The Lakewood Playhouse's 75th Anniversary Season party continues with a stage production of 12 Angry Men. In the stage adaptation, and subsequent Sidney Lumet film, a dozen men debate whether a teenage boy with a rap sheet is guilty of murdering his father at knifepoint. The defendant's race is never specified, but he's "one of these people," so pick your minority. Likewise, we never get names from the jurors, just numbers - although we do know the names starring in the local production, according to a Lakewood Playhouse news release:

The show consists of a true "ensemble" of thirteen Local Actors who are "split right down the middle" with both new, and old faces to the Lakewood Playhouse stage including these actors returning from previous productions: JAMES WREDE (Foreman), JACOB TICE (Juror #2), JOSEPH GRANT (Juror #4), JED SLAUGHTER (Juror #6), BRUCE STORY (Juror #8), MICHAEL DRESDNER (Juror #11) and CONNOR TIBKE (The Guard).

We are proud to introduce the following actors to the Lakewood Playhouse Stage: CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL (Juror #3), JAMES CLARK (Juror #5), BOB REED (Juror #7), CURT BEECH (Juror #9), RONNIE HILL (Juror #10) and DENNIS WORRELL (Juror #12).

Yup, that's Weekly Volcano theater critic Christian Carvajal.

Also, how about the artwork above by artist James Stowe? That's awesome.

To purchase your tickets, click here.

THURSDAY, FEB. 13 2014 >>>

1. Forget Venus, Venice, Paris or any other word ending in -is that conjures up love-ish ideas: there's no better way to woo a would-be - or current - Valentine than with an evening of arts-related culture. And Mad Hat Tea Company has fired up its popular Valentine's Day arts show where poets, musicians, craftspeople and artists take tea drinkers to the furthest point from the half-off Valentine's bin at Rite Aid. Buy one of the local artists' pieces such as Fred Novak's collage works from 7-10 p.m., gift it to your date - along with a cup of Maureen's Mad Aphrodesiac tea - and you might just net a very warm and snuggly Valentine's night, indeed!

2. Local artist and Pierce College art professor Danella Sydow has eight pieces on display - including graphite on paper and reliefs - in the Fine Arts Gallery. Sydow is the recipient of the Mayor's Award from the Olympia Arts Commission. Check out her work from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

3. In case you've been rightly avoiding entertainment news over the past month, LaBeouf has been embroiled in a controversy that began with him completely plagiarizing a Daniel Clowes comic called Justin M. Damiano for a short film he directed. Predictably, LaBeouf was immediately found out once he put the film online, and what has followed has been an exercise in lame, art-school-failure performance art, and acts of privilege and delusion so mind-boggling they'd make Justin Beiber wince. Interested in seeing a young, preciously untainted Shia LaBeouf? His adaptation of the beloved Louis Sachar novel, Holes, will be screened at the Moore Library at 3 p.m. If you hiss every time his dumb face shows up on screen, though, you'll never make it through the movie.

4. There's not much better than sharing something you love from your childhood with the next generation of kids. There's not much worse than beloved literature being remade into something unrecognizable in the name of "modernization." The House at Pooh Corner currently at Olympia Family Theater allows you to revel in your nostalgia - provided your childhood bears were more "fluff and stuff" than gruesome killing machines. There are a couple elements that are new, a pseudo "who's on first" type of schtick with the characters Early and Late and a Christopher Robin who is more petulant than the sweet boy from Milne's and Disney's classic stories. Additions aside, OFT's production is charming, funny and quite adorable. Read Joann Varnell's review of the show, then catch it at 7 p.m.

5. Rudolph Valentino found his definitive screen image in the 1921 rape romance The Sheik, as a dashing desert vagabond who captures a tempestuous English girl. The film was so popular that a brand of prophylactics was named after it, a rare distinction indeed. Did Rudolph Valentino's silent film The Sheik help shape U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East? You decide as you watch the silent flick backed by vocalists Connie Corrick and Hugh Hastings at 7 p.m. in the Washington Center.

