As the city transforms around us, one of the most noticeable impacts is the visibility of affluence. I remember a time when Seattle’s rich flaunted their wealth with an understated Volvo station wagon or a modest mid-century home tucked into the trees. Wealthy neighborhoods were discreet: Broadmoor lay behind walls (and even barbed wire), The…

OPERA THE PEARL FISHERSMore than 10 years before penning his masterpiece Carmen, 19th-century French composer Georges Bizet wrote this Sri Lankan love story that puts the unsavory “bros before hos” maxim to the test. Two pearl fishers vow that their friendship is more important than winning the beautiful priestess they both adore…until it isn’t. 10/17–10/31. Times…

YOU THINK YOUR LIFE IS COMPLICATED? If you find that your every hangnail has become cause for a meltdown, may we gently suggest attending one of these productions—talk about drama!—all of which offer a sense of perspective. THE CHILDREN’S HOUR Originally banned in Boston, Chicago and London, this 1934 play by Lillian Hellman concerns two…

Whim W’HimFor its new production, Choreographic Shindig, the company founded by former Pacific Northwest Ballet dancer Olivier Wevers put out an international call for choreographers—and received 95 applicants. The company members chose three (from Texas, San Francisco and Switzerland) et voilà, the contemporary ballet party begins. 9/11–9/19. Erickson Theater Off Broadway, 1524 Harvard Ave.; 206.329.1050;…

This season’s wealth of literary proceedingsMakes clear that Seattle is a hot spot for readings.We’ll start things off with the surfeit of memoiristspainting impressions with a skill that’s Renoir-ish. Writing as if to his own teenage son,Ta-Nehisi Coates sings the black man unsung.Steinem reveals her early days as Gloria,transporting readers to feminist euphoria.Alison Bechdel pens…

Pae WhiteLos Angeles–based installation artist Pae White has a thing for threads, which she stretches in sharp lines across huge gallery spaces, creating new planes, perspectives and frames. 10/24–1/24/16. Times and prices vary. Henry Art Gallery, 15th Avenue NE and 41st Street; 206.543.2280; henryart.org. Intimate ImpressionismIn the new show Intimate Impressionism from the National Gallery…

Growing up on the Port Gamble S’Klallam Reservation, Jeffrey Veregge spent a lot of time on his own, drawing and reading pulp novels and comics. The stories that spoke to him were wildly uncool to his peers. “Being a geek in the ’80s was not fun,” Veregge says. One can imagine the reception when, for…