TUESDAY, DEC. 9 2014 >>>
1. Done on a budget of $434, spanning 23 trips over eight months up and down the Puyallup River - from Mount Rainier to Commencement Bay - you are eager to show the public your film at the Puyallup River Film Festival from 6-9 p.m. at the University of Washington-Tacoma. Using shots of spiritual rituals, inspirational landscapes and devastating destruction, and interweaving them with a score combining bluegrass, you have expressed ideas about the interconnectedness of humans and the river, and the transcendence of evolution. With a generous grant from The Russell Family Foundation, the University of Washington Tacoma will host the second annual film festival focused on the Puyallup River Watershed. Community members, students and non-profit organizations located in or working in the watershed submitted two- to three-minute videos related to issues affecting the Puyallup River and its tributaries. Of all the judged categories - open, middle school, high school, college/university, non-profit and government - you are confident your film will walk away with at least one award. You have to win; you invited all your friends, even that one guy who skinny-dips in the river.
2. Whether you want to channel your inner Winter Olympics sports nerd, capture the magic of the season in a vibrant urban venue or just have a wintery and sporty adventure, break out the ice skates, people, because the Franciscan Polar Plaza, in partnership with the Tacoma Art Museum, is open from 4-9 p.m. Bring family and friends to Tacoma's holiday ice rink for holiday fun and a good time right in the heart of downtown Tacoma.
3. Ron Bates has performed '40s tunes since the '80s. He knows Sinatra's songbook inside and out. Catch him at 6:30 p.m. for a Supper with Sinatra show at the Red Wind Casino.
4. This year's Classical Tuesdays Wine & Song Benefit in Old Town Tacoma will feature Neapolitan songs and standard Italian opera hits by tenor Gino Lucchetti. Baritone Charles Robert Stephens will sing romantic songs from the 1940s and 1950s. The two singers will also perform duets. Equally important, the night will feature lovely wines by neighboring Ginkgo Forest Winery, which kicks off at 7 p.m. inside the Connelly Law Offices. This annual event benefits the free Classical Tuesdays in Old Town chamber music series. So bring $25.
5. Bobby Meader's music is not technically complicated, or particularly unusual by any means. But it's heartfelt, a broken man with the raspy voice of an old punk turned soft, who strums like a early Bob Dylan or a John Denver, supporting himself on harmonica. It's the kind of music that makes you think of bad breakups and that trip to the woods you were supposed to make months ago. Catch Meader at 7 p.m. in Le Voyeur.
LINK: Tuesday, Dec. 9 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area
