Arts reporter and critic Rosemary Ponnekanti keeps you in touch with the arts and culture scene with the help of other News Tribune writers, critics and editors.
Rosemary Ponnekanti is the arts reporter at The News Tribune, and has been a classical music nerd nearly all her life. Besides spending way too much time in galleries, museums and concert halls, she occasionally brings a whistle or double bass to Celtic jam sessions, and insists on singing "Happy Birthday" in four-part harmony.
Other contributors include:
> Arts & entertainment editor Craig Sailor
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MetalUrge festival in downtown Tacoma
Q: How many arts festivals can you fit into one weekend?
A: Five.
This weekend, look out for free festivals left, right and center as the South Sound mixes art and sunshine. Tonight in Tollefson Plaza and Tacoma Art Museum, the MetalUrge festival celebrates the summer-long, city-wide metal art intensive with SOTAbots (5 p.m.), the Iron Artist competition (6 p.m.), a handbell choir (6:30 p.m.), a participatory aluminum pour (ongoing) and more. 5-8 p.m. tonight. Free. 1701 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. 253-272-4258 (TAM), www.tacomaculture.org (MetalUrge)
Go local at Proctor Arts Fest
This neighborhood festival features a juried art show, the Museum of Glass mobile Hot Shop, an art quest, the Bite of Proctor, Thea Foss at the Blue Mouse Theater, local musicians and 100 vendors. 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. Aug.1. Free. North Proctor Street at North 26th Street, Tacoma. www.proctorartsfest.com
Urban Art Fest mixes art and cars
Reinvented as “Iron vs. Art,” the UAF party has moved to just outside The Swiss Tavern, and includes a pre-1973 car show, live glassblowing, contemporary dance, food, beer garden and an indie music stage. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Aug. 1. Free. South 19th and Jefferson Streets, Tacoma. tacomaurbanart.com
Flowers and Art in the Garden
Annual Enumclaw juried art show Art in the Garden displays local artists in a flower-garden setting to raise funds for local non-profit Arts Alive. 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Aug. 1 and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Aug. 2. Free. 46620 228th Ave. SE, Enumclaw. 260-802-6787, www.plateauartsalive.org
Puyallup’s first Art at the Market
Meet artists in action at the Puyallup Farmers’ Market this Saturday: There’ll be demonstrations, live musicians and work for sale. Free. 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Aug. 1. Free. Pioneer Park, 330 S. Meridian, Puyallup. www.artsdowntown.org
Yes, it's hot - but by the time 6 p.m. rolls around, we're seeing the kind of balmy evening we can only dream about in Tacoma for 11 months of the year. And what better way to enjoy it than in the shade of a cool tree watching someone else sweat it out?
Tonight at 6 p.m. the dancers from Metropolitan Ballet of Tacoma are putting on "Summer Dance in the Park," a short, free presentation of contemporary choreography in South Park. Choreographers include MBT's director Damaris Caughlan, Yuka Ilno of Oregon Ballet Theatre and Artur Sultanov of LINES Ballet.
The show will be held near the gazebo in South Park, 4851 South Tacoma Way, Tacoma. Bring a picnic and enjoy the roses.
Information: 253-472-53592, www.metropolitanballetoftacoma.org
Want some art that's provocative in more ways than one? Then peep through the windows at Mineral and Gallery 301. It's not often you get a group show that's both strong in theme and high in quality, and luckily for Tacomans, there's two of them right now next door to one another on Puyallup Avenue. Best of all, they tackle moral and sexual issues that most exhibits stay away from. In "Entrance Denied" at Mineral, 18 chastity belts (male and female) line the walls and cases; in "The Seven Deadly Sins" at Gallery 301, a host of local artists and writers reinterpret the age-old temptations.
"Entrance Denied" is by far the more compelling (it's also part of the city-wide MetalUrge festival.) Artist takes on the device that's gone from medieval home security to contemporary pleasure aid range all over the spectrum. Amy McBride revels in the sheer pleasure of the idea, her copper panties lined with luscious rabbit fur and with a glass lens peephole in the crotch. By sheer coincidence, the copper sheet came already imprinted with the word "Hussey" (sic.) Along the same lines, Lauren Osmoski and Amy Pomering create a belt that's pure flirtation: Osmoski's copper and brass Mardi Gras mask strapped on with Pomering's delicate leather bindings, which end delightfully in wings and whale flukes.
