What action will lead to a better tomorrow? Lately, this question repeats like a drumbeat through my brain. If you, too, are pondering that thought, here’s an idea: Take a stand against intolerance and head to Evan’s Family Variety Show. On Sunday, Nov. 27, at the Phinney Center in Seattle, Evan “The Great Magician” Reynolds is hosting a show with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit International Rescue Committee (IRC).
Reynolds has been entertaining families in the Seattle area since 2014 (he is, in fact, a 2016 ParentMap Golden Teddy finalist), but this benefit is something new. The father of two, who is half-Syrian, began planning the event last year after noticing increased anti-immigration sentiment. His family also has a personal connection to the Syrian refugee crisis. Reynolds hasn’t heard from his cousin in Syria since the town of Ma’loula was attacked in 2013.
“The best-case scenario is that he and his family are refugees,” Reynolds says.
Researching ways to best offer aid in the face of the refugee criss, Reynolds found the IRC. When people’s lives are affected by conflict and disasters, the IRC steps in to “help people survive, recover and gain control of their future.” In 2015, the organization helped resettle nearly 10,000 refugees in the United States.
“When I realized the IRC was helping refugees ... I wanted to raise money to support them,” Reynolds says. And so a show was born.
What to expect
The one-hour show starts at 3 p.m. Sunday. To get tickets, Reynolds asks that a donation of any size be made to IRC (you can do that here or a computer will be available at the venue the day of the event).
The variety show, which Reynolds says will be kid-friendly but also fun for adults, will feature a number of different acts including magic, comedy and music. The lineup includes physical comedians Bill Robison and Sandra Sieg, musician Misty with her famous ukelele and Luz from international vaudeville act Duo Finelli.
Reservations are encouraged as the performance space fits 150 guests. The goal of the show: Leave your worries behind for an hour of laughter while also making a positive change. Part of that, says Reynolds, means dispelling many of the fears that cloud discussions about refugees.
“I don’t think of faceless refugees who might possibly be scary,” he says. “I think of my cousin who is a pharmacist, his wife [and them] trying to keep their kid safe.”
