Last night, Phoenix Art Museum’s Contemporary Forum awarded eight local artists who’ve made a mark in the contemporary scene. The annual event recognizes up to seven emerging Arizona artists with $1,500 grants to purchase materials and one mid-career artist with $5,000 plus a special exhibition of his or her work alongside…
Nightowls, film fiends, and underagers alike can celebrate additions and changes in the works at Downtown’s FilmBar. Kelly Aubey, who owns the independent theater/bar at 815 North Second Street announced this week that next month, FilmBar will be screening midnight movies from Thursday through Saturday, sell tickets online, and lower…
The Color of Stars at Tempe Center for the Arts doesn’t shy away from adult themes. The play, by Tempe Children’s Theatre playwright in residence Dwayne Hartford, is set in rural America during World War II. Acting, directing, and set design all combine to create a beautiful production, writes New…
Since there’s really no better accessory than a cocktail in your hand, each week Jackalope Ranch brings you a tasty adult beverage from one of our favorite drinking establishments, complete with recipe. This week: The Cantarita at Astor House. If you still haven’t checked out Astor House (DJ Fernandes’ newest…
When we last put the spotlight on 100 creative forces in Phoenix, it was no secret there were more than 100 individuals who were making waves in the local arts community. So as we count down to our annual Best of Phoenix issue, we’re profiling 100 more. We’re talking painters,…
Mother’s Day is this Sunday (but you knew that, right?). Instead of making a last-minute trip to Walgreens on the morning of, frantically scouring the isles for a card, a light up rose and maybe one of those As Seen on TV items, why not get your mom something a…
From Jason Wu’s catty capsule collection to Dita Von Teese’s Aussie undies, the promise of fashion and frivolity brings out a giddiness (and competitiveness) over less pricey designer items that we want and things we must have or else. And with countless collabs on the horizon, we’ve selected the five…
There’s a lot wrong with French star Julie Delpy’s new indie flick, 2 Days in New York, but there’s one thing that’s very, very right: Chris Rock. As Mingus, Rock is the saving grace of an often disjointed mess of a film, a screwball comedy that tries to force quirkiness…
Bobcat Goldthwait is moving farther and farther away from Hollywood — the industry that paid him to star in three Police Academy movies and the geographical area of Los Angeles. Last week, he presented his new directorial effort, God Bless America, at a radio-station promo gig in Omaha and, a…
With his new play, The Color of Stars, Dwayne Hartford offers fulfilling, adult entertainment that doesn’t pander to kids. Much as I did with Hartford’s gorgeous adaptation of Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities a few years ago, I found myself wondering whether children would even much like this…
Acclaimed author Ann Patchett loves her comfy home and indie bookshop in her native Nashville. But she loves readers, too, so she’s road-tripping to chat about and sign State of Wonder, her 2011 novel about a pharma researcher’s perilous search for a fellow scientist who disappeared in the Amazon on…
Steampunk geeks might have some people convinced that the late 19th century was all about bustle gowns, goggles, and gears, but we ain’t buying it. Sure, tight-laced corsets and top hats are period, but so were cholera and Jack the Ripper. And those pretty ruffled parasols were protection against the…
No boys allowed. That’s the mantra of every girl fort ever built. Vigilant in the fight against cooties, girls deem boys simultaneously smelly and stinky, but above all, annoying. My, how times change. Puberty hits, and bam! Boy-craziness begins. “No boys allowed” turns into “Will there be boys there?” Best…
This isn’t rocket science. Taking a nighttime run is much more bearable (come summer, anyway) than sunlit jogging. But we’d argue that it makes for more fun, too. You can wear that electric cowboy outfit normally reserved for Halloween and people will cheer rather than laugh. Or you can simply…
Hop on that Midnight Train to Georgia, or at least Chandler and the Arizona Railway Museum, for National Train Day 2012, Saturday, May 12. It seems a little suspect, but National Train Day was started by Amtrak in 2008 to celebrate the history and future of train travel. The event…
Only lunkheads take seriously the rivalry between Phoenix and Tucson; two burgs with respective ups and downs as far as nightlife, culture, and sports are concerned. That said, it feels pretty good to snag an Old Pueblo mainstay like the World Fighting Federation. On May 12, the Arizona-based mixed martial…
The last meeting between the Arizona Rattlers and the Chicago Rush proved true the old adage that football is a game of inches. On the game’s final play, the Rush recovered a live ball in the end zone for an apparent game-winning touchdown. As it turned out, the ball had…
Carol Brady and Harriet Nelson really screwed the pooch for future moms by having perfectly coiffed hair, wearing fashionable dresses, and serving home-cooked meals (then again, we know Alice did all of the real work at the Brady house). The members of Theatre Artists Studio will pay homage to moms…
The bears migrating to Phoenix this weekend are neither a super-hip, animal-named indie band that you are not cool enough to know about nor are they woodland creatures craving your leftovers/children. Nuh-no. The bears in question are so nicknamed because they’re a group of husky, hairy dudes who happen to…
The First Amendment has no greater champions than some of the most notorious comedians of our time. There’s the infamous 1960s obscenity trial of Lenny Bruce, the debate that George Carlin spawned with the “seven dirty words,” and the censorship of Bill Hicks. Besides sparking some side-splitting laughter, each of…
Todd Barry (who you might recognize from Flight of the Conchords or The Wrestler) brings his stand-up set to Crescent, with Dax Jordan. Mon., May 14, 8 p.m., 2012…
Melding sci-fi and fantasy conventions with historical reenactments, fashion competitions, and educational seminars, Costume-Con 30 will drape Tempe Mission Palms Hotel, 60 East Fifth Street, with stitches, fabrics, and a healthy dose of dress-up. The traveling convention brings together costumers of all varieties — anime fans, theatre production designers, and…
