Thursday, March 8, 2018
Music
Old Time Rock n’ Roll Dance Party with Heartbeat. Don’t you just love that old time rock n’ roll? That kind of music just… soothes the soul. At least that’s what some people say. At this musical revue, the front seating section will be cleared out, so that you can dance the night away, or feel free to sit back and enjoy the music. Or you could sit back with some food and drink from the kitchen until you’ve had enough to drink that you want to go up and dance to some classic oldies. 7 p.m. Friday, March 9. Gaslight Music Hall, 13005 N. Oracle Road. $12.50 GA.
Remembering Mr. Sinatra. You’ve definitely heard of Frank Sinatra, but you may also may have heard of Julie Budd, who often performed as one of Ol’ Blue Eyes’ supporting acts at Caesars Palace. OR maybe you saw the oft-compared-to-Barbara-Streisand vocalist star in the 1981 film The Devil and Max Devlin. Whether you’ve heard of her or not, though, you won’t want to miss this chance to hear her pay tribute to Frank Sinatra himself at this Invisible Theatre-hosted show. 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 10 and 3 p.m. on Sunday, March 11. Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway. $42.
Arizona Friends of Chamber Music Festival. If you missed the first few days of this symphonic spectacular, fear not! You’ve still got two more chances to see performances by Celino Romero, Bernadette Harvey, Romie de Guise-Langlois, Yura Lee, the Morgenstern Trio, the Dover Quartet and the Romero Guitar Quartet. And they’ll be playing the likes of Vivaldi’s Guitar Concerto in D, Ravel’s Violin Sonata No. 2 and Stravinsky’s Suite from L’Histoire du Soldat. Friday, March 9 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 11 at 3 p.m. Leo Rich Theater, 260 S. Church Ave. $30 each day.
Women Rock. Well duh, women rock. But some women, like Carole King, Tina Turner and Janis Joplin are actual rock ’n’ roll icons. Celebrate these babes at this event, which features the Tucson Symphony, a cast of singers, and hits that you’re definitely going to be singing along to, like “Proud Mary,” “Love is a Battlefield” and “You’re So Vain.” 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 10 and 2 p.m. on Sunday, March 11. Tucson Music Hall, 260 S. Church Ave. $15 to $77+.
Catalina Organ Festival. The next organ festival event features David Enlow, who’s not only the organist and choir master at the Church of Resurrection in New York, but a member of the organ faculty at the Juilliard School, which sounds like a pretty big deal even if you don’t know anything about organ virtuosity. He’s also the dean of the American Guild of Organist’s New York City Chapter. He’ll be playing the works of Bach, Franck, Dvorak and Debussy, along with some improvisations of his own, which are no-doubt pretty mind-blowing. 7 p.m. Friday, March 9. Catalina United Methodist Church, 2700 E. Speedway Blvd. $20 online and $25 at the door.
Theater
Abeyance: A State of Temporary Disuse or Suspension. Everybody loves spending time in a waiting room. Everyone especially loves spending time in the waiting room before you head in for a job interview, where you get sweatier and sweatier as the nerves build and the prospect of being jobless forever stares you right in the face. It’s terrible when you’re going through it, but it turns out it’s hilarious to watch someone else go through it, like Tyler West does in this one-man show about a very broke man waiting for the interview of his life. Let’s just be glad it’s not just this time and have some hearty laughs at his (character’s) expense. 10:30 p.m. on Friday, March 9 and Saturday, March 10. Live Theatre Workshop, 5317 E. Speedway Blvd. $10.
