july 3
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus: The 127th-anniversary edition of the Greatest Show on Earth features ringmaster Eric Michael; Zusha, Queen of the Nile, billed as the world's only performing hippopotamus; master clown David Larible; second-generation animal trainer Mark Oliver Gebel; the debut of the Golden Pyramid human acrobats; and the Oxygen Skate Team. Final performances are at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 3; 1:30 and 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 4; 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 5; and 1:30 and 5:30 p.m. Sunday, July 6, at America West Arena, First Street and Jefferson. Tickets range from $11.50 to $30, available at the arena and Dillard's; call 379-7800 or 503-5555.
subUrbia: Tucson's upstart Upstairs Theatre Company has traveled north for this revival of a January '96 production of the Eric Bogosian play in the Old Pueblo. The work revolves around three guys in their early 20s who replay a communal past while bumming around in the dead-end present of a convenience-store parking lot. Final performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday, July 3; 8 p.m. Friday, July 4; 8 p.m. Saturday, July 5; and 2 p.m. Sunday, July 6, in Center Stage at Herberger Theater Center, 222 East Monroe. Tickets are $10 and $17.50, available at Herberger and Dillard's; call 252-8497 or 503-5555.
Phoenix Art Museum First Friday Concert Series: Because of Friday's Independence Day commemoration, the popular series moves ahead a day this month, with acoustic bluesman Hans Olson doing the honors. Showtime is 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 3, in the Great Hall at PAM, 1625 North Central. Tickets are $7.50, $5 for members. Call 257-1880 or 257-1222.
The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (abridged): Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield penned this Pythonesque parody, brimming with pot shots at the Bard and performed by Actors Theatre of Phoenix's "Reduced Shakespeare Company," comprising actors Gerald Burgess, Jon Gentry and Scott Hopkins and a prop list that includes "1 butcher knife, 2 daggers, 1 dinosaur (inflatable), 1 head (severed), 1 skull (rubber), 1 vial poison and 1 vial potion." Act one features snippets from 36 Shakespearean pieces; the centerpiece of act two is Hamlet--performed "three times forward and once backwards." ATP presents a summer revival of its high-season show. The second run continues with performances at 8 p.m. Thursday, July 3; 8 p.m. Friday, July 4; 8 p.m. Saturday, July 5; and 2 p.m. Sunday, July 6, in Stage West at Herberger Theater Center, 222 East Monroe. The production runs through Sunday, July 13. Tickets range from $16 to $26, available at Herberger and Dillard's; call 252-8497 or 503-5555.
Road Trip: Frontier Days/World's Oldest Rodeo in Prescott: This annual high-country romp in Arizona's territorial capital includes the well-aged rodeo--which began life in 1888--at Yavapai County Fairgrounds and various activities at downtown's Courthouse Plaza, including the Frontier Days Parade, the Whiskey Row Boot Race, fireworks, a carnival and entertainment. The event's scheduled Thursday, July 3; Friday, July 4; Saturday, July 5; and Sunday, July 6. Call 1-800-266-7534 or 1-520-445-2000.
friday
july 4
"Fabulous Phoenix Fourth" featuring Alabama: The corn-pone country act from Fort Payne, AL, can't hope to match the musical fireworks displayed at last year's truly fabulous Fourth--which featured the Mavericks, and Junior Brown--but the annual show is free. Emilio, Young Country, and the all-woman blues band Sistah Blue also perform at the bash, scheduled for 4 to 10 p.m. Friday, July 4, on the grounds of the Arizona State Capitol, 17th Avenue and Washington. Billed as "America's Hottest Fourth"--and we're not talking aesthetics here; it's eggs-on-asphalt time out there--the event, in its 12th year, includes a big fireworks display, carnival rides and games, skydivers, fly-overs by jet fighters and more. Gratis parking is available in the area bordered by Seventh and 19th avenues and Van Buren and Adams streets. Call 534-3378 or 262-4633.
