Anyone who believes that ancient Greek theatre must be stuffy and boring should take in Planet Earth Multi-Cultural Theatre’s production of Antigone. He or she will find a rare and rewarding confluence of classic and experimental theatre. Antigone is the work of Sophocles, the fifth century B.C.’s answer to Stephen…
As with Philadelphia and Salvador, the title of director Michael Hoffman’s film Restoration is meant to have a double meaning. The setting of the film is England during the 1660s–the Restoration period. But the film is also about the restoration of the hero’s soul. Said hero is Robert Merivel (Robert…
Chances are you’ve never heard of John Pierson, but if you make a point of reading the Film section, chances are you’d enjoy his book. Pierson has spent the last decade working in the independent-film industry, under the job title “producer’s representative.” This roughly translates as “the guy who gets…
thursday february 1 Parada del Sol Rodeo: Scottsdale’s annual Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association-sanctioned roundup is one of the world’s best, attracting many of the top ropers and riders in the field. Performances are at 1 p.m. Thursday, 1 and 7 p.m. Friday, 1 and 5:30 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m…
the ice is right Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: Walt Disney’s World on Ice presents this special-effects-laden rendition of the Grimm fairy tale. Two-time Canadian figure-skating champ Karen Preston plays Snow White, and Russian blader Serguei Tartykov portrays the handsome prince. Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and…
Remember when live theatre was an event, a special occasion? Just as I was beginning to fear that those days were gone, along comes a troupe called In Mixed Company, which takes a good evening of theatre, Five Women Wearing the Same Dress, and turns it into a happening. Five…
Patsy Cline remains a top-selling artist more than 30 years after her death. The 1985 biographical movie Sweet Dreams (starring Jessica Lange), recent videos about her life and music, and the release of a greatest-hits album in 1992 (it sold more than four million copies) have kept Cline a prominent…
The novel Cry, the Beloved Country, written by a white South African schoolteacher named Alan Paton, was published in 1948, the year apartheid became official in South Africa. The story concerns two elderly fathers, one Zulu and one white, who become linked by tragedy–the former’s son is charged with the…
With the exception of the Western, the vampire movie may just be the most durable of all genres. It’s produced everything from cinematic masterpieces like Carl Theodor Dreyer’s Vampyr (1932) and F.W. Murnau’s Nosferatu (1922) to indelible pop-culture classics like Tod Browning’s Dracula (1931) to lesser interpretations without number. Just…
thursday january 25 The NFL Experience: The 20-acre interactive theme park features more than 60 exhibits and attractions, including “QB1,” “Sudden Death” and “Halfback Option,” as well as scheduled appearances byabout 50NFL stars. The “Super Bowl Card Show” features approximately 75,000 square feet of collectibles, and the NFL Team Shop…
the ice is right Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: Walt Disney’s World on Ice presents this special-effects-laden rendition of the Grimm fairy tale. Two-time Canadian figure-skating champ Karen Preston plays Snow White, and Russian blader Serguei Tartykov portrays the handsome prince. Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and…
Let’s hope you never have a houseguest like the one currently visiting Theater Works, which is presenting Larry Shue’s uproarious comedy The Nerd. This guest is a nerd in the traditional sense–taped glasses, a pocket protector, and toilet paper hanging out of high-water trousers–and is inappropriate at every opportunity. In…
With a play first performed almost 2,500 years ago, Southwest Shakespeare Company provides the opportunity to transcend the ages by bringing to life the nightmarish story Oedipus Rex. One of Sophocles’ Theban plays, Oedipus is the well-known story of one man’s ignorant and arrogant fight against the gods. The play…
Sometimes it’s difficult to decide which is more annoying–a fluffy Brit period piece or a depressing Brit period piece. Carrington, to its credit, isn’t fluff. It’s a tough, solid piece of work, intelligently written and directed by Christopher Hampton. It’s also excellently acted. In most respects, it’s hard to fault…
Writer-director Tim Robbins’ Dead Man Walking is about a man awaiting execution, and the suffering and hope and reconciliation connected to his crime. The heroine, Sister Helen Prejean (Susan Sarandon), is a New Orleans nun who counsels Matthew Poncelet (Sean Penn), a death-row inmate at Angola State Prison. Despite a…
thursday january 18 Das Rheingold: The first act in Wagner’s tetralogy, Der Ring des Nibelungen, isn’t over ’til the vicious dwarf sings. Arizona Opera continues its season with performances at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at Symphony Hall, 225 East Adams. All shows are sung in…
good sports Pat Murphy’s “Spring Training” Baseball Camp: The head coach of the Arizona State University baseball squad hosts this multiweek clinic for kids ages 7 to 12. It continues Saturday. Call 965-6085. NFL Youth Clinic: Former Miami Dolphins wide receiver Nat Moore created this motivational event. More than 60…
Neil Simon, the most prolific comic playwright of our day, is a household name. Even those who don’t attend theatre know him through movies such as The Odd Couple and Barefoot in the Park. But few people have heard of Neil’s older brother, Danny. In staging Danny Simon’s most successful…
A plant that thrives on human blood, an innocent botanist looking for a break in life and a blond beauty with the IQ of Miracle-Gro are main ingredients of Arizona Theatre Company’s current theatrical feast, the funny, grisly musical Little Shop of Horrors. Made into a movie starring Rick Moranis…
Terry Gilliam, director of the apocalyptic scifi thriller 12 Monkeys, is a conflicted figure. He has the sense and sensibility of a grand English eccentric, yet he’s American. He is full of wonder and mystical awe, yet he also seems a sociological pessimist. His work mixes a childlike humor and…
Filmmaker Jason Bloom has nothing but the highest praise for the star of his first feature: Pauly Shore. On the basis of his award-winning student film, Irving (“a black comedy about a Jewish vampire”), Bloom was brought aboard a feature project called BioDome, a spoof inspired by Biosphere2. “We planned…
good sports Martin Bayless Football Clinic: Kansas City Chiefs safety Bayless is the namesake of the clinic, which teaches kids the basics. Free sessions are scheduled for 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday on the Arizona State University practice fields in Tempe. Saturday’s session is for children in…
