The greatest holiday tradition is here!  The Nutcracker is in it’s last weekend at the Chandler Center for the arts and it is not to be missed!  For those of you who haven’t seen the Nutcracker or been to the Chandler Center for the Arts, now is your chance to see a great ballet at one of the best venues in the greater Phoenix area.

For show times and to purchase tickets (with no service charge!!!) please refer to the Chandler Center for the Arts site:

http://www.chandlercenter.org/performances/ballet-etudes.html

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=33.313387,-111.838889&spn=0.014453,0.021372&z=15&msid=110117270783108833567.00045d5648e06951841c9

Now that Thanksgiving is over with, are you ready for some old fashioned holiday fun to get you in the spirit of the Christmas season?  All day today at the Desert Foothills Park is the Festival of Lights Kick off party.  The day’s events is chocked full of fun and unique things to do.  I would list them but there is simply too many things to list.  Here’s the complete list of what’s going on at the Festival of Lights Kick Off Party:

http://www.folaz.org/events-kop.php

The festival climaxes at approximately 6 PM with the Harley Davidson Parade with over 100 Harley Davidson riders parading in and around the park while the million lights are illuminated for the first time this Holiday Season.

If you are looking for something really cool and fun to do today, this is the event you want to attend!

For directions and the location of the Desert Foothills Park, please refer to the following link:

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?address=1010+Marketplace+St&zipcode=85048

For more information, please refer to the Festival of Lights Website:

http://www.folaz.org/

Over 3000 1972 and earlier hot rods, cars and other automotive masterpieces will be on display at the 11th Southwest Nationals at Westworld in North Scottsdale.  If you are a car enthusiast you probably already know about this.  However, if you appreciate hot rods this event is a must see!

Hours this weekend are:

Friday (11/14) from 8 AM to 5 PM
Saturday (11/15) from 8 AM to 5 PM
Sunday (11/16) from 8 AM to 5 PM

Tickets:
General Admission – $17
Kids 7-12 – $6

For more information and pricing if you would like to include your car in this event, please refer to the event promoter’s website:

http://www.good-guys.com/news/newsStory.aspx?newsid=1178

Westworld’s website:

http://www.scottsdaleaz.gov/WestWorld

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=33.636435,-111.888499&spn=0.007914,0.011587&z=16&msid=110117270783108833567.00045ba5364f30dcfe8fd

In case you haven’t heard there’s another Block Party going on in Downtown Phoenix this weekend celebrating the first anniversary of Conspire.  Conspire is an art space in the Downtown Phoenix area that has been generating a lot of positive buzz from the local press as one of the best places to shop for art in the Phoenix area.

The Block Party is free and open to all ages and includes the following activities:

• A do it your self Model and Shoot Photo Studio
• Live Music from bands such as Sonorous, Drunken Immortals, Living Humans Being, Hooves, D.S Yancey, and Wizards of Time
• Dee Jays will be throwing down all day long and include DJentrification, Echo, Dehga, Mosha1, Issa, 1Son, Beatnik, Rojahdat, Jon Dread.
• Silk Screen and Stencil Workshops
• A Burlesque show with La Liberata
• Comedy with Mail Order Brides
• A Fashion Show with Smock You, Heroine, Arte Puro, Dolled Up, Sticker Club, Lola + Lola, Makeshift, and Mystic fibers
• A Bike Ride Adventure ‘Hooked up by Hoodride’
• …and much, much, more.

Come and support a great cultural event this weekend and get out and try something new and fun!

For more information, please refer to the Block Party website:

http://www.conspirephoenix.com

Conspire Arts Cooperative
901 N. 5th St.
Phoenix, AZ

On Sunday November 16th from Noon to 5 PM, there will be a HUGE block party.  The inaugural  “Partners in Prosperity “– The New Indian School Corridor Block Party will take place on Indian School Road from 32nd Street all the way to 38th Street.

According to the organizers…

The Block Party will provide a special and distinctive shopping experience that will make party
revelers want the Indian School Corridor shops and restaurants to become a part of their regular
shopping and dining habit. It will be obvious for all to see that the success of the Indian School
Corridor rests upon the genuine partnership between businesses, neighborhoods, the police,
Sheriff, firemen, parks, neighborhood services, courts, and civic leaders – each working with
and watching out for the other, for the good of all.

