Art Beat: ‘We Will Rock You’ and so will this arts roundup

New public art takes root near Edmonds’ ferries

Richard F. Anway Park, 131 Sunset Ave.

On a sunny Saturday afternoon, My Neighborhood News Group attended the dedication for Emergence: Edmonds Gateway Canopy that took place at Richard F. Anway Park near the Washington State Ferries terminal. The public sculpture marks the western entrance to the Edmonds’ Creative District.

Emergence was designed by California artist Sean Orlando and fabricated by Engineered Artworks. Inspired by a tree canopy form, the sculpture rises 14 feet and spans 22 feet wide with circular seating at its base.

Attending were members of the Edmonds Creative District, Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation, Edmonds Arts Commission, Councilmember Chris Eck and Mayor Mike Rosen.

“Art for us means inclusion and connection and is so important to the community that we love here,” said Kristin Paust, board president of the Edmonds Arts Festival Foundation. “Projects of this scale aren’t possible without community organizations coming together.”

Tanya Sharp, former Arts Commissioner and Creative District committee member, said she came up with the idea while waiting in the ferry line. She noticed many people waiting in their cars for the ferry, and she thought they could be enjoying the park instead (right next to the ferry line). Sharp said that observation led to the idea for this project.

Frances Chapin, former City of Edmonds Arts & Culture manager, said the project was her last before retiring last year. She said that the work was under contract at the time but had not yet been fabricated or installed. Chapin said she was excited to see it completed and in place.

“Sean [Orlando] saw this as an opportunity to highlight the emergence of creativity and art, not all at once, but over many decades,” Chapin added. 

Chapin reflected on her experiences of sitting on Emergence’s bench and seeing two crows perched on top and, on an evening, a sliver of moon framed through its canopy. 

Chapin said the sculpture is also designed for nighttime viewing with lighting that changes subtly rather than remaining a single color.

Rosen told My Neighborhood News Group that he has always loved the arts. He said art helps people understand what is happening in the world, helps us process it and can also provide an escape from it.

A few people stepped up toward the end of the event to take in the new public artwork. Sunlight filtered through its abstracted canopy, casting shadows that formed a patterned canvas across the green grass. In a way, Emergence was already taking root and doing what it was meant to do.

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Spotlight: ‘WE WILL ROCK YOU Young@Part®’

Friday through Sunday, May 1-3

Edmonds Heights K-12, 23200 100th Ave. W. 

Run time: one hour plus intermission

Tickets

Edmonds Heights Performing Arts (EHPA) presents We Will Rock You Young@Part®, directed by Dorothy Rosenthal Pierce and performed by Developing Artists  grades 7-12.

We Will Rock You is a jukebox futuristic musical written by Ben Elton, in collaboration with Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor, set to the music of Queen. It tells the story of two young rebels fighting to restore individuality and live music in a dystopian, corporate future where rock music is banned.

Set on a future version of Earth once known as “the iPlanet,” where a powerful corporation controls all aspects of life and musical instruments are banned, the story centers on a group of rebel Bohemians determined to save rock ‘n’ roll. 

The show features chart-topping songs, such as “Another One Bites the Dust,” “Radio Ga Ga,” “Killer Queen” and “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

We Will Rock You Young@Part® is the authorized 60-minute adaptation of the West End musical, designed for young performers.

The EHPA program at Edmonds Heights K-12 serves a significant portion of the school community, offering theatre classes across all grade levels and producing multiple live performances each year. Students participate both on stage and behind the scenes, gaining experience in acting, technical theatre and production leadership.

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Spotlight: ‘Interlude’ featuring Andy Eccleshall

Exhibit: April 30 to June 2, 2026

Cole Gallery, 107 5th Ave. S., Edmonds

Artist’s reception: Saturday, May 2, 5-7 p.m.

Andy Eccleshall presents a collection of oil paintings. Known for his sensitivity to atmosphere and open land, Eccleshall captures the quiet beauty of rural life. Each painting feels both reflective and transient, holding a sense of quiet as light shifts, weather turns and the land breathes.

“In a world that seems increasingly chaotic, it is important to occasionally stop, take a breath and allow yourself a moment of peace,” said Eccleshall. “I began working on this new series of paintings in December of last year, and for me, the process felt like a brief escape and a way to find quiet amid the noise. I hope that my viewers are able to find a moment of calm in these pieces.”

Since moving to Edmonds 25 years ago, Eccleshall is known for his many murals and generous spirit, often donating paintings to local nonprofits. Three years ago, after a long career as both a muralist and fine art painter, he stepped away from mural work to focus fully on studio painting.

Eccleshall paints five days a week at Graphite Studio, where visitors can view works in progress, including his large-scale pieces spanning 7 to 9 feet.

Wine and light refreshments will be served.

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Spotlight: Cascadia Art Museum Community Art Day

Sunday, May 3, 11 a.m. to  5 p.m.

Cascadia Art Museum, 190 Sunset Ave., Edmonds

All ages

FREE 

Cascadia Art Museum will host Community Art Day, kicking off its month-long Mental Health Awareness Month programming with a day centered on creativity, curiosity and connection.

Visitors are invited to drop in throughout the day to explore the galleries and participate in a rotating schedule of activities, including hands-on artmaking, storytime, live performances and gallery experiences.

