Good morning, Queen Creek. The weekend leans indoors and after dark this week, from an ogre on the QCPAC stage to a full moon walk out at San Tan.
- 🎭 Shrek the Musical runs Friday through Monday at QCPAC. Evening shows at 7, Saturday matinee at 2, tickets $14 to $16.
- 🐎 San Tan Mountain park runs ranger programs all weekend. Tortoise feeding, a critter meet-and-greet, and a Sunday full moon walk.
- 📚 Queen Creek Library has two Friday events. Community-helper storytime in the morning, dinosaur bookmarks in the afternoon.
- 🏠 A new aesthetics studio opens, and the housing numbers land. Modern Grace on Ironwood, plus 154 homes sold last month near a $600,000 median.
- 🎓 QCHS summer reading is due July 6. Incoming students finish the first 16 chapters of "Land of Hope."
- 🌆 Gabriel Iglesias plays Chandler tonight. One of three more picks across the valley this weekend.
Shrek takes over QCPAC this weekend
The Queen Creek Performing Arts Center opens Shrek the Musical on Friday, and it runs through Monday as part of the Family Theatre Series.
Key facts:
- When: June 26 through 29. Evening shows at 7 PM, Saturday matinee at 2 PM.
- Price: Adults $16, children and seniors $14.
- What: The stage version of the Oscar-winning film and Broadway musical, with the full cast of fairytale misfits.
QCPAC's Family Theatre Series is the town's home for all-ages productions, and a four-night run with a weekend matinee gives families room to pick a showtime that fits.
Tickets and the full schedule are at qcpac.com.
The weekend
On the library calendar at the Queen Creek branch:
- 👮 Books and Badges, a community-helper storytime. Friday, June 26, 9:30 AM. For toddlers and preschoolers. Details.
- 🦕 Dinosaur bookmarks. Friday, June 26, 2 PM. A craft session for kids 5 to 12. Details.
- ✍️ Teen Ink Magazine submissions open. A drop-in writing and craft series for teens 13 to 17, starting Sunday. Details.
- 🗺️ Adults Discover: personal map making. Tuesday, June 30, 10 AM. A grown-up craft class to start the week. Details.
Around Queen Creek
🧖 A new aesthetics studio opened on Ironwood. Modern Grace Laser and Aesthetics is now open in the ARTISTIC UMBRELLA Studio Suites at 40975 N Ironwood Drive, serving Queen Creek and San Tan Valley. Founder Michelle is a licensed aesthetician and certified laser technician. Details.
🏠 The market, by the numbers. 154 homes sold in Queen Creek last month at a median around $600,000, down about 6% from a year ago, with 159 new listings and a median 65 days on market.
🚜 A family is fighting to save the Big Tin cotton gin. The Queen Creek landmark sits on a property that sold for a new gas station, and the family is working to preserve the old gin, one of the last reminders of the town's cotton-farming era. Details.
🚓 The town's new police facility got a tour. Queen Creek's police chief walked ABC15 through the new building this week. Details.
🚤 Heads up for summer lake plans. Canyon Lake closes for 16 weeks starting September 16 while SRP lowers the water 54 feet for dam safety inspections. All boat ramps and access points close during that window. Details.
🐎 Schnepf & Olive Mill
Queen Creek's agritourism backbone: the farm, the mill, and the trails. This weekend the trails carry it, with ranger programs out at San Tan Mountain Regional Park.
🐢 Tortoise feeding. Saturday, June 27, 8:30 AM at the Nature Center. Meet the park's resident tortoises with Ranger Nikki and watch their leafy-green breakfast. Details.
🦎 Discovery Station: meet the critters. Saturday, June 27, 9 AM. A come-and-go, drop-in session with the park's animal ambassadors. Pairs well with the tortoise feeding right before. Details.
🌕 Full moon walk. Sunday evening, an easy 2-mile stroll for the sunset, the full moon, and summer's nocturnal scorpions. Registration required, limit 30. Details.
🚵 San Tan After Dark night ride. A casual, no-drop mountain bike ride on Wednesday nights under the stars. A good midweek reset for riders. Details.
From the schools
📖 QCHS summer reading deadline. The Bulldogs' 60-day book review wraps July 6. Students are reading the first 16 chapters of "Land of Hope" by Wilfred McClay. Details.
Around the valley
A few picks worth leaving Queen Creek for this weekend.
🎤 Gabriel Iglesias. Gila River at Wild Horse Pass, Chandler. Tonight at 8 PM. A big-name comedian in a casino showroom, the shortest drive on this list. Tickets.
🥊 LFA 236. Arizona Financial Theatre, Phoenix. Friday at 4:30 PM. Pro MMA from the league that feeds fighters to the UFC. Tickets.
🎸 The Ultimate Doors. The Crescent Ballroom, Phoenix. Tonight at 7 PM. A note-for-note Doors tribute in one of downtown's smaller rooms. Tickets.
🎶 Taj Farrant. The Showroom at Talking Stick Resort, Scottsdale. Tonight at 8 PM. A teenage blues-rock guitar prodigy, the longest haul of the four. Tickets.