LINK: Thursday, Feb. 13 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

This just in from the city of Lakewood's newsroom

Overnight winds knocked down an aging barn at Fort Steilacoom Park, one that has likely stood for more than a century.

The barn - located east of Waughop Lake - was the most fragile of the park's historic barns and wasn't being used for storage or any other purpose, according to Parks, Recreation and Community Services Director Mary Dodsworth.

It is also located outside of the park's historic barn area and will not impact any current use or operation at the state-owned park, she said.

No one was hurt when the barn collapsed overnight. The City of Lakewood - which this month assumed control of the lease of the 340-acre Fort Steilacoom Park from the State of Washington - erected temporary fencing around the fallen barn and is planning to remove the barn material from the park.

The City will work with Department of Social and Health Services to determine if any of the material should be retained for historical significance.

Dodsworrth said the barn was built on a cement slab, which will be retained for future use.

MONDAY, FEB. 10 2014 >>>

1. Sometimes you just need to bang your head. At least we do, and tonight's head-banging options will satiate any and all neck-injuring, hair-thrashing needs you may have. Check out cock-rock dinosaur Michael Schenker - the German guitarist, famous for his half-black, half-white Gibson Flying V guitar - at 9 p.m. in the Rock N Roll Lodge. Schenker - unknown to most, but legend to his fans - started down Debauchery Road at a young age, having played lead guitar for the revered Eurometal bands UFO and Scorpions by the time he was 18 years of age. He went on to the Michael Schenker Group in the '80s, which was one long guitar solo.

2. Myriam J.A. Chancy - a Haitian-Canadian writer and professor of English who wrote The Loneliness of Angels, which explores a spiritual world ranging from mysticism to Judaism - will speak on "The Memory Table" at 5:30 p.m. in the Tahoma Room at Commencement Hall on the University of Puget Sound campus.

3. Musician and educator Antonio Davidson-Gomez will discuss Afro-Latin music legacies through a hands-on presentation combining instruments and rhythms with history, language and more at 7 p.m. in the Lakewood Pierce County Library.

4. The New Frontier Lounge isn't The Five Spot on Cooper Square. Then again, it doesn't sit in the East Village of the 1950s either. But, grab the corner bar stool Monday nights at The New Frontier, nurse a double bourbon, close your eyes and let pianist Nate Dybevik, bassist Arneson Cameron and drummer Peter Tietjen take you to the famous New York City jazz club over the din of the drinking Tacoma crowd. It as it should be: hearing cool jazz in a comfortable, no-pressure environment. The Peach Serene Jazz Trio kicks it at 9 p.m.

5. Every Monday Jazzbones is packed to the brim with college kids. Party types. The type that wear tight shirts and trucker hats. Throngs of Chad Fratguys and Sarah Sororitysisters swarm the bar, line up for the bathroom and dance to the Rockaraoke - live band karaoke. The Rockaraoke band is skilled, too. Expect $2 PBR drafts, $3 Sinfire shots, $4 Smirnoff flavor vodka bombs.

LINK: Monday, Feb. 10 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SATURDAY, JAN. 25 2014 >>>

1. In the early ‘80s, Donald Glaude filled Lakes High School house parties with Funkadelic, Commodores and underground hip-hop. While the dudes played REAL quarters the women flocked around Glaude. His musical knowledge, good looks and outgoing personality made him king of Lakes High School. From there, he emerged himself in the Seattle house and rave music scene before becoming one of the most traveled international DJs of our time. Always a smile, and women on both side of his decks, Glaude still commands the worldwide house music scene, in front of the turntables and behind the studio mixing board. Glaude returns home for a night at Jazzbones, with Skeemer and Mr. Clean opening, and the Northwest DJ roster before him. Respect.

2. The Proctor Art Gallery celebrates its fifth anniversary from 1-5 p.m. Drop by and chat with the artists, take advantage of sales, enjoy refreshments, entertainment and door prizes. 

