Anna Plays Ann

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor One of San Antonio’s best and most versatile actresses, Anna Gangai, is portraying former fire-brand governor of Texas, Ann Richards, in a one-woman-play at the San Pedro Playhouse Classic Theater. Many readers will remember Richard’s flamboyant persona, her tenacity and resilience as only the second female governor of the Lone Star State. We spoke with Gangai …

News Roundup, Oct.31, 2024

NEWS ROUNDUP, Nov. 1, 2024 The best part of this season is the abundance of great music in our halls great and small. Upcoming events range from symphonic music and choral events to theatrical humor combined with dazzling operatic singing. The Mid-Texas Symphony will present Jean Sibelius’ Second Symphony that moves “from darkness to triumph, symbolically conveying Finland’s fight for …

Book Review

“CREATION LAKE” by Rachel KushnerReviewed by Steven G Kellman After a federal agent bungles an undercover mission to entrap two animal rights advocates in criminal acts, a journalist asks: “What kind of person would manipulate and frame young people with utopian hopes and principles?             That person narrates Creation Lake, Rachel Kushner’s seductive fifth novel. A 34-year-old American who calls …

News Roundup, 10,18,2025

NEWS ROUNDUP, Oct. 17, 2024 High caliber ballet performances are not frequent events in San Antonio, so ballet lovers can look forward to the up-coming performance of Ballet San Antonio’s “Don Quixote,” this weekend.The ballet is an adapted version inspired by Miguel Cervantes’ famous 17th century tale that follows the protagonist on a heroic quest to vanquish his enemies and …

News Roundup, Oct.10, 2024

More good music coming our way! The San Antonio Chamber Music Society kicks off its new season with a concert by the 2023 Grammy-nominated vocal ensemble – VOCES8. Touring globally, this beloved vocal octet “consistently thrills audiences” with a repertoire ranging from Renaissance music to folk songs, jazz, pop and original compositions.” We can, indeed, confirm that this octet sounds …

News Roundup, 10,3,2024

Music, music, everywhere! Camerata San Antonio will present its second program of the new season, “Longing,” which will showcase a selection of piano trios. The beautifully curated program explores the theme of longing through works of Mel Bonis, Schubert, Weinberg and Brahms. The trio of performers includes violinist Matthew Zerweck, cellist Kenneth Freudigman and pianist Viktor Valkov. They will play …

News Roundup, Sept. 27, 2024

As is usual in the fall, arts organization get into high gear. Let’s start with music! The San Antonio Philharmonic will perform Classics II concert, conducted by music director Jeffrey Kahane, and featuring Nicholas Namoradze on the piano. The concert begins with Sarah Kirkland Snider’s evocative “Forward into Light,” a meditation on perseverance, bravery and alliance inspired by  American women …

Book Review: “The Perilous Art of Selling Books”

Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman             “Entering any bookstore is a sensory experience,” writes Evan Friss, and he shares that experience in the opening pages of The Bookshop, where he invites the reader to enter Three Lives & Company, an independent emporium in Greenwich Village. Three Lives does not sell puzzles, greeting cards, gift wrap, or coffee, and it does …

Interview with Stephanie Key, Artistic Director and Clarinetist for the SOLI Chamber Ensemble

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor What motivated you to form the SOLI Quartet, and who were the original members?SOLI was born out of a desire to make music together with friends and to commission new works from emerging composers of our time. SOLI’s unique instrumentation of clarinet, violin, cello and piano, combined brought about new colors and sounds for the composers …

News Roundup, Sept. 5, 2024

The Fall season is getting lively as music groups launch their seasons. Camerata San Antonio is opening with QUARTETS, a concert of, well, quartets by Beethoven, Haydn and Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson, an African-American composer who wrote a great deal of music inspired by jazz. The Camerata ensemble is trying to include more women composers and black composers who were often overlooked …

News Roundup 8.29.2024

Let’s start with the Visual Arts this time. One exhibit that should not be missed is “Sacred Art of Altars: One People Many Paths, currently at the San Antonio Art League and Museum. The exhibit features small, artist-made shrines. Each piece has an identical shape and size (12” wide x 14” tall niche) but each “altar” is decorated by an …

News Roundup, Aug. 16, 2024

Let’s start with the Visual Arts this time. You probably remember the horrible human trafficking tragedy that happened on June 27, 2022, when 53 migrants suffocated in a closed tractor- trailer on the south side. The driver just left them there.  In a sincere effort to honor the memory of these 53 migrants, Bexar County Commissioner, Rebeca Clay-Flores commissioned local …

News Roundup, Aug. 9, 2024

August is relatively quiet month, especially for classical/art music but there are exceptions. One chamber music group, The Olmos Ensemble, has a Summer Concert Series which started Aug. 4. The next concert on Aug. 11, will be focused on Baroque music, highlighting the works of Bach and Vivaldi. No specific works are listed. (Aug 18, 3-5 p.m., Shepherd King Lutheran …

News Roundup, Aug. 2, 2024

Flutists from across the U.S. and the world have gathered in San Antonio for the National Flute Association’s 52nd Annual Convention. The flutists will bring hundreds of flute recitals, workshops, masterclasses and more to downtown San Antonio Aug. 1-4. The big event is Gala di Concerti on Saturday night, an All-flute-Concerto concert, which will be performed with the San Antonio …

News Roundup, July 25, 2024

Mid-summer is a pretty quiet time in the performing arts. But there’s still some live music in town. And there’s a film festival. Let’s start with the music! Record-setting, 10-times CMA Musician of the Year, Mac McAnally, is a renowned songwriter, singer and instrumentalist who has written dozens of hits for other artists, several of which peaked at #1. His …

News Roundup, July 18, 2024

Prominent arts organization, URBAN-15 is celebrating its 50th anniversary with a series of Antonio’s community events commemorating the arts and history of the dynamic non-profit led by two San outstanding artists – George and Catherine Cisneros. The organization first attracted attention of the broader public with its Carnaval de San Anto, which performed in parades and city events.  It has …

“Someone Like Us”

Reviewed by Steven G. Kellman With the publication of his plangent first novel, The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears (2007), Dinaw Mengestu became the most prominent author of the Ethiopian diaspora. The story of an amiable immigrant who attempts to remake his life running a grocery store in Washington, D.C., it is redolent of the desolation of dislocation.             Unlike …

News Roundup,July 5 2024

Now that the 4th of July festivities are mostly behind us, let’s take a look at the arts scene for this weekend and beyond. “Melodies in Motion” is a flute, clarinet and piano recital, featuringGregory Obregon (flute); Stephen Moore (clarinet) and Wayne Ching (piano). The concert promises to be Now a “summer celebration of solos and sonatas for those three …

July 4th Celebrations

The San Antonio Philharmonic will start the day with a special concert to celebrate the 248th anniversary of American independence. It will take place at 1314 Guadalupe Street, where the orchestra’s offices are located, from 10 a.m. to 12 noon. No word about what they will be playing but patriotic music would be a logical choice. Listeners are invited to …

News Roundup, June 27, 2024

San Antonio has numerous outdoor art installations and now there’s one more; actually two, strictly speaking, but the two are connected. El Papaloto and El Trompo were just installed the other day at the intersection of Frio and Commerce streets downtown. The Department of Arts and Culture described them as “monumental emblems of childhood play.” The kite (Papalote) features a …

Hebrew in Exile

By Steven G. Kellman “It’s not a good time for Hebrew.” The final words of the title novella in The Hebrew Teacher echo its opening line: “It wasn’t a very good time for Hebrew.” Ilana, an Israeli who has been teaching Hebrew at a midwestern American university for almost forty-five years, faces dwindling enrollments and the fact that the Zionist …

News Roundup, June 14, 2024

The CMI-OSA Festival continues through this weekend. The concert, Anna and her Sisters, which features guest artists and artist faculty, will be performed Friday, June 14 @7:30 p.m. This festival has both a performing and teaching component, hence the references to “teaching artists” and “guest artists” and “artist faculty.” The three groups are the most experienced musicians. (June 14 at …

News Roundup, June 6, 2024

Music is alive and well in San Antonio right now, thanks in part to the Classical Music Institute’s CMI 210 Festival that’s co-sponsored by Opera San Antonio. A plurality of events is taking place all over the city. This fest is different from many traditionally presented festivals because it combines educational activities for music students, ages 8-18, with public performances.  …

News Roundup. May 30, 2024

Fortunately, there’s one more pair of concerts to look forward to before the San Antonio Philharmonic closes shop for the summer. The orchestra’s Classics 10 concert will be conducted by Colombian conductor, Lina Gonzalez-Granados, and will feature violinist Randall Goosby as the soloist. The program opens with: “Jeder Baum spricht” (“Every Tree speaks”) by Iranian-Canadian composer Iman Habibi, followed by …

