Uptown Grill Promises Great Food, Good Time in Downtown Olympia

By Melinda Minton Michelle Nurmi and Pedro Gallegos are no strangers to the restaurant scene. With over 50 years’ combined experience in downtown Seattle restaurants, the duo has now taken root in Olympia. “I had Pedro come down just  to get his opinion on the kitchen and hear  his thoughts because I respected  his  opinion,” …

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Op-Ed: Rethinking the Statues That Define Us

By Anna Schlecht Nearly 50 stone monuments across the US have recently come down, leaving voids in our town squares and college campuses. Whether by government decree or Black Lives Matter (BLM) protester actions, these downed statues have opened up the space to rethink who and how we chose to symbolize our history and inspire …

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Two Local Visual Artists Selected for Virtual Coronavirus Exhibits

By Aigner Loren Wilson Adaptation. It’s what makes great leaders, educators, and creators. The willingness, ability, and creativity to respond to change is what defines a functioning business, especially during this time of uncertainty. We are all stepping forward into a dark time marked by consistent updates and changes that aren’t all trustworthy. Artists—the creatives …

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Maestro Huw Edwards on His Final Season With Olympia Symphony Orchestra

By Melinda Minton Huw Edwards, Maestro for the Olympia Symphony Orchestra (OSO), is making a departure after 17 years. The symphony is a collection of local artists who enjoy taking the classics and not so well-known collections and working them into a local, live experience for the audience to breathe in and enjoy. Maestro Edwards …

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Olympia Downtown Alliance Cancels Annual Music in the Park Series

By Jonah Barrett The 41st season of Olympia’s Music in the Park series has been cancelled this year due to public health concerns concerning COVID-19. The series has been an Olympia tradition, occurring at both Sylvester Park and the Port of Olympia every year through July and August. With the deluge of postponed or cancelled …

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Op-Ed: Last Call or a Call to Action?

By Anna Schlecht On March 16, 2020, I rolled into Equal Latin with a friend for what was likely the last happy hour for the foreseeable future. Like bars and restaurants across the state, Equal Latin was virtually empty with the owners and staff trying to make sense of the Governor’s order. Their familiar faces were …

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Tough Times and the Quest for Toilet Paper

By Anna Schlecht Money was tight when I was little so there weren’t many treats. My Dad used to take one stick of Wrigley’s Spearmint gum and tear it into seven pieces, one for each of us. We didn’t have much, but we savored what we had. And we shared it equally. I told that …

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Grammy-Nominated Aizuri Quartet: Bringing Us “Home”

By Lucy Volker Kicking off its fifth year as Seattle’s up-and-coming classical music company, Emerald City Music often graces the pages of OLY ARTS with showcases featuring world-renowned artists who specialize in reimagining the boundaries of classical music. This year is no exception; come February 15, the Grammy-nominated Aizuri Quartet will perform its collection “Songs …

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A Londoner and a Local Walk Into a Theater…

By Lucy Volker Transformation is the theme for Harlequin’s 2020 season. They begin the New Year with Noises Off and The Highest Tide. Riffing on the season’s theme, Noise’s Off is said to be “one of the funniest plays ever written, offering the community some much-needed comedic relief.” The Highest Tide is a coming of …

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Letter From the Publisher: Support the Arts in 2020

2020 is almost here, and we’d like to ask you to make a resolution to support the arts with us. Since we opened in 2016, OLY ARTS magazine has continued to expand its FREE coverage and offerings to our community. We hope that you will be able to take part in one or more of …

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