Weekend Review: high and lows in T-town

The parade of local musical talent marched through Tacoma’s Harmon Hub, Tap Room and Doyle’s Public House this weekend with the second annual 253 Heart Music Festival Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Rock, cover, hip hop and acoustic groups did their thing to showcase their love for the 253 and support KGHP, Gig Harbor and Peninsula High School’s student-run radio station. KFHP faces a $20,000 fundraising campaign or shut down. The near-capacity crowds for most act suggests the campaign is well on its way to success.

Also on the list of places to go this weekend was the Dockyard Derby Dames season opener, with a doubleheader featuring the Marauding Mollys taking on the Femme Fianna and the Hellbound Homewreckers battling the Trampires. The sold-out event was one of the most exciting on record, with some of the closest scores imaginable. Femme Fianna beat out the Marauding Mollys by just 13 points and the Trampires edged the Homewreckers by a single point that had to be checked and rechecked by the officials.

The gaff of the weekend had to have been the Grand Cinema’s Academy Awards Party at Theatre on the Square. The sold out event started well with attendees in costumes of their favorite contenders and the booze flowing freely. Then Murphy’s Law kicked in and the live video feed failed to work properly. Stadium Video owner and Tacoma-City-Councilmember-turned-emcee Marty Campbell was left on stage for ages while techies attempted to fix the connection. They failed, leaving a choppy and out of sync broadcast on the wide screen in front of a rapidly disappearing audience.

Oh to be a fly on the wall during the post-event discussions for this one.