may 9
Phoenix Symphony: Outgoing maestro James Sedares takes his final bows with the orchestra on Thursday, May 9; Friday, May 10; and Saturday, May 11, at Symphony Hall, 225 East Adams. At 7:30 p.m. Thursday and 8 p.m. Friday, guest violinist Corey Cerovsek joins the ensemble for a program that includes Smetana's "The Moldau" from Ma Vlast; Bruch's Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Opus 26; and Dvorak's Symphony No. 8 in G major, Opus 88. Tickets range from $12 to $36. At 8 p.m. Saturday, Sedares leads the symphony in performances of Mozart's "Toy Symphony," Tchaikovsky's "Peter and the Wolf," Copland's "Lincoln Portrait" and other works, which are augmented with narration by KTAR-AM personalities Pat McMahon, Pat Murphy, Ned Foster, Bruce Kirk, Tom Dillon, Jeff Munn and Michael Dixon. Tickets for the concert range from $15 to $30, and admission to a postshow reception costs an additional $10; proceeds benefit the Musicians' Pension Fund. Call the symphony box office at 264-6363 or Dillard's at 678-2222.
Southwest Film and Video Festival: The 16th annual competition includes experimental and commercial films and music videos submitted by college students from Arizona and surrounding states. Works shot in the 16mm format screen at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 9, at Harkins Camelview 5, located on Goldwater Boulevard north of Camelback in Scottsdale. Video and Super 8 entries are shown at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 10, in the Performing Arts Center at Scottsdale Community College, 9000 East Chaparral. An awards ceremony and a screening of the winning works are slated for 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11, at the Performing Arts Center. Admission is $1 on Thursday, $2 on Friday and Saturday. For details call 423-6323.
Cracker: David Lowery was the most beetle-browed of rockers while fronting Camper Van Beethoven, whose inspired album titles (like Vampire Can Mating Oven and Telephone Free Landslide Victory) are destined to outlive their bizarro, somewhat dated content. Some of that Camper otherness has seeped into the Cracker well, but Lowery's second band, anchored by hot guitarist Johnny Hickman, is a fairly straightforward roots band with a reservoir of bone-dry bons mots. Touring in support of its third Virgin album, The Golden Age (see the review on page 93), Cracker performs on Thursday, May 9, at Electric Ballroom, 1216 East Apache in Tempe. Sparklehorse shares the all-ages bill. Showtime is 8 p.m. Tickets are $18, available at the club and Ticketmaster. Call 894-0707 or 784-4444.
Conversations With My Father: Actors Theatre of Phoenix concludes its season with the work by Herb Gardner (I'm Not Rappaport). It's a wide-ranging dramedy about a Jewish immigrant, Eddie (Joseph Costa), who's torn between two cultures; see the review on page 67. This week's performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday, May 9; 8 p.m. Friday, May 10; 8 p.m. Saturday, May 11; and 2 p.m. Sunday, May 12, in Stage West at Herberger Theater Center, 222 East Monroe. The production continues through Sunday, May 26. Tickets range from $10 to $23.50, available at Herberger and Dillard's. For details call 252-8497 or 678-2222.
friday
may 10
Jimmy Rogers Blues Band: Rogers played with Muddy Waters and Little Walter in the Headhunters--Chicago's first electric blues band--and was Muddy's right-hand man during Waters' '50s heyday. But Rogers is a giant in his own right, a great guitarist and writer of blues perennials like "Chicago Bound," "Sloppy Drunk" and "Rock This House." The 71-year-old is on a rare tour, and the $5 cover is a stone bargain. Showtime is 9 p.m. Friday, May 10, at the Rhythm Room, 1019 East Indian School. For details call 265-4842.
The Movement Source Dance Company: The troupe and Valley guitarist Joe Myers link up for a multimedia production titled "In Balance." Final performances are at 8 p.m. Friday, May 10; and the same time Saturday, May 11, at Tempe Performing Arts Center, 132 East Sixth Street. Admission is $10, $8 for students and seniors. Call 957-6561.