Tags: Gaslight Music Hall , heartbeat , farnk Sinatra , Julie budd , Arizona friends of chamber music , women rock , Tucson symphony orchestra , catalina organ festival , david enlow , abeyance , tyler west , the king and I , low down dirty blues , blues , the merchant of venice , Arizona distance classic , half marathon , quarter marathon , 5K , run , walk , leukemia and lymphoma society , migrant quit project fundraising event , migrant quilt project , quilts , sam hughes , chuckwagon , indigenous , jana booker , international wildlife museum , pocket sketching refresher , tohono chul , in their nature , etherton gallery , jim waid , Robert d. cocke , craig cully , andy burgess , Tucson tango festival , tango , tang , milong , Mercado flea market , leslie Jordan , Tucson festival of books , TFOB , 2nd Saturdays downtown , Johanna warren , vince staples , rialto theatre , hirie , woodro , indubious , for peace band guam , sweet ghosts , amor deluxe , fenster , club congress , sego , the flycatcher , the rock , Image
Thursday, March 1, 2018
Multi-Day Festivals
Wild Wild West Steampunk Convention. Put on your top hat and enormous goggles, grab some sort of tricked-out nerf gun and slap a cog onto your cell phone, because it’s time to get steampunk! Also, this is the only steampunk convention in the U.S. that takes place at a western-themed town. Hear live music from Abney Park, load up on purchases from more than 60 vendors, check out some of the 80+ panels and workshops (including make & take workshops), and see a fashion show, tea dueling and other entertainment. And this year’s theme is Robots vs. Dinosaurs, so dress/act/take sides accordingly. Friday, March 2 to Sunday, March 4. Old Tucson, at 201 S. Kinney Road, is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and it’s open to WWWC attendees only from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday. Ticket prices vary by age and number of days/events attended. Lowest price is $5 for “Dissection of a Seance”, “Shooting Sexy Steampunk” or “Tipsy Tea Dueling” events to $115 for a Maverick Family 3-day pass with two adult and one kid passes. (The Aristocrat Pass is sold out).
Cat Mountain Station Spring Art Festival. What better way to spend a spring day than at a festival full of local artists? You probably just did your spring cleaning, so you have to fill your house back up with new beautiful things to make up for the stuff you just got rid of. And it’s important to do your civic duty and support local art. To the festival! 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, March 4. Cat Mountain Station, 2740 S. Kinney Road. Free entry.
Tags: Robots vs. dinosaurs. Steampunk , steampunk convention , fourth avenue spring street fair , fourth ave , cat mountain station , art festival , Arivaca Independent filmmakers exhibition , film festival , new works showcase , arts foundation , Diana Madaras , MAdaras gallery , Arizona Friends of Chamber Music Festival , St. Francis Theatre , Godspell 2012 , Schubert , Brahms , Nancy McCallion , Danny Krieger , The Barber of Seville , opera , Yamoto , Odyssey storytelling , Marianne Dissard , memoir , Wildnerness survival class , Vincent Pinto , Tucson Audubon Society , Tucson Meet Your Birds , Conquistadores 5K Fun Run/Walk , Cimb to Conquer Cancer , A Mountain , 2018 Winter Meet , Rillito Race Park , Monster Jam , monster trucks , UNiiQU3 , The Schisms , Jake Shimabukuro , Image
Thursday, February 22, 2018
Theater
Black Pearl Sings! There are two things to know about Alberta “Pearl” Johnson. She’s in prison for life for murder, and the rare folk songs her ancestors have passed down to her are her lifeline to her family. Susannah, a collector of songs for the Library of Congress, wants to record Pearl singing the songs. To Pearl, Susannah could mean freedom. And to Susannah, Pearl could mean a huge advancement in her career. But the two find themselves tied together in ways deeper than they expected in this play that pass the Bechdel test with flying colors. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 22 through Saturday, Feb. 24 and 3 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24 and Sunday, Feb. 25. Invisible Theatre, 1400 N. First Ave. $34 GA.
