Weekend revelry roundup: Black History Month celebrations, movies, music, more

The weekend is here yet again and no cold weather is going to keep you stuck in the house, right?

Prep for the upcoming Academy Awards (Sunday, March 10 on ABC) with the SIFF Cinema Uptown in Seattle, as the theater is showing all of the Oscar-nominated short films all weekend long. All three nominated categories, animated, live action and documentary will be shown. Check out the SIFF website for showtimes.

For those who can’t can’t stop listening to Usher after last weekend’s Super Bowl LVIII halftime performance, Nectar Lounge is playing 1990s and 2000s hip hop and R&B jams all night long Friday, starting at 9 p.m.  Tickets are $20.

Speaking of tunes, Seattle-based record label Forest Ray Records is hosting their annual FRy Fest at the Belltown Yacht Club. The two-day event begins Friday and takes place Saturday. Tickets cost $25 for one night. Those who buy tickets for both nights will pay $40 total. There will be a specialty beer courtesy of Cloudburst Brewing and plenty of vinyl for sale. Doors will open at 5 p.m.

Black History Month festivities

The Downtown Seattle Association (DSA), in partnership with Arte Noir and the Wonder of Woman Gallery, will host the BE Great Celebration, a free two-day event on Friday and Saturday that “brings together Black culture, arts, music, food and more.” BE Great is appropriate for all ages and will be held at Seattle’s Occidental Square. It runs from 4-7 p.m. Friday and noon-3 p.m. on Saturday.

Black History Month celebrations continue at the Northwest African American Museum Saturday with a series of genealogy workshops for those interested in digging back in their family histories. “Hidden in Plain Sight: Sharing Research and Stories of Enslaved Ancestors” will be held from 11 a.m.-noon. As the organization’s website explains, This presentation “will explore how to find enslaved ancestors using slave schedules, wills and inventories and history blogs.” Genealogy Live will be held from 1-2 p.m. Later, a talk about the program’s internships and fellowships will take place between 3 and 5 p.m.

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Lunar New Year celebrations

If you have not yet celebrated Lunar New Year, you might want to head to the University of Washington this weekend. The Chinese Student Association at the University of Washington is throwing a big celebration Saturday night, including performances, calligraphy, a scavenger hunt and more. There will also be plenty of tasty treats like BBQ pork buns, bubble waffles, and plenty of types of tea. The fun starts Saturday at 5:30 p.m. For those interested in a performance, the music and dancing begins at 7 p.m.

As noted by the Downtown Seattle Association, those who want to celebrate the Year of the Dragon can also head to Seattle’s Westlake Park Sunday for a celebration that begins at 10 a.m. The revelry will include a traditional lion dance performance featuring the Mak Fai Dragon & Lion Dance Association, the DSA says.

The performance begins at noon. Also, an additional lion dance performance will take place at First Avenue and Pike Street at 1 p.m.

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It’s a big weekend for beer

The Seventh Annual Winter Beer Festival will be held Saturday from noon-9 p.m. at the McMenamins Anderson School in Bothell. More than 30 beers and ciders will be on tap, including brews made from McMenamins. Nothing goes better with beer than good food and live music, both of which will be at the festival. Tickets purchased in advance are available for $30. Tickets purchased the day of the event or on site cost $35. All ages are welcome to the event. But those who want to sample beers and ciders need to be 21 or over.

Also on Saturday, the Winterhop Brew Fest is going on in downtown Ellensburg. Thirty breweries, local vendors, local food and multiple venues are part of the Brew Fest. If you were looking for a reason to check out Ellensburg, this is a perfect excuse to do so.

There are plenty of things going on in Puget Sound region this weekend. It’s time to get out of the house!