TUESDAY, SEPT. 28, 2010 >>>

1. The last 6th Avenue Farmers Market runs today from 3:30-7:30 p.m. Stop by Sixth and Pine and hug your favorite vendor goodbye.

2. The offspring of Northwest Garden Guru Ed Hume, James Hume, typically specializes in acrylic on canvas, but for his latest exhibit, Not Painting Flowers, showing from noon to 5 p.m. at the Sandpiper Gallery, he's abandoning typical crutches and going all out. Inspired by a trip to Paris, and the "fleeting masterpieces" Hume saw from street artists in the Metro, Hume says, "With my new work I'm breaking all my old habits and experimenting with stencils, spray paint, Photoshop and even my iPhone." Read the full story here.

3. Tuesday Read-In from 5-7 p.m. at Last Word Books is your chance to sit, read, drink tea and argue politics.

4. The Broadway Center presents another happy hour season preview/sneak peek thingy from 5:30-7:30 p.m. with a glimpse behind Cirque Mechanics Boom Town. As you sip dollar drinks inside the Pantages Theater you'll witness feats of strength and the latest mining fashion. If you hang for the whole happy hour you'll have the opportunity to win two free tickets to see Jo Dee Messina or Eileen Ivers.

5. Big Wheel Restaurant and Lounge hosts a College "Nite" beginning at 8 p.m. featuring $2 beers and $2 wells and a DJ spinning all vinyl.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

ARTS COVERAGE IN THIS WEEK'S VOLCANO:

Return of a legend: Ben Vereen is the real deal by Christian Carvajal

Disorienting space: A review of the 8th Annual Juried Exhibition at Tacoma Community College by Alec Clayton

Tracy Triumphant: Hairspray doesn't stop the beat by Christian Carvajal

Sporadically spectacular: Lord Franzannian keeps it moving by Christian Carvajal

LINK: Arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

SUNDAY, SEPT. 19, 2010 >>>

1. Avast, me hearties! If one day a year - Sept. 19's Talk Like a Pirate Day - is not enough time for channeling your inner pirate, then perhaps you belong at the Tacoma Little Theatre. These rascally representatives present Bryan Willis 30 minutes of piratical madness, I Love You, Flavilla, at 7:30 and 9 p.m. So track down your ruffled shirt, peg leg, eye patch and parrot, because anyone dresses as a pirate receives a half-price discount. Yarrr!

2. The Artist Craft Fair is an exhibition and sale of handmade alternative arts and crafts from independent artists presented by Tacoma Is For Lovers, Indie Tacoma and King's Books. The fair, which runs from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. inside King's Books, will feature rows and row of arts, crafts, jewelry, letterpress prints, T-shirts and a photo booth.

3. Preston Singletary's Echoes, Fire, and Shadows show at the Museum of Glass closes today. It was a huge show. Perhaps it was the lighting and the size and variety of the show that was so impressive. The walls were dark and each artwork was individually and dramatically spotlighted. The overall impact was powerful and magical, and most if not all of the individual pieces were beautiful. Run over to MOG today and catch the last day of the show from noon to 5 p.m.

4. Country band Broken Trail will be hosting the jam at The Lady Luck Cowgirl Up from 4-8 p.m. Bring your instrument, your pirate voice, or just watch with a bottle of rum.

Shiver me timbers! Beware of the Word Nerds! Prepare ye for a rowdy Talk Like a Pirate Day edition of Scrabble Rousers, a competition suitable for all levels, from 6:30-9:30 p.m. at King's Books. Mateys establish their own skill level: beginner, intermediate, or expert. Scalliwags are then paired off to battle it out in two successive games. Entrance fee is $10 per person with proceeds directly benefiting the Tacoma Community House Student Scholarship Fund, which assists students as they transfer from TCH to community college.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

FRIDAY, SEPT. 17, 2010 >>>

1. The current record for Largest Food Drive Ever netted half a million pounds of food.  Now Emergency Food Network, Northwest Harvest, Tacoma Public Schools and the Stadium Centennial Foundation hope to celebrate the Stadium Bowl's 100th anniversary by doubling that record from Friday to Saturday.  Fill the Bowl kicks off (that's a pun, sports fans!) with a 3 p.m. parade, followed by the epic feline gridiron battle of the Tigers of Stadium High vs. the Lions of Bellarmine Prep and screenings of "10 Things I Hate About You" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" beginning at 10 p.m.  All donations go to food banks right here in the Puget Sound area.  Cash donations are greatly appreciated; giving $10 is as simple as texting "Hunger" to 89544. To donate more, text "Hunger" followed by the dollar amount to 27138.

