On the high holy geek day that is Free Comic Book Day, you might be tempted to dash into comic book stores across the Valley, hoarding comic rag swag. Instead, calm your Lex Luthor-like aspirations and get into the spirit of the day by getting to know the people of…

Cher. Beyonce. Drake. There’s a new mononymic superstar that you should get to know: Pina. The writer and performer takes her long brewing personal stories and, with the direction of playwright, solo performer, and New Times Big Brain award-winner, Kim Porter, has whipped them into the new one-woman show Pinhead…

The multidisciplinary collective Postcommodity made up of Native American and indigenous artists Raven Chacon, Cristóbal Martínez, Kade L. Twist, and Nathan Young formed in 2006 to boost the signal of underrepresented world views. Their latest exhibition at Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, “southwestNet: Postcommodity,” consists of two large-scale installations, 2011’s…

Joey Coco Diaz owns the mic and stage with the ease of a mobster walking through his own neighborhood. Born in Havana, Cuba, and raised in North Bergen, New Jersey, Diaz found his calling in comedy after a rough start in life. The guy unleashed his personality in comedy clubs…

. Thu., April 23, 8 p.m., 2015…

Calling all joystick jockeys and pinball addicts: you’ve now leveled up to the most exciting weekend in the valley for retro-gaming enthusiasts. ZapCon 2015 space-invades Mesa on April 18.The third annual congregation of all things arcade sets nearly 200 game machines, ranging from vintage to modern, to free-play for all…

Night Vale is a small desert town not unlike one that you’d find within miles of the California-Arizona border — with a few exceptions. Those include its mysterious hooded figures who congregate around a forbidden dog park; its Sheriff who may or may not exist; and the Glow Cloud, the…

Nigeria’s port city of Lagos, facing toward the Gulf of Guinea on the west coast of Africa, is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. By 2020, the burgeoning metropolis is slated to be the third most populous city on the globe, with 24 million citizens. The 2003…

Spring is prime time for biking; if you can’t get your pedaling in swing now, you’ll never get acclimated to the summer. What better way to get into the rhythm than to bring your two-wheel deal to Downtown Mesa’s big bash, CycloMesa, starting on April 10?The weekend-long shindig mixes up…

Television is hitting a new golden age with well-crafted dramas and tightly-scripted comedies catching the attention of even the snootiest of adults. But what about the kids? They’ve been relegated to Disney Channel schmaltz and ABC Family crud. Boo. We’d much rather take young minds to Arizona Opera’s Student Night…

Table tennis? It might be an Olympic sport but we still call it ping-pong. Paz Cantina hosts the rec room favorite with their weekly tournament where up to four tables of ball-smackers vie for a $50 gift card. This is all while noshing on tacos and sipping on margaritas something…

This year marks the 14th edition of the Cowtown Skateboards’ PHXAM, where nearly 200 sponsored amateur skaters will gleam the cube for a chance at a top prize of $3000. What started small now attracts talented riders from far-flung places like Canada, Holland, and China. Don’t underestimate the fighting pride…

After 32 years of recording music, Weird Al Yankovic finally nabbed a number-one hit album with 2014’s Mandatory Fun. The only way the accordion-playing parodist could be more on top of the world would be if he were given full control of his own television station to let loose with…

The 31st edition of WrestleMania is next weekend and, in recent years, the annual event has managed to grow to the grandeur to which it always aspired. The trick for the WWE to pull off isn’t having the premier bash in sports entertainment go off without a hitch as much…

It’s not a surprise that Valley burlesque dancer Pyrrha Sutra knows how to move gracefully. Off-stage, she’s made the smooth transition from Scandalesque, the dance troupe she co-founded, to helming her own endeavors solo. Dark Cabaret, debuting Friday, March 20, is Sutra’s latest vision incarnate.Pyrrha Sutra might be the ringmaster…

The unseasonably warm temps make us want to remove our clothing, but we’d rather leave it up to the professionals. Burlesque is alive and well in the Balley with new troupes popping up everywhere. Mizz Lucy Morals’ School for Wayward Grrrls is teaching the next generation of striptease artists and…

Sony Pictures is finally allowing Spider-Man to cross over into Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the films are years away, you can see the webslinger fight alongside The Avengers on Sunday, March 8, when the Marvel Universe Live visits the Valley.The Cosmic Cube is the source of ultimate power so,…

Tig Notaro was a favorite in comedy circles and had already popped up on The Sarah Silverman Show, Community, and The Office prior to August 3, 2012. That night she unspooled an instantly legendary set at L.A.’s Largo, detailing having been diagnosed with breast cancer the day before and the…

Demetri Martin is unlimited in all of the ways he’ll try to reach you. As a correspondent for The Daily Show, on his very own show, Important Things with Demetri Martin, and with comedy specials, he’s covered the airwaves. In movies, most notably in 2009’s Taking Woodstock, he’s been very…

There’s a lot of buzz about Roosevelt Street between Central Avenue and Seventh Street in Phoenix. That section of the Evans-Churchill Neighborhood, one of the more walkable parts of the city with its swell of art venues, local restaurants, bars, and indie businesses, is in another cycle of developers wanting…