A 90-minute Comedy and Magic Show is coming to BTB Advertiser the Tin Theater starting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 26.

This special event will feature “Steve the Pretty Good” and the “thinking man’s Hillbilly,” Billy Wayne Davis.

Tickets are $12.95 each for this 21-and-over show, and are available at the Tin Room Bar – but act fast, as the last show like this sold out quickly!

The Tin Theater is located at 923 SW 152nd Street in Olde Burien.

Here are some videos of “Steve the Pretty Good”:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here are some videos of Billy Wayne Davis in action:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

For more information, call the Tin Room Bar at (206) 242-0480 or just drop into the bar.

In this 4:16 video, Bryan cleverly pokes jabs at topical news like the Occupy movement, throws in guns, mixes in Santa as a Zombie, then ends it all in a hilarious courtroom scene:

Click here to view the embedded video.

As a reminder…

• Bryan is a student at Big Picture High School in Burien.
• This is his third year Interning for the blog.
• He is an Artist who is studying animation, and creates his videos using Flash.
• He spent between 7-10 days conceiving, drawing, voicing and animating this video.
• We think that he’s also developing an excellent sense of comedic timing.
• Oh, and did we mention that he’s just 16-years old?

Our friends at Burien Little Theatre will be presenting the hilarious holiday comedy Inspecting Carol, written by Daniel J. Sullivan and the Seattle Repertory Theatre, opening Friday, Nov. 25th.

Almost broke, the pathetic Soapbox Theatre Company is having a dickens of a time mounting their annual cash cow, the holiday classic A Christmas Carol. Tiny Tim is a bit too old and big, the Ghost of Jacob Marley keeps getting his chains tangled in the scenery, and there’s an inspector from the National Endowment for the Arts expected any minute.

When an inept new actor is mistaken for the inspector, cast and crew cater to his every whim to try to win government funding. The result? The most hilarious and disastrous production of A Christmas Carol ever. Part Noises Off, part Waiting for Guffman, this show has been a sidesplitting holiday hit ever since it premiered at the Seattle Rep.

Inspecting Carol will be performed at Burien Little Theatre from opening night on Friday, Nov. 25 through Sunday, Dec. 18. Performances are Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m.

Burien Little Theatre is introducing a couple of new ticket deals with Inspecting Carol. Tickets will be priced 2-for-1 on Date Night on Saturday, Nov. 26. In addition, get $2 off tickets by bringing nonperishable food items for the theater’s food drive. Donated food will go to a local food bank. One $2 food donation discount is allowed per ticket.

Regular ticket prices are $15 to $20 online and $17 to $20 at the box office. All tickets are just $7 on Burien Little Theatre’s traditional Seven Buck Sunday, Nov. 27.

For tickets or information, go online to www.burienlittletheatre.org or call the ticket office at 206-242-5180.

THE CAST
Under the direction of Maggie Larrick, the show features the diverse acting talents of:

• Andy Beal (Luther Beatty)
• Sarah Bixler (MJ McMann)
• Robert Harkins (Sidney Carlton)
• Eric Hartley (Phil Hewlitt)
• Adam Hegg (Kevin Emery)
• Nathaniel Jones (Wayne Wellacre)
• Russ Kay (Larry Vaushall)
• Kevin Schilling (Bart Frances)
• Tim Takechi (Walter E. Parsons)
• Vera Werre (Dorothy Tree Hapgood)
• Rochelle Wyatt (Inspector Betty Andrews)
• Yvette Zaepfel (Zorah Bloch)

ABOUT BURIEN LITTLE THEATRE
Exciting live theater has been a tradition in Burien since 1955. Incorporated in 1980, Burien Little Theatre (BLT) has been a leading producer of quality live theater serving residents of the Seattle and south Puget Sound areas.

Burien Little Theatre is committed to being an entertainment leader by producing intriguing professional shows. The company’s mission is to treat audiences to productions of the highest artistic integrity that excite, engage and involve both the local and expanding theatrical communities in the Puget Sound region.

BLT is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) entity and operates on revenue from ticket sales, donations, grants, sponsorships and volunteers.

SCHEDULE FOR “INSPECTING CAROL”

• Nov. 25 at 8:00 p.m. – Friday – OPENING NIGHT!
• Nov. 26 at 8:00 p.m. – Saturday – DATE NIGHT – 2-for-1 tickets
• Nov. 27 at 2:00 p.m. – Sunday – SEVEN DOLLAR SUNDAY
• Dec. 2 at 8:00 p.m. – Friday
• Dec. 3 at 8:00 p.m. – Saturday
• Dec. 4 at 2:00 p.m. – Sunday
• Dec. 9 at 8:00 p.m. – Friday
• Dec. 10 at 8:00 p.m. – Saturday
• Dec. 11 at 2:00 p.m. – Sunday
• Dec. 16 at 8:00 p.m. – Friday
• Dec. 17 at 8:00 p.m. – Saturday
• Dec. 18 at 2:00 p.m. – Sunday – CLOSING SHOW!

THEATER LOCATION
The Theater at the Annex to the Burien Community Center:

14501 4th Ave SW
Burien, WA 98166
(206) 242-5180

The Annex to the Burien Community Center is located at the northwest corner of the intersection of 4th Ave SW and SW 146th Street in Burien, with the parking lot entrance on 4th.

(Directions available under “Find Us” at www.burienlittletheatre.org).

TICKET PRICES AND PACKAGES

Online Ticket Prices: Purchase online and save!

General Senior/Student

• First Weekend: $18.00 $15.00
• Second Weekend: $19.00 $16.00
• Remaining Weekends: $20.00 $17.00

Tickets at the Box Office:

General Senior/Student

• All Shows: $20.00 $17.00

DATE NIGHT
Two –for-one tickets: Get two tickets for the price of one on Saturday, Nov. 26.

SEVEN DOLLAR SUNDAY
All tickets to the first Sunday Matinee, Nov. 27 are just $7.00!

Dinner and a Show Package: This package includes a two-course meal at Mark Restaurant & Bar plus a ticket to the show; cost is $35 per person. Contact the Mark at 206-241-6275.

To Purchase Tickets: Show tickets may be purchased online at www.burienlittletheatre.org or call 206-242-5180. Fabulous Four-Packs (4 admissions for just $60 general admissions or $48 senior/student admission) are available for the 2011-12 Season.

Click here to view the embedded video.

We’ll talk again in the Spring.

“The cast, the sets, the costumes, the orchestra—all are receiving raves!” reads a note on the group’s website.

Tickets for the show are available at www.hi-liners.org.

If you have already seen it, call 206-617-2152 now and you can come back for the final weekend for half price!

“CHICAGO has everything that makes Broadway great: a universal tale of fame, fortune and all that jazz; one show-stopping-song after another; and the most astonishing dancing you’ve ever seen,” reads a press release – click here for more info.

If you haven’t seen the Oscar-winning movie in a while, or have yet to see the stage version, here’s a synopsis:

In the mid-’20s, Roxie Hart is a small-time chorus dancer married to a well-meaning dunderhead named Amos. Roxie is having an affair on the side with Fred Casley, a smooth talker who insists he can make her a star. However, Fred strings Roxie along a bit too far for his own good, and when she realizes that his promises are empty, she becomes enraged and murders Fred in cold blood. Roxie soon finds herself behind bars alongside Velma Kelly, a vaudeville star who used to perform with her sister until Velma discovered that her sister had been sleeping with her husband. Velma shot them both dead, and, after scheming prison matron “Mama” Morton hooks Velma up with hotshot lawyer Billy Flynn, Velma becomes the new Queen of the scandal sheets. Roxie is just shrewd enough to realize that her poor fortune could also bring her fame, so she convinces Amos to also hire Flynn. Soon Flynn is splashing Roxie’s story — or, more accurately, a highly melodramatic revision of Roxie’s story — all over the press, and Roxy and Velma are soon battling neck-to-neck over who can win greater fame through the headlines.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Burien’s Hi-Liner’s ‘Chicago, the Musical’

WHEN: Remaining showtimes are:

• Saturday, Sept. 24th at 7:30 p.m.
• Sundays, Sept. 25 at 1:30 p.m.

