An interview with artist Kelly Kitchens
The Puget Sound’s weekly roundup of arts, culture, and community | April 17 to 23, 2026
In 2019, Encore and TeenTix started a partnership to amplify the voices of young writers. TeenTix had been doing this for years with their TeenTix Newsroom, a program that runs during the school year and gives teen writers a chance to develop their talents and get paid for their work. The writers cover the arts in Seattle and work with an editorial staff of their peers, collaborating and learning from each other.
Encore gives these writers another platform to share their work through our print program Stages and here, on Encore+. We’re excited to share this interview conducted by Dash Montague with artist and director Kelly Kitchens as a new chapter in our partnership. – Ciara
Dash Montague: Beyond putting on a great show, as an arts educator, what do you hope young people take away from working with you?
Kelly Kitchens: So much! Where to begin? I hope to give them even in some part what was given to me by so many others. I hope I can help open doors that reveal new worlds in which they can revel, explore, create, grow. I hope to ignite their empathy and fuel their curiosity. I hope they continue to discover the wonder and the workings of the world and the folks around them throughout their lives. To ask the what, the how, the whys of things and to chase all those rabbits down the glorious paths those questions will lead...I hope to encourage their sense of play that they then sustain for a lifetime.
On the Stage
Appropriate
Theatre | Seattle Rep
Now – May 10 | Tickets
When the Lafayettes descend upon their late father’s crumbling plantation home for an estate sale, they unearth an appalling secret that pits them against one another.
Open Captioned: April 23
More Events
- Pablo Sáinz-Villegas | Meany Center | April 18 | View Print Program
- Mendelssohn A Midsummer Night’s Dream | Seattle Symphony | Now – April 19 | View Print Program
- Les Misérables | Broadway at The Paramount | Now – April 19 | View Program
- ASL and Audio Described: April 19
- Disney’s Newsies Jr. | Village Theatre KIDSTAGE | Now – May 3 | View Program
- Robin Hood | Seattle Children’s Theatre | Now – May 10 | View Program
Next Line
- Seattle Children’s Theatre has announced their upcoming season, filled with playful and accessible performances for all ages.
- Even though our own spring is long in coming, the summer nights are extended. Village Theatre has added more dates for Grease due to high demand.
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