Tucson Weekly: City Week (May 21

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Thursday 21

City Week HERP HOOPLA. Reptiles are among the earliest earthly inhabitants. And plenty of them--exotic and otherwise--will be on hand at Bookman's when Min and Bill Johnson of the Tucson Herpetological society shed a little light on these fascinating creatures.
Their free lecture is from 7 to 9 p.m. in Bookman's Northwest, 3733 W. Ina Road. For details, call 579-0303.
BEST OF SMALL. More than 45 top Tucson artists will share their visions in reduced form for the Davis Dominguez Gallery's sixth-annual Small Works Invitational. In this case, small is defined by one-foot-square paintings, or sculpted pieces no taller than 18 inches. Participating artists range from Jim Davis and Lynn Taber-Borcherdt to Alfred Quiroz and Jim Waid. This is also the last show in the gallery, before it relocates to its new downtown digs.
Exhibit runs through July 11 in the Davis Dominguez Gallery, 6812 N. Oracle Road. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. For information, call 297-1427.

Friday 22

SPLIT ENDS. She of the long, lovely locks is back in Arizona Youth Theater's performance of the children's classic, Rapunzel. This timeless fairy tale comes complete with an unfortunate maiden, charming prince and evil witch, all performed by children and teens.
Tonight's performance is 8 p.m. in the Arizona Youth Theater, 5671 E. Speedway. Performances continue at 11 a.m., 2 and 4 p.m. tomorrow, with additional performances May 29 and 30. Tickets are $6, $4 for children, available by calling 546-9805.
DEEP THOUGHTS. It was three years ago in a swimming pool that Tucson artists David Andres and Ann Simmons-Myers realized they had something in common besides the scent of chlorine: Water was a shared subplot of their work. Soon the longtime friends were committing their common vision to paper, and the result is now on display in Immersions, a collaborative exhibit in the UA Museum of Art.
Viewed from above, Simmons-Myers' "reconnaissance" photographs are clear and precise, incorporating definitive contours of the medium juxtaposed with the soft lines of human forms swathed in fabric, foliage, and the surrounding water.
By contrast, Andres' paintings are his personal visions of life under water, often times translated from his scuba-diving experiences. Fluid and transparent, the pieces fade in and out of each other.
Immersions runs through August 9 in the UA Museum of Art, located in the Fine Arts complex at the south end of the pedestrian underpass on Speedway and Park Avenue. Hours are 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday. Call 621-7567 for details.
HOPS TO IT. Over the last year, the Nimbus Brewing Company has emerged as a cutting-edge hops house, combining raucous music with above-average brewskies.
"We're definitely different from all the cookie-cutter, yuppie micro-breweries in town," says owner Nimbus Couzins. "They're upscale, and we're not at all. We've got couches around, and it's in a warehouse. We're also hard to find."
That said, neither the brewery's obscure location near Ajo Way and Palo Verde Road, nor its low-scale digs, have deterred a growing crowd of regulars. "We're especially getting a good Friday afternoon crowd these days," Nimbus says, "with Degrees Plato playing great bluegrass every week. It's a kick."
Raise a pint to Degrees Plato tonight between 6 and 9 p.m., and then stick around for late-night fun with the Old Pueblo's best party band, The Pork Torta, and the twisted country sound of Caliche Con Carne. Admission is $2 after 8 p.m. Nimbus Brewing Company is at 3850 E. 44th St. For information or directions, call 745-9175.

Saturday 23

TUCSON SIDEWINDERS. Baseball! Hot dogs! Cold beer! Fireworks! Celebrate the start of summer with the Tucson Sidewinders, the Naked Pueblo's Triple-A ballclub. Hey, it's cheaper than a trip to Bank One Ballpark, and down here the home team might actually win a game! The Sidewinders celebrate Memorial Day weekend with a fireworks fiesta following tonight's ballgame against the Oklahoma Redhawks. The fun starts at 7 p.m. at Tucson Electric Park, 2500 E. Ajo Way. The homestand continues through May 25. Tickets range from $3 to $8. For more information, call 434-0121.
PAST PRESENT. The verdant little burg of Patagonia celebrates 100 years among the lush southern Arizona hills with a three-day centennial bash featuring everything from fine art to sack races.
Founded in 1898, the "Jewel of the Sonoita Valley" thrived during the early 1900s as a shipping center for cattle and ore. These days, Patagonia is a charming hub of ranchers, naturalists, artisans and retirees.
Today's celebration kicks off with a parade at 10 a.m., followed by a barbecue lunch, trail tours, a historic fashion show and music by Mariachi Apache, The Stringbenders and the Busted Cowboys. Event runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today through Monday. Patagonia is located on Highway 82, between Nogales and Sonoita. Drive time is approximately one hour. Call (520) 394-0060 for details.
CRUISING THE NET. Some 4,000 athletes from 400 teams tear up the net when the Tucson Parks and Recreation Department hosts the 1998 Open National Volleyball Championships. More than 3,000 matches will take place in the TCC, and on the UA campus. Celebs like Tom Selleck and former U.S. Olympians will also be on hand, joining volleyball whizzes from across the globe in this worldwide event. Competition runs from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. through Saturday, May 30. Games will be held in the TCC, 260 Church Ave., and the UA Student Recreation Center and Bear Down Gym. There will also be a special Wild, Wild West Night from 6:30 to
11 p.m. Monday, May 25, at Fourth Avenue and Seventh Street. For information, call 791-4560.

