posts about events at the Washington Center
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 …
by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS The ever-popular The Pirates of Penzance, or The Slave of Duty is coming to The Washington Center this spring, performed by the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players. Pirates is a witty comic opera in two acts, featuring what is popularly known as “The Major General Song,” a so-called …
VISUAL ARTS REVIEW by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Now showing in The Washington Center for the Performing Arts are paintings by Lois Beck, Becky Knold and Mia Schulte, three women whose paintings have a lot in common—so much so, in fact, that unless you’ve studied their paintings in detail over time you’d be hard …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS To read Sarah Vowell’s bestselling nonfiction works or hear her frequent appearances on public radio is to experience our history through the eyes of, in her own words, a “partly cloudy patriot.” Her most recent book, Lafayette in the Somewhat United States, is a quirky biography of a French …
by Guy Bergstrom for OLY ARTS The international hit Stomp—which first hit the London stage in 1991 and has been playing on Broadway since 1994—is coming to Olympia in January 2017. Creators Luke Cresswell and Steve McNicholas go back another decade to 1981. Cresswell is a self-taught drummer who left school at 15 for music. …
by Jennifer Crain for OLY ARTS On December 3, the Masterworks Choral Ensemble’s annual Christmas concert kicks off the Yuletide season. Gary Witley, director of the community chorus since he helped found it in 1981, says listeners can expect a family friendly evening with traditional favorites, sing-alongs and tunes to make them laugh. “Every Christmas …
READ COMPLETE JILL CARTER INTERVIEW HERE >> PRINT ARTICLE BELOW >> by Ned Hayes for OLY ARTS When the curtain first rose on Jill Carter’s original set design for Land of the Sweets 20 years ago, there was a gasp from the audience, followed by a round of applause. The audience cheered for the scenic design …
by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS From the coauthor of Late Nite Catechism comes the holiday comedy Sister’s Christmas Catechism: The Mystery of the Magi’s Gold for a one-night-only performance at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts. The Center calls the play “CSI: Bethlehem,” a holiday extravaganza. This comedy-mystery features “Sister,” a woman out …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Olympia comedian Sam Miller will compete in this year’s Seattle International Comedy Competition. He’ll compete in the first round of preliminaries Nov. 2-6, and if he finishes in the top five among that group, he’ll advance to the semifinals, including a Nov. 17 show in Olympia. The host of …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Ben Folds—he of the clever and oh-so-revealing lyrics and piano skill that’s earned the respect of Billy Joel and Elton John—will perform Oct. 26 in Olympia. And he’ll take requests. “People have been throwing paper airplanes with requests on them for the second half,” Nashville, Tennessee’s Folds said in …