Weekend events range from wooden boats to Sleeping Beauty to a murder mystery

Wooden boats and much more

Just like brunch and flowers, the Olympia Wooden Boat Festival is a Mother’s Day tradition. The festival — open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, May 10, and from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 11 — features music, crafts, food vendors and, of course, wooden boats. New this year is a Foodie Night block party from 5 to 8:30 p.m. Saturday. Also Saturday: The Olson Bros Band will play from 6 to 8 p.m. Brothers Luke and Isaac Olson, who grew up in Olympia, have won two national songwriting contests, most recently with “Kill Your Mom,” intended to discourage drunk driving. Another of the brothers’ popular tunes, “I Bleed Evergreen,” pays tribute to the natural beauty of the Northwest. The fest happens at Percival Landing Park, 217 Thurston Ave. NW, Olympia, and along the Budd Inlet waterfront.

Ballet Northwest revisits ‘Sleeping Beauty’

Mother’s Day weekend also brings with it Ballet Northwest’s spring ballet. This year, the company is reawakening “The Sleeping Beauty,” its most popular spring production. The Tchaikovsky classic, telling the well-known tale of a cursed princess saved by a kiss, ends with a wedding attended by beloved fairytale characters, including Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, and Snow White and the seven dwarves. The production features two former Ballet Northwest dancers: Natalie Allenton and Bina Anvari. Allenton, who graduated from Pacific Northwest Ballet’s professional division and danced professionally with Spectrum Dance Theater, will be sharing the role of Princess Aurora with Grace Collins, a junior at Olympia High School. Anvari will dance the role of Prince Désiré, who awakens Aurora. Performances are at 7 p.m. Thursday and Friday, May 8-9, and 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, May 10-11, at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia, Tickets are $22-$45.

‘A Party to Murder’

Olympia Little Theatre’s “A Party to Murder,” opening Friday, May 9, is one of those mysteries where a group is invited to gather at a remote house. Murder, as usual in these situations, ensues. And in “A Party to Murder,” it seems the half-dozen guests should have expected trouble, since they were told they’d be playing a murder mystery game. While the premise suggests a sendup of the formula, the theater’s website promises “an unexpected and terrifying conclusion.” And the play, by Marcia Kash and Douglas E. Hughes, has been compared to the work of Agatha Christie. The theatre also is issuing this warning: “This production contains sensitive content that may not be suitable for all audience members. Please be advised that the show includes sudden flashes of light, simulated electronic cigarette smoking, thunderclaps, depictions of murder, blood, and graphic representations of death. Viewer discretion is advised.” Performances are at 7:25 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 9-10, plus May 16-17 and 22-24 and 1:55 p.m. Sunday, May 11, plus May 18 and 25 at Olympia Little Theatre, 1925 Miller Ave. NE, Olympia. Tickets are $10-$16.

Freelance writer Molly Gilmore talks with DJ Kevin the Brit about what’s happening around town on KGY-FM’s “Oly in a Can,” airing at 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Fridays.