Thursday 28
BERLIN CALLING. Contemporary Berlin is portrayed in two poignant films presented by the UA Department of German Studies.
Peter Claus Schmidt's The Fall of the Berlin Wall documents events leading up to the tumultuous days of November, 1989. By contrast, Pepe Danquart's Schwarzfahrer portrays the experiences of a black man in the German city. Paul Outlaw starred in this 1994 Academy Award-winner, and will be on hand to discuss the film.
Show time is 7:30 p.m. in the UA Modern Languages auditorium, on the main mall east of the administration building. Admission is free. For information, call 621-7385.
GARDEN GROOVE. Enjoy stunning vocals in a lush garden setting with Catacoustic Groove, presented in Tohono Chul Park's fall concert series.
The Groove's style is pure a cappella, not to mention upbeat and groovy. They'll tackle an original repertoire influenced by everyone from The Beatles and Blondie to Puccini, Ray Charles and Randy Newman. And it all happens in a little corner of paradise hidden on Tucson's booming northwest side.
Show time is 7 p.m. in Tohono Chul Park, 7366 N. Paseo del Norte. Admission is $7, $4 for park members, and reservations are required. For reservations and other information, call 742-6455.
Friday 29
CLEAN AIR CRUSADE: Leap astride your two-wheeled steed and join the forces of good for another Community Bike Ride.
Held on the last Friday of each month, these fun, informal forays are a great way to stoke your ticker, and make the crucial point that fossil fuel is a friend to neither man nor beast. Take a look at our increasingly vaporized horizon--or at the gridlock filling our streets--if you're skeptical.
The free Community Bike Ride leaves at 5 p.m. from the Time Market parking lot, 444 E. University Blvd. Rides last approximately one hour. Call 792-1334 for details.
MILITARY REVUE. Join America's folks in uniform at the 2000 U.S. Army Soldier Show in Sierra Vista.
The 26-member cast takes the stage with more than 50 songs for an 80-minute show. "They perform the latest hits, everything from salsa to Top 40," says spokeswoman Tanja Linton. "It's really great stuff."
And the troupe includes talents like Krisandra Jackson of Fort Huachuca's Military Intelligence Battalion. "Being selected for the 2000 Army Soldier Show is important to me. ... I've wanted to do it ever since I saw the show while at basic training," she says. "Traveling, singing, dancing and performing has been my life's dream since I can remember--sitting in front of the TV as a kid and watching Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey live in concert."
Join the spirit at 7 p.m. today and 2 and 7 p.m. tomorrow at the Sierra Vista Buena Performing Arts Center, 5225 Buena School Boulevard. Take I-10 east to the Sierra Vista exit; drive-time is approximately one hour. Tickets are free, but must be obtained in advance by calling (888) 921-4745.
Saturday 30
WELL-ROOTED. Tucson's deep-rooted Desert Survivors have been nurturing plants and people since 1981. Now you can lend them a hand, and score some wonderful arid-land flora at the same time.
The unique non-profit group has two goals: promoting appreciation and preservation of the Sonoran Desert, and providing meaningful and dignified work opportunities for adults with disabilities. And both of those efforts come together at this annual plant sale, featuring some 300 species of low maintenance/low water-using desert plants, shrubs, trees, ground covers and cactus, all at 10 percent off regular prices, with even greater discounts for members.
The sale runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow at 1020 W. Starr Pass Blvd. For details, call 884-8806.
SOUTHWEST CELTS. The Mollys bring their mix of original and traditional folk/roots music back home for a performance in Plaza Palomino.
With a sound steeped in influences ranging from country and Mexican to Irish (complete with penny whistles, guitars, accordion, harmonica and bouzouki), the band combines compelling vocals with electric bass and drums. Longtime favorites on the local club circuit, they exploded onto the national scene a few years back. The rest, as they say, is history. The Washington Post describes them as "Wynona Judd singing the Lucinda Williams songbook backed by the Pogues and Los Lobos."
Show time is 8 p.m. in Plaza Palomino, on the southeast corner of Fort Lowell and Swan roads. Advance tickets are $12, available at Antigone Books, Brew and Vine, Enchanted Earthworks, the Folk Shop and Hear's Music, or by calling 297-9133. Tickets are $14 at the door.
Sunday 1
HIGHLY COMPOSED. The music of acclaimed composer Daniel Asia is highlighted in a concert on the UA campus.
Asia's major orchestral works include four symphonies, a piano concerto, a cello concerto, two song cycles and the works At the Far Edge, Black Light and Gateways. Most of his pieces, though, are written for chamber ensembles and soloists.
