CALLING TO LOCAL ACTORS/ACTRESSES >>>

Today in TacomaArt listserv action, Tacoma artist/filmmaker Joseph Kephart posted a shout out to actors to join his Rock A Bye Dead Man short rock musical project:

CALLING CREATIVE PEOPLE!!!!!!!

Hi, we are a small local production company who has put on musical theater in the past. We're looking to create a short rock musical in the film noir/whodunit style. And we need your help. Starting now we are looking for actors/actresses, a music production studio, behind the scenes people and pretty much anyone who has resources valuable to a quality production.

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SUNDAY, AUG. 8, 2010 >>>

1. The Tacoma Cult Movie Club presents a night of vampires films, as well as the usual shorts, raffles and popcorn, at 7 p.m. inside the Acme Grub Cage.

2. Washington State History Museum and the Longhouse Education and Cultural Center at The Evergreen State College present In the Spirit: Native Arts Market and Festival - a fabulous opportunity to buy and see cool stuff from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the History Museum.  During the event, festivalgoers can experience a juried art exhibit, arts market, and performances - all in the Native American tradition.  There are artisans, storytellers and musicians, plus a vendor area with goods for sale such as carvings, weavings, engravings, clothing and more.  Allow time to see the museum's regular exhibits as well.

3. Tacoma's Shakespeare In the Parking Lot Theatre Company will perform the award-winning tragicomic drama Arcadia by Tom Stoppard - author of the play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and the screenplay for Shakespeare in Love - at 2 p.m. at the Tacoma Art Museum. Kids 11 and younger will giggle or bang their heads on the wall, depending how they were raised.

4. Le Voyeur Café and Lounge in Olympia presents a rare all-ages matinee-ish show featuring Hell Woman, Pitted Youth, High Five and No High Five at 5 p.m.

5. The Radio8Ball Show is a musical talk/game show based on the concept of synchronicity. The format is simple and unique: Guests and audience members ask questions to The Pop Oracle, and the answers are divined by spinning a wheel or picking a card that determines which song the musical guest will perform as the answer to the question. Speakeasy Arts Cooperative hosts Radio8Ball with singer-songwriter Jerin Falkner from 7-10 p.m. Ask away, just make sure you're ready for the answer.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

Harlequin Productions opens up the read through of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hide >>>

In movies and TV, they call it a table read.  In theater, we call it a read-through.  It's the first rehearsal, at which the cast meets for the first time to sit around a long table and "read through" the script from beginning to end.  As an actor, it's always one of my favorite work nights.  I see it as a chance to show off whatever talent I bring to the (literal) table, right out of the gate.  Others see it as an unnecessary chore.  Some read their lines in a flat monotone, awaiting further instruction from the director before injecting personality or even emphasis into the words.  As a director, it always feels like a harbinger of what's to come.  If the cast understands and enjoys the play, I relax.  If line readings are murky, if the actors look bored or irritated, if the script evokes nothing but boredom, well, that can strike terror into even the most enthusiastic director.

I've been doing theater a long time, but Harlequin's Scot Whitney is trying something I've never seen or heard of before:  He invited the public to watch the read-through of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde for free.  It's a measure of the talent Harlequin attracts that Whitney can even consider this.  Ordinarily, there's at least one actor in every cast who's so unskilled at cold (unrehearsed) reading it threatens to derail the whole production.  Whitney has no such problems.  Aaron Lamb makes a smart Jekyll, ably assisted by Mike Dooly, Caitlin Frances (Six Hotels), Helen Harvester (Lamb's costar in Mating Dance of the Werewolf), Russ Holm, and Theatre Puget Sound president Frank Lawler.  Four of these actors will oppose Jekyll as the vicious Mr. Hyde.  As first readings go, this was top of the line.

In addition to the fine cast, we were introduced to Harlequin's designers and their process.  Harlequin actors have the advantage of completed tech designs before the first rehearsal.  Lighting designer Kate Arvin, set designer Jill Carter, and costume designer Kathleen Anderson demonstrated clear conceptualizations and, in Carter's case, some snazzy new drafting software obtained by tech director Marko Bujeaud.

