While the governor may have kicked the state mask mandate to the curb, our friends at the Fox Theatre are reminding us to mask up with their new "hacked" movie poster series hanging outside the venue.

Created by Sante Fé artist Mattew Chase Daniel, the Masking Movie Posters project features several doctored iconic movie posters—from classic Zorro and the Lone Ranger to the 1994 Jim Carrey comedy The Mask—now wearing masks to promote mask use and getting vaccinated as the pandemic continues.

“As the Crown Jewel of Downtown, we feel that the Fox is ideally positioned to take a lead in encouraging everyone to work together cooperatively to move the needle," Fox Executive Director Bonnie Schock said. "Being able to fill our poster cases with such meaningful images to the public obviously fits into our messaging.”

Daniel approached the theater about displaying his recently completed work last February, which was made possible by a grant from the Sante Fé CARES initiative. As a part of the grant, the artist has to distribute his unique posters to theaters across the country.

His posters currently grace the poster cases of movie houses in Sante Fé and  Albuquerque, New Mexico; Austin, TX; Charlotte, NC; Pasadena, West L.A. and North Hollywood, CA.

The Fox is currently scheduling shows and events for September on a limited basis, Schock said.

Visitors to Downtown Tucson will again hear children laughing and playing when the Children's Museum Tucson reopens on March 25.

While the Museum may have been closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Executive Director Hilary Van Alsburg said that the staff has been busy working on activities, exhibits and attractions.

“We have spent the past year developing new programs, expanding our exhibits and gearing up for reopening - we are so ready for families to come back to play. Our focus is on fun engagement and welcoming families back to in-person experiences safely.”

The Museum, 200 S. Sixth Ave., will be limited to one-third capacity, with timed admission at 9 a.m., 10:30 a.m., noon, 1:30 p.m.  and 3 p.m. Admission is $9 per person and visitors are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance at ChildrensMuseumTucson.org. Discounts are available for military and visitors on public assistance.

Anyone 5 and older will be required to wear masks inside the Museum. The extended outdoor space and visitor limit ensure there is ample room for social distancing while allowing children to explore and play.

The Museum's other location, 11015 N. Oracle Road, will reopen on April 1. They've added a new train table, updated Toddler Town and new outdoor play activities. This Early Childhood Education-focused space will be open from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Thursday-Sunday with limited capacity. Admission is $7 per person with advance tickets available online and discounts available.

Local students, ages 5-19, are being asked to submit original poetry, photography or visual art focusing on water and the natural world for this year’s Living River of Words contest. The deadline to enter is April 2.

In past years, Pima County's Living River of Words program took students on a field trip to study the Santa Cruz River and its surroundings: conducting water quality tests, observing wildlife and plant interactions, while taking time for reflection and journaling. Students then would work with local artists to create entries for the contest. But because of the COVID pandemic, learning experiences will be virtual this year.

Finalists and grand prize winners will have their poetry and artwork included in the annual exhibit and published in the exhibit booklet. Finalists’ artwork will also be submitted to the International River of Words contest.

For more information about the LROW program please visit www.pima.gov/RiverOfWords or contact the Pima County NRPR Environmental Education group at (520) 724-5375 or eeducation@pima.gov.

Learning activities will include watersheds and wetland habitats, and the practices of poetry, photography and visual arts. The schedule of upcoming workshops is available on the website and includes:

• Visual Art Workshop, ages 7-10: Wednesday, March 17, 10 a.m. – noon
• Visual Art Workshop, ages 11-14: Wednesday, March 17, 1 – 3 p.m.
• Poetry Workshop, ages 7-10: Thursday, March 18, 10 a.m. – noon
• Poetry Workshop, ages 11-14: Thursday, March 18, 1 – 3 p.m.
• Photography Workshop, ages 9-14: Saturday, March 27, 2 – 3 p.m.
• Multimedia Workshop, ages 15-19: Saturday, March 27, 10 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Twice a year, the Pima County Public Library selects a local writer in residence to teach writing workshops and hold office hours for the community. For the upcoming spring semester, PCPL has selected Gregory McNamee, a local writer, photographer and journalist who has released multiple books on the culture and history of Arizona.

McNamee’s selection marks the 11th writer in residence since PCPL started the program in 2016. The residence is open to authors of any genre, and previous writers in residence include Alice Hatcher, J.M. Hayes, Janni Lee Simner, Susan Cummins Miller and Tucson Weekly's Margaret Regan.

Due to COVID, the writer in residence office hours will be conducted over Zoom in 30-minute blocks. McNamee will offer these one-on-one consultations every Tuesday from 9 to 11 a.m. and Thursday from 1 to 3 p.m. But there will be no sessions offered on Thursday, Feb. 11.

