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July 2008

1- August 20 Poetry In Motion: Rahee

Artists Adil Rahee (ceramics) and Katherine Pinto (paper, print and bookmaking) examine what it means to be away from home, of constructing a history and relating their own individual experience to the larger global issues. Exhibit available Monday through Saturday beginning at 9:00 a.m. and Sunday starting at 12:00 p.m. Admission is free!

Tempe Public Library (3500 South Rural Road)
Tempe
For Info: (480) 350-5500

4 4TH Of July All American Festival

Come join us at the Peoria Sports Complex on the Mariners Practice Fields! We’ll have 2 entertainment zones, (1 country and 1 rock and roll) an F-16 Fly-over, a food zone, a Kids Zone and a Water Zone, where you’re guaranteed to get wet!! Also, in the main walkway will be vendors offering a variety of goods and services. All this and one of the BEST fireworks shows in the valley! Seating is on the plush lawn and is first come first serve. Bring the family, bring the lawn chairs, and even your own food and alcohol, but please leave all glass containers, pets and canopies at home. Beer will be available for purchase on both entertainment zones and the food zone. Fireworks will begin at approximately 9:15 p.m. (weather permitting) Gates open at 5pm. Parking is free. Admission is $5 for those 13 and older.

Peoria Sports Complex (16101 N. 83rd Ave)
Peoria
For Info: (623) 773-7564

5 The Mexican American Mirror

This exhibit explores the roots of the valley's Mexican American community from the 1860s through the 1970s through photographs, artifacts, video clips, music, and hands-on activities. It discusses the political, social, economic, and cultural challenges that Mexican Americans faced, as well as their countless notable achievements. Mexican American labor made possible early agriculture and the development of barrios, Spanish language newspapers, and churches helped to provide a sense of cohesion and unity among Mexican Americans. Mutual aid societies, labor organizations, and civil rights groups helped community members achieve equality, justice, and political power while theaters, radio programs, and cultural celebrations provided entertainment within the community that also appealed to the entire population of Phoenix. From la Madre de Phoenix, Trinidad Escalante Swilling, through the election of the state's first and only Mexican American governor, Raul Castro, the Mexican American community's significant history reflects the larger culture and identity of Phoenix.

Heritage & Science Park (105 North 5th Street)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 253-2734

8-Sept 6 A Tradition Redefined
Steel Art Gallery

Organized by Phoenix Art Museum and Harvard University Art Museum, this exhibition will present 60 works that reveal the fundamental transformation of Chinese Painting resulting from dynamic social, political and cultural developments in China, Taiwan and the United States in recent years. As more artists of Chinese background have become internationally recognized, the lines between China and the rest of the world have been continually defined and redefined. As early as the 1960’s, Chu-tsing Li, Ph.D., professor emeritus of the University of Kansas, played an instrumental role in bringing this transformation into global awareness through his many publications on art history and emerging artists. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and students with ID and $4 for children between the ages of 6 and 17 years of age.

Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 257-1880

8-August 6 Marcus Payzant

Materials from urban culture collide violently with the natural world in Marcus Payzant’s newest paintings. By contrasting highly rendered subjects with loose abstraction, the artist builds up the surfaces of his paintings, offering up his subjects for closer examination. Opening reception on July 10th from 7-9:00 p.m. Show times are as follows: Monday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Tuesday from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m., Wednesday through Friday from10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Admission is free!

Shemer Art Center (5005 East Camelback Road)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 262-4727

9-Sept. 14 No Snow on the Broken Bridge: Video work by Yang Fudong

Born in 1962 as the son of an army officer in Beijing, Yang Fudong was not attracted to art until a soccer injury curtailed his athletic career. Yang is now one of China's most sought-after artists. In the past five years his photographs and film installations have been the subject of solo exhibitions in nine countries, including a show at the Marian Goodman Gallery in New York. His most recent and significant project is No Snow on the Broken Bridge, a black-and-white film presented with eight projectors. The result is in entrancing, interconnected experience that is reminiscent of a classical Chinese handscroll painting. Images of nature are woven together with figures that move through the sequences in a dream-like state of inertia. Exhibit Location: Steele Gallery, Phoenix Art Museum. Show times are, Tuesday from 10:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and Wednesday-Sunday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors (65+) and students, $4 for youth (6-17) and members and children under six years of age are free.

Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 257-1880

18 Summer Docs’ at Heard Museum: West Hopi Songs From the 4th World

Enjoy thought-provoking documentary films at Heard Museum West, offered on select Fridays throughout the summer. Hopi Songs from the Fourth World (58 minutes) is a compelling study of the Hopi that captures their deep spirituality and reveals their integration of art and daily life. Show begins at 10:00 a.m. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $2 for students and free for American Indians, museum members and children ages 6 and under.

Heard Museum (16126 N Civic Center Plaza)
Surprise
For Info: (602) 252-8848

10 Por Amor/For Love: An Operachi in One Act

It’s Romeo and Juliet meets the music of Mariachi’s greatest troubadours
in the frolicking tale of love and the joys and travails of show business. This show is presented by Colores Actors-writers workshop. The workshop was founded in March 2002 by James Garcia in order to support and develop new Latino actors and writers in Arizona. Doors open at 11:40 a.m. and the show begins at 12:10. Shows last about 30-45 minutes. Tickets are $6 and can be purchased at the door.

Herberger Theater Center (222 E Monroe)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 254-7399 x104 or x106

11-13 Novaballet: Concert 1

An energetic and global mix of movement rendered into dynamic layers of color and sound will permeate the intimate confines of the Tempe Arts Center Theatre this Summer. Korean choreographer James Jeon infuses the senses with an intuitive, eastern mode of artistry with Inner Moves, set to the contemporary compositions of Moon Seok Chang. Live piano accompanies two distinctive short works, one from the canon of Vicente Nebrada and the other a world premiere presentation. The celebratory Adieums closes the program, with choreography by David Palmer and Yanis Pikieris featuring the ethnic tribal sounds of composer Karl Jenkins.
The show begins at 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday afternoon. Ticket prices range from $20-$75.

Tempe Center for the Arts (700 West Rio Salado Parkway)
Tempe
For Info: (480) 350-2822

11 Vicente Fernandez

Vicente Fernandez, Mexico's living legend, returns to Phoenix after 2 years and will make his stop at the US Airways Center. He will be performing in-the-round on Friday at 8:00 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Ticket prices range from $55 to $125. Children 3 and under are free if seated on parents lap.

US Airways Center
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 379-7800

11 Summer Docs at Heard Museum West

Miss Navajo (60 min). This documentary showcases the Miss Navajo Nation pageant, revealing the importance of cultural preservation and the meaning of being a Navajo woman. Show runs from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Admission is free with Museum admission of $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $2 students, children ages 6 and under and American Indians are free.

Heart Museum (16126 N Civic Center Plaza)
Surprise
For Info: (623) 344-2200

11 South Pacific

There’s Nothin’ Like a Dame to get the wishful sailors stationed on a South Pacific Isle singin’ and dancin’. Set during World War II, romance blooms in paradise when a feisty Naval nurse named Nellie Forbush falls in love with a French plantation owner with a hidden past and the dashing Marine Lieutenant Joe Cable falls in love with a young native girl. But the dangers of war and prevailing prejudice are storm clouds that threaten a happy ending for these mismatched couples. Adapted from James Michener’s Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of stories, “Tales of the South Pacific,” this musical masterpiece by Rodgers & Hammerstein features songs that are as lush and colorful as its tropical setting, including Some Enchanted Evening, I’m in Love With a Wonderful Guy and I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outa My Hair. Show begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets purchased in advance at $22 and $20 for students and seniors.

Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre (4720 N Scottsdale Road)
Scottsdale
For Info: (480) 483-1664

13 Blue Kite

On D ry Well Lane in Beijing in 1953, Chen Shujuan and Lin Shaolong mary. A year later their son, nicknamed Ttietou, is born. After Shaolong dies in a reform camp, Shujuan’s love for Tietou sustains her, and the child’s blue kite embodies hope. After the screening, Arizona State University’s John Zou, Ph.D., examines how the film is part of a larger discourse among cultures attempting to understand one another in a rapidly changing world. Show begins at 1:00 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and full time students with ID, $4 for children (6-17). Admission is free for museum members and children ages six and under.

Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 257-1222

18 Third Friday Game Night

Ever played a partner-based card or board game and wanted to cheat? Well, here’s one way to do it: speak Spanish, and make sure your opponents are a bunch of gringos who don’t. You can pick up some, en español, skills while playing card games, Lotería, Scattergories, and Scrabble in Spanish during Third Friday Game Night. Fun will be had from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. Admission is free!

The Spanish Place (3400 S Mill Avenue, Ste. 31)
Tempe
For Info: (480) 430-9060

21-26 6th Annual Native American Basketball Invitational (NABI)

NABI is the largest NCAA certified all Native American Basketball tournament comprised of high school athletes; competing for the 2008 NABI Championship title and exposure to college scouts in the world! The NABI Championship games will be played on an official NBA & WNBA court, the home of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury, at US Airways Center. Games begin at 8:00 a.m. Admission is $12.50 and children 6 and under are free!

US Airways Center
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 379-7800

31 Guardians of the Camargue: The French Backaroo Tradition

This new exhibit will give visitors an inside look at centuries-old cowboy culture in France. “Gardians of the Camargue: The French Buckaroo tradition” will feature 69 framed photographs and artifacts depicting the culture of the Gardians of the Camargue. The exhibit features the black and white photograph of Kevin Martini-Fuller, the color photograph of Lorraine d’Entremont Rawls, the interpretive paintings of Karen Foster-Wells, along with tools and clothing unique to the Camargue region. In a small area of Southern France, called the Camargue, there are cowboys or “guardians” not unlike Arizona’s own. The brotherhood of the Guardians dates back to 1512. In 1905 this culture was revived by French writer and rancher, Folo de Baroncelli, who was inspired by seeing a Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show in Paris.

Phoenix Art Museum
Phoenix
For Info: (480) 991-8004

August 2008

1 Risque Business

What happens when a group of twisted, renegade artist types decide to transform their performance space into a vaudevillian cabaret? Sheer madness, apparently, ´cause that's what the brilliantly warped minds at Soul Invictus are calling their new Sheer Madness Cabaret. The run opens with a benefit for Artists’ Theatre Project and includes, but is certainly not limited to, slapstick sketch-comedy acts, musical interludes, short films, and a hearty dose of drag. Show begins at 8:00 p.m. and will run on the first Friday of every month. Admission is $5.

Soul Invictus Gallery & Cabaret (1022 Grand Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 614-4154

2 Summer Twilight Tour Guided by Little Bear
Dear Valley Rock Art Center

Join our Public Educator, Desert Little Bear, for a tour of the Deer Valley Rock Art Center's spectacular rock art. The Center has the largest concentration of Native American petroglyphs in the Phoenix Valley! Desert Little Bear is happy to answer your questions about desert wildlife, birds, insects, plants and Native American cultures. Tour runs from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Ticket prices for adults are $6.50, seniors/students $3.50 and children 12 years old and younger are $2.50.

Dear Valley Rock Arts Center (3711 W Dear Valley Road)
Phoenix
For Info: (623) 582-8007

8-24 Disney’s “Aida”

Be sure to check out this musical bursting with contemporary energy chronicling the love tri angle between Aida, a Nubian princess stolen from her country, Amneris, an Egyptian princess, and Radames, the soldier they both love. Aida is an epic tale of love, loyalty and betrayal, with an exhilarating Tony and Grammy Award-winning score by Elton John and Tim Rice, their first collaboration since writing the music for the worldwide phenomenon The Lion King. Show times are, Thursday-Saturday starting at 7:30 p.m. as well as Saturday and Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Admission ranges from $17-$23.