Let’s Get Literary
Panel: Poetry + Non-literary Influence. The Bagley Wright Lecture Series at the UA has given poets a platform to talk about the way they think about poetry since 2013. In this event, lecturers Dorothea Lasky, Joshua Beckman, Timothy Donnelly, Terrance Hayes, Rachel Zucker, Srikanth Reddy and program director Matthew Zapruder will all be reading from their lectures and talking about some of their greatest influences from outside the world of poetry. 3 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24. UA Poetry Center, 1508 E. Helen St. Free.Tags: Lost in Yonkers , Arizona Rose Theatre , Black Pearl Sings! Invisible Theatre , Bagley Wright Lecture Series , Spent Saints , Brian Smith , B.S. Eliot , Cactus Flower Comedy Festival , women , women are funny , 2018 peace fair and music festival , Arizona Renaissance Festival , unreasonably large turkey legs , UA Discovery Days , free museum entry , Girls’ Day , Hinamatsuri , mini time machine museum , Babar the Elephant , Goat Playground Day , the goat , Chlidren’s Adventure Hour , Tucson Presidio , Remi Geniet , Verdi Requiem , The Ten Tenors , David Bowie , Leonard Cohen , Prince , John Lennon , Michael Jackson , Amy Winehouse , Summit Hut Swap Meet , M.O.V.E. , hiking , outdoors , Southwest American Indian Collector’s Expo , Tucson Roadrunners , San Antonio Rampage , San Antoni-foes , Tucson Rodeo , The White Buffalo , Marty Grimes , Motionless in White , Image
Thursday, February 15, 2018
Panels
When Immigration Hits a Wall: Life in the Borderlands Location. In case the issue of immigration ever feels like it’s getting too abstract for you, hear from three locals about what the changing landscape of immigration policy means for them. Mo Goldman, a Tucson immigration attorney, will talk about what’s changed and what to expect going forward on the legal side of things. Loreno Verdugo, a community health adviser and coordinator for El Rio Health Center and coordinator of Ventanilla de Salud in the Mexican Consulate, will share stories about immigrants she’s seen make their way to Tucson. Alejandro Ursua, a UA grad and DACA recipient who now works for Merrill Lynch Wealth Management, will share his own story of how the uncertain future affects his family. Hosted by the League of Women Voters of Greater Tucson. 9:30 a.m. to noon. Saturday, Feb. 17. Joel D. Valdez Library, 101 N. Stone, Lower Level 1 Meeting Room. Free.TEDxUofA: Uncharted. The first annual TEDxUofA conference is here! You’ll hear from geologist, educator and writer Jess Kapp in her talk “Say Yes,” about taking risks for the sake of self discovery. Shepard Robbins will talk about the dark side of comics in his talk “Under the Page.” Biosystems engineering professor Joel Cuello talk about using amplified intelligence to achieve more sustainable methods of food development in “AI Does Food.” Marketing assistant professor Caleb Warren will talk about why we love the products we do in “What Makes Things Cool.” Jonathan Bean will talk about the shifting nature of markets in “Demand Less.” Hester Oberman, Ph.D, will talk about religion and philosophy in “Belief Out of the Closet.” And Nolan Cabrera, a scholar of race and racism, will talk about the pitfalls of privilege in “White Immunity.” 3 to 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 16. Crowder Hall, 1017 N. Olive Road. $20 GA, $20 VIP, $10 student, $15 student VIP.
No One Told Me This Sh*t Was Going to be Hard! Well ain’t that the truth about just about everything in life. In this case, though, it’s about the ups and downs, failures and successes, trials and tribulations of being an entrepreneur and starting your own company. Hear from a panel of experts at this interactive event, including representatives from InHouse, the real estate software company. 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15. Connect Coworking–Downtown Tucson Office Space, 33 South Fifth Ave. $5.
Art and Music
Sonoran Seasons. This is easier to remember at this time of year, when we’re not all making frantic dashes from our air-conditioned houses to our air-conditioned cars, and burning out hands on our steering wheels, but Tucson actually has more than one season. In fact, it has five: winter, spring, fore-summer, summer monsoon and fall. Tohono Chul Park’s new gallery exhibit celebrates Tucson’s array of seasons, and of biological specimens. Featured artist Janet Windsor uses graphic design and stitching skills to create fiber artwork of desert seasons. Exhibit runs through Wednesday, April 18. Artist’s reception: 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 15. Curator’s Talk: 10 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 20 and Thursday, Feb. 22. Tohono Chul Park, 7366 Paseo del Norte. $13 adults, $10 students, seniors over 62 and military. $3 kids 5 to 12 and free for kids under 5.
Ansel Adams Public Celebration. On some level, aren’t we all, always, celebrating the work of Ansel Adams? Here’s a chance for us to do it all together, in the same place and at the same time. The Center for Creative Photography’s new exhibit, Ansel Adams: Performing the Print, will open, and there will also be archival object tours (self guided—the best kind), vintage camera display and a presentation from Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist and pal of Ansel Adams, David Hume Kennerly. Plus, cake! Noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 17. Center for Creative Photography, 1030 N. Olive Road. Free.
