november/december 2011 issue

November-December 2011 | On The Town 1

Jeffrey Balfour ‘Tis the Artful SeasonCamerata San AntonioWitte Museum 85th AnniversaryHenry Brun and the Latin Playerz Musical Bridges Around the WorldHoliday Traditions on the RiverPlus 17 Additional Articles

Jeffrey Balfour ‘Tis the Artful SeasonCamerata San AntonioWitte Museum 85th AnniversaryHenry Brun and the Latin Playerz Musical Bridges Around the WorldHoliday Traditions on the RiverPlus 17 Additional Articles

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Lair Creative, LLC would not knowingly publish misleading or erroneous information in editorial content or in any advertisement in On The Town Ezine.com, nor does it assume responsibility if this type of editorial or advertising should appear under any circumstances. Additionally, content in this electronic magazine does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the management of Lair Creative, LLC. Since On The Town Ezine.com features information on perfor-mances and exhibits, it is recommended that all times and dates of such events be confirmed by the reader prior to attendance. The publisher assumes no responsibility for changes in times, dates, venues, exhibitions or performances.

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FeaturesA Great Time of the Year for Performing Arts 10Highlights During the November-December Holiday Season

For the Love of Music 16

Anya Grokhovski-Michaelson 20Bridging Cultures With Music and Dance

Yosa Performers Bring Fresh Perspectives 24To Their Music

Latin Playerz Jazz up the Holidays 28

Texas Our Texas 32

Jose “Pepe” Martinez, Sr. - Musical Director 36of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan

‘Tis the Artful Season 58

The Art of Growing Art 64The Artist Foundation of San Antonio Nourishesthe Arts for the Future

Jeffrey Balfour: Executive Chef of Hotel 74Valencia and Citrus

Holiday Tables: A Conversation With 78Di-Anna Arias

Max’s Wine Dive is DiVine 82

Mixing Things Up Downtown 86Inaugural San Antonio Cocktail Conferenceto Benefit HeartGift

If I Lived Downtown 98

Holiday Traditions Begin with the 2011 Ford 100Holiday River Parade and Lighting Ceremony

Seasonal Changes in Your Fitness Routine 108


1121126464

Lair Creative, LLC would not knowingly publish misleading or erroneous information in editorial content or in any advertisement in On The Town Ezine.com, nor does it assume responsibility if this type of editorial or advertising should appear under any circumstances. Additionally, content in this electronic magazine does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of the management of Lair Creative, LLC. Since On The Town Ezine.com features information on perfor-mances and exhibits, it is recommended that all times and dates of such events be confirmed by the reader prior to attendance. The publisher assumes no responsibility for changes in times, dates, venues, exhibitions or performances.

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November-December 2011 Events Calendar 42

Pinch Pennies & Dine Well: Bon Appétit at a Discount 88

Book Talk: E-Books are Changing the 92Publishing Business

Artistic Destination: Chattanooga’s Comeback 104

Picture This: A Happy Holiday Card 120

Departments ContributorsMikel Allen,graphic designer

Giles Armstrong Julie CatalanoCynthia ClarkLisa CruzThomas DuhonAshley FestaAna FloresDana FossettLiz Garza-WilliamsVivienne GautrauxGreg Harrison,staff photographer

Marcie HernandezShannon Huntington Standley

Michele KrierChristian LairKay LairMarlo Mason-Marie

Susan A. Merkner,copy editor

Cynthia Munoz

Bonny Osterhage

Angela Rabke

Sara Selango

Tom Trevino

Janis Turk

Regina Villalobos

Jasmina Wellinghoff

Joel Williams

Cassandra Yardeni

OnTheTownEzine.com is published byLair Creative, LLC14122 Red MapleSan Antonio, Texas 78247210-771-8486210-490-7950 (fax)

COVER CREDITSFront Cover Photo: Anya Grokhovski-MichaelsonPhoto by Liz Garza-Williams

Performing Arts Cover Photo: StompPhoto by Junichi Takahashi

Events Calendar Cover Photo: © Mac Miller / Dreamstime.com

Visual Arts Cover Photo: James McNeill Whistler (American, 1834–1903), A Freshening Breeze, 1883. oil on panel. 9.25 x 5.38 in.Courtesy McNay Art Museum

Culinary Arts Cover Photo: Greg Harrison

Literary Arts Cover Photo:Simon Thomas / Dreamstime.com

Eclectics Cover Photo: Vivienne Gautraux



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http://cameratasa.org


Performing Arts10-40

Performing Arts10-40


M

y entertainment radar screen is filled with holiday highlights that I am anxious to share. This article gives me the opportunity to do

just that, so here goes.

The Nutcracker is the featured presentation in November and December for numerous local organizations plus a national touring company. The incomparable Hal Holbrook brings us Mark Twain Tonight. Fiddler on the Roof rolls into town at the Majestic. Rachelle Ferrell and Three Mo’ Tenors entertain at the Carver. Stomp is back and better than ever. Sebastian Lang-Lessing Salutes America with the San Antonio Symphony at Laurie Auditorium, and Ken-David Masur takes the baton for Holiday Pops. Henry Brun and the Latin Playerz jazz up A Very Latin Christmas at the Charline McCombs Empire. Willie Nelson returns to his old stomping grounds at John T. Floore Country Store. Trans-Siberian Orchestra plays a holiday double-header at AT&T, and the list goes on and on.

Speaking of the list, find tons of entertainment opportunities cataloged in the events calendar

featured in this magazine. Now let me get down to specifics.

Four different Nutcracker ballets are featured this year starting with the artistic collaboration between the symphony and Ballet San Antonio. Four performances are scheduled at the Majestic Nov. 25-27 with an additional four to be danced Dec. 2-4. Arts San Antonio, in conjunction with Metropolitan Classical Ballet and San Antonio Metropolitan Ballet, offers four performances of The Nutcracker at the newly renovated Lila Cockrell Theater from Dec. 16-18. McAllister Auditorium is home to The Nutcracker as performed by Alamo City Dance Company featuring Maia Wilkins and Michael Levine. Dates for their three performances are Dec. 17-18. Finishing out the foursome is the national tour of Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker on stage at the Majestic Dec. 27-28.