Herberger Theater Center (222 E Monroe Street)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 252-8497

9 Edward Weston: Mexico

On July 29, 1923 Edward Weston boarded the steamer S.S. Colima in Los Angeles, bound for Mexico. Accompanying him were his lover, the actress Tina Modotti, and fourteen year old son Chandler. Weston had every reason to escape: his commercial portrait business had stalled, he was estranged from his wife Flora, and a pivotal meeting with Alfred Stieglitz in New York the previous year had re-ignited his passion to create personal work. When several of his photographs on exhibit in Mexico City unexpectedly sold, Mexico began to appear the ideal place for adventure and respite. He arrived in the midst of the Mexican Renaissance, and over the next three years, came to maturity as an artist. This exhibition, drawn from the collection of the Center for Creative Photography, will feature Edward Weston’s photographs of Mexico, as well as archival materials such as letters, news clippings and snapshots, that help tell the story of his Mexican sojourn. “a consummate technician with a marvelous eye for formal beauty” – New York Times.

Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (623) 257-1880

16 India Nite Independence Day Celebrations

Gala Cultural Event featuring Dance, Music, Skits & Comedy. Come with family and friends to enjoy an evening filled with lots of fun and food.

Location (address)
City
For Info: (480) 227-8411

20 The Rise of Civil Rights in the Urban West

This talk by Dr. Matthew Whitaker, Assoc. Prof. of History at ASU, explores the Civil Rights Movement in Arizona, underscoring the role of Western racial etiquette, Black resistance, local activists, interracial alliances, landmark legal decisions, key legislation, and the movement's legacy. Dr. Whitaker also pays particular attention to ways in which African Americans in Arizona inspired and fought for the social, economic, and political equality that the movement engendered. Whitaker will demonstrate that leaders such as George Brooks, Sr., Cloves Campbell, Sr., Hayzel B. Daniels, Opal Ellis, Herbert Ely, Herbert Finn, Manual Pena, Lincoln Ragsdale, Sr., Warren H. Steward, Sr., and Fran Waldman waged a systematic assault on racial discrimination and inequality. They relied mainly on grassroots activism to force the desegregation of Phoenix schools, places of public accommodation, and private employers, making Phoenix the more open city that it is today. Presentation will be from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Carnegie Center Library (1101 W Washington Street)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 255-2110

22-23 Gilbert Gottfried

At the young age of 15, Gilbert Gottfried began doing stand-up at open mike nights in New York City and, after a few short years, became known around town as 'the comedian's comedian.' After spending several years mastering the ar t of stand-up comedy, producers of the legendary NBC late night comedy show Saturday Night Live became aware of Gottfried and, in 1980, hired him as a cast member. Gottfried also is the voice of Digit in the long running PBS Series Cyberchase. Gilbert Gottfried Dirty Jokes was recently released on both DVD and CD, featuring 50 non-stop minutes of Gottfried telling the funniest and filthiest jokes ever. The show was filmed live at the Gotham Comedy Club in New York City. Also featured on the DVD are some of the funniest bonus features ever, including wild stories, indignant ranting and celebrity impressions that will leave viewers crying for more. For this live performance, Gottfried puts aside political correctness and fires an onslaught of jokes that know no boundaries. At the end of the show, Gottfried tells what is known among comedians as the Dirtiest Joke of All Time, which is also the basis for The Aristocrats. Show times to be announced at a later date. Admission is $25 if tickets are purchased in advance and $30 if purchased on the night of the show.

The Comedy Spot Comedy Club (7117 N 3rd Avenue)
Scottsdale
For Info: (480) 945-4422

23 Ancient Strings Revived

Hear something unexpected, new, yet ancient! Barbara Sudweeks of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra trades her usual viola for the Chinese erhu, a stringed instrument dating back 1,000 years. Ms. Sudweeks performs in Chinese dress and provides commentary and images about her performances in China. Show begins at 2:00 p.m. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and full time students with ID, $4 for children (6-17). Admission is free to museum members and children ages 6 and under.

Phoenix Art Museum (1625 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 257-1222

September 2008

6 The Motown Spectacular Show

The Motown Spectacular show live is a tribute to Motown's famous hit-makers! This breathtaking show captures the magic and nostalgia of yesteryear with all the timeless music everyone loves! Come celebrate hitsville USA, featuring special guests: The Dancing Machine Review! The show begins on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. Ticket prices are $30.