Some artists celebrate the virtue of what the belt holds inside, like Susan Connole's "Cache," hand-knitted filigree silver panties with Swarovski crystals or Julia Lowther's jewelry-belt of dragonscale-patterned mail, violet, magenta and gold.
Some go the other way – Malcolm McLaren's cigarette-burned, lipstick-stained boxes – and some set out to shock, like Brian Presnell's machete belt. Funniest of all are the set of five belts for Barbie by Naomi Landig and Dorothy Cheng, the ultimate in functionless (but cute) accessories.
Over at Gallery 301 (curated also by Mineral's Lisa Kinoshita) is a rather less well-organized introspection of the seven deadly sins. There's a mixed bag here: Charles Krafft's Delft-style porcelain skateboard with Nazi images ('Wrath') is most striking, as is Chris Causey's giant steel fork embedded with a pious cross ('Gluttony'?) Becky Frehse offers a clever mini-peepshow of avaricious leaders (Louis XV with a waterfall of gold, Mao sprinkled with bloody glitter) and yourself in the central mirror; and Beautiful Angle's poster outlines all seven sins in clever rhyme with the show's only reference to redemptive grace. Lynn Di Nino's grotesquely obese corn-fed Goldilocks talks to Lisa Kinoshita's glass jar of sea urchin shells, lust's empty remains.
Not all works are strong: Walter Gaya's Iraq photographs speak more of wrath than Claudia Riedener's rather obvious black ceramic guns. Nicholas Nyland's words on jealousy and Chris Sharp's on laziness, both painted, don't really grapple with vice. Some of the written texts (ask for the print-out) are banal. Yet despite the fullness and unevenness of the show, it's thought-provoking, especially in conjunction with the exuberance of the chastity belts next door.
Mineral is open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from noon-5 p.m., Gallery 301 by appointment. Free. Both shows are up through September 5. 301 Puyallup Ave., Tacoma. 253-250-7745, www.lisakinoshita.com
What happens when you mix a furnace with an aerosol spray can at a party?
You have a blast. (Heh, heh.) And that's what will happen at the first ever Hilltop Arts Night Out next week. The Hilltop Artists in Residence (student glassblowers at Jason Lee Middle School) are collaborating with the Fab Five hip-hop organization to hold a kind of open house, only much more fun. Glassblowing demos (that's the furnace bit), graffiti demos (that's the spray cans), live MCs, breakdancing battles, tagging tutorials (we hope they'll teach NOT to tag illegally) and good food will turn this arts night into the kind of party that usually doesn't happen at school.
Hilltop Artists in Residence Tacoma (HART) has been providing tuition-free glassblowing, bead making and glass fusing to local teenagers for nearly 16 years, keeping kids in school and giving them career skills. Fab Five is an initiative of the Northwest Leadership Foundation, and creates safe, drug- and alcohol-free hip-hop events to mentor youth and foster talent.
The event, running 4-8 p.m. August 4 at the Jason Lee Hot Shop, is in conjunction with Safe Streets National Night Out (the police are invited, too), and is completely free. It's a great way to show off local youth talent, celebrate the HART program and introduce a kid you know to a community they might shine in. And hopefully, nothing will ignite unintentionally.
The Jason Lee Middle School hot shop is located at 602 N. Sprague Ave., Tacoma, near the back of the parking lot. Information: 253-571-7690, www.hilltopartists.org, www.fab-5.org
I went along to the Joel Show on Saturday night full of high expectations, with a bit of uncertainty thrown in. Joel Myers, as blogged above, is an incredibly powerful dancer (Spectrum, DASS Dance etc) with some choreographic talent that could go far. His Joel Show is a self-produced evening of his own dance and his own choreography with an eclectic mix of professional and student dancers of the ballet-contemporary type. This show, held at Tacoma City Ballet's ballroom, was the fourth of the annual shows.
The only trouble is, with a self-produced show there's not a whole lot of standard control, and what starts out as a cozy Tacoma-ish friends-and-family vibe can easily become an excuse for artistically dubious self-indulgence.
Myers, as the beginning, end and middle of the show, danced as terrifically as ever. "The War at Home," set to a violent Prokofiev piano sonata played with clarity and force by Monty Carter, showed Myers' phenomenal physical control. Alternating between extremes of slow tension and rapid muscle movement, Myers created a frantic ballet vocabulary, 10 fouettes becoming desperate staggers, or grand jetes becoming punches.