The San Antonio Symphony goes full-tilt during the holiday season. In addition to the aforementioned Nutcracker performances and SLL Salutes America, the symphony plays two classical weekends – Brahms Sings Nov. 11-12 and Rachmaninoff 2 Nov.



18-19. In between they join Air Force Band of the West in a Veteran’s Day Salute to Service Nov. 13 at the Majestic. Handel’s Messiah is up next at three area churches Dec. 2-4, followed by Holiday Pops at the Majestic Dec. 16-18.

Other noteworthy classical offerings in November and December begin with organist Dong-il l Shin in concert at Coker Methodist Church Nov. 6, followed the next evening by Youth Orchestras of San Antonio’s Gold Series per formance of From the New World at the Majestic featuring bassist Edgar Meyer. Also Nov. 7 is an Olmos Ensemble per formance at the First Unitarian Universalist Church. Tenor Daniel Weeks is next in a Tuesday Musical Club presentation at Laurel Heights United Methodist Church Nov. 8, while the Dallas String Quartet makes an appearance in the Hill Country for the Fredericksburg Music Club on Nov. 13. SOLI Chamber Ensemble plays two per formances of Quantum Change Nov. 14 and 15. The Morganstern Trio finishes things with a per formance for San Antonio Chamber Music Society Nov. 20.

December starts with Rising Stars and Many Moods of Christmas by Symphony of the Hills on the first day of the month at Kathleen C. Cailloux Theater in Kerrville. Camerata San Antonio’s An English Christmas follows Dec. 8, 9 and 11 at venues in Kerrville and Boerne plus Christ Episcopal Church in San Antonio. Dec. 11 also features Musical Bridges Around the World’s Golden Fingers and Golden Toes at McAllister Auditorium, Comfor t and Joy – The Music of Christmas by Voci di Sorelle at UIW Chapel and Peace on Ear th , a symphonic performance by Mid-Tex Symphony at Jackson Auditorium in Seguin.

Turning attention to theatrical performances, Stomp sweeps into the Majestic Nov. 4-6 for a five-show run. That same weekend see Arts San Antonio’s presentation of Hal Holbrook in Mark Twain Tonight on Sunday evening at Laurie Auditorium on the campus of Trinity University. About a month later, Fiddler on the Roof takes center stage as a part of the Cadillac Broadway Series in San Antonio. Take in at least one of the eight performances from Dec. 6-11 at the big theater on Houston Street.



Community theater highlights include Rocky Horror Show in early November at the Woodlawn, The Last Ballyhoo at Sheldon Vexler through Nov. 13, The Love List on the boards at the Cameo until Nov. 27, Disney’s My Son Pinocchio from Thanksgiving to Christmas at the Woodlawn, A Christmas Carol: The Musical on stage at the Russell Hill Rogers Theater at San Pedro Playhouse in December up until Christmas weekend, and finally one of my all-time favorites, Chicago: The Musical at the Cameo Theatre Dec. 2-31. Skidoo and all that jazz!

Great musical moments in the months of November and December, aside from those detailed earlier, include Rachelle Ferrell at the Carver Nov. 12 and Three Mo’ Tenors at the same venue Dec. 3. Also during this time, Asleep at the Wheel buses in for a Nov. 12 appearance at Gruene Hall, while Willie Nelson steps back in time at John T. Floore Country Store in Helotes Nov. 16. Five more to see are Tony Pace: Up on the Roof at the newly renovated Brauntex Theatre in New Braunfels Nov. 19, Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles at American Bank Center Selena Auditorium in Corpus Christi Nov. 20,

Michael Martin Murphey’s Cowboy Christmas at the Kathleen C. Cailloux Theater in Kerrville Nov. 27, Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan at the Lila Cockrell Theater Dec. 3-4, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra at the AT&T Center for two performances Dec. 22.

There you have it, from my radar screen to yours. What a great time of the year for performing arts! Get some tickets and go.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •Photo Credits:

Pages 10-11Fiddler on the RoofPhoto by Carol Rosegg

Page 12 (L-R)Sebastian Lang-LessingPhoto by Marks Moore



The Nutcracker BalletArts San AntonioPhoto by Daren Abate

Ken-David MasurPhoto by Greg Harrison

Page 13 (L-R)SOLI Chamber EnsemblePhoto by Kemp Davis

Henry BrunCourtesy richportenterprises.com

Fiddler on the RoofPhoto by Carol Rosegg

Page 14 (L-R)Rachelle FerrellCourtesy Carver Community Cultural Center

The Nutcracker BalletSan Antonio / SA Symphony Photo by Elise Barker

Three Mo’ TenorsCourtesy Carver Community Cultural Center

(L-R)Stomp Photo by Junichi Takahashi

Hal HolbrookCourtesy Arts San Antonio

The Case of the DeadlyDetective DinnerCourtesy Cameo Theatre



G ustav Mahler once said, “In its beginnings, music was merely chamber music, meant to be listened to in a small space by a small

audience.” Audiences at a Camerata San Antonio concert would agree.

Performed by small ensembles, Camerata brought a new style of chamber music to San Antonio and the Hill Country in 2003 and continues to provide audiences with new material and spontaneity. Husband and wife team Kenneth Freudigman and Emily Watkins Freudigman co-founded Camerata nine seasons ago as a means of sharing classical music with audiences in a different format. Ken also explains that Camerata began as a way for him to “be in charge of his own musical destiny.”

Ken is principal cello of the San Antonio Symphony and adjunct professor of cello at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Emily is the assistant principal viola with the San Antonio Symphony. Camerata features a variety of musicians during various concerts.

Engaging with their colleagues and providing them an opportunity to more closely interact and bring their own energy and enthusiasm to audiences was the foundation from which Ken and Emily started Camerata.

“In an orchestra, at the end of the day, your musical thoughts are considered, but they are secondary

to the music director’s, as it needs to be. But with Camerata, we wanted to flex our musical muscle,” Ken said.