Tonight's showcase will feature soprano Faye Robinson, tenor Robert Swenson, pianist Tannis Gibson and the riveting Lorenzo Trio with violist Hong-Mei Xiao. The concert will include the second part--and world premiere--of Asia's E.E. Cummings Songbook; Pines Songs, from the recently released CD Songs from the Page of Swords; and the composer's Piano Quartet.
The performance is at 7:30 p.m. in the UA Crowder Hall, on the southwest end of the pedestrian underpass at Speedway Boulevard and Park Avenue. Tickets are $10, $8 for UA employees and seniors, $4 for students, and are available by calling 621-1162.
FAIR EXCHANGE. Gather up yer kin and head out to the Kennedy Arts and Crafts Fair, hosted by Tucson Parks and Recreation.
More than 75 craft folk will be on hand, offering everything from doilies and dolls to wall hangings, jewelry and coffee mugs. Heck, there might even be a durned Beanie Baby or two kickin' around.
The fair runs from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. in Kennedy Park, 3700 S. Mission Road. Admission is free. Call 791-4063.
Monday 2
STELLAR SLEUTH: Join intergalactic gumshoe Sam Snork and his sidekick Elmo as they uncover universal truths in Planet Patrol, now showing at 11 a.m. every Saturday in the UA Flandrau Science Center planetarium.
That's just one of the stellar shows now on the Flandrau roster. There's also the family-oriented Clouds of Fire: The Origin of the Stars, showing at 3:30 p.m. Monday and Tuesday, 3:30 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday.
And Under Arizona Skies explores the very latest discoveries made by our own local astronomers. The show also notes which planets and stars are visible in the night sky, and how to spot them. It runs at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and 3:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Our Place in Space shows at 10 a.m. Saturday, and Star Stealers: Planet Patrol II shows at 1:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.
Tickets for planetarium shows are $5; $4.50 for seniors, students and the military; and $4 for children ages 3 to 13.
Flandrau also boasts the state's largest mineral museum, and tons of great hands-on science exhibits. Show admission includes museum visits. Museum hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday, with telescope viewing from 7 to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. Admission is $3, $2 for children, and free for kids under age 3. For information, call 621-7827.
Tuesday 3
MEXICAN MUSING. The painting of religious images on sheets of tin was a flourishing 19th-century folk art tradition in Mexico. Called retablos, these small oil paintings were most often created by primitive, untrained artists from the provinces.
Now the timeless craft is revisited in Mexican Folk Retablos: Images of Devotion. The exhibit is open during school hours through October 12 in the G.A.S.P (Great Art by Students and Professionals) Gallery, inside Utterback Middle School, 3233 S. Pinal Vista. Call 617-6100 for information.
PICK OF THE DAY. Enjoy a bit of fresh air--and keep the doctor away--with an apple-picking foray.
Seven days a week, the folks at U-Pick Organic Produce offer fresh, tree-ripened Red Delicious, Golden Delicious and Granny Smith apples at a measly 50 cents per pound. And fresh windfalls go for a mere 25 cents per pound.
U-Pick Organic is open daily from 8 a.m. to dusk through mid-November. The farm is at 1291 Dragoon Road. Take I-10 east, traveling 13 miles past Benson to Dragoon Road, exit 318. Drive south for another 10 miles and look for the sign. For information, call (520) 826-1266.
Wednesday 4
DATE WITH A DIVA. Grammy nominee Maria Muldaur brings her sultry sound to the immortal El Casino Ballroom.
With 24 albums under her belt, Muldaur is among the top interpreters of American roots music, from R&B and jazz to gospel, blues and New Orleans rhythms, with a little jug band and classic country thrown into the mix. And she's recorded with the best, including Dr. John, Ry Cooder, Paul Butterfield, Lowell George, Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Wonder and Hoagy Carmichael.
That's all evident on her new CD, Meet Me Where They Play the Blues. "Sweet, slow and sultry," says Blues Revue magazine. "Blues dripping with Louisiana heat."
Show time is 7:30 p.m., with Louisiana chow served at 6:30 p.m. in El Casino Ballroom, 437 E. 26th St. Advance tickets are $15, available at Antigone Books, Brew and Vine, Enchanted Earthworks, the Folk Shop and Hear's Music, or by calling 297-9133. Tickets are $17 at the door, with a $2 discount for KXCI members.
LITERARY LIGHT. Noted writer Elizabeth Evans will read from her work at a gathering hosted by the UA Poetry Center.
Evans has received many grants and fellowships for her writing, including a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship and the James Michener Fellowship. She's the author of Carter Clay, The Blue Hour and Rowing In Eden, recently published by HarperCollins.
The Los Angeles Times Book Review praised her new novel, saying "Elizabeth Evans builds this complex and compelling tale with an authority many veteran novelists would envy."
The free reading is at 8 p.m. in the UA Modern Languages auditorium, on the main mall east of the administration building. Call 321-7760 for information.
