Out and About: See a modernized myth, or listen to a cappella or cool jazz

Star-crossed lovers

South Puget Sound Community College Theatre Collective’s “Eurydice,” continuing through Sunday, Nov. 21, is a contemporary take on Orpheus’s journey to the underworld. The 2003 play, by Sarah Ruhl, focuses on two young lovers (played by Ivy Aijala-Wardell and Chris Bolduc) and is set not in the ancient world but in the 1950s. The cast also includes oft-seen local actors Scott Douglas, Christine Goode, Brian Hatcher, Jesse Morrow and Tom Sanders. Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Nov. 19 and 20, and 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 21 at SPSCC’s Minnaert Center for the Arts, 2011 Mottman Road SW, Olympia. Admission is by donation ($10 suggested). Proof of vaccination is required. Also on stage this weekend: Harlequin Productions’ “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill,” “Tenderly: The Rosemary Clooney Musical” and “Until the Flood.” Tickets are $20-$42 for the shows at the State Theater, 202 Fourth Ave. E., and proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test is required.

The Esoterics return

In the before times, Seattle’s The Esoterics performed regularly as part of St. John’s Concert Series. On Saturday, Nov. 20, both the series and the acclaimed a cappella group return. The 3 p.m. concert can be seen in person at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 114 20th St. SE, Olympia, or online. The program, “The Rewaking,” revisits some of the pieces the chorus performed in 2019. Admission is by donation, with $20 per person suggested. Proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test is required to attend the live performance. St. John’s concert series also will include an organ recital by Doug Cleveland on Feb. 12 and a concert by Seattle Pro Musica on May 14.

Cool Jazz

Also back after a COVID hiatus is the Rotary Clubs of Thurston County’s Cool Jazz, Clean Water Festival. The festival, happening Saturday, Nov. 20, includes a 7 p.m. concert by David Deacon-Joyner and his band and a full day of performance and adjudication for local student jazz bands. It’s all happening at The Washington Center for the Performing Arts, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. Tickets for Deacon-Joyner’s concert are $46. Those 12 and older need proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative COVID test to enter the center.

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 November 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.