The Associated Press/file
COMEDY: Veteran comedian Bill Cosby will tickle your funnybone at Seattle's Benaroya Hall on Feb. 16.

Mike Salsbury/The Olympian file
FILM: Olympia Film Society usher Thea Chroman gets some help with her lipstick as Lindsey Boldt (left) and Jennifer Shafer await the start of the 18th annual Olympia Film Festival in October 2001. The Olympia Film Society shows eclectic movies all year round.

The Olympian/file
KIDS: Donald Brown receives a teeth cleaning demonstration from dental hygienist Joella Payatt in February 2001 at the Children's Hands on Museum in Olympia. The museum recently doubled its size.

Tony Overman/The Olympian file
KARAOKE: Pinky Woods (right) and Mike Pritchard team up to sing along with Austin Stallard (far left) during Saturday night karaoke at Mehfil Cuisine of India's lounge. You can test your vocal skills at any number of venues in the Olympia area.

There's much more to do in winter than hibernate

ROSS RAIHALA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published Friday, January 4, 2002

As is usually the case, January can seem like a bit of a dead month, entertainment-wise. The bustle of the holidays has passed, the days are short and often lacking in sunshine, and those rhododendrons won't be back in bloom for a few more months.

Yet there's no shortage of things to do and see in South Sound, even in -- oh yes -- January.

With that in mind, here's a list of 10 activities to help fill a few chilly days and nights, either in South Sound, Seattle or right in front of your home computer.

Catch a film

A membership in the Olympia Film Society remains one of the best deals in town for the avid filmgoer.

Memberships start at $30, with discounted plans available for students and seniors. The most immediate benefit is reduced admission to films, with OFS members paying only $3.50, as opposed to $6. And when the annual Olympia Film Festival rolls around in October, only OFS members can purchase the heavily discounted full or partial passes to festival events.

Starting Sunday, OFS will open Richard Linklater's innovative new animated/live-action film "Waking Life" and a fresh print of Jean Luc-Godard's 1964 "Band of Outsiders."

Films are shown at the Capitol Theater, 206 Fifth Ave. E., Olympia. Call 360-754-6670 or see www. olywa.net/ofs.

See a show

Three Olympia-based theater troupes will open new productions in the next month:

- Harlequin Productions will stage Conor MacPherson's play "The Weir" from Jan. 17-Feb. 9. Performances take place at the State Theater, 204 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia. Call 360-786-0151.

- The Olympia Little Theater presents "Sight Unseen" from Jan. 18-Feb. 9 on its stage at 1925 Miller Ave. N.E. Call 360-786-9484 or see www.olympialittletheater.org.

- Troy Arnold Fisher will direct the musical "She Loves Me" for the Capital Playhouse. It runs from Jan. 31-Feb. 16 at 612 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia. Call 360-943-2744 for ticket information, or see www.capital playhouse.com.

Laugh it up

There are several outlets for those seeking a chuckle:

- The Fools Play Improv troupe performs at 8 p.m. (a new, earlier start time) each Saturday at Studio 321, 321 Jefferson St., Olympia. Call 360-867-1229 or see www.fools-play. com for more information.

- The GO Club at 311 Fourth Ave. E. in downtown Olympia hosts live comedians on Thursday nights. Call 360-704-7278 or see www.olympia party.com.

- Looking ahead, several big names of comedy will stop in Seattle, including the Capitol Steps (Jan. 26) and Bill Cosby (Feb. 16). To book tickets for either show, call Ticketmaster Northwest at 206-628-0888.

Explore with the kids

Take the kids to Olympia's Hands On Children's Museum, which recently doubled in size.

One of the new facets of the museum is the Build It! Gallery, which includes exhibits that allow children to experiment with design, construction, inventing and engineering.

Located at 106 11th Ave. S.W., the museum can be reached by phone at 360-956-0818 or on the Web at www.hocm.org.

Sing like a superstar

Those who like to sing outside of the shower have numerous karaoke options to choose from in South Sound, including:

- Thekla, 425 Franklin St. N.E., Olympia. Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.

