ARTS COVERAGE TO END ALL ARTS COVERAGE >>>

At this point it goes without saying. If you're looking for coverage of local arts in Tacoma, Olympia, and all points in between, the Weekly Volcano is THE place to find it. Our goal is to consistently provide the best local arts coverage possible to our fantastic readers -- always be on the lookout for ways to shine a light on all the awesome creativity we see around us.

Here's a look at the Volcano arts coverage waiting for you this week in print and online.

FEATURE: JASON GANWICH AND THE HIGH BAR

Lights, camera ... what's that humming noise? 

Tacoma-based producer Jason Ganwich frowns in the direction of a noisy cooler chilling beer at the Tempest Lounge at Ninth and MLK Jr., location of a recent shoot of the artistically challenging and thought-provoking series, The High Bar. An effort to stop the humming cuts out half the lights illuminating host, Warren Etheredge, and guest, lesbian Pulp Fiction icon Ann Bannon. She chuckles good-naturedly as Etheredge sips gin through a cocktail straw.

As the lights, re-patched now, shine and the humming is killed, Ganwich swipes the straws from Etheredge's cocktail.  The camera is unkind to grown men who sip their drinks through dainty little straws.

It's tireless attention to details like this, in combination with a working knowledge of how to shoot a low- to no-budget program that boasts the look, and line-up, of a big budget venture, that propelled Ganwich from crew to executive producer in just two seasons of working on The High Bar.  And with Ganwich on board, the Tacoma network of dedicated and hungry film and television professionals is getting some deserved time behind the camera of a program that's going places. ... -- Jenni Prange Boran

THEATER: THE 2011 CARVIES

This was an outstanding year for supporting actors and technicians. Lead actors and directors hog the glory, but a show can rise or fall on less prominent talent. My candidates for best show were all ensemble efforts. In the end, each was terrific, but I picked the one I couldn't stop raving about.

These were difficult, often subjective choices. If I've overlooked deserving achievements, remember: I can only be right 99-percent of the time. ... -- Christian Carvajal

LOCAL MOVIE BIZ BUZZ: RANDY SPARKS' ROSE COLORED SHADES

I creep up the creaky, flame-emblazoned steps as silently as I can, not sure whether the audio guy will detect my approach through his boom mic. Director Randy Sparks has pretty much the entire floor above Tacoma's Stonegate Pizza and Rum Bar to himself this Sunday afternoon, shooting a scene from his newest picture, Rose Colored Shades.

Known up to this point for sunny comedies, Sparks has opted for something darker in this tale of cold-blooded gangsters and hit men, which he wrote with Rod Long. Today's scene summed up what viewers can expect: the not-so-angelic character Gabriel (Don MacEllis) rubbing out his latest victim as she sleeps in bed. ... -- Christopher Wood

PLUS: South Sound Arts & Entertainment Calendar

PLUS: Alec Clayton's Visual Edge Column

PLUS: Photos with Santa