Susan Christian

REVIEW: Susan Christian

VISUAL ARTS REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Once again Susan Christian is showing her painted stick constructions at her own gallery, Salon Refu. The paintings are assemblages of various kinds of sticks, mostly lathe, which she puts together in rectangular shapes and paints as if they were stretched canvases. The last time I …

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Donny McCaslin

Genre-Bending With the Donny McCaslin Quartet

by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS With so much crossover of entertainment, fashion and pop culture in today’s society, it’s almost impossible to make music that fits into a single genre. The Donny MCaslin band, also known as “David Bowie’s last band,” makes no apologies for not even trying to do that. Comprised of saxophonist …

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Capital Food & Wine Festival 2016

Capital Food & Wine Festival 2017

by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS The Capital Food & Wine Festival is an annual 501(c)(3) fundraiser for Saint Martin’s University. Al Eckroth, director of the first and second installments, describes it as “a huge annual block party, where neighbors and friends unite in a spirit of community.” He says the festival “began in 1989 …

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Scot and Linda Whitney

Linda and Scot Whitney, Artists of Real. Live. Theater

by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Running a theater company requires a large package of talents—artistic sensibilities, intelligence, management and people skills and enthusiasm. Meet Linda and Scot Whitney, founders and managers of Harlequin Productions, the celebrated local company that’s produced more than 170 shows since 1991. Linda directs, writes and designs sets. Scot directs …

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St. John's Episcopal Church

Bach Around the Clock

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS March 21 is the 332nd birthday of composer Johann Sebastian Bach, and Olympia organist Curt Sather will spend the day—the whole day—celebrating. Sather, the music director at St. John’s Episcopal Church, will play all of the composer’s organ works—nearly 300—in a 24-hour marathon performance he’s calling Bach Around the …

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Caspar Babypants

Caspar Babypants at Tumwater High School

by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS For the third year, Caspar Babypants is back to perform at a fundraiser for Apple Tree Productions’s acting class for special needs students of all ages and abilities. Proceeds from the concert benefit the students of the Showcase program. Apple Tree hosts the showcase every summer. Casper Babypants, now …

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Snipes Studio

Pottery and Otherness With Kevin Snipes

by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS Combine whimsical drawings, pottery and a dedication to addressing “otherness” in art, and you’ll find yourself examining the distinctive work of pottery artist Kevin Snipes. The concept may seem distant, but this March, South Puget Sound Community College brings it up close and personal as it hosts Kevin Snipes …

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James Patrick

The Trip to Bountiful at Olympia Little Theatre

by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS In storytelling and theater, some plays have themes threaded so deeply into their fabric that the audience can’t help but ponder them as the story unfolds on the stage. The Trip to Bountiful, a play about family relationships, loyalty and love, is one such play. It hits the stage …

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Jason Haws and David S. Hogan in The Understudy at Harlequin Productions

REVIEW: The Understudy

THEATER REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS It’s a shame that more than half the seats were empty at Harlequin Productions’s opening-night performance of The Understudy by Theresa Rebeck. Potential audience members who could’ve been in those seats don’t know they missed the funniest comedy to grace South Sound stages this season. The Understudy …

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Restless Vocal Band

All Vocals, All Night

by Jennifer Crain for OLY ARTS On March 18, the human voice takes center stage at the Harmony Sweepstakes A Cappella Festival. This popular event brings the vocal acrobatics and stage flair of the a cappella scene to the public in a high-energy sing-off. By the end of the evening, one group will be selected …

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