Events & Entertainment
January
Annual Tucson Quilt Show
Held in mid January
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-547-5463
More than 300 quilts and other
quilted items are featured.
Southern Arizona Dance Festival
Held in mid January
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-885-6273
Square dancers, round dancers
and cloggers from all over the USA convene to enjoy and demonstrate dancing.
Family Arts Festival
Held in mid January
Location: Tucson Convention
Center Plaza and El Presidio Park
520-624-0595
Annual celebration of local
arts scene, with exhibits, concerts, and performances at family-friendly
festival.
ARIPEX Stamp Show
Held in mid January
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-791-4101
World-renowned international
philatelic (stamp) exhibition.
Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil
Showcase
Held in late January – mid
February
Location: Multiple
throughout the city
800-638-8350
One of the world’s largest
marketplaces of its kind, with 37 locations around town, featuring international
dealers of precious gems, minerals, fossils, beads, jewelry, and jewelry-making
materials.
February
Tubac Festival of the Arts
Held in early – mid February
Location: Historic Drive
520-398-2704
Historic village offers more
than 90 galleries, boutiques, and working artists' studios, with art, history,
and native crafts.
Annual Tucson Gem & Mineral
Show
Held in mid February
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-322-5773
Retail and public exhibits of
minerals, jewelry, gems, fossils, lapidary creations, geodes, and meteorites by
dealers and exhibitors from around the world. Children can visit the junior
education table organized by Society of Earth Sciences students from the
University of Arizona.
La Fiesta de los Vaqueros
Tucson Rodeo & Parade
Held mid – late February
Location: Tucson Rodeo Grounds
520-741-7273
One of the top 20 rodeos in
North America, featuring a week of championship roping and riding events, one of
the world's longest non-motorized parade, and country and western musical
entertainment.
Chrysler Classic of Tucson
Held in late February
Location: Omni Tucson National
Golf Resort
800-882-7660
Southern Arizona's official PGA
Tour golf tournament, with proceeds benefiting youth athletic programs,
sponsored since 1945 by Tucson Conquistadores.
Southwest Indian Art Fair
Held in late February
Location: Arizona State
Museum, University of Arizona
520-626-8381
High quality Indian art fair,
featuring 200 artists from around the Southwest, with musical entertainment.
March
Major League Baseball Spring
Training
Held the entire month
Location: Tucson Electric
Park and Hi Corbett Fields
520-434-1111
Major League Baseball warms up
for the regular season as the Arizona Diamondbacks, Chicago White Sox, Colorado
Rockies, and other pro teams play ball practically every day in March.
Tucson Winter Chamber Music
Festival
Held in early – mid March
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-579-3703
Nationally and internationally
renowned chamber music groups perform in the intimate setting of Leo Rich
Theater, Tucson Convention Center.
Wingspan FilmFest
Held in mid March
Location: The Loft Cinema
520-624-1779
Films focus on the diverse
experiences of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, which present new
perspectives on issues concerning the LGBT community.
Aviation Day at Ryan Airfield
Held in mid March
Location: Ryan Airfield
520-883-9800
Dime-a-pound airplane rides,
tenant displays and hangar open house, with aircraft displays and airfield
tours; refreshments.
Civil War in the Southwest
Held in mid March
Location: Picacho Peak State
Park
520-466-3183
History re-enacted by soldiers
in period costume, with staged battles, encampments, and demonstrations, at the
site of the only Civil War battle in Arizona—The Battle of Picacho Pass, April
15, 1862.
Powwow
Held in mid March
Location: Masson San Xavier
del Bac
520-294-5727
Annual gathering of local
Tohono O'odham Indian people, along with other Native tribes, with dancing,
drumming, craftworks, and food.
Fourth Avenue Spring Street
Fair
Held in mid March
Location: Between Ninth St.
& University Boulevard on Fourth Ave.
520-624-5004
Hundreds of arts and crafts
booths, food vendors, street musicians and performers, and kids' entertainment.
Ed Schieffelin's Territorial
Days
Held in mid March
Location: Tucson
888-457-3929
Stagecoach rides, street
performers, log sawing and spike driving contests, duck racing, and pet parade.
April
Wildflower Festival
Held in early April
Location: Tohono Chul Park
520-742-6455
Stroll among penstamens,
bluebells, and salvia at their peak, savor gourmet food, and enjoy Southwestern
musical favorites at benefit helping to preserve Tohono Chul's art, culture and
nature.
ASUA Spring Fling
Held in early – mid April
Location: Rilito Downs
520-621-5610
One of the nation's largest
student-run carnivals features fun rides, midway games, food, and amateur and
professional entertainment.
Spring Home & Patio Show
Held in early April
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-795-3025
Building, landscaping, and home
decorating ideas at Tucson Convention Center.
