MOSES LAKE — Columbia Basin Allied Arts 49th Premier Series is a little shorter than past seasons, but that’s because the focus is on quality over quantity, said CBAA Executive Director Shawn Cardwell.

“Allied Arts is really trying to step up the prestige level of the shows that we’re bringing,” Cardwell said.

That prestige is reflected this month in the first show, by a living legend: Booker T. Jones. Jones is the founder and last living original member of Booker T. & the MG’s, the instrumental jazz/rhythm and blues band of the 1960s that paved the way for the soul and funk sounds of the 1970s. 

“(His show has) a lot of storytelling,” Cardwell said. “He’ll be armed with his Hammond B organ; its sound is really iconic.”

That organ features prominently in Booker T. & The MG’s’ best-known instrumental, “Green Onions,” which ranked No. 181 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, according to Jones’ promotional materials.

“It’s one of those things that you don’t know you know it until you hear it,” Cardwell said. “You’ve heard it everywhere. It was in a Super Bowl commercial recently.”

Jones, now 82, has been making music for more than 60 years. He frequently tours the Northwest, Cardwell said.

The second performance, in January, will feature Ballet Fantastique, which by now is a regular performer in Moses Lake. The troupe performed “Sleepy Hollow” at the Wallenstien in 2022, and in 2024 brought the world’s first choose-your-own-adventure ballet, “Murder at the Ballet.” This year’s offering is “Nevermore,” telling in dance the macabre stories and poetry of Edgar Allan Poe.

“This production reimagines Poe’s most haunting, brilliant, and disturbing works – ‘The Raven,’ ‘Annabel Lee,’ ‘Fall of the House of Usher,’ ‘Cask of Amontillado’ and ‘Masque of the Red Death’ like you’ve never experienced before,” Ballet Fantastique wrote in its promotional materials.

At first glance, Poe seems like an unusual source for ballet, Cardwell said, but ballet Fantastique is not the usual ballet troupe.

“People walk out of about these shows and they say, ‘Wow, I've never been to a ballet, but if that's what ballet is, I like it,’” she said. 

Local dance students will take part in the performance, Cardwell said.

The final show, in February, is a departure for CBAA: standup comedian Shayne Smith. Smith, originally from Utah, tells stories of small-town life, interesting friends, travel and his own experiences, according to his promotional materials.

Straight comedy is something CBAA hasn’t featured in many years, Cardwell said, for a couple of reasons. One is that many comedy acts veer off into R-rated territory, whereas Smith sticks to PG-13 material. The other, she said, is that the organizations that give out arts-based grants tend to regard comedy as too lowbrow to fund.

“The (exception) is if it tells a story,” Cardwell said. “The thing with standup, and especially good standup, is that it actually does tell you a story about the comedian's life and how they see the world. Beyond that, comedy is becoming super popular right now. And when we look at how serious the news feels, it makes sense that we all want to laugh.”

Because the series consists of only three shows, Cardwell, said, a season ticket for all three can be had for $40, if it’s purchased before the first show. Even after that, each show is only $15 per person.

The truncated season is also a result of some of CBAA’s expanded focus: community events, school outreach, murder mysteries and other offerings. Still, Cardwell said, the Premier Series has been CBAA’s flagship for almost five decades.

The Premier Series is what this organization was founded on,” she said. “We believe it’s a great service to this community. It allows people to see fantastic shows without having to leave our communities to do that. It inspires young musicians, comedians and dancers to continue doing what they're doing and lets them know that they can make a career or at least a lifetime relationship with these arts. We believe that arts create conversation and community and empathy.”

Columbia Basin Allied Arts Premier Series

Booker T. Jones: Nov. 21

Ballet Fantastique: Jan. 8

Shayne Smith: Feb. 27

Wallenstien Theater

6989 College Pkwy NE

Moses Lake

www.cba-arts.org

    Soul legend Booker T. Jones will perform at the Wallenstien Theater Nov. 21.
  

    Comedian Shayne Smith may look intimidating, but his material is strictly PG-13. He’ll round out Columbia Basin Allied Arts’ 49th Premier Series Feb. 27.