A Choral Concert to take to Europe

by JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Jennifer Seighman remembers always being around choirs and choral music in school or in church throughout her growing up years. “So, I kept going at it since elementary school,” she said recently during an interview. “I think there’s something unique about your voice, and the singing becomes exceptionally powerful when many voices join together to create …

News Roundup, May 23, 2024

As summer is approaching, the classical music-performing groups wind down their seasons. No Philharmonic concerts, few chamber music ones. Most musicians leave town to take part in summer festivals around the U.S. and beyond. But music will not disappear. In fact, there are multiple choices. Let’s begin with Proyecto Pax Music Showcase and Preview Film Screening featuring local Xicano Musicians. …

A Novel About Novelist Vladimir Nabokov

Reviewed By Steven G. Kellman Vladimir Nabokov was not fond of biographers. He called them “psychoplagiarists” and even sued, unsuccessfully, to prevent one from publishing a book about him. There are now several biographies of Nabokov, including Brian Boyd’s two-volume cradle-to-grave account, in addition to Véra, Stacy Schiff’s Pulitzer Prize-winning study of the author’s wife. But biographers are handicapped by …

News Roundup, May 16, 2024

NEWS ROUNDUP, May 16, 2024 The Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival in San Antonio is the first and longest-running Conjunto Festival in the nation, and is internationally recognized as the most influential event for this popular South Texas musical tradition. You can experience the fun, the music and dance during the next three days of festivities in Rosedale Park. You’ll have …

News Roundup, May 9, 2024

The San Antonio Philharmonic will present a pair of great concerts this weekend, featuring the music of Johannes Brahms and Antonin Dvorak. On the program are three works by Brahms- “Tragic Overture,”“Nanie” and “Song of Destiny.” Dvorak’s eloquent Cello Concerto will conclude the evening. The concerts will be conducted by Canadian conductor Jean-Marie Zeitouni and will feature cellist Sterling Elliot.Following …

News Roundup, May 2, 2024

Camerata San Antonio is closing its season with a “tour de force” duo recital featuring violinist Matthew Zerveck and pianist Viktor Valkov. Program: Cui: Violin Sonata, Op.84; Beethoven: Violin Sonata No. 6, Op.30, No.1; and Shostakovich’s Violin Sonata, Op.134. Both are distinguished musicians. Valkov is the winner of the 2012 New Orleans International Piano Competition, and appears frequently as a …

News R0undup, April 25, 2025

Guiseppe Verdi is one of the best-known composers of all time, and certainly the most prolific and admired opera composer. So, it was nice to hear that the UTSA Lyric Theatre will be presenting the VERDI PROJECT, as the final production of its 2023-24 season. The show is a new collaboration effort between the school’s theatre, orchestra and choral groups, …

News Roundup, April 18, 2024

The San Antonio Philharmonic will be presenting its Classics 8 concert, featuring Vadim Gluzman as both director and violinist. Gluzman is internationally recognized as one of the best performing artists of today. The concert will open with Russian composer Alfred Schnittke’s multi-movement work in the style of Baroque music. Other works are Mozart’s Symphony No. 25 – known as the …

News Roundup, April 11, 2024

Lots of good music coming up! Opera San Antonio is presenting the super popular operetta, The Pirates of Penzance, “a swashbuckling tale of Frederick, a young man who’s reached the end of his pirate apprenticeship. When he falls in love with Mabel, his former shipmates throw a wrench into his plans, setting off a series of hilarious events pitting Frederick …

Chanticleer Ensemble to Perform as Part of the CARITAS Concert Series

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor How do you define the Chanticleer Ensemble?Chanticleer is one of only two full-time, professional vocal ensembles in the United States. We were founded by a San Antonio native, Louis Botto, in 1978. We started as an early music ensemble, singing music from the Renaissance with countertenor, tenor, baritone and bass voices. However, the ensemble quickly expanded …

Carolyn True

Professor of piano at Trinity University, Soloist and member of the SOLI Chamber Music Ensemble By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Tell us about your early history with the piano.I began my studies with my mom, Marilyn, when I was around 5. She and my dad, Wesley, were in one of the first classes of doctoral piano performance majors at the University …

News Roundup, April 5, 2024

The First Presbyterian Church of San Antonio has a musical gift for San Antonians: Haydn’s “Creation”Oratorio performed by the Sanctuary Choir, Orchestra and soloists. It’s the epic musical oratorio retelling of the Genesis creation story by the great composer. (April 5 at 7 p.m.; First Presbyterian Church, 404 North Alamo St., 78205; 210-271-2730, www.fpcsanantonio.org; free) Another grand choir – The …

News Roundup, March 21, 2024

We’ll start by introducing you to the Annual San Antonio Folklife and Dance Festival presented by Heritage Festivals of San Antonio. This is the event that’s taken the place of the former Texas Folklife Festival organized by the Institute of Texan Cultures around the iconic building in Hemisfair Park. “If you miss the Texas Folklife Festival, which delighted visitors for …

News Roundup, March 14, 2024

Let’s start with theater this week. Companies are getting more active and the range of stage offerings is exciting.The Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center’s Arts/Teatro Salon will present “La Carpa de Frontera,” written and performed by CARPA San Diego, a touring Mexicano vaudeville show from San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico. Now marking its tenth anniversary, the show will include San Antonio …

News Roundup, March 7, 2024

v NEWS ROUNDUP, 3/7/2024 Big news from UTSA: The Southwest Guitar Symposium, San Antonio’s Classical Guitar Festival, returns to UTSA this month. It’s a three-day event that showcases the versatility of the classical guitar and allows musicians, guitar makers and music lovers to network. The event includes performances and masterclasses led by internationally respected guitar players as well as solo …

News Roundup, Feb. 22, 2024

Let’s begin with ballet news! San Antonio has only one professional ballet company, and this company has only a couple of productions a year. Premiering this weekend is a brand-new production, inspired by Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream.”  The company sent emails saying “Hey San Antonio!Demetrius, Oberon, Puck, and others can’t wait to meet you!” The production was choreographed by …

News Roundup Feb. 15, 2024

This weekend you have the opportunity to enjoy a very special treat. The Austin Baroque Orchestra is back in action after several years. The period-instrument ensemble focuses on the Iberian world: Latin America. Spain and Portugal; also, France and Italy. They have done a lot of research about music predating the 1755 devastating earthquake that practically destroyed Portugal’s capital of …

A Visit to Ruby City

By Jasmina Wellinghoff, Editor After several years, we decided to revisit Ruby City, the red museum that Linda Pace built. Some of our readers will remember that Pace – an artist and art collector – hired a prominent British architect, David Adjaye, to design the unusual building – all sharp lines and angles – on Camp Street, near the San …

Ekphrastic Poetry Contest is Part of National Poetry Month in San Antonio

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor EKPHRASTIC POETRY CONTEST is PART of the 2024 POETRY MONTH By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Poet and artist Linda Simone has been writing poems since she was in 4th grade, and at some point, she got interested in composing ekphrastic poems. Today she’s one of the coordinators of the Ekphrastic Poetry Contest, which is part of National …

The 2024 Gurwitz International Piamo Competition Concludes in Glory

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Piano music lovers – and they are legions – must have felt like they were in heaven the past couple of weeks while the Gurwitz International Piano Competition took over several music venues in town. Presented by the non-profit Musical Bridges Around the World, the competition attracted 76 young pianists from around the world, of which …

News Roundup, Jan. 25, 2024

The GURWITZ International Piano Competition is back for another round of piano fireworks, events and festivities.  Seventy-six young pianists from around the world applied, and 12 were chosen to take part in the 2024 Gurwitz IPC, organized by the local music organization, Musical Bridges Around the World. The goal of the competition is to discover the next generation of top …

News Roundup, Jan.18, 2024

The San Antonio Philharmonic is back in action! It will continue its season this weekend with a program featuring the music of Gustav Mahler and Heitor Villa-Lobos. The orchestra will be conducted by Brazilian conductor Marcelo Lehninger and feature GRAMMY-nominated soprano Laura Strickling who will join the orchestra in Villa-Lobos’ “Bachianas Brazileiras No. 5. That should be a roof-raising experience! …

Interview with Kathy Krnavek, President of the San Antonio Conservation Society

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Please define the role and goals of the San Antonio Conservation Society.The purpose for which the San Antonio Conservation Society was formed was to preserve and to encourage the preservation of historic buildings, objects, places and customs relating to the history of Texas, its natural beauty and all that is distinctive to our state. And, to …

News Roundup, Dec. 8, 2023

Musical Bridges Around the World – MBAW – is offering a concert actually titled “Holiday Gifts,” featuring Belgian husband-and-wife musicians, Nikolaas Kende, piano,and Jolente de Maeyer, violin. They will be joined by American star tenor, Eric Taylor.  Kende and De Maeyer “have a wealth of international awards under their belt,” says the press release, and have performed throughout Europe and …