WHERE: Highline Performing Arts Center, located at 401 S. 152nd Street (next to Highline High School).

COST: Tickets are $15-$25, and group rates are available.

INFO: More info at www.hi-liners.org or by calling 206-617-2152.

VIDEO: Please note that the following is NOT from this specific Hi-Liner production, rather, it’s from the film version starring Richard Gere singing “All I Care About Is Love”:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Burien’s Hi-Liners recently performed at the Highline Historical Society’s annual volunteer thank-you dinner at the home of John and Cyndi Upthegrove. They delighted guests with a preview of their upcoming show CHICAGO, which opens Sept. 10th at the Highline Performing Arts Center. Pictured above is Billy Flynn (played by Nick Watson) and his ladies performing “All I Care About Is Love.”

Tickets for the show are available at www.hi-liners.org.

“CHICAGO has everything that makes Broadway great: a universal tale of fame, fortune and all that jazz; one show-stopping-song after another; and the most astonishing dancing you’ve ever seen,” reads a press release – click here for more info.

If you haven’t seen the Oscar-winning movie in a while, or have yet to see the stage version, here’s a synopsis:

In the mid-’20s, Roxie Hart is a small-time chorus dancer married to a well-meaning dunderhead named Amos. Roxie is having an affair on the side with Fred Casley, a smooth talker who insists he can make her a star. However, Fred strings Roxie along a bit too far for his own good, and when she realizes that his promises are empty, she becomes enraged and murders Fred in cold blood. Roxie soon finds herself behind bars alongside Velma Kelly, a vaudeville star who used to perform with her sister until Velma discovered that her sister had been sleeping with her husband. Velma shot them both dead, and, after scheming prison matron “Mama” Morton hooks Velma up with hotshot lawyer Billy Flynn, Velma becomes the new Queen of the scandal sheets. Roxie is just shrewd enough to realize that her poor fortune could also bring her fame, so she convinces Amos to also hire Flynn. Soon Flynn is splashing Roxie’s story — or, more accurately, a highly melodramatic revision of Roxie’s story — all over the press, and Roxy and Velma are soon battling neck-to-neck over who can win greater fame through the headlines.

We’re huge fans of the Hi-Liners, as we’ve seen them perform both on stage (read a review here) and at the Three Tree Point Fireworks Fund Donor’s Party, where they totally rocked the house by acting as screaming fans as guests entered on a red carpet (some say this was the best party 3TP has ever seen). This is a group chock full of youthful talent and energy, so we’re sure this is going to be an excellent production.

Here are the details:

WHAT: Burien’s Hi-Liner’s ‘Chicago, the Musical’

WHEN: Showtimes are:

• Saturdays: September 10, 17, 24 at 7:30
• Sundays: September 11, 18, 25 at 1:30

WHERE: Highline Performing Arts Center, located at 401 S. 152nd Street (next to Highline High School).

COST: Tickets are $15-$25, and group rates are available.

INFO: More info at www.hi-liners.org or by calling 206-617-2152.

VIDEO: Please note that the following is NOT from this specific Hi-Liner production, rather, it’s from the film version starring Richard Gere singing “All I Care About Is Love”:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Our friends at Burien Little Theatre want our Readers to mark their calendars for 9/10/11, when BLT will be presenting a 24-hour fundraiser show chock full of live entertainment, from 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 10th to 9 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 11th.

“Fabulous live entertainment even in the middle of the night!” exclaims a postcard.

