Downtown Digest: Sake, beer, Queens of Comedy this week

Hello to all of you downtown people! It’s T.J. Triolo, back with another edition of the Downtown Digest. As April winds down, it means it’s almost summertime, our nice Arizona spring weather is ending, and it’s my birthday on Tuesday, which means an opportunity to eat cake. And every opportunity to eat cake is one to take! Without further ado, here are some events for you. (I’m in a rhyming mood right now.)

Getting It Right: The Art of Investigative Reporting

• Monday, April 23
• 7 – 8 p.m.
• Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, 555 N. Central Ave.

Okay, am I promoting an event my school is hosting? Yes. Am I getting paid for it? No. This is a free lecture featuring Carol Leonnig, a reporter from the Washington Post, who will be discussing investigative reporting with Leonard Downie Jr., Weil Family Professor of Journalism and the former executive editor of the Washington Post. This lecture is also special because it’s part of the Paul J. Schatt Memorial Lecture series, held only once per year to honor a former Arizona Republic editor and Cronkite School professor. Now that I’m taking a class on investigative reporting, I can say the people who do it are amazing; they put up with a lot and investigative reporting is a hard process, so go see this lecture!

Spring Sake Dinner

• Wednesday, April 25
• Starts at 6:30 p.m.
• Nobuo at Teeter House, 622 E. Adams St.

In case anyone was wondering, I do have a lot of interest in Japanese culture. You could probably tell from the amount of Japanese cultural events I feature in the Digests! This time, it’s a dinner featuring sake, a traditional alcoholic drink made with rice. Master Sake Maker Atsuo Sakurai will be providing two of his own special sake varieties, and Chef Nobuo will be providing five courses. To top it all off, there will be three more varieties of sake available! The event may be a little pricey for some — tickets cost $150.

2018 AmeriCAN Canned Craft Beer Festival

• Saturday, April 28
• 3 – 7 p.m.
• Margaret T. Hance Park – West, 67 W. Culver St.

Americans do love beer if pop culture is any indication, and this festival celebrates the special craft varieties of canned beer. Over 250 types of craft beer will be available from across the country, along with music and food. The event description also includes some activities I’m genuinely curious about: a “beer science garden” and “beer Olympic games.” What is a beer science garden, and what are beer Olympic games? I guess you’ll just have to attend to find out! Tickets cost $35 each.

Arizona’s Ultimate Women’s Expo

• Saturday, April 28 and Sunday, April 29
• 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday
• Phoenix Convention Center, 33 S. 3rd St.

Here’s a convention geared toward women. There are a lot of activities to do throughout the day, including spa treatments and massages. There’s also a lot of shopping available, as well as seeing what’s available in Arizona in the sectors of fashion, food, entertainment, cosmetics and travel. Some of this actually sounds like I’d be interested in it. Okay, more like all of it except for cosmetics — I’ve had some bad experiences with makeup from my days acting in plays! Entry costs $10.

ArizonaDrag.com Queens of Comedy

• Sunday, April 29
• Starts at 1 p.m.
• Stand Up Live, 50 W. Jefferson St.

I’ll admit, I’ve never been to a drag show before. I’ve only seen one in an old 1990s movie called The Birdcage, which is an amazing movie, by the way. Not only is this a drag show, but it comes with comedy too! I have to admit, I love to laugh at comedy, and I really am curious to see a drag show, so seeing drag queens perform comedy sounds like a good combination to me! Tickets cost $15.

Contact the columnist at tjtriolo@asu.edu.