Ben Folds

An Interview With Ben Folds

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 …

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"Lord Franzannian," photo by Heather Schofner

Lord Franzannian’s Royal Olympian Spectacular Vaudeville Show

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 …

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Vivien Greene, Toni Young and Giovanna Righini, 1981

Banned in DC Chronicles the Punk Scene

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 …

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Christine Malek

Gallery Boom Explodes

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Gallery Boom, opening Oct. 1 in downtown Olympia, has come a long way. Geographically, it’s moved only four miles from its first home in the Fred Meyer parking lot in Tumwater, where it began two years ago as part of the city’s business incubator program. The big change: The …

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"I Long to Be Free From Longing," sculpture by Margaret Noble

Margaret Noble’s “Resonating Objects”

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS “Look, don’t touch” is a general rule with art. But “Resonating Objects,” at The Gallery at South Puget Sound Community College (SPSCC), invites viewers to touch and then listen. The exhibition of Margaret Noble’s sculptures incorporating sound, along with a video installation, has its opening reception Sept. 23. Noble’s …

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Ryan Holmberg

A Pirate Play by Bryan Willis

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Bryan Willis’ I Love You, Flavilla–playing for one night only Sept. 19, International Talk Like a Pirate Day–might sound a bit over the top. “It’s a story about the meanest pirate in the history of the world,” the Olympia playwright said. “It’s about a bully who meets his match …

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Jeffrey Painter, Jessica Weaver, Adam St. John and Kira Batcheller of Two Gents

The Two Gentlemen of Verona

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Two decades after he last directed The Two Gentlemen of Verona, Scot Whitney of Harlequin Productions is at it again. This show, featuring costumes and sets that call to mind the art of Maxfield Parrish, runs through Oct. 16. He has a new take on the early Shakespearean comedy …

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Dean Schmidt (bassist, left) and Bernie Jacobs (flutist)

Olympia Jazz Walk 2016

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Olympia loves Arts Walk, when businesses become galleries and people who crave culture stroll the streets. This Saturday, the city gets another walk: the first Olympia Jazz Walk, a fundraiser for JazzClubsNW, a North Bend-based nonprofit that aims to keep jazz alive and well through performance and education. Eleven …

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Sharon Stearnes

Stearnes and the Andy Crow Mighty Wurlitzer

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Sharon Stearnes, the organist for the Seattle Mariners from 1985 to 1990, will play the 1924 Wurlitzer organ at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts in a free concert Thursday, Aug. 18. The Andy Crow Mighty Wurlitzer was originally made for the Liberty Theater, which was torn down …

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Jim Lynch Novel Optioned for Film and TV

by Molly Gilmore for OLY ARTS Could Border Songs be on its way to becoming a TV show by acclaimed Canadian screenwriter Graeme Manson, the man behind the award-winning BBC series Orphan Black? It’s taken the first step. Last week, Olympia novelist Jim Lynch announced that Manson purchased an option for TV and movie rights …

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