GAGA’s Annual Exhibit Available to View Online

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor What is GAGA, you may ask. It’s an art organization focusing pm women artists from S. Texas, which helps its members through exhibitions, promotion and education. The acronym stands for Gentileschi Aegis Gallery Association, a name inspired by the first well-known female artist back in the 17th century. That lady’s name was Artemisia Gentileschi. She was …

100 Years of Schreiner University Treasures

BY PHIL HOUSEAL, Contributor Art sequestered is not art appreciated. That realization led a team of Schreiner University staff members to create a special art and artifact exhibit “100 Years of Schreiner University Treasures,” now running from November 4 to December 16, 2023, at the Museum of Western Art (MOWA) in Kerrville. The seeds for this unique collaboration between university …

News Roundup, Nov. 9, 2023

NEWS ROUNDUP, Nov. 19, 2023 A big event for the San Antonio thespian community is taking place this Sunday: The 32nd ATAC Globe Awards. ATAC stands for Alamo Theater Arts Council, which was founded in 1990 as a nonprofit, all volunteer organization, to produce the award show, which recognizes and celebrates the work of San Antonio’s theater artists and stimulates …

Byrd Bonner, Lawyer, Actor and President of the Alamo Theater Arts Council*

INTERVIEW EXPRESS BYRD BONNER, Lawyer, Actor and President of the Alamo Theater Arts Council*                                           By JASMINA WELLIGHOFF, Editor. How does it feel to be celebrating the 32nd ATAC GLOBE AWARDS?I am thrilled that we are now celebrating 32 years. In the wake of the pandemic, and now, in post-pandemic time, we have fewer theater companies in San Antonio; the …

News Roundup, Nov. 2, 2023

You have all heard about the spectacular acrobatic show called Cirque du Soleil, right? Here’s the good news: it’s come back to San Antonio. This version is called Cirque du Soleil BAZZAR, and it will be here until Dec. 3. According to the press kit, “the troupe bands together to invent a whimsical one-of-a-kind universe.” Music, dancers, acrobats, jugglers, trapeze …

Q & A with Artist Barbra Riley

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor After teaching art, design, photography and watercolor painting at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi After for more than 30 years, Babra Riley decided to retire, relocate and follow her own muse. Working from a studio in the Hill Country, Riley focuses on digital media, alternative processes and mixed media.  Her photographs and paintings have been included in …

News Roundup, Oct. 19, 2023

Performing artists/groups include The Magik Theatre, URBAN-15, Ballet Folklorico Sol de San Antonio, and musicians such as Los Texmaniacs featuring Flaco Jimenez, Mariachi Las Coronelas, Buttercup, and Patricia Vonne & The Infidels. Where to park? There is a parking garage at Hemisfair, but it may fill quickly. (Oct. 21, 6 p.m. to midnight; free access) Now let’s look at everything …

“Beauty and the Beast” at the Tobin Center

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor A good number of classical fairy tales have inspired ballet choreographers to create stage versions of the beloved, old stories, including the tales of Cinderella, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty. Following that tradition, American Choreographer Bruce Wells created a number of ballets inspired by fairy tales, including a ballet inspired by the story of “Beauty and …

Opera San Antonio Announces New Collaborative Production of “Hansel and Gretel”

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The old fairy tale of Hansel and Gretel will come alive on stage as never before, in a production of Opera San Antonio that will also include all the other Tobin Center’s resident companies.  OSA artistic director, E. Loren Meeker, is the stage director of the massive show. “We are constantly looking for new ways to …

The ESPEE is a New Entertainment Complex Downtown

By BERIT MASON A long line of concertgoers stood outside of The ESPEE entertainment complex on a sultry September night recently – exactly what the new owners hoped to see. Wearing gold chains and outfits straight out of the 1990s, they were there to see “I love the 90s” concert at San Antonio’s newest outdoor entertainment venue. Director of Marketing …

Musical Bridges Around the World’s Season Promises Musical Riches

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Some familiar faces will return to San Antonio during the 2023-24 season but there will be several San Antonio premieres as well. What the music audiences will be hearing includes classical piano, klezmer, rock, operatic singing, folkloric traditions of Hungarian Gypsies, and more. So how do they put the season together we asked Suhail Arastu, Advancement …

News Roundup, Sept. 14, 2023

Misic, music, everywhere! To celebrate Diez y Seis de Septiembre, The San Antonio Philharmonic will present a special concert featuring several artists from other art disciplines. Legendary flamenco dancer, Teresa Champion, will perform with her daughters, Elsa Champion and Annette Champion Flores, and actor Jesse Borrego will act as emcee of the event. The concert will take place at Lanier …

News Roundup, Aug. 31, 2023

Classical/art music will soon fill the performance halls, starting with this weekend.Two chamber ensembles – Camerata San Antonio and AGARITA are opening their respective seasons, both with promising programming and great performers. Camerata is launching its fall season with “19th Century Echoes,” which centers on the musically rich period between World War I and World War II. The three- concert …

The Carver Announces High-Caliber Season

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Freed from pandemic considerations and restrictions, The Carver Community Cultural Center has just announced a high-caliber season, sizzling with music, dance and talent to energize and delight San Antonians. From jazz and African dancing to soul, gospel, R&B and rock, plus charismatic vocalists and multiple-award winning instrumentalists, it’s a season-long festival of famed artists and entertainers. …

A Conversation with Bihl Haus Arts’Executive Director, Mycah Arellano

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor When I walked into the Bihl Haus Arts gallery, recently, I found myself surrounded by a hundred-plus small-scale paintings, depicting a huge range of themes. “Every one of them has a story,” remarked Mycah Lee Arellano, the current executive director of Bihl Haus, who took the helm of the institution about eight months ago. I was …

Interview with Fiber Artist Lucia LaVilla-Havelin

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Lucia LaVilla-Havelin has been a working artist for more than 50 years, using the traditional techniques of “women’s work” to create original art that addresses contemporary subject matters. Her work has been exhibited in dozens of exhibits in Texas and the U.S. On Aug. 12, her first solo museum exhibition will open at the Brownsville Museum …

News Roundup, July 27, 2023

Summer is a time for festivals and there two coming up. The fun and lively, Balcones Heights Jazz Fest returns to the Wonderland of the Americas Mall’s outdoor amphitheater this Friday, for one night only. It’s the 30th anniversary for the popular fest, organized by the City of Balcones Heights, which is also marking a milestone – the 75th anniversary …

More on 100A, The Tobin’s Theater Program

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor We have come to know the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts as an arts-presenting organization but are some new developments over there that have the San Antonio theater community excited and there curious. Long time theater artist and currently director of Resident Company and Community Engagement at the Tobin, Rick Frederick, has new ideas about …

News Roundup, July 20, 2023

We have to start with theater news again because there are new significant developments in the San Antonio thespian world. The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, which is known primarily as a presenter of a wide variety of visiting shows, has made the decision to start producing its own stage productions. That’s potentially a game changer. They call the …

Camerata San Antonio Announces New Season

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor San Antonio’s premier chamber music group, Camerata San Antonio, has announced its 2023-24 season which will start on Sept. 1, just when everyone is refocusing on city life after summer travels and school vacations.  As usual, each program will be performed at three different locations to give people living throughout San Antonio and the surrounding area …

News Roundup, July 13, 2023

Let’s start with the new kid-on-the-block, Teatro Audaz. It’s not brand new but still largely unknown among theatergoers. Its mission is to “explore the varied experiences and cultures of Latinx people through producing and showcasing the creative talents of our artists.” The company is currently presenting an original play by Hilary Bettis, titled The Ghosts of Lote Bravo.  Readers may …

News Roundup, July 6, 2023

Summers and arts Festivals go together, and San Antonio has its fair share of them. In fact, we mentioned a couple of music festivals last week. But we also have two film festivals and one of them is opening in a few days. The 44th Cinefestival San Antonio, which is dedicated to Latinx films, will be presenting 114 films, including …

Festival of new music, a great addition to the summer

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor San Antonio music lovers probably know Daniel Anastasio as the pianist and artistic director of the chamber music quartet Agarita, which recently turned the galleries of the San Antonio Museum of art San into temporary concert halls, playing music of different periods and styles. But he is involved in other musical pursuits, including an upcoming festival …

News Roundup, June 15, 2023

NEWS ROUNDUP, June 15, 2023 Juneteenth celebrates June 19th 1865, the day that Texas slaves learned about the Emancipation Proclamation that freed all enslaved people. A number of commemorative events in honor of that historic event will take place in San Antonio in the next few days, including both solemn and fun happenings. Since we are an arts publication, we’ll …

News Roundup, May 25, 2023

As summer approaches, performing arts organizations are wrapping up their 2022-23 seasons, and so is the San Antonio Philharmonic. For the final concert of its inaugural season, the orchestra has something special for music lovers, promising to end “with a bang.” And for this special occasion, SA Phil has brought to town conductor Akiko Fujimoto who once served as associate …