Tags: Immigration , borderlands , Mo Goldman , Loreno Verdugo , Alejandro Ursua , Joel D. Valdez Library , TEDx , TEDxUofA , Jess Kapp , Shepard Robbins , Joel Cuello , Caleb Warren , Jonathan Bean , Hester Oberman , Nolan Cabreara , Tohono Chul , Sonoran Seasons , entrepreneur , entrepreneurship , business , art , photography , Ansel Adams , Rachmaninoff Rhapsody , Vadym Kholodenko , TSO , Charlie King , take back the night , Quilt Fiesta , quilts , wholesome , TMA , spring artisans market , 24 hours in the old Pueblo , TMS Sunrise , Old Tucson , Arizona’s birthday , Vigilante Days , Tucson Roadrunners , youth jersey giveaway , The Best Brothers , Rillito Park Racetrack , Craft Day at the Petting Zoo , petting zoo , crafts , Ikebana Spring Foral Floral Festival , zen , envy , zenvy , zenvious , minimalist , minimalism , cruise , bbq & blues , car show , SAACA , Rob Schneider , David Spade , Nightcrawler , B.S. Eliot , Dirty Audio , Cornelio Vega y Su Dinastia , Kimya Dawson , Dent May , AJJ , Cesar Ruiz , Moon King , Liquid Summer , Adriel Favela , Omar Ruiz , Jonatan Sanchez , Helen Ochoa , Logan Bohbot , Image
Thursday, February 1, 2018
Art
Philabaum’s Furnace. Master glass artist Tom Philabaum is quenching the flames. For 47 years, Tucson's Mr. Glass has been working with molten glass, thrusting it into the dangerous "glory hole," the white-hot glass furnace at his studio. No more. Now dealing with Parkinson's, Philabaum is giving up the heat required for glassblowing, but he has no intention of giving up glass: he'll continue making painted and fused glass works. The artist's formidable command of glass styles will be showcased in The Flame: Tom Philabaum, a five-decade retrospective opening with a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. this Saturday, Feb. 3, and continuing through April at Philabaum Glass Gallery, 711 S. Sixth Ave., 884-7404; philabaumglass.com. The artist gives a talk at the gallery at 5 p.m. Saturday. It's free but seating is limited. If you miss it, you can catch his lecture at Tucson Museum of Art on March 31.
Art Safari. The Central Tucson Gallery Association is hosting this opportunity to visit seven different galleries in one night. At the Davis Dominguez Gallery, see abstract paintings by Josh Goldberg and color field woven linen by Claire Campbell Park. See a Trans-Atlantic Fusion exhibit at PCC’s Louis Carlos Bernal Gallery. And see a New Year’s resolution-themed exhibit at the Raices Taller 222 Gallery. Most will have special reception hours during the Art Safari, but exact times and, of course, locations vary. The Art Safari begins at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 3.
Mid-Century Perspectives: Paintings by Andy Burgess & Objects of Modern Design. The stars have aligned this week at the Tucson Museum of Art: Their free first Thursday is falling on the same day of their newest exhibition’s opening night. Featured artist Andy Burgess is known for his colorful and precise work in photography, sketching and painting, which explore the relationship between architecture and the natural world—often in the American Southwest. The exhibit also includes designed objects and furniture with signature mid-century curves and geometric shapes, and by the likes of Frank Lloyd Wright, Harry Bertoia and Rose Cabat. 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 1. Tucson Museum of Art and Historic Block, 140 N. Main Ave. Free.