Tombstone Rose Festival
Held in early April
Location: Tucson
888-457-3929
Tribute to world-famous
118-year-old rose tree; picnic-basket auction, cake contest, Rose Parade.
Arizona International Film
Festival
Held in mid April
Location: Multiple locations
around Tucson
520-628-1737
The latest independent films
representing worldwide contemporary cinematic diversity, with opportunities to
meet the filmmakers at workshops, seminars and presentations at multiple
locations around Tucson.
Tucson International Mariachi
Conference
Held in mid April
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-838-3913
This award-winning conference
is one of Tucson's largest cultural events and a model for other conferences
nationwide, with mariachi music, folkloric dancing, student workshops, a concert
at Tucson Convention Center, and a community fiesta at Armory Park.
May
Cinco de Mayo
Held in early May
Location: Kennedy Park
Fiesta Area
520-292-9326
This national holiday in Mexico
celebrates an impossible battle won on May 5, 1862, when the French attacked two
forts located in the city of Pueblo. Fiesta has dancing, music, crafts, and
food.
Wyatt Earp Days
Held in late May
Location: Tombstone
888-457-3929
Celebrate the life and times of
the Old West's most famous lawman in "the town too tough to die," with costumed
entertainers, a barbecue, stagecoach rides.
June
Juneteenth Festival
Held in mid June
Location: Kennedy Park
Fiesta Area
520-225-2670
Festival commemorates June 19,
1865--the day Southern slaves got word of the Emancipation Proclamation. Food,
fashion, crafts and live performances at Kennedy Park Fiesta Area.
July
Hassan Bak: Saguaro Harvest Celebration
Held in early July
Location: La Posta Quemada
Ranch
520-647-7121
Celebrate the majestic saguaro cactus during summer harvest
time, with saguaro facts, hands-on workshops and Tohono O'odham Rain Dancers.
Tucson's 4th of July Celebration
Held on July 4
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-791-4101
Music, food, and fireworks, beginning at 6 p.m. and featuring
Little Anthony’s Classic Car Show; Tucson Fire Department and Southwest
Ambulance vehicles for children to explore; performances by the Desert Cadillacs
and Neon Prophet. Fireworks display at 9 p.m.
August
August Festival at Sonoita
Vineyards
Held in early August
Location: Sonoita Vineyards
502-455-5893
Commemorating the anticipated
bountiful harvest; with grape-stomping contest, tractor-drawn guided vineyard
tour and grape-tasting, live music, and local restaurants providing food to
complement the wines.
La Fiesta de San Agustin
Held in early – mid August
Location: Armory Park & Saint
Augustine Cathedral
520-626-4312
Celebrate Tucson's birthday, with outdoor festival honoring Tucson’s patron
saint, Saint Augustine. Live entertainment, art exhibits, speakers, concessions,
and mass at Saint Augustine Cathedral.
Tucson Sidewinders Baseball
Held all of August
Location: Tucson Electric
Park
520-434-1021
All summer long, AAA affiliate
of Arizona Diamondbacks plays baseball at Tucson Electric Park, with give-aways
and special events, such as fireworks displays.
Vigilante Days
Held in mid August
Location: Tombstone
888-457-3929
Wild West history comes to life
in the streets of the “town too tough to die.”
September
Oktoberfest on Mount Lemmon
Held in mid September
Location: Mount Lemmon Ski
Valley
520-885-1181
In the pines and aspens, enjoy
German food and beer, music, dancing, and costumes--join the dancing or relax on
a blanket on the ski slopes.
Rex Allen Days
Held in late September – early
October
Location: Willcox
520-384-2272
A celebration of the
contributions of legendary cowboy singer and Willcox native, the late Rex Allen,
professional rodeo, parade, concerts, cowboy poetry, music, and food.
October
Anza Days
Dates vary in October
Location: Tubac Presido
State Historic Park
520-398-2704
A living history of the Indian,
Mexican and Spanish colonial periods. Enjoy "Los Tubaquenos," military
demonstrations, folklorico dancers, ethnic music and lots of children's
activities.
Buckelew Farm Pumpkin Festival
& Corn Maze
Held most of October
Location: 17000 West Aio Way
520-822-2277
Open the last three weekends in
October. Horse-drawn wagon rides, U-Pick-It experience (Sat & Sun, days);
15-acre corn maze, haunted corn field (Fri & Sat. nights).
Butterfield Overland Stage Days
Held in mid October
Location: Benson
520-586-2842
Festival commemorates the stop
along the mid-1880s stage line that linked St. Louis with San Francisco; also
Pony Express reenactment, rodeo, car show, entertainment and food.
