Sure, trapeze artists are amazing — but this Seattle carnival says hold my puppeteer. The 17th annual Moisture Festival opened last week at Hale’s Ales Palladium in Fremont, featuring a wide array of vaudevillian acts like Godfrey Daniels, an artsy clown once described as a “Shel Silverstein poem come to life.”

After the 2022 edition is done, this delightfully weird extravaganza hopes to keep the party going, even though presenting sponsor Hale’s Ales will soon close.

“We are all having a bit of difficulty dealing with that really sad reality,” said Moisture Festival president Ron W. Bailey. “We are concentrating on appreciating what we have had all these glorious years [...] and are exploring other possibilities for the future.”

Shows run through Sun., April 10, with plenty of strange + wonderful performers on the calendar. Among those that might catch your eye:

The Sousaphone-playing Pipia Sisters, Thurs., March 24 at 7 p.m., Sat., March 26 at 3 p.m., and Sun., March 27 at 3 + 7 p.m.
Chicken Sinatra, Fri., April 1 at 7:30 p.m.
A Unicycle Built for Two, Thurs.. April 7 at 7 p.m. + Sat., April 9 at 3 p.m.