Arts Alive San Antonio

First, we want to let you know about an initiative of the Public Theater of San Antonio, aimed to help the company survive and continue producing great plays and musicals. The email we received was titled “SAVE THE PLAYHOUSE CAMPAIGN,” and we assume that some of our readers received it too. The fundraising effort hopes to bring in $500,000 “to secure and sustain the organization by the start of 2024.” Though the appeal mentions “The Playhouse,” they are not referring to the building but to the company. The theater will pause productions until the start of the new year, to allow staff to focus on rebuilding and reorganizing the organization.

Generations of San Antonians have first experienced live theater at the Playhouse, though the resident companies have changed over the course of a century.  To donate to the campaign visit
www.thepublicsa.org/savetheplayhouse. The company is also undertaking additional helpful measures.  A gala and celebration concert will be held in the fall; new pledges to the top donor level – the Ovation Society – have been secured, including a $40,000 gift from board members, and new strategic planning includes developing a business plan and diversifying revenue streams by launching a new education program for all ages.

Let’s help them! We don’t want the historic playhouse in San Pedro Park to sit there empty. It was built by the city and opened its doors in 1929 for the San Antonio Little Theater. To contact the Public Theater call 210-733-7258 or go to https://thepublicsa.org) You can also catch the last production of the current season, “Merrily We Roll Along,” a Stephen Sondheim musical, which closes on Aug. 20.

Since we are talking about theater, here’s what else is happening.

At the Tobin Center you can catch “The Other Mozart, a true untold story of Nannerl Mozart, the sister of the famous Amadeus. According to publicity materials, she was a keyboard virtuoso and composer who performed throughout Europe with her brother “to equal acclaim.” But her story faded away. Few people know that Mozart had a talented sister. Written by Silvia Milo, and described by the New York Times as “strikingly beautiful,” the one-woman play is set in and on a magnificent 18-foot dress, created to fill the entire stage. The play is based on facts, stories and lines pulled directly from the Mozart family’s humorous and heartbreaking letters. (Aug 18 at 7:30 p.m., Aug. 19 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Alvarez Theater; tickets $39.50 – $49.50; Tobin Center, 100 Auditorium Circle; tickets@tobincenter.org or call 210-223-8624)

The Jump-Start Performance Co. is back with “Tejana Atomica,” featuring four of San Antonio’s most powerful storytellers: twin sisters, Sarah and Lilith Tijerina; Florinda Flores and “la jefa” Ruby Nelda Perez. They will tell/perform their Tejana stories.We don’t know the first three, but Ruby Nelda Perez is a powerhouse on stage. (Aug. 25 & 26 at 7 p.m.; Jump-Start Performance Co., 710, Fredericksburg Rd., 78201; tickets are $5-$25; 210-227-5867; https://www.jump-start.org)

“Against the Grain” continues its run at the Overtime Theater through Sept. 8. This is a new drama that looks at what happens when a beloved high school coach is accused of “unthinkable behavior.” (Aug. 18 – Sept. 9; One Sunday matinee Sept. 3 at 3 p.m.; 5409 Bandera Rd., Ste 205, 78238; 210-557-7562; tickets $12-$18; http://theovertimetheater.org)

The classical music concerts are returning as musicians regroup again in San Antonio. But let’s start with the Olmos Ensemble that continues its Summer Concert Series this Sunday and on Aug. 27. (Please refer to last week’s NEWS ROUNDUP). All concerts take place at the Shepherd King Lutheran Church, and are free. (Aug. 20 and 27, at 3 p.m.; 303 West Ramsey Rd., 78216, a reception follows each concert; to contact the ensemble call 210-269-1925, www.olmosensemble.com. As for the programs, little information is given.)

Two other chamber groups, Camerata San Antonio and Agarita will open their 2023-24 seasons with concerts on Sept. 1 and 2, respectively. (You can find more info on each season in our articles published earlier this month, in ARTS ALIVE SAN ANTONIO: https://artsalivesa.com)

Musical Bridges Around the World is offering video recordings of its recent concerts at the San Fernando Cathedral. We have watched a few, and the experience is great. The latest to be offered is “East Meets West,” a concert featuring Gwangju Symphony Orchestra from S. Korea with pianist Yedam Kim. The video is being offered for free in celebration of the National Liberation Day in Korea. The concert originally took place last February. Kim was the silver medalist at the 2020 Gurwitz International Piano Competition, here in San Antonio. (To watch go to https://youtube.com/watch?v=b5Yjx­_Y94EQ)

If you are a fan of ragtime, the San Antonio Ragtime Society meets every other month to hear, play and talk about that great American syncopated music made famous by the movie, “The Sting.” (Aug. 19, 2p.m. -midnight; Steinway Piano Gallery, 1201 N. Loop 1604 W., Ste 1-7.; for more info call 210-375-2888 or go to www.SAragtime.org)

Two concerts are coming up at the Majestic/Empire Theaters: Lyle Lovett and his Large Band will be there Sunday. Lovett hardly needs an introduction having made his mark as a pioneer of alternative country and Americana music with his 1986 debut album and the one that followed, “Pontiac.” His “The Road to Ensenada” won the GRAMMY for Best Country Album in 1996. (Aug.20 at 7:30 p.m., Majestic Theater, 224 E. Houston; tickets are $59-$151, via Ticketmaster.)

