The Best Things to Do in Phoenix This Weekend

We're about to go into holiday mode, so during the last weekend before Thanksgiving, take the opportunity to go do something fun. This weekend, you can do some free yoga at ASU, enjoy an Indigenous arts festival in Tempe, or go check out some cool cars in Scottsdale.

Sweet Salvage

There's only about five weeks until Christmas; do you know what you're buying your friends and family? If you need some inspiration, you should check out Sweet Salvage, 4648 North Seventh Avenue. The store runs monthly four-day sales of vintage, shabby chic, and generally stylish home decor, gifts, and more. November's sale runs Thursday, November 18, through Sunday, November 21. Each day's shopping begins at 10 a.m. Jennifer Goldberg

Speedway Motors

If hot rods and classic cars appear every night in your dreams, you probably need to make your way to the Speedway Motors Southwest Nationals Car Show happening from Friday, November 19, to Sunday, November 21. It’s a chance to see more than 3,000 vehicles built before the late ‘80s, including trucks, muscle cars, custom cars, and more. They’ll be on view at WestWorld of Scottsdale, 16500-16526 North 94th Street, where the lineup also includes model/pedal car shows, a burnout competition, a dragster exhibition, and more. It opens at 8 a.m. daily. Closing time is 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 3 p.m. on Sunday. General admission tickets at the gate are $25 for Friday or Saturday, and $20 for Sunday. Zoom, zoom. Lynn Trimble

Irish Dance Lessons

Odds are your dance repertoire doesn’t include Irish favorites like The Walls of Limerick or the Haymaker’s Jig. But there’s an easy way to fix that, now that Third Friday Ceili has returned to the Irish Cultural Center, 1106 North Central Avenue. The center describes ceilis as family-friendly social dances, and they’re eager to help community members join in the fun. Jim and Anne Daugherty will be teaching and calling several Irish dances on Friday, November 19, when the venue will also have a cash bar. The beginners' lesson and orientation starts at 6:45 p.m. that night, and the official dancing kicks off at 7:30 p.m. Adult admission is $6, and you don’t need any prior experience to participate. Lynn Trimble

Crime in Sports Live Podcast

You can’t swing a cardioid condenser XLR microphone these days without hitting a true-crime podcast, as there are literally thousands to listen to on your daily workout or commute. Five years ago, local comedians James Pietragallo and Jimmy Whisman started offering a different take on the genre with they started quipping about the misdeeds of athletes both famous and obscure every week on their hit podcast Crime in Sports. The duo, who also create the phenomenally popular podcast Small Town Murder, has dished about such felonious jocks as Olympic sprinter-turned-money launderer Tim Montgomery, NFL star and infamous strip club connoisseur Adam “Pacman” Jones, and the late WWE Superstar Jim “The Anvil” Neidhart. Pietragallo and Whisman will record a live episode of the podcast at Tempe Improv, 930 East University Drive in Tempe, at 9:45 p.m. on Friday, November 19. Admission is $35 (plus a two-drink minimum). Benjamin Leatherman

Morning Yoga Class

Start your day off right with a free yoga class on Saturday, November 20, at Arizona State University's Tempe campus. The Live Well Yoga series, presented by ASU 365 Community Union + Live Well @ ASU, takes place on the Coca Cola Sun Deck of Sun Devil Stadium, 500 East Veterans Way, Tempe. Bring a mat, a towel, and some water to the class, which is taught by a rotating lineup of local instructors. Classes are open to the public and all levels are invited to practice, from beginner to expert. Registration is required for the 9:30 a.m. class. Jennifer Goldberg

Indigenous Arts Festival

Violet Duncan has been working with Tempe Center for the Arts for nearly a year now, helping to create opportunities for fellow Indigenous artists. She’s especially excited about the venue’s free Indigenous Arts Arizona Festival happening from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, November 20. The festival, which was designed to create cultural awareness and understanding, includes traditional Native arts, dance, music, and storytelling. Expect wellness sessions, painting activities, theater performances, children’s mask-making, and more. Highlights will include a 4 p.m. hoop dance workshop with Duncan, where participants can learn to create up to three hoop picture designs. Lynn Trimble

Hansel and Gretel

Witches abound in children’s lore, where the most famous characters include a witch who lured lost children into her forest lair decorated with candies. Perhaps you were intrigued by Hansel and Gretel as a child, but always knew there was more to the story. Now you can see ASU Music Theatre and Opera perform the opera based on the famous Brothers Grimm fairy tale, which premiered in Germany near the end of the 19th century. It’s a chance to support emerging performers in your midst, and perhaps let go of all your preconceived notions about this evolving art form. Tickets to see the live 2 p.m. performance on Sunday, November 21, at the Evelyn Smith Music Theatre, 50 East Gammage Parkway, Tempe, are $22 and you can only get them online. Or you can get a $10 ticket for a virtual streamed performance, in case you want to watch from home while you build your very own candy-covered gingerbread house. Lynn Trimble

Phoenix Suns vs. Denver Nuggets

After stumbling a bit to start the season, the Phoenix Suns have rebounded to become one of the hottest teams in the NBA. Led the always dynamic play of Devin Booker, they’re firing on all cylinders with a deep lineup of centers (Deandre Ayton, Frank Kaminsky, and JaVale McGee), great defense, and a reliable bench. Phoenix is once again playing like the team that won the Western Conference earlier this year and this weekend will be facing one of the teams they vanquished during that incredible run. The Denver Nuggets, currently the kings of the NBA’s Northwest Division, will come to Footprint Center, 201 East Jefferson Street, on Sunday, November 21, for a 6 p.m. game. The Nuggets are no strangers to facing Phoenix at their best (remember the whole “Suns in 4” thing from the playoffs?) but center Nikola Jokić is having another stellar season and the team is running roughshod over the rest of the league. Tickets for this epic showdown between two of the NBA’s best start at $14. Benjamin Leatherman