SUNDAY, SEPT. 21 2014 >>>
1. The Weekly Volcano gears up for the annual Tacoma Maritime Festival like the Super Bowl. We just can't get enough of celebrating Commencement Bay, and the "Working Waterfront" as it's known. This year marks the 22nd annual Maritime Fest - and it might host the most fighting ever at the Dock Street Building, Foss Waterway Seaport and the land in between the tow buildings from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Today's events include NOAA Tours, port tours, free guided tours of the Foss Waterway, LEGO exhibit, remote-controlled boats, crafts, games, Seaweed Sisters band at 12:30 p.m., Doug Mackey and Mr. Blackwatch at 2 p.m., Steve and Kristi Nebel at 3:30 p.m. and much more.
2. The rapid growth of Valhalla Coffee Company, which includes shipments overseas, forced A.J. Anderson to relocate his operation from his embedded situation at the former Mandolin Café to the small storefront on Sixth Avenue. Anderson thinks in terms of flavor profiles and uses adjectives such as "robust, rich, and acidic" to describe his coffee. He wants people to realize that coffee is not just a cup of black liquid but a complex and important commodity. In conjunction with its exhibition, "Ethnobotany: An Artists' Study of Planets," the W.W. Seymour Conservatory hosts Anderson for an aromatic and educational Valhalla Coffee tasting titled "Tacoma Loves Coffee" from 10-11 a.m.
4. Little Bill Engelhart is soul on wheels, thanks to his musicianship and polio. He grew up on Hilltop Tacoma and learned rock 'n' roll by playing rhythm and blues with the black musicians downtown, which was unusual for a young white kid at the time. He formed a band with some of his teenage friends and had a national hit when he was just 19 titled "I'm in Love with an Angel." He is a legendary Northwest blues musician and perhaps the Godfather of rock 'n' roll in Tacoma. He and his band, the Bluenotes, will perform at The Spar at 7 p.m.
4. The Lord Franzannian Royal Olympian Spectacular Vaudeville Show promises a "fast paced variety show" with "a little something for everyone." Will this mean jugglers? Probably. Contortionists? Perhaps. Rampant fun? Almost certainly. Proceeds benefit BigShowCity, a non-profit Performing Arts Organization that supports and helps finance burgeoning artists. They say laughter is good medicine. Here's a heaping spoonful of proof at 8 p.m. in The Midnight Sun Performance Space.
5. Remember that time in high school when your parents went away? You know, plot line of every teenage movie ever made - except this time, you blew up the house. Standing in the ashes as your parents roll up, what do you do? Say it with us now -iiiiiimprovise. Take notes at 8 p.m. in the Tacoma Comedy Club when male and female comedians battle with improve and sketch skills.
LINK: Sunday, Sept. 21 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area.
