Reviews and discussion of Ex Machina, Dior and I, Clouds of Sils Maria, The Longest Ride, and About Elly are all on this week’s Voice Film Club podcast, which includes Alan Scherstuhl and Stephanie Zacharek of the Village Voice, and Amy Nicholson of the LA Weekly…
David Hallberg, principal dancer with both American Ballet Theatre in New York City and the Bolshoi Ballet in Moscow, returns to Phoenix this April to teach master classes, coach emerging dancers, and help raise funds for his eponymous scholarship at The School of Ballet Arizona. The scholarship helps boys receive…
It’s no secret that opening a conversation with someone of the opposite sex is half of the battle, particularly when it comes to a bar or club scene. While there are plenty of lines and actions that can definitely make someone not want to talk to you, finding the right…
“Certainly things have changed,” Diane Keaton says. “They always do.” Taking in what she describes as a sunny California morning looking out on the patio of her current Los Angeles home, Keaton’s considering what’s happened in her life since publishing 2014’s Let’s Just Say It Wasn’t Pretty. In it, her…
There’s not quite as much desert and dancing as you might expect in Desert Dancer, an earnest and occasionally hokey drama about kids wanting to hoof it in a world that forbids all hoofin’. Since it’s a based-on-a-true-story job, and since the killjoys this time are the Iranian government, much…
It may be hard to remember now, but there once was a time when Daenerys was the most exciting character on Game of Thrones. Played by Emilia Clarke, the exiled royal best embodied the HBO drama’s paradoxical appeal: its mix of historical authenticity and rousing fantasy. Reduced to currency by…
Last week, ASU Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts graduate students took the stage to show off the pieces they’ve been creating. This week, it’s all about the undergrads in ASU Dance: Undergraduate Project Presentations. And don’t even think about discounting these younger students just yet. Performers from each…
Lewis and Clark’s birch-bark canoe journey from St. Louis to Oregon helped open up the west and inspire future generations to push beyond imaginary boundaries. Charles Fritz was certainly inspired, enough so that the artist retraced the pair’s famous route twice. Along the way, Fritz visited sites of noteworthy events—and,…
If you’re creating original musical performances, as 16 Bars Productions has for several Herberger Lunch Time Theater productions, why mess with good songs sung by nobodies? Uptown Girls, 16 Bars’ latest confection continuing through Thursday, April 9, delves into the diva – that larger-than-life lady who’s filled with more emotions…
The sequence that opens True Story tells you plenty about what you’re in for: A rumpled teddy bear drifts down from our vantage point like a puffy brown snowflake, landing with slow-motion deliberateness on the form of a PJ-clad toddler curled up in a suitcase, seemingly asleep. She’s like an…
Truth in film takes another jolly beating in Disneynature’s Monkey Kingdom, a documentary-like nature flick with the last-century chutzpah to pass off its marvelous footage of some months in the life of a single-mom macaque as a full-fledged princess story, with three acts, a tearful exile, and her ascent, in…
This Friday the dining event company known as Dinner Lab will debut in Phoenix with Viet Nom Nom Nom, a pop-up dinner featuring chef Nini Nguyen. The company hosts pop-up events in cities from coast to coast with diners paying an annual subscription fee of $125 to get access to…
The toughest thing about being a performing artist has to be exploring new works and ideas. Sure, one can perform for friends, but are they really going to provide that constructive criticism that can turn the so-so into fabulous? That’s where nueBOX’s Live Platform comes in. The idea behind this…
Something big is happening in Phoenix, and it’s not football. For the first time ever, a piece created by Leonardo da Vinci’s own hand will be shown in Arizona. The Codex Leicester, the only manuscript of da Vinci’s in an American collection, holds his hand-written insights, specifically illustrating da Vinci’s…
There’s no easy way to say this, Arizona Diamondbacks fans, but barring any monumental surprises, it’s going to be a rough season for the boys of summer. New general manager Dave Stewart enters the season juggling a roster full of question marks and maybes, while secretly envying the offseason successes…
The Great American Barbecue and Beer Festival at Chandler Park. Wingstock at the Mesa Amphitheater. The Arizona BBQ Festival at Salt River Fields. The Scottsdale Culinary Festival. While these gatherings of gustatory delight are great, they have one thing in common: they’re a pain in the ass for Westsiders to…
Chances are you’ve never heard of Jacqueline Groag. That is, unless you’re super into textiles and design. Groag was a Czech-born fabric designer who moved to England with her architect husband in 1939. After World War II ended, Groag’s designs and textiles acted as an uplifting light in the British…
In her latest book, 2014’s Let’s Just Say It Wasn’t Pretty, quite a few things are clear about actress Diane Keaton. She’s passionate about beauty, has a bit of a home restoration addiction, recommends a thermos of red wine for jogging, and appreciates a fabulous head of hair. In short:…
Local love just got a lot deeper thanks to Native Now. The festival, which focuses on the indigenous cultures of the Southwest, features an all-day showcase of art and entertainment, inspired by the state’s early inhabitants, including live musical performances by Ryan Dennison of Diné Nation, Byron Fenix of Native…
For nearly half a century, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater company has wowed millions with a unique take on contemporary modern dance, rooted in the African-American cultural experience.The company comes calling this weekend, performing two shows, each with distinct programs, including Ronald Brown’s Grace, one of the more captivating…
On Saturday downtown Phoenix will finally get its own food marketplace when the DeSoto Central Market opens its doors. The grand opening celebrations will go all day on Saturday and Sunday and include a wine tasting with Young’s Market Company (1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday), a Chinese Lion Dance…
One of the Valley’s prize Midcentury Modern gems, Hotel Valley Ho has a rich and storied past. Nearly in its 60s, the hotel has played home for stars like Bing Crosby, Cary Grant, Marilyn Monroe, and Natalie Wood. These days it hosts posh cocktail carnivals, summertime swims, and chic staycations…
