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 of up-and-coming mariachi performers. The event attracts more than a thousand young vocalists and musicians. (Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m., Lila Cockrell Theater, 200 E. Market St., 78201; tickets $66-$206 through www.ticketmaster.com; the competition tickets can be purchased at the door. For more info go to www.mariachimusic.com. The entire multi-day event is produced by San Antonio-based Munoz Public Relations.
The pair of concerts by the San Antonio Philharmonic this weekend will be conducted by the former San Antonio Symphony music director Christopher Wilkins. The music will “transport you on a musical expedition stretching from the frozen terrain of the South Pole to the infinite vacuum of space,” says the announcement. The highly descriptive music is Vaughn-Williams’ “Sinfonia Antartica” and Gustav Holst’s masterpiece “The Planets.” The orchestra will be joined by women Mastersingers for the last suite, which includes a wordless female chorus. Each movement of the “Planets” is named after a planet. (Nov. 18-19 at 7:30 p.m.; First Baptist Church of San Antonio, 515 McCullough Ave., 78215; tickets $30-$65 at www.saphil.org)
And get ready for the annual Luminaria Contemporary Art Festival, which will take place this Saturday, Nov. 19 not far from the First Baptist Church, in the area between the Tobin Center and Travis Park. More than 200 artists of all genres will take part in various presentations, from light installations to poetry readings. The brouhaha starts at 6 p.m. and ends at midnight. (To read more, check out our interview with Luminaria’s executive director Yadhira Lozano from Nov. 14, on this site)
The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center will, once again, feature the wonderful singer Azul, who presents a monthly concert on various themes. This month’s theme is “Soldaderas,” the women who fought in the Mexican Revolution of the 1910s. A Mexico native, Azul Barrientos has a passion for reviving lost cultural traditions and sharing the songs’ histories. Whatever she performs is worth seeing and hearing. (Nov. 19 at 8 p.m.; Esperanza Center, 922 San Pedro; tickets are $7, first- come, first-served; box office opens at 7 p.m.; for info contact 210-228-0201 or www.esperanzacenter.org)
The SOLI Chamber Ensemble will be presenting its sixth annual Contemporary Open Mic Night, that features accomplished amateur musicians, both soloists and groups, playing their favorite classical works written after 1970. Why that date? The SOLI is dedicated to contemporary art music and living composers, and this is the way the group chooses to define the period of interest. The concert is presented in partnership with Texas Public Radio, and it is live and open to the public. (Nov. 21 at 7 p.m.; Texas Public Radio, 321 W. Commerce St., 78205; 210-393-6103; free admission)
The Classical Music Institute has announced a concert featuring the music of Max Bruch and George Enescu but no information is given about the players. (Nov. 19 at 7:30 p.m., Alvarez Theater at the Tobin Center; $15; Tobin Center box office 210-223-8624; tickets@tobincenter.org)
More concerts: SA Brass Band is presenting its second program of the season, Heroes, Hymns and Legends, a mystical journey through legends of Norse Gods, and the hymns that bring their stories to life. (Nov. 20 at 6 p.m., Treadaway Recital Hall on the campus of St. Mary’s University, 520 Fordham, 78228; free and open to the public; for more go to https://www.sabrass.org
And here’s another concert presented at another SA college- Our Lady of the Lake University: Classics 2022, performed by the Alamo City Arts’ Heart of Texas Concert Band. They will play Berlioz’ “Symphonie Fantastic,” Mendelssohn’s “Konzertstuck No. 1” and Gilbert & Sullivan’s “The Gondoliers.”
(Nov. 20 at 3 p.m.; Thiry Auditorium, 411 SW 24th St., OLLU, 78207; free, no tickets necessary; free parking; to reach the band call 210-860-3177, http://HTxCB.org)
Opera San Antonio and the Woodlawn Theater will provide a concert and a holiday sing-along at the Holiday Extravaganza at Mission Marquee Plaza. The event will end with a screening of the film “Elf.” (Nov. 19 at 4:30 p.m.; Mission Marquee Plaza, 3100 Roosevelt Ave.; movie starts at dusk; event is organized by the World Heritage Office, 210-207-3905)
Judas Priest- 50 Heavy Metal Years Tour will stop in San Antonio for two concerts next week. The press release says the tour “is being fueled by the highest charting album of Priest’s career, Firepower, which reached #5 on the Billboard 200. What’s more, Priest band members will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of fame. (Nov. 22-23, at Tech Port Arena, 3331 General Hudnell Drive, Access Rd., 78226; tickets are $95 – $640; 210-600-3699 or online www.techportcenter.com)
The Guadalupe Dance Company will premiere its brand-new original production of “Soy Malintzin,” inspired by the San Antonio Museum of Art’s exhibit, Traitor, Survivor, Icon: The Legacy of La Malinche, which explores artists’ views/interpretations about an indigenous Aztecwoman, known as La Malinche. Because, she was fluent in several languages, including Spanish, she served as an interpreter for Hernan Cortes, and later became his lover and mother of his first son. Many indigenous people saw her as a traitor to her people but artists are reinterpreting her legacy. And that’s what this dance production is also doing, seeing her more as a survivor and mother of the new mixed race. (Friday, Nov. 19 at 8 p.m.; Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, 1301 Guadalupe St.; tickets are $20-$30; call 210-271-3151 pr go to www.guadalupeculturalarts.org) See our story from Nov. 16.
