We know: The beginning of the work week sucks. But if you take a quick look at the calendar, you'll see we're off to a pretty good week of art events, sporting events, dance parties, and more. Here are our must-see events from now to the weekend . . .
Monday, March 11: RuPaul's Drag Race Viewing Party @ The Rock Reality TV gets a bad rap, and usually for good reason. Fortunately for us tube addicts, most shows aren't as ridiculous as Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. Sure, RuPaul's Drag Race can be pretty over the top (especially when queens imitate celebrities in "The Snatch Game"). But who doesn't love seeing an extra-fabulous Paris Hilton or a Puerto Rican queen's attempt at imitating Amy Winehouse's British accent?
See also: - Zara Coming to Scottsdale Fashion Square - PHX:fringe on Hiatus -- "No 2013 Events" - Legendary Comedy Club Tempe Improv to Reopen Its Doors in April
The show's fifth season promises more fabulosity than ever, thanks to the bevy of drag queens competing for the honor of being crowned America's next drag superstar. These fierce divas show their skills by making their own glamorous outfits, posing in photo shoots, and lip-synching for their lives -- all to hang in there for another week of the same. The Rock will celebrate the season with a weekly RuPaul's Drag Race viewing party that includes karaoke, bingo, and snacks. -- Melissa Fossum
Tuesday, March 12: "Changing Landscapes: A Closer Look at Baby Canyon Pueblo" @ Deer Valley Rock Art Center Reading the bevy of freak-out tweets about cranes dangling, power outages, and blown-off building facades during hashtag Sandy brought us to a simple conclusion: Let's get the eff out of cities and go all Christopher McCandless (minus that whole dying-in-a-bus-in-Alaska thing). Since our mom would never allow such a thing (to this day, we fear dyeing our hair because she'd disapprove), the next best option is heading to Deer Valley Rock Art Center for a dose of remoteness and to scope out "Changing Landscapes: A Closer Look at Baby Canyon Pueblo."
In the exhibit, panoramic photos reveal the canyon, located in the Agua Fria National Monument, and research explains the ways that its prehistoric dwellers adapted to the desert landscape and fed themselves year-round. -- Becky Bartkowski
Wednesday, March 13: "Digital Print Fashion" @ Phoenix Art Museum Though we don't care much for the computerized elements invading our superhero movies, when it comes to the runway we don't mind it so much. In contrast to obviously fake CGI backgrounds and characters, digital printing on textiles can have an intense, beautiful effect that couldn't be achieved otherwise.
With such designers as Alexander McQueen, Ralph Rucci, and Miuccia Prada embracing digitally enhanced fabrics over the past couple decades, the trend has morphed into a fashionable mainstay. To scope out elegant examples of intricately detailed items that employ digital printing, get yourself to Phoenix Art Museum's latest fashion exhibition, "Digital Print Fashion." -- Becky Bartkowski
Thursday, March 14: spark! Mesa's Festival of Creativity @ Mesa Arts Center The majority of your life is fraught with stifled creativity. At work, your boss doesn't want you to draw dinosaurs in the margins of your meeting notes. At home, your kids want nothing but plain ol' cheese pizza. Luckily, you're not alone. There are plenty of people just like you looking for a release.
The folks behind spark! Mesa's Festival of Creativity want the event's attendees to get inspired and get to creating. Head to Mesa Arts Center for creative therapy in the form of visual art, dance, music, plays, crafts, cooking, and more. Watch as artists unleash the latest in their creative achievements in free shows, and find your own creative center with $5 classes in everything from beading to puppetry. Stop by Thursday, March 14, for an afternoon of spoken word and hip-hop, then make your way over to the ERTH Dinosaur petting zoo, where kiddos of all ages can interact with massive lifelike dinosaur puppets.-- Christina Caldwell
Friday, March 15: FAUST 2013 @ Phoenix Center for the Arts With film, dance, music, and poetry, an assortment of Phoenix-area creative types will retell the classic fable of Faust. Dubbed Faust 2013, the inter-arts interpretation of the German tale of a man's downfall is set to the 1926 silent film version of Faust, directed by F. W. Murnau.
Accompanying the film are poets Jack Evans and Ernesto Moncado, modern dance troupe Dulce Dance Company, and the Southwest's premier live-film score troupe, RPM Orchestra.
"What we are working toward is an almost sense overload," says JRC, the show's executive producer. "Each performer and group is creating their own interpretation of the Faust legend, and combined will create still another, each audience member through their shifting attentions will create yet another valid version resulting in a unique experience that no one else can ever have." -- Lauren Saria
Check out more things to do today (and everyday) in our Calendar section ...
