October 21, 2021 / Modified oct 21, 2021 10:59 p.m.

The 91-year-old Fox Tucson Theatre is ready to sing again.

Also on Arizona Spotlight: Invisible Theatre celebrates 50 years of performing arts magic; and the photographic vision of Sama Alshaibi.

fox organ cover The Fox Tucson Theatre's fully-restored mighty Wurlitzer theatre organ in action.
courtesy Fox Tucson Theatre

Arizona Spotlight

October 21, 2021

NPR
(Download MP3)

Featured on the October 21st, 2021 edition of ARIZONA SPOTLIGHT with host Mark McLemore:

  • After 20 years of planning, The Fox Tucson Theatre is reviving an important piece of movie palace history, one that provides the only way to give today’s audiences the full silent film experience. Live performance on the organ commences on October 30th, with F.W. Murnau's silent masterpiece Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horror, accompanied by Dave Wickerham on the Fox's now fully restored 'Mighty Wurlitzer Theatre Organ'.

fox organ in theatre hero The interior of the Fox Tucson Theatre with the restored Wurlitzer organ at centerstage.
courtesy Fox Tucson Theatre

fox organ interior hero A rare shot of the interior of one of the pipe chambers that manifests the sound of the Wurlitzer theatre organ at the Fox Tucson Theatre.
courtesy Fox Tucson Theatre

fox organ installer graham Graham Davis, the lead pipe organ installer and restorer for this just completed 20-year project at the Fox Tucson Theatre.
courtesy Fox Tucson Theatre

  • Invisible Theatre is celebrating 50 years of providing a full range of the performing arts in Tucson. IT members Susan Claassen, the managing artistic director for 47 years, and performer, playwright and director Molly McKasson share some favorite backstage stories, and their excitement over what is still to come. Below are a few photos from Invisible Theatre productions that have appeared before on Arizona Spotlight:

gloria stage hero The cast of "Gloria: A Life" at Invisible Theatre in Tucson.
Tim Fuller / Invisible Theatre

Filming okeeffe The cast of "Filming O'Keeffe" at Invisible Theatre.
Courtesy of Susan Claassen

SOTA last train to Nibroc

dierdra mcdowell hero 1 Dierdra McDowell performs as Eartha Kitt in her one-woman show, "Down to Eartha".

teddy tonight spotlight Laurence Luckinbill as Theodore Roosevelt in the one-man show "Teddy Tonight!", presented in Tucson by Invisible Theatre.

jim brochu zero hour 1 Actor and playwright Jim Brochu portrays actor and artist Zero Mostel in "Zero Hour".
courtesy Jim Brochu

black pearl stage unsized image 1 VIEW LARGER To-Ree-Nee Wolf and Katherine Byrne star in "Black Pearl Sings", Feb. 13 - 15, 2018 at The Invisible Theatre in Tucson.
Tim Fuller

invisible theatre golden anniversary hero The roster for the golden anniversary event at Invisible Theatre.

  • And, learn about the creativity of Sama Alshaibi, a UA educator and multi-faceted artist who is the recipient of a 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship in Photography. Alshaibi is focusing her work on legal frameworks in Iraq that restrict the freedoms of Iraqi women and girls. You can find out much more about her work, and see many additional hi-res photos here.
sama alshaibi portrait unsized VIEW LARGER Sama Alshaibi, photographer and UA educator, was recognized with a Guggenheim Fellowship in Photography in 2021.
Sama Alshaibi
sama alshaibi in the field unsized VIEW LARGER Alshaibi in the field.
Sama Alshaibi
sama alshaibi cessation unsized VIEW LARGER Sama Alshaibi creating "Cessation" at Artpace in San Antonio, Texas.
Sama Alshaibi
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