The superstars of the WWE invaded US Airways Center in downtown Phoenix on Tuesday, August 19, and not only kicked ass and took names, but also entertained a helluva lot of local wrestling fans. The action-packed event was actually a twofer sort of deal, as the WWE taped a pair…
Arizona may be spread out, but we’re certainly not spread thin when it comes to public art. Just ask Scottsdale Public Art (SPA). Since starting the IN FLUX initiative in 2010, the organization has been using temporary public art installations to connect the Valley arts community throughout Phoenix, Scottsdale, Chandler,…
Every other year or so, someone comes down the indie-movie pike with an idea for an unconventional zombie movie — as opposed to the workaday ones, where the dead simply return to life and chew on limbs and stuff. Life After Beth, the debut film from writer-director Jeff Baena, strives…
Jennifer M. Kroot’s To Be Takei is an affectionate portrait of the hardest-working member of the original cast of Star Trek, George Takei. That’s pronounced tuh-KAY, not tuh-KAI, as so many have misspoken it over the years, including but not limited to William Shatner, whose strained non-relationship with Takei —…
Should grownups be spending their time reading young-adult novels, at the risk of missing the supposed riches of fiction written for actual grownups? A recent essay in Slate groused about the legions of adults who long ago graduated from the 12th grade but still devour YA fiction at the expense…
According to inspirational sports movies, winning demands you train hard, play with heart, be a team, and not care about winning. So it goes in the sturdy, crowd-pleasing When the Game Stands Tall, a profile in saintliness puffed up from a true story: the Northern California Catholic school whose football…
Sin City, population unknown but dropping every minute, is a gorgeous place, but you wouldn’t want to live there. Even the shadows and broken glass are beautiful in this black-and-white world. Only the women — all gorgeous — give the streets a pop of color. That is, only the women…
For most writers, style means the words used and line toed between one metaphor or simile too many. For the rest of the world, it means structurally savvy, fashion-forward outfits. This week’s writing workshop at boutique and craft corner Frances aims to marry both. The round-table focuses on tales of…
While most of us can claim a physical funny bone, a good sense of humor is hard to find. Think of it as a sixth sense, right up there with seeing dead people and predicting rainfall with your boobs. So what do you do when you’ve been blessed with being…
Genius is hell, both for the blessed and those stuck in the shadows, cursed to spend a lifetime smashing their heads against the glass. In its presence we find ourselves dwarfed and dumb, like moths. We know we’re before brilliance we can’t comprehend — and we know we’ll never have…
You could be forgiven, after watching the opening minutes of Ira Sachs’ fine-grained and flinty Love Is Strange, for thinking it’s going to be a movie about Gay Marriage, with all the import those initial caps imply. We see two older men, clearly a couple, roll out of bed in…
For women especially, it’s wholly out of fashion to have sympathy for middle-aged white men. In both real life and fiction, the thinking goes: They’ve reigned supreme long enough. Who cares about their anxiety over their receding hairlines, their poochy stomachs, their inability to attract young babes? That tinny plink…
After a long, hot summer, there’s finally a light at the end of the tunnel. We’re not there yet, but we’re happy to suspend our disbelief during the Fall Arts Kick Off at Tempe Center for the Arts this Friday, August 22.We can think cool, but with arts center’s air…
Marilyn Burns, the actor who portrayed Sally Hardesty in 1974’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, recently passed away at the age of 65 earlier this month. You can celebrate her performance in the classic slasher flick and its 40th anniversary on Thursday, August 21.What begins with Sally, her brother, and…
If the Internet makes you feel like you’re drowning in information, Daniel J. Levitin’s new book might be able to teach you how to swim. Levitin, a professor of psychology and behavioral neuroscience who currently teaches at McGill University, made a name for himself in 2007 with his bestselling book…
If you’re looking to gain a new perspective on things, maybe it’s time to kick your legs up and turn your world upside down, courtesy of the Demystify Inversions yoga workshop at Yoga Pura. Led by local yogini Britt Canese, this class is open to all levels of yoga experience…
This summer Scottsdale of Museum of Contemporary Art has presented a collection of works that inspire viewers to consider an oft-overlooked artistic building block. The line is a versatile yet inescapable element that, frankly, doesn’t get its due. Until recently, that is.With pieces from SMoCA’s permanent collection, “Linear Thinking” explores…
As preseason football goes, the match-up that the Arizona Cardinals drew for their third practice game on August 24 is actually pretty interesting. When the Cincinnati Bengals come to town, it’ll be the first time they’ve faced the Cards since 2011 and the first time Carson Palmer, longtime Bengals QB,…
Perhaps the coffee is particularly potent, or maybe it’s all those late night Moons Over My Hammys, but when a group of science fiction junkies start holding monthly meetings at Denny’s some amazing things can happen. Which might not be all that surprising considering the circumstances. The Central Arizona Speculative…
Cracking jokes is hard enough. But serving up stand-up on the fly? That skill is reserved for a special tier of comics, including up and coming funny man Tom Cotter. The 2012 runner-up of America’s Got Talent (he lost to a troupe of dancing dogs in suits) has proven that…
It’s a nationwide birthday celebration, and you’re invited. The National Parks Service marks its 98th birthday with a free entrance day for visitors of its parks and recreational areas across the country. Our Grand Canyon State is home to three, including its namesake. The Petrified Forest National Park and Saguaro…
Octavia Spencer, who won a Best Supporting Actress Oscar in 2011 for The Help, recently went on record saying that there are still too few good film roles for black women. It’s not that big a leap from 1930s Hollywood, the setting for By the Way, Meet Vera Stark, whose…