Sin and Chastity Belts at Mineral
Local artists reinvent the chastity belt (computer mouse? Flowers?) in “Entrance Denied” at Mineral, and reinterpret the seven deadly sins next-door at Gallery 301. 12-5 p.m. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday through Sept. 5. Free. 301 Puyallup Ave., Tacoma. 253-250-7745, www.lisakinoshita.com
Auburn’s ArtRageous
The City of Auburn’s ArtRageous: Artists in Action Fair features over 30 hands-on art activities and demonstrations by local artists in media from potter and papier-mache to calligraphy, printmaking and encaustic, with music, food and more. 11 a.m.-4 p.m. July 25.
Free. Les Gove Park, 11th Street & Auburn Way South, Auburn. www.auburnwa.gov
Janet Marcavage on paper at UWT
Tacoma artist Janet Marcavage plays with paper – embossing, printing, cutting, and creating silhouettes now on show at UWT’s Iron Gallery. Reception 5-8 p.m. today, then 12-4 p.m. Monday/Wednesday, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday through Sept. 15. Free. University of Tacoma Iron Gallery, 1742 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. 253-571-7914
The American Art Co goes pastel
The Northwest Pastel Society’s 23rd International Open Exhibit is hosted this month at American Art Company, featuring 57 artists from the U.S. and Canada. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday. Free. 1126 Broadway, Tacoma. 253-272-4327, www.americanartco.com
The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, which supports philanthropic activities, has recently awarded $405,910 to 42 Pierce County nonprofit organizations. In the first of five categories (Arts and Culture, Basic Need, Education, Environment and Neighborhood/Community) eight local arts organizations benefitted from the biannual grant money: Artist Trust, Arts Impact Puget Sound, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts, the Northwest Leadership Foundation, the Northwest Sinfonietta, Tacoma Art Museum, the Tacoma Opera Association and the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra.
The funding was determined by a new framework, say Community Foundation officials, rewarding organization that "focus on root causes, identify systemic challenges, and support community driven solutions."
“In pursuit of our vision of a vibrant community, we award grants to Pierce County organizations addressing the systemic issues affecting our region,” says Community Foundation president and CEO, Rose Lincoln Hamilton.
The Community Foundation oversees and invests more than $72 million in donor-driven assets. In the 2008 fiscal year, the Community Foundation awarded more than $3.4 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and student scholarships.
For more information, visit www.gtcf.org or call 253.383-5622.
The Greater Tacoma Community Foundation, which supports philanthropic activities, has recently awarded $405,910 to 42 Pierce County nonprofit organizations. In the first of five categories (Arts and Culture, Basic Need, Education, Environment and Neighborhood/Community) eight local arts organizations benefitted from the biannual grant money: Artist Trust, Arts Impact Puget Sound, the Broadway Center for the Performing Arts, the Northwest Leadership Foundation, the Northwest Sinfonietta, Tacoma Art Museum, the Tacoma Opera Association and the Tacoma Symphony Orchestra.
The funding was determined by a new framework, say Community Foundation officials, rewarding organization that "focus on root causes, identify systemic challenges, and support community driven solutions."
“In pursuit of our vision of a vibrant community, we award grants to Pierce County organizations addressing the systemic issues affecting our region,” says Community Foundation president and CEO, Rose Lincoln Hamilton.
The Community Foundation oversees and invests more than $72 million in donor-driven assets. In the 2008 fiscal year, the Community Foundation awarded more than $3.4 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and student scholarships.
For more information, visit www.gtcf.org or call 253-383-5622.
Promote art and feed the hungry – it's a great combination, and 12 artists from the Proctor Art Gallery will be doing just that this Saturday morning at the Proctor Farmers Market. In a collaboration between the market, the gallery and the FISH Food Bank operating out of Mason United Methodist Church, the artists will create food-themed paintings and wood-carvings for the entire five hours of the market. Market-goers can donate into nearby collecting boxes to support the Art-a-thon, and all donations will buy fresh fruit and veggies from the market to give to patrons at the Food Bank. Art produced will be for sale afterward at the gallery, with some proceeds going back to the Food Bank.
