Walidah Imarisha talks sci-fi, social change
Submitted photo
“The Orphans” opens Friday, May 22 at the Barn Community Playhouse in Tillamook.
TAPA opens ‘The Orphans’
TILLAMOOK— The Tillamook
Association for the Performing
Arts presents an opening night
gala celebration Friday, May
22 at the Barn Community
Playhouse for “The Orphans,”
a touching and funny play
written by James Prideaux and
directed by Chris Chiola.
Every opening night tick-
et includes a complimentary
beverage of choice and hors
d’oeuvres. Tickets are $15
adults, $10 senior citizens and
students, or $40 for a family of
four. Call Diamond Art Jew-
elers at 503-842-7940 to pur-
chase tickets. The show starts
at 7 p.m., and doors open at
6:30 p.m.
“The Orphans” features
ERWKYHWHUDQDQG¿UVWWLPHDF-
tors, starring Karen Martin as
Lily Spangler, Karen Downs
as Catherine Spangler, Jack-
son Morris as the Bellboy,
Martin Cherry as Mr. Ervin,
Val Braun as Florette and Di-
ane Cross as Maxine.
After tragedy strikes the
family of two young girls,
they seclude themselves in
a hotel room. Lily and Cath-
erine Spangler have lived
in near isolation in the once
grand Chalfont Hotel for the
past 25 years where the hotel
and its guests have steadily
declined in stature over time.
Mr. Ervin, who has handled
the sisters’ affairs for years,
comes to visit and warns of
a claim to their family for-
tunes. Distrustful and afraid
of the outside world, Lily
must cope with 25 years
of history, while Catherine
yearns to break free and ex-
plore life.
This production reunites
Karen Martin and Karen
Downs, who lit up TAPA’s
stage in 2012’s “A Fine Mon-
ster You Are.” Their onstage
chemistry is warm and inspir-
ing as the Spangler sisters.
“This play is a colorful sto-
ry of the love of two sisters
who have faced tragedy and
who now must stare down the
reality of the world. I hope
audiences will appreciate the
humor and antics of these la-
dies,” says director Chris Chi-
ola.
7KLV ZLOO EH &KLROD¶V ¿IWK
time directing for TAPA,
having previously directed
comedies like “Never Kiss a
Naughty Nanny,” “Inspecting
Carol,” the compilation play
“You Know I Can’t Hear You
When the Water’s Running”
and “Sex Please, We’re Sixty.”
Additional show dates for
“The Orphans” are: May 23,
29, 30, 31, June 5, 6 and 7. Fri-
day and Saturday shows start
at 7 p.m., and Sunday mati-
nees start at 2 p.m. Doors open
30 minutes prior to curtain.
The Barn Community Play-
house is located at 1204 Ivy
Ave. For more information,
email info@tillamooktheater.
com or visit www.tillamook-
theater.com
7$3$ LV D QRQSUR¿W FRP-
munity theater dedicated to
providing high quality per-
forming arts experiences
through entertainment, edu-
cation and community partic-
ipation.
ASTORIA — Clatsop Com-
munity College and the Fort
George Brewery announce
the May program of the
2014-15 Ales & Ideas se-
ries, taking place at 7 p.m.
Thursday, May 28 in the Fort
George Lovell Showroom.
Doors open at 6 p.m. Seating
is limited. The Fort George
Lovell Showroom is located
at 426 14th St.
For this month’s presen-
tation, join Walidah Imarisha
of Portland, author of a new-
ly published book, “Octa-
via’s Brood: Science Fiction
Stories from Social Justice
Movements.”
Envisioning a world
without war, prisons and in-
justice is engaging in specu-
lative fiction. Radicals and
activists devote their lives to
envisioning such worlds, and
then go about trying to create
them. What better vehicle for
them to explore their work
and its possibilities than
through writing original sci-
Ales & Ideas
7 p.m. Thursday, May 28
Fort George Lovell Showroom
426 14th St., Astoria
All ages
Free
ence-fiction stories?
Imarisha and her co-edi-
tor, Adrienne Maree Brown,
brought together 20 radical
writers to do just that. The
result is “Octavia’s Brood:
Science Fiction Stories from
Social Justice Movements,”
an enlightening collection
that uncovers truths buried
in the fantastic and injects a
healthy dose of imagination
and innovation into human’s
search for truth.
,W LV WKH ¿UVW ERRN WR H[-
plore the connections be-
Let’s Ea t
WZHHQ UDGLFDO VFLHQFH ¿FWLRQ
and movements for social
change, using visionary
prose to weave strands of re-
al-life experience — inequal-
ity and exploitation, struggle
and solidarity — to generate
innovative ways of under-
standing the world, paint
visions of new worlds that
could be and teach humans
new ways of interacting with
one another. This is visionary
¿FWLRQWRHQJDJHRQH¶VLPDJ-
ination and guidance in the
struggle.
Imarisha is a writer, ed-
ucator, public scholar and
poet. She teaches in Portland
State University’s black stud-
ies department. She toured
2UHJRQIRUWKHSDVW¿YH\HDUV
facilitating programs on Or-
egon black history, alterna-
tives to incarceration and the
history of hip-hop through
the Oregon Humanities’ Con-
versation Project. She is the
editor of two anthologies, the
upcoming “Octavia’s Brood”
Submitted photo
Walidah Imarisha will speak about science
fiction and social justice movements at the
next Ales & Ideas on May 28
(AK Press, spring 2015) and
“Another World is Possible”
(Subway Press, 2002). She is
the author of the poetry col-
lection “Scars/Stars” (Drap-
etomedia, 2013) and the up-
FRPLQJ QRQ¿FWLRQ ERRN RQ
prisons “Angels with Dirty
Faces” (AK Press, winter
2015).
N O RTH CO AS T & PEN IN S U L A D IN IN G
ASTORIA
Open 7am
Daily!
LON G BEAC H PEN IN SU LA
SMOKED RIBS SPECIAL
MEMORIAL DAY,
MONDAY, MAY 25TH
WALLA WALLA WINEMAKER
CARNIVORE DINNER FRI, JUNE 6TH
Ryan Rabner of Tertulia Cellars will pair
award-wining wines with Chef Michael’s food!
BURGER NITES THRU
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10TH
38th & L, on the Seaview Beach approach
360-642-7880
S E R V I N G B R E A K FA S T,
LUNCH & SUPPER
European Style Coffeehouse by day,
intimate bistro offering neo-regional
cuisine by night.
Regional selection of beers, wines and
vintage cocktails available.
depotrestaurantdining.com
243 11th Street, Astoria, OR 97103
503-325-1787
www.AstoriaCoffeeHouse.com
We cater your event!
Weekly Specials: 5-8 PM
Sushi & Martinis Mondays
Taco & Margarita
Thursdays (3 Buck Tacos)
Follow & “Like” us on Facebook
W e D eliver
P la za Ja lisco
5 03 -3 3 8-4 4 4 0
O pen 7 D a ys W eekly
Poker M a chin es!
May 21, 2015 | coastweekend.com | 15