Hoof Positive

Sun 12/14 Seems not all the polo in Scottsdale comes courtesy of Ralph Lauren. This Sunday, December 14, the North Scottsdale Polo Club saddles up for the Polo Benefit for Homeless Horses. The Club, which has been playing the old “hockey on horseback” for 20-some years, has teamed up with…

In the Market

12/13-12/14 In 1978, Arizona Governor Bruce Babbitt formally established an event that had already gained a foothold in the Phoenix area: the Annual Hohokam Commemoration and Indian Market Days Celebration. That year’s event drew more than 3,000 people, establishing itself as one of the best markets in the nation. Now…

Graphic Depiction

12/4-12/6 It’s heroine versus heroin in Needles, Guns & Grass . . . , a dark new comedy taking the stage this weekend at ASU. The “live action graphic novel,” written and directed by playwriting master’s student Laurelann Porter, re-creates a post-apocalyptic world, where “the government is conspiring with the…

Jingle Bell Schlock

As another holiday season approaches, all is merry and trite — and a cranky crew of local performers has had its fill of the fa la la la blah. Suffer the winter of their discontent this Saturday, December 6, at the 18th annual Bad X-Mas Pageant. The yearly “trashing and…

For Love of Bunny

12/6-12/20 It’s a hare-raising adventure: Love brings a stuffed bunny to life in The Velveteen Rabbit — and kids have been all ears since Margery Williams’ book was first published in 1922. Childsplay’s stage adaptation — opening this weekend at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts — finds the title…

Snow Ride

12/5-12/6 No matter what the weather report says, skiers the world over know that ski season truly starts when the latest Warren Miller film comes out. For more than 50 years, Warren Miller Entertainment has crisscrossed the globe to catch the sport’s finest practitioners in action, using stunning cinematography to…

And the Band Plays On

Fri 12/5 “I’m sure a lot of people used to fantasize about Cris [Kirkwood] or [Derrick] Bostrom as a woman, so no, I don’t think it’ll be a stark departure,” Curt Kirkwood says of his former Meat Puppets bandmates, comparing his new project with singer/guitarist Lisa Newmyer to the local…

New Kid on the Blocks

He’s got LEGOs, and he knows how to use them. A LEGO Master Model Builder and head of LEGOLAND California’s building team, Patrick DeMaria makes his living laying LEGOs. He oversees the Carlsbad theme park’s 5,000 models — where more than 30 million LEGOs replicate national treasures, from the Capitol…

Glow Time

11/2811/29 Before the holiday avalanche thunders down on you, stop and enjoy a shot of winter wonderland. From 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, November 28, and Saturday, November 29, the Glendale Glitters Spectacular Opening Weekend ignites the annual festival of lights that transforms downtown Glendale into fairyland. At 6 p.m…

Pallin’ Around

Sat 11/29 Willie Nelson. Call him the original musical road warrior or the silver-throated pirate of the highways, his tour bus cutting through the night as he moves from city to city, gig to gig. And while Nelson roams the highways and byways, various labels have been busy reissuing a…

Salon Perspectives

Mon 12/1 Interested in artworks, but not really sure how art works? Let Steven Yazzie paint you a picture on Monday, December 1, when the local artist takes the podium at the FirstMondays Art Salon. Aiming to acquaint audiences with artists and the creative process, the free public program encourages…

Youth Pick

Sat 11/22 Two years of renovation and expansion have put the “youth” back in the Arizona Museum for Youth; the new and improved venue celebrates its reopening — at 35 North Robson in Mesa — this Saturday, November 22. From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., the museum breaks in its…

Royal Treatment

11/22-11/23 “It’s like taking a vacation and being a dictator for two days,” says Mimi Altree, the actress playing Queen Elizabeth in the 21st annual Devonshire Renaissance Faire. “But it’s good to be the queen, even if it’s for only a few days.” Altree has played Elizabeth I at the…

Clean Streak

Brian Regan won’t joke about sex — and there’s something funny about that. So funny, in fact, that Regan has earned a reputation as the most talented comic on today’s standup scene — a frequently filthy place. “I have always worked fairly clean,” Regan explains. “Although, when I first started,…

Drum Rush

11/21-11/22 A new beat generation gets its message across loud and clear when Taikoproject presents the world première of (re)generation at Gammage Auditorium this weekend. For their debut creative work, a multimedia stage show combining dynamic taiko drumming, spoken word and hip-hop dance, the young performers of Taikoproject give their…

World Beat

11/13-11/122 The Brazilian art form/dance/martial art Capoeira has been described as “a conversation between two bodies in motion,” a succinct description that doesn’t quite convey the complexity and historical significance of the art. Capoeira was invented in Brazil 400 years ago by African slaves as a method of expression and…

‘Saur Subjects

11/15-4/11 Bone up on history’s big shots at the Arizona Science Center; this weekend, it unveils the largest exhibition of dinosaur fossils ever to tour North America. “Dragon Bones” — a 10,000-square-foot traveling exhibition — takes guests back 248 million years, chronicling the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods through original…

The Paper Chase

Sun 11/16 It’s all run and games this Sunday, November 16, when the 28th annual New Times 10K takes over Steele Indian School Park, 300 East Indian School. Bad news for Sunday sloths: The event’s exhaustive options eclipse any excuse to sit it out.Not up for a 5 or 10K…

Wear Abouts

Sat 11/15 Thanks to designers who routinely revive styles from past decades, American consumers are well schooled in the diversity of silhouettes that defined 20th-century fashion. But they’re much less familiar with the trends of the 1800s. “Beauty and Style in 19th Century American Fashion,” opening this weekend in Phoenix…

Mime Shaft

The Umbilical Brothers are taking a bite out of mime, and audiences worldwide are overcome with laughter — and appreciation. With a bizarre blend of physical agility and vocal ability, the duo from Down Under turns conventional comedy upside down. This Saturday, November 15, David Collins and Shane Dundas –…

This Week’s Day-by-Day Picks

Thursday, November 6 Laughter and, well, gaiety are guaranteed at Hamburger Mary’s, 5111 North Seventh Street, when Toronto-based comedian David MacLean takes the stage for a one-night standup stint. While MacLean admits that his comedy — rooted in his experiences as a gay guy — hasn’t always been openly embraced…

Here’s Ropin’

11/8-11/9 It’s fitting that the Honeywell rodeo team (yes, the Honeywell rodeo team) honors aerospace cowboy Cliff Garrett each year in a memorial event for charity. Garrett tamed the young, rip-snorting field of aviation with inventions such as pressurized cabins and auxiliary power. This year, the Cliff Garrett Memorial Rodeo…