City Week


Thursday 15

OVER EASY. A young and durn purdy Audrey Hepburn shines in Breakfast at Tiffany's, in a screening to help revive downtown's old Fox Theatre.

Hosted by La Placita Village and the Tucson Fox Theatre Foundation, these screenings attempt to put the "fun" in fundraiser, as the young Hepburn plays a free-spirit from rural America who infiltrates New York's social set with the help of several dashing young men. She also becomes comrades with the handsome George Peppard, an aspiring writer, in this classic film.

The outdoor series continues at 7:30 p.m. each Thursday in La Placita Village, 110 S. Church Ave., on the southwest corner of Church Avenue and Broadway Boulevard. Admission is free, with donations encouraged. For details, call 623-2748.

BEAMERS REDEEMED. Starfleet Command returns in rather twisted form at the Gaslight Theatre, which this week launches Space Trek: The New Millennium!

Written by Gaslight main man Peter Van Slyke, with music by Lisa Otey, this melodrama hurtles viewers through the galaxy with Captain James P. Trek and the crew of the Starship Entrepreneur. Watch in warp-speed suspense as they battle the evil Voltaire for possession of a secret new weapon that could destroy the universe.

Cast includes Joe Cooper, John Brownlee, Jenny Long, Beth Little Hansler and Terrance Hansler, among others.

Lift off at 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 7 and 9:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 3 and 7 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $13.95, $11.95 for students, seniors and military, and $6 for children. Call 886-9428 for reservations and information.


Friday 16

PLANETARY PITFALLS. Ever wonder whether the widely touted international economy is all it's cracked up to be? Find out when the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom hosts a discussion entitled The Pitfalls of Globalization.

Ann Fagan Ginger will be the featured speaker. She's the founder and executive director of the Meiklejohn Civil Liberties Institute in Berkeley, California. Her lecture will be proceeded by a potluck supper at 5:30 p.m.

The free discussion begins at 6:15 p.m. in the Northwest Neighborhood Center, 2160 N. Sixth Ave. For details, call 908-9269.

BORDERLINE WARBLERS. Fine harmonies reverberate in the Old Pueblo with another Desert Voices performance tonight.

Arizona's premier gay and lesbian chorus tackles the multi-cultural frontier with a World Without Borders, described as "an exploration of humanity in an entertaining, thought-provoking way." The chorus is joined by AZ Dance Inc., Tejano band Rare Breed, Native American dancers, and Tariq Rasool and the Songhai Drummers.

Show time is 8 tonight and tomorrow in the PCC Proscenium Theatre, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Advance tickets are $12, $10 for students and seniors, available by calling 791-9662. Tickets are $15 and $12 at the door.

LYRICAL LOVE. Enjoy literary amoré by taking your place at tonight's "Make a Date With a Poet" gathering.

This month's featured poet is Maggie Mendus, whose work explores her personal journey through epilepsy. You'll find many of those pieces in a chap book called Tracings: One Woman's Journey Through Epilepsy. A former elementary school teacher who is also wife and grandmother, Mendus unflinchingly describes dealing with a long stigmatized, misunderstood condition in pieces such as "Brain Fire":

The doctors talk of neurons firing fast

when telling of the action in my head.

The blaze begins, and part of me has fled

to distant lands, exploding like a blast

from outer into inner space. Harassed

by changes, I'm surprised I am not dead.

Mendus' free reading begins at 6 p.m. in the New Life Café, 4841 E. Speedway Blvd. For information, call 881-5180.


Saturday 17

LEGENDARY LINE-UP. Rock icons are reborn when Vicki Tama and Steel Ribbon perform a Tribute to Janis Joplin and Santana.

Presented by the Plaza Palomino Courtyard Series (at what's one of the hippest outdoor venues in town), Tama reveals her talents as a killer vocalist whose "bluesy, whiskey-soaked voice entices the listener from the first strain on," according to BAM Magazine.

She'll be accompanied by Steel Ribbon, featuring Jim Randall on rhythm guitar; Jeff Coburn on drums; Abel Valentino on timbales; and Kevin Robinson on congas.

Show time is 8 p.m. in Plaza Palomino, on the southeast corner of Fort Lowell and Swan roads. Advance tickets are $14, available at Hear's Music, Antigone Books, Orange Grove Brew and Vine, and Enchanted Earthworks. Tickets are $16 at the gate. Call 297-9133 for details.

ILLUSION AND GRACE. Catch fine sleight-of-hand at a "first-ever" performance of The Magic Review.

Presented by the International Brotherhood of Magicians, the power-packed show will feature "inimitable" master-of-ceremonies and comedian-magician Tom Potter. He'll introduce a topnotch cast that includes John Shryrock and Mary Lynn; Gene and Charlene Collins; Bruce and Jan Spell; Bill McRea and Cara Creamer; Norm Marini; Mike DeSchalit; Len and Alexandra Elder; the Scottlin' Yard Magic Team; Anastasia; Amanda Michelle and Stuart Carlton; Alex Aikin; and Christian and Catalina Painter.

