Thursday, May 10, 2018
Shows and Performances
Miss Witherspoon. She may be with a spoon, but the main character in this show is without life. In fact, the play opens with Veronica Witherspoon waking up in the afterlife shortly after committing suicide. She’s not super stoked to hear that she’s supposed to be reincarnated and go right back to earth (exactly where she was trying to get away from!) but with a little guidance from Jesus, a Hindu spirit and Gandalf, she gets to take a look at what life and death are all about—and so do we! Thursday, May 10 to Saturday, June 9. Live Theatre Workshop, 5317 E. Speedway Blvd. $15.Catalina Foothills High School Steel Band. Let’s get percussive! Did you know that this high school steel band, Falcon Steel, was founded in 1996, and today has more than 130 students of all levels? While it’s always wonderful to support local art and music efforts, this is an event that promises to be fun, with numbers like the “Tucson March,” selections from “Wildcat,” and the song from that incredibly sweet montage at the beginning of the movie Up. Bring folding chairs or a blanket, and heartstrings that are ready to be plucked. 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 13. DeMeester Outdoor Performance Center at Reid Park, 3400 E. Zoo Court. Free.
Mothers’ Day
Mothers’ Day at Old Tucson. Happy Mothers’ Day from Old Tucson, not just to mothers, but to all women and girls! Take your mom, take your daughter, take your girlfriend or wife, take yourself for free if you’re a woman or girl! Trust us, watching stunt and comedy shows, enjoying living history presentations, going on historic site tours and letting the little ones ride the train or the antique carousel is a great way to spend the weekend with Mom. Plus, there’s a dinner special where you can get a prickly pear chicken breast (if Mom’s not from Tucson, you have to give her the Old Pueblo prickly pear experience), corn on the cob, a side salad and a drink for $14.95. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, May 12 to Sunday, May 13. Old Tucson, 201 S. Kinney Road. $19.95 for adults (anyone 12 and over) and $10.95 for kids 4 to 11. Free for all women and girls!Tags: afterlife , death , high school band , throat singing , mothers’ day , moms , mothers , women , woman , females , ladies , girls escape rooms , finding nemo , 5K , running , run , walking , walk , rodeo , motorcycle rodeo , vintage bicycle ride , locomotive saturdays , trains , train , cars , vehicles , hot rods , car show , art , 90s kids only , birds , birding , birders , happy hour , the great american read , reading , read , books , having fun isn’t hard when you’ve got a library card , public gardens , music , Image
Wednesday, May 9, 2018
If we had written two best-selling books, were set to voice Buzz Light Year for the fourth time in the Toy Story franchise (Toy Story 4, 2019); had been anointed by Disney to play Santa Claus for four eponymous films (1991 People’s Choice Award); had an eight-year, prime time run of Home Improvement, winning a Golden Globe and, every year of the run, the People’s Choice Award for Favorite Male Performer in a Television Series; and had just wrapped the sixth season of Last Man Standing for ABC, wouldn’t we hang it up and just go parasailing? Maybe buy a football team? Run for office?
Not Allen. He continues to hit the road for stand-up dates nearly every weekend. Why? Because he can. “Oh boy, I get excited about standup comedy!” he says. “Always have. To be one of the guys who has been able to do this is really honor.
“I've been tenacious about it, too. I want to make that crowd laugh with me, all of us together. Pryor did it to me. When I saw Pryor, it changed my life I laughed so hard and so deeply.”
Allen wouldn’t pretend to the experience that drove Pryor’s comedy content, but Pryor became the model for the effect that Allen strives for in an audience. “If I could get the crowd rolling like Richard Pryor did,” his voice trails off. “I don't stop, I'm going to give you an hour or more of the best comedy that will relate all of us together.”
A philosophy major in college, Allen eschews politics, but retains his wonder about human nature. “I’m interested in what’s underneath politics and sexism and masculinism – the foibles we have as humans, the best and worst that we are. I love making fun of that stuff.