Construction Workers Are the Stars of This Exhibit

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Traditional artists painted landscapes, still-lives, religious themes and portraits of mythological and real heroes.  San Antonio contemporary painter, Mary Helwick paints heroes, too, but her heroes are working men who work in essential but risky jobs like construction. As a construction manager for the City of San Antonio, Helwick knows and interacts with these men, and …

News Roundup, May 18, 2023

The big event this weekend is the Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival, the oldest and longest-running conjunto fest in the country.  Organized by the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, this year’s event “Is shaping up to be an incredible Tejano Conjunto Festival a great line-up and more enthusiasm than ever from conjunto fans,” according the GCAC executive director, Cristina Balli. Most of …

Expect More Great Music in San Antonio Philharmonic’s Second Season

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Not long ago, many music lovers feared that San Antonio would be left without a symphonic orchestra after the dissolution of the former San Antonio Symphony. But that did not happen. The musicians of the defunct Symphony didn’t let it happen. They marshaled their talents as both musicians and organizers, and re-created a symphonic orchestra, which …

News Roundup. May 11, 2023

The San Antonio Philharmonic will present a great concert this weekend! One of the classical repertoire’s most famous and admired symphonies – Beethoven’s Symphony No.3, “Eroica” will be the centerpiece, conducted by Noam Aviel, the former San Antonio Symphony associate conductor. Since leaving San Antonio, Aviel has gained recognition on the international scene with engagements in Iceland, Israel, and with …

A Passion for Art Tiles

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The moment you step into Susan Toomey Frost’s house, you notice colorful tile pieces, from practical tables to two-dimensional sculptures and exquisite smaller artwork on the shelves. This lady loves tiles, and she’s been collecting them for a few decades. “I think it’s been part of my life-long interest in old things,” she explains as she …

News Roundup, May 4, 2023

NEWS ROUNDUP, May 4, 2023 Lots of good music coming up! Musical Bridges Around the World (MBAW) is closing its season with a very promising concert, Expedition, featuring two Russian artists, cellist Boris Andrianov and classical guitarist Dimitri Illarianov. The two will combine classical music with folk tunes in a program that will include music by Albeniz, Vivaldi, Piazzolla and …

Carol Coffee Reposa 2016 Profile Story

This is a story about Carol Coffee Reposa our editor, Jasmina Wellinghoff, wrote in 2016. We are reprinting it to honor Carol, one of San Antonio’s and Texas’ most talented poets and prominent member of the San Antonio literary community, who died last week.                                                                                    Published in San Antonio Woman magazine March 2016 A MUSICAL AND RESPLENDENT VOICE By JASMINA …

In Memory of Carol Coffee Reposa we are re-publishing the poem she wrote for our series Life in the Time of Covid-19

Life in the Time of COVID-19, Part 9 June 15, 2020Poetry We are delighted to have the opportunity to bring to you a poem by Carol Coffee Reposa, the 2018 Texas Poet Laureate and one of our favorite poets. And we are pairing it with the painting, “Mountain Monastery in Montenegro” by our editor Jasmina Wellinghoff. We also want to …

News Roundup, April 6, 2023

Though Easter is the most significant Christian holiday, there are few arts events to honor and celebrate it. One we found is the concert by the Sonoro Ensemble, a 24-voice mixed group drawn from the members of the San Antonio Choral Society. Conducted by music director and organist, Jennifer Seighman, the choir will perform the rarely performed “St. John Passion” …

News Roundup, March 30, 2023

Let’s start with theater news! Several openings are scheduled on San Antonio stages in the next few days. The Public Theater of San Antonio is opening “The Pajama Game,” a musical created a while back, in 1954. The original creative team included directors Jerome Robbins and George Abbott – who was also one of the writers – and choreographer Bob …

“Latina Spring” Film Series Explores Identity and Change

By STEPHANIE SCHWARTZ, contributor Esmeralda Hernandez tells the story of how four generations of women pass on dreams and knowledge. Her film, “Dream Carriers,” is set on the West Side, where Hernandez spent much of her youth. “It’s a short love letter and poem style film, dedicated to San Antonio,” she says. Hernandez ties her story of change and transition …

“Chato’s Bridge” opens at the Guadalupe Theater

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor San Antonio College English professor, Mono Riojas Aguilar, wrote the play, “Chato’s Bridge” ten years ago and had a successful one-night show at the McAllister Auditorium. This play is now receiving a new production at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center this weekend. “It started as a short story,” recalled Aguilar during a recent interview. “Most of …

News Roundup, March 16, 2023

There’s a lot going on the visual art scene right now. We are happy to report that Artpace has just opened one of the strongest exhibits we have seen in a while. It is actually three separate exhibits by the Spring 2023 International Artist-in-Residence participants: – Yuliya Lanina based in Austin; Reynier Levya Novo, from Cuba but living in Houston, …

News Roundup, March 9, 2023

About a year ago, we told you about the Caritas Concerts, founded by Mary Ann Winden in 2021. A long-time San Antonio organist, choir director, and “friend of the Chapel of the Incarnate Word,” Winden wanted to highlight the power of organ and choral music, both artistically and spiritually. What’s more, the chapel happens to have a Schoenstein organ, produced …

McNay Art Museum Highlights Women Artists

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor March is Women’s History Month and the McNay Art Museum has appropriately decided to honor women artists with an exhibit whose title says a great deal: Womanish, Audacious, Courageous, Willful Art, featuring 80 artists. Drawn entirely from the museum’s own collection, the exhibit will undoubtedly come as a surprise to many viewers. So, enjoy the surprise! …

News Roundup, March 2, 2023

Ballet San Antonio is closing its season with a new production of “dizzyingly beautiful” Alice in Wonderland. You are familiar with the old tale but rendered through ballet, it’s bound to be beautiful, though, hopefully, not “dizzyingly.” The new BSA version is a collaboration between choreographer Brian Enos and visual artist Luis Grane, whose surrealistic projections, costumes and set design …

Overtime Theater Has a New Artistic Director

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The first thing that Angie Hernandez wanted to tell us about the Overtime Theater was that it’s an all-volunteer organization, including the governing board and all performers. “We are 100% volunteer,” she said, “including me.” And she is the theater’s new artistic director. “The Overtime has gone through several leadership changes in recent years, she explained. …

Guadalupe Center Unveils Poster, Festival Line-up

THE GUADALUPE CENTER UNVEILS WINNING POSTER, LINE-UP for FESTIVAL Winning the poster contest for the Annual Tejano Conjunto Festival is no small accomplishment. This year’s winner is Elisa de Hoyos, a musician and artist of conjunto-themed paintings who lives in Weslaco, Texas. Her winning entry will be used for all promotion and marketing for the 41st fest, which will take …

Rising Piano Star, Leonardo Colafelice,to Play with Symphony of the Hills

by JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Italian pianist, Leonardo Colafelicereturns to Texas to perform Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A Minor, with the Kerrville-based Symphony of the Hills, conducted by Eugene Dowdy. Colafelice is regularly invited to play with orchestras throughout Italy and throughout the world. In 2020, He won the bronze medal and the Audience’s Favorite Prize at the Gurwitz International Piano …

News Roundup, Feb. 16, 2023

Lots of good music coming up! The San Antonio Philharmonic is going to play one of our favorite symphonies: Mozart’s “Jupiter” Symphony, this Friday and Saturday. Why it was named “Jupiter” is not entirely clear, but the music is glorious and exuberant, the kind of music you surrender to. Also on the program is contemporary composer Jessie Montgomery’s “Divided,” specifically …

News Roundup, Feb. 9, 2023

Theatergoers will have good choices this weekend and beyond. The Classic Theater of San Antonio is opening “Fences,” a powerful drama written by August Wilson, the playwright who lived the life that his characters often struggle through. He’s been referred to as “Theater’s poet of Black America” and two of his plays, including “Fences” won the Pulitzer Prize for drama. …

News Roundup, Feb. 2, 2023

Musical Bridges Around the World is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year with a four-day UNITYFest, with jazz and classical music concerts taking place Feb. 2-5 at several locations around town. Founded by Russian-born pianist, Anya Grokhovski in 1998, the organization’s first concert took place in the founder’s home and later expanded to house concerts in the homes of supporters …

New Play Explores Stories of Female Mystics Using Physical Theater Style

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Theater is a normally a hybrid of spoken word and action, but a growing interest in “physical theater” greatly emphasizes the physical action at the expense of the traditional scripted dialogue. If you would like to experience a physical theater show, you’ll have an opportunity to do so when a new work, “We Sail On In …

Jeffrey Sykes Will Guide 2023 Cactus Pear Music Festival

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor On Sunday, Jan. 15, I attended a spirited short concert featuring two remarkable artists, violinist Stephanie Sant’Ambrogio and pianist Jeffrey Sykes. They played beautifully together but musical harmony is not the only connection between these two. One of them, Sant’Ambrogio, was the founder of the summer chamber music showcase, the Cactus Pear Music Festival, and the …