Tempe Center for the Arts (700 W Rio Salado Parkway)
Tempe
For Info: (480)

7 Tours in Spanish: Descubra

Join Pueblo Grande Museum as we offer tours in Spanish. These tours a re held ever second Sunday of the month and open to the public. Descubre la historia de Pueblo Grande: Pueblo Grande es un museo y parque arqueologico que se dedica a preservar. Esstudiar y exhibir la cultura inigena prehistorica de los indios Hohokam. Que habitaron el walle del sol en los anos 400-1400 A.C. Estas vista con guia sera totalmente en espanol. La entrada es gratis. Tours are from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Pueblo Grande Museum (4619 E Washington Street)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 495-0901

8 The Doorways to the Past: Hohokam Houses

The Doorways to the Past: Hohokam Houses exhibit is located along the Ruin Tr ail and vonsists of an adobe compound and pithouse duster. Artifact replicas and other features give the visitor the experience of walking back in time to visit the ancient Hohokam people at Pueblo Gran de. The Hohokam constructed a number of features used for domestic purposes. This type of architecture would have probably been constructed and used by immediate or extended family groups. Domestic architecture among the Hohokam included early pithouses and later coursed-adobe houses. These homes were built of materials gathered from the desert landscape. Since these natural materials erode, there are no prehistoric Hohokam homes in existence today. Doorways to the Past allows visitors to experience what these ancient homes were once like. The replicas, constructed from modern materials, are based on recent archaeological data as well as information from historic cultures of the Southwest. Pithouse-Run Trail Exhibit: More than a 1,000 years ago, the Hohokam built wood framed houses covered with adobe mud in shallow pits. These homes were arranged around a shared courtyard. You can explore a cluster of three pithouse replicas along the Ruin Trail at the museum. Walk inside a pithouse and discover how the Hohokam made their homes and the activities that took place there. Tour the central courtyard with shade ramada tools, cooking and storage equipment, like those once used by the Hohokam. The later Hohokam adobe homes were surrounded by walls just as many of today’s suburban houses are. Extended family groups probably shared these compounds. Tour Pueblo Grande’s replicated compound, go inside and adobe-style room, and explore a courtyard like those where Hohokam artisans once worked. Exhibit hours are Monday-Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. and Sunday from 1:00 p.m. to 4:45 p.m.

Pueblo Grande Museum (4619 E Washington Street)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 495-0901

12 Carlos Mencia: At Close Range

Carlos Mencia, superstar/stand-up comedian, is undoubtedly one of today’s most lauded entertainers and feared comics. Whether it is man-on-the-street interviews, studio comedy, commercial parodies, or nationwide sold-out tours, Mencia demonstrates an extraordinary ability to connect with a diverse audience. He will bring his 60-city stand-up comedy tour BUD LIGHT PRESENTS CARLOS MENCIA: AT CLOSE RANGE to Jobing.com Arena. Doors open at 7:00 p.m. and the show will begin at 8:00 p.m. Ticket prices are $45.95 and are on sale now.

Jobing.com Arena (9400 W Maryland Avenue)
Glendale
For Info: (623) 772-3200

14 Around the World: The Heard Museum Collection

Tour the global span of the Heard Museum’s permanent collection. This exhib it will focus on more than 75 years of collecting preserving Native art and cultures in the Southwest and beyond. Starting with examples of work collected by museum founders. Dwight and Maie Heard, and including donations by artists and collectors such as Byron Harvey and Richard Faletti, the exhibit features objects and artwork from indigenous peoples of North and South America as well as Oceania. Housed in the Newly renovated COMPAS gallery, this exhbit is curated by Traicia Loscher and Anna Marshall, Ph.D. Admission is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, $5 for students, $4 for youth (6-12) and free for museum members, Native Americans and children under the age of six.

Heard Museum (2301 N Central Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 252-8848

27 Carlos Santana and Special Guest Santana Band

Carlos Santana has been reinventing and reshaping the landscape of the known universe's musical culture for close to four decades. A visionary artist with no regards for genre boundaries, Carlos' fluid sound long ago laid claim to the concept of "world music" before the term ever surfaced on pop culture radar. Having evolved and expanded for over four decades, the "Carlos" sound could well be on its way to becoming interplanetary music. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and show begins at 8:00 p.m. Ticket prices range from $19 to $75.

Cricket Wireless Pavilion (2121 N 83rd Avenue)
Phoenix
For Info: (602) 254-7200