Ladies and gents, this is a blog entry to bring your attention to Art in the Park, at the Monarch Sculpture Park.
It' Sunday, August 15th from 10:30 to 6pm. This is a family friendly biannual event with artists booths where you can view and buy all types of local artwork, from sculpture to painting to book and paper arts. There will be entertainment, hands-on activities, folk art demonstrations and food. The Artesian Rumble Arkestra (street band) is starting things off at 11:00 with our eclectic mix of Jazz, Rock, Bollywood, Balkan, (rhythm) and blues arrangements, followed by the Mas Uda Belly Dancers and a percussion workshop which is free and open to everybody starts at 3pm. Entrance fee donation of $5 for 12 and older. Location: Monarch Sculpture Park, 8431 Waldrick Road SE Olympia (btwn Old Hwy 99 and Military Road.) Info: 360 264 2408. Thanks, Devon Reid

Hope to see you there!

Devon Reid

http://monarchartcenter.org/

Ladies and gents, it is time again for Art in the Park
August 15th from 10:30 to 6pm. This is a family friendly biannual event with artists booths where you can view and buy all types of local artwork, from sculpture to painting to book and paper arts. There will be entertainment, hands-on activities, folk art demonstrations and food. The Artesian Rumble Arkestra (street band) is starting things off at 11:00 with our eclectic mix of Jazz, Rock, Bollywood, Balkan, (rhythm) and blues arrangements, followed by the Mas Uda Belly Dancers and a percussion workshop which is free and open to everybody starts at 3pm. Entrance fee donation of $5 for 12 and older. Location: Monarch Sculpture Park, 8431 Waldrick Road SE Olympia (btwn Old Hwy 99 and Military Road.) Info: 360 264 2408.

Hope to see you there!

Devon Reid

http://monarchartcenter.org/

Get out your sequins and your fancy dance shoes! Come dressed to illuminate and celebrate the annual fundraiser for the Procession of the Species (to be held on April 24). Without any public funding, this is our main fundraiser. Come make it happen! This year's pageant will feature a dream sequence performed by local trapeze women, dance artists, puppeteers, and storytellers. Tall House Arts, Elizabeth Lord, Dan Luce, RADCO dance collective and Primordial Soup will be featured. After the pageant dance the night away to the funky-blues soulful tunes of Bump Kitchen. 21 and over Tickets: Advance $45 per person/ $50 at the door Available at: Traditions Fair Trade, 5th & Water St in fabulous downtown Olympia. Clip from last year's performance: Video Clip from the Illuminated Ball 2009

TWO SHOWS! The weather outside is frightful, but we've got plenty of delight in store for you. Celebrate winter in cheeky burlesque style as we turn the lights down low and light up the stage with wanton good cheer! Featuring eight different peelers showcasing a mix of classic and contemporary neo-burlesque, the fusion bellydance stylings of Raqs Steady Eddie, and the fabulous Lauren O'Neill as Hattie Hotpants, your saucy winter hostess, this show is not to be missed! Showtimes are 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Doors open 30 minutes before show. Tickets $10 in advance/$12 at the door Advance tickets available through www.brownpapertickets.com or by contacting Miss de Boom Boom at deboomboom@gmail.com. Sorry, no photography without a Glitterazzi pass. Email deboomboom@gmail.com for more info.

Desire Video wants to either build a Winco, or provide drive-thru adult entertainment. I hope it's the latter since strippers make good tips.

Which of you will be the first to come see me?

Masterworks Choral Ensemble's Singing in the Halls:

Music of Carole King from the '60s and '70s

Masterworks Choral Ensemble revisits the brilliance of Carole King and the legacy of the Brill Building. "Singing in the Halls" is Masterworks' season finale, celebrating the music of Carole King from the 1960s and 1970s. The 65-voice choir, Singers ensemble, and soloists perform with an instrumental combo on June 14, 2008 at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts. The pops-style concert begins at 7:30pm, with a pre-concert lecture at 7pm, and complimentary desserts during intermission.

Historical Perspective

Let's go back to the 1960s and look in on the Brill Building, a place of great influence, and the amazing talent of one individual, Carole King. The Brill Building seems to be the center of the music industry's universe. Located in New York, it attracts the best and the brightest: mainstream popular music's singers, songwriters, publishers and producers. In this setting, Carole King and partner Gerry Goffin turn out song after song for pop vocalists, girl groups and boy bands. From 1960 to 1968 Carole King captures popular sentiments in words and melodies for more than 20 major hits, all written for others. From our present-day perspective, we can say Carole King's beginnings as a songwriter seem selfless. As we know, she came into her own fame with a string of hits and top selling albums, starting with Tapestry in 1971. The rest, as they say, is history.

Something Good

I've attended this a few times in the past year with my kids and we've always had a blast. It's one of my favorite things in Olympia.

 Family Dance Night in downtown Olympia at Fusion the Integrated Body 302 Columbia St. (across Olympia Ave. from the Olympia Center) fully wheelchair accessible Saturday March 15th 2008 6-8pm

This wonderful event full of laughter, movement, friendship, and play happens every other month. It’s two hours of music and dance activities that are inclusive of all ages and abilities. Grandparents and infants, schoolchildren and even some teens come together for the joy of dancing. Activities like shape museum where your dance takes you to interlocking shapes with others, rivers and rocks and bridges, dancing with scarves, in costumes or riding on a pull cloth, make it interactive and playful. The evening flows between structured dance activities and free dancing. A variety of music; old and contemporary, in many styles, changes the mood and gives everyone a chance to do their kind of dance. Cost for the whole family what ever size and configuration is $5 to $10 sliding scale (but please join us regardless of your ability to pay).