“My (comedy) is mostly observational stuff about men and women, living our lives, and games and food,” he says. “I don't argue as much as I get older. I'm just looking for clarity. ‘Why is it like this?’”
Allen performs at Tucson Convention Center at 8 p.m., Saturday, May 19. Reserved seat tickets are $49 to $89 and available online.
Tags: Tim Allen , Tucson Convention Center Music Hall , tucsonconventioncenter.com , Image
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Not quite. Not yet. But today's Republican voters love their bad boys. I mean their really, really bad, sometimes shockingly bad boys. It's happened too often lately to be happening by chance. It's a growing trend. Criminal behavior isn't a bug for this year's Republican candidates, it's a feature. Making a Wanted Poster into a Campaign Poster is turning into a calculated political move.
Look at the GOP's latest criminal, Don Blankenship, one of three Republicans running for Senate in West Virginia. Blankenship was CEO of Massey Energy, known for running some of the most dangerous mines in the state. In 2010, 29 men died due to an explosion in one of his mines, the result of putting profits over miner safety. He served a year in prison, a ridiculously light sentence given his role in the disaster.
In a rational world, Blankenship wouldn't consider running for office, especially in the same state where his negligence was responsible for 29 deaths. And if he was idiotic enough to run, in a rational world he should get maybe 10 votes. Yet, as of Tuesday, on the day of the primary, Blankenship is looking like he just might win. Trump begged people to vote for one of the other candidates. Blankenship's retort: "I'm Trumpier than Trump."
Go back five months to the Senate election in Alabama and candidate Roy Moore, accused by multiple women of dating some of them and stalking others when they were underage and he was in his thirties. Only the statute of limitations saved him from trial and possible conviction. He should have quit the race when the accusations began flying. He didn't. Trump begged voters to choose the other Republican in the primary. They didn't. Jones won the primary. He lost the general by less than two percentage points. In Alabama. In the Bible Belt.
Right here in Arizona, we have our own beloved-by-many, convicted criminal Joe Arpaio. If the conviction isn't enough reason for him to remove himself from the glare of public scrutiny, he should hide because he's the reason Maricopa county has to pay out $70 million and counting for his department's racial profiling. Fiscally conservative voters should be coming after him with pitchforks. Instead he's holding his own against two high profile, credible Republican candidates in the race for Jeff Flake's Senate seat.
This time, Trump isn't running away from the criminal candidate. Trump pardoned Arpaio. And last week during a stop in Tempe, Mike Pence showered the outlaw sheriff with praise.
Tags: Donald Trump , Don Blankenship , Roy Moore , Joe Arpaio , Image
Monday, May 7, 2018
I am a 5-year-old boy who is looking for my fur-ever home! I am a playful boy who already knows how to sit. I absolutely love treats and will be easy to teach new tricks.
The nice veterinarian at HSSA told me I have atopy which means I have allergies that make me very itchy. Don’t let that scare you though! I will need a special diet of z/d food, some medications, and follow up veterinary care.
I would love to meet any dogs or kids that live in your home. Bring them to HSSA Main Campus at 635 W. Roger Rd. to meet me. For more information give an adoptions counselor a call at 520-327-6088, ext. 173.
Many Wags,
Charger (715547)
Friday, May 4, 2018
The fifth annual FORM Music Festival coming up next weekend and tickets are still available. From May 11 to May 13, more artsy events are going to take place than you can possibly attend. So you better start planning now.
FORM takes place in the eco-experimental city of Arcosanti, between Phoenix and Flagstaff. The location is a bizarre acropolis of brass bell buildings, Italian-influenced architecture, and Arizonan flora.
Over the course of three days headliners such as Beach House, Fleet Foxes, Chance the Rapper, Courtney Barnett, and Charli XCX will play to the crowds of New Agers, campers, artists and music fans.
Some smaller performers to pay attention to are Grouper, Sudan Archives, Alex G and the Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra.
Beyond the music itself, Form is a cultural and artistic celebration of all types. There will be talks and panels by the American Civil Liberties Union, Planned Parenthood, the Human Rights Campaign, the Phoenix Art Museum and more.
In addition, there will be plenty of community events and “experiential art” such as outdoor screenings, yoga, nature hikes, stargazing and creative showcases.
For more information, visit experienceform.com
We’re all for giving new plays an airing. But, as would be expected, letting fly an untested script can bring mixed results. That’s the case here.
The play shows us the gathering of the Goldberg family on the Jewish holiday of Purim. Purim is a celebration lasting several days commemorating the deliverance of the Jews from the extinction intended by Haman, advisor to a Persian king. It’s rather a rowdy holiday, it seems, encouraging Jews to celebrate with food, including with triangular baked goods known as hamantaschen, and the excessive intake of alcohol within a generally rowdy, noise-filled atmosphere. It’s supposed to be a happy time.
But it’s not for the Goldbergs, particularly the patriarch Milton (David Alexander Johnston), who cannot enjoy the holiday because it also marks the anniversary of his elder son’s angrily taking leave of the family. His years of exile have saddened wife Joyce (Susan Cookie Baker) as well, but for the holiday’s sake she tries to tries to soften his bad mood. Younger son Charlie (Andrey Lull), smart and over-achieving, is excited about plans for college, and with Hettie (Susan Claassen), Milton’s rather dotty and over-involved mother, the group gathers for a rather perfunctorily celebrated dinner. But prodigal son Jerry (Christopher Koval) makes a surprise appearance, and his presence, as we might expect, causes a bit of a family kerfuffle.
This is an unmistakenly lightweight piece; that’s clear from the get-go. And it certainly offers provides a hefty dose of grins and laughs. However, several weak aspects of the new play become obvious as these thespians lend their storytelling efforts.
I'm not talking about the K-12 budget. The raises for teachers still leave them far behind the national average. The rest of the public school funding is ridiculously low as well, and it will stay that way as long as Republicans control every part of state government.
No, I'm talking about the state throwing money at the libertarian outposts at University of Arizona and Arizona State University. They've received so much state funding, they don't know what to do with it. Literally. Both have multimillion dollar surpluses from the past two years. And there's more where that came from in next year's budget.
I've written a lot recently about the UA's Center for the Philosophy of Freedom (aka, the Freedom Center) and the Department of Political Economy & Moral Science. In the process, I've talked a bit about the money they've gotten from the state budget, but I found out this morning I've failed in my attempt to follow the money, as have many media outlets I've been reading. I'm going to do my best to get the budget numbers right here. If my explanations are a bit garbled, forgive me. This old English teacher is doing the best he can. And if I don't get it 100 percent right, I guarantee it's far closer than what I've written before.
Thursday, the Star ran an article, Conservative centers at UA, ASU will get $7.5M more amid surpluses. It's an edited version of a piece of investigative reporting by Jim Small, executive director and editor of the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting. The funding numbers Small reports astounded me. I had written that the Freedom Center received $2 million in 2017 and is set to receive another $1 million in the current budget — $3 million total. Small puts the figure at $5 million over the past two years and another $3.5 million in the upcoming budget, for a total of $8.5 million. ASU's School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership has received even more, a total of $10.5 million counting next year's allotment. They literally don't know how to spend it all, according to Small. UA's libertarian outposts will have $5.5 million left over at the end of this fiscal year. The ASU department will have $4.25 million remaining.
Tags: University of Arizona , Arizona State University , Center for the Philosophy of Freedom , Freedom Center , Department of Political Economy & Moral Science , Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting , School of Civic and Economic Thought , State budget , JLBC , Ayn Rand , Image
Thursday, May 3, 2018
Club Congress is Comedy Central
Los Angeles comedians Dave Ross and Chris Charpentier mix it up with the locals at Club Congress at 8 PM, Sunday, May 6. It’s a 21-and-over show; tickets are $10.Ross is best known for his role as Trademarq in the Comedy Central series, Corporate. Fans also remember his bits in This is Not Happening, Drunk History and WTF with Marc Maron.
