Get out and about this weekend to savor grim tales, jazz tunes and ice underfoot
Poe at play
Theater Artists Olympia, long known for its fascination with the dark and disturbing, is paying tribute to Edgar Allan Poe with “Poe Nocturne,” opening Friday, Jan. 12. “Nocturne,” adapted by Pug Bujeaud and Rachel Luann Strayer, debuted in the fall as part of Lakewold Gardens’ All Hallow’s Eve celebration, and Bujeaud and company decided to revive it for Olympia audiences. Kate Ayers, Teresita Brimms, Heather R. Christopher, Ryan Holmberg, Vanessa Postil, Dennis Rolly and John Serembe will perform the quartet of Poe stories at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Jan. 12-13, and Jan. 18-20; and 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14 and 21, at OlyTheater at Capital Mall, 625 Black Lake Blvd. SW, Olympia. (The theater is near the cinema.)
Jazz in the box
The Washington Center for the Performing Arts’ Black Box Jazz series kicks off 2024 on Friday, Jan. 12, with a performance by noted tenor sax man Alexey Nikolaev. Nikolaev of Seattle, who has performed at jazz festivals all over the world, and his quartet will show their stuff at 8 p.m. in the Black Box theater at the center, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia. Tickets are $32-$39. The series continues with the Michael Powers Band on Feb. 9, the D’Vonne Lewis Group on March 8 and the Dmitry Matheny Band on June 14.
Have an ice day
We’re OK with ice, so long as it’s kept contained — in a beverage, a cooler or a skating rink. If you also like ice in its proper place, as opposed to on the streets and sidewalks, you might want to head downtown for Oly on Ice before it closes for the season on Monday, Jan. 15. The pop-up skating rink in Isthmus Park, 529 Fourth Ave. W., Olympia, is open from 3:30 to 10 p.m. Friday, Jan. 12; from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13; from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 14; and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, Jan. 15, which is the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday. Ice skating tickets for ages 4 and older are $15 on the weekend and $9 on Monday and include 75 minutes of skating plus skate rental. Admission is $5 for those 3 and younger.
Freelance writer Molly Gilmore does grouse about the weather at times, but she much prefers Olympia’s gray and rainy winters to snowy and icy ones.
