader in naturalistic displays, as evidenced by its open African savanna and the exotic Asian elephant forest; (206) 764-5720. Pacific Science Center, part of Seattle Center, features engrossing hands-on science exhibits for school-age children, with traveling shows and a planetarium aimed at all age groups; (206) 443-2880. Amid the tourist bustle along the downtown waterfront is the Seattle Aquarium, with illuminated displays and convincing re-creations of coastal and inter-tidal ecosystems, along with a full complement of sharks, octopi, salmon, playful sea otters, and other Puget Sound inhabitants; (206) 386-4320.

Parks

Seattle's horticultural climate is among the finest in the world--damp and mild all year--so the parks are spectacular and numerous. Washington Park Arboretum, with 5,500 species of plants and gentle pathways amid azaleas and rhododendrons is the loveliest; (206) 543-8800. A peaceful Japanese garden is also located in the Arboretum. Discovery Park, with grassy meadows and steep sea cliffs, is the wildest; (206) 386-4236. Green Lake, with its surrounding running/walking/in-line skating track, is by far the most active. Freeway Park, the most urban, is built over I-5 downtown and can be entered from the Convention Center.

Sports

Seattle's professional teams have been known to get less attention than the venues in which they play (thanks to past controversy over the Kingdome and the Mariner's new ballpark). But local fans continue to do the wave for their home teams, particularly the American League's Seattle Mariners baseball team and the National Basketball Association's Seattle Super Sonic basketball team. On May 7-10, the Mariners will be playing the Toronto Blue Jays at the Seattle Kingdome, which is just south of downtown Seattle. The Mariners will be away playing other teams during the week of ICASSP '98 and will not be back in Seattle until May 22. Single-game tickets go on sale on February 22, 1998 and are available by calling the Mariner's Ticketmaster hotline at (206) 622-HITS. For more information. As of press time, the Seattle Super Sonics have such a winning schedule that there is a distinct possibility that there will be play-off games in Seattle before, during, or after the week of ICASSP '98. The Super Sonics play at the KeyArena, which is within the Seattle Center, a 74-acre entertainment complex located on the north side of downtown Seattle. Single ticket information for the Super Sonics is available from Ticketmaster at (206) 628-0888.

Shopping

The downtown area has designer-name stores, plus some excellent full-line department stores (including the flagship hometown favorite, Nordstrom, and the Bon Marche). Westlake Center, a slick mall smack in the middle of the downtown congestion, is an appealing place to shop, but of the specialty shopping areas, we favor Pike Place Market and Upper Queen Anne (for foodstuffs), Capitol Hill and Fremont (arty, funky, and oh-so-Seattle), and Pioneer Square (for fine arts and crafts and some of the city's best bookshops).

Transportation

The Metro bus is free before 7 pm in downtown's commercial core; otherwise, the fare is 85 cents within the city ($1.10 during peak hours) and $1.10 if you cross the city line ($1.60 peak); (206) 553-3000. Another common commute (and an inexpensive thrill for visitors) is a trip on one of the scenic Washington State Ferries, which cross Puget Sound frequently to various destinations; (206) 464-6400 or (800) 843-3779. The Monorail, which connects Seattle Center to the downtown retail district, offers a 90-second, 1-1/2 mile ride, leaving at 15-minute intervals from 9 am to 11 pm.