As reds, yellows and browns emerge in Northwest greenery, a new season full of color is popping up in theaters, museums, galleries and concert halls all around the South Sound. Welcome to fall – and to the fall arts season, brighter and more eye-catching than ever. Here are some highlights.
On the stage: Catch “Sherlock’s Last Case” in September and “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever” in November-December at Lakewood Playhouse. Tacoma Musical Playhouse offers “Chicago” this month and “The Sound of Music” for a holiday show. The Broadway Center for the Performing Arts offers the annual Fall Free for All weekend of stage performances Sept. 22-23, and Pacific Lutheran University does “Our Town” in October. The big fall show at the Paramount is “Wicked,” Oct. 10-27, while “Elf: The Musical” comes to the 5th Avenue Theatre for December.
In music: Vashon Opera performs Mozart’s “Cosi fan tutte” this weekend, and Tacoma Opera does it in November. The UP for Arts fall concert series begins this month in University Place, as does the University of Puget Sound’s Jacobsen series with two concerts this month. The Second City Chamber Masterpiece Series kicks off in late October, and the Tacoma Symphony opens with Leon Bates in October and follows with Video Games Live in November. The University Place Duck the Halls caroling contest happens in December, as does the Sing-Along Messiah in Lakewood. Seems like this fall is the time for old-school rock stars to tour the Northwest: there’s Madonna and Bob Dylan/Mark Knopfler in Seattle and Alice Cooper at the Emerald Queen. Younger names are also coming: Alanis Morissette in Seattle, and Justin Bieber at the Tacoma Dome.
Don’t-miss art exhibits: They include the two Indian art shows this month at Seattle Asian Art Museum, Lino Tagliapietra at the Museum of Glass and glass and more from the Marioni Family at Tacoma Art Museum.
In dance: See “Cinderella” with the Pacific Northwest Ballet this month or the Oregon Ballet Theater presented by Ballet Northwest next month in Olympia. Tacoma City Ballet presents its popular annual “Haunted Theater” in October.
Fall is festival time: On right now is the Puyallup Fair, with big names such as Enrique Iglesias, Jeff Dunham and Big Time Rush. This weekend also sees the Hops & Crops Harvest Festival at Mary Olson Farm in Auburn, and next weekend historic Fort Steilacoom presents Living History Day. You can celebrate Oktoberfest everywhere from Fremont to Tacoma to Enumclaw to Olympia, and after that comes Dia de los Muertos at Tacoma Art Museum on Nov. 4. Finally, you can see out the old year at First Night Tacoma on New Year’s Eve downtown.
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