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Calling all downtown Olympia enthusiasts! Join us for the next LoveOly Cleanups in the spring. We're on a mission to transform and elevate our beloved downtown, and we need your passion and commitment to make it happen. Together, we'll create a cleaner, more vibrant, and even more lovable Olympia! Sign up and we'll send you details about when and where!

Sign up here

Throughout January, businesses and organizations are invited to register their locations as participating Arts Walk venues in the production of Olympia's spring event. Spring Arts Walk takes place the weekend of April 26 and 27 with Earthbound Productions' Luminary Procession to take place Friday evening followed by the Procession of the Species on Saturday.

Visit the event website to register January 1-31 and partner with Arts Walk to energize the City and engage the community through art.

Register at https://www.artswalkoly.com/

Registration forms are submitted with payment of the registration fee included.

Provide the names and mediums of your organization's partnering artists as well as a detailed description of the experience your venue and artists will be offering attendees.

Be a contender for the Innovation Awards. Up to 5 projects will be selected based on how well they exemplify innovation and creativity, and community engagement through the arts as illustrated in their registration form. Awardees will be highlighted in event publications and receive free registration for a future Arts Walk.

Artists seeking participation in the Arts Market can submit an Interest Form during registration month. More information on the Arts Market is available on the event website.

Questions? Contact Jessica Strauss, Program Aide, Olympia Parks, Arts & Recreation, estrauss@ci.olympia.wa.us, 360.709.2781 

Dive into a musical extravaganza at the Winter Concert by Student Orchestras of Greater Olympia (SOGO) on March 3 at 4 pm! Music Director Cameron May leads the Conservatory Orchestra through Copland's enchanting Variations on a Shaker Melody, Moncayo's lively Huapango, and a mesmerizing arrangement by SOGO member Cade McBride of Debussy's The Sunken Cathedral. Brace yourself for the grand finale—a fiery fourth movement from Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8!

Kicking off the concert, the 18-member SOGO Brass Choir, under the baton of Greg Allison, presents the Fanfare for Brass and Percussion, featuring both traditional and avant-garde brass compositions. The Academy and Debut Orchestras, along with the Brass Choir, promise a captivating blend of familiar and innovative orchestral pieces. Sponsored by OlyFed, this musical journey is not to be missed!

Where: Washington Center of the Performing Arts

Price: $8-23 (plus a $4 service fee), children 6 and under free with service fee.

Grab your tickets:

Online: https://www.washingtoncenter.org/event/sogo-winter-concert-2/

At the box office: 512 Washington St SE, Olympia, WA 98501

On the phone: (360) 753-8585

Email: boxoffice@washingtoncenter.org

Explore the captivating world of wolves at the Estuarium’s Discovery Speaker Series on Sanctuary and Recovery of Wolves. Join the discussion on January 4 at 6:30 pm for a howling good time with Danielle Ransier, Education and Outreach Specialist at Wolf Haven International. 

Wolf Haven, dedicated to rescuing and providing sanctuary for over 300 displaced wolves since 1982, will unravel the mysteries of these misunderstood keystone predators. Learn why wolves don't make good pets and how you can advocate for their crucial role in maintaining a balanced ecosystem.

To delve deeper into wolf recovery, visit wolfhaven.org

For event details, check out pugetsoundestuarium.org/events/dssjanuary2024/

Set your musical muse loose with Jacob Bancks’ concerto, written for world-renowned clarinetist Ricardo Morales, who will perform its WEST COAST PREMIERE with the Olympia Symphony Orchestra. After, delve into the vivid orchestral imaginings of Berlioz’s symphony – it’s simply fantastique!

JACOB BANCKS Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra (featuring Ricardo Morales, clarinet)

BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique

The Symphony's 2023-2024 Season, themed "True Colors," invites you to celebrate the authenticity that shapes us individually and as a vibrant community. Led by Music Director Alexandra Arrieche, let's embrace our uniqueness, envision a radiant future, and experience the transformative power of music.

Save the Date: Sunday, February 4, 3:00 pm

Washington Center Main Stage, 512 Washington St. SE, Olympia, WA

Learn more

Sidney Bruhl would do anything to publish the next great play. He would even kill for it. This dark comedy thriller will have audiences laughing one moment and screaming in terror the next as Sidney discovers he may not be the only murderer in the room. DEATHTRAP provides twists, turns, shocks and surprises that have held audiences rapt since its 1978 Broadway debut, where it set a record for longest-running comedy-thriller.

OPENING NIGHT

FRI, JAN 19

7:30 PM

Learn more

Brace yourselves for an unforgettable evening! Stop by the Brotherhood Lounge this Sunday as the Brotherhood Takes Flight! The bar opens its doors at 4 pm – arrive early to snag the best seats in the house! The show kicks off at 5 pm, promising an epic experience you won't want to miss. Mark your calendars and make it a date! Admission is just $15. Learn more

The 2023-24 season of Oly on Ice runs through January 15.

Tickets may be purchased online in advance or on-site, on a first-come/first-served basis. We highly recommend using the online option to ensure you’re able to reserve your preferred time. Tickets may be purchased at the ice rink, but quantities may be limited. If the rink is fully booked when you arrive to purchase tickets on-site, you will be given the next available time. Tickets purchased on-site may be done via smartphone, cash, or credit card. Learn more here.

Businesses: Looking for a fun and low-cost opportunity to partner with Oly on Ice and get some recognition for your brand?

Learn about a limited number of sponsored ticket giveaways, which Oly on Ice will promote on their Facebook group and Twitter/X social media channels.

To sign up, please follow this link and fill out the online form. 

Photos by Tracy Jameson, Courtesy of Olympia Artspace Alliance.

The Olympia Artspace Alliance is pleased to announce “Light up the Night – Winter Wonders” – a new exhibition of artworks by local artists that will be on view through March 2024, in the windows of the Goldberg Building at Capitol Way at Fourth Avenue, downtown Olympia. 

The exhibition features work from Graeme Smith, Lakes Elementary, Josh Everson, Olympia High School, Cyrra Robinson, Fine Arts Club Preschool at South Sound Dance and Meredith Ehlers, Tumwater Hill Elementary. 

The Olympia Artspace Alliance invited Olympia-area teachers to propose artwork by students that celebrate the winter and its wonders by lighting up the night.  Learn more here.

The News of the Week in Downtown Olympia is a newsletter created by the Olympia Downtown Alliance and is a summary of happenings Downtown.

If you have news related to downtown you'd like included, please email marketing@downtownolympia.org. Preference is given to Olympia Downtown Alliance members. If we do not share it here, chances are we'll share it on our Facebook or Instagram pages. We do reserve the right to use our discretion on what we share.

The deadline is Friday at 5 pm for inclusion in the next week's newsletter.

If you know of anyone who would like to receive the News of the Week in Downtown Olympia, please have them sign-up at the bottom of our home page here: https://downtownolympia.org/.