Welcome to our newest weekly blog feature on the Brown Paper Tickets Blog: Artist Ticket Picks!

As many of you already know, a year ago, a tragedy struck the artistic community here in Seattle a little over a year ago. While there’s no need to go into the specifics (you can read more about the crime here), two of the victims were good friends and artistic peers to many of us here at the company and we felt compelled to activate a program that we’d been discussing for some time: the Artist Tickets.

The idea was to ask well-known graphic artists to donate a work of art that would adorn a special, limited-edition ticket. If a producer opted in to the program, then they would give their ticket buyers the options to receive a cool, collectable ticket by just paying a quarter extra on their, already low, ticket fee. We would then donate all proceeds from the sales of these tickets to a charity of our choosing.

When we began to get news on how the families of the victims of the Cafe Racer shootings were struggling, we decided to put the Artist Ticket program into place in an effort to raise money for those that lost so much. Two nationally known artists, Ellen Forney and Jim Woodring, just happened to be regulars at Cafe Racer and generously donated their artwork for the inaugural batch of tickets and, just like that, the Artist Ticket program was born.

We’ve now passed the year anniversary of that horrible day and are proud to say that we’ve raised over $7,000 for the families of the victims. This is still a long way off from our goal of $25,000 but we feel it’s a very admirable start.

While we’d love to pat ourselves on the back, it’s not really about us. It’s about the producers that have chosen to opt in to this program and encourage their ticket buyers to contribute. It’s truly humbling to see producers from as far away as New York opting into the program. These are producers that didn’t know the victims, had probably never been to Cafe Racer, and maybe never even been to Seattle, but felt compelled out of the goodness of their hearts to take part in the program.

So, in an effort to thank these generous souls, and in an effort to get to our $25,000 goal as fast as possible, we’ve decided to start featuring new events that are carrying the Artist Tickets every Monday until the money these people so desperately need is raised. Once that goal is met, we’ll start another round of the Artist Tickets for the next charity that we choose.

You can see a full list of events carrying the tickets on the Artist Ticket page, as well as find out more about the charity. You can also shoot us an e-mail if you have a charity that you feel would be a good recipient for the next round of Artist Tickets. Or, if you’re an established graphic artist that wants to donate some artwork, let us know!

So, without further ado, here are this week’s Artist Ticket picks:

Sunday, September 15 I Dr. Sketchy’s September PARIS ORIGINAL – Seattle, Washington   The folks at Dr. Sketchy’s comb Seattle for the most dazzling burlesque dancers, the most bizarre circus performers, and the most stunning of boylesque. Then on the third Sunday of every month, they let you draw them for three hours. No drawing experience required, and you can win prizes! This month’s model is Paris Original. Paris is Poetry in Motion, exuding the graceful elegance of balletic beauty. He calls on his extensive experience in many forms of dance and theatre to craft his unique style of burlesque. Possessing a statuesque aesthetic, he utilizes his affinity for movement to inspire and capture the hearts of audiences wherever he goes. Paris is also a founding member of the burlesque troupe Mod Carousel. Does he look familiar to you? This might be why:

Saturday, October 5 I Art in Motion – Alameda, California   The hilarious Frank Olivier and his cast of Twisted Cabaret characters will be hosting this year’s Art in Motion show. Some of the most talented jugglers, unicyclists, aerialists, and other circus arts performers will amuse and amaze you.

Saturday, October 19 I John Medeski – Kirkland, Washington   Renowned for the considerable legacy of Medeski Martin & Wood, the keyboardist demonstrates virtuosity and vast range on solo grand piano.

Sunday, October 27 I The Rocky Horror Pastie Show at Columbia City Theater – Seattle, Washington   Now in its third year The Rocky Horror Pastie Show has become a tradition among Rocky Horror and burlesque fans alike. In case you missed it before and especially if you didn’t, you’ll truly be shivering with anticipation as Portland’s Miss Kennedy brings you a live stage adaptation of Rocky Horror with a little less dialogue and a LOT more T&A. Featuring: Grant Frey and Lovie Lane as Brad and Janet, Zora Phoenix as Frank-N-Furter, Isaiah Esquire as Rocky, Sofia Flash as Magenta, Miss Kennedy as Columbia, Noah Mickens as Riff Raff and Burk Biggler as Dr. Scott. Be sure to break out your fishnets, pearls, and platforms so you can walk away with some fancy prizes from the Rocky Horror costume contest.

Friday, November 1 I The 10th Annual Cabaret Macabre – Seattle, Washington   In 2004, The Bad Things hosted the first Cabaret Macabre in a warehouse space called Jem Studios in the Georgetown neighborhood of Seattle. Now, it’s ten years later and, in an effort to re-capture the underground party vibe of the first Cabaret Macabre, the Bad Things are taking over Capitol Hill’s FRED Wildlife Refuge for one night of dance, aerial performance, burlesque and music. Day of the Dead-themed pageantry is highly encouraged! We’ll be announcing more details on the party as they emerge but we can guarantee a night you won’t soon forget with a bevvy of your favorite macabre miscreants. Musical Performance by The Bad Things, Baby Gramps, Nu Klezmer Army and EuroDancePartyU$A! Dance Performance by Sweet Violets (Miss J9 Fierce & Diva Le Deviant), Danse Carouselle, Leslie Rosen and Maysun. Burlesque Performance by Iva Handfull. Aerial Performance by:
Michele Frances (Austin, Texas).

Friday, November 1 to Saturday, November 23 I Rope – Seattle, Washington   Two Gatsby-era ivy-leaguers decide to murder a friend of theirs, just to prove they can get away with it. They put the body into a trunk, and proceed to serve dinner off of the trunk, at a party consisting of the victim’s friends and family. Tensions are high as the boys wonder if they’ll be discovered. The play is loosely based on the Leopold and Loeb murder case of 1924.

Saturday, November 23 I Shakespeare! The Musical: Romeo & Juliet meets West Side, Hamlet meets The Lion King, and more! – Wainscott, New York   Our Fabulous Variety Show and The Round Table Theatre Company and Academy present , a theatrical mash-up of favorite Shakespeare scenes and musical theater/pop songs! Scenes from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth and Richard III flow seamlessly into Broadway style production numbers with songs from Les Mis, Gypsy, West Side Story and even Christina Aguilera!

Friday, January 10 and Saturday, January 11 I Poetry with a Side of Bitterness and Hope – Seattle, Washington  Poetry with a Side of Bitterness and Hope is a collection of poetry written by Caleb Penn. The series explores the two themes present in the title through the vehicle of poetic narrative. Different characters, of different backgrounds, discovering the universal nature of the themes through the words of various narrators.  The series is born of five years of experimentation by the author, presenting his poetry in various mediums and performance settings, until eventually, in the words of viewers, a unique style was developed. Caleb Penn is a graduate of Cornish College of the Arts (TH 08), a rapper and founder of local hip-hop group, FICTITIOUS and the recipient of multiple Seattle Times Footlight Awards.

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Be sure to visit the Artist Ticket page to see other events carrying the Artist Tickets. Also, if you’d like to contribute more to the Victims of Cafe Racer Shootings Memorial Fund, you can do so right over here.