I’ve been blogging about this monthly event every month before the 2nd Saturday of the month. There’s been free outdoor movies to see hosted by Cinema La Placita and even often free films (or live performances) at The Screening Room (127 E. Congress St.). This Saturday the Cinema La Placita showing is at a new location: the Old Pueblo parking lot, 43 E. Congress St. between Scott & Stone Ave.

There’s been live music bands on the streets of E. Congress and close by, on the large Scott Avenue Stage (between Congress and Broadway), and at both the Fox and Rialto Theaters.

Performing along E. Congress are usually the 7 Pipers Band (Scottish bagpipes), and sometimes the mute or singing/dancing living statues from the Parasol Project. Tucson Circus Artists on stilts are usually entertaining downtown.

Food vendors and art & craft merchants are often selling their wares somewhere near the Scott Avenue Stage (there’s been some changes due to the modern streetcar construction). And eclectic art receptions have been held at Sacred Machine (245 E. Congress), The Drawing Studio (33 S. 6th Ave.), Dragonfly Gallery (146 E. Broadway), and Etherton Gallery (135 S. 6th Ave.)

Check out the event schedule every month at www.2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com.

There’s even entertainment now (or so I hear) on the top of the somewhat new green Pennington Street Garage (110. E. Pennington). This venue is being abbreviated as T.O.P. (Top Of Pennington) with jazz, rock & roll music, etc. Check it out.

And if you’re new to Tucson, or rarely go downtown, here’s your chance to enjoy downtown Tucson, mostly for free at this urban street fest. Just find Congress Street and roam around that area between the Hotel Congress & Rialto Theater on the east end, to the Fox Theater on the west end.

I love hearing taiko drumming probably because of my Japanese ethnicity, but so do a lot of people all over the world who aren’t Japanese. Venture downtown on 2nd Saturday Downtown on March 9, to hear this lively Tucson taiko group Odaiko Sonora (who celebrated their tenth year anniversary in 2012). They will be performing at 5 p.m. (to 5:45 p.m.) at the Scott Avenue Stage (between Congress and Broadway).

Odaiko Sonora is Tucson’s taiko, or Japanese ensemble drumming group. Serving southern AZ since May 2002, Odaiko Sonora is dedicated to increasing familiarity with and understanding of taiko in our community. We do this for over 30,000 people each year through classes and master workshops, performances, school residencies, teambuilding workshops and by producing concerts by internationally acclaimed taiko artists.

Lots more info here: www.tucsontaiko.org.

They will also be at Tucson Festival of Books on March 10, 1 p.m. at the UA Mall, in the Education Bldg. room 310:

Rome, Karen and Shiro (aka Bugsy) will participate in “Bringing the Arts, Literacy and Technology Together for Kids,” a session for educators and parents. We will be announcing the release of a new book featuring our plucky hero Asako and her devoted, magical dog.

I wrote about their first book “Asako, The Girl who Saved Her Village” last year (click here). They are working on a new book entitled “Asako, the Girl who Woke the Sun”, and it reportedly references the Uzume/origin of taiko myth, and is a story about Yokai spirits and magic. The plot is that young Asako journeys with her dog Shiro to find sacred drum beats that will coax the sun back.

Asako who woke the sun, illustrated by Nadia Hagen, preview image courtesy of Odaiko Sonora

For more events on 2nd Saturday Downtown on March 9, go to their event schedule (click here).

For more events at Tucson Festival of Books (March 9 and 10) go to their website (click here).

Info from 2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com website. I’ve listed a few of the events below, but go to that website for the full schedule.

Friday, Feb. 10:

4pm: GRAND OPENING, hosted by KOLD Channel 13 and Chuck George. Mayor Jonathan Rothschild will open the festivities to an antique airplane fly-by and the raising of the 1912 American Flag originally flown over the Arizona Capitol. This event will take place at the main stage on 6th Ave., just south of Pennington.