Phoenix Firebirds Versus Las Vegas Stars: The Triple A/Pacific Coast League affiliate of baseball's San Francisco Giants continues its 34th--and final--season in the Valley with its traditional west-side match against Sin City's Stars at 7:05 p.m. Friday, July 4, at Peoria Sports Complex, 16101 North 83rd Avenue; a fireworks spectacular follows the final out. Another game against the Stars is slated for the same time Saturday, July 5, at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, 5999 East Van Buren--the Firebirds' first PCL game at Muni since the team moved to Scottsdale Stadium; a second fireworks display follows that game. A double-header against Las Vegas starts at 6:05 p.m. Sunday, July 6, at the Scottsdale field, 7408 East Osborn. Tickets are available at Dillard's; call 503-5555. For general information, call 275-0500.
More Fourth of July Fun: For other Independence Day options, see the Events and On the Road listings.
The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (abridged): See Thursday.
Frontier Days/World's Oldest Rodeo in Prescott: See Thursday.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus: See Thursday.
subUrbia: See Thursday.
saturday
july 5
Mesa Symphony Orchestra: The ensemble introduces its new music director, Gordon J. Johnson, at a free pops concert scheduled at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, July 5, at Mesa Amphitheatre, Center and University. Guest vocalist Karen Wiest-Parthun joins the orchestra for a program that includes selections from various Broadway and Hollywood productions, including South Pacific, Jurassic Park and the James Bond franchise. Call 897-2121.
The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (abridged): See Thursday.
Frontier Days/World's Oldest Rodeo in Prescott: See Thursday.
Phoenix Firebirds Versus Las Vegas Stars: See Friday.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus: See Thursday.
subUrbia: See Thursday.
sunday
july 6
Robert Jr. Lockwood: The octogenarian guitarist/vocalist is best known for his association with Robert Johnson--Lockwood is Johnson's stepson, and learned his earliest licks at the knee of the late, great Delta bluesman, who called the youngster "Robert Jr." But Lockwood might be best remembered for his ace session work for the Chess label, supporting Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter, Muddy Waters and many others. Robert "Red Top" Young opens at 8 p.m. Sunday, July 6, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. The cover is $12. Call 265-4842.
The Compleat Works of Wllm Shkspr (abridged): See Thursday.
Frontier Days/World's Oldest Rodeo in Prescott: See Thursday.
Phoenix Firebirds Versus Las Vegas Stars: See Friday.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus: See Thursday.
subUrbia: See Thursday.
monday
july 7
Phoenix Mercury: The Valley's Women's National Basketball Association franchise is coached and managed by one of the top female b-ball players of all time, Cheryl Miller. The Mercury continues its first season, in the WNBA's inaugural year, with games against the New York Liberty at 7 p.m. Monday, July 7; and the Houston Comets at the same time Wednesday, July 9, at America West Arena, First Street and Jefferson. If tickets are available, they're at the arena and Dillard's. Call 252-9622, 379-7800 or 503-5555.
tuesday
july 8
The Muffs: Singer/guitarist/songwriter Kim Shattuck concocts catchy, aggro power-punk anthems that, at their finest, linger in the air like Chrissie Hynde's best Pretenders tunes. Shattuck inherited the young Hynde's curled upper lip and gift for melodic invention, though she lacks Chrissie's vulnerability. Still, to twist a term borrowed from the Posies (another act Shattuck and company call to mind at times), if the Bangles were the frosting, the Muffs are the beater. Touring behind its third disc, Happy Birthday to Me, the L.A.-based group is scheduled Tuesday, July 8, at Gibson's, 410 South Mill in Tempe. Canada's Chixdiggit, and the Groovie Ghoulies share the all-ages bill. Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $8 in advance, $10 the day of the show, available at Ticketmaster. Call 967-1234 or 784-4444.
