Posted by MeaganKate and Nathalie Weinstein
Biosphere Built for Two
Our first thought upon awakening Sunday morning was, “You have got to be kidding me.” Rain poured down the windows and the wind whipped the trees around. It was grey, people. Very grey. But being the hardcore journalists that we are, we stuffed ourselves with a BLT and chicken fingers from CJ’s Eatery and headed out to brave the elements and bring the news.
Our first stop was Cold War Kids, who rocked the Samsung arena, despite it being a drizzly, grey mess outside. Luckily, we had a sweet lime green XBOX poncho to wear while we took in the bluesy, piano rock and Nathan Willet’s growling vocals.
After that, we decided we had had enough of the elements, and hurried inside to check out some of Bumbershoot’s unique art exhibits. One of the most engaging exhibits had to be Kerfuffle: The Uneasy Relationship Between Humanity and the Environment.
Nathalie in her hut of solitude
Using living biospheres, digital imagery, and a giant stump made entirely of cardboard, the exhibit’s curators painted a portrait of how humans have disconnected from their environment and the mess they have made as a result
Trash collected over a year by Ari Derfel. Sculpture by Kuros Zahedi.
Biosphere Built for Two allowed visitors to stick their noggins into a real terrarium filled with earth, moss and moisture. We both stuck our heads in there and breathed in the woody scents. It made us immediately homesick for Portland’s urban forests. Another installation showed one year of garbage collected by Ari Derfel, co-founder and CEO of Back to Earth, Inc., re-imagined into a sculpture a mural by artist Kuros Zahedi. For being based on a serious topic, this exhibit was a ton of fun both to look at and experience.
Our next stop was Blood Squad, a Seattle improv group that performs full-length horror movies based on title suggestions from the audience. Performers Brandon Felker, Elicia Wickstead, Michael White and Molly Arkin chose the title, “Daddy’s Date.” Creepy, right?
Blurry, ninja photo of Reggie Watts. The stage manager was behind Nathalie. Whoops.
We realized then that something awful would have to happen. Meagan and Nathalie would have to separate as two amazing comedy shows were to overlap on opposite sides of the compound. We held each other closely, and wept. It had to be done.
After seeing Reggie Watts at Live Wire! recently, Nathalie needed another fix. Luckily he was performing with fellow comedians Matt Braunger (MADtv) and Todd Barry (Flight of the Concords, The Wrestler).
Reggie came out in full-on mumble-rapper mode, saying he was “Repping the dirty Northwest.” He then morphed into an English popstar and played a little ditty on the piano about women who wear men’s style briefs. He also gave a shout out to Northwest girls, singing, “You know girls from the Northwest are very pretty/ because they know how to live in such moist conditions.” It was very romantic, as you might imagine. As his set ended, he ran backstage to fetch Matt Braunger saying, “Sorry, I can only remember someones name if I can see their molecular composition.” Far out. Braunger lamented the fact that Taco Bell is only palatable when you are incredibly messed up, a fact we can all attest too. Barry, a soft-spoken man, called out a guy in the audience for snapping his gum too loudly.
Meagan left Nathalie with the delectable Reggie Watts and plopped herself in the front row at The Benson Interruption – a show by her personal hero Doug Benson (VH1, Super High Me). The Benson Interruption (regularly performed in Los Angeles) involves Doug bringing his best comedian friends on stage to perform their acts — and he interrupts whenever he feels the need. Doug brought us four ultra super special comedians on Saturday; including Sarah Silverman (again, zomg!) and Patton Oswalt. The crowd when nuts when Patton came out – as his Friday night show was canceled and his only Bumbershoot appearances were with Doug and his individual show later that evening. The hour’s topics included Dane Cook (Benson’s Cook impression is on point), grunge music, pot (because … well … it was Doug Benson’s show), genitalia and Twitter.
The remainder of the evening was spent drinking a bathtub of lemonade and perusing the festival’s wears. Meagan ate a ShiskaBerry, a stick of juicy strawberries dipped in milk and white chocolate. Nathalie had Indian food, including a piece of naan the size of her head fired in a real tandoori oven. There were a ton of vendors around the Seattle Center, ninety percent of which sold hippie dresses, incense, Marley tapestries and “tobacco bubblers.”
Tomorrow, look out for third day coverage, a wrap-up of the entire Bumbershoot experience, and more photos and videos from the weekend. Now if you’ll excuse us, the train’s dining cart is calling our name.
XOXO
Nathalie & Meagan
