(bright music) - Welcome to "Crosscut Now."

I'm Paris Jackson.

In today's episode, the holiday cheer can cause jeers for some, so we have just what the doctor ordered, whether you want a calming arts experience or kinetic energy.

Stay tuned to learn what venues to check out in your neighborhood.

I partnered with a Crosscut editor-at-large branch in Davis to find out what's happening for those who want to be about town sans the jingle bells.

Welcome, Brangien, thank you for joining us.

- Thank you for having me.

- With the holiday season here, there is no shortage of activities to get into, but for some, it's just a bit much.

But there's also a lively holiday alternative scene that people can also enjoy.

So tell us about a big exhibit that's taking place in downtown Seattle at SAM.

- Yes, so this is called "Calder: In Motion," and I picked it both because it's a great show and also because I think it's a great example of finding balance.

- Hmm, I love that.

- [Brangien] So Alexander Calder was an American sculptor who died in the 70s, and he is known for revolutionizing sculpture because of his mobiles that he invented, so these are the big hanging sculptures.

Actually, there were no mobiles before he came up with this idea- - [Paris] Interesting.

- which is mind blowing.

But his are all different sizes, all different colors.

He was trained as a mechanical engineer, so he was always playing with counterbalance and balance, which is something we all have to do during the holidays.

So it's a big colorful show.

It's got something for kids.

It's calming.

The sculptures are always gently moving in the HVAC system of the building.

- And it's running a long time too, right?

- A very long time, through August.

So yes, you have time, no pressure.

- [Paris] Plenty of time, right?

- Yeah, but it's just a great show for all kinds of people in your family.

If you have folks around that are looking for something to do during the holidays that's not specific to the holidays.

- Now, for jazz lovers, there's a one-night-only concert taking place at Town Hall Seattle, and it's a big name.

- Yes, so the concert is "Duke Ellington's Sacred Music."

It's performed this year by a Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra.

And I love the piece, because it's not technically holiday, but it feels festive, and there's calming moments in the music.

They're gospel moments, there are solos, there're big band.

Ellington was really exploring everything in this show, and one of my favorite parts is there's always a tap dancer.

And this year, it's gonna be one of our local tap dancing stars whose name is Cipher Goings, and he's fantastic, so it's a fun mix of music.

- And for people that are down in the South Sound or wanna travel down that way, the Tacoma Glass Museum has two different shows, one is called "Two-Way Mirror," and then "The Salmon School," tell us about those.

- These two exhibits show the variety of glass.

I think some people get a very specific idea of what glass art is, and it just can be anything.

It can be political, it can be environmental, it can be deeply personal, it can be funny.

So these two shows really show the variety of glass.

And "The Salmon School" is an environmental show created by Seattle artist, Joseph Rossano, and it's 450 blown and mirrored glass fish.

They're hung from the ceiling.

They look as if they're swimming through the water, and it's just a beautiful shimmery show that has a really important environmental message about our declining salmon population.

- [Paris] Sounds incredible.

- [Brangien] It's beautiful.

And also, at the Museum of Glass, so "Two-Way Mirror" is a show of contemporary Black glass artists.

And that's a small population in terms of glass artists, but it's growing.

And this really shows the diversity of these artists.

And it includes two local glass artists, Barbara Earl Thomas, and Jason McDonald, who are doing very different and wonderful things in glass, and I just love the mix of artwork in this show.

- Two great shows to check out.

Now, let's get to the one that's the most hilarious of names for a show, "Holiday Sedative," and that's a one day show also on Christmas Day.

- Yes, so I love the title of this show.

This is Erin Jorgensen, who's a Seattle marimba player, and the marimba is like a giant xylophone, beautiful sounds, and she's a wonderful musician.

And she's holding kind of an open house on Capitol Hill where she will be playing calming music.

She promised no Christmas carols.

We'll be very done with those by then.

And some Bach, some of her own music, just calm marimba music.

You can drop in, drop out, stop by for as long as you like, bring the family and just chill out.

2:00 to 7:00 PM at 18th and Union, just chill out with the marimba.

- Peaceful.

- Peaceful, yes.

- Love it, so much to do and so much to see.

So thank you so much for joining us.

- Thank you.

- Now, if you're interested in checking out Brangien's weekly Arts and Culture Newsletter, "Artsy," you can find it on crosscut.com.

All you have to do is click on the Culture tab.

(bright music) I'm Paris Jackson, thank you for watching "Crosscut Now," your destination for nonprofit Northwest news.

Go to crosscut.com for more.