2. Chalking up the concrete spaces around Frost Park from noon to 1 p.m. might not top most people's list of things to do today. However, let us throw this enticement at you: If the Feed Tacoma peeps vote your chalk art as the Frost Park Chalk Challenge winner, you'll win two two-day passes to the Tacoma Craft Beer Festival Oct. 1-2 at the Foss Waterway Seaport. We're talking 50 breweries and more than 100 different craft beers. We're talking a $74 value. We're done talking.

3. Black Sheep Creamery co-owner and cheese maker Brad Gregory will introduce Metropolitan Market customers to artisan and specialty cheeses from 3-7 p.m.

4. Elizabeth Lord is many things:  bartender, storyteller, gifted actor - and, once a year, Lord Franzannian, the gruff but lovable drag host of Oly's premier vaudeville revue, Lord Franzannian's Royal Olympia Spectacular, which hits the Midnight Sun Performance Space stage at 8 p.m. We don't know what the good Lord's lineup will be this year, but odds are there'll be music, juggling and lovely ladies of all shapes and sizes removing frilly garments for your edification and pleasure.

5. Doyle's Public House throws a "Halfway to St. Patrick's Day Party" featuring Ockham's Razor at 9 p.m.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concerts go on sale today

TOURING CIRQUE SHOW IS AN ACROBATIC DREAMSCAPE >>>

If the International Olympic Committee is looking for any ideas to spice up their gymnastics competition, I have a list. It starts with team gymnastics. And none of that lame "one at a time" crap. I'm talking doubles parallel bars, two people running at the vault from opposite sides.

That would be followed by flaming rhythmic gymnastics. Just like normal rhythmic gymnastics, with hoops and ribbons and balls. Except on fire. It's not a difficult concept

I know these things are possible, and I know they would be crowd-pleasers of epic proportions. I know this because similar feats of awesomeness are the centerpiece of Cirque du Soleil's Alegría, running through Sunday, Sept. 19 at the Tacoma Dome.

I imagine these same - or close enough - acts play into most Cirque du Soleil shows, but last night's show was the first I had the pleasure to attend, so I cannot speak for the rest. There are twirling fire batons, synchronized trapeze artists, and an assortment of other running, jumping, bouncing, spinning and balancing.

If you read the website - or, I imagine, the $20 program - there is some pretense of a story threaded throughout the show, but it is lost without pre-reading, or the ability to understand the singing. Instead, the experience is largely one of music and visuals.

The performance is best described as an aerial ballet. The trapeze and other airborne artists move with an ease that more closely resembles dance than purely technical feats.

Despite the impressive nature of the acrobatics, however, by far the most popular facet of the show was the comedic work of a pair of clowns. The two play out in a series of vignettes the humorous sort of rivalry and friendship rarely seen outside of under-10 siblings.

Alegría's biggest weakness is unfortunately in its choice of venue. I say unfortunately because there is nowhere else in Tacoma suited to the size of the production. But the uncomfortable bleacher seats and undisguiseable sports-arena aesthetic of the interior detract significantly from the overall experience.

These minimal unpleasantries, however, do not overpower the epic music, floating between '90s new age pop and accordion-heavy tango, or the beauty of the oddly curving set, or any other facet of the production, and despite somewhat overblown prices, Alegría remains a worthwhile evening of entertainment.

