Fun things to do in Thurston County this week
April 26 to May 12
Odd couple
“Driving Miss Daisy,” opening Friday at Olympia Little Theatre, won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 1988 and has since been a perennial favorite. The heartwarming tale — about an elderly Jewish woman and the African-American man who becomes her chaffeur after she crashes her car — was adapted into the 1990 Morgan Freeman-Jessica Tandy film, which won four Oscars, including Best Picture, and has been remade, revived and restaged multiple times in the past three decades. Check out Alfred Uhry’s original theatrical version at 7:25 p.m. Friday and Saturday plus May 3, 4 and 9-11 and 1:55 p.m. Sunday plus May 5 and 12 at the theater, 1925 Miller Ave NE, Olympia. Tickets are $9-$15. Find out more at 360-786-9484 or olympialittletheater.org.
April 26-28
Chorus celebrates American composers
Olympia’s Capital City Chorus, a by-audition group launched last year, is teaming up with the Olympia Sweet Adelines Chorus to present “An Evening of American Composers.” The choruses will sing the music of Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copeland, Moses Hogan and others, along with folk songs and spirituals, at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Gloria Dei Lutheran Church, 1515 Harrison Ave. NW, Olympia. The concerts are free; donations are appreciated. Get details at cccolympmia.org.
April 27
Sing along with ‘Hamilton’ hits
Who knows how long it will be until Olympia will host a touring production of “Hamilton,” Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rap-infused history lesson about founding father Alexander Hamilton? But Broadway buffs can get a fix right here Saturday night, when Seattle “Hamilton” tribute band Rise Up brings numbers from the musical (plus other showtunes) to The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. A plus for devotees: Singing along is encouraged. The show starts at 6 p.m. (just after the Procession of the Species, so think well ahead about where you’re going to park). Tickets are $25. Find out more at 360-753-8586 or washingtoncenter.org. Meanwhile, get inspired with a “Rise Up” clip with the Broadway cast.
April 28
Colorful ‘Characters’
The Olympia Symphony Orchestra closes its season with “A Cast of Characters,” a program that includes everything from bullfighters (“March of the Toreadors” from Georges Bizet’s “Carmen”) to “Sleeping Beauty” and “Tom Thumb” (Maurice Ravel’s “Mother Goose”). Also on the program: Sergei Prokofiev’s “Lieutenant Kijé” and the overture of Jacques Offenbach’s “Orpheus in the Underworld.” The concert begins at 7 p.m. Sunday at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. Tickets are $7-$60. Get details at 360-753-8586, washingtoncenter.org or olympiasymphony.org.
April 28
All aboard that cat
Fans of Hayao Miyazaki will know the catbus, the a clever Cheshire Cat-like creation seen in Miyazaki’s classic 1988 “My Neighbor Totoro.” The perennial popularity of both bus and film has been proven by recent articles touting a sighting of a real-though-non-living version of the bus. Those who don’t know the maniacally grinning vehicle — or Totoro, a vaguely rabbit-like forest spirit — can make the aquaintance of both magical creatures on the big screen Sunday at the Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia. The screening, presented by Lincoln Elementary School, begins at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10, $7 for Olympia Film Society members. Get details at 360-754-6670 or olympiafilmsociety.org.
May 1
Flying high
“The Brotherhood Takes Flight” on Wednesday night, when Seattle rope maestro Pj Perry joins local aerialists for a performance that will be, quite literally, over the heads of the gathered crowd. The soaring spectacle (which happens the first Wednesday of each month from fall through spring) begins at 8 p.m. at The Brotherhood Lounge, 119 Capitol Way N., Olympia. There’s no cover charge, but tipping is encouraged. Get details at 360-352-4153. You can preview Perry’s prowess at youtube.com/watch?v=Qg2PqO1TDFM.
May 2-25
Ibsen in the era of #metoo
Harlequin Productions revisits Henrik Ibsen’s classic “A Doll’s House” in a thoroughly modern production that looks at how far women have come — or haven’t — since the play was written in 1879. The production opens at 8 p.m. Thursday at the State Theater, 202 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia, and performances continue through May 25. Tickets are $35, $32 for seniors and military, $20 for students and youth; for the May 8 performance, pay what you can. Find out more at 360-786-0151 or harlequinproductions.org.
This story was originally published April 24, 2019 at 8:02 PM.