Plus lots of musical entertainment on two stages (6th Ave x Pennington, and Scott Avenue Stage x Broadway), 4:15 pm. to 9:30 p.m.

…and more events along Congress Street including Cinema La Placita’s 6 p.m. showing of 1963 movie “McLintock!” (starring John Wayne) filmed at Old Tucson Studios.

Saturday Feb. 11:

2nd Saturdays Downtown usual excitement & events, plus music starting at 12 noon at 6th Ave. x Pennington stage. Scott Avenue/Broadway stage starts up at 1 p.m. with puppet shows for the kids, plus more exciting groups like Brazilian Batucaxe at 4 p.m. and Japanese Odaiko Sonora (taiko drums) at 5:15 p.m.

AND don’t miss the events over at the Joel D Valdez Main Library , 101 N Stone (11 to 5 p.m.), or at UA Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd. for an “AZ 100 & Counting” free event (3 to 5 p.m.)

Over at the Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress Street:

1:30pm-3:30pm: “A Special Chat with Noted Tucsonans of the Past,” presented by the Downtown Centennial Committee. This historic event will present reenacted interviews with a few of the famous men and women who helped create the State of Arizona and build The Old Pueblo, from 1912 to present. After the historic re-enactments the audience will enjoy films of Southern Arizona life in the early part of the twentieth century. This film is a composite of several travel logs gathered from 1920-30 by the “The Sunshine Climate Club,” an early Tucson tourist promotion group.

Cinema La Placita will be showing at 6 p.m. the classic 1940 movie “Arizona” (starring William Holden), also filmed at Old Tucson Studios.

Sunday Feb. 12:

Several events starting with an early 9 a.m. downtown bike ride, ending up with an 8 p.m. Dweezil Zappa (son of Frank) Concert at the Rialto Theatre (see below)

9 a.m.Celebrate the Centennial with a 1.5 hour bike ride, discovering Sonoran Desert street trees. Learn to identify different low water native trees in the Downtown streetscape, planted by volunteers, neighborhoods, the City of Tucson and the Downtown Tucson Partnership as part of the 1,000 Trees Please campaign. This easy bike ride through downtown and neighborhoods meets at the SE corner of Broadway Blvd. and Scott Ave

Scottish Rite Cathedral, 160 S. Scott Avenue:
2pm-4:30pm: ACLU presents “Arizona Civil Rights Memories”, a panel discussion moderated by former Tucson mayor, George Miller. Retired Arizona Supreme Court Justice Stanley Feldman, retired UA Law School Dean, Professor Emeritus Charles Ares will be on the panel, as well as ACLU of Arizona Founding Board Member Cornelius Steelink.

Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress Street:

8pm: Zappa Plays Zappa All Ages. After taking more than three years off to study the physical performance and technical compositional techniques of his father, Frank Zappa, Dweezil Zappa began his search to create a combo that could, according to Dweezil, “accurately execute Frank’s music in the most authentic way humanly possible.” Rather than creating what he called a “circus” of Frank’s former bandmates, Dweezil’s focus was on providing an avenue for the elder Zappa’s music to new generations of listeners. (Tickets: $26-$56)

Enjoy the many festivities downtown and around town, all birthday celebrations for Arizona.

If you haven’t been downtown on E.Congress Street on the 2nd Saturdays Downtown, you have been missing a lot. Check out the link above for a complete listings of events.

On the Scott Avenue Stage (between Congress & Broadway):
5:15pm: My Town Music (student showcase)
6:15pm: Frisky Frolic Stilt Dance Party
6:30: Desert Melodies (holiday tunes)
8pm: Dance for A Cause (dance & Choir)
8:45pm: Fire Performance by Poi-Zen
9pm: Diane Van Deurzen & Lisa Otey (jazz, blues)

“A Christmas Story” the 1983 movie will be showing at 6 p.m., at Cinema La Placita’s venue at the large gravel lot on Congress between Scott and Stone Avenues. “Ralphie has to convince his parents, teachers, and Santa that a Red Ryder BB gun really is the perfect gift for the 1940′s”. The movie stars are Peter Billingsley, Darren McGavin and Melinda Dillon. Just in time for the holidays.

