Out and about: Hear Judy Collins or the piano’s ‘Evolution,’ see satirical play or magic
Folk icon
Friday, Feb. 25, is a big day for legendary soprano Judy Collins. That’s the day the 82-year-old singer-songwriter is due to release her 29th album, “Spellbound” — the first on which she wrote every song. Also on Collins’ calendar for the 25th: a concert at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts in Olympia, where she last played in 2018 with Stephen Stills. Collins has said that her new album — including such modern folk tunes as “When I Was a Girl in Colorado” — represents a post-pandemic renaissance. “I haven’t reached my peak yet,” she told the New York Times this month, “but it’s coming.” Tickets, which are $25-$79, are still available for the Olympia show, at 7:30 p.m. at the center, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. Proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test is required for audience members 12 and older.
Emerald City’s ‘Evolution’
Emerald City Music, the Olympia- and Seattle-based chamber music series, is kicking off its spring season with “Evolution,” a concert exploring the development of keyboard instruments from the harpsichord to the synthesizer. The concert, which features Vicky Chow on piano and prepared piano, Mikael Darmanie on piano and synthesizer, Henry Kramer on piano and Kenneth Weiss on harpsichord, includes works by Beethoven, Ravel, John Cage and Philip Glass, among others. It’s at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26, at the Minnaert Center for the Arts at South Puget Sound Community College, 2011 Mottman Road SW, Olympia. Tickets are $34 and $55. Proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test is required for audience members 12 and older. Up next for Emerald City Music in Olympia: “Spotlight: George Crumb” on March 26, “Clarinet Dances” on April 30, and “Insomnia,” featuring Bach’s “Goldberg Variations,” on May 14.
In search of political correctness
In “The Thanksgiving Play” — opening Friday, Feb. 25, at South Puget Sound Community College — four white people attempt to put together a production that will celebrate both Thanksgiving and Native American Heritage Month. The satirical comedy, by Larissa FastHorse, pokes fun at theater folk and white privilege as well as at the controversial holiday itself. It might seem an odd time of year to stage a play about Thanksgiving, but the show felt like a perfect choice to director Melissa Avril Harris. “I challenged myself with three parameters,” Harris told The Olympian. “One, the playwright has to be a woman of color; two, the subject matter must be contemporary, and three, the cast should be no more than five.” The SPSCC Theatre Collective production stars Jordan Baker, Scarlet Nixon Klein, Julian Owen and Jesse Morrow. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Feb. 25 and 26 and March 4 and 5 and 2 p.m. Feb. 27 and March 6 at SPSCC’s Minnaert Center for the Arts. Tickets are by donation, with $10 suggested. Proof of vaccination is required.
Magic man
Magician G Sparks is kicking off “Sunday Night Magic” on Feb. 27 on the patio of Octapas Café, 610 Water St. SW, Olympia. Sparks will perform his pantomime “The Flying Silk” at 5:30 p.m. The show is free, and Sparks will offer tableside magic performances for $5 between 6 and 7:30 p.m. For reservations, call 360-878-9333.
Freelance writer Molly Gilmore talks about what’s happening in Olympia and beyond with 95.3 KGY-FM’s Michael Stein from 3 to 4 p.m. Fridays.
This story was originally published February 24, 2022 at 5:00 AM.