3. In its 12th year and for the seventh straight year in Olympia, the community is invited to take part in an active weekend of highlighting the plagues of poverty, discrimination, inhumanity and homelessness while simultaneously celebrating the spirit of togetherness during the annual Hip-Hop 4 The Homeless benefit. For the cost of donated items such as food, clean clothing, hygiene items and cash, the 5 p.m. family friendly concert in The Olympia Ballroom features Afrok & The Movement, Speaker Minds (Portland), AKA & The Heart Hurt Goods, The Sharp Five and Real Life Click, plus the annual 25360 Awards celebration.

4. A few decades ago, the term "early music" (generally speaking, any music written before J.S. Bach) had the same cachet as brown rice or granola: esoteric stuff that was vaguely good for you, but none too tasty or easy to digest. And as for performing early music, only specialists need apply. Nowadays, performances of Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque music on period instruments - not to mention instrumentalists and vocalists versed in early performance styles as a matter of course in their studies - are the very enjoyable norm, and a lot of great, previously unknown music has become popular and beloved by audiences. At 7 p.m. in Tacoma's Trinity Lutheran Church, the Salish Sea Early Music Festival will focus on the musical styles during the reign of Louis XV, who became king in 1715 at the age of five upon the death of his grandfather Louis XIV.

Producing Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is like saddling a dragon. We caught struggles for lines, most adroitly concealed. The blocking isn't great for performance in the round. There are patrons who won't know what to make of all its profanity, carnality and perma-drunk savagery. What unnerves most, though, is the fact that this drama has no hero or heroine for us to cheer. There's no tragic downfall, as its characters bring misery on themselves. Yet the acting in this Lakewood Playhouse production, on all four counts but especially from Deane and Garman, is extraordinary, some of the best we'll see all year. Read Christian Carvajal's full review of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? in the Music & Culture section, then catch the 8 p.m. show.

LINK: Saturday, Jan. 25 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

Lakewood resident, military spouse and mother of three Jamie Johnson represented Joint Base Lewis-McChord at the 2014 Mrs. Washington America Pageant Jan. 18 in Bellevue.

Johnson's chosen platform was veteran Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) awareness and support. She also wanted to show her pride in being a military spouse and was thrilled to represent the military community in the event.

Read more...

After 10 years, Babblin' Babs Bistro is moving from its 900-square-foot location in Tacoma's Proctor District to a 3,500-square-foot location on Gravelly Lake Drive in Lakewood.

"We're going for a full new look," said chef and co-owner William Mueller. "We'll have state-of-the-art equipment, and we'll be changing up some of the menu."

Some of the bigger changes include a grab-and-go area with lattes, soups, salads and sandwiches, such as the hot ham and brie or West Indie chicken curry sandwich. Mueller said the bistro will also bring in lunchtime entrees with big twists, such as spinach and jicama salad tossed in warm papaya vinaigrette and topped with grilled shrimp, pineapple and pancetta.

"Our concept has always been we don't make anything you would make at home. If you want pancakes, you can just stay home in your fuzzy slippers," said Mueller with a smile in his voice. "We are going to continue to be that place for unique urban eating."

Why the move?

While plans for 28 Proctor Holdings LLC's five story mixed use development was headed for the spot Babblin' Babs once created Bodacious Biscuits, Mueller admits that Babblin' Babs Bistro had outgrown the space, and that he and his wife, Shannon, who runs the business with him, are looking forward to the move.  

"I think being in Lakewood is going to be better for several reasons," Mueller said. "The traffic is heavy; we'll have more visibility and way more fun as a restaurant because we'll actually have staff. We're just excited to be in a city that wants us."

Mueller said the bistro will still serve the best of breakfast and lunch. It will likely stay open later and offer dinner service Friday to Sunday.

Opening date for the new location is still six months out, so Mueller suggests following Babblin' Babs Bistro on Twitter and Facebook for updates and photos.

BABBLIN' BABS BISTRO, 11126 Gravelly Lake Dr, Lakewood, 253.761.9099

See Also

Chef Mueller's line of spices