The last chapter of Jen Kirkman’s newest book, I Know What I’m Doing and Other Lies I Tell Myself, is an homage to Joan Rivers, a comedic hero and resident mom-in-her-head. But instead of referring to Rivers as a “female comedian,” as many do, she describes her as “a stand-up who also happened…
Performance in the Borderlands, an Arizona State University initiative addressing the intersection of arts and culture with border-related issues, recently announced its 2016-17 season. The season includes a robust lineup of artists working in visual art, theater, dance, and music. Its theme, “Voices of Power,” reflects a focus on women…
New Times picks the best things to do in metro Phoenix from Monday, August 30, through Thursday, September 1. For more events, see our curated online calendar. “Find Your Park in Arizona” Traveling by commercial airline will get you more than 30,000 feet in the air. But you don’t have to…
New Times picks the best events in metro Phoenix from Friday, August 26, through Sunday, August 28. For more things to do, see our curated online calendar. Pageant As society approaches a normal attitude about gay people, female impersonation, and drag (which don’t require homosexuality but definitely brunch with it) continue…
Luis Ruiz, who has 21 years of experience in venue management, has been hired by the City of Tempe as its new general manager and cultural facilities manager at Tempe Center for the Arts. He started on August 15. His responsibilities include organizing and managing daily operations and administration for…
Comedian Marc Maron began the WTF with Marc Maron podcast on September 1, 2009. A fixture in the ’90s alternative comedy scene, the shift from stand-up to interviewer was not necessarily the most predictable path. However, it’s what has made audiences so dedicated to his every-man way of digging deep into the…
Matthew Wiener is yelling. “Stop moving around so much!” he bellows at James Garcia and Marcelino Quiñonez, who are rehearsing a scene from El Che, Quiñonez’s new play about Marxist revolutionary Ernesto “Che” Guevara. Wiener steps between the actors, improvising a scene in which Guevara, played by Quiñonez, is reunited…
Before there was Hamilton, the latest musical to take Broadway audiences by storm, there was The Phantom of the Opera. It’s one of many shows featuring music by British composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, whose other claims to fame include Cats and Jesus Christ Superstar. Those needing proof that The Phantom of the…
Just one month after announcing it needed $50,000 to continue operations, Scottsdale-based Don Bluth Front Row Theatre has announced that it will close effective September 17 in order to focus on fundraising. The goal is to raise $50,000 in time to reopen and present a holiday production of It’s a Wonderful…
Whether lighting up backstage or in the audience, weed and stand-up are a common combination, one that often produces hilarious results. Pot is pretty funny, and that’s the idea behind the “Cannabis Comedy Tour,” an eight-city event that comes to Marquee Theatre in Tempe on Friday, July 29. The free…
Theater Works, which performs at Peoria Center for the Arts, has promoted Chris Hamby to producing artistic director and Cate Hinkle to managing director, according to a July 25 announcement. The news comes just months after Dan Schay, who joined the company as executive director in February of 2012, passed…
If there’s one thing to know about dancers, it’s that they’re seemingly always on the move. This is no exception for Jordan Daniels, a 25-year-old dancer, instructor, and choreographer. Daniels grew up performing musical theater in church, and attended high school at Arizona Conservatory for Arts and Academics. “Half of…
Ralph Remington, a theater professional and former arts administrator with both Actors’ Equity Association and National Endowment for the Arts, has been hired by the City of Tempe as its Arts and Culture Deputy Director. It’s a new position created within Tempe’s Community Services Department to further implementing its 2015…
Arizona Theatre Company, which announced on June 27 that it needed to raise $2 million to avoid closing, has reached its fundraising goal, according to a statement released on Monday, July 18. It’s good news for the Tucson-based company founded in 1966, which is Arizona’s only member of the prestigious…
Arizona Theatre Company announced late Friday, July 15, that its efforts to raise $2 million to continue operations and begin producing its 2016-17 season have fallen short by $281,195. But the company is waiting until Monday, July 18, to make and announce a final decision about the company’s future. Founded…
Although some staples of the Phoenix art scene, including Alwun House and monOrchid, won’t be open during Third Friday this month, there’s still plenty of good stuff to see – including several intriguing exhibitions and 12 performances happening in a trio of shipping container galleries where props will be the…
Arizona Commission on the Arts has awarded 239 grants totaling more than $2.2 million to Arizona nonprofit arts organizations, local arts agencies, schools, and community organizations for the fiscal year 2017, which runs from July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017. That’s more than twice the amount it awarded during…
Don Bluth Front Row Theatre of Scottsdale needs to raise $50,000 by the end of August 2016 to continue operations, the company announced via press release on Wednesday, June 29. The news follows Arizona Theatre Company’s announcement on Monday, June 27, that it needs to raise $2 million to stay…
Playwright Kirt Shineman had a rare opportunity earlier this year, one he’s sure he’ll never have again. “It was at my wedding,” he says, “and I was watching the people I based the characters in my new play on, talking to the actors who are playing them.” That new play…
Two donors responded with significant gifts after Arizona Theatre Company’s recent announcement that it would need to raise $2 million by Friday, July 1, to stay afloat. The deadline for meeting its $2 million goal has been pushed back to Friday, July 15. Mike Kasser, president of the Tucson-based international real-estate…
Arizona Theatre Company needs to raise $2 million by Friday, July 1, to continue operations, the company announced on Monday, June 27. Founded nearly five decades ago, the company has performed at both Herberger Theater Center in Phoenix and the Temple of Art and Music in Tucson since 1990. It’s…
Take note if you’re making visual or performance art in metro Phoenix: Several local venues are looking for artists who’d like to show their works. We found 15 such opportunities for Valley artists to get a head start with finding creative places to show off. “Of Land, Sea & Sky”…