Be there on December 10 for 2nd Saturdays Downtown, 5:00 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. (or later….)

No horrible holiday sweater contest this year? I went to Rockin’ Queen Inc. boutique last December just to see some, but the Grinch must have stolen them as I didn’t see any. Last year’s blog (click here).

And the next 2nd Sat. is coming up on January 7, 2012, a year since that tragic mass shooting on January 8, 2011 which cancelled that scheduled 2nd Saturday Downtown event.

Happy Holidays!

Every month on the 2nd Saturday of the month, our dilemma is what to do downtown on Congress Street. Should we go to a concert the Fox Tucson Theatre, or listen to music at the Scott Avenue Stage, or watch a Cinema La Placita movie at the big empty lot on Congress Street, or, or, or….

There’s so much to do that the choices are overwhelming. Sometimes it’s just fine to walk along and about Congress Street between the Hotel Congress and the Fox Theater, and just enjoy the Parasol Project mute performers, the street minstrels, the circus folks on stilts, the food wagons, classic cars, the children enjoying their world of fun. And don’t miss the monthly athletic acrobatics of Les Avenge (this month at the SW Corner of Congress St./Stone Ave. 6pm-10pm).

Since August, 2011 a group of independent film makers have been showing free films on 5th Avenue:

The Short Film Showcase is a major event in Tucson, Arizona and will be a revolving event that will take place on the second Saturday every month on 5th Ave between Broadway and Congress on the south end on the Rialto Building Patio. Several local talents from Tucson, Arizona will have their shorts screened at this event. It is free to the public and will take place on November 12th, 2011 outside and will start at 7pm and last till 9:00pm. Short Film Showcase Facebook contact –TucsonSFS@groups.facebook.com or Daniel Geffre, geffreap@live.com/520-271-1026 or Yuri Machado, authenticproductions@live.com/520-331-2451.

Right up the street from this Short film Showcase is a brand new urban coffee bar, Sparkroot (for more photos, click here).

Also new to downtown is the Mars & Beyond exhibit in the Rialto building (catercorner from Sparkroot), which opened on October 22. Here’s the description from the 2nd Saturdays Downtown website:

Mars & Beyond 300 E. Congress St. 622-8595. 9am-9pm. The wonders of Earth’s neighborhood, our solar system, in stunning color and clarity, with an emphasis on Mars, including some of the latest cutting edge scientific work by UA teams on NASA’s HiRISE Mars high-resolution orbiting camera, the Phoenix Mars Mission science lab lander, the upcoming OSIRIS-REx, and more.

For the entire event schedule for Nov. 12, click here. And as for food, most of the restaurants are open, plus there’s all types of inexpensive food at the wagons parked along the south side of Congress Street between Scott Avenue and Stone Avenue. There’s even a booth on Scott Avenue selling delicious-looking, decorated cupcakes.

Enjoy 2nd Saturdays Downtown in November!

photo courtesy of Donovan Durband

From 2ndsaturdaysdowntown website for October 8:

At the Fox: The Tucson Symphony will make their encore appearance at the Fox Tucson Theatre and kick off the downtown-wide Who Shot Rock and Roll events and exhibits.

On the Scott Avenue Stage: In line with the celebrations of Tucson Rocks – featuring local exhibits of rock and roll photography at Tucson Museum of Art and Etherton Gallery, along with Zocalo’s pop-up gallery of local photographers, the outdoor stage hosts bands spanning the rock and roll gamut!

6pm-7:15pm: Combo Westside – “five member Tucson-based ensemble that blends more traditional latin genres such as bossa nova and bolero with contemporary music styles such as rhythm and blues, soul and funk”.