Why not come out and support the businesses of the Indian School Corridor and have some fun while you’re at it.  We will be there covering the event.

Among the bands scheduled to Perform:

Hands on Fire
Sketching in Stereo
Holy Rolling Empire
Kinch
Black Carl
SRP Band
Groove Defenders
2nd Shift (SRP Corporate Band)

The events that will be available to all in attendance will include:

- Local school performances including Christ Lutheran’s Bell Choir, Sage Hip Hop
Dance Team, Squaw Peak’s Cheerleading and Chorale, Veritas Prep Madrigal Singers &
Saxphone group.
- Demonstrations including Self Defense demo, Capoereira
- Radio Live Broadcasting –The Blaze (ASU radio station) at Ticket Lobster.com Stage
at 36th Street & Indian School Road
- Slider Eating Competition
- Dunk Tank

Location of the Block Party:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=33.497369,-112.006409&spn=0.008016,0.017209&z=16&msid=110117270783108833567.00045b028cec046b83261

In case you haven’t heard, there’s a HUGE Greek Festival going on this weekend in the Scottsdale Civic Center Mall.  I personally haven’t been to it but it should be a blast if the official website (link below) is any indication of what’s to come.  Expect a review of this event before the weekend is up.

The Hours of the event are as follows:

Friday, November 7  (11am-10pm)

Saturday, November 8 (11am-10pm)

Sunday, November 9 (11am-7pm)

For more information please refer to the Scottsdale Festival of Greece’s website:

http://www.azgreekfest.com

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&ll=33.495025,-111.922531&spn=0.008017,0.017209&z=16&msid=110117270783108833567.00045b026fb5f7cfc0c3f

Beginning its 14th year, the Mesa Community Farmers Market is absolutely an event that should not be missed.

Every Friday morning from 9AM to 1PM, the Mesa Community Farmers Market opens for business.  This is a year-round event (holidays excluded) that has everything that a Farmers market could offer.

The Mesa Community Farmers Market is located “On Center St. just South of University at Rendezvous Green (260 N. Center St. 85201)”.

The Organizers of the Mesa Community Farmers Market would like to encourage you to visit the Arizona Farmers Markets website for the latest updates for the Mesa Community Farmers Market:

http://arizonafarmersmarkets.com/PageMesa/Mesa.htm

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.00045adce81a03be6cbbe&ll=33.424027,-111.831872&spn=0.007629,0.017209&z=16

On every Saturday from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM starting now through May the Arizona Farmers Markets present the Roadrunner Park Farmers Markets.

The Organizers of the Farmers Markets would like to encourage you to visit the Arizona Farmers Markets website for the latest updates for the Roadrunner Park Farmers Market:

http://arizonafarmersmarkets.com/pageRoadrunner/roadrunner.htm

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.00045adbd3b660eb2a69e&ll=33.601752,-112.006624&spn=0.007614,0.017231&z=16

On every Saturday from 8:00 AM to 1:00 PM starting now through May the Arizona Farmers Markets present the Old Town Scottsdale Farmers Markets.

The Organizers of the Farmers Markets would like to encourage you to visit the Arizona Farmers Markets website for the latest updates for the Old Town Farmers Market:

http://arizonafarmersmarkets.com/pageScottsdaleOldtown/ScottsdaleOTsat.htm

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&ll=33.495061,-111.927509&spn=0.007623,0.017209&z=16&msid=110117270783108833567.00045adc80ef366f58e93

Reviewed October 26th

Well our readers have asked for it and we have delivered.

This evening we visited the Twisted Big Top Haunted House in Glendale and it’s sister Haunted House “Haunt of the Living Dead” at the Mesa Riverview. 

The review for “Haunt of the Living Dead” will be in a separate review to be published later today.

I should note right now that there won’t be any pictures of the interiors or any detailed explanations of the Twisted Big Top as I beleive that this is one of the best Haunted Houses I have been too in over 15 years.  If I tried to explain what exactly goes on inside will not only spoil people’s experiences but I simply cannot (or will not) do the amazing experiences in the Twisted Big Top justice.

Twisted Big Top is located at the corner of Westgate Boulevard and Sunset Boulevard on the North west area of the Westgate City Center.  Since the Twisted Big Top is in the same Complex as the Jobing.com Arena and the University of Phoenix Stadium the wait times to get in may vary depending on the other events going on around the complex.  Fortunately, there were not any other events going on Sunday at the Westgate City Center so wait times were really short.  The Twisted Big Top is visible from the west side of the Westgate City Center and is easy to locate no matter where you park on the Westgate City Center Grounds.  There’s a link below that has a map with the exact location of the Twisted Big Top at the Westgate City Center.

