THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>
WEATHER REPORTFriday: Sun, hi 71, lo 49
Saturday: Rain, hi 62, lo 49
Sunday: More rain, hi 59, lo 46
Teams competing in the second annual BBQ by the Lake Championship BBQ Days this weekend will be cooking up bacon bombs, in addition to the usual ribs, chicken and such. Most of the competitive teams will also be selling their wares as part of the competition and associated Spring Garden Fair. Also on the menu: live music, a beer garden, face painting and much more. The fair ignites tonight at 5 p.m. with a dinner and auction at Black Lake Grange, 6011 Black Lake Blvd. S.W., Olympia. Admission is free, and the donation of two cans of food for the Thurston County Food Bank gets you a raffle ticket. Dinner can be purchased for under $10, and there'll be live music and a dessert contest ($5 to sample everything and vote for your favorite).
Black Lake Grange, Dinner and Auction, Friday, May 20, $5 p.m., donations for Thurston County Food Bank gladly accepted, 6011 Black Lake Blvd. S.W., Olympia
The Whiz: Cascadia, hitting Tacoma and the Pantages Theater Saturday, is said to celebrate "urban subcultures by showcasing an array of different dance, performance, and musical styles from hip-hop to funk, postmodern to drag and contemporary to psychedelic." With choreography by Nicholas Leichter and a score by Monstah Black, we're told the production is a refreshed take on both the classic film The Wizard of Oz and the 1978 Quincy Jones-powered The Wiz. All of this sounds awesome, of course, and more importantly it's probably enough to get a portion of our staff larger than the pale, theater types to sit through an entire "modern dance musical." The culture will be good for us.
If you haven't been to a Dockyard Derby Dames bout yet, or any sort of roller derby, from the national champion Oly Rollers to the upstart Toxic 253, you officially suck. There, we said it. The good news is you can redeem yourself Saturday as the Derby Dames return to the Foss Waterway Seaport for the third bout of the season. Watch the Hellbound Homewreckers face off against Femme Fiana and the Marauding Mollys take on the Trampires. It's about time you caught on.
The Olympia Youth Chorus is one of those organizations you just can't help but feel good about supporting. With an end goal of nurturing an appreciation for music and choral art in kids as young as kindergarten age, the Olympia Youth Chorus has been going strong for over 15 years. Sunday, the chorus presents "Disney Dazzle!" -- billed as a collection of Disney tunes, "from familiar oldies to curent hits."
SPSCC - Minnaert Center, 4 p.m., $12.50 adult, $9.50 student & senior, $2.50 children under 3 who require a seat, 2011 Mottman Rd SW, Olympia, 360.753.8586
NIKKI TALOTTA Features Writer
Friday my plans are to tackle the tasks of child-rearing, bartending, yard work, writing, house cleaning and drinking. Saturday and Sunday? Rinse and repeat.
CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
This Saturday is Amanda's bachelorette party, so I'll be sitting at home eating a pizza and hoping her stripper is gay. Also, if the news from New Zealand is bad, I'll be on my knees fervently repenting all my sins and agnosticism at the last possible second.
JOE IZENMAN Theater and Music Writer
I heard a rumor that it might rain on Saturday, so I'll be fleeing northward to Anacortes, just in case. I got wet enough for three Saturdays last weekend, walking to and from the Goldfinch show. Then home for DnD on Sunday, and sharpening my pencils for a couple weeks of play reviews to start off June - Sweeney Todd (Lakewood) and Proof (TLT).
JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
This weekend will be excitingly spent trying to brush all the loose hair out of our two 80 lb. dogs, being outside as much as possible and trying to wrangle props and costumes from facebook friends for my students' June 2nd - Performance of Student Written Plays.
ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic
I'm going to check out the new glass show "Pr3v1ews & Pr0toTyp3s: contemporary glass" at Fulcrum and the British rock invasion musical review I'm Into Something Good at Centerstage Theatre, and then I'm going to sit in on the first rehearsal of the reading of my screenplay The Backside of Nowhere - plug, plug, plug: reading will be in June at Lakewood Playhouse.
JENNIFER JOHNSON Food and Lifestyles Writer
Friday dinner at HG Bistro in Puyallup, then gonna tear it up on the dance floor. Saturday morning volunteering at Nisqually Camp Clean-Up Day with my church singles group followed by yard work in the sun (please! let there be sun), then dinner at the Lakewood Ram with friends. After church Sunday, dinner at 208 Garfield followed by choir concert at PLU.
STEVE DUNKELBERGER Meat Market Photographer
I am teaching two photography classes at TacomaArtPlace.org with the Satuday class being part of Free Community Day. I am also going to the Tacoma Youth Choir concert at PLU on Sunday.
REV. ADAM MCKINNEY Music Writer & Snappy Dresser
Saturday, I'll be celebrating a friend's birthday with music from DJ Melodica and jerry-rigged karaoke in the garage. That is all.