From flamenco dance to steampunk art, you’ve got plenty of good choices for First Friday in May. Several venues are mixing it up with visual and performance art. Here are seven exhibitions and events not to miss…
Although Gary Owen might not look like the bulk of his audience (he’s often one of the only white guys in the room at his performances), he connects with his fanbase on a level that few comedians can…
All Balanchine Tradition meets innovation as Ballet Arizona once again celebrates American ballet pioneer George Balanchine. With this year’s All Balanchine, the company will take on three works that spanned as many decades in the New York City Ballet founder’s acclaimed career. Works Allegro Brilliant, Stravinsky Violin Concert, and La…
Scottsdale Cultural Council president and CEO Neale Perl has announced plans to restructure how closely the Council works with the organizations it oversees — literally by relocating senior staffers from Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art, and Scottsdale Public Art to work at the Council’s…
Throughout this past exhibition season, Halt Gallery has continuously provided us with excellence. With the shipping container galleries making a move over the summer and chief curator and director Becky Nahom relocating to New York City, this may be the last we see of Halt Gallery, at least in its…
Guys, we all know that bachelor parties have to strike a delicate balance. If you have too little fun, you’ll feel like you’re missing out, but if you have too much fun, you could jeopardize your marriage. Like the arguments you’ll have with your wife, there’s really no good way…
Avengers: Age of Ultron director and screenwriter Joss Whedon wants to give us everything in his movie, and that he fits it all in is its own kind of feat, writes LA Weekly film critic Amy Nicholson in her review of the film, which opens May 1…
There is no shortage of places around the Valley to party at on Cinco de Mayo, to say the least. Ditto for all the events that will transpire during the days and nights leading up to the big drinking holiday. For proof, look no further than our annual Cinco guide,…
Author J.K. Rowling’s rags-to-riches biography is arguably better known than her most famous creation, Harry Potter. As the oft-repeated origin story goes, Rowling was a single mother making ends meet, aided by government assistance while she was scribbling the first installment of her phenomenally successful fantasy series in a café…
Though it’s hard to believe in 2015, there was a time when fictional heroines didn’t have to be role models, when a character’s backbone could be more than just a row of vertebrae lined up into teachable moments. It’s wonderful that modern readers love Jane Austen — we still warm…
One of Kristen Wiig’s finest moments as a movie star is a throwaway bit of shamed silent morning-after comedy: Her Bridesmaids character is skulking out of the home of a cad played by Jon Hamm. She’s playing it cool, swallowing back the humiliation of her bad choices, trying to show…
Marketing gurus have long been hip to the power of alliteration, particularly when tied to a weekday. Heck, what would America be without Taco Tuesdays? Well, the folks at Phoenix’s Bar Smith, 130 East Washington Street, also like alliteration a lot. Aside from Big Fun Fridays and Solstice Saturdays, the…
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…
Just like your mother always told you, there are two sides to every story. And The Soul Justice Project is will tell each of them. By combining theatre with dance, spoken word, music, and mixed media, The Soul Justice Project plans to explore the politics of American media outlets, while…
Just because it’s chipped or rusted doesn’t mean it’s not a great find. From the slightly bent-out-of-shape to the truly out-of-this-world, Junk in the Trunk Vintage Market returns with all the handmade and vintage goodies one could want. With more than 170 vendors, expect booths from local companies like Hello…
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…
The term “fight of the century” gets thrown around a lot, but the upcoming bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao genuinely fits the bill. The fight has been building for over six years and, with boxing’s popularity waning, there may never be another like it. Sure, both boxers…
Aside from being an official day of recovery for Valley hipsters nursing their First Friday hangovers, the first Saturday of the month is also the recurring date for one of Phoenix’s hippest dance parties. For two years now, DJs Roya and Funkfinger have made Tongue Tied the place to go…
The Arizona BBQ Festival is the biggest honky-tonk in the state. Or maybe it’s the biggest hoedown. Or is it a hootenanny? Call it what you want; it’s a party, complete with live country music, contests of Redneck ability — think arm-wrestling, toilet-seat horseshoes, pie-eating, watermelon seed-spitting, bobbing for pigs’…
For a decade the beauty, brains, and talent of the Valley’s Asian-American community have taken center stage at Miss Asia Arizona. This year’s 10th annual event celebrates that and more with a pageant steeped in opportunities for personal and professional growth and leadership. Created by Gene Flores, a Pacific Islander…
Tradition meets innovation as Ballet Arizona once again celebrates American ballet pioneer George Balanchine. With this year’s All Balanchine, the company will take on three works that spanned as many decades in the New York City Ballet founder’s acclaimed career. Works Allegro Brilliant, Stravinsky Violin Concert, and La Sonnambula all…
Cinco de Mayo celebrates Mexico’s victory over the French army in the 1862 Battle of Puebla. The rich history and cultural importance of America’s favorite Mexican holiday is celebrated annually downtown at the Cinco de Mayo Festival Phoenix. The event, naturally, features a plethora of fine food, cold Mexican beer,…