Flexing is just what this couple has done, creating unique programs and experiences for the audiences each time they play. In a Jan. 23, 2011, MySa.com blog, symphony president and CEO Jack Fishman described the dynamism of a Camerata performance. From performing a very serious Mozart piece to switching pianists at intermission and taking the audience on a journey through a “sonata filled with jazz, popular music influences, Latin touches and lots of personality. It sounded improvised and fresh,” Fishman wrote.

Ken and Emily describe this freedom of artistic expression as the backbone of Camerata. Ken said Camerata musicians “all bring a special spark to the ensemble. It ’s never boring, and each player brings a great energy.”

Emily said a large part of the energy comes from the creativity of Ken’s programming. “He does a good job of mixing pieces people will know and enjoy with new pieces. Our biggest fans talk about the discovery aspect. There’s always a piece they are not sure about but enjoy learning, which is a huge part of why people stick with us.”

Whether it is a symphony concert or a chamber concert, musicians agree that hearing classical

For the Love of Music By Lisa Cruz

Photography Greg Harrison



music live is the best way to experience the music.

“A chamber orchestra can’t produce the power of a Brahms piece like the symphony; however, chamber music is like inviting the audience into a private conversation,” Emily said. “When you’re in a chamber music performance, you can differentiate the interaction better and see the playfulness happening between musicians.”

Camerata continues to grow and expand. Ken said that in the first year, they were making programs on a copier and stapling things together, like many startup companies; however, they now have resources and some funding. The next step, he said, is to look for an executive director. The group has a new home in San Antonio and will be performing at Christ Episcopal Church, 510 Belknap. Ken said he also hopes to do another recording project.

Camerata’s first recording, Salon Buenos Aires: Music of Miguel del Aguila, was completed in 2009 and nominated for two Latin Grammy awards in 2010 for best classical album and best classical contemporary composition.

Sharing classical music is critical to Ken and Emily. “Classical music is alive and well in San Antonio, and everyone can be moved by it regardless of the familiarity,” Ken said.

“ We have program notes that look l ike manuals, but you don’t have to read them or k now anything about the pieces to enjoy it ,” Emily said. “Great music has a sur face appeal that wil l pul l anyone in.”

Camerata takes music beyond concert venues, with performances in public schools for children in grades three through five. Ken said children do not have a preconceived notion of what music they should and shouldn’t like, and they have played for children who just couldn’t wait to clap.

“These children haven’t been taught that it ’s not for them,” Ken said. “Our education concerts are an introduction to the string instruments, and kids immediately understand that it is fun, and they learn that it ’s great artistry but also great commitment.”

Between symphony concerts, Camerata



performances and rehearsals for both, plus education concerts, teaching, and running after their 3-year-old, Ken and Emily do not seem to be slowing down anytime soon, but their passion for music seems to grow with their schedule.

Emily explained how performing enhances her craft, which keep her motivated. “We get excited about getting better, and every time we work with our colleagues, we learn from each other and get better,” she said.

“It ’s a passion for the arts that keeps me active,” Ken said. “The power of music is so incredible, and music is such a part of our lives that I can’t imagine having it any other way. There are always creative souls out there searching for a way to express themselves, and this group in Camerata feeds that in my soul.”

Remaining Camerata concerts include: An English Christmas, in which the group brings back a fan favorite from Charles Dickens, where the musicians not only play their instrument but another percussion instrument or “found” instrument. Camerata also will perform at the Beethoven

Festival the Complete Beethoven Cello Sonatas and Variations Jan. 6 and 8. The Power of Dance will be March 15-18, and the group performs Crossroads April 26, 27 and 29.

For a complete list of the season and to purchase tickets, visit www.cameratasa.org

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Photo Credtis:

Page 16 Kenneth Freudigman and Emily Watkins Freudigman

Page 18Emily Watkins Freudigman

Kenneth Freudigman


http://www.cameratasa.org


Anya Grokhovski-MichaelsonBridging Cultures With Music and DanceBy Joel WilliamsPhotography Liz Garza-Williams


Anya Grokhovsky-Michaelson is on a mission to bring the arts to new audiences and to build bridges between people of different cultures

and artistic preferences.

This Russian-born, classically trained pianist who grew up as a “backstage kid” of a father who played in the Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, pursues that mission in San Antonio with her Musical Bridges Around the World program.

In its 14th year, the centerpiece of Musical Bridges is an annual series of concerts that often feature unexpected combinations of art forms. The first installment of this year’s season, presented Oct. 2, featured an opera followed by a program of Indian dance and music.

Grokhovski-Michaelson’s organization now is gearing up for the Dec. 11 program titled Golden Fingers and Golden Toes at the McAllister Auditorium on the San Antonio College campus. The first half will feature an international group of six pianists from Mexico, Russia, Georgia, Belorussia, Germany and the United States. Grokhovski-Michaelson describes it as “an exciting, eccentric program of pianists in different combinations.” They will culminate with Franz Liszt’s Hexameron, composed for six pianists in 1837.

The Golden Toes half of the program will feature four classical ballet dancers from New York performing the world premier of Fables, a modern classical ballet created by the internationally renowned ballet mistress Elena Kunikova. It will include three 10-minute segments, each interpreting a different fable, to the music of Dmitri Shostakovich’s Jazz Preludes.

“She is creating that for us from scratch,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said. They will dance with a background consisting of video images. It also will come with a recitation of each fable by spoken word, so the audience will have an idea of each fable’s story line.

“Part of our mission is to make sure that our programs make a personal connection with the audiences,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said. “We are creating one-of-a-kind multicultural performances in order to educate and develop new audiences.”

Between the 10-minute segments, the audience will be treated to chamber music presented by Emanuel Borok, former concert master of the Dallas Symphony.

In October, the first performance of this year’s series combined a 45-minute Russian opera, Mozart and Salieri, complete with costume and operatic staging, with music and dance from India. The one-act opera by composer Rimsky-Korsakov was a collaboration with Italian director Roberto Prestigiacomoa, founder and artistic director of AtticRep. World-famous singers Nikita Storojev and Michael Burgess performed the opera.