It's obviously too early to review the show; I'll do that when it opens on Aug. 26.  Suffice to say the script is as complex and erudite as we've come to expect from Jeffrey Hatcher, one of Oly directors' favorite playwrights.  What it's not, at least upon first read, is funny; it relies on more cerebral energies.  "Erudite" can be a synonym for "talky." There's plenty of action in Jekyll & Hyde, but it's hard to glean that from condensed stage directions, so I look forward to seeing the story fleshed out with action and atmosphere.  Whitney says he wants to do public read-throughs for every play produced at Harlequin; indeed, he's already set Sept. 6 as the date for Taming of the Shrew.  I can't imagine I'll attend every read-through.  Granted, I've read (or performed, or produced) many of the scripts for the plays I critique, but I've come to relish the element of surprise.  Public rehearsals, even read-throughs, are a bold move, though unconventional and inclusive, and this one allows me to add a single, mysterious spoiler, the first line of the play:

"This is what I know..."

THURSDAY, AUG. 5, 2010 >>>

1. Come Out And Play Open Mic with hosts Kim Archer and Nick Sandy runs at the Tempest Lounge from 7-10 p.m.

2. Children have taken over The Gallery at TCC. It's cool. They didn't kiss the walls with Kool-Aid stained mouths or anything of the sort. Instead the tykes - ages 6-9 - have covered the walls with their artwork during their Early Learning Center summer program stay. Drop by for a looksy from 4 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. 

3. Once a month the environmental community group Tacoma Green Drinks gets together to just have fun and meet new people. They don't try to solve any problems, sign you up to testify for anything or ask you for money. They just want to have fun ... and drink. Tonight they'll gather from 5:30-8 p.m. at Wildside Wine. While they say they won't try to solve and problems, we'd like to see what happens if you throw your napkin in the wrong bin.

4. Good news about a depressing thing: South Puget Sound Community College Drama Department will revisit The Laramie Project - the story of the death of gay University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard - as they did eight years ago. This time, the play returns in a new form as The Laramie Project: 10 Years Later, revisiting the community and its ongoing struggle to cope with what happened that night. See it at 8 p.m. inside the Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Arts.

5. Go Hard Or Go Home MC Battle, hosted by SP, with DJ Travisty, begins at 11 p.m. inside The Royal Lounge in Olympia.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

TUESDAY, AUG. 3, 2010 >>>

1. Over the years, a trend in South Sound neighborhoods has shifted residents' attention from the front porch to the decks, patios and porches in back of the house - and away from what's going on in their own neighborhood. That might not seem so important, but Safe Streets says regularly retreating to the sanctuary of a backyard can hurt neighborhood awareness and organization. So one of many block parties tonight as part of National Night Out and step off your front park, around the kid's skateboard, and into the streets, in front of businesses and into parks to bond with your neighbors. Also, the Hilltop Artist Arts Night Out featuring glassblowing, graffiti art, chalk art contest, potluck, DJ, dancing and more will be held from 4-8 p.m. at Jason Lee Middle School.

2. The League of Women Voters of Tacoma-Pierce County host candidates from Legislative Districts 2, 25, 31; County Council District 1; auditor; and prosecuting attorney for handshakes and snacks at 5:30 p.m., followed by a brief explanation from each candidate on how to solve the budget problem, ending with more handshakes and less snacks at Pierce College in Puyallup.

3. Harlequin Productions will hold a free public reading of its next production, Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, (adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher' from the original novella by Robert Louis Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde) at 6:30 p.m. inside the State Theater in Olympia.

4. Ralph Porter hosts Ha Ha Tuesdays with guest comics Joe Fontnot and Lance Edward at 8:30 p.m. inside Jazzbones. DJ Omar spins afterward.

5. Infernal Legion, Terra Morta and Gorratorium will perform some lovely devil metal at 9 p.m. inside Hell's Kitchen. But the angels behind the bar will be serving $2 tacos, $2 beers and $2 wells.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

FRIDAY, JULY 30, 2010 >>>

1. Tacoma is often described as a city full of underdog freaks. If this is the case (and there does seem to be some truth to it), Tacoma will eat up the Hellzapoppin Sideshow Review, set to infest Hell's Kitchen with more bearded women, human pincushions and oddities than normal beginning at 8 p.m. Having awed and weirded-out audiences around the world, including on the Van's Warped Tour and Ozzfest, the traveling misfit hellions behind the Hellzapoppin Sideshow Review know a thing or two about capturing your attention. Bizarreness sells, and it's wildly entertaining.