Desert Thunder Pro Rodeo
Held in mid October
Location: Tucson Rodeo
Grounds
520-721-1621
Competitive professional rodeo
with roping contests, bronc busting, and free pony rides for the kids.
Fall Home & Garden Show
Held in mid October
Location: Tucson Convention
Center
520-795-3025
The latest in building,
landscaping, and home decorating products exhibited at Tucson Convention Center.
Festival of Color Hot Air
Balloon Rally
Held in mid October
Location: Sierra Vista
800-288-3861
Colorful hot-air balloons fill
the blue skies at festival presented by Wells Fargo.
Helldorado Days
Held in mid October
Location: Tombstone
888-457-3929
Tombstone's oldest festival
celebrating the rip-roaring heyday of "the town too tough to die," with annual
parade, street vignettes, music.
Nightfall: Resurrection
Held in late October
Location: Old Tucson Studios
520-883-0100
A Halloween tradition, with
daring stunts, thrilling walk-through adventures, and a trick-or-treat trail,
presented as only a movie studio can.
Oro Valley Jazz Festival
Held in late October
Location: Riverfront Park, Oro
Valley
520-797-3959
Music, artisans market, food,
with New York jazz greats and talented local musicians at Riverfront Park.
Tucson Blues Festival
Held in mid October
Location: DeMeester Outdoor
Performance Center, Reid Park
520-791-4079
Hear live music, enjoy great
food, and shop for merchandise at this Tucson Blues Society annual event.
Tucson Bluegrass Festival
Held in late October
Location: Pima County
Fairgrounds
520-296-1231
Bluegrass and other old-time
traditional music performed live.
November
Tucson Fall Festival Horse Show
Held in early November
Location: Pima County
Fairgrounds
520-762-9100
Hunter-jumper horse show at
Pima County Fairgrounds.
Tucson Celtic Festival
Held in early November
Location: Rilito Park
Racetrack
520-743-9291
Annual celebration of Scottish
and Irish cultures, with pipe bands, singers, dancers, magicians, and food
vendors at Rillito Park Racetrack.
December
El Nacimiento (The Nativity)
Held the entire month of
December
Location: Tucson Museum of Art
Historic Block
520-624-2333
Traditional Mexican nativity
scene showcases more than 300 earthen figurines, displayed at a restored adobe
residence dating from the 1800s.
Tucson Marathon & Expo
Held in early December
Location: From Oracle to Oro
Valley
520-320-0667
Scenic downhill course, ranked
as one of America’s fastest, takes runners from Oracle to Oro Valley and is a
Boston Marathon qualifier. Also 5-K, 1- and 2-mile fun runs and half-marathon.
Fourth Avenue Winter Street
Fair
Held in mid December
Location: Fourth Avenue
Shopping District
520-624-5004
Artisans, food vendors, and
entertainers from around the country line the streets selling their wares.
Entertainment
Arizona Friends of Chamber
Music
Performances held at the Leo
Rich Theatre
520-577-3769
Call for performance schedule
Presenting some of the world's
finest chamber music groups: Evening Chamber Music Series, Tucson Winter Chamber
Music Festival, and Sunday Matinee Series "Piano & Friends." Leo Rich Theatre in
Tucson Convention Center.
Arizona Opera
3501 N. Mountain Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85719
520-293-4336
Call for performance schedule
Five productions each season
running Oct. - April in the Tucson Convention Center Music Hall. All
performances are sung in their original language with English translations
projected above the stage.
Arizona Theatre Company
Temple of Music & Art
330 S. Scott Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85701
520-622-2823
Call for performance schedule
One of Arizona's leading professional theater companies, performing September
through May.
Ballet Arizona
3645 E. Indian School Rd.
Phoenix, AZ 85018
888-322-5538
Call for performance schedule
Ballet Arizona is one of the
Southwest's premier professional ballet companies. Performances held at venues
throughout the state.
Broadway in Tucson
260 S Church Ave
Tucson, AZ 85702
520-903-2929
Call for performance schedule
Broadway in Tucson brings
Broadway's best to downtown Tucson with performances at the Tucson Convention
Center's Music Hall and Leo Rich Theatre.
Invisible Theatre
1400 N. First Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85719
520-882-9721
Season runs September - June
Call for performance schedule
One of Tucson's premier
off-Broadway theatres features fine contemporary comedy, drama, and music.
Tucson Jazz
721 N Fourth Ave
Tucson, AZ 85705
520-903-1265
Call for performance schedule
The source for Tucson's jazz
scene. Generations of promoting, presenting and preserving America's music
through concerts and educational activities.
Tucson Symphony Orchestra
2175 N. 6th Ave.
Tucson, AZ 85705
520-882-8585
Call for performance schedule
Serving Tucson and Southern
Arizona with music of the highest caliber in a series of classics, pops,
chamber, and family.