The second half showcased various genres of the music of India, culminating in a spectacle of Indian dancers interpreting music that blends East and West. Artistic director was Sujata Venkateswar, an Indian classical vocalist.

“Half of the audience was Musical Bridges supporters, and half of audience was Indians who came to support Indian dance and music,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said. “After the concert, a lot of people came up to us and said that this was the first time they’d ever seen opera. So at least they know what it is. Forty-five minutes is a good introduction to the opera world, versus one of the Rings (by Richard Wagner), which is five hours long.”

All of the Musical Bridges Around the World programs take place on Sunday afternoons starting at 3 p.m. at McAllister. In addition to the Dec. 11 Golden Fingers and Golden Toes program, others in this year’s series are:

• Jan. 22, Beethoven in the Style of Jazz, a collaboration between Russian pianist Valery Grokhovski and local jazz musicians performing works by Beethoven, Mozart and Bach in jazz and original styles.

• Feb. 19, a Black History Month celebration featuring jazz pianist Geri Allen, described by the New York Times as “a jazz pianist who dares to follow an unmarked road.”

• May 20, Caribbean Express, featuring the folkloric ensemble Gibaro de Puerto Rico, a narrated musical historical presentation exploring the history of Latin music during the first half. During the second half, Gibaro de Puerto Rico will perform present-day Caribbean mambo, meringue, plena and salsa. San Antonio choreographer and salsa master Lee Rios and his dancers will join in the performance. It will feature students from Cayey, Puerto Rico’s Escuela de Bellas Artes.

Supporters of Musical Bridges Around the World who give $1,000 or more per year also are treated to house concerts held the day before the MBAW performances.



The same artists who will perform on Sunday give them a close-up show in the home of one of the organization’s supporters.

“It’s our way to say ‘thank you’ to them for their support,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said, adding that sponsors and supporters who underwrite many of the costs make MBAW possible.

As an educational community outreach, MBAW also presents its Kids to Concerts, usually 10 concerts presented each year in local public schools at no charge to the schools visited. The goal is to introduce young minds to the beauty and history of classical, jazz and folk music, building bridges between what they learn in school and what they experience in the live performance.

MBAW also will present five free concerts at San Fernando Cathedral this year.

It’s all about reaching as many people as possible and creating an understanding of the arts, while also fostering understanding between cultures, said Grokhovski-Michaelson, who will celebrate her 50th birthday on Nov. 30. In February, she’ll celebrate her fifth wedding anniversary with husband Dr. Robert Michaelson.

“I am trying to create these performances and package them in a certain way so that they are still very high artistic quality, unique artistic quality, but they are easier to understand to somebody who never went to music school like I did, who doesn’t understand what the music form is, who doesn’t know why they like it,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said of the MBAW program.

And it’s done with an understanding of the competition that live performances face with the explosion of media and performances available for people to watch and hear without ever leaving their homes.

“In order to justify for them to get up and go to the concert,” Grokhovski-Michaelson said, “we have to offer them something new and something that they will not regret that they left their bedroom to go to it.”

But for that online audience, her passion for the arts and MBAW can be found in a blog, Anya’s Musings, which she posts on the organization’s website. The blog soon will feature videos of Grokhovski-Michaelson playing piano pieces by composers such as Chopin, Liszt, Schubert and Rachmaninoff.

Additional information on Musical Bridges Around the World is available at www.musicalbridges.org.22 On The Town | November-December 2011

www.musicalbridges.org


http://artssa.org


YOSA Performers Bring Fresh Perspectives to Their MusicBy Susan A. Merkner


M embers of the Youth Orchestras of San Antonio ( YOSA) have varying levels of experience, yet they all share a dedication

and enthusiasm to making music together.

“Most of them are busy kids, involved in athletics, Scouts, church and extracurriculars, yet they make time for weekly rehearsals and daily practice,” said Troy Peters, YOSA’s musical director.

Peters, who plays the viola and has per formed on tenor banjo and electric guitar with symphony orchestras, also conducts the organization’s top ensemble, the 95-member Philharmonic.

The Philharmonic musicians play a professional-level repertoire requiring “high levels of mastery and control, to which they bring a youthful enthusiasm that ’s a joy to behold,” Peters said.

Approximately 310 students participate in YOSA’s f ive orchestras, beginning with the entry-level Prelude Strings, and moving up through the Capriccio Strings, intermediate strings; the Sinfonietta Strings, the most advanced strings; the Symphony, the intermediate full orchestra; and the Philharmonic, the most advanced ensemble.

Because they are students, most of them are being exposed to certain pieces of music for the first time, which Peters said brings him joy as a teacher.

“ They may be less polished than professional symphony players but they have a sense of boundless joy,” he said. “Every single piece is a new experience for them. I t ’s wonder ful to see them fall ing in love with music.”

San Antonio audiences have several opportunities to fall in love with YOSA per formers.

Th e YO S A Ph i l h a r m o n i c , w i t h Pe te r s co n d u c t i n g, w i l l p e r fo r m w i t h g u e s t Ed g a r M e ye r, a wo r l d - c l a s s b a s s i s t a n d co m p o s e r, a t “ Fro m t h e N e w Wo r l d ” at 7 : 3 0 p. m . N ov. 7 at t h e M a j e s t i c Th e at re .

Peters said the YOSA musicians, including eight

student bass players, will benefit from working with Meyer, who also will teach a masterclass with all the Philharmonic students. “Meyer is l iterally the greatest bass player,” Peters said, with music that reflects a mix of bluegrass influences and complex, driving rhythms.

At the Nov. 7 concert, YOSA students will join Meyers in playing his Concerto No. 1. Although some musicians, including professionals, might be slightly intimidated by playing a composer ’s work alongside him on stage, Peters said the YOSA students will be well-prepared by the night of the per formance.

The concert also will feature the students per forming Missy Mazzoli ’s “ These Worlds in Us,” Giovanni Bottesini ’s Concerto No. 2, and Antonin Dvorak ’s Symphony No. 9 “From the New World.”

Other YOSA ensembles also will be featured in upcoming per formances.

Autumn Festival, at 5 p.m. Nov. 20 at the Edgewood Per forming Arts Center, 607 S.W. 34th St. , wil l be a free concert per formed by the YOSA Symphony and Sinfonietta Strings in the first of the organization’s City Series concerts.

Holiday Favorites, part of the Junior Strings Concerts series, will be per formed at 7 p.m. Dec. 6 at Magik Theatre, 420 S. Alamo St. Student per formers will be from the YOSA Capriccio Strings, Prelude Strings and Music Learning Center programs.

The Music Learning Center is YOSA’s free, after-school program for k indergarteners through seventh-grade students in select neighborhoods on the city ’s West Side. The program provides music instruction and loaned instruments for participants, who meet at the Good Samaritan Community Services.

YOSA also offers summer camps and other educational programming.

Next June, about 65 YOSA Philharmonic students will travel to England and Wales to per form in London, Liverpool and Cardiff.



The touring group likely will repeat their Nov. 7 per formance of Dvorak ’s Symphony No. 9. “I t ’s very appropriate because it ’s a piece written by a European composer who was visiting America,” Peters said.

Also on the program for the touring per formers will be Arturo Marquez ’ Danzon No. 2 “to share some of San Antonio’s Hispanic culture and heritage,” and some English music because “it ’s always good to acknowledge your host and their music,” he said.

“YOSA has been touring internationally for many years,” said Peters, who has served as music director since 2009.

“I t gives students really memorable, l ife -changing moments in music and encourages them to achieve things they never dreamed they could accomplish.”

For information, visit www.yosa.org.

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

Photo Credits:

Page 24Troy PetersCourtesy Youth Orchestras of San Antonio

Edgar MeyerCourtesy Youth Orchestras of San Antonio

26 On The Town | November-December 201126 On The Town | November-December 2011

www.yosa.org

November-December 2011 | On The Town 27November-December 2011 | On The Town 27November-December 2011 | On The Town 27

http://musicalbridges.org


F eliz Navidad, San Antonio! This holiday season certainly will be bright when Arts San Antonio presents A Very Latin Christmas with Henry Brun

and the Latin Playerz. featuring 14 musicians in the orchestra. An added stocking stuffer, renowned vocalist Judi Deleon will join the Grammy award-winning band in concert at the Charline McCombs Empire Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 2.

Henry Brun formed the Latin Playerz ensemble more than two decades and 600 recordings ago. Brun, who earned a Grammy as the producer of Before the Next Teardrop Falls, also has racked up an incredible 21 Grammy nominations for his work. Latin Playerz built their reputation as a highly spirited band performing a variety of Latin styles with rhythm and blues, swing and jazz.

“We celebrated the 20th anniversary of our orchestra with Arts San Antonio to a sold-out crowd at the Empire last year,” Brun said. “And we’re so excited to be back for our A Very Latin Christmas concert. Christmas is such an important part of our lives -- enjoying the blessings we’ve been given throughout the years and spending it with family and friends.”

San Antonio has discovered that the Latin Playerz is one of the most phenomenal performing groups in the city. Texas’ undisputed conga dynamo, Brun

was nicknamed “Mr. Ritmo” by his fans, who sing the praises and cadencia of the authentic music for which he has come to be known.

A Puerto Rican from the Bronx, Brun began paying congas at the age of 7 and was a professional player before his teens. Early musical influencers included Tito Puente, Potato Valdez and Candida Cameron. “I’ve been playing music professionally for 40 years,” Brun said. “I’ve accomplished my dream.” Brun has recorded with the Texas Tornados, Ruben Ramón, Los Lobos and David Lee Garza. He tours with international acts such as Arturo Sandoval, Justo Almario, Charo, Little Joe y La Familia and many others.

“Music is part of what we share together,” Brun said. “I always had a dream of putting together a Christmas album. This is our interpretation of how happy music can be during Christmas. We’re thrilled that we can share this with all our fans who have made our Playerz who they are today. We keep exploring our music, sharing it and giving back to San Antonio. It means a lot to us that our band executed all of these arrangements.”

The band’s new Christmas CD features well-known traditional standards and some hymns that are more obscure. “When we were selecting the material, we thought of Christmas songs that embrace the


Latin Playerz Jazz up the Holidays!By Michele Krier


whole spirit of Christmas,” Brun said. “We included Medieval Christmas songs and some with strong gospel influences. It’s really exciting to listen to the CD.” A Very Latin Christmas is available now and at the concert.

“I’m proud to call San Antonio my home and my culture after being here for so many years. We are fortunate to have such a rich culture in our city.”

Vocalist Judi Deleon joins the band for the festive holiday concert. “Words cannot express the gratitude I have for her,” Brun said. “This is the one time that Judi is featured in an intimate concert setting. So we have the Playerz and Judi -- really two shows in one. She’s an amazing vocalist and a spiritual person who gives it her heart and soul. That’s what we do -- we play from the heart.” Deleon is an accomplished songwriter, arranger, producer and lead singer in her own right.

Henry and Judi, who are married, also manage Richport Enterprises Entertainment Consultants. Their company provides top talent for private events and parties, weddings and corporate events. “Our service is unique because we can synchronize music for an event and take care of all the details so our clients can trust us to plan every facet of their entertainment needs,” he said.

Plans for the Playerz’ future? “I want to continue doing what I’m doing,” Brun said. “I believe you create your opportunity, and this city has been phenomenal to us. I’ve become a part of the canvas of San Antonio.”

Tickets are available from Arts San Antonio.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Photo Credits:

Page 28Henry Brun and Judi DeleonCourtesy richportenterprises.com

Henry BrunCourtesy richportenterprises.com



http://thecarver.org


Texas Our TexasThis Recently Renovated Gem and the Neighboring Art Deco Palace Theatre are Putting Seguin on the Map as a Hot Spot for Theater ArtsBy Janis Turk


W hat do Robert Redford, Vanessa Redgrave, Sam Shepherd and just about everyone in Seguin have in common? They’ve all been

to the Texas Theatre, a historic 1930s former movie house along the main thoroughfare of this small town northeast of San Antonio on Interstate 10.

Currently owned by the Seguin Conservation Society, and for more than 60 years owned and run by a family of motion-picture exhibitors with theaters throughout South Texas, the Texas Theatre recently received a facelift and reopened as a live-performance, multi-media venue and meeting/event space.

Together, with its downtown neighbor, the independently owned Palace Theatre, the Texas Theatre is helping putting Seguin on the map as a center for live performances, dinner theater, music concerts, meetings and more, drawing theater and history buffs from all over the state.

Both theaters recently were home to live musical productions by thespians from Seguin Performing Arts Company and from Toto Productions of San Antonio, and both are drawing crowds and lots of interest in the arts to this delightful little community along the Guadalupe River.

Seeking $2.5 million from generous gifts, small donations, grants and fundraisers toward a refurbishment of the historic Texas Theatre, the Seguin Conservation Society has set in motion a remarkable capital campaign to raise funds to modernize and even add on to the historic structure, while seeking to remain true to its original ornate design. In fact, the Seguin Conservation Society is still soliciting funding for the already impressive renovation project undertaken on the Stephen and Mary Birch Texas Theatre (renamed to honor benefactors who donated $1 million to the project).

Construction of the Texas Theatre began in 1929, and the splendid modern movie house opened on March 19, 1931, with all the glitz and glamour of the grand theaters of its day. The original owner was Alvin P. Mueller. W. Scott Dunne was the architect, Marvin Eickenroht drew up the architectural plans, and Albert Nolte was the builder.

The theater was said to have been built as a gift for Mueller’s son, a decorated military man and aviator; however, oral history maintains the son had no interest in the movie business, so the theater was quickly sold to H.A. “Windy” Daniels and leased to his company, Seguin Theatres, a corporation Daniels formed with several partners in the theater business. His partners were eventually bought out of the business, and Daniels, his wife, Maxie, and their two children, Gigi and Dan, and their families would own and operate the Texas Theatre for the next 60-plus years, along with the Palace Theatre of Seguin (still in operation today) and the Dixie Drive-In (closed in the 1980s), along with several other cinemas across South Texas. Seguin Theatres, an S corporation, is said to be one of oldest continuously operating corporations in the state of Texas.

Daniels was pleased to boast that the Texas Theatre featured state-of-the-art accommodations for the hearing impaired and other ultra-modern features. The single-screen movie house featured a colorful Spanish pre-Columbian motif, and a domed roof studded with stars in the main auditorium. Hand-painted fabric panels on the side walls featured a pastoral scene at night with tall juniper trees. In the 1980s, the balcony and main auditorium could accommodate seating for about 300. The theater originally featured traditional theater seats with decorative risers; however, the Conservation Society removed the original downstairs seats and flattened the originally slanted floors for a ballroom setting in the main auditorium. Today the downstairs auditorium accommodates approximately 100 in non-fixed/moveable chairs. The balcony still features the original theater seats though they have yet to be refurbished.

Over the years, the Texas Theatre has offered first-run movies as well as church services, heavy metal concerts, jazz shows and business meetings. Several couples even were married on stage.

But it was in the 1970s and 1980s when Hollywood—or at least the Texas Film Commission—discovered the little gem that is the Texas Theatre, and the Texas made cameo appearances as a location in movies such as The Great Waldo Pepper (with Robert Redford), The Ballad of the Sad Café (with Vanessa Redgrave), and The Raggedy Man (with Sissy Spacek and Sam Shepherd), and was featured in numerous

November-December 2011 | On The Town 33Photo by Bil Sullivan


television commercials and print ads. Today, the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum in Austin features a replica of the Texas Theatre’s marquee.

By 1984, the Texas Theatre was in need of some tender loving care, and so owner H.A. “Dan” Daniels II launched a massive and painstakingly careful and historically accurate restoration of the theater. However, his substantial spending on the project seemed to be for naught, as multiplex cinemas and his busier Palace Theatre down the street seemed to draw all movie business in the area. The Texas Theatre then sat for the next 12 years, all but forgotten by younger audiences—empty on Friday nights with no one to buy tickets and popcorn. In the spring of 1993, the Texas Theatre closed its doors once more.

A few years later, the building was already in need of a new roof after a hailstorm and strong winds created holes, causing some water damage to the interiors. Once more the Texas would require attention—and money. Unwilling to allow the theater to fall into further disrepair, but reluctant to invest more money in a building that hadn’t generated any real revenue in the past 20 years—but that carried heavy tax and insurance expenses each month—the Daniels family decided to sell the Texas Theatre to the Seguin Conservation Society in 1996 for a mere $36,000.

“I know—that’s not much for a beautiful, historic brick property of this size, but my sister Gigi Benson and I felt that if we sold the Texas to the conservation society for such a low price, the society could commit such savings toward the repair of the roof. We knew we could trust their dedication to the preservation of this historic place so dear to the hearts of my family and this community. We’re so pleased that they’ve done such a magnificent job to ensure it remains a stunning landmark for generations to come,” Dan Daniels said.

The Conservation Society set to work right away to do much more than fix the roof. They purchased a building next door and joined the two spaces, allowing for new modern restrooms, rehearsal and meeting spaces and dressing rooms. Moveable chairs and tables for dinner theater productions and meetings were set in place in the new flat-floor auditorium. The antique fabric wall hangings downstairs have been replaced with replicas of each panel hand-painted by a talented local graphic artist

34 On The Town | November-December 2011 Photo by Matthew Chase

November-December 2011 | On The Town 35November-December 2011 | On The Town 35

who runs a deli downtown. The proscenium arch has been carefully repainted, and the upright sign with its chasing lights around the name “Texas” has also been restored and painted a brand new royal blue color. The Texas’ marquee is getting a paint job this month, as well. The group’s goal is to complete an astounding $2.5 million project transforming the historic theater into a stunning multimedia center for the arts.