It's a much-needed service. The Mason FISH Food Bank now serves 4,100 individuals per month, up 42 per cent from 2008, says Beth Elliott, executive director of FISH Food Banks of Pierce County. Donations are often in the form of dried or canned goods, but everyone needs fresh produce, and organizers see this as a win-win situation where the Food Bank can get fresh food and support local farmers at the same time.
Donations can also be made online at www.foodbankartathon.com.
Meanwhile, shoppers can watch artists at work right there in the street. They'll be set up in small groups, ideal for demonstrating their art. “It will be a great opportunity for the public to see and talk with artists in action,” says Carolyn Burt, gallery owner. Burt will be one of the participating artist; others include Bonnie Cargol, Andrea Greenfield, Sharon Crocetti, Alexis St. John, Mary Mann, Janyce Sukow, Brad Stave, Penny Grellier, Mary Wolfe, Lucy Schwartz and Sherri Bails.
The Proctor Farmers Market is open 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays through October at North 27th and Proctor Streets, Tacoma. www.proctorfarmersmarket.com
The Proctor Art Gallery is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday at 3811 N. 26th St, Tacoma. For more information, call 253-759-4238 or visit www.proctorartgallery.com
Among the many arts-group fundraisers in town, the one for Tacoma Art Place is more than a little unusual. The non-profit Hilltop community-based art center, which offers low-cost equipment, storage, classes and work-space to artists and the general public, is combining high fashion with budget materials for its annual fundraiser this Saturday at the Hotel Murano.
‘Inspired Elegance’ teams professional designers with aspiring ones from Goodwill's Work-force (an employment aid service) to create a design from fabric and recycled items from Goodwill, over a 24-hour period. Participants will also get a style makeover from Embellish Multi-space Salon.The designs will be modeled on stage at the gala, which features the usual silent auction, dessert, wine and music.
"Inspired Elegance," a fundraiser for Tacoma Art Place, will be held at the Hotel Murano at 7:30 p.m. July 25. Tickets are $75 and tables of 10 are $700. RSVP to 253-756-5544, information 253-238-1006, www.tacomaartplace.org
TAP is open 1-8 p.m. Wednesday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, noon-6 p.m. Sunday at 1116 S. 11th St., Tacoma.
For the fourth time, Tacoma contemporary dance whiz-kid Joel Myers is putting on the Joel Show - an evening of his own and others' choreography. Myers, a principal artist with Seattle's Spectrum Dance, is filling out his rising career with other top-notch companies like Seattle Opera, Bellevue Opera and DASS dance in New York, and his moves manage to combine terrific eye-candy with intense expression.
Until now the Joel Shows have been at the School Of The Arts theater, but with the recent space collaboration of Tacoma City Ballet and BareFoot Studios, other dancers are getting in on the act. Myers is one of them: His Joel Show IV will happen this weekend in the Tacoma City Ballet ballroom.
So what's in the show? "The show will have five brand spanking new works, all choreographed over the past few weeks," says Myers. "Two will have live music, one by Motopony's Daniel Blue and the other with pianist Monty Carter playing Prokofiev." Also dancing will be Danny and Sylvian Boulet, who danced with Spectrum Dance Theater last season, incoming SOTA sophomore Kimberly Frankle and TCB's own Heather Arneson.
The Joel Show is presented by MOVE!, the event series from MLKBallet, which runs tuition-free dance classes at Urban Grace Church and where Myers also teaches. A portion of all proceeds will go to support MLK Ballet programs.
The Joel Show IV will be at 7 p.m. July 25 and 2 p.m. July 26th at Tacoma City Ballet, 508 6th Ave., Tacoma. Tickets are $10 adults/$5 for 18 and under, from www.Brownpapertickets.com/event/70101
For more info email thejoelshow@gmail.com.