Held at the Theater at the Annex to the Burien Community Center (at 4th Ave SW and SW 146th), this is a benefit for BLT, which must replace their state curtains to meet fire code.

“We ask two things of you (1) sponsor BLT for twenty-hours: $1.00 an hour is just $24.00. $5.00 an hour is just $120.00, and $100.00 an hour is just $2,400.00. Well, you get the point,” reads their website. “It’s fun and you’ll feel good about yourself. (2) come to 9-10-11!!!! Come early stay late, stay for the full 24 hours, or just catch an hour!”

You can buy tickets or a Sponsorship online at www.burienlittletheatre.org.

Entertainment will include:

• Theater: Comedy, Drama, Musical Numbers
• Stand-up Comedy
• Performance Art
• Music
• Breakdancing
• Modern Dance
• Much, much more!

Plus espresso, mimosas in the morning (after 6 a.m.) and more.

Acts will range from family-friendly to “definitely for adults,” and, if combined with the Arts-A-Glow happening across the street at Dottie Harper Park, will make for an excellent, full-on local arts immersion!

For more information, call BLT at (206) 242-5180 or visit their website here.

REMINDER: Breeders Theater’s ‘Helpdesk’ continues to help close out Burien’s E.B. Foote Winery with some laughs (and sips) tonight as well as Saturday, July 23rd, starting at 7 p.m., and a matinee on Sunday, July 24th starting at 2 p.m.

Helpdesk is about a group of women working in an office. Across the street, a young man stares at them almost every day. What does he want? Can the women of the Cox & Berman Helpdesk help someone whose troubles aren’t computer-related?

Helpdesk is directed by Scott Green, and features of the acting talents of Laura Smith, Marianne Everett, Emily Fairbrook Shuel, Mari Geasair, Melissa Malloy, and Andrew Galteland.

The show runs July 15, 16, 22, 23, 29 and 30 at E.B. Foote Winery, located at 127-B SW 153rd Street in Burien. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. with the show starting at 7 p.m. One Sunday matinee will be performed July 24, at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $20 and include wine tasting.

E.B. Foote, one of Washington’s oldest wineries, will close in August with the retirement of winemaker Sherrill Miller (read our previous coverage here).

Tickets are available at the winery, 206-242-3852, and at CorkyCellars in Des Moines, 22511 Marine View Dr., Des Moines, 206-824-9462.

Mari Geasair, left, Melissa Malloy, Marianne Everett and Laura Smith confront a stranger in 'Helpdesk.' Photo by Michael Brunk/NW Lens.

Speaking of my mom…

She has always told people that when it comes to making friends, my life is an open book. She should know, having been my librarian for years.

Ok, so that analogy was a stretch…but the point is, I talk to strangers. It’s just who I am.  Regardless of all the ‘Stranger Danger’ lectures from my parents, even as a child, I could not help myself.

My husband has accustomed himself to this reality and has adapted accordingly.

He has learned that if I’m in a public setting with opportunities to socialize, I will do exactly that. He avoids going out with me very much. Not really, but he has developed an incredible ‘game face’ about it.

Thankfully I’ve learned how to read people and am able to tell if they are receptive to chit-chat while seated next to me at the coffee shop. Especially if they have the good (mis)fortune to be stuck waiting for their take out sandwich. Enter Steve and Rebecca.

After spending too many hours web-surfing at Auntie Irene’s Espresso, I had the opportunity to meet Steve and Rebecca, my unsuspecting new friends-to-be. Steve was wearing a Marine (ooh-rah) t-shirt representing his son Eric. Which prompted me (as a military mom) to ask the standard questions: Marines? Duh. Current station? San Diego. Duty Assignment? Infantry…and so forth. Rebecca answered very kindly, and shared with me the same feelings common to military moms.