Highlights include:

• Free museum admission all day
• All day drop-in, hands-on art-making activities for all ages, including a community mural project with teaching artist Sarah Norsworthy 
• Storytime with Sno-Isle Library, noon to 1:45 p.m.
• Sketching in the galleries with Teaching Artist Kathleen Moore, 1-2 p.m.
• Ambassador-led museum tour offering insights into the museum’s current exhibitions, 2-3 p.m.
• Live Performance by Carroll-Henderson School of Irish Dance, 3-4 p.m.

In recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, Cascadia’s May programming will focus on the connection between art and well-being. 

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Upcoming Art Happenings

Art Sale @ Graphite Arts Center 

Friday through Saturday, May 1-2, 10 a.m. to  5 p.m.

Graphite Arts Center, 202 Main St.

The annual Spring Art Sale will feature fine art and handcrafted items in various styles and media, offering a unique opportunity to connect with the Graphite community of artists.

Local musicians will perform during the event, adding to the festive energy. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Art Start Northwest, supporting arts programs and teachers in local schools.

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Cascade Symphony Orchestra season finale: From Mozart to Bernstein

Monday, May 4, 7:30 p.m.

Edmonds Center for the Arts, 410 4th Ave. N.

Tickets 

The CSO’s final concert of the 2025-26 season concludes with three centuries of music, including overtures by Antonin Dvorak’s Vanda, Leonard Bernstein West Side Story and Ottorino Respighi’s Roman Festivals.

Performers include:

• Oboist Edward Benyas, Clarinetist Denise Lum, Hornist Kyli White and Bassoonist Steven Morgan, who have collectively performed with the Chicago, Seattle, Milwaukee and Oregon Symphonies
• The Seattle, Santa Fe and Chicago Lyric Operas
• The Pacific Northwest and Joffrey Ballets

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Kimberly Chan brings botanical compositions to Edmonds Spring Fest

Saturday, May 9, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.


Frances Anderson Center, 700 Main St., Edmonds

Urban Craft Uprising came to Edmonds in 2018 to host their first Edmonds Spring Fest, and from there it has quickly grown.

Kimberly Chan, a Bellevue-based artist, will be participating in the festival as one of two artists supported by a Business Impact NW scholarship program. 

This will be Chan’s first time exhibiting at Edmonds Spring Fest and her first time showing work in Edmonds. 

Chan is a Chinese American artist whose work focuses on bold, contemporary floral compositions, combining digital painting with hand-applied gold leaf. Her work explores themes of memory, identity and belonging through botanical forms.

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Ekphrastic Writing Workshop with Tara Campbell

Saturday, May 9, 1-2 p.m.

Graphite Arts Center, 202 Main St., Edmonds

Free, no registration required

Author Tara Campbell invites people to discover new ways to see art with creative writing through guided observations and writing prompts. 

Seattle-based Campbell is a writer, teacher, fiction editor at Barrelhouse and graduate of American University’s MFA. Her 2024 novel City of Dancing Gargoyles was a finalist for the 2025 Philip K. Dick Award. She’s the author of two novels, two hybrid collections of poetry and prose, and two short story collections.

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Olympic Ballet Theatre presents ‘Giselle’ 

Saturday, May 9 at 7 p.m.; Sunday, May 10 at 5 p.m.

Edmonds Center for the Arts, 410 4th Ave. N.

Run time: About 1.5 hours, plus a 15-minute intermission

Tickets

Olympic Ballet Theatre (OBT) presents Giselle for the first time since 2017, re-staged by Artistic Directors Oleg Gorboulev and Mara Vinson after Marius Petipa’s renowned choreography. 

Set to the score of Adolphe Adam, Giselle tells the haunting story of a young peasant girl deceived by her lover. After her untimely death, she is summoned by the vengeful Wilis, yet her enduring love and forgiveness save the man who betrayed her, leaving a timeless tale of passion, heartbreak and redemption.

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Gallery North Alumni Reunion

Exhibition: Through May

Gallery North, 401 Main St, Edmonds 

Opening reception: Sunday, May 3, 1-4 p.m.


Edmonds Art Walk: May 21, 5-8 p.m.

Gallery North presents the Gallery North Alumni Reunion, celebrating 65 years of artistic excellence with an invitational exhibition featuring the work of Gallery North alumni.

The show honors the legacy of artists who were once members of the cooperative, bringing together decades of creative expression in one exhibition.

At the opening reception, guests are invited to meet the artists, engage with their work and connect with fellow art enthusiasts.

Gallery North has been in operation since 1961 and continues its mission to promote established and emerging local artists in downtown Edmonds.

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Seeking poetry by Washington state youth 

Submissions: Through Dec. 31, 2026

Publication: Between August 2026 and April 2027

Application 

In collaboration with the Washington State Poet Laureate Derek Sheffield, Washington State Arts Commission (ArtsWA), Humanities Washington and Olympia Poetry Network, Terrain.org seeks poems that engage the natural world by residents or former Washington state residents, ages 21 and younger. 

Here in the age of the Anthropocene, we must give our attention to the non-human world, and so we will publish ecopoetry with a strong sense of place by Washington youth. 

Contributors will receive an honorarium of $100 following publication.

*If you would like your event included in future Art Beat listings, email Nahline Gouin at [email protected].

Based in Edmonds, Nahline Gouin is a freelance writer, ceramicist and arts advocate with experience in art museums and performing arts centers. She continues to create with clay, homeschool her son and write as a creative practice.