Hip-hop thespians Wu-Tang Clan might want to put their litigation counsel on retainer; the real monks of Shaolin Temple, from whom Wu-Tang borrows extensive imagery, have been on the swarm this year fighting the appropriation of their sacred Shaolin name. Across the globe, companies have used the Shaolin tag as…
You knew it was on its way even before Halloween merchandise hit the clearance shelves: Christmas. You noticed the sudden transformation from orange-and-black to red-and-green color schemes in stores, the subtle but inescapable sounds of carols and sleigh bells, the tinsel at every turn. And you wondered if someone forgot…
If you were going to categorize the work of Adam Chodzko, whose first solo museum exhibition in the U.S. is now on view at Arizona State University, you’d have to resort to something like “participatory conceptual performance art,” a clumsy mouthful that doesn’t begin to convey the magic and humor…
Equus was first produced in the early ’70s and quickly became a modern classic. Peter Shaffer’s morality play just as quickly became passé, its postmodern approach to religiosity and sex nullified by the go-go ’80s, when money was power and religion was usurped by “spirituality.” Which isn’t to say that…
The wine list at Chili’s Grill & Bar is pretty lame, but my subject is too young to appreciate a good Pinot Grigio anyway. Fourteen-year-old Chris Cottrell is the author of the just-passed Proposition 103, also known as Chris’ Law, a constitutional amendment that will prevent accused sexual predators from…
Christ is sexy. There, got your attention. But honestly, think about it: nice guy, pretty hair, carpentry skills, puts loaves (and fishes) on the table. Plus all that doing miracles and rising from the dead and being the son of God business. Heck, he’d be a prime catch for any…
The advantage to making a Christmas movie is that, no matter how mediocre your final product is, it’s all but guaranteed to show up on at least one TV station, at least once a year, in perpetuity; even such woeful losers as the Nicolas Cage-Dana Carvey comedy Trapped in Paradise,…
Goodbye, Mr. Chips. Hello, Mr. Hundert. If we can judge by the new Kevin Kline vehicle The Emperor’s Club, the notions remain alive (if not particularly well) that a self-sacrificing boarding-school teacher can enrich the lives of his students while subsisting in relative emotional misery himself — and that the…
From Fear’s “I Love Livin’ in the City” to “In the City” by The Jam, the history of punk rock is chock-full of tributes to urban life and all the struggle and glamour that it entails. But aspiring rockers growing up in Middle America, aching to escape suburban ennui or…
A thumb-size nuclear reactor, four Confederate soldiers throwing rocks, and a Trojan watermelon to impress the ladies. If any of this makes sense, you’ve probably seen a performance by Valley improv troupe The Barrow Gang. Scattershot, the latest offering from the troupe, is the launch of its “Not-So-World Tour.” Founding…
Steve Dart is an hour late for our meeting at Coach’s, a west-side bar that tonight, coincidentally, is hosting a dart tournament. He’s late because he fell asleep on the couch watching Spiderman cartoons — a perfectly appropriate excuse, given that Dart’s been in the spotlight lately for scaling a…
Deep in the dark, scary heart of downtown’s warehouse district, the fledgling Stray Cat Theatre has scored another success. With The Dianalogues, this inventive young company kicks off its second season in a drafty hangar that’s well off the beaten path but well worth finding. Laurel Haines’ collection of comic…
So, you wish to know if Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets is as good as the first Harry Potter movie. Is it as charming, visually gratifying, faithful to filthy rich author J.K. Rowling’s inescapable books? Well, that’d be yep times four, as it’s definitely an enchanting spectacular for…
The repellent Casanova portrayed by Campbell Scott in Roger Dodger has an instinct for looking up skirts and down cleavages, but no capacity for looking in the mirror. Part salesman, part caveman, Madison Avenue copywriter Roger Swanson is, deep in his cynical heart, as loathsome to himself as he is…
Three years on, the besieged phenomenon — the scourge, the antichrist or the Vanilla Ice of the ’00s, pick ’em — has been rendered beloved; when they, slick bizzers in suits and cell phones, speak of “Eminem” and “gross” in the same sentence, they’re talking only receipts, merchandise, profit. The…
There are contrasting elements that co-exist in Japanese culture: the speedy, high-tech world that inspired Blade Runner, and the earthier realm of ancient beliefs and arts. Lately, as a generation of video gamers can attest, we’ve become fascinated with the flash of the ultramodern. But has anyone appreciated time-honored traditions…
For all you purists who are continuously annoyed at the commercialization of the martial arts, this weekend you’ve got a once-in-a-lifetime shot to see purity in action. For those of you who have never experienced martial arts, this weekend you’ll have the opportunity to witness one of the most innovative,…
Avery Wiseman has never eaten anyone. But he’s written about it, in The Next Taboo: Curing Cancer Through Cannibalism. Wiseman’s newest book has been receiving national attention, mostly from people who have mistaken the good doctor’s first novel for nonfiction. Wiseman doesn’t seem all that concerned about the mix-up. The…
One indication of the Valley art scene’s healthy pulse is the proliferation of small, worthwhile shows in unexpected places. Recently, the lower level of the Tempe Public Library has housed several such treats, the most recent of which features works by six artists participating in the city’s Studio Artist Program…
There was a hearse in the parking lot on opening night of Desert Foothills Theater’s Simply Sammy, perhaps waiting to cart off audience members who died of disappointment. The tip-off that this tribute to the late Sammy Davis Jr. was going to be a dog came with the first strains…
With Frida — the story of profoundly passionate and uncompromising Mexican-Jewish painter Frida Kahlo — it’s evident that a few folks in marketing know how to work the demographics (it’ll be extremely PC, possibly mandatory, to gush in adoration of it), but that’s the first and last cynical comment of…
It’s possibly more ironic than Brian De Palma realizes that his latest movie, Femme Fatale, features a down-on-her-luck mother who was “replaced” seven years ago by her less benevolent, reputation-destroying, jewel-stealing doppelgänger (both are played by Rebecca Romijn-Stamos, who was apparently recommended to De Palma by Rollerball director John McTiernan)…
