May Culture Pass Spotlight: Phoenix Art Museum In terms of the top places to visit as a tourist in the Phoenix area, there are few short lists that do not include the Phoenix Art Museum. Touted as the largest art museum in the Southwestern United States, it includes any number of temporary exhibitions and permanent collections that showcase a wide breadth of artistic modalities and histories. Aside from more famous pieces such as Monet’s Giverny and Yayoi Kusama’s immersive infinity mirror room, You Who are Getting Obliterated in the Dancing Swarm of Fireflies, the collection which currently s ..read more

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Technology and Arts Combine for Innovative Virtual Reality Field Trip, Season 2 Explores Indigenous Artistic Practices Act One’s Traveling Virtual Reality Arts Immersion Field Trip is the Only Program of its Kind in the World (April 4, 2024 – PHOENIX) Act One, a nonprofit organization in Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz., focused on providing arts education access for all students regardless of their socioeconomic status, launches Season 2 of its groundbreaking virtual reality (VR) field trip program. The VR field trip, also known as Arts Immersion, is designed to provide a 360 ..read more

April Culture Pass Spotlight: University of Arizona Museum of Art Having grown up part-time in Tucson, I spent a lot of time at the University of Arizona. Although my time spent there was mostly for tailgating before football and basketball games, I still have fond memories of walking through campus. One of its treasures is the University of Arizona Art Museum which “believes in the power of art to spark essential conversations and enhance research at our university and in our community,” and showcases two floors of permanent and rotating works that feature a “year-round schedule of exhibition ..read more

   February Culture Pass Spotlight: Tohono Chul A 49-acre art, culture, and nature park, Tohono Chul is located on the north end of the City of Tucson just off I-10 and is home to over 150 species of shrubs, 300 species of cacti and succulents, and 50 species of wildflowers. It also boasts the largest collection of Night-blooming Cereus in the country. On quiet days at the park, visitors can observe wildlife such as the 38 species of native birds that have made the park their permanent residence. The name Tohono Chul means “desert corner” in the local O’odham language and the park ai ..read more

December Culture Pass Spotlight: Boyce Thompson Arboretum Tucked away along US 60 just west of Superior lies the Boyce Thompson Arboretum – the largest and oldest botanical garden in Arizona. Founded by Col. William Boyce Thompson in 1924 as a research facility for desert plants, the Arboretum spans nearly 400 acres in an area along Queen Creek and houses nearly 3900 different species of desert flora from around the world. During the month of December, most Arizonans are not thinking about fall colors, but that is what draws the most visitors to Boyce Thompson Arboretum during this time. Inter ..read more

August Culture Pass Spotlight: Gilbert Historical Museum Before the Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area was one large swath of asphalt and homogenous neighborhoods, many of the places we now consider suburbs were quite separate from the City of Phoenix. The Town of Gilbert was one of the largest of these, and thrived for many years before urban sprawl overtook its boundaries.   The Gilbert Historical Museum is located in the Downtown Gilbert area and is housed within the old Gilbert Elementary School building which was built in 1913 and operated as a school until 1977. The building was con ..read more

July Culture Pass Spotlight: Mesa Historical Museum As a lifelong resident of Arizona, it is rare I find myself falling farther in love with this beautiful place and its rich history. Experiencing something new and unexpected about this state is an occurrence I can count on both hands. However, when I recently visited the Mesa Historical Museum in the neighborhood of Lehi, I found myself caught up in those feelings again, of appreciation, and of admiration, for those who have made this their home both past and present. The Mesa Historical Museum is in Lehi which was once separately incorporate ..read more

River of Time Museum & Exploration Center Attached to the local public library in Fountain Hills sits a small museum that features the history, ecology, geology, and archaeology of the area, the Lower Verde River Valley. Often when Phoenicians think of sources of water for the Valley, they think about the Salt River and the Colorado River. However, the Verde River is historically and contemporarily a prominent source of water for Phoenix that not many are aware of, and the River of Time Museum & Exploration Center’s mission is to change that. More specifically, “to engage, entertain ..read more

Cochise County Libraries offering Culture Passes for library card holders HUACHUCA CITY, Ariz. (KGUN) — The Cochise County Library District has partnered with Act One to provide free passes to different state museums and attractions. Each of the 12 libraries now have culture passes that can be checked out by anyone with a county library card. Passes include entrances to museums and parks not just in Cochise County, but across the state such as Reid Park Zoo, Children’s Museum Tucson, botanical gardens in both Tucson and Phoenix and more. Each pass admits two people the attraction for free. Ste ..read more

Act One’s Beth Maloney Featured in Interview with KJZZ Listen to the segment here.  For over a decade, Act One has been providing free arts immersion opportunities for students at Title I schools in Arizona. A charitable contribution will help maintain one of its most popular programs as the organization received a massive holiday gift in the form of a $100,000 grant from the Burton Family Foundation. Beth Maloney, director of arts education for Act One, said the money will be used to fund virtual reality field trips that expose students to the arts in Arizona from their desks. “There ar ..read more