2. The Here and Now show at Fulcrum Gallery from noon to 6 p.m. explores the parallels between young artists and professionally showing established artists. Read Alec Clayton's review of the show here.

3. The Olalla Community Club will host a fundraiser for this year's Olalla Bluegrass (& beyond) Festival at 7:30 p.m. featuring music by The Blackberry Bushes String Band and Asthmatic Kitty recording artist Shannon Stephens.

4. Chances are you've got a couple dumb friends. It's the law of averages. Well, Hamlet was no different; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern may not have been the sharpest, but they were his buddies - even obliviously escorting him to banishment. The Outfit Theatre Project stages Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead at 8 p.m. inside the Lakewood Playhouse. Read Joe Izenman's review of the show here.

5. A fundraiser for the Underground Derby League, an all female roller derby league, featuring R&B funk band Bump Kitchen as well as raffles, drawings, merchandise and information about the Underground Derby League will be held at 9 p.m. inside the 4^th Ave Tavern in Olympia.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: Concert go on sale today

THURSDAY, JULY 29, 2010 >>>

1. If you followed Weekly Volcano Editor Matt Driscoll's lead last night at the Best of Tacoma 2010 party, chances are you're in desperate need of an effective hangover remedy this morning/afternoon. Since the main culprit of a nasty hangover is dehydration, you should have been drinking plenty of water with your booze last night at Masa. If not, only time is going to make the hairy, ugly pounding go away. These morning-after drink recipes from legendary restaurateur Trader Vic Bergeron, however, may help.

The Banana Cow

1 crushed ripe banana (a good source of hangover-fighting potassium), 2 level tablespoons of powdered sugar, 3 ounces of whole milk, 1-1/2 ounces of Puerto Rican rum, and (cough! ouch!) cracked ice; blend well.

The Prairie Oyster

1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, 1 dash of Tabasco, 1 raw egg, a few drops lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste in a shot glass.

Bloody Mary

4 ounces of tomato juice, 1-1/2 ounces of vodka, 1/4 ounce of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce, dash of Tabasco, and celery salt and ground pepper to taste; stir well over ice cubes in a Collins glass, garnish with a celery stalk and serve (cough!  ouch!).

Failing any of these "cures," a well-placed ball-peen hammer to the forehead can work wonders.

2. Celebrate artists and arts organizations using their creativity to liven up vacant spaces in downtown Tacoma from 5-8 p.m. at the Spaceworks Tacoma Block Party bubbling over at Ninth and Broadway. The party will include guided walking tours, theatrical performances, live dance performances, an ongoing screening of short films and a season preview for the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts.

3. The beloved Paula Tutmarc Johnson, former owner of Two Vaults Gallery in Tacoma, curates a new show at The Robert Daniel Gallery. She's brought in a new collection by Karl Krogstad, some "barely dry" original oils by Ethan Jack Harrington, works by J. Neils Harvey (her premiere show) and artwork from The Robert Daniel Gallery's artists. The opening reception is tonight from 5-9 p.m.

4. The Lakewood Playhouse offers a "Pay What You Can" performance of Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead paired with Stoppard's Fifteen Minute Hamlet at 8 p.m. This is collaboration with the new dynamic acting company The Outfit Theatre Project.

5. The Loft on Cherry in downtown Olympia hosts The Pasties CD all-ages release show that also features The Solvents and Invisible River beginning at 8:30 p.m.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

IT'S GOOD YO BE YOUNG >>>

Properly speaking, Harlequin Productions' Sixties Kicks isn't musical theater, it's a concert. Five talented young people backed by a killer five-piece rock band sing 37 hits of the 1960s. I'm not a music critic, but I don't have to be Lester Bangs to give a thumbs-up to the source material.

