Laughs, Fashion, Concerts
News Roundup
Let’s begin with theater news.
From what we have learned about the new musical, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, the show definitely lives up to its satirical title and then some. The winner of four Tony Awards, including for Best Musical, the play tells the story of a poor young Englishman, Monty Navarro, who discovers that his late mother was a disinherited member of an aristocratic family, which makes him a potential, though distant heir to the family’s name and fortune. So, he decides to improve his chances by doing away with the other eight heirs. Laughs are practically guaranteed, all wrapped up in beautiful music. (Public Theater of San Antonio, in San Pedro Park, 7:30 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays through Feb. 23; tickets $20-$45, 210-733-7258, thepublicsa.org) See feature story on this site.
At the Woodlawn Theater, they decided to bring back the beloved classic, The Music Man,featuring the charismatic con artist Harold Hill whose plan is to take advantage of the good folks of River City, Iowa, by selling them all sort of musical instruments and uniforms for a band he never intends to organize or train. The Woodlawn’s leaders were excited to get the rights to stage the show just before a Broadway revival planned for later in the year. It was also an opportunity to showcase the company’s educational program by including almost 30 Woodlawn Academy students in the production.
As usual, the Woodlawn has a nonprofit partner that will benefit from the generosity of the theater’s patrons. This time it’s YOSA (Youth Orchestras of San Antonio) and theatergoers are urged to donate musical instruments and supplies during the run of the show. (Woodlawn Theater, 1920 Fredericksburg Rd., 78201; Jan. 31-Feb. 23, 2020; Fridays-Saturdays 7:30 p.m. except on Feb. 15 when there will be a matinee at 2 p.m., Sundays 3 p.m.; $$18-$30; 210-267-8399, woodlawntheatre.org)
The Gurwitz 2020 International Piano Competition is still going on this weekend. Tonight’s concert promises to be one of the most interesting events as it will feature the three finalists and two members of the famed Silk Road Ensemble playing a new, specially commissioned piece from San Antonio composer Ethan Hadfield. In a departure from classical music tradition, the piece allows for improvisation by the players, opening up opportunities for individual creativity. For the grand finale Saturday, the finalists will perform with the San Antonio Symphony at the Tobin Center, with Sebastian Lang-Lessing conducting. Both concerts are great opportunities to hear highly talented pianists and other outstanding musicians for free or for a very reasonable price. (Friday at 7 p.m., Charline McCombs Empire Theatre, free but tickets required; Saturday at 7 p.m., Tobin Center for the Performing Arts; $15-35; musicalbridges.org/gurwitz-2020) See story on this site
For a very different musical experience, you nay choose to go to the Alvarez Theater at the Tobin Center where San Antonio-based Demitasse & Buttercup are scheduled to appear with special guest Ethan Azarian. Buttercup has been around for a while but the musicians who created it are now also involved with the cleverly named Demitasse. Apparently, this will be the first time Demitasse and Buttercup play together on the same stage. Don’t be confused though, we are talking here about two different styles of music by the same musicians: guitarist Joe Reyes and singer Erik Sanden. We are more familiar with Buttercup known for its art-rock style but we are curious about Demitasse’s “soft-rock ballads.” Buttercup will also feature Claire Rousay on drums. (Carlos Alvarez Theater, Tobin Center, 100 Auditorium Circle; Feb. 1 at 8 p.m.; $25; tobi.tobincenter.com)
And now for the fashion part! You don’t often associate museums with fashion unless it’s in reference to chic ladies at opening night parties, but The McNay Art Museum has been stretching the definition of art in interesting ways lately. You may recall the exhibit of paintings from the McNay collection paired with real automobiles from the 1950s gleaming brightly right in the gallery. That must have set a precedent of sorts.
What the museum is basically saying is that design is also art and that artistic creativity comes in many forms. It’s perhaps not a surprise that four women worked on putting together the current exhibit, Fashion Nirvana: Runway to Everyday, which opened Jan. 30 and will stay on view through May 17. More than 60 items created in the 1990s by famous designers such as Dior, Jean Paul Gaultier, Carolina Herrera, Tom Ford, Vera Wang, Oscar de la Renta and others, are displayed on mannequins, grouped by themes and, in one gallery, paired with visual art works from the museum’s collection.
In addition, art videos made roughly in the same decade are interspersed among the clothing. The latter may have nothing to do with the displayed garments but are included to show the new digital technology that made video increasingly appealing to artists.
Another small exhibit in the Rotunda has been attracting a lot of attention in its own right. It consists of five large photos of Tejano icon Selena. (McNay Art Museum, 6000 N. New Braunfels; admission to the museum $10-$20; free for certain groups and for children, and free for all 4-9 p.m. Thursdays. However, admission to see the exhibit is always charged though at the reduced rate during free-admission periods. Watch for an upcoming feature story on this site.
News Roundup