The Picture above is the entrance to the Twisted Big Top and the Ticket office is off to the right of the picture.  If it’s a busy night and the wait is over an hour I will say right now that spending the extra $10 for the VIP ticket is worth the Money.

To maximize the effects of the Twisted Big Top people were ushered in a few at a time.  One awesome thing I will say about the staff at the Twisted Big Top is that they made sure that people didn’t bunch up throughout the entire course of the Twisted Big Top.  I know one of the things I really don’t like about Haunted Houses in general is when groups run into each other.  You don’t have to worry about this at all.  The people at the Twisted Big Top take great care to make sure that your experience is a memorable one.

For those of you who are not familiar with all of the attractions that make up the Twisted Big Top, it is a Circus Clown theme gone horribly wrong.  (Original AZ Vibe Article About the event can be found here)

Once you enter into the Twisted Big Top you are shuttled into an a staging area before entering the first attraction ‘Six Feet Blunder’.

‘Six Feet Blunder’ is a fun opening attraction that serves as the setup for the rest of the haunted house.  Without giving too much away, ‘Six Feet Blunder’ is an attraction that is more reminiscent of the Haunted House at Disneyland than your typical Haunted House with the different animatronics and other cool effects that go on.

After ‘Six Feet Blunder’ has been completed, the next attraction is the ‘Mirror Mayhem’.  Again, without going into any descriptions or ruining anything that goes on, the ‘Mirror Mayhem’ is a maze of mirrors that is the beginning of the path to your final destination…the Twisted Big Top.

Once the ‘Mirror Mayhem’ has been completed, it is now time to enter the Twisted Big Top.  As you make your way to the entrance you are given a set of instructions of Do’s and Do Not’s when inside the Twisted Big Top.  After given your set of instructions, you then wait in front of the sign you see below….

…until it’s your turn to enter the Twisted Big Top. Once you enter…you are on your own. From what the people who work at the Twisted Big Top have told me there have been reports of people freaking out, peeing their pants, crying, and other people who couldn’t make it through the entire Twisted Big Top.  Don’t say we did not warn you.

Once you enter the Twisted Big Top you will be confronted with horrific displays of what once were nice Clowns turning evil and then turning other clowns into evil clowns or…well I’ll leave the rest for the people at the Twisted Big Top to show you what else goes on to clowns who don’t want to turn evil.

The Twisted Big Top is not your typical Haunted House where all they do is try to scare you.  The Twisted Big Top makes an all out attack on all of your senses for the course all three attractions and do a REALLY great job at it.  It’s a fun, memorable time that must be taken before it closes down after Halloween.  Once Halloween is over, so is the Twisted Big Top.

So the big question you are probably asking right now is if the Twisted Big Top is really worth the $25 and the drive to Glendale?

ABSOLUTELY!

Is the Twisted Big Top Arizona’s Scariest Haunted House as they advertise?

ABSOLUTELY!

You will not be disappointed at the special effects, the sheer originality and fun of many of the effects/haunts in the Twisted Big Top.  The creators of the Twisted Big Top took great care and injected great amounts of experience, creativity and originality into making your experience a memorable one.  If you want to go out for the evening and have a great time with a date, friends or your significant other, the Twisted Big Top is a mandatory event for the Halloween Season.

If there were any negatives about the Twisted Big Top it was that some of the lighting was a bit too bright in some spots but the awesome parts of the Twisted Big Top dramatically outweighed any negatives.

Tickets: $25 – $35 for VIP No Wait in line tickets

Parking: Free

Time to go through the Twisted Big Top: Approx. 25-30 minutes – This all depends on how busy the Twisted Big Top is.

For more information, please refer to the Twisted Big Top information page:

http://www.frightened.com/twistedbigtop/information.html

That’s right!  The Arizona State Fair announced Wednesday that on the remaining Sundays of the fair Admission will be FREE from 10:00 AM to 12 Noon.  You can’t beat that price at all!!

