Movies under the stars and a play inside an Olympia home are among choices for fun
Love, loss and cocktails
All of those — along with history and the endless march of time from 11,000 years ago to the universe’s end — are among the subjects of Olympia playwright John Longenbaugh’s “Our House,” set and staged in and around a private residence on Olympia’s east side. Mathaeus Andersen, Hannah Eklund, Meghan Goodman and Mark Waldstein are featured in the immersive production, which premiered in September to much acclaim. The play opens this week, with performances at 7:30 p.m. July 17-20, July 24-27, July 31-Aug. 3 and Aug. 7-10. Tickets are $39, and include a cocktail — or non-alcoholic beverage — and snacks at intermission. There’s space for just 14 audience members each night, as some of the action takes place in the home’s living room.
Blasts from past at Lacey in Tune
Lacey launches its Friday Music and Movies nights, the centerpiece of its Lacey in Tune summer events on Friday, July 18, with a generation-spanning lineup. The free entertainment begins at 7 p.m. with Neil Diamond tribute band Cherry Cherry, followed at dusk by a screening of “Toy Story.” The Diamond song after which the band is named was released in 1966, 29 years before the Pixar classic. Now 30 years old, the film about a group of sentient toys led by cowboy Woody was the first entirely computer-animated feature film. There’ll be food trucks on hand at the event, which begins at 6 in Huntamer Park, 618 Woodland Square Loop SE, Lacey.
Screen on the Green kicks off
Tumwater’s Screen on the Green summer movie series begins its 2025 season on Friday, July 18, with the animated adventure “Moana II.” The surprise is that only one of the four films in the series is happening in the traditional location on the green at the Tumwater Valley Golf Course. “Moana” will be shown at Toyota of Olympia, 6969 Tyee Drive SW, Tumwater. The film will begin at dusk; before the movie, the Pacific Islander Club will sing and dance. There’ll be food vendors on site, too. The free Friday night screenings will continue with “The Wild Robot” on July 25 at Tumwater Hill Park, 3115 Ridgeview Court SW; “Mufasa: The Lion King” on Aug. 1 at the golf course, 4611 Tumwater Valley Drive SE; and “If” on Aug. 8 at Tumwater City Hall, 555 Israel Road SW.
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 2 p.m. Fridays.