ONGOING Behold poetry in commotion every Thursday night at Tempe’s Priceless Inn, when The Blunt Club mishmashes a spoken word competition with DJ music, fine art and intoxicating atmosphere. Hosted by Bionic Jive’s Emerge McVay, the spoken word slam carries cash prizes, the better to take advantage of the evening’s…

ONGOING Women, if the thought of shooting a gun triggers anxiety, consider this: In her act with the Wild West Show, Annie Oakley used to shoot cigarettes out of her husband’s mouth. That’s just one possible benefit of learning to handle a firearm at the free Annie Oakley Sure Shots…

7/4-7/26 This month, when First Friday coincides with Independence Day, eye lounge tempers blind patriotism with more personal interpretations of what America is all about. “Our American Life,” opening Friday, July 4, offers artistic perspectives from Linda Lewis and Rebecca Blume, two eye lounge members, as well as guest artist…

“Freedom is just chaos, with better lighting.” Even if one agrees with writer Alan Dean Foster’s assertion, there’s hardly cause for complaint. Liberty, bedlam, and the ever-flattering rocket’s red glare — sounds like a party to us. This Friday, July 4, a score of civic celebrations light up the Valley…

6/28-7/12 It’s one way to get a jump on the competition. The title character of FrogWoman, a new production by Theater in My Basement/SW Annex, “has her whole body changed in order to become famous,” explains director Ilana Lydia. “She has her skin dyed green and her legs extended and…

Sat 6/28 In any civilization, art and science gleam as facets of the same jewel — the people’s progress. In our civilization, families can shine at ASU Art Museum’s Family Fun Day, where creativity and technology combine in a free day of activities and exhibits. Held in the museum’s cool…

6/28-11/2 “Seven,” the latest exhibition in Phoenix Art Museum’s Fashion Design Gallery, includes fashions so avant-garde that they are scarcely available outside of the Manhattan boutique that is the show’s namesake. The group of seven featured designers – Bernard Wilhelm, Bless, As Four, Boudicca, Cosmic Wonder, Imitation of Christ and…

6/20-6/21 Veteran Valley dancers Liz Casebolt and Carley Conder combine their talents to present Falling & Flying, their choreographic debut, this weekend. The collaboration is a mix of modern dance and performance art comprising three pieces set to a diverse score that includes music from G. Love & Special Sauce,…

6/20-7/27 Hey, Mom and Dad, does your mini-me have too much rock and not enough opera in his cultural stew? Strike a balance by checking out In the Kingdom of Clouds, a rock opera for and performed by kids at Scottsdale’s Desert Stages Children’s Theatre, 8473 East McDonald. Written by…

6/276/29 From Orson Welles to Steven Spielberg, the fraternity of successful filmmakers is a select one indeed. And while it’s safe to assume that the many intricacies required to bring an idea to the big screen are most likely cultivated over the course of a lifetime, a weekend crash course…

This weekend, the Heard Museum — world-renowned for its focus on the native cultures of the Southwest — adopts a wider lens. Stories from Brazil, China, Guatemala, Canada and New Zealand reach Arizona audiences as the first Heard Museum Film Festival celebrates cinematic works by indigenous screenwriters, directors, producers and…

Sat 6/14 Whether your dad is an astronaut or an actuary, he’s a cowboy at heart. This Saturday, June 14, treat him to an evening in the Old West at the Arizona Gunfighters Father’s Day Show at Rockin’ R Ranch, 6136 East Baseline in Mesa. Dinner starts at 6 p.m.,…

6/12-6/26 “Line! Line! Oh my God!” So goes The Actor’s Nightmare by Christopher Durang, a play that stretches a single joke into a one-act about an accountant named George Spelvin who unwittingly finds himself in a play without any memory of having attended a single rehearsal. What follows is a…

ONGOING Oil up that arm and get ready to show some strangers just how tough you really are. In homage to the old-style roadhouses of the Wild West, Iguana Mack’s, 1371 North Alma School in Chandler, can guarantee you a good time — if you have the elbow grease. The…

ONGOING It’s more than a fleeting launch fad; it’s the West Valley’s wildest ride. In weeklong sessions continuing through July, the Challenger Space Center’s Adventures in Space program hurls kids into educational orbit. The Space Place Adventure teaches prekindergartners and kindergartners how astronauts eat, sleep and — most fascinating! –…

Sat 6/14 If June in the Valley doesn’t feel like optimum walking weather to you, you’re either (a) perfectly sane or (b) simply hanging out with the wrong people. For the sake of argument, let’s say it’s the latter — and rejoice in the fact that if your urge to…

Sat 6/7 Everyone who wears purple dies — at least in the Studio One production of The Curse of the Purple Tutu, choreographed by Studio One founder Melissa Cesarano. The curse afflicts all those who wear garments made of a purple fabric robbed from the grave of a woman long…

Wed 6/11 Kick-start your blooming cycle with “Yoga Pura at the Garden: Finding Serenity” and discover the wonders within you. On Wednesday, June 11, from 7 to 9 p.m., the Desert Botanical Garden once again hosts the Moon Valley school Yoga Pura. Master instructor Eric Walrabenstein takes you through a…

6/7-8/31 Angus MacGyver himself couldn’t have curated a craftier exhibition. Opening Saturday, June 7, at the ASU Art Museum, “Gadgets and Gizmos” showcases works that employ technology — whether extensive or elementary — providing techies young and old with an inside look at what makes things tick. The museum’s fourth…

Colorado’s reigning kings of Americana are amping up the sound that prompted Denver Post readers to vote them the state’s “best alt-country band.” According to Rainville front man John Common, the group is “heading into an indie-rock-inspired kind of gritty rock ‘n’ roll territory.” Common promises a preview of the…

The art salon is not, after all, a thing of the past. ArtsAz and its director Ernest McIntyre figured this out long ago, and every month hold the FirstMondays Art Salon, an ongoing series of free public programs at the Burton Barr Central Library. This month’s artist, Lisa Takata, is…

Springing from the page to the stage, Seussical the Musical has more star power than a beach full of Sneetches stamped by Sylvester McMonkey McBean’s tattooing machine. “Now, the Star-Belly Sneetches/Had bellies with stars./The Plain-Belly Sneetches/Had none upon thars,” wrote Dr. Seuss in his story about the hypercritical creatures’ quest…