Steve smiled and nodded in all the right places (he has a good ‘game face’ too) and contributed occasionally as Rebecca and I shared mutual parenting stories and woes. We agreed that age of middle school is toughest…for parents…and observed the blessing/curse that is known as the digital age. We also risked sounding ‘old’ by stating that the current generation of kids simply doesn’t get the value of quality face time. During the course of our chitting and chatting I learned that Rebecca has garnered the Trifecta of Transition:

• Recent Move
• Unemployment
• Empty Nest

All happening at once. Add to that an active duty son in the Marines (ooh-rah) currently prepping for deployment, and she has every reason to be a babbling incoherent mess. But no. She’s charming, poised and gracious. I think I hate her.

Okay, not really. But I do envy her ability to compassionately listen and converse with the ramblings of strangers (me) while remaining patient. Even after her takeout lunch arrived, she lingered and politely let our random conversation wrap up naturally. Her life is nearly an ‘open book’ as mine.

After final pleasantries were exchanged,they headed out, lunch in hand and ready to go about the rest of their day, leaving me with a renewed inspiration to write and an empty wine rack still to be filled. But it looks like someone else just walked in the door. I wonder what they’re having for lunch…

As mentioned in a previous column, I am in a blended family.  Beyond the standard of his/mine when it comes to kids, we have a his/mine/ours regarding the matter of pets.

Upon our marriage last year Darling Husband and I brought together into one household:

4 kids (two still semi-living with us, and two in the world as adults…technically not pets, but they would be hurt if I didn’t mention them)

1 dog (ours)

5 fish (his)

2 cats (mine)

Where the kids are concerned it’s a take-each-day-as-it-comes kind of thing. The older grown sibs sometimes offer advice (see last week’s column), and younger ones manage to tolerate us while counting down the weeks/months/years left under our domain. So for the most part, it’s parenting 2.0.

The dog is also pretty much a ‘no big deal’ thing.  We got him about 6 months before we married, and he spent time in both households before things merged, so he sees us both as equal ‘alphas’ and knows his place without battle.

The fish…well, in the short year we’ve been married, they have all crossed over the Ty-D-Bowl bridge. So there’s a nice terrarium where the fish tank used to be.

So what’s left? The short answer would be the cats. But when it comes to the felines in our lives, there is no short answer. I’ve had both cats for 10 years. They are a ‘bonded pair’ and have never known life without each other. I brought them with me in an excruciating cross-country trip when I returned to the Pacific Northwest three years ago. Having lived previously in the Deep South, it certainly sounds like the younger of the two meows with a twang, sounding more like ‘may-yow’.

The older one is just a cranky fart. But for the fact that I’ve had her for ten years and can’t remember what it’s like to not have her (though I wouldn’t mind trying it for a while), I wouldn’t tolerate her at all. To be blunt, she’s a b*tch. She complains about everything, just a sampling include:

• Empty food bowl
• Full food bowl
• Water in bowl at wrong temperature (although she won’t say what the “right” temperature is)
• Poop in the litter box that she didn’t make
• Poop in the litter box that she DID make
• Being alone in a room
• Not being alone in a room

You get the idea. In the past few years her house-broken status has become subjective at best. Most recently, she decided to christen the bathmat. This event, given her daily regurgitation of breakfast, leaves me wondering where the poop even comes from. Nothing of substance is in her long enough to go through.

The upside is, that there’s nothing medically wrong with her. She’s as healthy as a ten year old cat can be. The down side is, there’s nothing medically wrong with her and she’s as healthy as a ten year old cat can be. Being that the average life expectancy of a standard indoor cat is between 9-15 years, I took some comfort in the fact that she’s definitely in her ‘golden years’ and this can’t go on forever. One day (maybe soon) I will be able to go on vacation and not have to ask someone to check on and feed her. One day (maybe soon) I’ll be able to wear black clothing without having to use a lint roller repeatedly. One day (probably not soon) I might even miss her.

And then someone had to go look it up in Guiness: The oldest cat on record lived for over 34 years.

So at this rate, she could outlive me.

If that be the case, it’ll be good to see the fish again.