Nathan Rødahl

Expect the Unexpected From Olympia Chamber Orchestra

by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS Improvisation isn’t usually a thing for classical orchestras, so this year’s season for the Olympia Chamber Orchestra shows just how nimble that ensemble can be. After last year’s conductor search ended in disappointment, the orchestra is once again trying out two candidates, with some of the season’s music — …

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the cast of All the King's Women

Not Just an Elvis Play at OLT

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 …

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Shakespeare’s Surreal Fantasy

by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS Cymbeline is a romantic Shakespeare play with a ridiculously big cast and totally random plot devices, so why is Harlequin Productions’ Scot Whitney mounting a production this October? For the story. “It’s a handful,” Whitney admits. “People are terrified of this play, but at heart it has a gorgeous, …

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David Correa

David Correa at Music in the Park

by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS David Correa has been blending Spanish guitar with Afro-Cuban and Latin rhythms since 1999, tucking in a bit of Middle Eastern influence for extra spice. His San Francisco-based band regularly tours the western United States, winning three Norbay awards in a row for best Latin band. This March, Correa …

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Nate Botsford

Nate Botsford at Music in the Park

by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS Portland singer-songwriter Nate Botsford has been making music since he was a kid crafting his own guitar from a popcorn box. He made it big in 2015 with a win at the national songwriting competition Project Aloft Star before scoring the help of producer Billy Mann (Cher, Celine Dion, …

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book art by Shereen LaPlantz

LaPlantz Book Art Given to UPS Library

by Rosemary Ponnekanti for OLY ARTS When it comes to book art, Shereen LaPlantz didn’t just write the textbook, she also made the books inside the textbook: handmade, paper sculptures with pages in concertina, diorama star or tunnel form. And thanks to a generous Tacoma couple, the University of Puget Sound’s Collins Memorial Library now …

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Rosemary Ponnekanti

Rosemary Ponnekanti

Rosemary Ponnekanti is a multimedia storyteller and data analyst. For 11 years, she was an arts and features reporter for The News-Tribune in Tacoma, Washington. Before that, she was the editor in chief of ArtsHouston magazine. She holds a master’s degree in communication in digital media from the University of Washington and a bachelor’s degree …

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