Gig Harbor Art Fest
The Gig Harbor Art Festival is celebrating its 25th anniversary this weekend, which makes it the oldest local arts festival. Organized by the Peninsula Art League, it’s held on downtown Judson Street and features around 130 artists including painter Mary Mann. 10 a.m.-7 p.m. tomorrow, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday. Free. Judson Street, Gig Harbor. Parking and free shuttle at Gig Harbor Medical Pavilion, 6401 Kimball Drive, Gig Harbor. 253-265-8139, www.peninsulaartleague.com/artfest.html
“Voice of the Americas” returns
“Voice of the Americas,” a social collage of live and recorded spoken word and music by local poet Luke Smiraldo and musician Wrick Wolf, is back after a successful premiere at the Broadway Center last year. 7 p.m. tomorrow, 3 p.m. Sunday. $7. Peace Lutheran Church, 2106 S. Cushman St., Tacoma. 253-383-1317, www.peacelutherantacoma.org
“A Midsummer Night” in Sumner
ManeStage Theatre Company presents Shakespeare’s mixed-up romantic comedy “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” outdoors in Sumner, directed by Jay Henson. Opens 7 p.m. tomorrow, then 2 p.m. Sunday, 7 p.m. July 24 and 2 p.m. July 25 and 26. $14/$12/$10 for under-10. Sunset Stadium, 1707 Main Street, Sumner. 253-447-7645, www.manestagetheatre.com
“Twelfth Night” in a bookstore
Shakespeare in the Parking Lot, Tacoma’s always-enjoyable guerrilla Shakespeare company, presents the cross-dressing comedy “Twelfth Night” at Kings Bookstore as part of its summer series. 2 p.m. Sunday at Kings, also 11:30 a.m. July 24 and 31 at Tollefson Plaza, Pacific Ave, Tacoma. Donation. Kings Bookstore, 218 St. Helens Ave., Tacoma. www.sitpl.org
The Grand Impromptu Gallery in the Merlino Arts Building in downtown Tacoma has had its lease terminated by The Grand Cinema, which is planning to expand into the space occupied by the gallery. The expansion, which is in the planning stages, has left the members of the co-operative gallery with no immediate home after their final show "Rear View Forward," which runs July 16-August 15.
"We've wanted to expand for years," said Philip Cowan, director of The Grand. What encouraged the decision, Cowan said, was an extension to the year 2025 of the art cinema's own lease from Merlino owners P.M. Investments. The plans are still being drawn up by Belay Architects, and will be finalized by August, at which time bids will be called for. The expansion will create an extra screen for the three-screen independent movie-house, but Cowan said "it was a bit premature" to elaborate further.
Meanwhile, the 11 artist members of Impromptu are debating on where to relocate, and have no immediate ideas. The gallery has been in the space at 608 S. Fawcett Ave. for 20 months, and rotates members' work as well as guest artists in a variety of media.
"Rear View Forward" opens at The Grand Impromptu on July 16, with an artist reception from 5-8 p.m. July 17. Hours: 4-8 p.m. Thursday, noon-8 p.m. Friday-Saturday and 2-6 p.m. Sunday. 608 S. Fawcett Ave., Tacoma. 253-572-9232, grandimpromptugallery.com
The Grand Cinema is located at 606 S. Fawcett Ave., Tacoma. 253-593-4474, www.grandcinema.com
Careese Robertson, foreground, and Kathi Aleman in Lakewood Playhouse's "Angry Housewives." -- Photo by Dean Lapin
If you were around the Northwest theater scene in 1983, you might remember “Angry Housewives.” A musical about depressed housewives who form a punk band and get their guys’ respect, “Housewives” came out of nowhere (well, Seattle’s tiny Pioneer Square theater, anyhow) to have a record-breaking seven year run and international fame, touring the U.S. as well as having huge successes in Tokyo and London.
Since then, it’s been resurrected from time to time at local theaters – Tacoma Actors Guild, Encore Theater – and this week it’s opening at Lakewood Playhouse. Julie Halpin is directing, and she and artistic director Marcus Walker (who plays the million-dollar salmon derby winner Wallace) have consulted with the original writers, A.M. Collins and Chad Henry, on the production.
“We had a script that didn’t match the musical score,” said Walker. “The show toured around the world, and each place they rewrote it a bit.”
Lakewood’s going back to the original version, with a few Northwest references (like salmon) thrown in. The production also marks a milestone for the theater – their very first summer show since they put in air-conditioning last August.
“We used to joke that our summer youth camps were a weight-loss program, in the 90-degree heat,” laughs Walker. “Now, hopefully, people will have the confidence to come (to the production.)”
Especially if you like the idea of a lead song that screams at you to “Eat your &$*%# cornflakes!!”
“Angry Housewives” opens 8 p.m. July 17, then 8 p.m. July 18, 24, 25, 31 and Aug. 1; and 2 p.m. July 19, 26 and Aug. 2.