The cast and band are rock solid.  Brad Schrandt, for example, plays keyboards, flute and saxophone, all in the same act.  Alison Monda is fully committed as usual, roaring through "Magic Bus" and "House of the Rising Sun."  Monda's fiancé Matthew Posner works his Daltrey chops on "Won't Get Fooled Again" - and his Act II costume makes him look unnervingly like '70s icon Freddie Prinze.  (Note to Gen-Y readers:  I'm referring to Freddie Prinze Jr.'s father, a comedian who starred on a sitcom called Chico and the Man.)  Fellow Oklahoman Kate Dinsmore has a knack for hippie ballads.  (Note to Linda Whitney: Why in the Haight didn't you give Dinsmore a Nancy Sinatra number in Act I?)  But the emotional highlight of the show, for me and other Lennon-McCartney idolaters, is Antonia Darlene's gospel rendition of "Let It Be."  I wiped away tears.

Read the full review here.

Ed. note: Harlequin has extended Sixties Kicks' run to include this coming Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. As an extra bonus, they're offering half-price online tickets for those 30 and younger (online discount code: "beatle"). They're also serving half-price beer, wine and specialty cocktail through the end of the run. Nice. 

Sixties Kicks

Friday, July 30 and Saturday, July 31, 8 p.m. $12-$38,
Harlequin Productions, 204 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia
360.786.0151, harlequinproductions.org

SATURDAY, JULY 24, 2010 >>>

1. It's time again for Ethnic Fest, an annual event that's brought Pierce County's diversity together in celebration since 1986. Some of the best festival feeding you'll find, as well as visual arts, performing arts, dance, crafts and fun into two days of multi-cultural, multi-lingual, multi-adjective-for-awesome action from noon to 7 p.m. in Wright Park. Sealing the deal: Ethnic Fest is free.

2. Not many things go together as well as a beautiful weekend and classic, tricked-out, pimped-out hot rods. Luckily, the Pacific Northwest Nationals hot rod show  - presented by Goodguys Rod & Custom Association - will rev up at the Puyallup Fairgrounds from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

3. Tacoma's all women, flat track roller derby league - the Dockyard Derby Dames - hold its All Stars Bout #1 from 5-10 p.m. at Pierce College in Lakewood. The all-ages event, which features a beer garden with ID, will donate a portion of the proceeds to charity.

4. The Tacoma Tide Football Club takes on the Kitsap Pumas Soccer Club at 7 p.m. on the field at Curtis High School Stadium.

5. For 10 years strong Stonewall Youth has been providing support and empowerment to the Olympia area's gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, trans-gender, questioning, intersex, and asexual community - through programs and support groups that serve a valuable need. Saturday, the 10^th annual Stonewall Youth Drag Show Extravaganza will up the sass-o-meter to 11 inside the Capitol Theater beginning at 7 p.m. According to hype, expect a "West Side Story themed show is filled with drag, glitter, song, dance, and revolution."

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

FRIDAY, JULY 23, 2010 >>>

1. Songwriters Zach Tillman from Barsuk Records' Pearly Gate Music, Jenna Conrad from Troubletown and Colin Reynolds, as well as slam poets and live painters perform at Tacoma Round #11 at 8 p.m. inside the Pantages Theater Rehearsal Hall at Ninth and Broadway.

2. Singer/songwriter David Gardner will perform from 5:30-8 p.m. in the Harmon Tap Room's outdoor beer garden.

3. The Fort Nisqually Living History Museum hosts a 19th Century Family Fun Night from 6-9 p.m. featuring games, music and dancing of the mid-1800s.

4. Chances are you've got a couple dumb friends. It's the law of averages. Well, Hamlet was no different; Rosencrantz and Guildenstern may not have been the sharpest, but they were his buddies - even obliviously escorting him to banishment. Tonight, the Outfit Theatre Project's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead officially opens at Lakewood Playhouse at 8 p.m.

5. The White Zombie tribute band Astro-Creep as well as Klover Jane, Smoochknob and Mechanism perform at Hell's Kitchen beginning at 9 p.m.

LINK: New movies open today

LINK: New concerts go on sale today