Not long after the Seguin Conservation Society purchased the Texas Theatre, Emmy award-winning local filmmaker Chris Elley made a documentary, The Texas Theatre: A Projection of History, starring original Dukes of Hazzard television star John Schneider. The film also featured on-camera stories from Daniels, as well as from local residents and old timers recalling their best memories of the Texas Theatre—and its legendary ghost, “Mr. Brown,” purportedly seen by several employees and moviegoers over the years.

In March of this year, the Seguin Conservation Society held a grand re-opening for the Texas Theatre. Since then, the theatre has hosted songwriter nights, special music events, children’s theater workshops, a grand art exhibit and musical theater such as You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown. There’s so much in store for the Texas Theatre in the near future, and Seguin residents seem excited about it all.

Seguin’s nearby Palace Theatre, which features a 1940s Art Deco-style interiors (rebuilt and re-styled after a large portion of the original theater building fell during a gas line explosion in the 1940s), with its two cinema auditoriums is also busy hosting musical stage productions, running movies (both digital and film with state-of-the-art DTS surround sound), offering film festivals, concerts, acting workshops, weddings and more. It, too, is the pride of Seguin, for few other small Texas towns can boast two regularly operating historic theater venues.

With the two theaters, and a nearby bed-and-breakfast inn called The Mosheim Mansion hosting live dinner theater performances, and with the Palace running films, too, Seguin is proud to be home to so many thrilling art and stage events—and two of the prettiest old theaters in the state.

For more information, go to www.palacetheatretx.com and www.thetexas.org.

November-December 2011 | On The Town 35Photo Courtesy Seguin Gazette

www.palacetheatretx.com

www.palacetheatretx.com

www.thetexas.org


Jose ‘Pepe’ Martinez Sr.Musical Director of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán By Cynthia MunozPhotography courtesy mariachimusic.com

It was Dec. 4, 2009, when representatives of the Houston Grand Opera (HGO) attended San Antonio’s annual Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza.

In my role as producer of the eight-day mariachi music festival, I was asked by the HGO representatives who was the most talented mariachi musical arranger, composer and musician living today. My answer was Jose “Pepe” Martinez Sr., musical director of the world-renowned Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán.

Martinez and Mariachi Vargas impressed the HGO immensely. As a result, the HGO contracted with Martinez to write the first mariachi opera, To Cross the Face of the Moon (Cruzar la Cara de la Luna) . The mariachi opera premiered at the Wortham Center’s Brown Theater in Houston to a sold-out audience last November. Mariachi Vargas performed with a cast of seven vocalists from the HGO that included Vanessa Alonso, a former vocal winner from San

Antonio’s Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza.

Martinez has held the position of musical director and arranger for Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán for 36 consecutive years. Following the premiere of To Cross the Face of the Moon, Martinez was recognized publicly by HGO for composing the opera for mariachi and voice with the distinguished director and writer Leonard Foglia.

Following the opera’s premiere, Théâtre du Châtelet invited Mariachi Vargas and the HGO to perform six shows in Paris in September. “The response was overwhelming,” Alonso said. The audience applauded enthusiastically, gave numerous standing ovations, and expressed themselves with tears of joy.

It might be hard for some to understand how mariachi and opera come together so seamlessly.



But to grasp this concept one must understand Martinez’s phenomenal talents. He is like Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in the world of mariachi. In 1979, he was given the task of writing the arrangements for the San Antonio Symphony to perform with Mariachi Vargas during the world’s first performance that combined mariachi and classical music. His background dates to the 1940s when he began studying mariachi music as a young boy in Guadalajara.

By the age of 10 he was playing for tips on city buses, and at 12 he was playing alongside his father in an official mariachi group of the Mexican Army. The talented boy soon caught the attention of Gen. Bonifacio Salinas, who awarded him a three-year scholarship to study with concert violinist Ignacio Camarena. Before the three years were up, however, the virtuoso terminated their

apprenticeship, insisting that young Martinez already was a full-fledged professional violinist and needed no further lessons.

By the 1960s, Martinez had cut his teeth in the music business where he composed, arranged and recorded more than 500 songs on more than 100 long-playing records. In 1975, he joined Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán as its arranger and musical director, a position he holds to this day.

It was with Mariachi Vargas that his composing and arranging skills reached their pinnacle. His style is the most original of any of that group’s arrangers since maestro Rubén Fuentes, and his influence on the mariachi genre has been immense. Many original Martínez creations, including Cuerdas de Satín, Popurrí Los Gallos, Violín Huapango, Viva Veracruz, La Fiesta del Mariachi, and El Viajero — as



well as countless Martínez arrangements of pieces by other composers — have become standards throughout the mariachi world.

Like Mozart, he exhibited extraordinary musical talent and skills from childhood. The ease and rapidity with which he masters even the most difficult musical tasks continues to amaze his contemporaries. His musical ideas flow naturally and spontaneously. He writes his arrangements and compositions effortlessly, with incredible speed and minimal need for revision.

Much of the music played by Mariachi Vargas today is traditional mariachi music arrangements written by Martinez and Fuentes, with operatic and symphonic influences. Their latest CD, Mariachi Vargas Sinfonico No. 3, was recorded with the Orquesta Filarmonica de la Ciudad de Queretaro,

with breathtaking arrangements that include Mi Ciudad, Amor Eterno and El Viajero.

Mariachi Vargas headlines San Antonio’s 17th Annual Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza Nov. 27 to Dec. 4. The eight-day mariachi music festival includes two concerts at the newly renovated Lila Cockrell Theater Dec. 3-4 and a slew of mariachi-related events with more than 100 mariachi music performances and 1,000 young mariachi musicians during the weeklong event.

San Antonio’s 17th Annual Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza is the largest and longest-running mariachi music festival in Texas.

