If ever there were a show that was tailor made for a youth community theater, it's "Annie." The eager and able crew of Saguaro City Music Theatre infuses its talents into the upbeat, bouncy tale with infectious gusto.
Bolstered by a commanding title performance from Julia Wetzel and tempered by a grounded, authoritative turn from Christopher Younggren as Daddy Warbucks, the well-rehearsed, boisterous cast jolts life into the musical's beloved hit parade. Whether it's "Tomorrow" as a lead solo or one of its several reprises, the cynical "Little Girls" or the raucous "It's a Hard Knock Life," the radiant performance reverberates throughout the crowd, leading to toe-taps, head bops and roaring applause.
In the nearly 50 years since the show was first performed on Broadway, "Annie" spawned many a TV and film adaptation. It feels most at home, of course, as a live theatrical production, ringing with a special authenticity when the band of orphans are played from kids from around the block. Credit director Drew Humphrey for wrangling his cast of students, part-timers and volunteers into a precision machine that cranks out endless chuckles, sentiment and cheer.
"Annie" thrives on its familiarity, like a reassuring affirmation or a warm hug. When it's done right, as it is by the Saguaro Music Theatre crew, "Annie" transports you into a realm in which optimism for its own sake triumphs over any adversity, and the promise of tomorrow helps you float through the harshest times.
"Annie" plays through Jan. 4 at the Berger Performing Arts Center. Buy tickets here.
The Google Pixel 10 is designed for the user who wants all the smarts of the flagship line without the "Pro" expense. It retains the heart of the latest Google technology—the revolutionary Tensor G5 chip—but packages it in a more compact, focused, and value-oriented device. This phone is the gateway to Google's most advanced AI and a powerful, reliable connection.
The foundational shift to the Tensor G5 chipset is the key differentiator, bringing the same blazing-fast, on-device machine learning capabilities found in its Pro sibling. The core Gen-AI features are fully intact here: the new "Proactive Assistant" learns your habits and can generate lengthy, context-aware emails based on your schedule and recent activity, offering different tonal choices for the final output. Crucially, the advanced Magic Editor and Generative Composition features are also present, allowing users to dynamically alter photos, swap backgrounds, and adjust conditions with impressive photorealistic results, all handled directly and instantly by the G5's dedicated AI cores.
While the camera hardware is stepped down slightly from the Pro, it remains best-in-class for its price point. It features a new, welcome addition: a dedicated 5x telephoto lens (10.8MP), which was previously reserved for the Pro models. This is a game-changer for the base Pixel, enabling true optical zoom versatility. The main 48MP wide and 13MP ultrawide cameras benefit immensely from the G5's computation, resulting in signature Pixel-perfect color, contrast, and depth. Live translation also performs exceptionally well, providing clear, non-intrusive voice transcription during video calls to make global communication effortless.
Connectivity with T-Mobile is identical to the Pro model, making the Pixel 10 an outstanding choice for network performance. Utilizing the Tensor G5's optimized modem, the phone seamlessly locks onto T-Mobile's expansive 5G network, including Ultra Capacity (UC). Our speed tests confirmed rapid downloads and uploads across various environments. Call quality is superb thanks to Voice over New Radio (VoNR) technology, ensuring crystal-clear audio even in congested urban areas. The dependable "Network Nirvana" feature—the seamless handoff between Wi-Fi and T-Mobile's 5G—guarantees stable streaming and data connectivity, making the Pixel 10 a rock-solid performer for everyday mobile life.
The Google Pixel 10 is the ultimate argument for the democratization of high-end AI. While it trades some premium display resolution and top-tier camera hardware for a more approachable price, it sacrifices none of the core intelligence or connectivity features that define the Pixel 10 series. For the user seeking phenomenal AI performance and a fast, reliable T-Mobile connection in a more compact and affordable package, the Pixel 10 is the smart choice.
It’s been eighteen years. Eighteen long, agonizing years of waiting, false starts, and whispers in the dark. For a time, I genuinely believed I would be using a cane to walk to GameStop to order Metroid Prime 4. But here we are. The impossible has happened. And, I’m thrilled to tell you, Retro Studios didn't just meet expectations—they dropped a bomb on them and rebuilt something monumental in the crater.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is not merely a return to form; it's a defiant statement. It’s a masterclass in atmospheric design, rewarding exploration, and, perhaps most importantly, in respecting the player’s intelligence. This game is a glorious, dense, confusing, and ultimately deeply satisfying labyrinth that will consume your free time and haunt your dreams.
The New Suit: A Symphony of Power
The story kicks off with a bang—a cinematic confrontation with Sylux that lands Samus on the strange, gorgeous planet Viewros. Naturally, you lose your powers in the process (it’s a Metroid game, after all), but what you gain in return—the psychic abilities bestowed by the Lamorn—is what truly sets this adventure apart.
The new psychic powers are not a gimmick; they are woven into the very fabric of the game's design. The Psychic Visor and its companion abilities transform the scanning mechanic from a lore collector's chore into a dynamic tool for world manipulation. Being able to telekinetically shift platforms or—and this is the killer feature—guide your charged shots with the Control Beam is an absolute revelation in combat and puzzle-solving. When you're locked onto a huge boss like Carvex, rapidly redirecting a charged blast to hit three simultaneous weak points while dodging its huge, planar attacks, you realize the combat loop has finally evolved into the sophisticated dance it was always meant to be. It’s a moment of pure, exhilarating gameplay genius.
And let’s talk about the controls. I played the Switch 2 version, and the mouse controls for aiming are so intuitively precise that going back to anything else feels like wrestling with the past. But even with a standard controller, the refined lock-on, the snappy dodges, and the improved Morph Ball maneuvers make Samus feel like the ultimate apex predator she is. It’s buttery smooth.
The World: Viewros Unveiled
Viewros itself is a triumph of environmental artistry. The biomes—from the lush, claustrophobic undergrowth of Fury Green to the blistering, mechanized terror of Volt Forge—are stunning. Even on the base Switch, the game looks incredible, but on the Switch 2 in Quality Mode (4K, 60 FPS), this is arguably the best-looking game Nintendo has ever published. The lighting, the particle effects, the sheer scale of the architecture... it all contributes to an atmosphere of melancholy isolation that is a hallmark of the series.
Now, I have to address the one design decision that gives me pause: the Sol Valley hub world and the Vi-0-La motorcycle. It's a vast, beautiful desert, and riding the psychic motorcycle is undeniably cool. But it creates a structural problem. The traditional Prime interconnectedness, the sense of one massive, breathable organism, is fractured. Instead, you have this big, open-but-mostly-empty space connecting a series of extraordinary, self-contained dungeons. For the love of God, Retro, why the padding? Why is collecting Green Energy Crystals in the desert a main objective? It feels like an attempt to justify an open-world element that the core Metroid Prime structure simply doesn't need, and it adds a bit of needless bloat to the experience.
The Isolation Tax
And then there's Myles MacKenzie. The Galactic Federation engineer who accompanies Samus for a portion of the game. Look, I understand the desire for more narrative and to appeal to a wider audience, but Metroid thrives on its silence and solitude. I found myself grinding my teeth whenever Myles would chirp in with a quip or a tutorial hint. The moment I transformed into the Morph Ball and he dropped a cheesy one-liner, a little piece of the sacred Metroid atmosphere shattered. Samus, the silent, terrifying warrior, shouldn't have a chatty sidekick, even if he provides a narrative link. The isolation is the vibe, man!
Fortunately, the game remembers its roots. The deeper you delve into the self-contained biomes, the more Myles fades into the background, and the more the game leans into that delicious, tense, sci-fi horror atmosphere. The Scan Visor logs, which detail the dying wish of the Lamorn race and the escalating threat of Sylux, are as engrossing as ever, delivering the lore in the perfect, non-intrusive way we expect.
The Google Pixel 10 Pro isn't just a smartphone upgrade; it's the realization of a future promised by artificial intelligence. Powered by the revolutionary Tensor G5 chip, this device redefines what a pocket companion can do, seamlessly integrating the digital and physical worlds with unprecedented predictive power and processing speed. This is, without a doubt, the most intelligent and best-connected device Google has ever engineered.
The star of the show is the suite of new Gen-AI features baked deep into the operating system. Gone are the days of simple search or command-based assistance. The Pixel 10 Pro’s new “Proactive Assistant” anticipates your needs before you even articulate them. For instance, when composing a long email, the AI doesn’t just suggest the next word; it drafts entire, contextually relevant paragraphs based on your recent meeting notes and calendar schedule, offering three distinct tonal options for the final output. In photography, the evolution of Magic Editor is astounding. It’s no longer just about fixing mistakes; the Generative Composition feature allows users to dynamically alter lighting, weather conditions, and even swap entire backdrops with photorealistic fidelity, all processed instantly on-device thanks to the G5's dedicated machine learning core.
The camera system, already a leader, gains an enhanced "Depth Capture" mode, using AI to compute hyper-accurate distance and material data, resulting in portrait mode effects that are indistinguishable from professional DSLR shots. The live translation capabilities are also dramatically improved, now offering real-time, non-intrusive voice transcription during international video calls, making global communication genuinely effortless.
Beyond the raw processing power, connectivity is paramount, and the Pixel 10 Pro excels when paired with T-Mobile. Thanks to optimizations in the Tensor G5's modem and Google's deep carrier partnerships, the phone takes full advantage of T-Mobile’s expanded 5G network footprint. We tested speeds across urban centers and suburban sprawl, consistently achieving peak performance on T-Mobile’s Ultra Capacity (UC) network. Crucially, call quality is noticeably superior; the use of advanced Voice over New Radio (VoNR) technology results in crystal-clear, lag-free voice calls, even in highly congested areas where older phones struggled. The seamless handoff between Wi-Fi and the T-Mobile network (a feature affectionately known as "Network Nirvana") means streaming never stutters, and downloads finish in the blink of an eye, solidifying the Pixel 10 Pro as the benchmark for a connected mobile experience.
The Google Pixel 10 Pro is more than an incremental update; it’s a fully realized AI powerhouse. For the user who demands bleeding-edge intelligence and the fastest, most reliable connection that T-Mobile provides, this phone is the undisputed champion of the premium smartphone market.
The 2001 "Moulin Rouge" was such a dizzying experience that it still seems ahead of its time, nearly a quarter century after release.
The stage musical adaptation elevates the source material, updating several song and dance numbers with fare released over the past couple decades, injecting new life into the audio-visual feast of a risque romantic tragedy. Credit John Logan's book for overwhelming the shortcomings of the messy, melodramatic story with sheer energy and poetic virtuosity. The winner of the 2019 Tony for Best Musical now can-cans its way across the country, leaving audiences awestruck and spellbound.
The juxtaposition of modern music embedded in a period piece echoes the tone of "& Juliet," which Broadway in Tucson brought in last month, and even shares some songs. "Moulin Rouge" aims for a more solemn and profound tone. While "& Juliet" took a somewhat mocking tone toward its musical selections, "Moulin Rouge" embraces even the corniest lines with refreshing new takes that make them seem prophetic.
Arianna Rosario rises to the occasion in the title role as Satine, the weary diva who shoulders the burden of attempting to save the sinking dreams of her bohemian colleagues. Belting out tunes with aplomb, and strutting silk-smooth moves with the assurance of a queen bee, she owns the spotlight from the moment she is first introduced on a swing, crooning "Diamonds are a Girl's Best Friend."
Her equal is co-star Jay Armstrong Johnson, who takes on the quixotic quest to win Satine's heart through sheer force of will, greased along by his vision for setting a venue-saving stage musical starring Satine. His sneaky athleticism and booming voice make him an ample match for Satine's sultry appeal. Lurking in the background is the Duke of Monroth (Andrew Brewer), the villain who all but twirls his moustache as he seeks to take over the Moulin Rouge and render Satine a piece of property.
Bobby Daye high-steps along as the energetic show master, Harold Zidler, providing a self-important, P.T. Barnum-style chorus to the proceedings.
"Moulin Rouge" wins hearts with boisterous, intricately choreographed numbers that are heavy on joyously gratuitous dance breaks. The sheer energy and skill on display is mesmerizing, and the coordination underscores a chemistry necessary to make such a show function.
The backgrounds and stagecraft are just as inspired and gorgeous, seamlessly mixing projection and practical set pieces to whisk the cast along through various Parisian settings. It's hard not to get lost in the star-studded skies overlooking the Eiffel Tower as Satine and Christian dance their doomed tango.
"Moulin Rouge" is not only for fans of the film, but those who felt it fell short and were yearning for something more. My take is that the movie was just a dress rehearsal for this grand, sweeping event.
"Moulin Rouge! The Musical" plays through Dec. 7. Buy tickets here.