"Zandra Rhodes: The Surface and Beyond": The English fashion maven has been one of the isle's top designers and clothiers of mod Brits from mid-'60s Carnaby Street to mid-'70s punk and onward. This installation at Phoenix Art Museum, 1625 North Central, includes works from Rhodes' vast personal collection of wearables, and is presented as a precursor to the UK/AZ Festival, coming up in October. "The Surface and Beyond" opens Tuesday, July 8, and continues through Sunday, November 2, in PAM's Fashion Design Gallery. Viewing is free; hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays (to 9 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays). Call 257-1880 or 257-1222.
Suicide Kings CD-Release Party: Valley-music mainstay Bruce Connole (the Strand, the Cryptics) and former Gin Blossom Richard Taylor lead this solid local group, which plays alt. Americana and dank honky-tonk numbers about lost loves ("She"), brain cells ("Light at the End of the Bottle") and causes ("Cradle to the Grave") in the heartbreak key of Hank Williams/Gram Parsons. The band hosts the release party for its self-titled debut on Tuesday, July 8, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. The Keltic Cowboys open at 9 p.m. The cover is $3. Call 265-4842.
Cadillac Desert: Water & the Transformation of Nature: Based on Marc Reisner's book Cadillac Desert and Sandra Postel's work Last Oasis, the PBS series chronicles the corrupting battle for water rights and access that's been raging in the West for most of this century. The third installment in the four-part program, titled "The Mercy of Nature," explores the political/environmental fallout caused by "the transformation of California's Central Valley from a semi-arid plain into the most productive and environmentally altered agricultural region in the history of the world." The show airs at 9 p.m. Tuesday, July 8, on KAET-TV, Channel 8. Call 965-2308.
wednesday
july 9
Fiona Apple: Nineteen-year-old Fiona has a face from a fever dream, smoldering, deep-set eyes and a moody, sometimes almost torchy, sound that echoes Tori Amos and Pirates-era Rickie Lee Jones (New Yorker Apple singles out Billie Holiday and poet Maya Angelou as major influences). The songs on Fiona's burnished debut, Tidal--especially "Shadowboxer" and the loping rocker "Criminal"--showcase a songwriter far beyond Apple's tender years. Guadaloop shares the all-ages bill. Showtime is 8 p.m. Wednesday, July 9, at the Electric Ballroom, 1216 East Apache in Tempe. Tickets are $18, available at Ticketmaster. Call 894-0707 or 784-4444.
The Hi-Fives: If the Clash played surf, the result might have sounded something like this Bay Area garage band's tune "Meet the Hi-Fives." And you should meet 'em; the foursome's strong points are imagination (former group names and affiliations include the Narvel Felts and Thee Shatners) and lo-fi, high-speed fun. Oh, yeah, and they wear suits and ties, a la the Wonders (a.k.a. the Oneders) in the Tom Hanks flick That Thing You Do!; see the story on page 94. Pollen, and the Medieval Knievals share the all-ages bill. Showtime is 9 p.m. Wednesday, July 9, at Hollywood Alley, 2610 West Baseline in Mesa. Tickets are $5 in advance, $8 the day of the show, available at Dillard's. For details call 820-7117 or 503-5555.
Pat Boyack and the Prowlers: Boyack's one of the staples of the hoppin' Texas-blues scene in Dallas, along with fellow guitarists Smokin' Joe Kubek and Anson Funderburgh. Spenser Thomas has replaced former Prowlers vocalist Jimmy Morello. Touring in support of the new album superblue & funky, Boyack and band are scheduled Wednesday, July 9, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. Showtime is 9 p.m. A Phoenix Blues Society meeting precedes at 7:30, and Valley bluesman "Lovesick" Steve Cheseborough hosts a release party for his new disc at 8. Admission is free before 8:15, $4 after. For details call 265-4842.
Cold Cold Hearts: Allison Wolfe of Bratmobile infame leads this all-grrrl wrecking crew. State Route 522 shares the stage. Showtime is 10 p.m. Wednesday, July 9, at Stinkweeds Record Exchange, 1250 East Apache, Suite 109, in Tempe. For details call 968-9490.
Phoenix Mercury: See Monday.
"Zandra Rhodes: The Surface and Beyond": See Tuesday.