Reggae Fest World Party '96: The second annual celebration of Jamaican and African arts features concerts by the late Bob Marley's Wailers, Culture, soca master Arrow and lots of local and regional acts, plus a marketplace of ethnic goods and foods. The scene is Symphony Hall Terrace, Second Street and Adams. Hours are 4 to 11:30 p.m. Friday, May 10; noon to 11:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11; and noon to 8 p.m. Sunday, May 12 (see the Music listing for the daily lineups). Tickets are $10 on Friday and Saturday, $5 on Sunday; a three-day pass costs $20. Kids age 10 and under get in free. For details call 872-1813.
Peter Kater, R. Carlos Nakai, and Joanne Shenandoah: Germany-born, Virginia-based jazz pianist Kater, Navajo-Ute flutist Nakai and Iroquois songsmith Shenandoah merge cultures and genres in a performance at 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 10, at Scottsdale Center for the Arts Amphitheater, 75th Street and Main. Tickets are $16 in advance, $20 the day of the show, available at the center and Ticketmaster. Call 994-2787 or 784-4444.
U.S. Olympic Softball Tour: The women's fast-pitch squad is playing its way to Atlanta, and it's scheduled twin double-headers against the Phoenix Sunbirds on Friday, May 10; and Saturday, May 11, at Cave Creek Softball Complex, 9833 North 25th Avenue in Phoenix. The first pitch is at 6 p.m. Friday and at 1 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $8, available at the gate and Dillard's. For details call 951-4152 or 678-2222.
The Stylistics, the Dramatics, the Chi-Lites, the Moments, Peaches and Herb, Eddie Holman, and Billy Paul: The "Super Love Jam," as this worthy package of vintage soul acts is called, starts at 8 p.m. Friday, May 10, at Desert Sky Pavilion, 2121 North 83rd Avenue. Tickets range from $17 to $21, available at Ticketmaster. For details call 254-7599 or 784-4444.
Conversations With My Father: See Thursday.
Phoenix Symphony: See Thursday.
Southwest Film and Video Festival: See Thursday.
saturday
may 11
The Band: On the one hand, the thought of a reconfigured Band is a bit stultifying. After all, the movie wasn't titled The Next-to-Last Waltz. On the kinder, gentler hand, a reconfigured Band--even one lacking better-things-to-do guitarist Robbie Robertson and late keyboardist/singer Richard Manuel--is better, by far, than 99 percent of today's entertainment options. Drummer/vocalist Levon Helm, organist Garth Hudson and bassist Rick Danko are back, along with guitarist Jim Weider, keyboardist Richard Bell and second drummer Randy Ciarlante. Touring behind High on the Hog, the group's second album since its second coming in 1993, the Band performs on Saturday, May 11, at Electric Ballroom, 1216 East Apache in Tempe. British songsmith John Wesley Harding, who took his stage name from the Bob Dylan album, opens the relocated show. The all-ages concert starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $22, available at the scene and Ticketmaster. For details call 894-0707 or 784-4444.
Night Run for the Arts: The annual fund raiser for Scottsdale Center for the Arts features a herd of glow-lighted athletes competing in a variety of events, including an 8K run, a 5K stride, a one-mile fun run/walk and an art stroll. The event starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 11, at the center's amphitheater, 75th Street and Main, and ends at the same location; registration precedes at 6:30, and a party/awards presentation follows at 9. The fee is $15. Call 994-2787 or 277-4333.
Guided by Voices: The alternative act is one of the leading lights of the Dayton, Ohio, scene. Not impressed? You haven't been to Dayton lately. To date, the scene has produced the Afghan Whigs, the Tasties, Brainiac, the Method, and Kim Deal's Amps, and the Robert Pollard-led Voices might be the best of the promising bunch; see the review on page 93. Touring in support of its new Matador disc, Under the Bushes Under the Stars, GBV performs on Saturday, May 11, at Gibson's, 410 South Mill in Tempe. Spoon shares the bill. The all-ages show starts at 9 p.m. Tickets are $8, available at the club and Ticketmaster. Call 968-8664 or 784-4444.
