SUZY STUMP: 5 THINGS TO DO TODAY >>>

1 P.M.: Today, you'll catch them with plastic bubble helmets, tasseled handlebars and banana seats. Ignoring any previously employed methods of safety taught by their parents and tossing out all notions of style and intelligence- the Original Gravity Social Club will start at The Hub and bike and drink their way through The Parkway, The Corner Bar, Engine House No. 9 and back to The Hub where they'll compare road rashes. Happy Hour prices on all appetizers and $3 Harmon brews for all who participate. Details here.

2 P.M.: Capital Playhouse is staging Fiddler on the Roof- the well-known story about family traditions and social customs in a changing world place in the Ukraine during the tumultuous times of World War II,  through Sunday at South Puget Sound Community College's KJM Center

3:30 P.M.: Not only is she a plus-size voluptuary, but man, can that Candye Kane belt the blues. This ex-porn star, feminist, Tupperware saleslady sings smokin' blues, genuine and often tongue-in-cheek. Kane underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer. She's recovering, but her bills are massive. Son Jack Jr., Alice Stuart, Red Hot Blues Sisters, Lady A & The Baby Blues Funk Band and Becki Sue & Her Big Rockin' Daddies want to help. They'¢ll participate in a benefit for Kane today at Jazzbones.

7 P.M.: Encore! Theater presents My Fair Lady a social study between nature and nuture pitting the less-than-refined upbringing of Eliza Doolittle with the brains to make her refind offered by Harry Higgins. Bring your lawn chair and a blanket to view theater outside Impact Church International.

7 P.M.: Saxophonist Darren Motamedy's weekly Sunday night smooth jazz jam at the Cedarwood Dome in Milton will be packed tonight due to a special tribute to the National Guard.

LINK: Viva South Sound arts and entertainment calendar
LINK: Live music and DJs tonight

SUZY STUMP: THE JOEL SHOW III >>>

It’s time for another installment of the Joel Show â€" No. III to be exact. Local dancer and choreographer Joel Myers invites you to join him and several of his vastly talented students this Saturday, Aug. 16, at Annie Wright â€" not Stadium High School that has been advertised the last few months.

Presented by MOVE!, MLKBallet’s contemporary dance series, Myers and an elite group of dance students have prepared a moving mix of modern dance that will take audiences on a journey through various life stages, rooted in various tree themes.

[Annie Wright, Saturday, Aug. 16, 6 p.m., $10-$14, 827 N. Tacoma Ave., Tacoma, 253.921.2858]

DANIEL BLUE: MEET CHRIS SHARP >>>

Many things have been written about Chris Sharp, which I believe is due to his name.  Chris is very sharp.  I have found him to be straightforward and confident in most all his endeavors.

Chris is kind of like a cool older brother to me and some of my contemporaries. We thrive on his creative wisdom. On several occasions I have consulted him for advise about projects I am working on.  His eye is explicit and his experience sets him in the major leagues.

He is forever bicycling and recently skateboarding about the downtown corridor, to and from multiple coffee shops and his studio in the Merlino Arts Center.  A sign maker, and a designer by trade, there are few hands that know both the digital and the analog versions of their craft as well as Chris. 

The most noticeable thing about Sharp is his deadpan sense of humor.  Often heavy handed in wit and intelligent sarcasm, I find myself laughing at things he has said far after they were removed from his mouth.

LINK: The Tacoma Files archive

SUZY STUMP: 5 THINGS TO DO TODAY >>>

2:30-9:10 P.M.: Vicky Cristina Barcelona is typical of a lot of Woody Allen’s mid-range work.  It involves affluent characters at various levels of sophistication, involved in the arts and the intrigues of love.  They’re conflicted about right and wrong.  They’re undoubtedly low-level neurotics.  In addition, they are attractive, amusing, and living lives we might envy â€" in this case, during a summer vacation in Barcelona. Read full review here. See it at The Grand Cinema.

5 P.M.: Gary Murrell â€" the Green Party candidate for U.S .Congress from Washington’s 6th Congressional District â€" will be at King’s Books in Tacoma for what’s being called a “community dialogue.” Murrell â€" a longtime Hoquiam resident and teacher at Grays Harbor Community College â€" is expected to elaborate on his desire to seek “an immediate withdrawal of American forces in Iraq, affordable education, campaign reform, Constitutional restoration, civil liberties, and single-payer not-for-profit health care,” according to kingsbookstore.com.

7:30 P.M.: Capital Playhouse is staging Fiddler on the Roof â€" the well-known story about family traditions and social customs in a changing world place in the Ukraine during the tumultuous times of World War II â€" through Sunday at South Puget Sound Community College’s KJM Center. This closing production of its summer theater program will go out with a bang as the cast peaks at 63.