7:30pm-8:45pm: Cheepness “Sonoran Dirty Rock” – the kind of rock that recalls a time when cranking guitar extravaganzas were the highest order of the day and rock fans were damn glad of it.

9pm-10:15pm: The Mission Creeps “Surf-damaged-Rock-n-Roll” – a throwback to the dangerous edge of The Stooges and the serrated humour of The Cramps.

At the Rialto Arts & Antiquities Patio (SE corner of 5th Ave. & Congress St.): Kevin and Tanishia Hamilton present SW Soul Celebration. Starts at 6pm.

This year Tucson’s Pride on Parade will be held in conjunction with 2nd Saturdays Downtown. The theme is “People Representing Individuality, Diversity and Equality.” The parade will start at 6th Street and Pennington at 8:00 p.m. & go south, then west on Congress to Stone Ave. Grand Marshalls are Wendell Hicks (Executive Director, Southern AZ Aids Foundation), Dr. Heather Moroso (founder of Positively Beautiful), Scott Blades (Executive Director of Tucson Interfaith HIV/AIDS Network), & Jeffrey Scott Brown (creator of the AIDS Ribbon). Info: www.TucsonPride.org or call 520-622-3200.

www.2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com

What more is there to say after blogging monthly about this wildly-popular monthly event since the inaugural kick-off on May 8, 2010? The usual fun starts at 5:30 p.m. and goes to almost 10:30 p.m. (and beyond at the lounges/bars and at The Grill, open 24/7).

At the Scott Avenue Stage on July 9:
6:30-7:30pm – 4th Street String Band
7:45-9pm – The Imperial Blue Bloods
9:15-10:30pm – The Modeens

Indian Village Lot – Kid’s Corner! Between Stone & Scott on Congress St.
Cinema La Placita Presents: “Singing In The Rain” (showing after sundown, around 7:30pm)

Just be there….downtown on/around E. Congress Street, between the gorgeous Fox Tucson Theatre and historic Hotel Congress, two iconic mainstays of this urban street festival. Grind will be performing free at 7 p.m. at the Fox.

2nd Saturdays Downtown is mostly free and it’s all fun.

Odaiko Sonoran performing

2nd Saturdays Downtown is held the second Saturday of every month, from 5:30 p.m. until 10 p.m. Odaiko Sonora is scheduled to go on stage at 6:45 p.m. so don’t miss it!

Odaiko Sonora is Tucson’s taiko, or Japanese ensemble drumming group. Serving southern AZ since May 2002, Odaiko Sonora is dedicated to increasing familiarity with and understanding of taiko in our community. We do this for over 30,000 people each year through classes and master workshops, performances, school residencies, team building workshops and by producing concerts by internationally acclaimed taiko artists.

Go to www.2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com for event schedule information. This drumming event will be canceled in the case of inclement weather. (I grew up in Hawaii and was an adult in Massachusetts before I knew what inclement weather meant, as we rarely had any).

Info on Odaiko Sonora’s drumming classes & other upcoming events, go to their website, www.tucsontaiko.org, or email them at info@tucsontaiko.org.

The March 12th 2nd Saturday Downtown event coincides with the St. Patrick’s Day Parade & Festival (click here for my previous blog). The one hour parade will begin at 5:30PM on 14th & Stone Avenue, wind through Downtown – E. Congress, Broadway and 6th Avenue – ending at Armory Park, where the festival will be. (The St. Patrick’s Day festival starts there at 3 p.m., prior to the parade, and will go on throughout the evening.)

This is the eleventh 2nd Sat. DT urban fest since the inaugural event on May 8, 2010. Website: www.2ndsaturdaysdowntown.com. It’s been almost one year of these fun- filled urban street fests, and I’ve been to almost every one. It’s wonderful to see Downtown come alive again!

For the usual event schedule, click here for the music entertainment at The Rialto Theatre, the Fox Tucson Theatre, the Scott Avenue stage, and the numerous other locales on and around E. Congress Street. Most of the events are FREE. There are lots of booths too selling delicious food (from all nations), and crafts as well. And lots of clowns, street musicians, people on stilts, human statues, etc. etc.

