Gemma Wilson

1 week ago | courant.com | Gemma Wilson

By Gemma Wilson, The Seattle TimesSEATTLE — When looking back at the impact of Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws,” which premiered in theaters on June 20, 1975, it’s easy to focus on the financial. Sure, “Jaws” made buckets of money, is widely considered the very first summer blockbuster movie, changed the course of filmmaking forever and introduced the most stressful two-note melody in musical history thanks to John Williams’ Oscar-winning score. Very impressive.

2 weeks ago | seattletimes.com | Gemma Wilson

When looking back at the impact of Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws,” which premiered in theaters on June 20, 1975, it’s easy to focus on the financial. Sure, “Jaws” made buckets of money, is widely considered the very first summer blockbuster movie, changed the course of filmmaking forever and introduced the most stressful two-note melody in musical history thanks to John Williams’ Oscar-winning score. Very impressive. Personally, I celebrate “Jaws’” impact through its successors.

2 weeks ago | seattletimes.com | Gemma Wilson

Seattle Rep is currently filled with astonishing feats, pushing the limits of the brain and body in ways that defy reality for us mere mortals in the audience. On one stage: the high-energy acrobatic drama “Duel Reality” from Les 7 Doigts de la main (The 7 Fingers), a Montreal-based collective of contemporary circus artists. On another: “The Unfair Advantage,” Australian magician and sleight-of-hand artist Harry Milas’ sui generis one-person show performed for an audience of 35 people, tops.

2 weeks ago | seattletimes.com | Gemma Wilson

Summer is traditionally a slower time for regional theater as companies take a breather between seasons, but plenty of excellent plays and musicals are still on offer (including outdoor theater), as well as a bouquet of festivals celebrating new works. In 1960, three short years after Elvis Presley was drafted in the U.S. Army, “Bye Bye Birdie” debuted on Broadway.

3 weeks ago | seattletimes.com | Gemma Wilson

Have you ever thought about how, once upon a time, someone somewhere wrote down the very first, single, solitary, newborn-baby note of what would become “Carousel” or “Cabaret”? How about “The Wiz,” “The Sound of Music” or “The Phantom of the Opera”? Whatever your favorite musical is, that show had its own beginning moment of creative singularity. But what happens after that?