Bumbershoot

42 Years of Arts and Music in Seattle Center | Sep 1-3, 2012

Since 1971, Bumbershoot has drawn artists representing the best in music, film, comedy, spoken word, dance, theatre, performance, and visual arts to the Seattle Center over Labor Day weekend. North America’s largest urban arts festival with over 100,000 visitors each year, Bumbershoot takes place in the heart of the city at the 74-acre Seattle Center.

Spend the weekend reveling in the world of Bumbershoot, experiencing everything from regional favorites to international superstars across all arts disciplines.  Bumbershoot also features a variety of food, merchandise, and urban craft vendors in a variety of large and small, indoor and unique outdoor venues—there’s plenty to eat, see, and do all weekend long.

One ticket gets you onto the Festival grounds each day and from there, the world of Bumbershoot is yours to explore.

Music

So so so many great bands including Jane’s Addiction, Tony Bennett, Skrillex, Gotye, Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, M. Ward, The Helio Sequence, THEE Satisfaction, Hey Marseilles, Sera Coahoone, Gold Leaves, Deep Sea Diver, The Pharmacy and many more.  If there is a band you can’t miss, early arrival is recommended to secure a seat in the audience. All indoor venues have a limited capacity and tickets do not guarantee entry into every indoor performance.

Performing Arts

Bumbershoot’s 2012 Performing Arts and Dance lineup features the best in local and national performance, burlesque, acrobatics and dance spanning the cultural spectrum.

Words & Ideas

Words & Ideas is Bumbershoot’s popular literary arts and lectures program that features conversations, performances, panel discussions, and readings exploring the points where pop culture, new media, literature, theories, and trends intersect and explode into new cultural phenomena.

Theatre

Bumbershoot’s Regional Theatre Program is curated by Theatre Puget Sound, a consortium of theatres and individual artist in the Puget Sound region dedicated to nurturing a healthy and vibrant theatre and arts community. Since 2003, TPS has worked with Bumbershoot to curate exceptional programs highlighting local theatre performers and productions.

1 Reel Film Festival

The 1 Reel Film Festival is Bumbershoot’s celebration of cinematic brevity—continuously screening over 100 of the world’s best short films.

Comedy

Carefully chosen by Bumbershoot’s long-standing comedy curator Lisa Leingang, the National Comedy lineup features household names and rising comedic stars in stand-up, podcasting, TV, and film, including Janene Garofalo, Fred Armisen, Brian Posehn and more.

Visual Arts & Spectacles

Commemorating “The Past, The Present and The Future,” this year’s Bumbershoot Visual Arts and Spectacles showcase talented artists with an eye for imagining the future. Programming pays homage to the Festival’s home, Seattle Center, and its celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1962 World’s Fair.

Visual Arts & Spectacles at Bumbershoot presents cutting edge contemporary artwork, performance and installations that blur the lines between art and theatre. The 2012 programming showcases a wide spectrum of styles, and artistic mediums from glass art, to painting, to neon.

Youngershoot

As a festival within a festival, Youngershoot caters to the youthful festival-goers at Bumbershoot. With a variety of kid-friendly programming, from the Films4Families series to ACT’s Youth Ensemble, the entire family can explore and enjoy Youngershoot.

After Dark

Time for a late night dance party!  Free to Bumbershoot ticket holders 21 and older, Bumbershoot After Dark offers two nights packed with music from renowned electronic DJs. The party will be taking place Saturday, September 1 and Sunday, September 2 from 9:30pm to 2am in the Exhibition Hall, located on festival grounds.

Electronic music promoters Decibel will be co-presenting Saturday night’s fun, and Sunday night Trinity Nightclub will be bringing you all the electronic dance music you can handle. Each  night will bring 3-4 critically acclaimed DJs and artists, including Tiger and Woods, The Miracles Club, Scotty Boy, DJ Scene, Pezzner and DJ Mia.

To map this location, you can use 305 Harrison Street (map) as the street address.

See the Bumbershoot website for more information.