Next to the complaint that ticket lines are too long (of course they're too long when everyone shows up only five minutes ahead of the screening), the only predictable thing about The Loft Cinema, a readers' favorite for as long as there's been a Best of Tucson, may be that showtimes are completely unpredictable.

Would you like to know why that is?

It's because the upstairs theater isn't capable of screening digital films.

Think about it. As much as one may like film (actual, literal celluloid), not all movies are made of it, which is where the problem comes in — the upstairs (smallest) theater can't show anything but film. What we have is a small theater/large theater, digital/analog Tetris thing going on, where digital films that might have a smaller audience are forced to be screened in the large auditorium.

Film-loving friends can be, as they say, "part of the solution," and in everyone's new favorite way, crowdsourcing! The Loft's Digital Challenge on IndieGoGo already has raised $8,381 of its $75,000 goal with 42 days to go. Donors can pledge as little as $10, but once they get up into the 3- or 4-figure-range, the rewards get very cool: name plaques on seats; names on the donor slides screened every day for a year; lots of free tickets; a night at the Loft for your wedding, bar mitzvah, fraternity party or what have you, with special planning help from Jeff Yanc.

Find details and pitch in here at indigogo.com.

The Sundance Channel has already secured one hit this year with Top of the Lake (starring Mad Men’s Elisabeth Moss), and fans of the network can watch a sneak peak of its next buzzed-about program, Rectify, at the Loft tonight at 7 p.m.

The Loft is one of only 14 theaters screening the preview of Rectify, which is Sundance Channel’s first “wholly owned original scripted series,” according to a release from Jeff Yanc, the program director at the Loft. The show already has a few things going for it: produced by the same team behind cable favorite Breaking Bad and already being hailed by TV critics in advance screenings, Rectify has potential to put the network on the map the way The Walking Dead, Mad Men and the aforementioned critical behemoth Breaking Bad transformed AMC into a ratings powerhouse.

The first two episodes of the show will screen tonight in advance of the April 22 premiere date, followed by a Skype Q&A with Rectify’s cast members. Admission is free, but the Osborne Association, which aids families affected by incarceration, will be accepting donations.

The Boys and Girls Club of Tucson's annual fundraising gala, The Event, drew more than a thousand people to the La Encantada shopping center on Sunday night for an evening of food, music and philanthropy.

What wasn't on the original schedule, though, were fireworks.

A propane tank exploded during a cooking demonstration early on during The Event, resulting in four attendees suffering minor burns, Pima County Sheriff spokesman Dep. Tom Peine said. Two of the people were transported to a nearby hospital for further treatment.

Event organizers said the explosion caused only a minor disturbance to the fundraiser, which continued on as planned without any other incidents.

"It was literally a blip on the radar screen," said Lorraine Morgan, vice president of communications for the Boys and Girls Club. "The comments from our guests were that it was the best (Event) ever. It was a great fundraiser."

• Courtesy of the UA School of Theatre, Film and Television
• UA students Erica Renee Smith, Caitlin Stegemoller, Sydnee Ortiz and Max Tzannes star in "Nine."

The Tony Award-winning musical Nine has made its way to Tucson, courtesy of the University of Arizona’s Repertory Theatre, and you now have a chance to win a pair of tickets to the show.

Two lucky winners of the Theatre’s Facebook “Night Out” contest on Wednesday, April 3, will receive a $50 gift certificate to Tavolino Ristorante for a pre-show dinner with their plus-one before the performance on Saturday, April 27. No specifics as to how the winners are selected are currently up on the Facebook page, but interested parties can continue checking the page here.

I really couldn't be more excited for the Tucson debut of FELA!, the Tony-award winning musical about the life of Nigerian funk-master/musical genius/political revolutionary Fela Kuti. I feel somewhat responsible for the success of this show for UApresents, since I campaigned for them to book it in the first place, so we're throwing a party Wednesday night to introduce Tucson to the man and his music.

So, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Borderlands Brewing, I'll be playing a selection of Fela tracks (off a laptop, don't expect actual quality DJing or anything), UApresents will be giving stuff away, MaFooCo will selling food, and yes, there will be delicious, local beer. Plus, you can buy tickets for the shows Friday the 12th and Saturday the 13th (and you should, because you'll have a great time and UApresents will be encouraged to bring more shows like this in the future).

See you there!

Daily Show host Stewart told the NY Times he will be taking 12 weeks off from hosting duties to direct the drama "Rosewater," for which he wrote a screenplay.

John Oliver, who often portrays the show's "Senior British Correspondent," will be taking over as guest host for eight weeks. The usual four-week break that the show takes during the summer will be the last four weeks of Stewart's leave.

Rosewater tells the story of Maziar Bahari, a Newsweek reporter who was supposed to visit Iran for one week and was instead imprisoned for 118 days and interrogated.

