A Comedic Take on a 1936 Film
'Behind the Screens'
9 p.m., Tuesday, June 4
The Loft Cinema at the Mooney Backlot Bar and Lounge, 3233 E. Speedway Blvd.
795-7777; loftcinema.com
Director and cast commentaries are the best part of DVD sets, right? Well, Tucson-based comedy troupe Slow Clap is looking to make such commentary more available ... but without the help of actual filmmakers.
Slow Clap will host a new monthly series at the Loft called Behind the Screens. The group will screen a film with the volume turned down low and talk over it, as if they were the cast and crew.
On Tuesday, the 1936 film Captain Calamity: The Story of Captain Bill Jones and His Island Adventures will be screened. It's a cautionary tale about a poor ship's captain who sees one of his passengers throw a gold coin in the ocean, calling the money bad luck. The captain goes after the gold and decides to have a little extra fun. He lies, telling stories about finding chests filled with treasure at the bottom of the ocean. His fib spreads quickly, leading to his kidnapping, torture and murder by greedy townspeople.
The film starts at 9 p.m. and will run for just more than an hour. It will be shown on the Loft's new back patio area.
The monthly Behind the Screens shows are also part of Happy Tuesdays, the Loft's new weekly comedy night. At Happy Tuesday events, the bar opens at 8 p.m. The Behind the Screens shows are free and open to all ages.—C.G.
Small, Fast Birds
Hummingbird Rehabilitation
2-3:30 p.m., Saturday, June 1
Valencia Library, 202 W. Valencia Road
594-5390
You may have noticed small, colorful birds fluttering around your gardens and backyards. March through the summer is the peak season for hummingbirds to be out. Spotting these birds locally should be no surprise; at least 17 known species in the U.S. and Canada are known to nest in Arizona.
Noreen Geyer, a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, will give a 90-minute presentation at the Valencia Library from 2 to 3:30 p.m. about the tasks of hummingbird rehabilitation. She will also speak about the challenges the hummingbird species face in Southern Arizona. The presentation is free and will give guests the opportunity to ask Geyer questions.
Geyer rehabilitates hummingbirds in her house. She has been working with hummingbirds for the last five years. When Geyer receives a hummingbird she has to record everything. She gets the contact information of the person, who brings her the hummingbird, the location of where the bird was found, the progress of the bird and when it is released.
A common call Geyer gets is someone thinking that hummingbird eggs or hatchlings are abandoned. Hummingbirds incubate their eggs and when they need to feed, the parent bird goes out to get food and comes back to feed. She says before intervening one should observe the nest site to see if the mother returns to feed and what direction it flies off in. If the eggs or hatchlings are abandon Geyer will take it.
Geyer said her goal is to expand the program and to get more people involved transporting and monitoring nests.
"I would love to see people in a place that will be doing that but in order to do that they have to put in time volunteering with me," Geyer said.
— N.H-G.
Saving the Little Theater
"Puttin' on the Spritz" Fire Sprinkler Fundraiser
7 p.m., Friday, May 31
Red Barn Theater, 948 N. Main Ave.
887-6239; redbarn-theater.angelfire.com
If you are looking for a night of fun and in the process want to support a locally owned theater, pack your family in the car and head to the "Puttin' on the Spritz" Fire Sprinkler Fundraiser on Friday, May 31 at The Red Barn Theater. It will be a night of comedy and song highlights from the theater's past shows such as Mary Poppins and favorites by Irving Berlin, plus games, puppetry and sing-alongs. All the proceeds from the $10 tickets will go to the $5,400 estimated cost of putting in a fire sprinkler system that needs to be installed by June 10.
The Red Barn Theater is owned and operated by Rosemary Snow, who has invested both her own money and constant labor to create the Red Barn Theater, directing and producing a variety of children's musicals and revues. Children of all ages come to practice with Snow twice a week for the free programs, providing an affordable outlet for their talents. Snow does not do it for the fame or recognition, she "does it all for the children."
Trish Carlise, the mother of a child who performs at the Red Barn Theater said she brought her older children there and they had nothing but fond memories, so she now brings her youngest daughter, who is four years old, who will be singing songs from Mary Poppins at the benefit.
The Red Barn Theater is also home to The Red Barn Theater Company that does Broadway-style shows, and Tucson Improv Movement that does Improv every Saturday.
Donations can also be made online to help pay for the cost of installations of the fire sprinkler system.
— N.H-G.
Giving Native Voices a Boost
'Stjukshon: An Indigenous Reading Series'
7 p.m., Saturday, June 1
Casa Libre en la Solana, 228 N. Fourth Ave., No. 2
Casa Libre is giving indigenous writers an opportunity to showcase their work.
Stjukshon is a series of readings that seeks to celebrate the work of indigenous writers and artists working in a variety of mediums.
Bill Wetzel, a Blackfeet tribal member, is the curator of the event. Wetzel says he started the series when he realized that, despite the large local Native American community, there weren't a lot of opportunities for Native Americans to show off their writing.
"Nobody else was going to do it, so I put it together," Wetzel said.
The name of the series, "Stjukshon," is one of the ways that the Northern Piman term for Tucson can be written. It means "spring at the foot of a black mountain."
The people who have read during the events so far have all been friends of Wetzel. He has gotten a few recommendations from people around town, but he's still looking for more people to invite. He asked that suggestions for participants be sent to him at silverbutcher2@hotmail.com.
The June reading will be the third in the series, with a reading about every two months. Wetzel recorded the last event and plans to do the same with future readings. Videos can be found on Wetzel's YouTube page under the moniker "Bill the Butcher 2." The readings are free but there is a $5 suggested donation.
—C.G.