The other act is The Tubes, a San Francisco-based hard rock band that has had its fair share of successes. (Aug. 18 at 8 p.m., Charline McCombs Empire Theater; tickets are $29.50-$69; via Ticketmaster) Yet another band, Counting Crows will play at the Majestic Tuesday. (Aug. 22 at 7:30 p.m.; tickets: $69-$199; Ticketmaster)

FLAME, the GRAMMY nominated, Stellar Award-winning artist is widely known on the Christian hip-hop scene. He has recorded nine albums and founded Clear Sight Music, a record label for Christian hip-hop. He has a master’s degree in theology with a minor in counseling. FLAME will appear at Praise Muzik Fest, a concert that will be raising funds for kids’ eye surgeries. (Aug. 19, 12, noon, to 9 p.m.; The New Direction Church, 1139 Gembler Re., 78219; tickets are $15-$125 at PayPal; for info call 830-612-0309)

San Antonio Mastersingers, a respected all-volunteer choral ensemble that performed with the former San Antonio Symphony and now appears with the San Antonio Philharmonic, and in other concerts, is holding auditions for new singers. Their schedule of concerts for the upcoming season starts with a concert with the Children’s Chorus of San Antonio, includes an Andrea Bocelli/SA Phil event, and an International Choral Tour to Austria and the Czech Republic, among other appearances. (To schedule an audition appointment email: audition@samastersingers.org or call 210-900-2455.)

And here’s a different kind of musical event: “From Ella to Alicia” Under the Stars. Yes, it’s jazz on the 5^th floor terrace of the Grand Hyatt downtown. Songs from the repertoire of a number of divas will be performed, including Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Etta Jones, Aretha Franklin and the two in the event’s name – Ella and Alicia. (Aug. 19 at 8 p.m., for ages 21+; to get tickets: www.feverup.com)

The McNay Art Museum has just opened “Dreamland,” an exhibition “hosted by creatures lured from the depths of the McNay Art Museum collection.” The show celebrates the 30^th anniversary of filmmaker Tim Burton’s 1993 stop-motion animated film, “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”What you are likely to see are small models – maquettes – created for the iconic film “in conversation” with a range of artworks from the McNay collection. It is hoped that guests will be encouraged to imagine fantasy narratives of their own. We are planning to see the exhibit soon and will report to you.

An exhibit that sounds like a must-see is SA to SA at the Centro de Artes at Market Square. Will report on that one, too, in the next few days.

And, surprisingly, there’s news from Ruby City, the red museum on Camp St., just south of downtown proper. The press release lets us know that the museum that Linda Pace imagined and built, has a new acquisition: a Mona Hatoum installation. The press release says: “It’s a great installation that includes all manner of household goods attached to laundry lines, which are strung between two police barriers. The laundry lines shift back and forth almost imperceptibly. It’s fantastic and such a powerful statement on displacement, exile and longing.” Also, a new exhibit is slated to open in September. We really welcome these developments that will add excitement and change at Ruby City. If you have never visited, by all means go. The building itself is an attraction. (150 Camp St.; www.rubycity.org)

San Antonio Art League and Museum, known as SAALM has a new Artist of the Year. He’s Ramin Samandari whose work will be displayed at the museum from Sept. 24 to Oct. 3; opening Sept. 24, 3-5 p.m. You can also take part in a preview the night before and meet the artist. This is a ticketed event, $15 for members, $20 for non-members. All attending guests will receive a ticket for a chance to win a personal portrait photograph taken by Samandari at his Blue Star studio. (SAALM, 130 King William Sr., 78204; 210-223-1140, www.saalm.org)

The Briscoe Museum’s popular “Southwest Rising” exhibit will close on Sept. 4, so you still have some time to see it. (Briscoe Western Art Museum, 210 W. Market St., 78205; 210-299-4499; https://www.briscoemuseum.org)

We have good news for the literati crowd, too: A Night of Celebration with Ire’ne Lara Silva, the 2023 Texas Poet Laureate. She will read from her works, and she will be joined by former San Antonio poet laureate Octavio Quintanilla, and poet Jen Yanez-Alaniz. (Aug. 25 at 6:30 p.m.; Gemini Ink, 1111 Navarro St., 78205; http://www.geminiink.org

                                                                 In Brief

Cinema Tuesday is back. The film presented this coming Tuesday is Mira Nair’s “Mississippi Masala” “a luminous look at the complexities of love in the modern melting pot.” (Aug. 22 at 7:30 p.m.; Santikos Northwest Theater, 7600 I-10 West, 78230.

The Children’s Ballet of San Antonio will have auditions sessions for the annual production of “The Nutcracker.” Children and teens can participate.  Aug. 26, from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m.; to register visit
www.dancestudio-pro.com/online/saballetschool, or email to  info@sanantonioballetschool.com. The show will take place at the Scottish Rite Auditorium with live music accompaniment by the South Texas Symphonic Orchestra.