From the New York Times:

A Canadian-Iranian journalist and documentarian, Mr. Bahari was jailed in Tehran in 2009 for four months, accused of plotting a revolution against the government. Shortly before his arrest, Mr. Bahari had participated in a “Daily Show” sketch, conducted by one of the show’s correspondents, Jason Jones, who was pretending to be a spy. Mr. Bahari’s captors used the footage against him.

“You can imagine how upset we were,” Mr. Stewart said, “and I struck up a friendship with him afterward.”

• Courtesy Temple Emanu-El
• Robert Klein and Rabbi Sam Cohon

Some of the yiddish went above the head of this goy at Rabbi Sam Cohon's Too Jewish 10th Anniversary Radio Show at the Fox Theatre on Saturday, March 2, but the evening was a fun dip into Jewish culture topped by a riotous performance by veteran comic Robert Klein, who delivered a stirring rendition of his song-and-dance number celebrating the wonders of a colonoscopy.

For the most part, Cohon offered his typical lively shtick that mixed serious talk of politics with healthy helping of warm-hearted schmaltz. Mayor Jonathan Rothschild delivered the Top 10 Uses Of Matzah After Passover Is Over ("No. 1: Fill the Potholes on All the Streets in Tucson"), mavens on international affairs such as Guy Gelbert talked about the challenges and success that Jews experienced around the world and musical act Boreas tore through some alt-Yiddish rock. (Who knew?) The show charmingly captured the Deli Home Companion spirit with an old-timey applause sign, an announcer who only missed a few cues, some skits featuring shorts spiels on behalf the sponsors, yadda, yadda, yadda. After Klein finished his routine, including his classic riff about how we honor George Washington every year with a mattress sale, he took a few minutes to schmooze with Cohon, bringing back memories of those nights chatting on the ol' Carson show.

All in all, it was a fine 10th birthday party for Too Jewish. Mazel tov, Rabbi Cohon! Your bubbe must be so proud.

• Courtesy of the Sunshine Mile Facebook Page

One of Tucson’s most historic mile-long stretches will have its day in the sun tomorrow, and with a forecast of just over 80 degrees, the timing couldn’t be better.

The Historic Sunshine Mile Festival, honoring the strip of Broadway Boulevard highly populated with local businesses between Campbell Avenue and Country Club, kicks off tomorrow at noon with an appearance from Ward 6 Council Member Steve Kozachik as he unveils a mural at 2610 E. Broadway Blvd. Demion Clinco, the president of the Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation Board, will also speak at the event, while the Tucson Barbershop Experience Men's Chorus and a trumpet soloist from Catalina Foothills Band are scheduled to perform.

As the headline says, we've got two pairs of tickets that we absolutely need to give away for tonight's Broadway in Tucson performance of Memphis, a rockin', rollin' period drama we previewed two weeks ago ("From Tennessee to Tucson," City Week, Feb. 28):

The show, which won four Tony awards in 2010, centers around the story of Huey Calhoun, a white radio DJ in the segregated 1950s who discovers Felicia, a talented female singer who happens to be black. As Huey tries to showcase Felicia's talent via airtime on the radio—a dangerous effort during racially tense times—the two fall in love.

The production began its tour at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego and comes to Tucson after being on the road for about a year and a half, said Mario Di Vietta, Broadway in Tucson's marketing and sales manager. This will be the show's Arizona debut.

Di Vietta said the score, written by Bon Jovi keyboardist David Bryan, should appeal to all fans of rock 'n' roll.

"If you love music, if you love (a good) story and rock 'n' roll, this is going to be perfect for you," he said. "There are no slow parts; there's nothing that feels like you're watching a traditional musical. A lot of people love Bon Jovi, so if you love that type of rock 'n' roll music, you're going to love Memphis."

The tickets to tonight's 7:30 p.m. performance, set smack-dab in the middle of the front row, are going out to the first two people to come down to Weekly World Central, at 3280 E. Hemisphere Loop, between Country Club and Palo Verde Roads on Valencia Road.

See you soon, folks.

Here's your itinerary for today. Do not deviate. If you do, your Saturday will suck.

4:30 p.m. (Park Place)/5:10 p.m. (El Con) Bless Me, Ultima
This movie adaptation of Rudolfo Anaya's controversial novel opens this weekend for a limited time, so you better go today before our state Attorney General Tom Horne bans it. It's about a young boy and the arrival of Ultima, the curandera who moves in with his family at just the right time. She inspires him to question authority and see the world from a new and magical perspective. The movie is showing at Century 20 El Con Mall and Park Place Mall.

Here's the trailer:

7 to 10 p.m., Erotica 5
This annual erotica art show is at the Tucson Sculptural Resource Center, 640 N. Stone Ave. They tell you to leave the kids at home, so yeah, please, listen up. The show is cool, beautiful, interesting, freaky and includes some performances that usually mean naked people doing something interesting. The body is cool and beautiful folks, and the artists involved the past five years in this show understand how to celebrate it.

Here's an image from Erotica 4, so you understand why you may want to get a babysitter for this portion of our evening: