Arts and Culture
The Films of Sofia Coppola. Watch the movies of the iconic director every Thursday in April. Some of Coppola's most noted works are The Virgin Suicides (1999), Lost in Translation (2003) and Marie Antoinette (2006). She was the first American woman ever nominated for a Best Director Academy Award, and after you watch her movies, you'll see why! On April 6, you’ll see Marie Antoinette. Next Thursday, April 13, the Loft bring you The Virgin Suicides. Show time is 7:30. The Loft Cinema, 3233 E. Speedway Blvd. Regular admission prices.Kore Press Presents Tracie Morris. Inspired by Arizona's SB1070 legislation (which many feel opens the door to racial profiling), artist, actor, experimental vocalist and scholar Tracie Morris returns to Tucson. Morris will be doing a free reading from her recent book of vocal and poetic experiments From 3 to 5 p.m. Thursday, April 6, at the UA Museum of Art, 1031 North Olive Road. From 5 to 9 p.m. Friday, April 7, Morris performs a dinner theatre piece, injecting a black female perspective into Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut, at Scottish Rite Cathedral, 160 S. Scott Ave. Tickets are $25-$65. Morris and musician/scholars Mark Hosler and Bob Ostertag discuss how sound shapes politics, history, activism and protest from 12:30 to 2 p.m. Saturday, April 8, at the Jewish History Museum/Holocaust History Center, 564 S. Stone Ave. Then from 3 to 5 p.m., Morris and poet/musician Sam Ace create an improvisational set at Steinfeld Warehouse, 101 W. Sixth St. Both Saturday events are part of Tucson’s Noise Symposium and are free. Finally, Morris leads a workshop on creating page-based, physically-embodied poetics through sonic exploration from 9 a.m. to noon Sunday, April 9, at the Dunbar Pavilion, 325 W. Second St. $40. For more information, visit korepress.org.
Food & Booze
Wine Gone Wild 2017. The Reid Park Zoo isn't just going wild over the lions and tigers and bears, but over wine too. Sample a variety of wines from different distributers while enjoying treats and live music all in support of our cute zoo animals. You’ll be able to paint wine glasses and have encounters with the critters, although you probably don’t want to be too tipsy while interacting with wild animals. This year's event is offering a VIP Package for guests who want to learn more about the conservation life while getting to meet one of the zoo's rhinos. VIP guests will also receive a T-shirt and bottle of wine. The Early Access VIP Package will allow you to enter the zoo at 5:30 p.m. to begin your rhino experience. Otherwise, the event is 6 to 8:30 p.m. Friday, April 7. Reid Park Zoo, 3400 E Zoo Court. Advance tickets: $65 per person, $55 for zoo members, $25 per designated driver, $120 VIP “Winos for Rhinos” VIP Package (or $150 if you want the early access option). Day-of-event pricing: $70 per person; $60 per member; $25 per designated driver.Ginormous Food Filming. If you are a Food Network junkie and want a behind-the-scenes peek, head out to Stray Dogs and see a live taping of the Food Network's Ginormous Foods. The title is pretty self explanatory, but for those of you who have never watched the show, the host drives around the U.S. in search of America's largest foods—the kind of plate that holds enough calories to feed an entire Nicaraguan village. Don't forget to sip one of Stray Dog’s loaded milkshakes while you’re there and who knows? You might end up on TV! 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, April 9. Stray Dogs, 78 W. River Road. Free to attend, but bring money if you want something to munch on.
Wonder at the Museum. Channel your inner rugrat at this exciting 21+ event to benefit the Children's Museum. Not only will there be the traditional kind of stuff that kids love—games, face painting, balloon animals, you know the drill—but local restaurants and bars will also be offering food and drink, including selections from BOCA Tacos and Tequila, El Charro Steak, Sir Veza's, Sauce Pizza and Wine, Tucson Tamale Company, Thunder Canyon Brewery, and Woops! Bakery. 6 p.m. Saturday, April 8. Children's Museum Tucson, 200 S. Sixth Ave. Free with a $10 donation.
Community
Arizona Stand Against Racism Zumba Party. Come get your Zumba on and help raise money for other Arizona Stand Against Racism events at this dance party. Patricia Matthews will lead a team of local Zumba instructors, and after you're done busting a move, you can enter raffles for prizes or shop from various vendors like LuLaRoe, It Works, Younique and more. 5:30 p.m. Saturday, April 8. YWCA Southern Arizona Frances McClelland Community Center, 525 N. Bonita Ave. Free, but donations encouraged.Sonoran Spring April Market. Step outside and enjoy the blooming flower’s favorite season. You’ll find food, drinks, crafts and more with Saguaro Market’s annual spring fair. You can shop until you drop by getting the freshest crops of the season. It's only happening for three days, so mark your calendars for organic-lovin' fun. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, April 6, to Sunday, April 9. Saguaro Market, 657 W. St. Mary's Road.