Cirque du Soleil performs Alegría

7:30 p.m. Sept. 16, 17, 18; 3:30 p.m. Sept. 17, 18; 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. Sept. 19
$44-$104 adults/$41-$95 seniors, students, military/$37-$84 ages 2-12/free ages under-2
Tacoma Dome, 2727 E. D St., Tacoma
866.448.7849
www.cirquedusoleil.com
www.ticketmaster.com

BRING ON THE WEEKEND >>>

As was noted earlier in the cult-Spew-favorite "Weekend Hustle," not only is the weekend upon us, but I'll be taking all next week off.  Vacation time is rare for me, so I'm planning on going all out. Early prognosticators are calling for heavy doses of sweat pants at the Driscoll household over the next week.  Also, the afternoon nap's stock appears to be rising. 

So, let's jump into one of my last Volcano obligations before heading off for a full week of vacation-y fun. It's The Prefunk, a weekend primer for you and your liver - with an added picture of an alcoholic household pet thrown in for good measure.

THE LAST FIVE YEARS

SEPT. 11 @ The Mecca in Tacoma

If you follow the arts in Tacoma, chances are you're familiar with the upstart theater company Gold From Straw. Gold From Straw's production of Doubt earlier this year won rave reviews, and the hype is only building for the company's future plans, which include the upcoming Almost, Maine - a play featured in the Volcano's recently released Fall Arts Guide spectacular. Main man (read: Artistic Director) Aaron Schmookler has been able to build a buzz, and for good reason: Gold From Straw Theatre Company has already shown the desire and drive to shake up and invigorate Tacoma's theater scene.

Gold From Straw's mission statement reads like something like the liberal arts version of Vince Lombardi might have said (OK, so that's an exaggeration, but still...)

Gold From Straw Theatre Company exists to produce innovative and exciting works of theater that celebrate and nourish the human spirit.  With a commitment to the highest artistic standards, we stage an eclectic array of new works and classics that are raw, substantial and sophisticated while simultaneously sincere, and optimistic.  Gold From Straw is a gathering place for artists, audiences, students, teachers.  As our name suggests, we recognize and embrace an element of alchemy in theatre - where so many share a single focus, transformation on some level is inevitable.  Our work is meant not only to interest and entertain, but also to remind us of what we share.  As we practice it, theatre creates environments where we all can celebrate our common humanity.

Gold From Straw:  Surprise.  Delight.  Inspire.

This Saturday at 8 p.m. at the Mecca you'll have another chance to catch The Last Five Years (a play that also ran last Saturday) - being put on in an effort to raise funds for future Gold From Straw endeavors. Erik Hill directs the work, which is being billed as "a full production sans lights and sets," with musical direction from Jenifer Rifenbery. Bruce Story and Samantha Camp take starring rolls.

According to official descriptions, The Last Five Years is "a contemporary song-cycle musical that ingeniously chronicles the five year life of a marriage, from meeting to break-up... or from break-up to meeting, depending on how you look at it. Written by Jason Robert Brown, The Last Five Years is an intensely personal look at the relationship between a writer and an actress told from both points of view."

PREFUNK: You could do any number of things to get yourself primed for Saturday night's production of The Last Five Years. Honestly, I don't feel right leading you in one particular direction or another. What I will point out is how much things have changed over the years, and how priming you for a production at the Mecca would have been really easy (and kind of gross) not too long ago. 

FRIDAY, SEPT. 10, 2010 >>>

Just like Puyallup as a town has grown exponentially from its small, humble beginnings - from field plowing, porch talking and cow milking to cheap beer, high school football and dusty trucks right into full-size SUVS, flat-screen televisions and suburban sprawl - the Puyallup Fair has grown up beside it. What started as a three-day "Valley Fair" in a vacant lot has exploded into a monster spectacle - occupying 169 acres and 17 days, regularly drawing crowds of 1.1 million per year and generally shocking the senses with a staggering array of ShamWows, sit-down foot massage machines, big ass cows, hot tub demonstrations, Funtastic carnie people, Krusty Pups, onion burgers, giant stuffed panda bears, hypnotist shows, guys with Janet Jackson headsets trying to sell stuff, live concerts, elephant ears, and "fun for the whole family." The Puyallup Fair opens today at 10 a.m. Read our Hipster's Guide to the Puyallup Fair here.

