Fun events and things to do this week in Thurston County

By Molly Gilmore Contributing writer

December 6, 2019 7:00 AM

A scene from Olympia Little Theatre’s production of “Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley.” Tessa Beck Fey Courtesy of Olympia Little Theatre

Dec. 6-22

Have a Mary Christmas

“Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley,” opening Friday at Olympia Little Theatre, is a Jane Austen pastiche that finds the Bennet sisters celebrating the holidays two years after “Pride and Prejudice.” The heroine of the holiday romance is the bookish Mary, the middle sister who was — like a Napoleonic-era Jan Brady — mostly overlooked in Austen’s novel. As the theater’s press release puts it: “It’s time Mary had her day.” Kathy Dorgan directs the 2016 comedy by Lauren Gunderson and Margot Melcon. Performances are at 7:25 p.m. Friday and Saturday plus Dec. 13, 14 and 19-21 and at 1:55 p.m. Sunday plus Dec. 15 and 22 at the theater, 1925 Miller Ave NE, Olympia. Tickets are $9-$15. Find out more at olympialittletheater.org, or call 360-786-9484.

This is the signature image of the Banff Film Festival, and is of Valentine Fabre on the south ridge of the Dent Blanche in Switzerland. The Olympia Film Society expects this weekend’s Banff Film Festival Tour screenings to sell out, so if you want to go, get your tickets now at olympiafilmsociety.org. Ben Tibbetts Courtesy photo

Dec. 6-8

Head for the mountains — without leaving your seat

Outdoor enthusiasts and armchair adventurers alike will be filling the Capitol Theater for this weekend’s Banff Film Festival Tour, presented by the Olympia Mountaineers. Selections from the wildly popular festival are screening at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 6 p.m. Sunday at the theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia; doors will open an hour before each screening. Tickets are $12-$36. The Olympia Film Society is expecting all three screenings to sell out, so if you want to go and haven’t bought tickets yet, go immediately to olympiafilmsociety.org to see what’s still available.

Dec. 6

Greet the holidays with ‘Hallelujah’

Both singers and those who’d rather listen are welcome at Student Orchestras of Greater Olympia’s annual Community Messiah Sing-Along. The sing-along of George Frideric Handel’s Messiah — including the beloved “Hallelujah Chorus” — happens at 7 p.m. Friday at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. It’s free, and there will be some scores to borrow, though those who have their own are asked to bring them. Get details at washingtoncenter.org, or call 360-753-8586.

A trio of brightly lit boats depart Percival Landing as part of the 2006 Parade of Lighted Ships Steve Bloom Olympian file photo

Dec. 7

Ships light up the night

Take a classic holiday parade and add water: That’s the recipe for the Olympia Yacht Club’s Parade of Lighted Ships. Among those in attendance at the parade, beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday, will be Santa, Mrs. Claus and the Grinch, along with the Capital High Choir, which will perform at 5:30 at Port Plaza at the end of Columbia Street Northwest. Port Plaza also offers the best view of the parade, according to the club’s Dick Binns, and Batdorf & Bronson will be serving free hot cocoa and coffee there, too. Find out more at olympiayachtclub.org, or call 360-357-6767.

Dec. 7

Klezmer punk trio sings about politics and more

Punk music of a most unusual kind will be heard Saturday in Olympia. Brivele — a Seattle band that describes itself as an “anti-fascist klezmer folk-punk trio” — plays a mix of contemporary and old-country music with lyrics in both English and Yiddish. Check out the trio’s mix of music, oral history, vaudeville and visual art at Temple Beth Hatfiloh, 201 Eighth Ave. SE, Olympia. The concert, with opening act Varda, begins at 7 p.m. A $15 donation is suggested. For details and to register, go to bethhatfiloh.org/event/klezmer-yiddish-music, or email tbh@bethhatfiloh.org. Find out more about Brivele and check out the music at brivele.com.

Brivele — a Seattle band that describes itself as an “anti-fascist klezmer folk-punk trio” -- will perform Saturday night at Temple Beth Hatfiloh. Courtesy photo

Dec. 7 and 8

A one-man epic

The ancient Greek poem “The Iliad” gets an update in the one-man show “The Iliad,” on stage Saturday and Sunday in Olympia. Animal Fire Theatre’s Scott Douglas plays an unnamed poet who tells of both the Trojan War and the modern world in Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare’s 2012 adaptation of Homer’s epic. “I fell in love with this script as soon as I read it,” Douglas told The Olympian. The show, produced by Animal Fire and Joi de Puget Productions and directed by James O’Barr, begins at 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Olympia Family Theater, 612 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia. For Saturday’s performance, a benefit for Orca Books Collective, tickets are $25. For the Sunday show, pay what you can, with a suggested donation of $25 to benefit Animal Fire. Get details at animalfiretheatre.com/an-iliad/.

Dec. 8

Masterworks gets merry in Mannheim style

Masterworks Choral Ensemble is rolling into the holidays with “A Mannheim Merry Christmas,” a holiday concert inspired by Mannheim Steamroller’s new-age instrumental music. Conductor Gary Witley created choral arrangements for some of Mannheim’s tunes and adapted other holiday songs to fit the Steamroller style. The concert will include such high-energy numbers as “Sing We Now of Christmas” along with classics like “Do You Hear What I Hear?” and will wrap up with Masterworks’ take on Handel’s “Hallelujah Chorus,” an audience favorite. There will be a silent auction happening, too, with bidding before the show and at intermission. The music begins at 7:30 p.m. at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. Tickets are $10-$26. Get more information at 360-753-8586 or mce.org.

Freelance writer Molly Gilmore always liked Jan best. Hear more from her about what’s happening around the Sound every Friday on 95.3 KGY’s “Oly in a Can.”