Between grocery shopping for Thanksgiving and hitting the stores on Black Friday, it might be wise to put some affordable activities on this week’s agenda. From complimentary movie screenings to all-ages comedy nights and neighborhood art fairs, there are plenty of no-cost happenings to complement your more pricey engagements. Make…
We haven’t crunched the numbers or anything, but we’re pretty sure that photography is one of the most expensive jobs or hobbies to sustain. Just think about it. An aspiring photographer is going to spend close to a grand just to acquire all the basic equipment to get started. Then…
It’s dark. The walls are black, the carpeting is black, and even the beanbags offered as seating are black. This dark environment pulls you in as you pass by. It’s hard to ignore the images on the screens and the sounds of revving engines and children screaming. This is the…
Thanks, Phoenix. No, really. We know it’s not like us to get all mushy and stuff. But in the spirit of Thanksgiving (and inspired by the mushiness of stuffing), we’re reflecting on why we’re thankful to live in the Valley of the Sun…
Another day, another vintage market. The Big Heap Vintage and Handmade Festival came to Salt River Fields over the weekend, featuring over 80 vendors hand-picked from 15 different cities across Arizona as well as nine other states around the country. While the three-day event brought in a fair amount foot…
People who love books are kind of a different breed. We’re not talking about the person who occasionally browses the New York Times best-sellers list. We’re talking about those midnight release frequenters, those readers who have a literary reference for everything, those coworkers who need an extra few cups of…
Four a.m. wake-up calls? Camping outside of electronics stores? Searching endlessly for parking spots at the mall? We’ll pass. This year, let’s make a pact to put our post-Thanksgiving shopping hours to good use by visiting the local and lesser-known sales around town. Between vintage pop-ups and flea markets as…
“Musée des Roboddities” Grim visions of the future often cast technology that gets out of humankind’s hands as our ultimate conqueror. We will gladly welcome our new overlords if they are as charming as the clanky figures of Space Boy Robot’s “Musée des Roboddities,” which is on view through Sunday,…
Can The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1 keep up with the first two films? Why was the final book split into two movies? Does Katniss even want to be part of this revolution? On this week’s Voice Film Club podcast, we discuss all things Hunger Games before moving onto a…
Pancakes & Booze Art Show If there are two things Tom Kirlin loves, it’s fine art and flapjacks — hence his ever-expanding Pancakes and Booze Art Show. The concoction of booze, batter, and breakout artists, which has popped up everywhere from Los Angeles to Brooklyn, Portland to Atlanta, is once…
Gird Bikes is finally launching in Phoenix on Tuesday, November 25. The bike share program was first announced back in July 2013 and then officially unveiled by city of Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton back in October 2013. And though it was originally set to launch earlier in 2014, its release…
RAW:Natural Born Artists is an international organization that aims to unite local fashion designers, musicians, and artists of all ilks. Their most recent Phoenix showcase, entitled CURRENT (yes, all caps) made its way to the Monarch Theatre on November 19. We were there to check it out. There was something…
Upon entering Richard T. Walker’s exhibition “the predicament of always (as we are)” at ASU Art Museum, the viewer is immersed in sound. Sound sculptures utilizing neon, keyboards, guitars, and rocks surround the space, and a two-channel video, from which the exhibition gets its name, is projected on the back…
Thanksgiving is the perfect day for food, family, and other fall stuff. One thing that it’s not always perfect for? Significant others. Whether you’re going to your parents’ house, having a big family gathering, or just hanging out with some of your dearest friends, bringing a date can be a…
I am not a hippy. I have reusable grocery bags, but I never remember to bring them with me. I recycle, sure, but only because I feel bad about the amount of plastic water bottles I use. I hate patchouli oil, lavender-scented anything, and I refuse to pull coconut oil…
When I was a kid in upstate New York, I’d hear Petula Clark’s “Downtown” on the radio — a song about the promise of glittering lights, “movie shows,” and all the excitement and dazzle adult life had to offer — and revel in the anywhere-but-hereness of it all. That’s not…
Quick, name the most expensive housing market in America. If you said New York, Los Angeles, or San Francisco, you couldn’t be farther from the truth — literally. Each is over 1,500 miles away from Williston, North Dakota, a monochrome town you can drive end-to-end in 15 minutes. In four…
The third-greatest scourge of the earth, right after online comments sections and bedbugs, is the unfunny comedy sequel, which may be why you think you should skip Horrible Bosses 2. The miraculous surprise is that Horrible Bosses 2 isn’t terrible at all. It’s looser, breezier, more confident than its 2011…
All right, all you Tributes and Panemaniacs, we know you’re freaking out right now. You have a right to be. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part I is coming to theaters Friday, November 21, and it is a big deal. But in all this excitement, don’t forget to make plans…
On Thursday James Beard Award nominated chef Kevin Binkley is teaming up with the Beer for Brains Foundation and Four Peaks Brewery for the Beer for Brains Benefit Dinner. The four-course beer paired dinner costs $85 and will raise money for brain cancer awareness through the Arizona-based non-profit organization. The…
If ballet’s too boring and modern too loosey-goosey, then Jessica Lang might have just the thing. The New York-based contemporary choreographer, who danced under Twyla Tharp, melds traditional ballet elements with boundary-breaking movement. Don’t take our word for it. This year Lang won a Bessie Award, a seriously big deal…
If you’re over chancing the First Friday chaos hoping to take in the best new work of young local artists, you should know that Third Friday is a lot more conducive to absorbing art and you can’t do better than Modified Arts. The Roosevelt Row mainstay’s opening reception for the…
