Can't Miss It: Thursday
WONDERLAND: Christmas begins on Christmas Eve--certainly if you stay up late enough. Of course it stands to reason that the second best day of the year comes a day before the first, and barring any bikes that need building or a debilitating case of last-minute-gift-panic-disorder, the night is prime for taking in your favorite sort of holiday cheer. Fortunately, Seattle has a few offerings for the night before Christmas, such as Winterfest at Seattle Center. Fisher Pavilion will be filled with double lutzes, a winter train and snow village, and a classic carousel. Top that, North Pole.
All day // Fisher Pavilion // $1-$7
SILENT NIGHT: Ninety-five years ago today, British and German soldiers fighting in World War One fought against World War One and started singing Christmas Carols to each other from the trenches. Soon, instead of exchanging whizzing bullets and grenades, they were exchanging cigarettes and other gifts in the normally hellish space between them. The men upstairs weren’t too happy about the lull in combat, but the Man upstairs probably didn’t mind. The following year saw another Christmas Eve truce between the German and French. Christmas Truce Seattle celebrates the anniversary of the first truce with performances by The Seattle Labor Chorus, singers Dan Roberts, Raging Grannies, the Southwest Seattle Readers Theatre. The interfaith, nonsectarian event features Rabbi David Septimus, Imam Hisham Farajallah, Pastor Jim Major, and President of the Seattle Chapter of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, Chris King.
7:00 p.m. // Highland Park Community of Christ 8611 11th Ave SW // Free
IT'S SHOWGIRLS-BAD: In 1995, a little film about a drifter with dreams of making it big hit theaters around the nation. The movie didn’t do well at the box office, though. Possibly because it was rated NC-17 and most of the people interested in watching a movie centered on strippers and graphic lap dance scenes were under the age of 17 and snuck in without paying. Possibly because it was simply awful. Saved By The Bell’s Jessie Spano finally took it all off, and then the thrill was gone. But thanks to its cult status as one of the worst films ever made and The Stranger’s David Schmader’s dedication to identifying what exactly makes the film so wonderfully terrible, Showgirls' legacy is alive and well. Schmader goes another round with the film, describing in detail while it plays on screen each reason it’s one of the worst films of all time and why that means it’s worth every minute.
7:30 p.m. // Triple Door // $15