Tags: The flame , Tom Phliabaum , furnace , glass art , art safari , Central Tucson Gallery Association , Andy Burgess , Tucson Museum of Art , The Flame Off , Kartchner Caverns , cave fest , caves , Tubac , Tubac festival of the arts , beer garden , Shen Yun , meteorite and laser gem show , meteorites , lasers dinosaurs , Geoff Notkin , t-rex , ballet Tucson , Stomp , dueling pianos , boogie woogie piano gals , the gaslight , centennial hall , first Fridays , Arizona history museum , Native American Village , build-a-gin workshop , Three Wells Distilling Company , Andy Warhol Museum , Jose Diaz , the art of planetary science , biocosmos , biosphere , biosphere 2 , working alongside thinking machines , UA science lecture series , Nirav Merchang , TAWN Imbolc Public Ritual , Pagans , Wiccan , Odyssey Storytelling , you don’t know me , Tucson death café , Onesie bar crawl , Day in the Desert , We Love Dinosaurs , Little Cardboard Rocket , Ned and the Dirt , nightcrawler , Mean Mary , Fetty Wap , Rezz , Image
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Music to Your Ears
John Kamfonas & Eric Edberg. The Sea of Glass Center for the Arts is hosting Award-winning pianist John Kamfonas, known for his talent with improvisation and Eric Edberg, a Julliard and Peabody Conservatory-trained cellist. Spend a weekday evening watching these two powerhouses make gorgeous music. The Beer & Wine Garden will be open before, during and after the show, so you can take the edge off of your Tuesday. 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 30. Sea of Glass Center for the Arts, 330 E. Seventh St. $15 advance, $20 day-of. For adults, $12/$17 for teens 12 to 17, $4 for kids 11 and under.Bernstein Mass! Mass, formally known as Mass: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players and Dancers, is a big deal. Leonard Bernstein composed it, and wrote the lyrics along with Stephen Schwartz (he’s the guy who wrote Wicked, and did music and lyrics for The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Prince of Egypt). It’s loosely based on a Catholic mass, but it explodes into Broadway, avant-garde and classical styles at different times to explore the versatility of humanity’s relationship with god. This performance features the Grammy-nominated group True Concord, Baritone Jubilant Sykes, UA Dance and the Tucson Arizona Boys Chorus. 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26 and 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 28. Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. $20 to $75.
Catalina Organ Festival. Maybe they call it organ music because you can feel it through your whole body—like it’s good for your own, internal organs. There’s just something striking about hearing grandiose chords echo throughout a room, like the chapel in the Catalina United Methodist Church. The church continues their 2017/2018 organ festival with a performance by Katelyn Emerson, first-prize winner of the American Guild of Organist’s 2016 National Young Artists’ Competition and associate organist and choirmaster at the Church of the Advent in Boston. She’ll be playing works by the likes of Reinberger, Bach, Escaich, Sowerby and Litaize. 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 26. Catalina United Methodist Church, 2700 E. Speedway Blvd. $15 advance, $20 at the door.
Tags: John Kamfonas , Eric Edberg , cello , piano , Bernstein , Mass , Catalina Organ Festival , organs , Katelyn Emerson , Candide , Arizona Opera , Tucson Gem show , minerals , fossils , gems , crystals , rocks , Gem & Jam Festival , Calexico , album signing , Zia Records , Totally 80’s , board games , comics , Heroes and Villains , flea market , flea-less market , Tucson C.A.R.E.S. , ken Scoville , historic tour , Tucson presidio , calculus: the musical , curie me away , MaTheatre , math , theatre , the minds of machines , UA science lecture series , Tucson Mountain Park , star party , amateur astronomy , TAAA , sculpture fest , Christophe Szpajdel , Xpanded Universe , La Pilita , Stranger Things , Crooked Tooth , picnic for the homeless , Tucson Roadrunners , Chicago Wolves , Salute to the Olympics , Sundance Welcome , horses , The Pine Hill Haints , people who could fly , Exo Roast , Tucson Premium Outlets , Gaelynn Lea , Boys R Us , Karima Walker , 191 Toole , Club Congress , Image
Thursday, January 18, 2018
See a Show
Bernstein: Kaddish. Leonard Bernstein, most famous for composing the music for West Side Story, did a lot more than compose the music for West Side Story. For example, his Symphony No. 3, “Kaddish,” is based on the Jewish Prayer and was dedicated to the memory of John F. Kennedy (who died just weeks after the first performance of the piece). At this performance, hosted by the Tucson Symphony and the Tucson Desert Song Festival, Bernstein’s daughter, Jamie Bernstein, will narrate. 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 19 and 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 21. Tucson Music Hall, 260 S. Church Ave. $15 to $86.Outside Mullingar at ATC. John Patrick Shanley, the author of Doubt and Moonstruck, also wrote this Tony-nominated play set in the farmlands of Ireland. It’s a light and lovely romantic comedy about two introverts—Anthony, the cattle farmer, and Rosemary, his next door neighbor who is determined they will be together. Sometimes it’s nice to be reminded about all of the love in the world. Shows Saturday, Jan. 20 to Saturday, Feb. 10. Dates and times vary, but this week, there’s an 8 p.m. preview show on Saturday, Jan 20, a 7 p.m. preview show with a post-show discussion on Sunday, Jan. 21, and 7:30 p.m. previews Tuesday, Jan 23 through Thursday, Jan. 25. Temple of Music and Art, 330 S. Scott Ave. Preview shows $25 to $45. Regular shows $41 to $63.
