Pierce County Events Calendar

Pierce County Events Calendar

This calendar is the place to find fun events happening throughout Pierce County, including Tacoma, Puyallup, Lakewood and beyond.

Have an event that isn’t listed? Please email events@SouthSoundTalk.com with the following information:

  • Name of Event
  • Date, time and location (name of business if applicable and complete address)
  • Organizer(s) name
  • Cost
  • URL to purchase tickets
  • Website URL
  • SHORT description of the event
  • Photo

Our editors will review and post within a few business days.

Oct
22
Tue
Bodytraffic @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts
Oct 22 @ 7:30 pm
Bodytraffic @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts

Led by Artistic Director Tina Finkelman Berkett, BODYTRAFFIC has conquered the contemporary dance world with its stunning performers, technical mastery, and commitment to the most challenging repertoire. Bursting with cutting-edge “vivid theatricality,” BODYTRAFFIC takes the stage with compelling works that embody the company’s energy, sophistication, and sheer joy in dancing.

Oct
25
Fri
Adventure Series: Tracks: Alone Across the Outback @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts
Oct 25 @ 7:00 pm
Adventure Series: Tracks: Alone Across the Outback @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts

Rick Smolan will share the inside story of how he documented Robyn Davidson’s epic 1700-mile walk across the Australian Outback.

Word got to National Geographic magazine that a 26-year-old woman named Robyn Davidson was planning a 1700-mile walk across the Australian outback with four camels and no outside support. The magazine sent photojournalist Rick Smolan to interview her. Initially she blew him off, but he persisted and eventually earned her trust—and the invitation to join her a few times along the way.

Shot over nine months, these images would become an unforgettable National Geographic cover story and subject of the award-winning feature film TRACKS.

Rick Smolan is a New York Times bestselling author with over five million books in print. The actor Adam Driver portrayed him in the award-winning movie TRACKS, based on his National Geographic cover story about Robyn Davidson’s 1700-mile camel trek across the Australian outback. A TIME, Life, and National Geographic photographer, Rick created the “Day in the Life” book series, which featured the world’s leading photographers and combined storytelling with state-of-the-art technology.

The Good Fight: America’s Ongoing Struggle for Justice was chosen by TED as the official book club selection, and will become a TV series. Natasha’s Story, his TED talk about an 11-year-old child left to him in a dying Korean woman’s will, has been watched by over 1.4 million people.

Oprah Winfrey featured Rick’s AMERICA 24/7 book on her “Favorite Things” program and Fortune describes Smolan’s Against All Odds Productions as “One of the 25 Coolest Companies in America.” In 2023, Rick was awarded the “Ellis Island Medal of Honor” presented to individuals who “embody the spirit of American patriotism, tolerance, brotherhood and diversity.” Rick’s latest undertaking is a dramatic TV series based on famed Science fiction author Robert Heinlein’s Tunnel in the Sky, in partnership with Miles Dale, Oscar-winning producer of The Shape of Water and the producer of Guillermo del Toro’s films.

Oct
26
Sat
Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale @ Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden
Oct 26 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

Enjoy a rainbow of colors and bushels of fun at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden’s Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale on October 26-27

Join us for this free event featuring garden tours and plant talks, kids’ scavenger hunt, a food truck, or search for the perfect spot to take that quintessential fall photo. Also shop RSBG’s biggest sale of the year! Discover an immersive wonderland of sights, sounds, and sensations – from cool breezes to rustling leaves and the quiet swaying of golden-brown maple trees.

The garden’s annual Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale is sure to please garden enthusiasts and nature lovers of all ages. For plant hunters looking for something special, featured pop-up vendors will bring their cultivated collections to the Rutherford Conservatory terrace.

Dig into a savory dish from a food truck before heading to the Gift Shop for unique garden gifts or peruse the books in the Visitor Center to learn about the beloved Rhododendron species and the natural history of the Pacific Northwest. Our collection of Japanese maples, deciduous azaleas, and other deciduous species never fails to produce a large range of bright colors right before we head into the dark and grey of winter.

Oct
27
Sun
Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale @ Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden
Oct 27 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm

Enjoy a rainbow of colors and bushels of fun at the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden’s Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale on October 26-27

Join us for this free event featuring garden tours and plant talks, kids’ scavenger hunt, a food truck, or search for the perfect spot to take that quintessential fall photo. Also shop RSBG’s biggest sale of the year! Discover an immersive wonderland of sights, sounds, and sensations – from cool breezes to rustling leaves and the quiet swaying of golden-brown maple trees.

The garden’s annual Fall Foliage Festival and Plant Sale is sure to please garden enthusiasts and nature lovers of all ages. For plant hunters looking for something special, featured pop-up vendors will bring their cultivated collections to the Rutherford Conservatory terrace.

Dig into a savory dish from a food truck before heading to the Gift Shop for unique garden gifts or peruse the books in the Visitor Center to learn about the beloved Rhododendron species and the natural history of the Pacific Northwest. Our collection of Japanese maples, deciduous azaleas, and other deciduous species never fails to produce a large range of bright colors right before we head into the dark and grey of winter.

