The Stranger’s Genius Awards are Back, Baby!

After a 10-year hiatus, the city’s best art party is back!  The Stranger‘s Genius Awards return on September 12 at the Moore Theatre and past-Genius Award winners Shabazz Palaces is playing! 

What are the Genius Awards?

From 2003 until 2016, The Stranger awarded the city’s most innovative freaks with a cash prize, a big feature in our print paper, and a night in the limelight. From Cherdonna Shinatra to Scarecrow Video, we made a point to give Seattle visionaries their flowers. And an iconic/shitty cake we bought at the grocery store. 

And now we’re bringing it back! This year, we’re awarding six $10,000 (!!!) grants to recipients representing the best Seattle has to offer in Film, Food, Literature, Music, Performance, and Visual Art. 

The Stranger’s small but mighty arts team (Audrey Vann, Julianne Bell, Amanda Manitach, headed up by yours truly) have been comparing lists with our beloved arts writers: Dave Segal, Bess Lovejoy, Meg van Huygen, Jas Keimig, Michael Wong, and Katie Lee Ellison. We’ve yapped, we’ve researched, we’ve looked, we’ve listened, we’ve discussed, and we’re getting really excited to start dumping this money on six outstanding members of Seattle’s cultural community, no strings attached. Because we truly believe that art fucking matters. 

As of right now, our choices are top secret, but stay tuned for the reveal in our fabulous Fall Arts / Genius Issue (on stands September 2). And then, we celebrate! 

The Genius Awards VIP pre-party begins at 5:30 p.m., and doors are at 6:30 p.m. Enjoy tunes spun by DJ Erik Blood (who is also a past Genius Award winner!) to welcome you to the evening. The awards show runs from 7:30–8:30 p.m., hosted by the lovely Miss Texas 1988. Shabazz Palaces headlines the event from 9–10 p.m., followed by a DJ dance-party in the basement with DJ Mala Nocha until 11 p.m. LFG!

I think it would be fun if we dressed up, Seattle, what do you think? Personally, I’m aiming for something between an opulent magician and Miss Scarlet from the 1985 Clue movie. 

Limited VIP tickets available now. Get them here. 

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