Sunday 24

MELODIC MEMORY. The Music Ministry of St. Francis in the Foothills presents An Afternoon to Remember, featuring a variety of church groups. There will also be a special performance by Tucson favorite--and St. Francis artist-in-residence--Lisa Otey.
Performance is 2 p.m. in St. Francis in the Foothills, 4625 E. River Road. A $10 donation is suggested. For details, call 299-9063.
INTERIOR SKIES. See the heavens brought to earth at the UA Flandrau Science Center's stunning, state-of-the-art planetarium shows. Showing today: Before the Age of the Dinosaurs and Dinosaur Chronicles at 1:30 p.m.; Light Years from Andromeda at 2:30 p.m.; and Under Arizona Skies at 3:30 p.m. Admission is $5, $4.50 for seniors, UA faculty and staff, military and students, and $4 for children ages 3 to 12. For information and additional show times, call 621-7827.

Monday 25

SKIN DEEP. The Glamouresse Cosmetic Company is sponsoring a beauty contest, and from the talent competition to the evening gowns, Invisible Theatre's production of Robert Longbottom's Pageant encourages the audience to help the "celebrity" judges pick the winner.
That means the six finalists compete for the title of Miss Glamouresse in the traditional categories, parade their evening gowns and swimsuits, and hawk such Glamouresse products as Smooth-as-Marble Facial Spackle, and a nutritious lipstick called Lip Snack that comes in 27 shades and flavors.
Tonight's preview parade begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Invisible Theatre, 1400 N. First Ave. Performances continue Tuesday through Sunday, through June 14. Show times vary. Tickets range from $16 to $18, available by calling 882-9721.
REFLECTIVE PAUSE. Join the Tucson Estates Property Owners Association and American Legion Post No. 102 as they pay tribute with Tucson's only Memorial Day parade.
The commemorative celebration will feature a platoon of luminaries, including Rep. Jim Kolbe, the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base Color Guard and Drill Team, Sabbar Shrine clowns, more than 60 floats, and music by Our Guys. There will also be plenty of food and drink.
Free event is 9 a.m. at Western Way and Kinney Road. For details, call 578-9099.

Tuesday 26

GREEN GANGA. Wrap up your spring planting and save a few bucks in the process at the Tucson Botanical Gardens' yearly end-of-the-season nursery sale. The TBG nursery specializes in drought-tolerant and desert-adapted plants; and all stock, including trees, shrubs, perennials and cacti will be half-priced.
Event runs from 9 a.m. to noon today through Friday, and 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, at the gardens, 2150 N. Alvernon Way. Call 326-9686 for information.
ATMOSPHERE CENTRAL. It's an esoteric little Fourth Avenue joint that's quickly making a name for itself with an eccentric roster of entertainment, ranging from environmentalist folk singers to belly dancer dinner shows.
Now the increasingly bustling Casbah Tea House continues its different drumbeat with music by Marius and Planet Jamm. Show time is 8:30 p.m. in the Casbah Tea House, 628 N. Fourth Ave. Call 740-0393 for information.

Wednesday 27

APPALACHIAN VISION. The UA Poetry Center recalls our favorite late environmental writer, gadfly and ornery curmudgeon with Ed Abbey's Appalachian Vision, a multi-media presentation by author and professor Dr. Jim Cahalan. He'll explore Abbey's far-ranging life and examine how his native Appalachian surroundings influenced his writing and environmental attitudes. Using both oral histories and research from the Abbey collection at the UA, Cahalan connects the author's deep concern for the wilderness with what the researcher calls an "Appalachian view of the world."
Free event is 8 p.m. in the UA Swede Johnson Building, 1111 N. Cherry Ave. For information, call 321-7760.
BEYOND THE NOVELTY. It might raise thoughts of rosary beads, Virgen de Guadalupe candles and exotic Spanish missions. But there's far more to regional religion than a few trendy artifacts and funky shrines. Tucson Museum of Art Docent Olivia Arrieta sheds light on the heavenly Latin picture with a lecture titled Mexican American Folk Religious Practices.
Free lecture is noon in the TMA, 140 N. Main Ave. For information, call 624-2333.
READING RENDEZVOUS. Ever wonder just what your kids are reading at school, and how it may affect their tender little minds? You can get a few answers to those questions when the Pima Association of Taxpayers hosts a panel discussion titled Could Two Plus Two Equal Twenty-Two, Or Is it Just Time to Buy Another Goldfish?
The gathering will spotlight "famous and infamous" local textbooks, including controversial texts used for far-ranging subjects like math, social studies and literature. Panel members will include Cathy Esposito, Amphi associate superintendent of curriculum; Steve Goss and Larry Hunter, co-leaders of Arizona Parents for Traditional Education; and parents Ken Marcus and Carol Whigham.
Free event runs from 6:30 to 8:45 p.m. in the Woods Memorial Library, 3455 N. First Ave. Call 887-0112 for details.

City Week includes events selected by Calendar Editor Tim Vanderpool. Event information is accurate as of press time. The Weekly recommends calling event organizers to check for last-minute changes in location, time, price, etc. To have material considered, please send complete information at least 11 days prior to the Thursday issue date to: Tucson Weekly, P.O. Box 2429, Tucson, Arizona 85702, or fax information to 792-2096, or email us at listings@tucsonweekly.com.

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