MOMIX: Opus Cactus. UA Presents is hosting MOMIX, the dancer-illusionist company that you pretty much have to see to understand. It’s a lot of art forms coming together—dance, music, gymnastics, light work, feats of strength—for a performance that the New York Times praised for its “ingenuity, theatricality and cunning imagination.” So it can’t be all that bad, right? And this show is all about the Sonoran Desert, depicting lizards, snakes, insects and our beloved saguaros with dynamism and humor. 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 18. Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. $20 to $65.
Shop Local
La Encantada Fine Art Festival. Let’s get this party art-ed! Dozens of visual fine artists are coming together in the foothills so that you can look at their gorgeous work against the backdrop of Tucson’s gorgeous mountains, and take your favorite pieces home with you! There will be metal and leather work glass designs, watercolor, silver jewelry, metal sculptures, ceramic, woodwork, photography, oil paintings and mixed media. Plus live entertainment and free parking! 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 20 and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 21. La Encantada Shopping Center, 2905 E. Skyline Drive. Free.Tags: Bernstein , Kaddish , TSO , Outside Mullingar , John Patrick Shanley , MOMIX: Opus Cactus , MOMIX , La Encantada , fine art festival , art , fine art , citrus jubilee , we got a whole bowl of citrus! , pueblo gem and mineral show , citrus , the Tucson flea , rock , rock star , yard sale , Desert Diamond Casinos , Ua Science lecture series , algorithms , valley of the moon , historic , historical , blade runner , coloring , casa video , casa film bar , el conquistador , artist , art , pizza paint , pizza , paint , Dillinger days , outlaws , we stole a balloon , whiskey , Japanese festival , Japan , Japanese , Eleanor wilner , UA poetry center , poetry , pancakes , cat yoga , kitty , picnic in the park , atheism , atheists , nightcrawler , carrie newcomer , positive satan , negative god , the toasters , Image
Friday, January 12, 2018
Watch This!
Connect the Dots: TEDx Tucson. If you spend your spare time (and maybe sometimes working hours) watching Ted talks and doing and redoing the math to see if you’d ever be able to afford an actual TED conference, then this TEDx conference might be the perfect event for you. With 10 speakers, bands, dancers, art exhibits, snacks, catered lunch and parking all for under eight bucks, or under a hundred for the full VIP shebang, it’s a TEDx-cellent way to spend a Saturday. 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13. Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway Blvd. $75 GA, $65 students and 65+, $95 VIP.
The Zoppé Family Circus. Hardly anything is quite so magical as a circus. Everything is more colorful in a circus tent than in the outside world. The popcorn is saltier. The sounds are sharper and louder and more magnificent. And we’ve got a case of compounded magic at this event, as the Zoppé Family Circus is coming to Tucson for the seventh time, and everyone knows the number seven is lucky and magical. These guys have been doing their thing in the ring since 1842, so you know they know what they’re doing. Friday, Jan. 12 at 7 p.m. through Sunday, Jan. 21 at 1 and 4 p.m., with various days and times in between. MSA Annex, 267 S. Avenida Del Convento. $20 to $90.
2018 Cactus Classic Invitational. If you’re into 18U through 12U girls’ volleyball and 18 Club and 16 Club Boys volleyball, you’re in the right place. This three-day tournament will be bringing about 165 volleyball teams from all over the Arizona region to serve and spike amongst the saguaros in town. Well, not literally amongst the saguaros. The whole thing is held under the Tucson Convention Center’s roof (and at Sporting Chance Center and the UA, if needed). Saturday, Jan. 13 to Monday, Jan. 15. Tournaments begin at 8 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and Monday’s start time depends on bracket placement. Tucson Convention Center, 260 S. Church Ave. $10 for one day, $20 for all three days. Free for kids 10 and under.
