by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS This season, Masterworks Choral Ensemble will travel to the frontier, celebrate the sometimes-overlooked talents of female composers and visit some of Broadway’s most colorful characters. And the ensemble’s taking a creative approach to concert themes: The Broadway concert focuses on heroes and villains, while the concert composed by women …
by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS What happens when you mix a well-established fiddler with the best next-generation, traditional-music players you can find? You get Molsky’s Mountain Drifters, a brand-new bluegrass and roots band with a fresh perspective on old-time music. Comprising banjoist Allison de Groot, fiddler Bruce Molsky and guitarist and vocalist Stash Wyslouch, …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS The creators and performers of Olympia’s Own TUSH! Burlesque are promotional wordsmiths, though some of their enticements are unprintable here. For the troupe’s recurring series at Obsidian, it promises “a titillating romp to celebrate Halloween,” with lots of “sizzle, sass and fabulous fun.” When asked about the name of …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS This fall, Masterworks Choral Ensemble takes a break from traditional tunes to head for the Old West. The group’s next concert, Way Out West: Beloved American Ballads, surveys that “Home on the Range” — and yes, that tune is included — with music from the westward expansion or inspired …
by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS Holding collaborative, public performances for decades is a noteworthy feat for any organization, but for The Heartsparkle Players, it’s an accomplishment made possible only through constant rededication to cherished causes of hope and love. The playback-theater troupe will open its 20th season by recommitting to those themes. “The reason …
by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS One doesn’t have to be an Elvis Presley fan to like All the King’s Women — Director Toni Holm is proof of that. More of a “Beatles person,” as she puts it, Holm is a convert to Luigi Jannuzzi’s 17-actor, seven-scene play that looks at the King through a …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS When Arts Walk ends, Jazz Walk begins. The second-annual Olympia Jazz Walk, a fundraiser for the nonprofit JazzClubsNW, is timed to keep the festival atmosphere going late into Saturday night with live jazz throughout downtown Olympia. “The idea is to make the Arts Walk and the great spectacle that …
by Karen Lunde for OLY ARTS From the earliest tribal welcome songs to anti-war and protest anthems, music has given a powerful voice to messages of peace. The Olympia Peace Choir, a community chorus over 100 members strong, will carry that tradition on with its first-ever Peace Walk. Choir members have invited the community to …
by Kelli Samson for OLY ARTS The Washington Center for the Performing Arts has been closed for the summer while the City of Olympia made updates to the HVAC system. Rest assured, come October 5 the center will open its 32nd season with an energetic performance by Gaelic Storm. While every act slated to grace …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Within the citywide celebration that is Arts Walk, there’s nestled a mini-festival with a focus on the fiddle. Fiddle Fest, scheduled for the Friday night of fall Arts Walk, has since 2004 been a showcase for traditional music — an art with a long history. “Traditional music hasn’t always …