8 P.M.: To be brief, Hypatia Lake is less a band of musicians as it is a story about a small, fictional town with a candy shop and a lot of problems. This story has been told through three albums so far, and is the brainy work of Hypatia Lake frontman Lance Watkins. The good thing about this situation is â€" whether we’re just too stupid to get it or the concept behind Hypatia Lake is a bit much to swallow â€" the show at Bob’s Java Jive tonight is going to be musically fascinating all the same.

8:30 P.M.: Pat Benatar is now 55, but the trailblazing female rocker with the voice of an angel is sexier than ever. Along with hubby Giraldo, Benatar and her feel-good anthems like “Hit Me with Your Best Shot” and “Love Is a Battlefield“ will echo at the Emerald Queen Casino tonight. Fire away here.

LINK: Viva South Sound arts and entertainment calendar
LINK: Live music and DJs

STEVE DUNKELBERGER: THEATER THURSDAY >>>

Fiddler on the Roof
Capital Playhouse is staging Fiddler on the Roof â€" the well-known story about family traditions and social customs in a changing world place in the Ukraine during the tumultuous times of World War II â€" through Sunday. This closing production of its summer theater program will go out with a bang as the cast peaks at 63.
[South Puget Sound Community College’s KJM Center, 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Sunday, 2 p.m. Sunday, $10-$15, 2011 Mottman Road, Olympia, 360.943.2744]

My Fair Lady
Encore! Theater opens My Fair Lady today and plans to keep it fair through the end of the month. The story of a social study between nature and nurture pits the less-than-refined upbringing of Eliza Doolittle with the brains to make her refined offered by Harry Higgins. Bring your lawn chair and a blanket to view theater under the stars.
[Impact Church International, through Aug. 31, 7 p.m. Fri-day-Sunday, $8-$15, 4819 Hunt St., Gig Harbor, 253.858.2282]

LINK: South Sound stage productions this week

BILL TIMNICK: EXPLORING SPANAPARK >>>

At first sight, Parkland and Spanaway seem more like crossroad communities than potential destination spots.  But for those who take the time to explore or who are on the road to Mount Rainier, these two communities south of Tacoma offer a selection of opportunities to stop and stay awhile.

Behind the rows of strip malls along southern Pacific Avenue in Parkland are reasons to detour, both to the west and the east.  Westward at South Garfield Street, for example, there is a pair of destinations â€" different in purpose and appearance, yet somehow belonging together.  You see, if Parkland could be called a town, it would be a college town, because a few blocks down Garfield from the Avenue is the campus of Pacific Lutheran University.  And leading to the university are a couple of blocks of small shops and eateries that would seem at home in any college town â€" multiple coffeehouses, tiny restaurants and shops.  And the food at Marzano’s Italian restaurant, across from the PLU entrance at the end of Garfield, is probably reason enough to make the trip to Parkland.

But the university campus provides a destination for visitors, too. Founded in 1890, PLU is a celebrated liberal arts university with a student body of about 3,600.  The campus is spread around a parklike, carefully landscaped setting.  Outdoor art is placed throughout the site.  PLU also serves as a venue for musical, theatrical, sporting, and cultural live events.  The university also houses a cultural heritage center and museum that help to maintain PLU’s ties to its Scandinavian heritage.  To learn more about upcoming events at PLU visit their Web site. 

And what lies farther to the south?  The Spanaway area attracts those looking for outdoor, as well as indoor, recreational opportunities. Just off Pacific Avenue at14824 South “C” Street is Sprinker Recreation Center.  This Pierce County Parks and Recreation facility features an indoor ice arena, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, racquetball courts, outdoor sports fields, a skateboard park, an outdoor rock climbing practice “spire,” and a nearby forested walking trail.

Sprinker’s ice arena provides public skating sessions as well as skating lessons.  The center also hosts ice skating competitions, some of which are open to students in the facility’s lesson programs.  The SPIRE rock facility is open year-round to area climbers unless in use by climbing clubs.  Pierce County Parks also offers climbing lessons that make use of the practice rock.  The walking trails are spread over a 70-acre section of Breseman Forest, located west of Sprinker.

For more information about facilities and programs available at Sprinker Recreation Center, call 253.798.4000.

Near Sprinker Recreation Center is another Pierce County Parks set of facilities.  Spanaway Lake Park is a 135-acre site set on the shore of the lake from which it takes its name.  The park features picnic and play areas boating and fishing facilities and sports fields as well as a trail system.  Near the park, along Pacific Avenue, is the Lake Spanaway Golf Course, an 18-hole public course.  For information about these or other Pierce County Parks facilities, call 253.798.4176.

