The Best Live and Virtual Things to Do in Metro Phoenix This Week

This week you can hear live music, watch a cult classic, try yoga at a local brewery, or spend time painting in the park. Here’s a look at the best virtual and live events in metro Phoenix this week, with a friendly reminder that most venues still require masks.

Arizona Coyotes

The Arizona Coyotes honored a very special hockey player and fan on Saturday, adding 9-year-old Leighton Accardo, who died of cancer last year, to its Ring of Honor. Look for her name and number (49) if you make it out to Gila River Arena this week, when the lineup includes a 6 p.m. game against the Minnesota Wild on Monday, April 19. Ticket prices start at $33.65.

Spafford Dine-Out Concert

The jam band launched in Prescott back in 2009 is doing its first 2021 concerts at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, where pods of six people can enjoy their unique blend of musical styles including rock, reggae, ska, and electro-pop. They’ll perform at 8 p.m. on Monday and Tuesday, April 19 and 20. Tickets are $77.25 (including fees).

Tiny Dances

Maybe you’ve marveled at how some people manage to live in tiny houses with less than 400 square feet of space. Now, you can see how 10 choreographers have used stages measuring just 4-by-4-feet to realize their creative visions, as Tempe Center for the Arts presents Tiny Dances with Tempe-based CONDER/dance. It’s happening at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21, and features work by creatives including Carley Conder, Liliana Gomez, and Nicole L Olson.

Driving While Brown

Hear the authors of a new book called Driving While Brown discuss the ways Latino resistance and community activism fought SB 1070 and sheriff Joe Arpaio’s racial profiling when Changing Hands Bookstore presents a virtual conversation with Terry Greene Sterling and Jude Joffe-Block at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 21. Get a ticket and book (with in-store pickup) for $32.71. The following night, you can hear Ayanna Thompson discuss her new book Blackface, which also addresses systemic racism.

Afternoon Tea

If you’ve missed having places to get a bit fancy and feel pampered, make a reservation for afternoon tea at The Phoenician, where their Full Tea includes finger sandwiches, homemade scones, and tea pastries. It’ll cost you $60, whether or not you decide to stick your pinky out while you sip and nibble. There’s a 2 p.m. sitting on Thursday, April 22.

Painting in the Park

Typically Sunshine Craft Co brings the warm fuzzies indoors, helping people explore their inner crafter at their Phoenix studio. On Thursday, April 22, they’ll head outdoors for Painting in the Park at Hance Park from 5:30 to 7 p.m., where you can work on a fun paint-by-numbers kit and unwind over a charcuterie box by Snack Bar. Prices range from $30 to $55.

Dazed and Confused

Perhaps you’re feeling dazed and confused after more than a year of taking pandemic precautions. Find some comic relief as FilmBar presents this 1993 coming-of-age comedy outdoors at the Pemberton PHX in Roosevelt Row. Tickets for the 9:20 p.m. screening on Friday, April 23, are $15.74 (including fees), and include a filmed post-show Q & A with actor Matthew McConaughey and filmmaker Richard Linklater.

Color Splash

Add a touch of color to your life as Bentley Gallery holds the artists reception for its new “Chromatic” exhibit from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, April 23. Featured artists include Heather Hutchison, Dion Johnson, Michael Reafsnyder, Richard Roth, and Eric Zammitt. It’s a rare chance to hear these artists talk about their work and get back into the local arts scene.

CoopStock

You won’t need golf clubs to hang out on the golf course for a good cause on Saturday, April 24. That’s when the Solid Rock nonprofit founded by Alice and Sheryl Cooper is bringing together live entertainment, food trucks, and a charity auction to help raise money for a new teen center in Mesa. It’s happening from 6 to 11 p.m. at Las Sendas Golf Club in Mesa. Tickets for festival seating are $89.

Celebrate Jazz

Expand your musical horizons this weekend as the Musical Instrument Museum presents live jazz performances and jazz-inspired activities, including a craft for the kids. Celebrate Jazz happens from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, April 24 and 25. The lineup includes several styles, from Latin Jazz to West Coast Jazz, performed outdoors and in the MIM Music Theater. It’s included with general admission, which is $20.

Coffee and Culture

Spend part of your Sunday morning on April 25 with Phoenix photographer and 2020 Guggenheim Fellow Liz Cohen, as she talks about her work with Julio César Morales, who curated Cohen’s “Body/Magic” exhibit at ASU Art Museum. It’s a rare opportunity to hear Cohen talk about her body of work, which explores lowrider culture, feminism, and hybridized identities. The free virtual event starts at 10 a.m.

Día del Niño

The Heard Museum is celebrating Mexico’s Children’s Day with free admission for children age 12 and under, with up to two accompanying adults, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, April 25. Championship hoop dancer Tony Duncan and his family will perform music, dance, and storytelling in the amphitheater at select times, and Ron Carlos will be sharing traditional ceramics and live music. While you’re there, explore the mask exhibit by indigenous artists addressing COVID-19 impacts on their communities.

Yoga at the Brewery

Normally you wouldn’t mix your brewery time with your yoga time, but you can make a fun exception of sorts on Sunday, April 25, when Yoga's Arc is doing an all levels yoga class at SanTan Brewery. It’s a chance to get out and explore the local brewery scene while you take a little time for your own wellbeing. The $10 class runs from 11 to 11:45 a.m. and there’s a 12 person limit.

Artisans’ Market

Local artisans and makers will be showing and selling their wares during the Heritage Artisans’ Market coming to Heritage Square in downtown Phoenix from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 25. Expect a fun assortment of vintage fashion, jewelry, home décor, food items, original art, and Arizona-theme items. Leave some extra time for walking or biking around the neighborhood, where you can explore any changes you might have missed in recent months.