FREE PREVIEW - July 16 @ 8pm
Pay-What-You-Can - July 23 @ 8pm
Actor Benefit Performance - August 1 @ 2pm
Lakewood Playhouse, 5729 Lakewood Towne Center Blvd, Lakewood. Tickets $24/$21/$18/$16. 253-588-0042, www.lakewoodplayhouse.org
The Grand Cinema's free screenings of Hollywood favorites continues this Saturday with a 10:30 a.m. showing of "Shrek".
The doors open at 10 a.m. but you don't want to be late because the offer is limited to the first 100 people who show up.
Next up in the monthly series (which runs through December) is "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory" on August 15.
For more information call 253-572-6062.
Quick - what's a good way of influencing Tacoma's art scene without making art or giving money?
Answer: Serve on the Tacoma Arts Commission. The Commission is a group of 15 volunteers which meets monthly and advises the City Council on arts-related matters. Things like who gets the AMOCAT awards, which projects get funding, where public art gets created, what arts events happen (like Art at Work Month) and how cultural policy gets implemented.
If this sounds like your thing, then apply now. The Commission has two vacant seats, and is looking for folks who are knowledgeable and passionate about the arts, who reside in Tacoma and who are willing to give their time. Particularly wanted are people who live in under-represented parts of the city and who bring diversity to the group. Meetings are at 5 p.m. on the second Monday of every month, and members serve three-year terms.
To apply, contact Cindy Leingang, Mayor’s Office, at 253-594-7848, or visit www.cityoftacoma.org/cbcapplication. Applications are due August 14. More information: www.tacomaculture.org
A while back, we announced the news that the BareFoot Dance Collective was moving in with Tacoma City Ballet in the Merlino Building, sharing space, classes and possibly performances. Well, the partnership has begun, and this Saturday you can see both companies working together and combining with local artists and musicians for the Tacoma City Ballet Studio Gallery evening.
TCB had a couple of these champagne art evenings last summer, and they were a hit. The light, airy ballroom space and smaller studios are ideal for showing art, and TCB doesn't take a commission - artists get what they sell. Both TCB and the BareFoot contemporary dancers will be performing a few vignettes, New York jazz guitarist Hui Cox (last heard with the Northwest Sinfonietta Jazz Quartet last October) will play with his group. MLKBallet will also make a guest appearance, and there'll be champagnes and desserts. Featured visual artists include Lia Craven, TCB design team Elwit, TCB director Erin Ceragioli, Julie Manhan, Ashley Martin, Sonya Morgan, Tammy Scarlett and Daniel Sebree.
Further down the track, Joel Myers of Spectrum Dance will be holding his annual Joel Show at TCB next weekend, the BareFoot 8@8 evenings start up on August 31, and both companies are holding classes. But the plans go further.
"I'm starting to collect dancers to make a dance center," says Erin Ceragioli, who says she got the idea when some BareFoot dancers came along to TCB adult classes and mentioned their current lease was ending. "The TCB studio is very pliable for performances: it can be in the round, or traditional. All it needs is a sound and light system. I think we can turn this space into something really nice."
The TCB Studio Gallery will be from 7-9 p.m. July 18 at Tacoma City Ballet, 508 6th Ave., Tacoma. Admission $5, 16 and over only. 253-272-4219, www.tacomacityballet.com, www.barefootcollective.org</div>
TMP’s off to see “The Wizard”
The classic “Wizard of Oz” is back to beat your kids’ summer boredom with Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Wicked Witch of the West and all the rest. Opens 8 p.m. tonight, then 8 p.m. tomorrow, July 17, 18, 24, 25, 31, Aug. 1; 2 p.m. July 11, 12, 18, 19, 26, Aug. 2. $25/$23/$18. Tacoma Musical Playhouse, 7116 6th Ave., Tacoma. 253-565-5857, www.tmp.org
MetalUrge at American Art Company
Tacoma’s gone metal-mad, and if you haven’t already seen too much metal art, get down to American Art Company, where artists Richard Heller, Timothy Leonard, Bill Wentworth, Patti Shaw, Susan O'Brien, Colleen Sargen, Ned Block and Steve Barnard are on show. 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Tuesday – Friday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday through Sept. 20. Free. 1126 Broadway, Tacoma. 253-272-4327, www.americanartco.com
Free Olympia art tours
Meet the artists whose works grace Percival Landing and find out more about Oly’s public art on this artist-led walking tour. 11 a.m. - noon every Saturday through Sept. 5. Free. Meet at bell in front of Farmers’ Market near traffic circle. 360-709-2678
Hit the streets for third Thursday ArtWalk
Next Thursday, catch Preston Singletary at the Museum of Glass, art jewelry at Tacoma Art Museum and MetalUrge everywhere else. 5-8 p.m. July 16. All museums and galleries free. www.artwalktacoma.com
Congratulations to the Children's Museum of Tacoma and the American Society for Environmental History, who are recipients in the spring round of grants by Humanities Washington. The organization gives grants and organizes programs to promote literacy and critical thinking.