News Roundup, Jan. 19, 2023

The live theater scene is getting livelier.  The latest addition is the San Antonio Broadway Theater founded by a San Antonian, Lauren Cosio Kotkowski, who has returned home after years in New York, determined to bring Broadway-level productions to her hometown. We’ll save the story of how and why she returned for another occasion, but it so happened that during …

News Roundup, Jan. 12, 2023

The holiday lull is definitely over, and arts organization/presenters are back in full swing! The San Antonio Philharmonic is starting 2023 with a concert conducted by the Phoenix Symphony music director, Tito Munoz, which will also feature violinist Randall Goosby performing Tchaikovsky’s violin concerto, a treasure of the classical repertoire. Also on the program is Beethoven’s Symphony No.4. and Buxtehude’s …

Q&A with Rebekah Williams, co-founder of the Miscast Theater Company

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Tell me how and why the Miscast Theater Company was formed?We had a group of friends that met about seven years ago just doing shows around San Antonio, and we talked about how, if we had a theater company, we would do things differently, including more color-conscious casting and casting people who don’t get many opportunities. …

News Roundup, Jan. 5, 2023

The arts scene is getting livelier this weekend! Leading the excitement is the new exhibit, Texas Dimensional- Fine Art in Three Dimensions at the San Antonio Art League and Museum, which officially opens Sunday, Jan. 8. Curated by the husband-and-wife duo, Andre and Virginia Bally, the show includes works by Texas artists – including quite a few San Antonians – …

A Q&A with Matthew McLendon, McNay’s Museum’s New Director

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Before accepting the new position, McLendon was the director and chief curator at the Fralin Museum of Art at the University of Virginia. He will assume his leadership duties at the McNay on Feb. 13, 2023. In the press release, McNay’s search committee co-chair, Darryl Byrd, expressed confidence in the choice. “Matthew stood out from numerous, …

“A Christmas Carol” Like you have never seen before

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor ‘Tis the season for caroling and for productions of “A Christmas Carol, and, in fact, at least two San Antonio theaters staged their different versions of the classic tale, including a Broadway-style musical. But here comes a novel take. The upcoming performance by the San Antonio Choral Society is billed as a “modern-day dramatization” of Charles …

News Roundup, Dec. 8, 2022

‘Tis the season for “The Nutcracker,” so you have plenty of choices. Last week we told you about Ballet San Antonio’s production, which continues this weekend. Now under the artistic direction of the former internationally acclaimed ballerina, Sofiane Sylve, BSA is the only professional ballet company in San Antonio. This version of the iconic ballet was commissioned by the company …

Q&A with Tim Hedgepeth, Director of “A Christmas Carol, the Musical” at the Public Theater

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Is this musical, which ran in New York City annually for quite some time, the first musical version of the old tale?No. I know there was a 1970s’ version with Albert Finney, which was a film. I am not sure if there was a stage adaptation as well. But this version, that we are doing now, …

News Roundup, Nov. 23, 2022

Thanksgiving weekend is for family gatherings and relaxation, so many arts organizations skip the holiday weekend altogether. Even Ballet San Antonio that used to present its annual “Nutcracker” right after Thanksgiving, has moved its shows into December this year. Hardly any concerts are scheduled for this Friday, Saturday or Sunday. But San Antonio theaters have risen to the occasion. In …

On A Cold Rainy Night, Luminaria Shines Bright

By BERIT MASON, Contributing Writer On a night of deadly snowstorms on the American east coast, San Antonio art lovers braved rainy temperatures in the low 40s to see the Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival. Touted as a “magical night of art,” Luminaria has found its niche in our culture.                         A simple map explained the many works, from stand-up …

News Roundup, Nov. 17, 2022

UNDUP, 11/17/2022 There’s always lots of good music in San Antonio, ranging from classical to mariachi. And this weekend is a good opportunity to hear both. Mariachi Nuevo Tecalitlan will conclude the 28th Annual Mariachi Extravaganza Friday at the Lila Cockrell Theater. The concert is the final event of the Extravaganza weekend, which also includes vocal and original songwriting competitions …

News Roundup, Nov. 10, 2022

San Antonio art lovers and collectors always look forward to the Contemporary at Blue Star’s annual Red Dot Show and Art Sale, a major fundraiser for the oldest contemporary art organization in town, featuring the work of nearly 100 San Antonio artists. The event raises funds for the organization’s exhibitions, education programs and outreach initiatives. The proceeds from Red Dot …

Q&A with Fiber Artist Susie Monday, chair of the “50 Years of Fiber – Art Exhibit” – Presented by the Fiber Artists of San Antonio

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor How do you define Fiber Arts?It is art that’s made from some form of fibrous material. It could be yarn, it could be fabric, it could be wire, hand-made paper; it can even be small sticks of wood. It’s a very broad field in many ways. Are we talking about practical things like clothing and ornamentation …

Q&A with Tamara Adira, Founder & Artistic Director of Arte y Pasion

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Your company will be presenting two flamenco shows this week, “Mercuria” on Thursday and “Yo Quiero Ser Humana” on Friday. Tell us about “Mercuria.”The title, “Mercuria” is kind of a play on words. It’s a name of a woman, or of all the women performing in this piece. It’s not a character’s name per se, it’s …

Q&A with Andy Villarreal

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor “Galactic Mayan Gods” is San Antonio Artist Andy Villarreal’s Current Exhibit at Bihl Haus Arts.One line review: Colorful, imaginative, engaging, and fun. Tell us about the inspiration behind these fabulous paintings?I’ve been working on this series for about 20 years though pieces in this exhibition are recent, from this past year. My work deals with the …

How AI Will Impact Art

By BERIT MASON, Contributor “AI” stands for artificial intelligence.            As our world is digitized and computerized, AI software is being applied to medicine, education, shipping and art. Yes, art.                    The leading AI software on the market are Midjourney, DALL-E and DALL-E 2.         With them, artists can photograph their work, scan it into the computer and then it gets to …

News Roundup, Oct.6, 2022

Let’s start with literary news, for a change! The Book Reading Marathon is an interesting experiment organized by Jim LaVilla-Havelin, a prominent leader and teacher in the literary community in San Antonio, who enlisted to help of the Peace Center at the Northwest Vista College to make his idea a reality. Together they are enlisting readers for the chain reading …

Symposium Examines Role of Folkloric Dance in Chicanx Communities

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Nearly every culture in the world has a folkloric dance tradition, meaning dances that emerged historically from the people of a region or country. And Mexico has an especially rich dance tradition that a number of dance companies in the U.S. nurture and excel in. Such is the case with the Guadalupe Dance Company, a resident …

Fine Art – “Old School”: After 70 Years, Coppini Academy of Fine Arts is Still in Class

By BERIT MASON The artist glances at the model, to draw the line of her leg just right. Classical music plays softly in the background while busts of stern philosophers and great artists from the past aloft on shelves, look down. It looks like a scene from the Arts Students League in New York. But this relaxed, quiet atmosphere welcomes …

News Roundup, Sept. 22, 2022

Arts organizations are starting their 2022-23 seasons, so a lot is going on all fronts! San Antonio’s premier presenter of international artists, Musical Bridges Around the World, is launching its concert series this Sunday with “It Ain’t Necessarily So” featuring Duo Baldo, consisting of pianist/actor Aldo Gentileschi and violinist Brad Repp. The two combine their virtuosic performances with theatrical humor …

Sylvia Benitez is SAALM Artist of the Year

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editot There was a time when artist Sylvia Benitez expressed her creativity by constructing all sorts of experimental, site-specific – and often ephemeral – installations that won praise, awards and grants. That was when she lived on the East Coast, trying to follow the contemporary art trends. Today, Benitez lives near Seguin in a peaceful, pastoral enclave …

News Roundup, Sept. 15, 2022

Hispanic Heritage Month officially starts today and there are many events planned for this and upcoming weeks to celebrate the Hispanic heritage in San Antonio, including several arts events.  The festivities commemorate Mexico’s independence from Spain in 1810 and the Mexican-American culture. It all starts with the El Gritto Ceremony and Cultural Program co-hosted by the Mexican Consul in San …

News Roundup, Sept. 8, 2022

In honor of Hispanic History Month, several San Antonio theaters are presenting shows with Hispanic themes and characters.The Public Theater of San Antonio, housed in the historic San Pedro Playhouse, is opening “American Mariachi,” by Jose Cruz Gonzalez, a musical that focuses on an all-female mariachi band and the power of determination, music and familial love. Lots of mariachi music …

News Roundup, Sept. 1, 2022

In the coming days, San Antonio will celebrate the World Heritage Festival that honors and commemorates UNESCO’s designation of the historic Spanish Missions as a World Heritage Site. All cities in the world that are also blessed with this coveted designation are urged by the global Organization of World Heritage Cities, to protect and promote their respective sites. The first …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 12

