Arts Alive San Antonio

Literature and poetry are still center-stage this week, with the San Antonio Book Festival taking place tomorrow, April 9, and poetry events scattered all over the city.

But let’s start with Gemini Ink’s Autograph Series, one of the organization’s signature events, which will return this year in a virtual format. The press info says that the April 16, 2021 event “has been reimagined with a lunchtime event designed especially for San Antonio high schoolers,” which will include an interview with the featured speaker, New York Times bestselling author, Ben Fountain. A free public reading and a Q&A session are planned for the evening hours, moderated by Express-News columnist Gilbert Garcia. (For more info go to https://geminiink.org/autograph-series) The next day, April 17, Fountain will lead a workshop, Four Ways to Develop as a Fiction Writer, 9 a.m. – 12 noon, via Zoom, $75-$175.

And here are a few National Poetry Months taking place next week. Jazz Poetry Week on the Jazz Break at Noon on KRTU radio station will feature host Kory Cook and NPM organizer, Jim LaVilla-Havelin as they “explore the intersection of jazz and poetry,” every day between April 12-16. Poets and musicians will share the noon hour as National Poetry Month and Jazz Appreciation month are both celebrated in April. (KRTU-FM 91.7, Trinity University)

Veteran’s Writing Collective with Sarah Colby is a regular monthly event presented by Gemini Ink, which this month is scheduled to take place April 21, 6:30 – 8:30 p.m., via Zoom. If you would like to participate write to veteranscollective@geminiink.org.

To see poems on shops’ windows, take a stroll through the Pearl Complex, any day in April.

Poetry and the written word may dominate the month, but other arts are being showcased, too. The San Antonio Symphony’s Classics VI pair of concerts are scheduled for April 9 and 10 at its performing home, the Tobin Center. Works by Puccini, Mozart, Stravinsky and Copland are on the program, that will be conducted by guest conductor Garrett Keast. Russian soprano Lyubov Petrova is the soloist. Opera News described her as “a soprano of ravishing beauty, blazing high notes and magnetic stage presence.”
(Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, tickets at tickets@tobincenter.org; 210-223-8624)

The super-active Agarita Chamber Players, who recently reinvented the classical music format by traveling to neighborhoods to perform live outdoors, are presenting two free Humble Hall concerts on Sunday, April 11. “Humble Hall” is their endearing name for a truck equipped with a special platform from which they perform.The first concert takes place at 11 a.m. in City District 3 at 310 Riverside Dr. where Tandem Coffee is located. The second outing will be in District 2, at the Alamo Beer Company, 202 Lamar St., under the Hays Street Bridge. Bring your own chairs. Performances have no intermission and last one hour each.

Theater fans have two great choices this weekend and beyond: “Antigone” produced by the Classic Theatre of San Antonio and presented at the San Antonio Botanical Garden; and Golda’s Balcony, presented by the Public Theater of San Antonio and streamed online. (To learn more about “Antigone” please read our feature story from April 6 on this site.)

The Golda of “Golda’s Balcony, is, of course, Golda Meir, the highly admired Israeli leader, who led her country through a history-changing period. Written by William Gibson, the one-woman show is directed by Spokane-based director Susan Hardie, and stars Diane Kondrat as Golda Meir. (April 8 – 18, Fridays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 2 p.m. To purchase tickets, go to https://bit.ly/3qBqecF)

A very special show that combines music with stage craft is Unforgettable – A Tribute to Nat King Cole, April 10 at the Carver Community Cultural Center. It’s the latest collaboration between vocalist/writer/director Jose Ruben De Leon and musicians George and Aaron Prado. De Leon is a master at creating this type of performance that interweaves songs – in this case Nat King Cole’s – and narrative and dramatic moments. (April 10 at 8 p.m.; the show is live in the large Jo Long Theater which allows for social distancing; tickets $25, at www.thecarver.org/event/unforgettable-tribute-nat-king-cole-2/)

The Woodlawn Theater is planning another musical evening outdoors, this time at the Jacala Mexican Restaurant, which will celebrate the music of Rodgers and Hammerstein, but the event is sold out! Another one of these gems is coming up April 27, showcasing the company’s divas at the Ida Claire restaurant. The Woodlawn folks also want you to know that the Woodlawn Theater Academy is now offering in-person summer camps for ages 7-18. Find out more at www.woodlawntheatre.org.

Perhaps you remember last year’s live telethon organized to help artists hit hard by the pandemic and cancelled performances? Well, another one is in the making. Called Viva!, this second fundraiser will feature videos of performances and appearances by artists, dancers, filmmakers and musicians. The 6-hour telethon will be broadcast livefrom the Alvarez Theater, which is part of the new Texas Public Radio headquarters. More details will be announced in the near future, but, if you are an artist who would like to participate, you must submit your video by April 23. The Luminaria Artist Foundation is one of the organizers. To find out more contact the organizers at viva@tpr.org.

One place in the city that features a great variety of musical talent is Luna Music Bar & Lounge. This weekend alone, the venue will host the San Antonio-based Chris Cuevas Project, a blues and soul group on Friday; accordionist Josh Baca and The Hot Tamales, who play a mixture of Zydeco and Tex-Mex on Saturday, and The Michael Alanis Band that’s known for R&B on Sunday. (6740 San Pedro Ave., doors open at 8 p.m., music starts at 9 p.m.; no reservations are accepted.)

For a free outdoor concert, head to St. Paul Square, downtown, April 9, where the husband-and-wife team, Danny Harvey and Annie Marie Lewis (the niece of the famous Jerry Lee Lewis) will entertain in the Courtyard, starting at 8 p.m.