posts by Molly Gilmore
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS In its 29th year, Providence Christmas Forest is a different kind of winter wonderland—a forest of trees and wreaths decorated in themes from traditional to surprising. One tree will have a NASCAR theme, while another was inspired by Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are. The forest is the …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS During the winter holidays, people’s thoughts turn to feasting: stuffing both turkeys and themselves. Thoughts also turn to giving: sharing the season with friends who need an invitation to dinner, and with families who can’t afford a meal with all the trimmings. No wonder it’s the biggest season for …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS A cello is kind of a big fiddle, and in Scotland, it’s traditionally been paired with the violin (or “wee fiddle”). Scottish fiddler Alasdair Fraser and American cellist Natalie Haas are reviving that partnership and making it their own. “They’re both world-class master musicians,” said Emily Teachout, vice president …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Early in his career, Bobcat Goldthwait was a scratchy-voiced comedian and actor with a penchant for screaming. Those of a certain age might remember him from such film roles as Zeb in Police Academy 2. For the past 25 years, Goldthwait has been quietly—relatively speaking—spending time behind the camera. …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Forget the boughs of holly. Harlequin Productions greets the holidays with a liberal application of Stardust. The Stardust Christmas Enchantment, opening Nov. 25, is the company’s 21st original musical set at Manhattan’s Stardust Club. Enchantment takes place in 1960, setting the stage for such songs as The Drifters’ “This …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Overnight theater festivals—for which playwrights, directors and actors create, put on and close a show in a single weekend—are popping up all over. This weekend, theater at light speed gets a twist when Northwest Playwrights Alliance (NPA) and Olympia Family Theater (OFT) team up to create children’s theater. “I …
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 …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Veteran vaudevillian Lord Franzannian is back in town. Franzannian is the host of Lord Franzannian’s Royal Olympian Spectacular Vaudeville Show, the 10th edition of which opens Oct. 14. He’s also the alter ego of storyteller/actor/director/producer Elizabeth Lord, transformed with rosy cheeks, a fake mustache and a big belly she …
by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS The photo book Banned in DC, about the punk scene in the nation’s capital, was published in 1988—so quickly that some questioned whether it was too soon to document the scene. Nearly three decades later, co-author Cynthia Connolly has produced a seventh edition and is making stops around the …