Art
Mementos. Etherton Gallery’s new exhibit features work by Rodrigo Moya, Graciela Iturbide and Masao Yamamoto, and highlights the ways that photographs—particularly the black and white work of these artists—can not only capture memories, but become memories themselves. Animals, architecture, people, desert scenery: You’ll see them all at this exhibit, because they’re all woven into the tapestry of our memory. The exhibition runs through March 3, and the opening reception is from 7 to 10 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 13, at the Etherton Gallery, 135 S. Sixth Ave. Masao Yamamoto, whose small photographs of nature make you feel like you’re peeking into someone else’s memory, has traveled all the way from Japan to give a public lecture at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 12 at the Center for Creative Photography Auditorium, 1030 N. Olive Road.Tags: TED , TEDx , circus , Zoppe family circus , cactus classic , mementos , Etherton Gallery , The Helios Ensemble , Twelfth Night , Gil Shaham , Arturo Sandoval , Tucson Symphony Orchestra , TSO , The Grapes of Wrath , RAPunzel , Tucson Fringe Festival , Wings over Willcox , Mini Time Machine Museum , David Fischer , Mineral Madness , rock and roll , rocks , Arizona Clogging Festival , Tucson Presidio , living history , Landscapes of migration , migration , Beyond Tucson , MLK , Yume Japanese Gardens , Petroglyphs , Tortolitas , run with the saguaros , run next to the saguaros , saguaros don’t run , senior Olympic festival , Nightcrawler , Cesar Ruiz , Railgun , The Lasso , Miracle Mile Gateway Car Show , Barry Smith , Trever Ducote , Image
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Shows
The House of Blue Leaves. Live Theatre Workshop is kicking off 2018 with a run of The House of Blue Leaves, by John Guare, a play filled with relatable sentiments, historical events and gloriously dark humor. We’ve got Pope Paul VI visiting New York, the Vietnam War threatening to begin, the birth of Robert Downey Jr., and all of the other wonders of 1965. But this play centers around a zookeeper in Queens who dreams of making it to Hollywood to write songs for the movies. 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday from Thursday, Jan. 4 through Saturday Jan. 10. Live Theatre Workshop, 5317 E. Speedway Blvd. $15 on Jan. 4 and 5, $18 to $20 other shows.Odyssey Storytelling Presents: Memory. Let’s talk about pasts, ba-by. Let’s talk about mem-o-ries. LET’S TALK ABOUT ALL THE GOOD THINGS AND THE BAD THINGS in our his-tor-ies. Odyssey Storytelling is bringing together six storytellers to share 10-minute stories centered around the theme of “memory.” You’ll hear from a playwright, a writer, a holistic health coach, a comedian and a storyteller who works in (fittingly enough) memory care facilities. It’s sure to get you thinking about some of your favorite memories, so that you can be sure to carry the best parts of life forward with you into the new year. 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 4. The Sea of Glass–Center for the Arts, 330 E. Seventh St. $10 regular, $7 students.
Murder in Paradise. Get ready to solve a mystery, because this show at the Gaslight is interactive as soon as you step in the door—every ticket comes with a new identity. Whodunnit? The weird wife? The sexy movie star? The wacky director? The straight-up bad son? Better bust out your old Encyclopedia Browns to get some practice in, because Detective Wes Chester is going to need your help to solve this heinous crime. First show is Monday, Jan. 8, and show runs through Monday, March. 26. 6 p.m. The Gaslight Music Hall, 13005 N. Oracle Road. $38.95 includes a three-course meal!