Food note: delicious, creative crepes will be made & sold in the Planet of the Crepes wagon on Saturday night (photo below courtesy of Jessica Kraus, owner).
She serves freshly made fruit crepes but also ones with chicken, vegetables, and other unique combinations.

Planet of the Crepes wagon

Had a mango/strawberry w/ coconut flakes crepe this past Sunday at the new European Farmers’ Market on the NE corner of Campbell/Speedway, and it was “some ono” – Hawaiian Pidgin English for yummy. (Her cute crepe wagon reminded me of the ubiquitous lunch wagons back home in Hawaii).

Photo below taken by Jeff Smith of the Zsa Zsas (McZsa Zsas?) group slated to perform at The Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress, for free (along with a real leprechaun):

Enjoy another 2nd Saturday Downtown! And don’t forget to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day again (for real) on March 17.

So, coming up Feb. 12, TNT (AC/DC Tribute) will now be re-scheduled at the Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress St., 7 to 9 p.m.

Listed below is the event schedule from 2nd Saturdays Downtown website, with a message of sympathy:

We are regrouping for Feb 12th to celebrate Tucson’s community,
to honor those who were lost on Jan 8th and to offer healing to those recovering. Mucho amor a Tucson!

Fox Tucson Theatre, 17 W. Congress
7pm: Tucson’s Christian Youth Theater presents Roald Dahl’s timeless story of the world-famous candy man “Willy Wonka.” ($10 to $15)

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Scott Avenue Stage (between Congress and Broadway):
5:45pm-7:00pm: Tammy West & The Culprits (Soulful Americana)
7:15pm-8:30pm: Five Way Street (Classic Rock)
8:45pm-10:00pm: Kevin Pakulis Band (On the rock side of Americana)

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Congress Street @ 4th Avenue
6pm-9pm: Les Avenge (beat boy acrobatics)

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Along Congress Street

4:45pm-5:15pm: 7 Pipers Band
5:30pm-7:30pm: Odyssey Story Arts Cart
6pm-10pm: Living Statues by Parasol Project

Live mural paintings by Joe Pagac, SW corner of Congress & 5th Ave.

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Scott Avenue @ Congress Street

6pm-9pm: Odaiko Sonora (Taiko Drumming, demos & hands-on workshops)

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Along 6th Ave.

5pm-10pm: Cristales Car Club

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Ronstadt Transit Center @ 6th Ave. & Congress St.

*7pm-9pm: Magician John Coppin performs a non-stop show*

5pm-6pm: The Wonderfools (family variety show)

Wonderfools taken by Shanda Romans, courtesy of 2nd Saturdays Downtown

6pm-7pm: Avatara (ethno psychedelic fusion)
7pm-7:30pm: Batucaxe (Brazilian drum & dance)
7:30-8pm:The Wonderfools (family variety show)
8pm-9pm: Lykiska (tribal fusion bellydance)
9pm-10pm: Mik Garrison (eclectic one-man band)

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Indian Village Lot – Kid’s Corner! Between Stone & Scott on Congress St.

West Wall: Cinema La Placita – 6pm – Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971, with Gene Wilder)
7:45pm – City High Short Films Festival: “As We See It – Digital Narratives” on the topic of Unconditional Love

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Old Pueblo Garage, 27 E. Congress St.

5pm-7pm: Jacob Garcia

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NW Corner Congress St./Stone Ave.

5pm-7pm: Mik Garrison (eclectic one-man band)

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Chicago Store, 130 E. Congress St.

6pm-9pm: Deceptively Innocent (Rock/Pop/Alternative)

Log onto 2nd Saturdays Downtown website (click here) for more info on the entertainment schedule (plus more photos). If you haven’t been downtown for this 2nd Saturdays monthly event yet, you’re in for a real urban treat, just prior to Valentine’s Day!