New shows are in the making at San Antonio theaters, but first we want to tell you about one at the Empire Theater, which, like the Majestic, primarily presents visiting tours. This show promises big laughs. Titled Potted Potter, The Olivier Award (British) nominated musical is “the unauthorized Harry Experience, a parody By Dan and Jeff that takes on the challenge of condensing all seven Harry Potter books into 70 hilarious minutes.” The aforementioned Dan and Jeff are Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner. (Nov. 22 to Nov. 27; times vary depending on the day of the week; evening shows are at 8:30 p.m., afternoon shows are at 2 p.m. check the Majestic/Empire website for specific dates. For ages 6+; Empire Theater, 226 N. St. Maty’s St.; tickets $64-$281, call 210-226-3333 or visit www.majesticempire.com)
The Public Theater of San Antonio has a message for you, for all of us: “Don’t be a Scrooge – Buy Tickets Today!” You know what they are talking about, of course, their new production of A Christmas Carol, the Musical, which is opening Nov. 25, the day after Thanksgiving. The music is by Alan Menken, book and lyrics were penned by Lynn Ahrens, all based, of course, on the timeless Dickens’ tale. This adaptation was praised by Broadway World as “enchanting embodiment of the spirit of the holidays.” The show is directed by San Antonio directing veteran, Tim Hedgepeth, who is quoted as saying the following: “I have directed other adaptations of A Christmas Carol, but it is such a treat to return to Dickens’ classic with this marvelous musical version. All of the story’s beloved characters and memorable lessons jump to life in a spectacular collection of songs and dances, inspiring us to trust the possibilities of kindness and redemption.” (Opens Nov. 25, runs through Dec. 8; Friday-Saturday at 7:30p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m.; Public Theater of San Antonio, in San Pedro Playhouse, 800 W. Ashby, 78212; tickets &15-$45; https://thepublicsa.org or call 210-733-7258)
“White Christmas” is opening at the Woodlawn Theater next Friday. It is the company’s final holiday show at the historic Woodlawn Theater building. They will soon be moving to new digs at the Wonderland of the Americas Mall to take the space of the former Bijou Theater. The show features 17 beloved Irving Berlin songs. (Fridays-Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 3 p.m.; special weeknight shows for students, ASL audiences and others.; Woodlawn Theater, 1920 Fredericksburg Rd., tickets are $18-$32; 210-267-8388, www.woodlawntheatre.org)
The Magik Theater is also staging a classic show this holyday season: “The Velveteen Rabbit,” marking the 100th anniversary of the story written by Margery Williams Bianco, which has inspired multiple book and screen adaptations and has never gone out of print since it was published in 1922. That’s quite a record! The story is about a shy toy rabbit who longs to be real. (Nov. 19- Dec.24; Magik Theater, 420 S. Alamo; tickets $18.50 for kids, $22.50 or adults, kids under two are free. https://www.magiktheatre.org/the-velveteen-rabbit/)
Speaking of toys, the Witte Museum is opening, “Toys: The Way We Play” which may be a treat for both adults and children. The show features “retro toys” such as Cabbage Patch Kids, G.I Joe, Kewpie Dolls, Care Bears, Star Wars, Transformers and more. But there also will be historic and ancient toys, including a 4,000-year-old fiber doll. Kids of all eras needed playthings! Clay rattles and stone dolls have been found by archaeologists. You can also play with contemporary toys at the museum. Sounds like fun! (Nov. 19- April; 2, 2023; in the Susan Naylor Center; Witte Museum, 3801 Broadway; included in museum admission ticket; 210-357-1900, www.WitteMuseum.org)
Lightscape is back at the San Antonio Botanical Garden with new illuminated installations “and fan favorites.” Altogether, the Lightscape, which is one-mile-long trail, will be illuminated by more than one million lights. The experience is enhanced by seasonal music. (San Antonio Botanical Garden, 555 Funston Place, 78209, through Jan. 8, 2023; 5:30 p.m. – 9 p.m., tickets are free-$60; www.sabot.org/light-scape)
Holiday markets are already popping up. One to visit: the 26th Zonarte – El Mercado de Aztlan, which will sell a wide range of artisan- and artist-made gifts, including original prints, paintings, sculptures, jewelry, textiles and even furniture. Participating artists are Carol Perez, Malu Berumen, Elliott C. Trevino, Vikky Jones, Angelina Pliego, Juan Tejeda, Alison Schockner, and others. (Nov. 18 at 6-9 p.m.; Centro Cultural Aztlan, 1800 Fredericksburg Rd., S103, 78201; 210-432-1896, https://centroaztlan.org)