Out of 45 proposals, Humanities Washington awarded 15 grants totalling $69,170 this June, which were announced this week. The Children's Museum of Tacoma received $7,000 for its "Tricksters" exhibit and programs, which uses the award-winning folktale picture books of Gerald McDermott to encourage storytelling, art and creative play. The Tacoma-based American Society for Environmental History received $5,325 for the Tacoma Environmental Film Festival, which brings together scholars, students and filmmakers to present eight environmentally-themed films with a regional focus.
The "Tricksters" exhibit, called "Soar into Story," is still up at the CMT, located at 936 Broadway, Tacoma. Hours are 10 a.m.-5 p.m. monday-Saturday and noon-5 p.m. Sunday. Admission $6, free for age one and under, and on first Fridays, and every Thursday during summer. 253-627-6031, www.childrensmuseumoftacoma.org
The American Society for Environmental History can be found at www.aseh.org
This Sunday sees Tacoma's 11th Art on the Ave: that slightly wacky festival on 6th Avenue celebrating every kind of art from visual to performance to dance, theater and music. Oh, and food, if you count that as art. But this year, you'll see wearable art too - a runway will be set up in the site under the trees (near Prospect Street) and 26 local designers will show their stuff in two runway shows at noon and 1:30 p.m., repeated at 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
Called "A Peace of Art," the show is sponsored by the Fashion Association of Tacoma, The Shoe Show on 6th Avenue and Tacoma Fashion Co-Op. Organizer Ondia Shapiro, owner of The Shoe Show, will conduct the show. The designs will cover men's and women's wear in everything from yoga clothes to wedding dresses, including jewelry and shoes, says Shapiro.
And despite Tacoma's reputation for being a few years behind everywhere else fashion-wise, a lot of the styles are "just really astonishing," Shapiro says. Faves to look out for? "Lindsay Hayes has cute summer stuff," says Shapiro, "and Chloe White does awesome rockabilly clothes, which is the new look, the '50s pin-up look. Irene Lim has adorable dresses, and Justin Bartle does great wedding dresses."
And if you like what you see, you can buy it. Next to the runway will be a Fashion Lounge, operating all afternoon, where designers will have bios and portfolios, there'll be live photo shoots, and almost everything will be for sale.
Says Shapiro: "There's definitely opportunity (for designers in Tacoma.) It's a lot of hard work to launch it, you have to have a good mix of business and artistic talent."
Maybe, for local talent, Art on the Ave is a good place to start.
Art on the Ave runs from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. along 6th Avenue between Cedar and Trafton Streets, Tacoma. It's free. www.artontheave.org
Get in free to the Museum of Glass all weekend this Saturday and Sunday, and catch the new, MOG-organized exhibition of Tlingit artist Preston Singletary.
Singletary, a renowned Seattle-based artist whose work is featured at the Hotel Murano and who showed last November at Traver Gallery, transforms the curves and strong lines of Northwest Native art into opaque red, black and clear glass to create work that's both dramatic and profound. The MOG show, "Preston Singletary: Echoes, Fire, and Shadows," has been in the works for a while, and is the first mid-career survey of Singletary's work.
Here are the events for the opening weekend:
8 p.m. July 10: Member and artist reception. Free for MOG members and tribal members; $15 otherwise.
10 a.m.-5 p.m. July 11: Opening day. Free admission to all. 1-4 p.m.: Family activities include readings by Tlingit artist and author Miranda Belarde-Lewis, creating your own family crest regalia, performance by Native American violinist, storyteller and poet Swil Kanim (1 p.m.), performance in regalia by Northern Star Dancers (3 p.m.)