Eggstravaganza! Spoiler Alert: the Easter Bunny is real! Take your kiddies to an eggcellent event at the International Wildlife Museum for crafts, games and pictures with the Easter Bunny himself, so bring a camera. And there’s a candy hunt at 11 a.m. so bring your egg-game (get it?) 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, April 8. International Wildlife Museum, 4800 W Gates Pass Road. $9/adult; $7/senior or military; $4/child ages 4-12; children ages 3 & under free. Museum members admitted free.
2017 Spring SAHBA Home & Patio Show. Whether you’re looking to remodel your kitchen or build an outdoor oasis, the Southern Arizona Homebuilders Association offers something for everyone. Stop by the hundreds of exhibits to learn more about pool and spa construction, window replacements, water treatment systems renovation options and landscaping. Bonus activities include free scuba diving and pet adoptions. There will be plenty of activities to keep kids entertained. On Saturday, Home Depot will host a kids workshop to teach children about tool safety and DIY tips. Other kid-friendly features that day include face painting, storytelling and music with Mr. Nature, and a photo-op with Dusty, the Tucson Road Runner mascot. Friday and Saturday, April 7-8: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, April 9: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 260 S. Church Ave. $8. Children 12 and under free. $4 for attendees over 50 on Friday. $4 for those 65+. Military discounts available each day.
Music
21 Savage. In his first platinum hit, "X," 21 Savage follows in the footsteps of Caribbean-infused rappers like Shabba Ranks, drawling atop a mellow groove that makes oh-so-palatable the usual gangster-bitch-money-flexin’. In the post Luda world, it's hard to hear "fuck a wedding ring, how bout a necklace" without recalling a tiny gilded man grinning on BET. And then there's the Dirty Dirty nod to codeine; Savage comes to us from Hotlanta, though born in Dominica. The best thing about him is his stop-and-start flow, underpinned by the spooky minor melodies of Metro Boomin. If you can put aside qualms with content, the groovy spaces Savage creates between Rolexes and hos is almost enough to pop and lock along to. The repetitious choruses sneak up on you and that synth mesmerizes—it's like Portishead fronted by a fur-hooded emcee who loves to bag bitches bareback. Does it date us too much to pine for Massive Attack? With Young MA, Tee Grizzley and Young Nudy on Saturday, April 8. Rialto Theater, 311 E. Congress. Doors at 8. $35-$42.50. All ages. Country Thunder Music Festival. For the third time in five years, country music party-starter Blake Shelton returns to the AZ desert (outside Florence!) to co-headline this four-day fest. The biggest, baddest of its kind in the state, the fest boasts Arizona-native Dierks Bentley alongside with rising stars Thomas Rhett and Chris Young. Other acts include Jon Pardi, Tyler Farr, Frankie Ballard, Maddie and Tae, Terri Clark, Randy Rogers Band, the Oak Ridge Boys, Joe Nichols, Aaron Watson, High Valley, Gunnar and the Grizzly Boys, and Dorado. Note that the side stage gets a makeover this year—it’s now the Dierks Bentley Whiskey Row stage—and will feature a mix of local and national talent, such as Jared and The Mill, Matt Farris, and Tucson’s own Drew Cooper. The fest draws an eye-popping 25,000 fans daily, many choosing to camp out onsite or pay exorbitant room rates at nearby motels as part of the experience. This desert blast runs from Thursday April 6, through Sunday, April 9. At Country Thunder, Country Thunder West, 20585 E Price (Station) Road, Florence, Arizona. Tickets are available for individual days. Admission for all four days in $190. All ages.
Of Montreal. As one of the most prolific neo-psych bands of modern times, Of Montreal have some incredible albums (2008's Skeletal Lamping) and some fabulous disasters (we’ll let you pick one of the last 15 studio albums that clashed with your personal rhythm at the time of release.) The thing that always makes them an incendiary live act, no matter which album they're touring, is their 100-percent unironic commitment to bandleader Kevin Barnes' obsession of the moment. His sharp lyrical turns has been honed through reading, serially fucking and taking psychedelics, not necessarily in that order, for the last 20 years. With lines like "he's the sort of guy who will leave you in a k-hole to go play Halo in the other room," Barnes can tell it like it is because he's been there. Sunday night with Athens' favorite experimental band promises color and pathos and passion. Go ahead—indulge your inner black shemale. With Christina Schneider's Jepeto Solutions on Sunday, April 9. Rialto Theater, 318 E. Congress. 7 p.m. $14-$17. All ages.
