She Takes Many Forms

The seventh instance of Divafest, the locally produced women's theater festival, comes at you from all over the place. Seattle's Nebunele Theatre company brings Medea Knows Best by Claytie Mason and Alissa Mortenson, an ancient Greek story updated with doo-wop and dollhouses. The Diva Cabaret component features singers Mia Paschal, Amy Tobin, and longtime S.F. entertainer/impresario Sean Owens in drag. A staged reading of War Harvest, Pireeni Sundaralingam's play-in-progress, follows a family whose escape from the brutality of Sri Lankan conflict zones means they are safer but still desperately confused.

Where could the curators go from there? "More or Less Love Poems," a reading by Diane DiPrima! Where will they go next? Any direction that takes them – and audiences – towards talented women making new art. We predict stripper-welders next year. No, wait, that's already been done. Trapeze painters? An Esther Williams tribute? Live accompaniment to 1970s home-birth videos? Who knows, but for this year, we’ve also got visual artist Donna Asturias, who contributes a fashion exhibition called "Trashy Chic" using discarded clothing; the opening reception is at 6 p.m. on April 12.
Fridays, Saturdays. Starts: April 11. Continues through April 26, 2008