2. Justen Ahren, director of the Martha's Vineyard Writers Residency, will be the Distinguished Writer Series' featured poet at 7 p.m. inside King's Books. An open poetry mic will follow Ahren's performance.

3. Sleuth is a mystery. Kind of. Maybe. Which is to say, it might come down to a death that could have happened, depending upon whose account you believe. Including your own. Tacoma Little Theatre stages Sleuth at 7:30 p.m. Read our review of the show here.

4. George Winston looks like a perfect, well-proportioned pianist. Not too big, and not too small, George Winston is the type of pianist everyone can embrace. He's an inviting pianist. And a masterful pianist. Hell, he invented his own goddamn playing style, folk piano. Wait! What did you think we were talking about? Winston will perform at 8 p.m. inside the Rialto Theater, and if you're lucky he'll bust out one of his interpretations of Frank Zappa. That's no pianist joke, either.

5. Chalet Bowl hosts Rock ‘n Glow bowling featuring black lights, bumpin' music and sharks with freakin' lasers on their heads beginning at 10 p.m.

Oh, and there's a Back To School party at the Speakeasy Arts Cooperative tonight, too.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concerts go on sale today

TODAY'S PICKS >>>

Bumbershoot, day two: survived. Albeit slowed down a bit. Having played a three-hour show of my own Friday night, it's felt from minute one like I was one day deeper than I ought to be into the festival. So today felt like the tail end of day three, when there is still one more to go. I did manage to make at least the majority of my planned list, though.

If I'd known that The Tripwires were fronted by Minus 5 guitarist John Ramberg ... well I still would have seen them. But I would have done it for an actual reason, instead of their leadoff position. They have a bizarre but awesome tendency to leap suddenly from power-pop to classic boogie. I am for it.

Eldridge Grave & The Court Supreme were, let's be honest, just a lot whiter than I was expecting. Fortunately it did not make them less funky, and thus was my craving satisfied.

Sweet Water was Sweet Water. I was able to catch a few songs, including old classic "Feed Yourself," before fleeing off to the indoors for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

The cast of Putnam was not exactly top-notch pros, and the singing was a bit off throughout, but the show is quite entertaining, and they all play their absurd characters with enthusiasm and enjoyment.

A brief stop at Fisher Green Stage for Georgia Anne Muldrow & Declaime provided the main "meh" of the day. Maybe I'm missing something key, but I've always found that my favorite rappers are the ones with an actual band, instead of just a laptop.

Instead we trucked over to catch David Bazan, who, unlike the last time I saw him - and unlike Ms. Muldrow - was sporting a band. Having a drummer does wonders for his energy level, and makes his excellent songwriting much less likely to put everyone to sleep.

A quick stroll past The Bouncing Souls confirmed that while I've no complaints about their quality, it just was not what I was in the mood for. Instead it was back to Broad Street Stage for Ra Ra Riot. Good music for lying in the grass and relaxing for a while.

My search for jazz failed somewhat, as the Coryell, Auger Sample Trio turned out to be less jazz and more funky than anticipated, and my funk quota for the day had been filled.

Fortunately yesterday's mediocre start left me craving some blues that actually sounded like the blues, and James Cotton with his Superharp skills gladly provided.

Winner of the day goes to the last act I say, British folk legend Billy Bragg. There's just something about an Englishman standing at the microphone, waiting until everyone is quiet and saying "Tumescence," just to see how it sounds with the reverb – that speaks to me.

So far Bumbershoot this year has, on the whole, under whelmed. It had a lot to live up to for me after the last couple years, but has been falling short. Still, there's one day left, so we'll see. And speaking of one day left, let's see what's on for Monday:

12:30 p.m., EMP Sky Church: People Eating People

What, not the first show of the day? Madness! Anyway, I figure I ought to venture into Sky Church and see what kids these days are listening too at least once this year. And I like piano-driven music, and missed Vienna Teng.

1:15 PM, Starbucks Stage - Trampled By Turtles

Trampling seems such a violent act for such slow critters. I'm hoping they live up to their name, even though I don't really have any idea what that would mean.

