Founded in 1979
Our organization has a rich history: the founding of two choruses and half a dozen vocal ensembles, bringing a voice to the AIDS epidemic, touring nationally and internationally, singing for marriage equality, recording sixteen CDs, debuting and commissioning dozens of original works, welcoming countless guest artists, and opening the hearts and minds of the communities in which we live, work, and visit.
September 2002
First rehearsal of the newly formed Seattle Women’s Chorus
December 2002
Seattle Women’s Chorus makes its debut with a performance during the SMC holiday concert, Snowglobe
April 2003
Seattle Women’s Chorus holds its first solo concert, Genesis
April 2004
SWC shares the stage in Seattle and Portland with Aurora Chorus
July 2004
SWC makes its GALA debut at the festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
September 2004
Sensible Shoes, an ensemble of SWC, is formed
2005
SWC releases first CD, Winternight Journeys
April 2005
SWC performs with guest artist Lesley Gore, in It’s Our Party
July 2006
SMC & SWC take their first joint tour, This Land is Our Land, to the Rocky Mountain states
December 2006
SWC performs with guest artists Lisa Koch and Peggy Platt, who will become long-time collaborators
June 2010
First joint concert of SMC and SWC, Glitter and Be Gay
September 2010
Dennis Coleman receives the Mayor’s Arts Award
February 2011
SWC with guest artist Kathy Najimy
October 2011
SWC with guest artist, country music sensation, Chely Wright
June 2011
The Pride Foundation establishes a choral conducting scholarship, funded by Chorus members and donors, in Dennis’ name to honor his 30th anniversary as SMC conductor
September and October 2012
SMC and SWC tour Voices United for Marriage, a free concert, to five cities in Washington, in support of referendum 74 to legalize same sex marriage in the state. The first two same-sex marriages were performed on stage at Benaroya Hall.
February 2014
SWC performs their original musical, We Can Do It, commissioned from Associate Artistic Director, Eric Lane Barnes
June 2015
SWC and SMC perform at the federal courthouse in Seattle, celebrating the Supreme Court’s ruling that legalized marriage equality nationwide
February 2016
SWC releases its second CD, How Sweet the Sound
April 2016
Captain Smartypants and Sensible Shoes perform with Broadway star Patti LuPone at the Edmonds Center for the Arts
June 2016
SMC and SWC sing at a candle light vigil memorializing the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando
July 2016
SWC performs We Can Do It at the GALA Festival in Denver, streamed live online internationally
August 2016
Dennis Coleman retires after 35 years with the Choruses. August 8, 2016 is declared “Dennis Coleman Day” by the Seattle City Council and Mayor Ed Murray
September 2016
Paul Caldwell begins his tenure as Artistic Director
April 2017
Singers from the Washington Middle School Chorus perform at McCaw Hall with SMC and SWC, the culmination of the company’s first educational engagement program
June 2018
SWC and SMC perform the National Anthem at Safeco Field for the Mariners’ Pride Night
October 2019
SMC and SWC perform at ECHOES: A Tribute Concert Benefiting the AIDS Memorial Pathway
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