Ministry, and the Jesus Lizard: "Weird Al" Jourgensen and his techno crew updated their sound for the group's new disc, Filth Pig, which features less fiddling with synths and sequencers and more of a Sisters of Mercy-style industrial attack; see the story on page 95. David Yow's Lizard is sporting a revamped sound itself, as displayed on the recent Capitol release Shot. The atonal noise band has incorporated real melodies, vocals and textures without sacrificing its essence, which is not the way these things generally go. Laika and the Cosmonauts share the bill. Showtime is 6 p.m. Saturday, May 11, at Mesa Amphitheatre, Center and University. Tickets are $24.50 in advance, $26.75 the day of the show, available at the scene and Dillard's. For details call 644-2560 or 678-2222.
Conversations With My Father: See Thursday.
The Movement Source Dance Company: See Friday.
Phoenix Symphony: See Thursday.
Reggae Fest World Party '96: See Friday.
Southwest Film and Video Festival: See Thursday.
U.S. Olympic Softball Tour: See Friday.
sunday
may 12
Bad Religion: The hard-core antiheroes in this long-lived L.A. group are the owners of the longest sustained case of anger on record--pun intended. The perpetually pissed-off band's birth predates Ronald Reagan's first stint in the Oval Office; thankfully, the Raygun's been switched off and Bad Religion's trademark sonic fury remains. Dance Hall Crashers, and Unwritten Law share the bill. The rescheduled show starts at 7 p.m. Sunday, May 12, at Mesa Amphitheatre, Center and University. Tickets are $14, available at the scene and Dillard's. Call 644-2560 or 678-2222.
Garbage: As the man behind the board on projects for Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth, producer Butch Vig had a hand in creating a musical revolution. Vig sits behind the drum kit in this group, which includes Scottish vocalist/guitarist Shirley Manson, guitarist Steve Marker and guitarist/bassist Duke Erikson. Polara shares the all-ages bill. Showtime is 8 p.m. Sunday, May 12, at Electric Ballroom, 1216 East Apache in Tempe. Tickets are $12, available at the club and Ticketmaster. For details call 894-0707 or 784-4444.
Conversations With My Father: See Thursday.
Reggae Fest World Party '96: See Friday.
monday
may 13
Supersuckers: Great name, great influences (Ted Nugent, Satan). The Seattle band--signed to its hometown label Sub Pop, naturally--is fronted by singer Eddie Spaghetti, and its sound is almost evenly split between the hard-core and the goofy. Paul Leary of that other goofy hard-core band, the Butthole Surfers, produced the Supersuckers' latest, Sacrilicious. Wayne Kramer, and Teen Angels share the bill on Monday, May 13, at Gibson's, 410 South Mill in Tempe. The all-ages show starts at 9 p.m. Tickets are $7, available at the club and Ticketmaster. Call 968-8664 or 678-2222.
tuesday
may 14
Evita: Theater League hosts the touring production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical about the late Argentinean strongwoman Maria Eva Duarte de Peron. Valerie Perri stars as the title character; John Herrera portrays Che and David Wasson plays Juan Peron. This week's performances are at 8 p.m. Tuesday, May 14; and the same time Wednesday, May 15, at Symphony Hall, 225 East Adams. More shows are scheduled Thursday, May 16, through Sunday, May 19. Tickets range from $26.50 to $32.50, available at Phoenix Civic Plaza and Dillard's box offices. For details call 262-7272 or 678-2222.
wednesday
may 15
"Five Poets": Arizona wordsmiths Barbara Cully, Michael Bowden, John Levy, Jim Simmerman and James Cervantes present works commissioned by Scottsdale Center for the Arts in response to individual works in the facility's exhibit "The Paintings of Sam Francis: From the Collection of Jean Rouge." The free reading begins at 8 p.m. Wednesday, May 15, in the Lower Gallery at the center, 7380 East Second Street; the installation continues through Sunday, June 16. For details call 994-2787.
Evita: See Tuesday.