UVALDE By SARA BROWNE PARSONS We don’t want to hear it but can’t look away.We’re too close to this gut-wrenching loss.We refuse to accept what is,and want to pretend it’s not. We believe we’re better.We know we’re not.Arm anybody, arm everybodywe hand out assault weapons all around. We hate this incidentbut we embrace “the cause.”We elect them again and again,these …

JUBILEE Exhibition Celebrates MBAW’s 25th Anniversary

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor While Musical Bridges Around the World is primarily known as a music organization that brings international musicians to San Antonio, it also has an art gallery that has attracted attention in its own right. Launched in 2013 with an exhibit of artist Rex Hausmann’s work, it has been going strong ever since, though the pandemic imposed …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 11

IT HAPPENED By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF It happened in the land of South TexasIn the quaint town of Uvalde                    19 children died in one day                    in one hour, in one minute                    in one classroom Spelling and multiplications on their minds,Mowed down by an AR-15 Death came fast and angry911 did not call them backThey fell under the desksTasted the blood of …

NEWS ROUNDUP, Aug. 5, 2022

Festivals, festivals, everywhere! Right now, the San Antonio Film Festival is in full swing at the Radius Center, downtown. And it’s a pretty big thing! Its mission statement says, in part, that the fest’s goal is “to serve as an accessible and inclusive platform for artists in the category of cinema and provide cinematic culture to a diverse audience. The …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 9

ElementaryBy Chivas Sandage (for Angeli Gomez) Hearing the supersonic crackof each bullet rip through the building,she rescued her two boysafter she didn’t see a single officer insideafter she ran to her sons’ classroomsafter she sprinted to the schoolafter the police chased herafter she climbed a chain link fenceafter she started runningafter she convinced officers to uncuff her   after she was …

News Roundup, July 28, 2022

The two music festivals we told you about in the last two NEWS ROUNDUPs are resuming this weekend. The Mozart Festival will present its second concert on Sunday, featuring the Artisan Quartet performing works by Mozart, Hugo Wolf, and Tchaikovsky. When we asked festival founder and conductor, Terence Frazor, about the inclusion of Tchaikovsky in a festival devoted to Mozart’s …

Step Into The Art

By JANIS TURK, Contributing Writer EXPERIENCE THE ORIGINAL IMMERSIVE VAN GOGH EXHIBITION IN SAN ANTONIO Last week, beaten down by the relentless afternoon summer heat, I simply stepped into a cool starry night. Yes, I quite literally, entered Vincent van Gogh’s “The Starry Night” painting as part of the origonal Immersive Van Gogh Exhibition, a multi-media art event on view …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 8

Uvalde: Not What Our Forefathers Intended By Lita Marie Bonciolini Unfathomable,inconceivable.unimaginable. Words that completely fail to conveythe horrific actions of a twisted personagainst innocents. No ordinary citizen stands a chance againsta weapon that shoots 60 rounds per minute,A security guard, armed with a revolver,could not have prevailed.How many had already died before the police arrived?How many more while they loiteredin hallways, …

News Roundup, July 21. 2022

Summer is clearly the favorite season for festivals. Following the conclusion of the Cactus Pear Music Festival, here comes another classical music fest, The Mozart Festival Texas, that will present three concerts on three consecutive Sundays. It opens this Sunday at the Bennack Concert Hall on the campus of the University of the Incarnate Word. Created by conductor and music …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 7

Aftermath, Uvalde By Sarah Colby The first thing she sees when she stumblesthrough the back door is the refrigerator,the one everyone in the family pitched in to buywhen they learned she was expecting her first baby.Eleven years later it’s still running, plastered with pictures—cousins, friends, Nana and Popi’s 50th anniversary, tubing the Nuecesfor spring break—and a red and pink construction …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 6

I Don’t Want to Think About ItJames Brandenburg Gunshots in the distanceThen near, close to homeBullets explode, blowing them apartOur children are dyingOur children are dyingUnrecognizable except for their DNAAll the king’s menAll the king’s horsesCouldn’t put Humpty Dumpty together again Fragile children once brokenCan’t be restoredCan’t be put back together again.The egg is shatteredHow many morehave to fall?  Beauty …

News Roundup, July 7, 2022

The two festivals we announced here last week are in full swing right now. The CineFestival, which focuses on Hispanic/Latino filmmakers opened yesterday and continues through July 10. Altogether, 85 films will be screened, including 12 feature films and 73 short ones, both documentaries and fiction stories. All screenings take place at the Guadalupe Theater. Some screenings are free, most …

CineFestival will Feature 85 Films

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Launched 43 years ago, CineFestival returns this year to the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center with in-person screenings and an emphasis on San Antonio and Texas filmmakers. The screenings start today. The fest also has a new director, Eugenio Del Bosque, who was officially hired to lead the film showcase three years ago but due to the …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 5

May 24, 2022By Lisha Adela Garcia Police officer revives choking babyBritney Griner receiving correspondence while unlawfully detained in RussiaDr. Gupta explains what memories are made ofInmate steals little girl’s bike in escape attempt23 pounds of cocaine found hidden in wheelchairBathrooms used to be squeaky clean-What happened?Celebrating the creator of the PRIDE FlagOne thousand sahuaros replanted in Bush Fire burn scarJada …

News Roundup June 30, 2022

Two fun and promising festivals are starting in a few days: The Cactus Pear Music Festival and the Cinefestival San Antonio, the former devoted to chamber music, and the latter to original Latinx films. Both start on July 6. This year will be CPMF’s 26th summer season, and the final one for founder and long-time artistic director – and former …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 4

Hollow: A Spent Shell SpeaksBu Marla Dial Moore I wasn’t meant for you,            my little one.Had I the power, I’d have            stopped in my tracks,     flown backknowing I was once like you,            pulsing with potential                        to build bridges,                                    stitch wounds,                        grace paintings.Both of us untempered, easily shaped,our purpose unknown but unfolding.I came cheap —but you were dear. I …

News Roundup, June 24, 2022

The official dissolution of the San Antonio Symphony has concluded nearly a year of unsuccessful would-be negotiations between the SAS management and the musicians, and brought the 82-year history of the organization to a sad end. “By unanimous vote, the Board has initiated the requisite steps to file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy,” said the official SAS statement. “The assets of …

Poet & Arts Leader, Rosemary Catacalos Lost Her Battle with Cancer

BY JASMINA WELLIGHOFF, Editor When I interviewed Rosemary Catacalos some years ago when she was the executive director of Gemini Ink, one thing repeatedly came up in the conversation: her concern for the community. In that article I wrote: “Whether she is talking about personal memories or the goals of the literary center she’s led for the past four years, …

Poets Respond to the Uvalde Tragedy, Part 3

BethlehemBy Jonathan Fletcher When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi,he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehemand its vicinity who were two years old and under,in accordance with the time from the Magi.                                                        The Gospel of Matthew 2:16 (NIV) I’m tired of your thoughts and prayers, the massacresof innocents. …

News Roundup, June 16, 2022

We told you last week about the interesting music festival, Forbidden & Forgotten produced by the Classical Music Institute. The name refers to works by composers who were either ignored (mostly We women) or composed music that the people in power did not approve of. The concert series continues this weekend with Forbidden Exiles, featuring the music of Paul Hindemith, …

News Roundup, June 9, 2022

Just as the Musicians of the San Antonio Symphony (MOSAS) wrapped up their short “season” at the First Baptist Church of San Antonio, the Classical Music Institute San Antonio is starting its series of concerts presented under the title, “Forbidden & Forgotten.”  That title refers to composers whose works have been either ignored or have provoked governmental authorities. The opening …

Cubism Revisited

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor We are all familiar with the term “modern art” but defining it and its beginning is a bit of a challenge. “That’s a tough question. Different people define it in different ways,” said Lyle Williams, the McNay Art Museum’s Curator of Prints & Drawings, and Curator of Modern Art. “Some people say modern art began with …

News Roundup, June 3, 2022

San Antonio thespians have been talking about creating a festival in honor of the late Sterling Houston, for at least three or four years but this spring it will become a reality. Houston was a playwright, director, producer and all-round theater artist, who died in 2006. During his long career, he wrote more than 30 plays and four short novels. …

News Roundup, May 19, 2022

Let’s start with theater news this time! The Public Theater of San Antonio is opening a new production of the classic musical, She Loves Me, a charming tale of two co-workers in a perfume shop, “in a European City,” who long for love. The two – Let’s sales clerk, Amalia, and the manager Georg – often squabble at work but …

News Roundup, May 12, 2022

The Tejano Conjunto Festival celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, as the first and longest-running conjunto fest in the U.S.“…Forty years is an incredible testament to the community’s love for conjunto music.” said Cristina Balli, executive director of the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center. Indeed. All the best- known artists will perform, including the six-time Grammy Award winner, Flaco Jimenez with …

