thursday september 26 “William Lesch: Painting With Light”: Scottsdale Center for the Arts, in conjunction with its pricey opening-night gala featuring Gregory Hines on Saturday, September 28 (see the Dance listing), presents this exhibit of lovely, hyperrealistic, manipulated desert landscapes by Tucson photographer Lesch, whose forte is using “colored lights…
thursday september 19 Carousel: Royal National Theatre of Great Britain’s retooled production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical is not to be confused with Hollywood’s light-handed, Production Code-governed adaptation of ’56, which starred Gordon MacRae as a rowdy carny barker and Shirley Jones as his (much) better half. This version…
fright nights Silo X: The creaky doors at the season’s first spook house yawn wide this weekend. The high-tech haunt is a faux military missile silo whose abandoned personnel have gone mad. The Silo, recommended for those age 8 and older, is located at Hardy and Elliot in Tempe, next…
young at art “Animal Crackers”: Shemer Art Center, located at 5005 East Camelback, presents this “please touch” exhibit, curated by Sam Mindrum-Logan and featuring “tactile art experiences for blind children” and “altered-vision experiments for sighted kids.” It continues through Friday, October 18. Admission is free. Call 262-4727. “I-CAN” Art Show:…
thursday september 12 Dave Alvin and the Guilty Men: Former Blaster and X man Alvin and his Guilty collective have been on a trip that’s spanned three years and the majority of America’s highways. The journey is reflected in the band’s new HighTone release, Interstate City, a paean to the…
arts and minds “All Aboard!!!! The Rhythm and Reading Express”: Music therapist Jamie Showers hosts this pro-literacy program of sing-along songs and play-along games for kids ages 5 to 9. It’s scheduled for 1 to 2 p.m. Saturday, September 7; and 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Monday, September 9, at Glendale…
thursday september 5 Guv: The Emperor Strikes Back: Guv: The Musical, the Star Wars: A New Hope of Arizona musiopolitical revues and one of the Valley’s biggest hits of the early ’90s, has given way to this sequel by the original Guv collaborators: Candice St. Jacques Miles (book/lyrics), Bruce Miles…
screen gems “Fun Flicks for Kicks”: Borders Books & Music at Biltmore Fashion Park, 24th Street and Camelback, Suite 200, hosts this free, all-ages series, which continues with a screening of The Little Mermaid (G) at 2 p.m. Thursday, August 29. Each kid receives a gratis bag of popcorn. For…
thursday august 29 Ronnie Dawson: The Texas hellbilly, self-proclaimed “Blond Bomber of the Monkey Beat,” has been cutting sizzlin’ sides since 1958–starting with “Action Packed” and “Rockin’ Bones,” both recorded under the alias Ronnie Dee. The latest disc from Dallas-born Dawson, Just Rockin’ & Rollin’, kicks pretty hard, too. Definitively…
monster mush “Nasty Lunch Time”: Kids whip up their dream meals–and their parents’ worst nightmares–at this supervised affair, which starts at 1 p.m. Saturday, August 24, at Borders Books & Music at 1361 South Alma School in Mesa. Also on the agenda: a reading of Marc Brown’s The Monster’s Lunch…
thursday august 22 Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan, and Carlene Carter: This might be called the “Family Tree Tour.” Pam’s dad is corn-pone crooner Mel Tillis, and Lorrie also has followed in the footsteps of her singin’ pop, late Grand Ole Opry member George Morgan. Carlene, the least-known and -commercial member…
thursday august 15 Continental Indoor Soccer League All-Star Game: Phoenix and its on-hiatus CISL franchise, the Arizona Sandsharks, are hosts of this year’s bash, the second annual. Tatu, Sandshark Donny Gaillard, Dale Ervine and other league stars are scheduled to take the field at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, August 15, at…
at the concert Borders Kazoo Band: Borders Books & Music at Biltmore Fashion Park, 24th Street and Camelback, Suite 200, supplies the highly hummable instruments; kids provide the lung and leg power in a musical march through the facility. The parade steps off at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, August 17. Admission…
boney voyage “Weinerville Live”: Marc Weiner, creator and host of Nickelodeon’s half-human/half-puppet show, has taken his absurdist invention on the road. Weiner and many of his creations–including Boney the Dinosaur, Dottie the Mayor and tough-guy Socko–make a pit stop at Celebrity Theatre, 440 North 32nd Street, on Saturday, August 10…
thursday august 8 Jimmy Eat World: And the world–or, at least, our little corner of it–apparently likes the taste of Jimmy. “Flying off the shelves” may be an exaggeration regarding the status of the Valley alterna-pop band’s major-label debut, Static Prevails (Capitol), but “moving briskly” seems fair; see the story…
thursday august 1 The Grapes of Wrath: Frank Galati won a Tony Award for his adaptation of John Steinbeck’s landmark novel about the Joad family’s flight from the Dust Bowl’s devastation to the broken promise of golden California, land of milk, honey and barbarism. The Phoenix-based Actors Group presents Galati’s…
safety first National Night Out 1996: Many Valley cities and neighborhoods will join the 13th annual nationwide commemoration of crime-busting and self-defense, which teaches kids and their families how to protect their property and their persons. The biggest local event is slated for 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, August 6,…
thursday july 25 Smokin’ Grooves Tour 1996: Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, comprising Rita and Bob Marley’s kids Ziggy, Sharon, Cedella and Stephen, are first among equals on this fine bill, produced by Dan Aykroyd’s House of Blues, the same entity responsible for the upcoming House of Blues Tour…
cold comfort Downtown Cooldown: The City of Tempe hosts this way-cool extravaganza, featuring a fresh fall of July snow, a parade starring Otto the Talking Police Car, interactive games, train rides, entertainment and more. It’s slated for 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, July 27, centered on the intersection of Sixth…
slime wave Mighty Mud Mania XXI: The 1996 edition of this detergent-challenging festival is slated for 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, July 19, at Chaparral Park, 5401 North Hayden in Scottsdale; registration precedes at 8. The main event is the “Original Mud Obstacle Course,” in which children ages 7…
thursday july 18 Kim Abeles: The work of this talented Californian gives new meaning to the term “environmental art.” Best known for her “smog” series–which utilizes man’s pollutants to comment on mankind’s folly–Abeles is also adept at assemblage, drawing and welding, and her creations are generally knockouts whether they’re bite-size…
thursday july 11 Nico-Icon: Director Susanne Ofteringer’s documentary tells tales on the late, Berlin-born Nico (real name: Christa Paffgen), model, actress, Teutonic chanteuse, Andy Warhol cohort, short-lived Velvet Undergrounder and, in the bitter end, a star-crossed junkie who embodied the Velvets’ tune “Black Angel’s Death Song.” The unrated film’s run…