Music
Mozart Symphony No. 29. Start the new year off feeling classy by heading to the orchestra to hear one of Mozart’s finest early symphonies, composed for 20th century cello rockstar Mstislav Rostropovich. And, if your new year’s resolution involved productivity of any sort, then consider that Mozart composed this when he was only 17. Julian Schwarz will be making his TSO debut with the performance. 7:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 5. 2 and 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 6. 2 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 2. Catalina Foothills High School, 4300 E. Sunrise Drive. $22 to $55.Tags: The House of Blue Leaves , Live Theatre Workshop , Odyssey , Odyssey Storytelling , storytelling , memories , memory , Murder in Paradise , Clue , theater , Gaslight Music Hall , Mozart Symphony No. 29 , Mstislav Rostropovich , Julian Schwarz , Kata Hay , Dan O’Rourke , indie folk , indie , Everything Bird , bird is the word , Madaras Gallery , Subspace , Lehman Noviello , First Fridays at the Arizona History Museum , first Fridays , Arizona History Museum , indigenous women , Valley of the Moon , first Saturdays , Uniting the City , car hop , barbecue , Individuals Car Club , Rocks & Ropes , free climbing , yoga , meditation , mysticism , baksana , beer , Dragoon , mystic messengers , psychics , oracles , numerologists , numerology , angel readers , pet psychic , moving into stillness , TMC , Tucson Community Meditation Center , Adoption Day , dogs , cats , St. Philip’s Plaza Farmers’ Market , HOPE Animal Shelter , Tucson Interfaith Packathon , pack lunches , do good , Garden Talks , Master Gardener , fruit , Himmel Park Library , Arizona State Home Show , AZ State Home Show , HGTV , Home Depot , remodeling , Jae Tilt , rapper , rap , Tucson musicians , Strangelove , Bugg , Image
Friday, December 29, 2017
Sports
NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl. It’ll be a battle of the Aggies at Arizona Stadium on Dec. 29, as New Mexico State and Utah State meet for the third-annual Arizona Bowl. The headline of the event has to be New Mexico State (6-6) making its first postseason appearance in 57 years—defeating, you guessed it, Utah State 20-13 in the Sun Bowl. Utah State also enters Friday’s game at 6-6, with an offense that ranks in the Top 50 in points per game (31.0), while New Mexico State boasts a pass-heavy offense led by Peoria native Tyler Rogers at quarterback, who’s thrown for 3,825 yards and 26 touchdowns this season. The Aggies will meet at 3:30 p.m. at Arizona Stadium, with CBS Sports Network showing the action live on TV.UA Downtown Block Party. If you find yourself getting blue between all of the Christmas celebration hubbub and the New Year’s Eve madness, be grateful you live in a town that’s added a whole other holiday right in the middle. Head over to Armory Park to enjoy live music from 80’s and Gentlemen, stuff your face and—most importantly—scream “Bear Down” at everyone you see in the true spirit of Tucson. Not to mention there will be carnival rides, a beer garden and something called human foosball, which is apparently not just soccer. 3 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 28. Armory Park, 221 S. Sixth Ave. Free.
Yoga and Meditation
108 Sun Salutations. Alright, here we go. It’s the first day of a new year and your chance to kick off your resolution feeling strong, confident and committed. And you know what? Even if you just force yourself to go to this one yoga event this one time, you’ll probably end up feeling real good, and you’ll earn a glass of champagne with dinner. (You’re sure to have some leftover from the night before.) So enjoy a brief meditation followed by 108 sun salutations. (108 is a sacred number in Hinduism and yoga, not just an arbitrarily high number chosen to get you fully exhausted). 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 1 Om Yoga, 5961 N. Oracle Road. $7 nonmembers ($5 cash).Tags: NOVA Home Loans , Arizona Bowl , New Mexico State , the Aggies , UA block party , foosball , human foosball , not soccer , sun salutations , 108 , Om Yoga , Full Moon Shambhala Sadhana , Shambhala Meditation , Kadampa Meditation Center , shiny gold statues , Wooden Ball , Wooden Ball 25th Anniversary , Ugly Sweater Improv Comedy Show , Tucson Improv , Club Congress , Casa Libre , Peregrinas , women poets , Monsoon , Monsoon Art Collective , Pueblo Vida , coloring , Maynards , Holiday sparklers , Lord of the Rings Trivia , LOTR , Frodo , Bilbo , Crooked Tooth , second breakfast , New Year’s Eve , Espresso Art Café , Casa Video , Big Trouble in Little China , The Most Chill New Year’s Eve , R Bar , Winter Freecycle Swap , Treecycle , Holiday Family Storytime , Job Help , library , having fun isn’t hard when you’ve got a library card , The Loft , movie posters , movie poster sale , first day hikes , hikes , hike
