THE LOWDOWN ON WHAT'S UP THIS WEEKEND >>>

WEATHER REPORT

Friday: Slightly sunny, hi 46, lo 36

Saturday: Rain, hi 43, lo 34

Sunday: Rain possibly mixed with snow, hi 37, lo28

>>> FRIDAY, JAN. 13:OLYMPIA COMMUNITY BLUEGRASS MUSIC SHOW

Few things scream Olympia more than a community-powered bluegrass show that benefits SafePlace and Bread & Roses. It's literally perfect. Friday, that's just what will be on the docket with the return of the Olympia Community Bluegrass Music Show, this year bringing Blackberry Bushes, Mission Mountain and Black River Bluegrass to the stage at South Sound Manor (near Olympia High School). All that goodness aside, there's at least a decent chance the after-show jam session that invites attendees to bring their instruments from home and join in the plucking good times will steal the show. Donations for SafePlace and Bread & Roses will be gladly accepted, with items like paper towels, toilet paper, shampoo, conditioner, diapers and phone cards of particular need.

• South Sound Manor, show 6:30 - 9 p.m., jam session 9 - 10 p.m., $5 adults, kids free, 455 North St. SE, Tumwater, jameswmiernyk@comcast.net

>>> FRIDAY, JAN. 13: BATE'S MLK CELEBRATION

The annual Bates Technical College MLK Day Celebration seems sure to deliver once again this year, bringing community leaders like Tacoma City Council member Victoria Woodards, community organizer and United Parcel Service Exec Frank Boykin and Evergreen State College Tacoma Campus Executive Director Dr. Artee Young together to talk about service, leadership and responsibility. The theme of the event will revolve around strengthening our communities through these three key elements, with each invited guest sharing what all of this means to them. On Monday, as has become tradition, Bates students and faculty will march from the school's downtown campus at 11^th and Yakima to the Tacoma Dome to attend the City of Tacoma's annual MLK Celebration.

• Bates Technical College, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., free, 1101 S. Yakima, Tacoma, 253.680.7113, or www.bates.ctc.edu/Diversity

>>> SATURDAY, JAN. 14: CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF TACOMA GRAND (RE)OPENING

Closed since December, the Children's Museum of Tacoma will celebrate its grand re-opening Saturday at the museum's new location, 1501 Pacific Ave. in downtown Tacoma. Hype for the evening's swanky Grand Opening Gala promises, "an evening of art, entertainment, and playful surprises." But even before that, during the day Saturday, experience the fun and entertainment provided by the museum's new digs during public play and exploration from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Those interested in such things will surely enjoy the opening ceremony and remarks scheduled for 10:45 a.m.

• Children's Museum of Tacoma, 9-10:30 a.m. Member-Only Play, 10:45 a.m. Opening Ceremony and Remarks, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Public Play and Exploration, Grand Opening Gala - 5:30 p.m. SPARK Patron Preview, 6:30 p.m. Sparkler Admission, 1501 Pacific Ave., Tacoma, for more info visit playtacoma.org

>>> JAN. 14-16: LET'S PLAY & LET'S WALK

Tim Waer, executive director of the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Commission, is glowing with that combination of exhaustion and exhilaration one gets at mile 23 of a marathon. For good reason. Over the past 50 days, he and his staff of six have scrambled to give life to a long-term idea the Tacoma-Pierce County Sports Commission has held, bringing the emphasis on sports back to Tacoma.The dream suddenly became a reality when a gymnastics tournament needed some help paying for space at the Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center over the holiday weekend of Jan. 14-16. A lemons-into-lemonade concept was born: spin the gymnastics tournament into what Waer hopes will be an annual event, the LET'S PLAY! Sports and Fitness Fest, an ambitious, all-inclusive celebration of Tacoma's unsung amateur sports clubs. To read Jenni Prange Boran's full feature, click here.

• Greater Tacoma Convention and Trade Center, Saturday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday "Let's Walk!" starts at 9 a.m., free, 1500 Broadway, Tacoma, letsplaytacoma.org

>>> SATURDAY, JAN. 14: GABRIEL IGLESIAS

Comedian Gabriel Iglesias isn't fat ... he's fluffy. Or so goes the joke. In truth, Iglesias is probably a little bit of both. Saturday, the well-known laugh-maker will bring his comic styling to the Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, offering fans of high-energy ranting a chance to catch Iglesias' magic in person - not just on late night Comedy Central reruns. According to promotion for the show, Iglesias' "high-octane show is a hilarious mixture of storytelling, parodies, characters and sound effects that bring all his personal issues to life." Plus, there'll be fat jokes.

• Emerald Queen Casino, 8 p.m., $40-$80, 2024 E. 29th St., Tacoma, 888.831.7655

>>> SATURDAY, JAN. 14: ELVIS BIRTHDAY BASH

In Olympia, the King's birthday has become synonymous with one man: Robert Washington - one of the world's top Elvis impersonators ... and a guy who happens to be black. To some this is controversial. To Washington, it's simply his calling. "I don't really think about it. I'm not going to let my color prevent me from being the best," Washington told the Weekly Volcano in 2004. Saturday, Washington will be back in Oly at the Capitol Theater for the 12th annual "Elvis Birthday Bash." A screening of the film Almost Elvis, in which Washington is featured, will kick off at 7:30 p.m., with Washington taking the stage following the movie.

• Capitol Theater, film screening at 7:30 p.m., concert at 9 p.m., $10-$15, 206 Fifth Ave. SE, Olympia, 360.754.6670

>>> WHAT SOME OF OUR STAFF MEMBERS ARE UP TO

STEVE DUNKELBERGER Meat Market Photographer
Likely I will not be doing a whole heck of a lot but I might find myself at a movie or maybe in Oly for a tour of the musicians along Fourth Avenue.

CHRISTIAN CARVAJAL Theater Critic
We're seeing Almost, Maine at Olympia Little Theatre on Friday, then traveling to Portland to see some friends and eat delicious Pok Pok. Oh, Ike's Sticky Wings, how my stomach enjoys making out with you.

JENNIFER JOHNSON Food & Lifestyles Writer
Church dinner party Friday. Get my butt kicked at the gym Saturday morning followed by tea at Mad Hat then dinner with besties. Church Sunday.

JOANN VARNELL Theater Critic
I'm very excited for my three day weekend. Friday night we will make homemade pizza, that is, if I have anything to say about it. Sometime Saturday Sunday or Monday I will FINALLY finish my sushi skirt, start my blog, and fix my 1953 Ford so I can drive it around town. I will also try to acquire a traveling red dress and firm up plans for a photo shoot with said dress, my little son, my '53 and maybe the zoo.

JOE IZENMAN Theater Critic
Going to a seminar in Seattle on racially-motivated inner-city gang violence. Wait, no. Going to see West Side Story at the Paramount. Close enough, right? Also, my friends in Vida Vore are releasing a CD on Friday night at O'Malleys, so there's that.

NIKKI TALOTTA Music and Features Writer
I plan to whoop ass in my Family Feud audition. That is all.

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ALEC CLAYTON Visual Arts Critic/Writer
Me be going to SAGE Olympia meet & greet happy hour at the Urban Onion. Me be going to see "Almost Main" at Olympia Little Theatre.

LINK: More arts and entertainment events in the South Sound

Filed under: All ages, Arts, Events, Music, Tacoma, Olympia, The Weekend Hustle,