Interview Express: Danville Chadbourne, Artist (In conjunction with a new exhibit at the Hunt Gallery)

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Congratulations on the new show. Does it have a title?No, we sort of debated about the title, but I decided I didn’t want to focus on anything that would be thematic. That’s because when I do that (choose a theme) it often leads people to places I don’t want them to go. So, I think the …

News Roundup May 5, 2022

Opera San Antonio has emerged from the pandemic faze to stage a grand-opera production of Rigoletto, one of the masterpieces of the entire operatic repertoire. It’s a bold and expensive undertaking and we would like to urge readers to support it by attending one of the performances: tonight, Thursday, May 5 or Saturday, May 7. Thanks to the efforts of …

Aladdin’s Story Told Through Dance

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor As with all folktales, the origin of the story of Aladdin and his magical lamp cannot be precisely determined. But this character and his vicissitudes became a part of the famous story collection, One Thousand and One Nights, after the Frenchman, Antoine Galland, heard the tale from a Syrian storyteller named Hanna Diyad. The story appeared …

Ekphrastic Poetry – Part 6

The poems we are publishing today were not part of the Ekphrastic Poetry Contest. They are a new addition to the ekphrastic poetry project 2022. They were written by three San Antonio poet laureates and the project coordinator Jim LaVilla-Havelin. Enjoy! Carretta WheelBy Octavio Quintanilla (Inspired by Carretta Wheel from a Tejano Freighter, at the Witte Museum I see our …

Ekphrastic Poetry Contest Winners – Part 5, 2022

The poems we are publishing today were inspired by Carretta Wheel from a Tejano Freighter at the Witte Museum. ADULT WINNERS Abuelo’s First JobBy Diane Gonzales Bertrand Along that dusty Mexico trail,we ate the burro to stay alive.Papa and Rogelio pushed the carrettaas Sergio and Rosalinda crossedthe leather harness between thempulling like two skinny ponies.Catching rain in empty horns,we shared …

News Roundup, April 21, 2022

Music, poetry and visual arts dominate the arts calendar this weekend and in the coming week The San Antonio Chamber Music Society will be presenting its final concert of the season featuring The Parker String Quartet. The Grammy-Award-winning ensemble, that has been praised for its “luminous sound,” and “dynamic interpretations,” will play music by Johann Sebastian Bach, Leoš Janaček, Győrgy …

Serbian Artist, Maya Sokovic’s Fragments of Landscapes at MBAW Gallery

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Serbian-born artist Maya Sokovic has known Musical Bridges Around the World founder, Anya Grokhovski, for several years because her husband, Zlatan Redzic, often performs for MBAW concerts. But when Sokovic had a solo exhibit at the Brick at Blue Star in 2020, Grokhovski was surprised to discover her talent. “Why didn’t you tell me that you …

Ekphrastic Poetry Contest Winners – Part 4

EKPHRASTIC POETRY CONTEST WINNERS – Part 4 The poems published today were inspired by “Landscape of four Seasons” by Unkoku Togan, at the San Antonio Museum of Art. ADULT WINNERS Haiku for Landscape of Four SeasonsBy Veronica Morrison We are waiting outthe unrelenting greynessof a somber year. After Unkoku Togan’s “Landscape of Four Seasons”By Mark Heinlein High above the village …

News Roundup, April 14, 2022

Fiesta is behind us but National Poetry Month continues and the music scene promises some goodies. For all of you who have been missing the San Antonio Symphony concerts, there’s good news. Though the strike continues and negotiations with management are still apparently ongoing, the musicians have also lined up several concerts that they will perform under the auspices of …

Ekphrastic Poetry Contest Winners – Part 3

The poems we are publishing today were inspired by the Ruby City installation: “Hub, 3rd Floor, Union Wharf, 23 Wenlock Road, London N1 7ST, UK” by Do Ho Suh ADULT WINNERS Pop-Pop’s HallwayBy Robert J. Cavazos A purple haze outline formsthree access points to memory.Sans the RAM of lived experience,what’s sculpted crumples like fabric. Memory only has some steel to …

News Roundup, April 7, 2022

Fiesta is still with us and it brings us some good music this weekend. But let’s start with the promisingMusical Bridges Around the World’s Sunday concert “Happy Birthday Schubert.” Poor Schubert lived only for 31 years but he sure left a huge musical legacy, including 600 songs. The San Antonio Cathedral concert will mark the composers 225 birthday in a …

News Roundup. March 31, 2022

This weekend is going to be a mightily busy one! First, there’s Fiesta, which, although not an arts event/festival has arts-related components. Our favorite is Fiesta Arts Fair at the Southwest School of Arts. It’s a juried art show featuring the work of 110 artists from across the U.S. A range of art styles are always represented, including paintings, prints, …

Welcome Back, Fiesta!

By SUSAN YERKES, Contributing Writer Fiesta San Antonio starts this week. Are you ready? Get out your sunscreen and your flip-flops, and a big summer hat – preferably with lots of bling attached. Get ready to party like it’s… well… like it’s 2019 –the last year we had a full Fiesta. “We’re back!” declared Retired Army Colonel Jon Fristoe, the …

News Roundup, March 24, 2022

Two significant exhibits have just opened in town: the 92nd Juried Artists Exhibition at the San Antonio Arts League and Museum, and “Mars Needs More Women” at the Centro Cultural Aztlan. Like every year, SAALM issued an open call to artists to submit works for the Artists Juried Exhibition, but this year the museum broadened its reach by inviting artists …

News Roundup, March 18, 2022

We are all witnessing the tragic war in central Europe, so it’s not surprising that San Antonio artists and arts organization want to express their concern and support for the suffering people of Ukraine. A large group of well-known San Antonio poets will gather Saturday afternoon in Main Plaza, to read poems “in solidarity with Ukraine.” Organized by Natalia Trevino …

Symphony Musicians Are Moving Forward With New Concerts and a Nonprofit

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Back in 2014, the Musicians of the San Antonio Symphony, known as MOSAS, created an independent nonprofit that stayed dormant for a number of years. But it has now been revived to help MOSAS to return to music making. Named MOSAS Performance Fund, the organization is a 501c3 nonprofit whose mission is to present professional symphony …

A Doll’s House Part 2 Continues Nora’s Story

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor It’s been more than 142 years since Henrik Ibsen wrote his famous play, “A Doll’s House,” which ended with his protagonist, Nora, leaving her husband, Torvald, and slamming the door shut on their life together. Since that first dramatic exit, Ibsen’s play has been a staple of Euro-American theater, always praised as an early thespian manifesto …

News Roundup, March 3, 2022

The dance scene has been kind of low-key in recent months but dance will grace at least two San Antonio stages this weekend. Ballet San Antonio is presenting its season finale, “Don Quixote” at the Tobin Center, and the innovative, young company Ballet Neplanta is presenting its new work “Valentina” at the Carver Community Cultural Center. The ballet “Don Quixote” …

News Roundup, Feb. 10, 2022

You would think that arts organization would have lots of special events planned for Valentine’s Day weekend but that is not the case. Valentine’s “special events” are all about dining-and-wining, and, maybe some cheek-to-cheek dancing. One promising concert, Il Divo, smartly scheduled for Valentine’s Day at the Tobin Center, had to be postponed due to “a scheduling conflict.” So, if …

Music and Glass Art to Shine at Agarita Concert

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The Agarita Chamber Players are known for their collaborations with other artists who add another dimension to their concerts.  Dancers, poets, storytellers, lighting artists and even a chef have partnered with them over the years. For their upcoming concert on Saturday, the adventurous quartet has paired up with glass artist Gini Garcia whose amazing blown glass …

News Roundup, Jan. 27, 2022

The Blue Star Contemporary has installed two new spring exhibits: Threads Bare in the center’s main gallery, and the Black Art Library in the Art Learning Lab. The first is described as“an exhibition investigating intersections of art and fashion through textiles and related materials as medium or subject, to generate a more expansive understanding of how fashion and adornment play …

Immigrant Artists Showcased at Centro de Artes

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor After being closed for an extended period of time due to COVID, the city-operated Centro de Artes in Market Square has just reopened with a large and unique exhibit that exclusively features immigrant artists and some who are first generation American-born. This was made possible thanks to the New York Foundation for the Arts Immigrant Artist …

Hiplet Ballerinas to Perform at the Carver

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor They were cancelled twice due to COVID, but this weekend the renowned Chicago dance company The Hiplet Ballerinas, is expected to grace the stage in a live performance at the Carver Community Cultural Center. Founded by dancer/teacher/choreographer, Homer Hans Bryant, a former Dance Theater of Harlem star, the company has garnered national and international attention for …

News Roundup, Dec. 16, 2021

The celebratory mood continues this week, with sacred music, folk dancing, pop and operatic singing, and so much more. The San Antonio Choral Society continues to celebrate the season with the Candlelight Christmas Concert this Sunday at the Laurel Heights United Methodist Church.  The singers will once again be accompanied by the 8-piece Sonido Barroco ensemble of musicians who play …