City of Destiny Festival @ Edison Square
Oct 27 @ 11:00 am – 3:00 pm
City of Destiny Festival @ Edison Square

Join us for a celebration of Tacoma’s diverse history! This year’s theme centers on the history of fashion and retail in Tacoma. The festival will highlight changes in fashion and consumer experience from 1880 to the 2000s!

This event is free to attend and will feature hands-on activities, fashion shows, vintage clothing, heritage & cultural organizations, vendors and living history demonstrations! We can’t wait to see you there!

The festival coincides with our current exhibit “Bustles to Blue Jeans: 120 years of Clothing Tacoma” now open Wednesday through Friday, 11:00am to 3:00pm at the Tacoma Historical Society Museum.

This event is generously sponsored by Key Bank, Port of Tacoma, and Asia Pacific Cultural Center.

www.tacomahistory.org

Nov
2
Sat
Coco Live-to-Film Concert @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts
Nov 2 @ 6:00 pm
Coco Live-to-Film Concert @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts

Disney Pixar’s Coco Live-to-Film Concert features a screening of the complete film with Oscar® and Grammy®-winning composer Michael Giacchino’s musical score performed by the 20-member Orquesta Folclórica Nacional de México. In addition to the original score by Giacchino, “Coco” also features the Oscar®-winning song “Remember Me” by Oscar-winning songwriters Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, and additional songs co-written by Germaine Franco and co-director and screenwriter Adrian Molina.

Despite his family’s baffling generations-old ban on music, Miguel (voice of Anthony Gonzalez) dreams of becoming an accomplished musician like his idol, Ernesto de la Cruz (voice of Benjamin Bratt). Desperate to prove his talent, Miguel finds himself in the stunning and colorful Land of the Dead following a mysterious chain of events. Along the way, he meets charming trickster Héctor (voice of Gael García Bernal), and together, they set off on an extraordinary journey to unlock the real story behind Miguel’s family history. Disney and Pixar’s Coco is directed by Lee Unkrich (Toy Story 3), co-directed by Adrian Molina (story artist Monsters University) and produced by Darla K. Anderson (Toy Story 3).

Nov
9
Sat
Family History Quilt Show @ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Nov 9 @ 10:00 am – 5:00 pm
Family History Quilt Show @ The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

Join us for the Family History Quilt Show featuring 150 beautiful quilts made by local Puget Sound quilters. We will be honoring Veterans with a special program at 11AM along with a Patriotic display of red, white, and blue quilts.

Unique to this Quilt Show is our Family History theme with volunteers dressed up sharing stories.  Travel back in time to meet Oregon Trail pioneers, a WW I Fighter Pilot, American Civil War Union soldiers and more.

Come learn some new quilt making skills during our all-day demonstrations.

Help us tie charity quilts to be donated to a local women’s shelter.

If you would like to participate by displaying your quilts in the show or volunteering, please contact:  Elizabeth Thomas at elizabethquilts@hotmail.com.

This is a one-day Quilt Show- you won’t want to miss!

Viking Days @ Normanna Hall
Nov 9 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Viking Days @ Normanna Hall

THE VIKINGS ARE COMING! We are happy to present our 2nd annual Viking Days.   You’ll find Vikings, crafts, gifts, music, dancing, meatballs etc…! Did anyone say meatball sundaes? Aquavit, mead, wine & spirits tastings.  Full lineup to be shared later.  All Veterans enjoy a free food punch card on Sunday for your services.  Show your ID.  Two floors of fun for the whole family!

Nov
10
Sun
Viking Days @ Normanna Hall
Nov 10 @ 10:00 am – 4:00 pm
Viking Days @ Normanna Hall

THE VIKINGS ARE COMING! We are happy to present our 2nd annual Viking Days.   You’ll find Vikings, crafts, gifts, music, dancing, meatballs etc…! Did anyone say meatball sundaes? Aquavit, mead, wine & spirits tastings.  Full lineup to be shared later.  All Veterans enjoy a free food punch card on Sunday for your services.  Show your ID.  Two floors of fun for the whole family!

Nov
12
Tue
The Hip Hop Nutcracker @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts
Nov 12 @ 7:30 pm
The Hip Hop Nutcracker @ The Washington Center for the Performing Arts

A holiday mash-up for the whole family, The Hip Hop Nutcracker returns for another spectacular tour. Directed and choreographed by Tony and Olivier Award-nominated Jennifer Weber, this contemporary dance spectacle is a re-mixed and re-imagined version of the classic, smashing hip hop dance and Tchaikovsky’s timeless music together into a heart-stirring and inspirational holiday event.

The Hip Hop Nutcracker is brought to life by a powerhouse cast of a dozen all-star dancers, a DJ, a violinist, and MC Kurtis Blow, one of hip hop’s founding fathers, who opens the show with a short set. Grab your family and friends and let the dynamic performers of The Hip Hop Nutcracker take you on a journey that celebrates love, community, and the magic of the holiday season.