Here Are the Best Things to Do in Metro Phoenix This Week

New Times picks the best things to do in metro Phoenix from Monday, September 12, through Thursday, September 15. For more events, see our curated online calendar.

"What Happens in Between"
Picture your day as an endless stream of tiny time-outs taking place between all those deep thoughts and important tasks you’re undertaking. It might look a bit like “What Happens in Between,” an exhibition of paintings and sculpture by Kris Manzanares, whose work explores “the wild moments glinting between the familiar framework of our daily routine.” Manzanares’ paintings draw from her own digital photographs, reflecting moments she’s captured over time. By merging image with story, Manzanares presents her own version of history, which is decidedly more appealing than the revisionist histories being peddled by political pundits nowadays.

See her works Monday, September 12, between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at monOrchid, 214 East Roosevelt Street. The exhibition is free and continues through September 19. Visit www.monorchid.com. Lynn Trimble

Cabaret
When Cabaret premièred in 1966, our world unfortunately still resonated with the frightening atmosphere of the early-1930s Berlin setting. As decades passed and the perpetually award-winning show was revived over and over, it’s never been anything other than relatable. That’s really crappy news about how easily the seeds of division and cruelty can be sown. To paraphrase the Master of Ceremonies: Nazis are awful. The economy is awful. Even love is awful.

There’s beauty and catharsis in the thing, though, along with impressive music, and 1998’s version, directed by Sam Mendes and presented in legendary ’70s-’80s disco Studio 54, is particularly gritty and glam, like an oddly entertaining punch to the gut. Roundabout Theatre Company’s tour goosesteps though Tempe starting at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, September 13, at ASU Gammage, 1200 South Forest Avenue in Tempe, and continuing through Sunday, September 18. Tickets are $20 to $150 at www.ticketmaster.com or 480-965-3434. Julie Peterson

"Off the Wall"
You’re familiar with eBay, where you either bid on a thing or click “Buy It Now.” Try that in real life at “Off the Wall” — a free exhibition at Art Intersection, 207 North Gilbert Road, Suite 201, in Gilbert, where artists ranging from students to internationally renowned donate works, and gallery visitors may bid or buy it now right … well, off the wall.

Let the bids begin — in person or through e-mail — starting Tuesday, September 13, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. E-mail bids are accepted through midnight on October 14, and will be followed by a silent auction — with refreshments, raffles, and singer Lyn Jackson — on October 15. Proceeds go to such programs as the “Emerge” student photography exhibition, and keeping the North and South galleries free. Call 480-361-1118 or visit artintersection.com. Lauren Cusimano

Dinerwood: Level 4
Wannabe filmmakers and starving artists alike are encouraged to apply for Welcome Diner’s Dinerwood: Level 4, a 48-hour short film challenge in which everyone from theater troupes to drunk patrons has participated. Think pulling off a low-budget shortie over a weekend is simple? There’s another twist: Each three-minute submission must include the same line of dialogue and prop. Prizes are declared by both audience members and a panel of judges: Jason Ayers of Flowers, Connor Descheemaker of Local First Arizona, Christy McClendon of New Pathways for Youth, and Kelsey Pinckney of Four Chambers Press.

For those more Siskel than Scorsese, the free film fest screening begins at dusk on Wednesday, September 14, at the Garfield neighborhood eatery, 924 East Roosevelt Street. Awards are presented at 10 p.m. For more information (and a specific start time as showtime approaches), visit www.facebook.com/WelcomeDiner. View films from the past three years at www.youtube.com/user/WelcomeDiner. Janessa Hilliard

"Temporal Changes in the Landscape"
Most of us take walking and shooting photographs for granted. But not Maria Whiteman, whose exhibition “Temporal Changes in the Landscape” reflects her embrace of walking and photography as tools for exploring the ways people think about, act on, and share their understandings of ecology, the environment, and the non-human world. Using large-scale digital photographs, Whiteman considers the intersection of humans with the natural world, seeking to prompt greater awareness of the nature of both physical and mental landscapes. See the free exhibition, which was inspired by the great Rockies from Canada to Colorado, between 2 and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, September 14, at ASU’s Museum of Walking. It’s located at 123 East University Drive, Tower Center Suite 2016, in Tempe. Visit www.museumofwalking.org. Lynn Trimble

3C
You really can’t get anywhere in the arts nowadays without a nice chewy lawsuit. Last year, David Adjmi’s play 3C won a court case that basically handed ass to the crankypants creators of the vintage TV show that 3C seems to resemble. You know, the one with a young man who becomes the roommate of two young women.

Nearly Naked Theatre presents the filthy comedy journalists love — because its title is literally no longer than any pronoun — through Sunday, September 25. In addition to strong language, mature themes, sexual situations, and nudity, audiences are warned against disco (rightly so — you haven’t built up a tolerance) and “ridiculous sitcom moments where people confuse one thing for something else.”

Thursday, September 15’s showtime is 8 p.m. at Phoenix Theatre, 100 East McDowell Road. Call 602-254-2151 or visit tickets.phoenixtheatre.com. Prices start at $32 but may increase with demand. Julie Peterson

18th Annual Artlink Juried Exhibition
It’s all about show and tell as the 18th Annual Artlink Juried Exhibition heads to Heard Museum’s Steele Auditorium, 2301 North Central Avenue, for a one-night-only event. Artlink is a nonprofit focused on creating connections between artists, businesses, and the public.

Which is why Artlink will show works by 45 Arizona artists, selected by a three-member panel including Chartreuse gallery owner Nancy Hill and Paradise Valley artist Fred Tieken, as well as Ann Marshall, the Heard’s director of curation and education.

During the event, one artist will be named winner of the Baron Prize, which means that artist’s piece for the show will be acquired by Baron Properties for a cash prize of $5,000. Baron is currently building two multilevel housing developments at Third and Roosevelt streets in the Roosevelt Row arts district.
The free exhibition happens from 6 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, September 15. Visit artlinkphoenix.com. Lynn Trimble

For the Love of Spock
As nerds among us are already well aware, Star Trek has been around for half a century. Sprawling universes and characters and high-minded ideals, Gene Roddenberry’s creation has traveled to screens both small and silver. As fascinating as the swashbuckling space cadets are, the true stories behind the science fiction might top them. One worth exploring? That of Leonard Nimoy, the man behind the pointy-eared Vulcan, Spock.

The actor’s son, Adam Nimoy, helms the new documentary, For the Love of Spock. It delves into the personal and the popular perceptions of the filmmaker’s father with interviews from William Shatner, Zachary Quinto, and George Takei (among many others). FilmBar, 815 North Second Street, screens the film at 10:10 p.m. on Thursday, September 15. Tickets to the 18-and-over event are $9. See details at www.thefilmbarphx.com. Becky Bartkowski