News Roundup, Dec. 9, 2021

Music, dance., merriment, and the holiday spirit are overtaking the city! In the spirit of the season, the San Antonio Choral Society is teaming up with Sonido Barroco instrumental ensemblethis Sunday to present Advent Vespers at St. John’s Lutheran Church at 6 p.m. The service will focus on “the mystery of the Incarnation as told through scripture and sacred songs.” …

“Defining Moments” Explores Impact of COVID

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Last year was hard for everyone and that included the students and faculty at UTSA. Classes were put on hold, meeting cancelled, and individuals found themselves isolated and uncertain about the course of their studies. To help students and themselves, a group of faculty members launched a new project to create connections between people and help …

The Public’s Holiday Show is a Made-in-San Antonio Original

by JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor When the Public Theater of San Antonio announced its 2021-22 season, the December slot was reserved for “Forever Plaid – Plaid Tidings,” a popular holiday concoction of close harmonies and smooth moves, to be performed by a quartet of men who have been asked to return to earth from their lives in heaven “because they were …

Lisa Perello Makes Flamenco-inspired Clothes

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor She grew up with flamenco-artists parents, studied and performed flamenco dance herself, and designed flamenco costumes. Now, San Antonio designer Lisa Perello, would like to dress all her customers in flamenco-inspired fashions. She will be showing her new creations Thursday at the Farbrictopia Warehouse, which is next door to her shop/studio on W. Laurel St., downtown. …

SAS Crisis Continues; Musicians Plan Rally

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor By now, it’s public knowledge that the San Antonio Symphony is going through another financial crisis that stopped the music-making, and placed the non-profit’s board and its musicians on opposite sides of a dispute over contracts and the future of the orchestra. Citing lack of funds, the Symphony Society, the nonprofit board that governs the symphony, …

Sacred Art of Altars, 2021

A couple of weeks ago we told you about the unique exhibit and sale called One People, Many Paths: The Sacred Art of Altars, organized by the equally unique Celebration Circle, an inclusive multi-faith community. Here’s how they define themselves: “We honor the sacred in ourselves, each other and All of Creation.” Once a year, the good folks of Celebration …

NEWS ROUNDUP, Oct. 14, 2021

Music, music everywhere! Where to begin? Two outstanding chamber music ensembles are having concerts next week. SOLI Chamber Ensemble, which performs music by 20th and 21st-century composers, is presenting its second concert of the season, “Fractals,” described as “an exploration of infinite color, shape and voice, as composers weave new sounds and combinations into the ever-evolving kaleidoscope of music.” Scheduled …

Luminaria Announces 2021 Featured Artists

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Luminaria, the nighttime, outdoor, contemporary arts festival is returning to the Hemisfair Park this fall, live and with new energy, ready to razzle-dazzle San Antonians with lights, dance, music, visual installations, poetry, theater and more. Some 45 Texas artists and groups, representing about 150 individual artists have signed up to participate. “Through the pandemic, the arts …

Gemini Ink Honors Gregg Barrios

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor A few months ago, Gemini Ink decided to honor San Antonio poet and playwright Gregg Barrios at its annual Inkstravaganza event, a major fundraiser for the writing arts organization, which always honors local literary personalities. “We have a very vibrant literary community in San Antonio, so Inkstravaganza celebrates that, but it also celebrates one leading literary …

MBAW New Season Showcases(mostly) International artists

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor During its 24th season, Musical Bridges Around the World will, once again, showcase talented musicians and vocalists from around the world, and the concerts will, once again, take place live and in-person at the beautiful San Fernando Cathedral downtown, like – you know! – before the pandemic. “I am very excited about it,” said MBAW founder …

News Roundup, Sept. 23, 2021

The arts scene is definitely getting livelier! This weekend another well-known chamber music group, Camerata San Antonio, will launch its 2021-22 season with in-person concerts at three area locations. “We are so excited to perform for you and enjoy chamber music TOGETHER this year,” said Camerata’s season announcement. Co-founder and artistic director of the group, Ken Freudigman, explained that in …

The Symphony Faces Another Crisis

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The musicians of the San Antonio Symphony have recently reached out to the press to spread the word about a new crisis facing our home symphonic orchestra. According to their release and conversations we had with musician representatives, the board and management of the nonprofit organization intend to cut 30 musician positions from the present 72, …

Raul Gonzalez is SAALM Artist of the Year

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Not too many contemporary artists depict ordinary family scenes but Raul Rene Gonzalez does. And he paints them realistically, in vivid colors, using a range of media and tools, on canvas, wood panels or chunks of concrete. The images are engaging, dynamic, genuine and heartwarming. Collectively, they represent an ode to family and his experience as …

Carver’s 2021-22 Season Packed with Great Shows

by JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor This is the time of year when performing arts organizations traditionally announce their upcoming seasons, and the Carver Community Cultural Center has done just that, with a lineup brimming with talent, star-power and diversity of genres. There will be 12 mainstage productions, and at least four Little Carver Intimate Series shows.  As of today, all are …

News Roundup, Aug. 26, 2021

The seventh Texas Biennial, officially opens on Sept. 1, featuring 51 contemporary artists in five venues, four of which are in San Antonio. They include Ruby City, The McNay, Artpace and the San Antonio Museum of Art. Named “A New Landscape, A Possible Horizon,” the huge project is presented by Big Medium and was organized by co-curators and artistic directors …

SSA & UTSA Work Together to Create New Art School

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor Back in June 2020, when Paula Owen called her colleague Taylor Eighmy, she just wanted to confer with him about potential partnerships that they could develop over time. Their respective organizations had already benefitted from mutual collaborations in the past, so it seemed like the natural thing to do. Owen is the long-time president of the …

Public Theater Has A New Leader

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor After a longish search, the board of the Public Theater of San Antonio has selected Los Angeles-based Claudia de Vasco to serve as its new artistic/executive director. A native of Houston, she has a long resume that includes acting, directing, production, and leadership positions. “The search committee felt that she has the skills and qualities that …

News Roundup, Aug. 19, 2021

Most classical music groups are on vacation or performing elsewhere, but the Agarita Chamber Players are here and starting their new season Tuesday at the San Antonio Museum of art. Artistic director and pianist, Daniel Anastasio, chose the musical program in response to the current SAMA exhibit of American Impressionists. The exhibit is gorgeous and the music sounds very promising, …

Agarita’s New Season Has it All

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The Agarita Chamber Players are known for their collaborations with other artists, from fellow musicians to dancers, poets, photographers, visual artists, and… a glass blower. Yes, you read that right. The “glass blower” the group will be collaborating with is a very special one, Gini Garcia, of Garcia Art Glass, who creates the most original, whimsical, …

News Roundup, Aug. 12, 2021

Let’s start with theater news. Live, in-person performances are back but they may not last long. With new virus variants threatening again our collective health, venues may start closing again. It’s such an unpredictable time! We already told you about the premiere of “Carmen from Mexico,” an original new work written and performed by actress/playwright Anna De Luna. As far …

“Carmen from Mexico” to open at the Guadalupe Theater

By JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor How much do you really know about your parents and grandparents?Yes, you know them as parents and grandparents but their lives are bigger than those roles, and we often forget to ask questions about their childhood, their struggles, challenges and the important moments of their lives. Actress/playwright Anna De Luna decided not to make that common …

News Roundup, Aug. 5, 2021

The big event this weekend is the San Antonio Film Festival which will take place Aug. 5-8 at the Radius Center downtown. Since last year’s fest had to go online because of COVID-19, this year’s celebration is extra special for all, organizers, filmmakers and audiences. “It’s very fulfilling to be back in-person to celebrate the 27th anniversary of SAFILM,” said …

Interview Express: DEBBIE RACCA-SITTRE, Director of the City of San Antonio Arts & Culture Department

by JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor What are the priorities of the Arts & Culture Department right now?My priority is equity, in the sense that we want to make sure that art is accessible to everyone but we also want to make sure that San Antonio artists are equitably represented in the art that we promote. We are also working right now …

News Roundup, July 30, 2021

Lots going on at Artpace this month! In addition to the three exhibits by the recently departed summer artists-in-residence (read feature story from July   ), the art center just opened another, very different show, “Slowed and Throwed”: Records of the City Through Mutated Lenses,”  an art show inspired by a unique DJ and his music. The DJ in question is …

Artpace New Exhibits: Lots to See & Ponder

BY JASMINA WELLINGHOFF, Editor The summer artists-in-residence have left but the work they created during their two months at Artpace, is now on exhibit at the downtown art center. This summer’s trio included Bogota-born, Paris resident, Ivan Argote, Los Angeles-based Nao Bustamante and San Antonio artist Michel Menchaca. The first exhibit you are likely to see is Argote’s clever, amusing …