Tucson Weekly: City Week (October 2

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Thursday 2

FLYING HIGH. As you may or may not recall, Johannes Eckhart was an amazing 13th-century Christian mystic who said, "The eye with which I see God is the same eye through which God sees me."
City Week Eckhart's remarks about God twice earned him condemnation from the medieval Roman Catholic Church. Though he successfully defended himself the first time, he died before rallying a second, thus making him forever ineligible for sainthood.
Today his legacy is carried on here in the Old Pueblo, with the Tucson debut of Airborne: Meister Eckhart, performed by Orts Theatre of Dance. This production captures one day near the end of Eckhart's life in 1328, portrayed by more than 35 dancers, actors and singers in medieval costumes, accompanied by a dozen low-flying trapezes. Dancers will perform against a backdrop of music by Desert Voices, and narration by Patrick S. Cunningham. See this week's dance preview for details.
Opening is 8 tonight, 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday, and 2 p.m. Sunday (no Friday show) in the PCC Center for the Arts, 2202 W. Anklam Road. Advance tickets are $8, $6 for students and seniors, available at Bentley's House of Coffee and Tea, and Silverbell Trading. Discounts are available for groups and religious organizations. Call 624-3799 for reservations and information.

Friday 3

NUEVO FLAMENCO. Tucson faves Willie and Lobo bring their high-spirited nuevo flamenco acoustic gypsy music to town tonight, along with special guest Sunyata.
Since the 1993 release of Gypsy Boogaloo, Willie Royal and Wolfgang "Lobo" Fink have been rampaging across the land with their distinctive style--a unique blend of jazz, Cajun, Tex-Mex, flamenco, Middle Eastern and other exotic influences.
Opening duo Sunyata--Canadian Jim Gawne and Stuart Munro, a Scot--deftly dodge stock musical formulas to create what's described as a "meeting of subtle structures, spontaneous improvisation and happy accidents."
Show time is 8 p.m. in the Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway. Tickets are $14 and $16, available at Antigone Books, Hear's Music, or by calling 881-3947.
LAND MIND. Artist Laurie Lundquist redefines the space between environmental issues and constructivist sculptural concerns in her latest exhibit, Surface Tension.
This kinetic installation reveals the physical and visual properties of water, using pools reminiscent of water treatment tanks or field irrigation systems. She achieves her effect through a mechanical system of belts and pulleys hanging from the ceiling, in turn powering simple devices that draw on the water's surface. Light bouncing off those disturbed surfaces then project animated patterns on the gallery walls.
Surface Tension is on display through November 6, with an opening reception from 5 to 7 tonight, in the UA Joseph Gross Gallery, located on the southeast corner of Speedway and Park Avenue. Regular gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday. For details, call 626-4215.

Saturday 4

PERFECT ANGLES. The American Institute of Architects-Arizona presents Architecture Week 1997, featuring an exhibit of work by some 40 local architects, on display today through Saturday, October 11, in the Tucson Mall. Other displays will be at the Main Library, 101 N. Stone Ave., and the Wilmot Branch Library, 530 N. Wilmot Road.
On Sunday, free walking tours explore El Presidio and surrounding downtown neighborhoods. Tours depart at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. from the Tucson Museum of Art, 140 N. Main Ave. Reservations are required; call 622-6248.
On Monday, studio owner Rick Joy hosts a free, interactive building workshop for kids at 7 p.m. in the Main Library. Call 791-4393 for details.
Other programs include a home addition and remodeling workshop tomorrow; a lecture by prominent Mexico City architect Enrique Norten, and a building workshop by architect Kathy McLaughlin, both on Wednesday. A straw bale workshop convenes on Saturday.
For details, call 622-6248.
SPLINTERED RECOLLECTIONS. Talk about a wondrous stroll down one whacked-out memory lane. Yep, the rumors are true--the famed Splinter Brothers and Sisters Warehouse is back, now in the retrofitted, reined-in form of Splinter Group Studios.
Gone are the wild, kaleidoscopic murals, desiccated couches and furry dancing masses that rendered the old space a rhythmic poltergeist. In their stead is a latter-day crowd of downright serious artists ranging from Ed Davenport and Leon Allemon to Elizabeth Frank, Allen Burke, Kevin Mills and Ted Silverman.
Today, these folks celebrate the warehouse's grand rebirth with an open house running from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Splinter Group Studios, 911 N. 13th Ave. For details, call 620-0280.

