Jan 02 Friday
Stories are shaped by the ways we tell them. In Shaping the Story: Designs for the Theatre by Carey Wong, go behind the scenes to see how theatre sets bring stories to life. During a career spanning over 50 years, Carey Wong has designed sets and costumes for more than 300 productions, including operas, plays, musicals, and ballets.
This exhibition features scale models of his designs in addition to costumes, set pieces, and stories of Washington’s rich entertainment history. From sketches of an idea to fully realized sets, explore how a designer’s decisions craft the world of a story.
LeMay – America’s Car Museum proudly presents The Birth of the American Supercar, a groundbreaking exhibition guest curated by renowned automotive innovator Steve Saleen. This one-of-a-kind display invites guests on an exhilarating journey through the evolution of American supercars. From early speed pioneers to cutting-edge modern marvels, visitors will experience a stunning lineup of vehicles that have redefined engineering, speed, and style, built by a wide range of American automotive manufacturers like Ford, Chevy, Dodge, Saleen himself, and even some more obscure ones like Vector, Cunningham, and Hennessey. From roaring V8s to sleek carbon-fiber bodies, discover how American automakers pushed boundaries, challenged European rivals, and redefined what a supercar could be. This exhibition offers a rare opportunity to see some of the most thrilling and historically significant American-made performance vehicles ever built—all under one roof.
Childhood's End Gallery presents "Animal Dreams", a solo exhibition of Olympia artist Kristen Etmund. Known for her work bridging the precision of traditional relief printmaking with the organic textures of nature, Kristen draws her inspiration from the flora, fauna, and shifting atmospheres of the Puget Sound region.
November 21, 2025 – January 11, 2026Artist Reception: November 22, 2026 3-5pm
childhoods-end-gallery.com
Childhood’s End Gallery222 4th Ave WOlympia WA 98501
FREE
Climb aboard the Imagination Express for train-themed fun December 20th through January 4th! Young engineers can go full steam ahead with hands-on engineering, art, and dream building. Each stop brings brand-new adventures. Go full STEAM ahead in the MakeSpace, get crafty in Art Studio Junction, and visit the Tinker Toyland at East Bay Depot. From crafty conductors to future inventors, everyone’s ticket includes imagination and discovery!
• Craft heartfelt, handmade gifts for loved ones • Explore how trains move people, goods, and ideas• Meet costumed characters, The Grinch & Cindy Lou Who (Dec. 20)• Meet unicorns with PNW Unicorns (Dec. 27)
We close at 3 pm on Christmas Eve Closed on Christmas
Shop small! Shop Local! Support Artists and Makers!Open: 12-6PM, Fridays – Sundays Thanksgiving – New Year’s Eve!232 Front Street North, Issaquah WA
info@andsothere.comFind great gifty goods from more than 30 local artists at the 11th annual Historic Shell Holiday Shop– jewelry, ceramics, cards, ornaments, journals, stickers, pins, ornaments, decoration… the list goes on. You’re sure to find something amazing for someone amazing– all while supporting local craftspeople. Curated by Alison Lang (So, There) with the Downtown Issaquah Association. Find more information at holidayshop.andsothere.com and on Facebook and Instagram @shellholidayshop.The Historic Shell Holiday Shop is open Thanksgiving to New Year’s in Downtown Issaquah. Swing by to find great gifts from local artists and makers.Fri- Sun 12-6pm, 232 Front St. NorthCurated by Alison Lang (So, There) in cooperation with the Downtown Issaquah Association.
The Bellevue Downtown Ice Rink presented by Symetra returns for its 28th year! The region’s largest ice-skating experience boasts over 9,000 square feet of real ice in a fully covered, open-air venue at Bellevue Downtown Park. Join for a season of festive fun featuring free skate lessons courtesy of Microsoft, themed skate nights, on-site concessions, and more. Whether you’re a seasoned skater or a novice eager to learn, get ready to bundle up for an unforgettable time on the ice.