During his tenure, McNamee will also host three virtual workshops:

• The Sonoran Desert in Literature: Saturday, February 6, 2021, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
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• The Nature of Fact: Saturday, March 13, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
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• Writing Nonfiction: Saturday, April 10, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

"I'm fond of the program because it embodies so much of the library's mission," said Holly Schaffer, PCPL community relations manager. "It allows the community to learn about writing in different styles and genres. It really demystifies the process of writing."

The Writer in Residence Program is funded by the Arizona State Library, Archives, and Public Records, a division of the Secretary of State, with federal funds from the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Hotel McCoy, Tucson’s own “art hotel,” is continuing its goal of supporting local creators with the announcement of Barrio Books — a brick and mortar bookstore now open in the hotel. Barrio Books, which opened Saturday, Jan. 2, aims to promote cultural representation for all ages with books in English and Spanish.

The bookstore was founded by Syrena Arevalo-Trujillo, a University of Arizona alum who noticed a lack of representation for children of color in literature while teaching at a local charter school.

Arevalo-Trujillo was looking to open a bookstore at the same time Hotel McCoy, 720 W. Silverlake Road, was developing a “community support program for entrepreneurs who were seeking opportunities to start a storefront business.”

Barrio Books dedicates 15% of their shelf space to Indigenous authors and authors of color. They carry new and used books, including local authors, and have a book trade-in program. Hotel McCoy guests will receive 10% off Barrio Books purchases.

Hotel McCoy, which opened in 2018, showcases Tucson’s art and culture by having local artists design the hotel’s rooms and lobbies. In addition, they offer local food, beer and more.

For more information, visit barriobooks520.com and hotelmccoy.com

The annual Luminaria Nights celebration is one of Tucson Botanical Gardens' largest events. The gardens, illuminated by thousands of paper lanterns, are filled with holiday decorations, local musicians, food and drinks, and even Santa.

COVID-19 threatened to entirely remove this beloved event from the calendar. But TBG reworked their plans and are instead hosting "Wanderland," a similar event with extra precautions. Much like Luminaria Nights, Wanderland sees the gardens filled with holiday lights and decor, but there are no performers and capacity is greatly reduced.


As the name suggests, guests are encouraged to move through the park rather than gather around performers as in years past, for the sake of social distancing.


Instead of the usual jazz bands and carolers, the gardens are still featuring some of the Dia de los Muertos sculptures from their "La Calavera Catrina" exhibit among the Christmas lights.


The Tucson Botanical Gardens' Wanderland takes place Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. through Sunday, Jan. 3. Tickets are $15. Reservations Required. For more information, visit tucsonbotanical.org/event/wanderland

It’s Ballet Tucson’s 35th anniversary and the company is hitting the town to celebrate with social distancing performances at several local hotspots.

The 2020 Pop Up Performances kick-off Saturday at the Tucson Botanical Gardens with a Día de los Muertos-themed recital taking place alongside the garden’s La Calavera Catrina exhibit featuring 9-foot-tall skeletal depictions of figures of Mexican culture.

"I am so happy to be performing in these pop ups . . . art is so vital to our community, and during these times particularly so,” said Ballet Tucson company dancer Casey Myrick in a recent email. “Ballet has always famously brought magic to life for children and adults alike. The setting of the first pop up this weekend in the Tucson Botanical Gardens lends itself exquisitely to this show and couldn't be a more fitting venue."

However, before you attend be aware you need to purchase time-specific tickets at tucsonbotanical.org. The Botanical Gardens is limiting guest capacity and requiring face masks to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Upcoming performances:

• Nov. 7 – 6:30 p.m. & 8 p.m. at the Tucson Botanical Gardens
• Nov. 15 – 11:30 a.m. & 12:30 p.m. the Tucson Museum of Art
  
• Dec. 5 – 6:30 p.m. & 8 p.m. Holiday theme at Reid Park Zoo
• Dec. 12 – 6:30 p.m. & 8 p.m. Holiday theme at the Tucson Botanical Gardens
• Dec. 20 – 11:30 a.m. & noon Holiday theme at St. Philip’s Plaza, free performance

"These performances are much more intimate and informal than what our audience normally sees when they attend the ballet, but we think they will still be very uplifting and inspiring,” said Ballet Tucson spokesperson Margaret Mullin. “We're trying to create choreography that will be complementary to the venue and safe for our dancers to perform while still being exciting for the community."

