by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS An invitational exhibition is something new and exciting for the gallery at South Puget Sound Community College. Juror Amy McBride invited 10 award-winning artists from the 2017 Southwest Washington Juried Exhibition to display their best works. A few examples from the 10 artists are very intriguing. Hart James, for …
by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Tennessee Williams’ classic drama “The Glass Menagerie” is coming to South Puget Sound Community College in March, to be presented by student actors and directed by Lauren Love. It is the tragic story of Amanda Wingfield — who lives in poverty in a dingy St. Louis apartment with her …
by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS The number 3 is auspicious, whether we’re talking about the holy trinity, the mind-body-spirit triad or the “lucky number 3.” Perhaps that’s why the South Puget Sound Community College drama department will present three brand-new productions for the 2017-2018 season: Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet), The Glass Menagerie and …
by Alec Clayton for OLY ARTS Practically everything William Shakespeare wrote has been subject to parody. Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet) by Ann Marie MacDonald mines some of the bard’s great tragedies to comic effect. English professor Constance Ledbelly decides Othello and Romeo and Juliet were originally written as comedies, and not by Shakespeare. This …
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 — …
by Kelli Samson for OLY ARTS Native Olympian Nathan Rødahl will conduct the Olympia Chamber Orchestra’s fall concert, where Arriaga’s Symphony in D, Janacek’s Suite for Strings, Korngold’s Shneeman (The Snowman), Debussy’s Petite Suite and Bizet’s Symphony in C come together in an unconventional performance. Each of the five composers share something in common with …
by Adam McKinney for OLY ARTS Emerald City Music has recently started its second season. Just about everything about ECM’s shows strays from the highfalutin norm of the classical set. They feature more relaxed environments and more contemporary compositions, thereby aiding in bringing a new audience to classical music. One of their upcoming shows is …
by Christina Butcher for OLY ARTS There isn’t a ballet dancer or aficionado in the South Sound who’s unfamiliar with Ballet Northwest, one of Olympia’s premier, longest-standing ballet companies. That fact is built on Ballet Northwest’s reputation for holding performances with all the beauty and grace for which ballet is known. This August, the dance …
by Christian Carvajal for OLY ARTS Some theatrical musicals originate as great novels (Les Misérables), others (The Lion King) as beloved cinema. Some come to us by way of historical biographies (Hamilton) and some, believe it or not, are still written from scratch. But only one popular musical began as a story in the Weekly …
WEEKEND PREVIEW is your weekly guide to events in Thurston County. This week, there’s enough live music in Olympia to keep your toes tapping all night long, not to mention author readings at some of your favorite bookstores. Click here to listen to our podcast version of Weekend Preview, sponsored by Shur-Kleen Car Wash. Follow the links …