- Charlie's Bar and Grill, 620 Fourth Ave. E., Olympia. Fridays.

- El Sarape IV Lounge, 5409 Capitol Blvd. S.E., Olympia. Thursdays and Saturdays.

- Tequila Bar at Burrito Heaven, 2103 W. Harrison Ave., Olympia. Saturdays and Sundays.

- Mehfil, 810 Sleater-Kinney Road, Lacey. Thursdays-Sundays.

- Creek Nightclub, 843 Highway 3 S.E., Shelton. Sundays-Thursdays.

- Hefty Divot Lounge, 15425 Mossman Ave., Yelm. Tuesdays- Saturdays.

Pick up a new step

South Sound boasts dozens of options for those who want to shake a tail feather. Check out the Dancing section in the Weekend calendar, starting on Page 12, for a taste of what's out there. Several upcoming special dance events include:

- Swing Fever Dance, from 7:30-11 p.m. Saturday at the Shelton Civic Center, 525 Cota St. W. It's $8 per person, $15 per couple, $20 families of three or more. Call 360-426-6099.

- Argentine Tango with Sonny Newman will take place Jan. 8, Feb. 5 and March 5, with the basics taking place from 6:30-8 p.m. and intermediate training running from 8-9:30 p.m. at the South Bay Grange, 3918 Sleater-Kinney Road, Olympia. The cost is $10. Call 360-456-4373.

- Ballroom dancing from 7-11 p.m. Jan. 12 at the Olympia Elks Lodge, 1818 Fourth Ave. E. $8 general, $6 U.S. Amateur Ballroom Dancers Association members. Call 360-459-5469.

Check out that rug

New carpet is only one aspect of the recent facelift of The Washington Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Olympia.

Earthquake-related damage sped up a planned five-year renovation of the facility to less than five months.

The $328,000 project can be admired during Wednesday's sold-out performance of "Cabaret" as well as a trio of upcoming concerts: "The Spirit of the Century" featuring Clarence Fountain and the Blind Boys of Alabama (Jan. 18), 21st Century Masters: Wendy Chen (Jan. 23) and CenterFest 2002: An Evening with Natalie Cole (Jan. 25).

Call The Washington Center Box Office at 360-753-8586 for further details or see www.washington center.org.

Click over to K

While still a work in progress, Olympia's own K Records has given its Web site www.kpunk.com a fresh new look that now includes a news ticker, a picture of the day (that's really more like a picture of the week) and information on the label's upcoming projects, including the All Girl Summer Fun Band, a perfect group to help blast away the winter blues.

The site also features several dozen MP3s that allow the uninitiated to check out the label's various bands free of charge. (Meanwhile, there's a newly organized and searchable database of local bands' fliers waiting to be explored at the Web site for Olympia's Kill Rock Stars label, www.killrock stars.com.)

Study jazz history

For the second year, Seattle's Experience Music Project is devoting the month of January to all things jazz, including music performances, film screenings and educational programming.

Events include Joanne Brackeen live in concert on Saturday night, the Seattle premiere of the documentary "Charlie 'Bird' Parker 1920-1955" on Wednesday and Wayne Horvitz live on Jan. 12.

For more information, call 877-367-5483 or see www.emplive.com.

Watch indie rock revisited

The much-touted band the Shins have slyly paid tribute to a handful of classic underground rock album covers in the video for "New Slang." The Shins, who hail from New Mexico but record for Seattle's Sub Pop Records, worked on the video with Portland director Lance Bangs, who also happens to be the husband of Sleater-Kinney's Corin Tucker.

In the video, the Shins strike a series of poses that look a whole lot like old album covers from the likes of the Replacements, Husker Du, Slint, Cat Power, Sonic Youth and the Minutemen. You can either try to catch it on MTV2 or download a version from www.subpop.com.

Ross Raihala covers music and entertainment for The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5406 or OlyRoss@aol.com.

The Olympian Copyright 2001

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