If the rapidly rising temperatures weren’t an indication, Memorial Day weekend unofficially kicks off one hot Tucson summer this weekend.
Normally, this is a time of year when things slow down, but with vaccinations up and COVID cases on the decline, people are itching to get out and live life again.
Things are happening in Southern Arizona. Here are a few way in which you can participate.
Go Western with Wyatt Earp Days
Up for a road trip? Throw your family in the Buick and travel back in time to the 40th Wyatt Earp Days celebration in Tombstone, about an hour east of Tucson.
If you are an Old West enthusiast, or have access to the Kurt Russell film “Tombstone” on Amazon Prime, you know Wyatt Earp, his brothers Virgil and Morgan and his old pal John Henry “Doc” Holliday, kept the peace in the Town too Tough to Die in the early 1880s.
Earp’s stint as sheriff during that time is cemented in the annals of Western lore. So it makes sense that the tiny town celebrates his memory each year with street reenactments, an 1880s fashion show, music and special guests.
This year’s Wyatt Earp Days will take place 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, May 29-30. Admission is free. Visit facebook.com/wyattearpdays for more information.
Unusual art show in Bisbee
Once you are done gunslinging it in Tombstone, travel the extra 30 minutes south on Arizona Highway 80 to the mining town of Bisbee for an art exhibition of the curious and bizarre.
Dubbed “An Art Show of (Questionable) Art,” the exhibition will take place in the building that houses Sonia Rita Wellness at 50 Main Street, and will feature a selection of pieces that were found in thrift stores, at swap meets and at yard sales, up for viewing and for sale.
The show is being held by two local promoters of second-hand art, Mark Bloom of Curated Mayhem and Bre Sheehan of Abandoned Art.
The exhibition will be open from 6 to 10 p.m. on Friday, May 28, and noon to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 29. Admission is free and crowds will be limited to 20 people at a time.
Visit facebook.com/art.reloved for more information.
Delve into a world of science
For a good time for the whole family, observe the cosmos and swim with sharks at the recently reopened Flandrau Science Center & Planetarium this weekend.
After months of closure to the general public, the center, located on the University of Arizona campus, at 1601 E. University Blvd., is now offering two-hour, timed public sessions at 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m., Thursdays through Sundays.
Each session will offer a different show in the planetarium. Visit at 3 p.m. on a Thursday and take in the full-dome experience of the immersive production, “We are Stars,” or get sucked into Flandrau’s lesson on black holes at 12:30 on Sunday.
General admission to Flandrau is $18 with discounts available. More info at flandrau.org.
Drink beer at Dillinger Brewing
Four years after launching in an unassuming industrial park off of North Oracle Road, Dillinger Brewing Company has opened a second spot in the old Libertine space, 402 E. Ninth St., just north of the underpass that connects Fourth Avenue to Downtown.
The brewery, named for notorious gangster John Dillinger, who was captured in Tucson not too far from where the brewery’s second location now sits, kicked things off last weekend.
Swing by the space and enjoy some of the brewery’s signature beers, including its Dillinger IPA and Roadrunner Red American amber ale.
The patio, which straddles East Ninth Street and North Fourth Avenue, offers comfy couches or high-top seats set against North Fourth for the ultimate people-watching experience. Visit facebook.com/dillingerbrewery for more information.
Get cultured at the TMA
If you are leaning more toward high-end pursuits, you can explore the works of four local artists at Tucson Museum of Art’s latest exhibition “4x4,” this weekend.
The show, which started last week and runs through September, features pieces by Willie J. Bonner, Nazafarin Lotfi, Alejandro Macias and Anh-Thuy Nguyen. Each artist was handpicked by different curators at the museum, according to a press release.
The works reflect different media styles, but come with common themes, the release said, those of personal experiences, and contemporary social issues.
If the art moves you, you can attend virtual discussions with the artists and curators via Zoom. Nguyen will speak on June 3, Bonner on July 1, Macias on Aug. 5 and Lotfi on Sept. 2.
General admission to the museum, at 140 N. Main Ave., is $12 with discounts available. It is open with timed public sessions 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Thursdays-Sundays. Make reservations through tucsonmuseumofart.org.