Finally, for visitors looking for out-of-the ordinary overnight accommodations while exploring the Parkland-Spanaway area, consider the De Voe Mansion Bed and Breakfast at South 133rd and “B” Avenue in Parkland east of Pacific Avenue.  The De Voe is a 1911-built colonial-style mansion set on 1.5 landscaped acres.  The house is on the National Historic Register.  The B&B’s hosts serve a full breakfast to their guests.  Past delicacies have included smoked salmon croissants, Italian parmesan eggs, and strawberry Belgian waffles. How’s that for a way to start the day?

For more information, call 253.539.3991 or visit thier Web site.

STEVE DUNKELBERGER: PLAYWRIGHTS >>>

Northwest Playwrights Alliance is doing its last stage reading gig at Tacoma's Broadway Center for the Performing Arts before the group shacks up with Seattle Rep in September.
Shows on the roster for Monday's reading include: Last Call, by Lia Romeo; Three Kings, by James Venhaus; The Tale of Johnny Elgam vs. the Newport Kid, by Aaron Shay; Matchmaker, by Cathy Sampson; and Lefty by Bryan Willis.

The stage readings will be at 7 p.m. Aug. 11 at Broadway Center Rehearsal Studio - 915 Broadway. Admission is free.

The Academy of International Education, Broadway Center for the Performing Arts and Northwest Playwrights Alliance will also present a slate of six plays for Play Buffet X at 7 p.m. Aug. 16 at the Theater on the Square.

SUZY STUMP: WE SNAPPED A COUPLE SHOTS >>>

The Weekly Volcano staff worked our Lava Tube Friday and Saturday during Showcase Tacoma, although we did manage to sneak away and snap a couple shots of the arts and music festival in downtown Tacoma.

Check them out at our Photo Hot Spot.

SUZY STUMP: 5 THINGS TO DO TODAY >>>>

10 A.M.: The Pierce County Fair offers animal competitions, carnival rides, kids activities, FFA demonstrations, live entertainment, tons of fair food, and enough vendor exhibits to restock your entire ranch home. Starting today through Sunday, take some time to take part in one of this region's most historical events. Get going to Graham.

10 A.M.: Today from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Ken's Tires (9601 Gravelly Lake Dr. S.W. in Lakewood) the Hot Hut Girls, who have helped make topless women with tape on their nipples making mochas a topic of discussion and debate for all of the South Sound, will hold a benefit car wash for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

11 A.M.: This year's Showcase Tacoma offering of Tacoma talent reaches a nice, quiet critical mass. We offer as introductory evidence Fulcrum Gallery's topographical miniature golf course made from recycled junk; or seemingly random light-pole cozies by local devil-knitters; or the cardboard whale to be crafted by folks from the Helm; or the Weekly Volcano's Lava Tube; the requisite beaded jewelry kiosks; or the all-day, communal chalk drawing; or the Team Unicorn Records label showcase; or go see Deborah Page Ã," range, rhythm, presence, tone, a little funk; all happening in and around Tollefson Plaza in downtown Tacoma.

3 P.M.: Surf on over to the Sharon McGavick Conference Center and let the Asia Pacific Cultural Center transform you to a tropical paradise. Their annual Polynesian Luau celebrates through Polynesian music, food, dance and a beer garden.

7 P.M.: Seattle rock band Truce and Tacoma's hardcore quintet Sirens In the Sky close the book on Tacoma Public Library's last all-ages Rock The Books concert series for the summer tonight at the Tacoma Public Library.

LINK: Live music and DJs tonight
LINK: Viva South Sound arts and entertainment calendar

DANIEL BLUE: MEET MICAH TUCKER >>>

Micah Tucker is a working artist. When I first moved to Tacoma, he was painting huge canvases and hanging them in his friends' apartments. This is perhaps some of the first "art" I was exposed to outside of the graffiti some friends had shown me in Seattle. Not to compare the two, Micah's art was different than anything I had seen that far. Playing on shadows and silhouettes, he had mastered the art of predicting how a person would look, where their eyes would move and what they might see in a chronological order. 

Looking at his paintings was kind of like reading a mystery novel, as they revealed themselves bit by bit and sometimes never completely. For the longest time I stared and stared at a painting he had hung in his and Duggan's hallway. It looked like a random shape, just a pipe and a weird fedora hat thing .... blurry and blocky and cartoony. I knew something was in there, something that I couldn't get my mind to see. That feeling of knowing you don't know, is important to me. I'm frustrated by it, but Micah knows it's all too easy to pretend that what greets your eyes is the end-all truth. He was asking us to take the time to bend our minds in new ways, and in that respect he was a teacher.

Currently Micha is working for Doug Knudson as an end-all, be-all construction cobra. I didn't see his paintings for a while, but recently he hung a show at The Helm. He has not lost his ability to cast your mind into doubt about what you are looking at.

LINK: The Tacoma Files