Per his bio, Ross loves to yell and laugh, tell cum jokes and make the audience feel like family.
Ross also has played sketch comedy at the SF Sketchfest, and he’s a storyteller with a Moth Grand Slam title. The Moth Radio Hour and podcast are much admired in Tucson’s sizeable storytelling circles nurtured by FST and Odyssey Storytelling.
At Congress, Ross will concentrate on standup, as will touring companion, Charpentier, who has a West Coast improv background but made his national debut as a standup artist less than a year ago on the Jimmy Kimmel show.
The May 6 show opens with Tucson’s top talent, Chris Thayer, a frequent cast member in Comedy Central series’ and numerous comedy podcasts, and a writer for Funny Or Die, among others. Kristine Levine of The Frank Show and Portlandia, and Tucson’s comedy OG Pauly Casillas round out the bill. Casillas runs comedy shows in both Tucson and Phoenix.
Kristine Levine: More to Love
On May 5, Levine releases her first CD, Hey, Sailor, at the grand opening of Tucson Mojo, 228 N.4th Avenue. The 60-minute disc spans her career, including motherhood and retail work in a porn shop. “My story is always moving,” She says. “My comedy is always evolving. What's that saying? A poem is never finished, its abandoned? That's it. But more fun than poems.”Musical entertainment begins at 6 p.m. and includes Carlos Arzate, Katie Haverly and Jillian Besset. The comedy begins at 8 p.m.
You could be on TV!
Rich Aguirre and Matt Ziemak continue their live-broadcast standup comedy series, Airing It Out Live, at 8 pm., Friday, May 4. Featured are sets by Josiah Osego, Amber Frame, Randall Scott and Meredith Armstrong.The show takes place at Creative Tucson Studios, 1100 S. 6th Ave. Admission is free. It's also broadcast live on channel 20, and videos will be available after the show at creativetucson.org/watch/live-20.
The Hamilton Polka.
Weird Al Yankelovich comes to the Fox Theatre at 8 p.m. May 5. We’re excited about whatever he’ll sing about Cinco de Mayo. His song-subversions have been hilarious for decades, but his relevance to contemporary audiences is secured with the astonishing The Hamilton Polka, available now wherever you download. Tickets are $37 to $239 via foxtucsontheatre.ticketforce.com.Race to Rockabilly Raceway
Rockabilly Raceway continues through June 3 at The Gaslight Theater, thegaslighttheatre.com. It’s another family-friendly, see-through plot with silly song matches and crowd interactions. These are songs the whole family knows and loves, including the Edsels, Elvis and Etta James. The olio is a parade of Beatles hits. Tags: Dave Ross , Chris Charpentier , Club Congress , Chris Thayer , Kristine Levine , Pauly Casillas , Rockabilly Raceway , The Gaslight Theatre , Beatles hits , olio , Weird Al Yankelovich , The Hamilton Polka , Fox Tucson Theatre , Creative Tucson Studios , Matt Ziemak , Rich Aguirre , Airing It Out Live , Josiah Osego , Amber Frame , Randall Scott , Meredith Armstrong , Tucson Mojo , Carlos Arzati , Katie Haverly , Jillian Besset. , Image
Elections matter.
It’s a lesson we’ve all learned in recent times—and we know you can’t wait for the chance to let your voice be heard.
We’re speaking, of course, of Best of Tucson—our annual competition to determine Tucson’s best bands, museums, galleries, restaurants, brewpubs, dive bars, coffee houses, annual spectacles, playgrounds and all the rest.
You the reader can nominate anyone in any category through June 17. We’ll then tally those primary results to get the top five nominees in each category. Those top finalists will compete for your votes through the end of July. And on Oct. 25, we’ll announce the winners in our special Best of Tucson collector’s edition!
Vote now!
Tags: best of tucson , places to eat in tucson , Image