2 p.m., Leo K Theatre Words & Ideas Stage: Why Bacon? Why Cupcakes? Why Now?

They seem to be ridiculous questions, I know, but apparently the discussion is on their recent pop-food-culture invasion - cupcake boutiques, Baconaisse - rather than why we like to eat them. This is admittedly not entirely my selection, but I'm engaged now, and no longer entirely responsible for my actions.

4 p.m., Broad Street Stage: Meat Puppets

There's a big chunk of time in there where I can't quite make up my mind, but when it comes to the Meat Puppets, there can be no question. These are guys I need to see, end of story.

5:15 p.m., Center House Theatre: Sondheim, Weill & Newman: A Cabaret

One more chunk of theatre, as Black Box Opera assembles a show out of the work of Stephen Sondheim, Kurt Weill, and curmudgeonly Randy Newman. It'll be too bizarre and potential awesome to miss.

6:30 p.m., Center Square Stage: Anvil

Enjoying a resurgence - or possibly just a surgence - due to their recent documentary, Anvil: The Story of Anvil, Anvil brings a much-lacking dose of metal to the proceedings. I should only need a song or two to get me through, for which my girlfriend will thank me.

6:45 p.m., Starbucks Stage: Jenny & Johnny

Jenny Lewis, lead singer of Rilo Kiley, seems to be pretty much everywhere these days, and one of those places is here, with gentleman friend Johnny Rice. Worth at least some of a listen to see what's up.

8:30 p.m., Starbucks Stage: Booker T.

After dinner, there is no choice but to see Booker T. As much as anyone at this festival except Dylan, Booker T. is true legend, as a songwriter, studio musician and all-around organ badass.

9:30 p.m., Fisher Green Stage: The English Beat

They don't lie; there really is a mirror in the bathroom. That kind of honesty is hard to come by these days.

See you out there, kids! I'll be the guy hoping he doesn't have to use his umbrella for anything but a walking stick.

LINK: Today's Bumbershoot schedule

SUNDAY, SEPT. 5, 2010 >>>

1. Guitarist Billy Farmer's Breakfast Jam begins at 9 a.m. inside the Tides Tavern in Gig Harbor.

2. Sleuth is a mystery. Kind of. Maybe. Which is to say, it might come down to a death that could have happened, depending upon whose account you believe. Including your own. Read my full review here before catching it at 2 p.m. inside Tacoma Little Theatre.

3. A spin-off of a fake trailer from Grindhouse, Machete is about as meta as meta can get. It's art inspired by art inspired by art.

4. The Grand Cinema's screening of the gruesome Italian-made schlockfest The Beyond ends today with a 4 p.m. showing.

5. DJ Destiny spins country music beginning at 9 p.m. inside Lady Luck's Cowgirl Up Steakhouse and Saloon in Parkland.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

FRIDAY, SEPT. 3, 2010 >>>

1. Stuart M. Dempster opens his month-long ship-themed paintings show at Amocat Café with a reception from 4:30-7:30 p.m.

2. It's Ladies Night at Edgeworks Climbing in Tacoma. Beginning at 5 p.m. the climbing gym in Tacoma discounts its prices for the ladies.

3. In Jeffrey Hatcher's 2008 adaptation Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde play at Harlequin Productions, Hyde is represented by four actors, one of them female, but Jekyll's a different actor altogether. It's a challenging idea, which Harlequin Production's director Scot Whitney does a fine job of communicating quickly. Read our full review here. Tonight's bonus: It's Ladies Night featuring complimentary champagne and chocolate in the lobby from 7-7:30 p.m., followed by the play at 8 p.m.

4. Horror films have carved out a bloody niche for themselves on the badlands of mainstream cinema. So it makes sense that The Grand Cinema will begin making screen space for this oft-overlooked genre with a new monthly series beginning tonight at 9:09 p.m. with the gruesome Italian-made schlockfest, The Beyond.

5. The Dirty Change up and the Revengers perform at 10 p.m. inside O'Malley's Irish Pub.

LINK: More events in The Weekend Hustle

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concert go on sale today