Oct 25 Saturday
Stage of Fools Written by Joy McCullough Directed by Amy Poisson
A scrappy feminist theater company is about to go under when they receive an offer they can't refuse: has-been 80s action movie star Jake Stone will endow them with more money than they've ever dreamed of, if they'll produce King Lear, with him in the titular role. Never mind that he's an entitled, egotistical blowhard. These women can survive anything for the sake of the theater they love...right?
Evening and matinee performances.
Join Northwest Sinfonietta in October for music and merriment! A mini Oktoberfest opens the concert—local beers from Camp Colvos paired with Viennese favorites by Schubert and Johann Strauss II, the Waltz King. The party continues on the second half with the radiant Ascending Bird, followed by acclaimed clarinetist Kinan Azmeh performing his own, electrifying Suite for Improvisor and Orchestra.
It’s almost like being in love! Dance your way back in time to one of the most romantic musicals ever written, Lerner and Loewe’s Brigadoon. Americans Tommy and Jeff are hiking the Scottish Highlands, when out of the mists they stumble upon the enchanting village of Brigadoon, which appears for only one day every 100 years. But this dreamlike place is far more than it seems—and those who fall in love there might never be the same.
From the writers of My Fair Lady and Camelot comes this soaring love story, full of glorious ballet and favorite tunes like “Come to Me, Bend to Me,” “The Heather on the Hill” and “Almost Like Being in Love.” This production features an exquisite new adaptation, which enhances all the romance and magic that makes Brigadoon a truly timeless masterpiece.
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.”
Oct 26 Sunday
Makaya McCraven, the Chicago-based “beat scientist” percussionist and “cultural synthesizer” returns for two shows with hypnotic rhythm loops, live improvisation, and sonic collages redefining the jazz idiom. He collapses space, destroys borders, and blends past, present, and future into jazz-rooted 21st century folk music. He has “become one of the best arguments for jazz’s vitality” (NY Times).
Shows at 6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
Supported by KNKX. Arturo Sandoval is one of the most dynamic and vivacious live performers of our time. He has been awarded 10 Grammy Awards from 19 nominations; he has also received 6 Billboard Awards and an Emmy Award, the latter for his work on the HBO movie based on his life, For Love or Country, which starred Andy Garcia as Arturo. His two latest Grammy award-winning albums, Dear Diz (Everyday I Think of You) and Tango Como Yo Te Siento are now available worldwide.
In 2022 Arturo released Rhythm & Soul to rave reviews! What the pandemic of 2020 revealed to those who follow Arturo on social media was just how much this man, who at age 72 has seen and done it all, continues to love music and court it with all the eagerness of a love-struck teenager. During the imposed quarantine, when the music business all but stopped, Arturo would share 1-3 new compositions or improvisations to his Facebook and Instagram pages almost daily, revealing an insatiable need to keep creating and communicating. This album is but a mere sampling of his creative output from that time, a collection of new songs written during the shutdown and interpreted by his incredible band once they were able to get back in the studio together.
Sponsored by KNKX. October is Tacoma Arts Month, featuring a wide variety of arts and culture events, programs, and exhibits for all ages all around Tacoma, some of which are free. There is something for everyone to enjoy: music, dance, and theater performances; hands-on experiences; cultural events; visual art exhibits; literary readings; workshops; and film screenings.
All you have to do is choose what you want to enjoy. Take this opportunity to experience something new as we celebrate Tacoma’s cultural community!
Echoes of the Floating World features a striking collection of 18th, 19th and early 20th-century Japanese woodblock prints from the Tacoma Art Museum and others, displayed alongside works by contemporary Northwest artists. This exhibition honors the rich legacy of ukiyo-e while exploring its cultural impact on today’s artistic expressions.
Hours-
Monday CLOSEDTuesday CLOSEDWednesday 10 am – 5 pmThursday 10 am – 8 pmFriday 10 am – 5 pmSaturday 10 am – 5 pmSunday 10 am – 5 pm
We are protesting project 2025. TacomaRama marching band will join us for the next 4 years. We will meet each month on the Saturday closest to the 18th each month. Always 10am, always Reconciliation park. Feel loved and supported.
The period from the 1870s to the 1900s, known as the Gilded Age, saw the rise of the railroad, textile industry, and production. It also saw a rise in migration to US cities, providing workers to fill low paying jobs producing many of the fashions of the era. This era marked a turning point in fashion as new technologies and changing cultural norms transformed the ways in which people dressed.
Explore this history and enjoy the rare chance to see clothing, notions, and artifacts of the period from the Washington State Historical Society collections.
