Arts Alive San Antonio

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!

Lehninger will also conduct the epic Mahler Symphony No 4, which explores the issues of life and death through the eyes of a child. (Jan. 19 -20 at 7:30 p.m.; First Baptist Church of San Antonio, 515 McCullough Ave., 78215; tickets are $35-$75; tickets at sales@saphil.org or www.sanantoniophilharmonic.thundertix.com)

The San Antonio Chamber Music Society has a treat for concertgoers: the Texas premiere of “Strange Machines” the highly imaginative work by Tunisian-born, Canadian-American composer Karim Al-Zand.
It was written for the Balourdet Quartet, and the quartet will perform it here in San Antonio.
The Boston Globe described it as “strong and startingly lovely.” The composer explores connections between music and other media, such as graphic art, myths, folk music, jazz, and others. Al-Zand is the recipient of several awards, including the Arts and Letters Award in Music from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. The program also includes works by Mozart and Beethoven. (Jan. 21, at 3:15 p.m.; Trinity Baptist Church; tickets are $25 at the door; students and active military free; post-show dinner is $35)

The Caritas Concert Series at the Chapel of the Incarnate Word will resume in a few days with a concert of organist Jason Roberts. He is music director at the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in New York city, and has served in that capacity at other churches in New York and in West Hartford. His compositions have been performed in such venues as The Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles and the Westminster Abbey in London. In 2008, Roberts took first prize at the American Guild of Organists’ National Competition in Organ Improvisation. At the Caritas concert, he will ask the Chapel’s executive director “to suggest a musical work for him to improvise on the fly.”

The Caritas concert also includes “Le Tombeau de Couperin” by Maurice Ravel, and Symphonie V (symphony No. 5) by Charles-Marie Widor, plus two improvisations – one in Romantic style, and variations on modern French style. (Jan. 26 at 7:30 p.m., Chapel of the Incarnate Word, 4503 Broadway on the campus of the University of the Incarnate Word; free)

The AGARITA Chamber Players sent news about their upcoming summer plans. The San Antonio quartet will serve as Artist-in-Residence at the La Riojas Festival in Spain this summer. “Agarita is honored to be named first ever Artist-in-Residence for this festival.” They will perform six concerts, collaborating with other festival performers. To find out more visit the fest’s site: www.lariohafestival.es)

At the Carver Community Cultural Center you can enjoy Eli Paperboy Reed vs The Harlem Gospel Travelers. Reed is known for his powerful vocals, heart-stopping falsetto and a pop sensibility. The Travelers were students of Reed, now “young guns” on their way up. So, can the students beat the teacher at his own game? Both Reed and the Travelers will perform back-to-back sets, culminating in a joint “spirit-shaking, roof-raising encore.” (Jan. 19 at 8 p.m.; Carver Center, 226 N. Hackberry,78202; 210-207-2234; tickets are $36 via Ticketmaster)

Musical lovers – and they are legions – shouldn’t miss “My Fair Lady” at the Tobin. It’s a Lincoln Center Theatre production of the beloved tale and show, described as “a sumptuous new production of the most perfect musical, of all time.” Apparently, that’s how this production was described in Entertainment Weekly. It may be a slight exaggeration but the show has a number of beloved songs, such as “The Rain in Spain,” and “I could have danced all night,” and others. This is a tale about a Cockney flower seller and linguistics professor who wants to transform her into a lady. (January 20 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Jan. 21 at 2 p.m.; the show continues next weekend.; Tobin Center, 100 Auditorium Circle, tickets are $39.60-$99.60; 210-223-8624, tobi.tobincenter.org or tickets@tobincenter.org)

Jump-Start Performance Company is presenting it’s annual “Screaming Into the Void” festival. Inspired by this year’s Dear Earth theme, the artists have created dance, theater and poetry works that convey how love can be found in an uncomfortable foreign place; how grief can be overcome with a help of a feral cat, and other stories. A number of original works are included. Part of Screaming’s purpose is to offer a platform for both seasoned and emerging writers to work alongside each other, creating together “to lift San Antonio’s community voice. (Jan. 19 and 20 at 8 p.m., and Jan. 21 at 5 p.m.; Junp-Start Theater, 710 Fredericksburg Rd., 78201. Tickets are choose-what-you-want-to-pay, from 0 to $20.
available at www.jump-start.org and at www.dojour.us/e/21727)

The Classic Theater of San Antonio is organizing a talk-back session featuring the director and cast of the play “A Raisin in the Sun,” that will be produced on stage in a couple of weeks. The discussion will be moderated by Deborah Jarmon. You are invited “to delve into the world of Lorraine Hansberry’s masterpiece play, exploring the creative process, character development and the enduring relevance of this iconic play.” (DreamWeek event at the Classic Theater; Jan. 20 at 3 p.m., The Classic Theatre at San Pedro Playhouse (in the former Cellar Theater); 800 West Ashby Place, 78212; info@classictheatre.org)

Before leaving its current digs, the Wonder Theater will have one more show, The Wonder Theatre’s Academy’s Disney’s “Descendants/ The Musical” (Jan. 25 to Jan. 28; tickets are $10, call box office at 210-267-8388) The company’s first show in the new location at the Wonderland of the Americas Mall will be “Kinky Boots” opening in March.

On the Visual Arts Front, there’s good news from The McNay Art Museum. it is celebrating its 70^th anniversary with a year of events, programs and storytelling. When it opened 70 years ago it was the first modern art museum in Texas.  Throughout its history, the McNay has brought modern and contemporary art to San Antonio, beginning with the founding collection of its benefactor, Marion Koogler McNay, who died in 1950. The museum opened in 1954.

A year-long celebration will kick off in February, with Founder’s Day on Feb. 8. Marion McNay’s birthday falls on Feb. 7. Obviously, this deserves a separate article. Stay tuned!

At present, we are going to tell you about a few gallery shows.

At the Dock Space Gallery, you can see the work of several artists. Artist Paul Martin is presenting his “MultiColored Universes.” The press release says that he “takes a psychic, “automatistic” approach to creating art, meaning he usually begins with a completely open mind as to where his ideas will go.

Thus, his “Universes” collection has expanded from two-dimensional canvases to 3-D canvases such as tubes and pyramids. We haven’t seen it yet but will visit the gallery soon. The gallery is owned by prominent San Antonio artist, Bill FitzGibbons. Also showing at the same gallery is Meredith Dean, a printmaker and mixed media artist. (Aside from opening receptions, the gallery is open by appointment; call 210-723-3048)

Sala Diaz is a small gallery in Southtown. It’s first 2024 exhibit is Audrya Flores: “Rattling” on view through Feb. 23. Also, by appointment. To find out more contact casie@saladiazart.org.

Urban-15 has announced an Open Call to all poets in Bexar County for consideration in the 2024 MEGA CORAZON Poetry Festival. Poets accepted to participate in the fest will be eligible to compete for the Gregg Barrios “Precious Words Prize” of $500 for the best performance presentation. The MEGA CORAZON celebration will take place in April during National Poetry Month. Poets should submit application materials by the February 10 deadline. Final selections will be announced March 1, 2024.
Send (email) materials to events@urban15.org)