Elegant dance moves on the stage are only part of the story, because the pandemic has shuttered the company’s ability to collect ticket sales. However, Ballet Tucson had a successful fundraising campaign during the summer and sees the Pop Up Performances as a means to assist local attractions during the pandemic.   

The performances are included in the cost of admission to the venue and it’s a way to support these local institutions.

“We just wanted to make sure that we were partnering with organizations that have deep roots within the community,” Mullin said.

Uplifting others is a common refrain from Tucson Ballet this fall with Mullin expressing her gratitude to Tucson Weekly readers for naming the troupe the Best Dance Company in Best of Tucson 2020.

“It makes it so much easier knowing that the community has confidence in us and values us, because we know that no matter what steps we have to take going forward, they will be there to support us,” she said. 

For those unable to attend in person, the company has online offerings including its bi-weekly series “Ballet Tucson 101” on YouTube and previews on Facebook at @ballettucson.

Tickets are only accepted at your preregistered time in order to comply with social distancing and COVID-19 precaution measures, restrictions vary by location. For more information visit www.ballettucson.org/performances-and-tickets

As the drums ring out the Chinese New Year in a Singapore market, two young women wearing face masks watch the celebration. It's a scene characteristic of local artist Jacqueline Chanda’s work, which often allows the viewer to construct their own narrative of a scene. 

“I like to catch these those kind of scenes where people can say ‘I wonder what they were thinking?’ or ‘I wonder where was this guy is going?’,” Chanda said. “Did he have intent or was he was he simply taking a stroll?”

Chanda’s painting, “Girl with a Turquoise Face Mask,” is based on a photograph she took while on vacation in February. The artwork is featured in the “Great American Paint In,” a new collection of works which shares artists’ experiences of living through the pandemic.

“The Great American Paint In,” now available online, documents the emotions felt by professional artists across the country, with 48 states represented in over 250 pieces, according to project founder, artist and engineer Bill Weinaug.

“I put a lot of effort into trying to make sure I did not lose my business at the end of the day, because I had no clue when the end of the day was coming,” Weinaug said. “And my daughter's telling me ‘Dad, you just can't shut down you need to stay relevant. This will be over with someday.’”

His daughter pitched him the idea of taking the “plein air” painting events he hosted at his eco-resort Wekiva Island in Longwood, Florida, and moving them online. Arists gather for plein air painting events and simultaneously paint their outdoor environment.

“In our case they go out into the wilderness and they paint for a week,” Weinaug said. “So they come with blank canvases, every day they add art and we build a temporary art gallery.”

Thus, “The Great American Paint In” was created. Artists paint their response to the pandemic and the emotions of quarantine, and submit the work to a jury who decides if it merits inclusion in the project.

The concept was a natural fit for artists nationwide with ample time to practice their craft but without access to galleries or events. The project’s website allows the artists to be able to sell their work and promote themselves. 

Weinaug said he used his training as an engineer to investigate previous pandemics and said he didn’t see much art being created at the time of the outbreaks.

“We wanted to document what was going on in America during this pandemic so that future generations could look back and see it through the artist's eyes,” he said

Through the eyes of Chanda’s since returning to the United States somethings that haven’t changed is she goes into her studio to paint but finds herself accumulating more of her work.

“It's really been that sense of isolation, not being able to be connected with my friends, my daughter lives with me and my mother is not too far from here ... So I see her often enough, but it's been a different sense of isolation, it's an unwanted isolation,” she said.

Weinaug’s vision for the project is for it to serve as a textbook example of how to paint emotion. He intends to publish the collection as a book and is in the process of selecting a publisher but noted: “We're still in the middle of the pandemic and the story is still being written.”

To view the collection and Chanda’s submission, visit: thegreatpaint-in.com

Moments of carefree, silly joy are more valuable than toilet paper, these days. The Best of Gaslight Fall Revue is chock full of them. While the folks at the Gaslight haven’t been able to hold a show in their indoor theater venue on Broadway Boulevard since March, their drive-up porch concerts throughout the summer were a delight. Order a pizza, a root beer float, or even some alcohol and sing and laugh along to a series of numbers that are almost impossible not to sing and laugh along to. (Bonus: You can also leave your windows rolled up and listen to the show through your radio, if you tune it to the right dial).

As the weather cools down (however slightly) the Gaslight has launched a special fall edition of the show, featuring a series of community favorites from the past 42 year, with an emphasis on spooky numbers and silly costumes. We’re talking the Time Warp, The Monster Mash and I Put a Spell on You, of course, but also fun renditions of tunes like Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, Secret Agent Man and Silly Love Songs.

