Catch county fair, feline video fest or reading of off-Broadway hit this 1st August weekend
Cats, cows, cupcakes and a carnival
You’ll find all of these at the Thurston County Fair, which opened Thursday, July 30 and runs through Sunday, Aug. 3. This year’s poster, featuring a peacock posing with a disco ball, invites one and all to “boogie on over” to the Thurston County Fairgrounds, 3054 Carpenter Road SE in Lacey to admire farm animals, quilts and art displays, munch on traditional fair foods, hop onto carnival rides and more. The cows will be in the barns. Costumed cats will show their stuff at noon Friday. Cupcake bakers will compete for a prize on Sunday, with other desserts taking center stage daily. Entertainment includes concerts, dance performances and such daily highlights as the Vuelta la Luna Circus and Professor Bamboozle. The fair is open 10 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday. Rides open at 1 p.m. Tickets are $7-$9, with children 5 and younger admitted free. Saturday, first responders and military with ID will be admitted for $2. Sunday, those 6-14 get in for $2. There’s a deal on Friday, too: It’s wristband day, so you can ride the carnival rides all day for $50. To avoid the $7 charge for parking, you can ride the free shuttle.
Cats on the big screen
How cute are the cats in the 2025 Cat Video Fest, screening Saturday, Aug. 2, in Olympia? The publicity photos made it hard to get back to work! The festival, which features a selection of aww-inspiring and mischievous felines, happens at 7 p.m. at the Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia, with doors opening at 6. Tickets are $16.25 for general admission, $13.25 for Olympia Film Society members, and a portion of proceeds benefit Concern for Animals, a nonprofit that helps people in financial need care for their pets.
Harlequin’s ‘The Treasurer’
As part of its Bold Voices series, Harlequin Productions is offering readings of Max Posner’s 2018 off-Broadway hit “The Treasurer,” about a man who finds himself managing the affairs of his elderly mother, a difficult woman for whom, he proclaims, he feels no love. The play, which has been compared to “The Glass Menagerie,” blends surrealism and biting wit with musings on the nature of hell. Bryan Tyrrell directs Andy Gordon as The Son (named only that in the script), Kathryn Dorgan as Ida, his narcissistic mother, and Austen Anderson and Amanda Kemp in multiple roles. Performances are scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 2, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 3, at the State Theater, 202 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia. Tickets are $25.
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.
This story was originally published July 31, 2025 at 5:00 AM.