MEDICINE BALL: PLAYWRIGHTS V. POETS 2017 to Hit the Erickson Theater This June

Announcing Medicine Ball: Playwrights v. Poets 2017! Come join us for the literary battle of the millennium June 22-24th at the Erickson Theater, 1524 Harvard Avenue in Seattle. Performances for this unique, annual, barnbuster of a show are three nights only at 8 pm.

Seven playwrights and seven poets write to prompts provided by seven different visual artists. These writings are then produced and staged by directors and actors drawn from Seattle's theater community. At the end of the run, the audience votes on who did it better-- the playwrights or the poets! The winning team of writers each gets a bottle of Two Buck Chuck. The losing team a can of warm Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer.

The theme this year - Unity.

Asked about the theme, head producer and co-curator Daniel Tarker said: "Given how divided we are right now as a country - politically, religiously, ideologically, and socially, we thought it might be a good time to explore the theme of unity. How can we build bridges and pull people together instead of building walls. And Medicine Ball Playwrights v. Poets seems like a perfect vehicle to do this since it is a boundary busting and silo breaking event bringing a community of artists together including poets, playwrights, visual artists, actors, and musicians to collaborate and create new art under one umbrella."

"Medicine Ball provides a creative space for artists of all kind," says writer, actor and frequent collaborator Fox Rain Matthews. "It is a unique blend of interpretations on life, love and unity. This is crucial in today's world and a wonderful opportunity to invoke dialogue in our community...maybe there will be a few laughs along the way."

Now in its sixth year, Medicine Ball was started by Dan Tarker and Graham Isaac as a concert style reading designed to showcase different writing communities here in Seattle. Now in its fourth edition fully staged, Medicine Ball brings together top notch poets, playwrights, visual artists, directors musicians, and actors to produce and collaborate on all new works.

Thanks to a generous grant from the Seattle Office of Arts and Culture through their SmART Ventures program, students with a school ID card will be admitted to the event free of charge. In an effort to expose our region's youth to the vibrant arts community of King Country, the producers of Medicine Ball: Playwrights v. Poets are proud to create more access for local youth to engage with our thriving arts community.

Tickets are $20 general, $10 military, senior, or educator. For more information, go to seattletheatreworks.org.

Medicine Ball: Playwrights v. Poets 2017 Community of Artists:

Curators: Graham Isaac (Poetry), Daniel Tarker (Playwriting), Tristan McAvoy (Music), and Kate Vrijmoet (Visual Art)

Poets: Daemond Arrindell, Jamaica Baldwin, ELisa Chavez, Paul Mullin, Amber Nelson, Shin Yu Pai, and Steve Potter

Playwrights: José Amador, Kelleen Conway Blanchard, Greg Brisendine, Gretchen Douma, Heidi Heimarck, Jim Jewell, and Dennis Moore

Visual Artists: Kree Arvanitas, Sophia Babaeva, Lisa Myers Bulmash, Curt Clugston, Michele de la Vega, Malayka Gormally, and Amy Mintonye

Actors: Sarah Bixler, Deniece Bleha, Terry Boyd, Alysha Curry, Solomon Davis, Tom Fraser, Stephanie Graham, Britt Hobson, Fox Rain Matthews, Miiko Valkonen, Christine Shaw White, Lyam White

Musicians: Quentin Ergane, Paul Grende, Tristan McAvoy, Rich Pagillo, Nick Whichman

Directors: Sarah Rodriguez Giese, Ellen Graham, and Daniel Tarker

Designers/Tech Crew: Justin Babbitt, Theodore Michael Dolas, Amy LaZerte, and Jennifer West