Noon-5 p.m. July 12: Museum open and free to all. 2 p.m.: Conversation, lecture, slide presentation and walk-through with Preston Singletary
After this weekend, however, MOG admission rates are going up. (Sign of the economic times?)
The new rates are: $12 adults/$10 seniors, students and military/$10 per person for adult groups of 10+/$5 children 6 – 12/$36 family/free for members and under-fives
The Museum of Glass is located at 1801 Dock St., Tacoma. 866-4-MUSEUM, www.museumofglass.org
The Hoh flows through the History Museum
“Fast Moving Water: The Hoh River Story” displays 14 color photographs by Keith Lazelle of Washington’s gorgeous Hoh River, with the story of its preservation and local culture. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-8 p.m. third Thursdays, noon-5 p.m. Sunday through Oct. 18. $8/$7/$6/five and under free, 2-8 p.m. third Thursdays free. 1911 Pacific Ave., Tacoma. 253-272-3500, www.washingtonhistory.org
Pierce College shows C.J. Swanson
Former Art on Center gallerist Catherine Swanson’s vibrant abstract acrylics are on show at Pierce College gallery. 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Thursday, 8 a.m.-noon Friday through Aug. 28. Free. Fort Steilacoom campus, 9401 Farwest Dr. S.W., Lakewood. 253-964-6535,www.pierce.ctc.edu/art
Shakespeare in the Apple Orchard
Tacoma’s ineffable Shakespeare in the Parking Lot, known for contemporary takes on the Bard in unusual venues, turns 10 this year. They kick off their season with “Twelfth Night” at the Curran Apple Orchard. 6:30 p.m. July 9. Free. Curran Apple Orchard, 3920 Grandview Dr., University Place. 253-318-5182, www.sitpl.org
MetalUrge at Two Vaults
For its MetalUrge show, Two Vaults features the delicate jewelry of Birna Sigurbjornsdottir, Bill Dawson’s beaten copper vessels, and textured sculpture from Marge McDonald, among others. 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Wednesday, noon-8 p.m. Thursday-Saturday through September. Free. Artist soiree 6-9 p.m. July 18. 602 S. Fawcett St., Tacoma. 253-759-6233, www.twovaults.com
As of yesterday, Tacoma Art Museum is now managing and curating Kittredge Gallery at the University of Puget Sound. The gallery had previously been run by a part-time curator--most recently Carol Adelman--and featured mostly contemporary Northwest artists, with occasional student and faculty shows. Margaret Bullock, TAM's curator of collections and special exhibitions, will now oversee both the gallery and the university's small collection, including the nationally-significant Abby Williams Hill collection.
“This offers an opportunity to bring the knowledge and expertise of key individuals at Tacoma Art Museum to the benefit of our students and art department,” said Kris Bartanen, academic vice president and dean of UPS.
Stephanie Stebich, director of Tacoma Art Museum, said the partnership is an important and unusual collaboration that will give her institution opportunities to pursue different kinds of exhibitions.
If you're up Seattle way, drop in at Carkeek Park, where the Center on Contemporary Art (CoCA) has teamed up with Parks and Rec and various neighborhood councils to produce a really great summer art event: environmental art in the park. "Heaven and Earth" features sculpture by 11 regional artists that links both the idea of heaven (or haven, a safe, relaxing place) and earth (natural materials.) Sculptures had to leave no trace in the park, either by decomposing or by leaving no mark when they're removed on August 10 at the exhibition's close.
Barbara De Pirro is one semi-local artist on show. The Shelton artist is known in Tacoma, showing her tightly-woven, elegantly-curved bio-forms made of plastic bags at the Envirohouse and recently served as artist in residence at the Museum of Glass (her installation "Plastic and Light" is still on view there through the end of the year.) For the Carkeek Park show, De Pirro constructed four biomorphic structures with recycled plastic bags and bottles: In her words, "An environmental statement through the juxtaposition of material, form and location." They're located on three sites: the apple orchard, near the bridge over Pipers Creek and tucked near the stairs at the model airplane field.
How about something like that in Wright Park, with Tacoma artists? Sounds fun.
"Heaven and Earth" is on view at Carkeek Park, 950 NW Carkeek Park Road, Seattle, through August 10. Entry is free. www.heavenandearthexhibition.org
