Writers who only appear rarely in our pages, but must be tagged as “writer”
By Anna Schlecht Olympia has become a “city of murals”, with an ever-growing number of large format artworks on walls across the urban hub and beyond. Some murals appear overnight, executed without payment or permission. Others are juried by experts and commissioned for thousands of dollars. Into this pantheon of public art enters a unique …
By Karen Lunde When the calendar flips to December, it’s nigh impossible to walk into a store or turn on the TV without hearing endless refrains of Jingle Bell Rock and Frosty the Snowman. Love them or loathe them, holiday songs are ubiquitous this time of year. But The Olympia Peace Choir’s concert at Huntamer …
By Karen Lunde The Washington Center and Minnaert Center stages will ring with the sounds of orchestras and choirs this weekend as Olympia’s student musicians take the stage. One will deliver a beloved holiday tradition, and the other a program centered around the universal theme of hope. On Friday, December 6, the Student Orchestras of …
By Jonah Barrett “On December fifth, you’re going to be razzle dazzled,” exclaimed activist and drag performer Tammie Brown. It’s true: Brown and a number of drag performers will grace the Octapas Café stage. Soon making her Olympia debut, Brown gained prominent notoriety in 2009 when she appeared on the first season of RuPaul’s Drag …
By Billy Thomas There’s an old saying that goes, “the family that scoops gelato together, stays together.” Okay – maybe that’s not exactly how the original goes, but at Hawley’s Gelato and Coffee, the modified phrase rings true. The local, family-owned company that’s known for serving sweet treats in downtown Olympia opened its second storefront …
By Melinda Minton A stage full of talent and a guaranteed belly laugh is something many of us could use in our lives right now. Director Steven Wells explains why You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown is so timely. “Charlie Brown shows us that the best person you can be is yourself,” says Wells. “As …
By CHRISTINA BUTCHER It’s time to talk about intersectionality, race equity and empowering women in Olympia. Many hold conversations about those issues among friends, colleagues and family but may not have found ways to turn those words into action. Many struggle with how best to implement meaningful and equitable change in their daily lives. Luckily, …
By Melinda Minton Lakewood Playhouse celebrates its 81st anniversary season with five shows. “All of next season’s shows,” says artistic director John Munn, “embrace some of our established past productions as we evolve into a playhouse that produces modern works fresh off of Broadway and off Broadway. We are very excited about this year’s lineup …
By MELINDA MINTON The Women is an American play, a comedy of manners by Clare Boothe Luce from 1936. It’s billed as a commentary on the pampered lives and power struggles of various wealthy Manhattan socialites and up-and-comers, and of the gossip that propels and damages their relationships. While men frequently are the subject of …
By JONAH BARRETT “Picking the new season is one of the hardest parts of my job,” said Jen Ryle of Olympia Family Theater (OFT), “and I really agonize over it. I want it to fit the time and place we are.” OFT’s 2019-2020 mainstage season has been announced. Ryle mentioned there were a handful of …