Welcomed by KNKX. Frank Vignola is one of the most extraordinary guitarists performing before the public today. His stunning virtuosity has made him the guitarist of choice for many of the world’s top musicians, including Ringo Starr, Madonna, Donald Fagen, John Lewis, Tommy Emmanuel, Lionel Hampton, the Boston Pops, the New York Pops, and guitar legend Les Paul, who named Vignola to his “Five Most Admired Guitarists List:” for the Wall Street Journal.
His dynamic genre-spanning music has brought him to 21 countries on three continents – and still growing – performing in some of the world’s most illustrious venues, including the Sydney Opera House, Carnegie Hall, The Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco, New York’s Lincoln Center, The Blue Note, and the world’s oldest indoor concert hall, Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza, Italy.
Pasquale Grasso - It was the kind of endorsement most rising guitarists can only dream of, and then some. In his interview for Vintage Guitar magazine’s February 2016 cover story, Pat Metheny was asked to name some younger musicians who’d impressed him. “The best guitar player I’ve heard in maybe my entire life is floating around now, Pasquale Grasso,” said the jazz-guitar icon and NEA Jazz Master. “This guy is doing something so amazingly musical and so difficult. “Mostly what I hear now are guitar players who sound a little bit like me mixed with a little bit of [John Scofield] and a little bit of [Bill Frisell],” he continued. “What’s interesting about Pasquale is that he doesn’t sound anything like that at all. In a way, it is a little bit of a throwback, because his model—which is an incredible model to have—is Bud Powell. He has somehow captured the essence of that language from piano onto guitar in a way that almost nobody has ever addressed. He’s the most significant new guy I’ve heard in many, many years.”
For Morgan Freeman, the Mississippi Delta isn’t just the birthplace of the Blues — it’s home. As a co-founder of the Ground Zero Blues Club, Freeman is dedicated to celebrating the musicians who have shaped this powerful genre. Freeman himself lands at Benaroya Hall to narrate this immersive production, which fuses the soulful sounds of Mississippi Delta blues by artists from his club with cinematic storytelling and the grandeur of a symphony orchestra.
Jan 03 Saturday
The demands of the music of Steely Dan are high, both in technical proficiency and in preserving the sarcastic, knowing attitude originally conceived. Nearly Dan does well on both fronts, fusing together the chops of 12 diversely-talented artists (with backgrounds in jazz, rock, R&B, country, and swing) into a veritable butcher’s shop window of precisely cut bass lines; surgical, highly reminiscent guitar solos; a biting yet sophisticated horn section and richly marbled beats. Nearly Dan's recipes avoid over-earnest adulation, coolly presenting Steely Dan’s Burroughsian black humor and notoriously perfectionist musicianship. Mixed with their own arrangements of those masterpiece compositions, the result is pure ambrosia. Nearly Dan puts their earnestness where it matters most; into the relaxed but highly practiced execution of great songs like the bouncing “Reelin’ In the Years,” the sorrowful, karmic circularity of “Do It Again,” or the funny but mortified “Peg.” Endorsed by the company they keep, this group’s musicians have performed with greats such as Stevie Wonder, Sammy Davis Jr., Ray Charles, Lou Rawls, the Four Tops, the Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Huey Lewis, Tower Of Power, Tito Puente, Natalie Cole and Gladys Knight.
Experience the wild wonder of the holiday season as you traverse through the Mystical Forest where stunning creatures gleam brightly! Here, behold the magical forest train, mystical tree fairies and fantastical unicorns. Embark on a Journey on a Bright Desert Highway and see desert flora and fauna before discovering Marvelous Mammals where spectacular Northwest animals are vividly portrayed in lantern form. Family-favorite Interactive Lanterns are spread throughout the WildLanterns spaces. Let your imagination take flight in the Birds of Paradise zone, swan into this area where magnificent peacocks flaunt their flamboyant plumes and birds of a feather perch on enchanted branches. Finally, embark on a journey Under the Jungle Canopy and spot all the mischievous monkeys hiding in the foliage!
