Community Calendar

Once upon a vine, John Jarboe’s aunt revealed that John not only had a twin sister in the womb, but that John consumed her: “You ate her. That’s why you are the way you are.” This was a lot for John to swallow! In this musical shrine to the consumed twin, named Rose, John welcomes you into a feast of gender through song, storytelling, and a full plate of wordplay.

Created in partnership with the Bearded Ladies Cabaret. Featuring all original music written in collaboration with Emily Bate, John Jarboe, and Pax Ressler.

Supported by KNKX. Get ready for a funky good time when Martha High’s Funky Divas, backed by the Fred Wesley and The New JBs, performed a power-packed show of hots and standards from those played and sang with the Godfather of Soul, James Brown.

Martha Harvin began singing in The Four Jewels, whose members attended the same church and school and went on tour with James Brown in 1964. They did record two singles while they toured with Brown, but after a year and a half with Brown the group split up. Not ready to leave the tour, Harvin asked Brown if she could stay. Brown agreed, but he required her name change from Harvin to the stage name High.

She continued singing with Brown for the next 30-plus years, including her unmistakable high soprano falsetto wail on “The Big Payback.” She appeared with Brown on the track “Summertime” and on the Original Funky Divas album.

Joining Martha in the Divas will be Kelly Jarrell, who sang in Brown’s background group The Bittersweets from 1994 until his death in 2006, and Darlene Parker, who along with Martha were backing vocalists in the touring band of Maceo Parker, Brown’s iconic and beloved sax player.

Legendary bandleader, trombonist and author Fred Wesley is one of the forefathers of funk, still setting the standard with his jazz-funk band The New JBs. Together at its core for more than 30 years, the band is a living celebration of roots funk and more, performing such hits as “Pass the Peas” made with James Brown and the JBs including Maceo Parker, as well as selections from the P-Funk years and Fred’s own and others’ soulful jazz, funk and blues compositions.

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.

Never Turn Back: Echoes of African American Music unveils the profound legacy of Gospel, Blues, Jazz, and Soul artists who shaped the soundscape of American culture and used their music as instruments of resistance, identity, and representation.

Gospel, Blues, Jazz, and Soul embody the profound influence of African American music on culture and history. From the spiritual foundations and transformative movements of Gospel hymns to the revolutionary improvisations of Jazz, the Blues’ Southern roots rising from the Mississippi Delta, and Soul’s powerful amplification of the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements, these genres have defined the unique sound and undying spirit of a nation that continues to echo through contemporary Black music today.

This is a permanent exhibition. Since time immemorial, Tribal nations have existed in this place we call Washington. This Is Native Land invites visitors to understand Washington State through the lived experiences and voices of its Native people.

Tribal nations are sovereign nations. Today, Native history, culture, and community thrive in our state. Through everyday acts of sovereignty – big and small – Indigenous peoples demonstrate they are still here, they have persevered, and they will always be here.

This Is Native Land is guided by three teachings:
We are of the land and waters
With knowledge comes responsibility
Sovereignty protects people, lands, and waters

These teachings are shared through multimedia, artwork, and interactive objects designed for guest engagement. They represent a contemporary continuation of Tribal stories and traditions.

Over 100 Native contributors from more than 60 Tribes shaped the exhibition’s stories and content. We thank the Native Advisory Committee and all community participants for their contributions.

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.

OPEN ADULT BALLET CLASS

Have you always dreamed of dancing ballet?
Now’s your chance to step into the studio and move with grace, strength, and joy.

This class is also for you if you are returning after years away from ballet or any other forms of dance.

Saturdays 11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
Tacoma Urban Performing Arts Center (T.U.P.A.C.)
1105 Martin Luther King, Jr Way, Tacoma, WA 98405

A Class Designed for You:
- No experience needed—just a curious spirit
- Go at your own pace in a supportive, judgment-free space
- Build flexibility, confidence, and connection with your body

Wear what feels comfortable.
Come ready to move with intention and joy.

Whether it’s your first plié or your hundredth pirouette, this is your time to shine.

Questions? Call us at 253-327-1873

Let’s dance together at T.U.P.A.C.—where every adult belongs at the barre.

BIMA’s annual Black History Month Soirée is a celebration of Black culture, creativity, and community. The museum comes alive with live music, performances, art-making, and a marketplace spotlighting Black-owned businesses, all centered around connection and shared experience.

Our 2026 Soirée features a curated pop-up market hosted by Seattle’s Black Love Market, where you’ll find art, goods, and food by Black makers and entrepreneurs. Hands-on art activities invite visitors of all ages to explore themes of identity, history, and vision through creative expression. Live music and performances rooted in Black traditions invite guests to engage, reflect, and celebrate.

Whether you’re here to dance, connect with community, support small businesses, or simply spend time with friends and family—you’re welcome.

Admission is free; $10 suggested donation.

All are welcome.

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.”