Collaborative Paintings at Tobin Gallery: Jazz in color

“This work needs to be seen by more than the 120 people who attended the opening,” said Tobin Ropes, owner of the new Tobin Gallery in downtown Tacoma, which is showing Schmitt & Hall: Collaborative Improvisations through August 15. Thirty-one Schmitt/Hall paintings are on display in the gallery, mostly figurative, most telling a story. While the artists cite German expressionists such as Max Beckmann as an influence, they’ve veered away from the darkness of expressionist paintings. Rather, these works feature color.

ROCKY at Tacoma Little Theatre

ROCKY Directed by Chris Serface Assistant Directed and Choreographed by Ashley Roy June 6 – June 29, 2025 Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30pm Sundays at 2:00pm Pay What You Can: Thursday, June 19th at 7:30pm ASL Interpreted Performance: Sunday, June 29th at 2:00pm $31 Adults – $29 Students/Seniors/Military – $24 Children 12 & Under The …

Read more

Tacoma Film Festival

by Adam McKinney — Every time fall rolls around, cinephiles in the South Sound perk up their ears and await the arrival of the Tacoma Film Festival. This time around TFF has shortened things to just a four-day-weekend, running October 10-13; while there will be fewer movies than a week would provide, this shorter period of time will be absolutely crammed with entertainment, both at the Grand Cinema and at the Blue Mouse Theater.

Tacoma Lighted Boat Parade

by Adam McKinney — Every year the Tacoma Lighted Boat Parade brings around a seafaring procession of decked-out vessels on the Thea Foss Waterway. Unlike bombastic waterfront events such as Independence Day celebrations, the Tacoma Lighted Boat Parade errs on the side of enchantment, with the chilled quiet of the night being peppered with music drifting through the air and occasional honks from the boats passing by. It’s a hypnotic event, as boats make their way from Point Defiance docks down to the Dock Street Marina.

MOSAIC: Tacoma’s Arts and Culture Festival Celebrates a Multifaceted South Sound Community

MOSAIC: Tacoma’s Arts and Culture Festival at Tacoma’s Wright Park on July 27 and 28 is a weekend of multicultural music, dance, art, crafts, and cuisine, with an evening movie in the park and a Kids Zone and sprayground. The festival will see a visit from the Mobile Teaching Kitchen, which will provide a preview of culinary courses available through Metro Parks Tacoma.

Enjoy the Diverse Cultures of the South Sound at Tacoma Moon Festival 2024

By Molly Walsh This is on page 14-15 of OLY ARTS Summer 2024 print edition. Lining the shores of Commencement Bay in Tacoma, the Tacoma Chinese Reconciliation Park is home to the annual Tacoma Moon Festival, an event that commemorates the multicultural makeup of the South Sound and beyond. At the Tacoma Moon Festival, community …

Read more

The Art That Surrounds You, All in One Place: Tacoma Armory

“Another thing I think is different and nice about this event is that it’s not just visual artists,” Daniel Garcia continues. “In some cases, we have literary artists, we have poets, we have dancers, so we’re really trying to find that whole realm of artistry and bring it through to Arts at the Armory.”

Revels and the Queen of the Americas

Expect miracles, at least those of the theatrical kind, at The Midwinter Revels in Tacoma’s Rialto Theater this holiday season.

TLT mural

Two Tacoma Theaters Announce 2022-23 Seasons

After two unprecedented pandemic years, most theater organizations in the South Sound decided to schedule full seasons of live entertainment in late 2022 and early 2023. The state of Washington no longer requires proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test to enter theater spaces, but masks are still required for most patrons. With that in mind and figurative fingers crossed, OLY ARTS is pleased to announce upcoming offerings from Tacoma Little Theatre and Tacoma Musical Playhouse.

Skip to content