It’s really something special to watch the Gaslight crew perform, because you can tell how much they all love what they do. David Fanning, who has been with the theater for 27 years, now lives in New York. When the pandemic shut down venues across the country, he watched the Gaslight folks begin their porch concert series via Facebook, and missed performing there so much that he came back for a visit. Mike Yarema, who’s been with the theater for over 20 years, treated us to a series of his classic, cringe-inducing jokes (“What do you say about a mummy joke that’s really bad? It sphinx!”) and a variety of numbers—including an enticing performance as Doc Croc from the Gaslight’s show Spider-Guy. Heather Stricker, who started with the theater back in 2000, wears about a million different hats/wigs/outfits in the show, and looks and sounds great in all of them.

Take it from the group of kids in the parking space behind us dancing with ecstatic abandon to “Puttin’ on the Ritz”: If you’re looking for a night of fun, an opportunity to support local art and a delicious slice of pizza, you can get them all in one place at this show.

The Best of Gaslight Fall Revue takes place at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Saturday and Sunday nights through Sunday, Oct. 25. The theater is located at 7010 E Broadway Blvd. Pizza and popcorn packages are available at the time of reservation, and additional menu items are available at the show. You’re welcome to bring chairs and set up outside your car, but be sure to maintain social distancing and wear a mask when interacting with your servers. Bathrooms are available, and will be sanitized after each use. $40 per car.

The Tucson Botanical Gardens has opened a Dia de los Muertos-themed exhibit after COVID-19 forced them to close their doors in March. “La Calavera Catrina'' decorates midtown with nine-foot-tall depictions of Mexican cultural figures as joyful skeletal sculptures. The works are created by Los Angeles-based artist Ricardo Soltero, but the La Catrina figure is rooted in the satirical eye of illustrator Jose Guadalupe Posada towards his early 20th century Mexican society.

Posada found himself growing angry at seeing his fellow Mexicans go beyond merely adopting French fashion to literally making their skin appear whiter than their natural tone by using powders.   

“Jose Guadalupe Posada got tired of it,” Soltero said. “At the end of the day, we are all of real hard bones, no matter the color of our skin.”

This is the first time the exhibit, organized by the Denver Botanic Gardens, is on display outside of Denver.

This idea of a common humanity across cultures is a major reason Soltero thinks the influence of the Day of The Dead has grown in recent decades, and is a source of great pride that people globally have embraced the holiday. Additionally “La Calavera Catrina” offers visitors an opportunity to see the gardens showcased in a way never before seen, according to botanical gardens spokesperson Rob Elias.

“We’ve added just a tremendous amount of lighting,” he said. “They're going to be in a range of colors that fit thematically ... We're going with a lot of oranges and purples and reds and yellows and blues. It's gonna be quite stunning.”

The Tucson Botanical Gardens closed on March 17 because of pandemic restrictions, drying up 70 percent of the gardens' income from lost ticket sales, gift shop sales and special events, according to executive director Michelle Conklin. However, the gardens were kept fiscally solvent during the closure from several sources.

“We had we had to make up a significant portion of our budget,” Conklin said. “Between donations from individuals, the Family Foundation and we were fortunate to receive a PPP loan and EIDL as well.”

Changes instituted by the gardens to slow the spread of COVID-19 include rerouting how guests walk through the gardens to accommodate social distancing, turning some walkways into one-way travel.

“Now the gift shop is an exit-only, and the entrance is around the corner where we've built a brand new admissions building on the northern part of our property,” Elias said.

With the COVID-19 closure and visitors cut off from the gardens, Elias said that Tucson Botanical Gardens like many other organizations has placed a greater emphasis on digital outreach by adding the largest number of online classes the gardens has ever had. Regular garden programing such as docent tours and children’s storying telling can now be found online while art and wellness classes for adults.

“We've had a phenomenal chef that we've been working with and she's been making all kinds of delicious food and we're actually going to be rolling out this week our class schedule for the fall,” Elias said.

Visitors need to plan ahead to experience the exhibit because the gardens have moved to a reservation system as a COVID-19 precaution. Guests select the number of tickets and a two hour block of visiting time during the day from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The gardens will also be opening during evening hours Thursday through Sunday in hour and a half time slots from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Additionally the gardens will have another exhibit “Bird Houses & Nests” opening on Sept. 26 through Jan. 3. The organization SculptureTucson will feature 13 original art pieces from 13 local artists. The exhibit is centered around the theme of birds and nesting conveyed with large-scale sculptures in the gardens, the pieces themselves were built with the Tucson Botanical Gardens in mind.

For more information, visit tucsonbotanical.org