Boz Scaggs knows he has a reputation for being something of a perfectionist. The casually stylish singer-songwriter recalls the endless tinkering and expansive budgets that went into making his multiplatinum 1970s albums “Silk Degrees” and “Down Two Then Left.”

Hard rocker Tom Keifer would be among the first to say that life doesn’t go as planned. The long-time musician, best known for his lead role in the band Cinderella, released his first solo album – ”The Way Life Goes” – April 30 after a 10-year process and a long struggle with partial vocal chord paralysis — the ruination of many music careers.

This time of year, we rack up chances to get outside as if we’re keeping score; we know we’ll be dying for such opportunities come summertime.

“I just poured Gatorade all over my plants.”

One of country music’s most recognizable voices will fill the stage Thursday at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts in a stripped-down — and sold-out — show.

It is a universally acknowledged truth that a Jane Austen story, with several film and television versions, must be in want of a musical re-write. At least Paul Gordon, the creative genius behind “Jane Austen’s Emma,” on stage through Jan. 20 at Herberger Center Theater, thinks so. His hilariously dazzling production, produced by Arizona Theatre Company, makes it difficult for Austen novices or fans to disagree.

Tom Hooper's extravaganza, big-screen telling of the beloved musical "Les Miserables" is as relentlessly driven as the ruthless Inspector Javert himself. It simply will not let up until you've Felt Something — powerfully and repeatedly — until you've touched the grime and smelled the squalor and cried a few tears of your own.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and on Friday, a wonderful sound will be coming from Casino Arizona at Talking Stick during what promises to be a festive event with maybe some surprises.

Nicki Minaj, the rapper who has had much success on the pop charts with songs like "Starships" and "Super Bass," says the rerelease of her sophomore album will be nostalgic for her early fans.

“Anything Goes,” the pièce de résistance of Cole Porter’s career, is big and bright and sparkling, but it begins in a dark martini lounge where gleaming bottles of spirits line the wall, illuminating the room.

Glenn Miller Orchestra and The Diamonds vocal group take listeners back in time with chart-topping favorites like “Chattanooga Choo Choo,” “In The Mood” and “Pennsylvania 6-5000.”

Gilbert’s X Factor contestant, Josh Metzler, has seen a number of ups and downs — dismissed as a soloist, reintroduced as a five-boy band and ultimately voted off again.

Beyonce will be the halftime performer at next year's Super Bowl, we learned when the AP broke the news. This got me thinking about the multi-talented multi-hyphenate's movie performances.

Mesa students from the top high school choirs in the district will perform 7 p.m. Oct. 22 in the Ikeda Theater at the Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St.

The Edge Talent Explosion makes its first appearance in the Southeast Valley on Nov. 3.

Mesa students from the top high school choirs in the district will perform 7 p.m. Oct. 22 in the Ikeda Theater at the Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St.

Cheeky and snarky but with an infectious energy, “Pitch Perfect,” a comedy set in the cutthroat world of competing college a cappella groups, makes us fall in love with the very thing it’s making fun of. It’s ridiculous and predictable but also just a ton of fun, so you may as well give up and give in to your inner musical theater geek.

Cheeky and snarky but with an infectious energy, "Pitch Perfect," a comedy set in the cutthroat world of competing college a cappella groups, makes us fall in love with the very thing it's making fun of. It's ridiculous and predictable but also just a ton of fun, so you may as well give up and give in to your inner musical theater geek.

Performing Arts 2012-13 season preview

Some call them a hybrid. Others say they’re a crossover. Urs Buhler, the group’s Swiss tenor, prefers to just be Il Divo — the divine ones.

Pop-country band Firefly is comprised of three Gilbert sisters from a musically inclined family of nine.

Woody Allen's "To Rome with Love" began with better titles. Yet despite the exquisite locations of the filmmaker's first story of love, Italian style, this bland ensemble romance deserves the generic name rather than the clever working titles it started with.

Ahwatukee Children’s Theater offers several camps for children ages 3 to 18. Camps include: Flat Stanley, A Musical Traveling Adventure Jr for grades K-6; Fairy Tale Theater for ages 3 to 5; Vocal Camp for all ages; and Auditioning Like a Pro for kids 8 through 18 years old.

Where were you in ’99? If you were a news junkie, you watched Texas governor George W. Bush emerge as the front-runner for President in a crowded field of Republican hopefuls. If you subscribed to HBO, you were hooked to a new series called “The Sopranos.” If movies were your thing, you were mesmerized by the special effects in “The Matrix.” And if you were listening to the radio, there was no escaping Collective Soul’s “Dosage.”