Show time is 7 p.m. in the Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway Blvd. Tickets are $10, $8 for children ages 12 and under. For tickets and information, visit Williams Magic, or call 647-3501.

SEASONAL SEEDS. Seasonal gardeners get a green thumbs-up when Native Seeds/SEARCH present their Monsoon Planting Workshop.

The three-hour introductory class will focus on Southwest harvesting practices during our steamy months, including bed preparation, where and when to plant, seed selection and how to care for your new plantings.

Native Seeds/SEARCH is a non-profit outfit that works hard to conserve the traditional crops, seeds and farming methods that have long sustained native peoples throughout this region.

Workshop hours are 8 to 11 a.m. at the Sylvester House, 2130 N. Alvernon Way. Fees are $15, $12 for NS/S members, and pre-registration is required. Space is limited; for registration and other information, call 622-5561.


Sunday 18

WELL-PLACED. Ever wonder about your place in the universe? You'll ponder no more if you join the Tucson Orienteering Club for today's class on Mt. Lemmon.

A free beginner's clinic covers the basics of the sport, followed by courses set at five different skill levels. All you need is a compass, a whistle, and a functioning noggin.

Cost is $8, $3 for club members, and class starts at 9 a.m. Group discounts are also available. Call 628-8985 for directions and information.

GET IN LINE. High-rollers converge for the Tucson Inline Sk8 Club's weekly outings. The non-profit group touts safe skating, and lets the good times roll every Sunday afternoon on the pathway at Reid Park, between 22nd Street and Broadway Boulevard, east of Country Club Road. For meeting time and other information, call 747-2903.

ALTERNATIVE CHOW. Avoid tedious check-out lines, Muzak-dubbed pop classics and crappy food additives by taking your bushel basket to the Farmers' Market.

Instead of high fructose corn syrup, you'll find naturally sweet fruits and juices. And instead of a steroid-laden burger, you can enjoy grass-fed beef and emu steak, European-style bread--in other words, a cornucopia of fresh food that hasn't come within throwing distance of a bar code scanner.

The Farmers' Market runs from 7 a.m. to noon every Sunday at St. Philip's Plaza, on the southeast corner of River Road and Campbell Avenue. Call 743-8063 for details.


Monday 19

DESERT DRAFTSMEN. Architecture is often among the best and longest-lived clues to earlier times, a fact well-considered by the Arizona Archaeological and Historical Society.

Today the AAHS plumbs the past with Solving Mysteries of Southwestern Architecture. Led by archaeologist Rich Lange of the Arizona State Museum, the lecture will describe how ancient structures can be treated as artifacts: how they're described, measured, catalogued and studied. At the same time, the buildings allow researchers to delineate between cultures by revealing differences as well as indicating widely shared knowledge about building among early peoples.

The free lecture is at 7:30 p.m. in the UMC DuVal Auditorium, 1501 N. Campbell Ave. For information, call 298-5167.

MONDAY MEMORIES. The venerable Hotel Congress has moved its beloved '80s dance nights to Monday. DJs Sean T. and The Human Fly spin a progressive mix of tunes, everything from pop and new wave to Euro-dance, goth, ska and punk. Ample drink specials will keep you sated, if not sedated. Doors open at 9 p.m., and cover is $2. Call 622-8848 for details.


Tuesday 20

HIGHLAND HOE-DOWN. Music of the Emerald Isle haunts the Old Pueblo tonight, bringing a rich, textured feel, and melodic heritage of impish reels and waltzes. Celtic music is drawing an increasingly large audience nationwide, and the ranks of Tucson devotees are swelling apace with the trend.

Catch today's Celtic flavor--and again on the first and third Tuesday of each month--at the Celtic and Old Time Jam from 8 to 10 p.m. in Rincon Market, 2513 E. Sixth St. Call 327-1779 for details.

SOUP TO STUDS. Score yourself some fine threads and help the Casa Maria Soup Kitchen with a visit to Buffalo Exchange.

Throughout the month, the used clothing outpost will be collecting non-perishable donations for the humble little kitchen that's been serving hungry folks since 1982. And don't think Casa isn't crucial--the southside facility provides up to 300 family food bags and 400 lunches per day to citizens down on their luck.

Donations are accepted every day at Buffalo's three Tucson locations. Call 795-0508 for details.


Wednesday 21

VISIONS IN PRINT. UA grads, undergrads and faculty printmakers share the fruits of their labor in Mimesis 6.

The annual show, hosted this year by downtown's Hazmat Gallery, features work by 27 artists, with funding from local businesses including El Charro Café, Small Change and Blue Mark Arte. "It is a pleasure to be part of a community-supported art event," says Maria Lee, the show's co-curator. "We are all working to include art in more people's lives."

Mimesis has been organized and curated by UA printmaking students since 1995, to practice the skills of professional artists and provide an off-campus venue for student work. Their pieces utilize both traditional and innovative mixed-media techniques, ranging from intaglio, woodcut and lithography to photo, monotype and collagraph.

The exhibit runs through July 7 in the Hazmat Gallery, 197 E. Toole Ave. Hours are 2 to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. For details, call 791-9360.