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.00045930a881f552387e8&z=19

Well it’s that time of year!  The Arizona State Fair is upon us and with this great event is the promise of food, fun, and memories to last a lifetime.  Make sure you refer to the hours and days that the Fair is in operation as they have specific hours and they are closed on Monday’s.

For Ticket Prices, Hours and other information please refer to the Fair’s website:

http://www.azstatefair.com/state-fair/information.aspx

Arizona State Fair
1826 W McDowell Rd
Phoenix, AZ 85007

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.00045930a881f552387e8&ll=33.468645,-112.098355&spn=0.008019,0.016222&z=16

Well I was at the Gym tonight continuing on my quest to shed off some more of the extra weight I’m carrying around. While there I ran into ‘Uber Hottie from the Gym I go to’. We started talking about what’s going on in our lives, dating stories, books, life and what not until we got to the topic of finding something to do this weekend. Without hesitation, I suggested that she and her friends head on down to Oktoberfest at the Tempe Beach Park this weekend.  It’s the perfect combination of beer, people, and fun.

I’ve never been to this event (am definitely going) so I’m looking forward to checking out something new and cool.

Plan ahead as parking WILL be a nightmare if you drive.  Bike or Bus to the event if you can.

The hours of Oktoberfest are:

Friday (Oct 3rd): 5pm to Midnight
Saturday (Oct 4th): 10am to Midnight
Sunday (Oct 5th): 10am to 6PM

For more information check out the Oktoberfest @ Tempe Beach Park website:

http://www.wowoktoberfest.com/

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.000458166f2ed676366aa&ll=33.433053,-111.939955&spn=0.006572,0.015965&z=16

Well it’s almost that time of year folks.  Halloween is fast approaching and with Halloween comes the tradition of going to Haunted Houses.  Marking the first event of the season is the ‘Twisted Big Top’  billed as the ‘Most horrifying Show on Earth’!  With over $350,000 worth of Special effects crammed under one roof, the ‘Twisted Big Top’ is determined to be the biggest and best Haunted Houses in the state.

So here’s the story of how the Twisted Bigtop Came to be:

Jenny was just a young girl of 14.  She had always wanted to visit a circus but her parents thought it was frivolous.  While all her friends had been to shows like Ringling Brothers and Cirque du Soleil, the only circus that Jenny was able to experience was in her mind.  Originally things started out quite tame, with simple basic circus acts. But over time Jenny got obsessed with everything circus like especially clowns.  What started as something fun and cute evolved into something much more macabre and sinister.

We invite you to experience Jenny’s recurring nightmare.  From the seemingly nice clown that offered her balloons but eventually took her away to the world of “The Twisted Big Top”.  In this world you will see and experience how nice clowns were taken, tortured and changed.  Once the transformation took place clowns were used for all things evil.  You may have wondered how people could be afraid of clowns.  One visit to the Twisted Big Top and you will never wonder again.

There is nothing traditional about this haunted house.  Every sense will be attacked, sight, sound, touch, smell and the taste of fear.  With scenes so horrifying we will either cure your phobia or haunt you forever.  You are dared to experience Jenny’s nightmare, “The Twisted Big Top”.

The ‘Twisted Big Top’ consists of three separate attractions all included in the price of admission:

1. The Twisted Big Top – 20 difference scenes of sick carnival terror where you experience all of Jenny’s nightmares in a format you have never experienced and probably never will again
2. Mirror Mayhem – A new twist on the classic house of mirrors where you will have to navigate yourself through a twisted path of madness while evil clowns challenge you along your path
3. Six Feet Blunder – According to the ‘Twisted Big Top’ website “As Arizona’s only sit down 4D attraction, you are immersed in a funeral home gone bad.  Experience a unique mortuary adventure utilizing “Disney” type effects.  You wont know whether to laugh, cry or scream.”

Still not scared off by what I just described? Do you dare enter the ‘Twisted Big Top’?

Well, head on over to the Westgate City Center in Glendale (Where the Phoenix Coyotes and the Arizona Cardinals play) and face your fears!!!  Loop 101 and Glendale Ave.

Please refer to the Twisted Big Top website and our calendar for exact dates and hours of operation.

More information including, Group Sales, Online Sales, Coupons for a discounted admission, Location and anything else you could ask for can be found here:

http://www.twistedbigtop.com/information.html

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=110117270783108833567.0004556aa2b0020fe77a7&ll=33.538998,-112.254353&spn=0.016025,0.03356&z=15