Sunday 5

LITTER BOX LITURGY. Fluffy, Fido and Spike can increase their chances for a ticket to the big hereafter at St. Philip's In the Hills 21st-annual Blessing of the Animals Mass, honoring that most notable of pet lovers, St. Francis of Assisi. This popular gathering will include special music, children's choirs and an outdoor communion.
All creatures, four legged or otherwise, are offered a shot at redemption at 9 a.m. in St. Philip's, 4440 N. Campbell Ave. Call 299-6421 for details.
SPACE CADETS. Buck Rogers will always be fondly remembered for repeatedly saving this unwieldy planet from certain doom. But aside from such trifling accomplishments, the superhero is also symbolic of an era of remarkable technological change.
That transformation may be a boon or bust, depending upon your Luddite leanings. But cartoonists early in this century didn't sweat over philosophical queries. Guys like Phil Nowlan and Dick Calkins, Buck's creators, were simply too busy chronicling their fantastical plots and astounding characters. Now their visionary work is on display as part of the Pima Air and Space Museum's Technology Fair.
Other exhibits of man's scientific juggernaut will be provided by groups including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Universal Avionics, UA Imager For Mars Pathfinder Team, and NASA's Space Engineering Research Center, among others.
Proceeds go towards the Museum's planned Challenger Learning Center for Space Science Education. Geared towards school kids, the center will encourage the study of math, science and technology.
Fair runs from noon to 5 p.m. in the Pima Air and Space Museum, 6000 E. Valencia Road. Admission ranges from $3 to $6. For information, call 574-0462
TENDER TUNES. The Civic Orchestra of Tucson presents a Kid's Classical Afternoon, preceded by the ever-popular Musical Instrument Petting Zoo. The concert features 16-year-old violin virtuoso Alexander Woods, and will include classics ranging from Grofé's Grand Canyon Suite to Mendelssohn's "Fingal's Cave."
Activities begin at 2 p.m. in the Berger Performing Arts Center, 1200 W. Speedway. Admission is free. For information, call 791-9246.

Monday 6

BOUNDARY BUSTERS. Ever-adventurous Zeitgeist productions--spearheaded by Tucson jazz guru Steve Hahn--fire up their Jazz at the Institute series with a performance by internationally known improvisers Tim Berne and Michael Formanek.
Sax-man Berne and bassist Formanek each boast more than two decades in the musical trenches, working nearly every genre from traditional swing to the most blown-out avant-garde. Berne's story perhaps best accentuates the pair's idiosyncratic career: Picking up the horn at the ripe old age of 20, he studied under World Saxophone Quartet co-founder Julius Hemphill after becoming transfixed by a single recording, Dogon, A.D.
By the late '70s, Berne was recording on his own Empire label. A string of acclaimed releases eventually landed him a contract with Columbia Records, where he won further praise with a pair of brilliant recordings, Fulton Street Maul and Sanctified Dreams.
Formanek also has charted a distinguished path, working with famed saxophonist Art Pepper at age 19, and later recording with musical legends including Freddie Hubbard, Chet Baker and Stan Getz.
Tonight, the duo treats local audiences to a low-key performance at 8 p.m. in the Mat Bevel Institute, 530 N. Stone Ave. Advance tickets are $9, available at Last Wax Records. Tickets are $10 at the door, with a $1 discount for TJS and KXCI members. For information, call 621-7355.

Tuesday 7

MEDIUM MASTERS. Founded in 1887, the French firm Maisson Sennelier has provided the goods for artistic stars like Picasso, Cézanne, Gauguin, Chagall and Klien. Today, Dominique Sennelier, third-generation director of the prestigious company, makes a pilgrimage to Tucson.
Described as "a veritable treasure-trove of fascinating stories, technical information, history and art theory which have been passed down by his family for three generations," Sennelier is also noted for his profound knowledge of the impressionists and the birth of modernism.
This free seminar runs from 6 to 9 p.m. in St. Philip's Murphey Gallery, 4440 N. Campbell Ave. Call 795-1229 for details.
NOCTURNAL SHIFTS. The Art's For Me Studio hosts its Night of Many Moods fundraiser, featuring music and avante-garde fashions for any flight of fancy. Performing will be rockers Ash Black and Thrust, accompanied by the latest in rubbery attire provided by Hydra. Proceeds benefit the studio's art scholarship program for at-risk youth and the disabled.
Event begins at 7 p.m. in Shedmans Nightclub, 6211 E. 22nd St. Tickets are $5, available in advance from the Art's For Me Studio, and at the door. For information, call 293-4919.

Wednesday 8

ROCK AND ROLL HEART. The word's out: Whatever you do, don't call Tinsley Ellis a bluesman. "I'm a rock and roller who plays the blues," says the powerful ax-man and vocalist. "Calling me a blues man seems a disservice to the older guys who've spent a lifetime paying dues."
But Ellis packs a bit of a legacy himself, with five solo albums and endless tours under his belt. And Rolling Stone says, "Assertive originals...feral blues guitar...non-stop gigging has sharpened his six-string to a razor's edge...His eloquence dazzles...he achieves pyrotechnics that rival Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton."
Tonight, Tinsley Ellis performs at 9 p.m. in the Boondocks Lounge, 3306 N. First Ave. Tickets are $8 in advance and for TBS members, available by calling 690-0991. Tickets are $10 at the door.

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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