For ticket information and a detailed schedule of events and locations, visit www.mariachimusic.com.



http://thelongcenter.org


Events Calendar42-56

Events Calendar42-56


Music NotesDale Watson11/4, Fri @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

Dwight Yoakam11/4, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

San Antonio Symphony:SLL Salutes America11/4-5, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSebastian Lang-Lessing, conductorLaurie AuditoriumTrinity University

San Antonio Rose Live11/4-12/31, Fri @ 7:30pmSat @ 2pm & 7:30pmSun @ 7:30pmAztec Theatre

RockBox Theaterin Fredericksburg11/4-12/31, Fri @ 8pmSat @ 4:30pm & 8pmSun @ 2pm

Randy Brown11/5, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Dancehall

She’s Country Tourwith Heidi Newfieldand Bridgette Tatum11/5, Sat @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Honeybrowne11/5, Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

Dong-ill ShinThe Arts at Coker Presentation11/6, Sun @ 3pmCoker United Methodist Church

Olmos Ensemble: Variety! Winds and Strings, Thoughtful and Humorous 11/7, Mon @ 7:30pmFirst Unitarian Universalist Church

Youth Orchestras of San Antonio Gold Series: From The New WorldTroy Peters conductorEdgar Meyer, double-base11/7, Mon @ 7:30pmMajestic Theatre

Daniel WeeksTuesday Musical Club Presentation11/8, Tue @ 2pmLaurel Heights United Methodist Church

Petra11/10, Thu @ 7:30pmCharline McCombs Empire Theatre

Weldon Henson11/11, Fri @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

San Antonio Symphony:Brahms Sings11/11-12, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSebastian Lang-Lessing, conductorSan Antonio Symphony MastersingersMajestic Theatre

Tesla-Acoustic11/12, Sat @ 7pmBackstage Live

Gary Allan11/12, Sat @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Rachelle FerrellCarver Community Cultural Center Presentation 11/12, Sat @ 8pmJo Long Theatre @ The Carver

Amber Digby & Midnight Flyer11/12, Sat @ 8pmKendalia Halle

Chris Story Band11/12, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Dancehall

Asleep at the Wheel11/12, Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

James McMurtry11/12, Sat @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Ray Benson & W.C. Clark11/13, Sun @ 1pmLuckenbach Dancehall

The Copperleaf Quintet:Copperleaf at the San Antonio Museum of Art11/13, Sun @ 2pmSAMA

November-December 2011 Events Calendar



Dallas String QuartetFredericksburg Music Club Presentation11/13, Sun @ 3pmFredericksburg United Methodist Church

San Antonio Symphony and Air Force Band of the West: Veteran’s Day – Salute to Service11/13, Sun @ 7pmRobert Franz and 1st. Lt. Joseph Hansen, conductorsMajestic Theatre

Morrissey11/14, Mon @ 7:30pmMajestic Theatre

SOLI Chamber Ensemble:SOLI 1 – Quantum Change11/14, Mon @ 7:30pmGallery Nord11/15, Tue @ 7:30pmRuth Taylor Recital HallTrinity University

Willie Nelson11/16, Wed @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

The Jayhawks withJolie Holland11/17, Thu @ 8pmGruene Hall

Jake Owen11/18, Fri @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Duke Davis11/18, Fri @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

Granger Smith11/18, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

San Antonio Symphony:Rachmaninoff 211/18-19, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSebastian Lang-Lessing, conductorKilja Blocher, violinMajestic Theatre

Jason Boland & The Stragglers11/18-19, Fri @ 8pmSat @ 9pmGruene Hall

Children’s Chorus of San Antonio: Candlelight Celebration11/19, Sat @ 7pmSt. Mark’s Episcopal Church

Year of Jazz: Olivia Revueltas11/19, Sat @ 7pmInstituto Cultural de Mexico

Brantley Gilbert11/19, Sat @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Tony Pace: Up On The Roof11/19, Sat @ 7:30pmBrauntex Performing Arts TheatreNew Braunfels

Jake Hooker & Outsiders11/19, Sat @ 8pmAnhalt Hall

Jesse Dayton11/19, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Hall

Morganstern TrioSan Antonio Chamber Music Society Presentation11/20, Sun @ 3:15First Unitarian Universalist Church

Larry Ham and Houston PersonUTSA Guest Artist Series Presentation11/21, Mon @ 7:30pmRecital HallUTSA

Cory Morrow11/23, Wed @ 8pmGruene Hall

Bob Schneider11/25, Fri @ 8pmGruene Hall

Almost Patsy Cline Band11/25, Fri @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

Micky & The Motorcars11/25, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Kevin Fowler11/26, Sat @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Aaron Watson11/26, Sat @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Charlie Robison11/26, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Hall

Hayes Carll11/26, Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

Michael Martin Murphey Cowboy Christmas Show11/27, Sun @ 3pmKathleen C. Callioux TheaterKerrville



San Antonio Brass:Holiday In Brass11/27, Sun @ 2pmBeacon Hill Presbyterian Church12/12, Mon @ 7:30pmFirst Presbyterian Church Kerrville12/13, Tue @ 7:30pmAbiding Presence Lutheran Church12/19, Mon @ 7:30pmSt. Mark’s Presbyterian Church Boerne12/20, Tue @ 7pmSt. Luke’s Episcopal Church

Casting Crowns12/1, Thu @ 7pmFreeman Coliseum

Symphony of the Hills:Rising Stars & Many Moods of ChristmasDr. Jay Dunahoo, conductor12/1, Thu @ 7:30pmKathleen C. Cailloux TheaterKerrville

A Very Latin Christmas:Henry Brun and the Latin Playerz with Judi Deleon12/2, Fri @ 7:30pmCharline McCombsEmpire Theatre

Max Stalling12/2, Fri @ 8pmGruene Hall

Josh Peek Band12/2, Fri @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

Reckless Kelly12/2, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

San Antonio Symphony:Handel’s Messiah12/2, Fri @ 7:30pmUniversity United Methodist Church12/3, Sat @ 7:30pmTrinity Baptist Church12/4, Sun @ 7:30pmCoker United Methodist ChurchPatrick Dupre Quigley, conductorSan Antonio Symphony Mastersingers

Three Mo’ Tenors Carver Community Cultural Center Presentation12/3, Sat @ 8pmJo Long Theatre @ The Carver

The Fab Four: TheUltimate Tribute12/3, Sat @ 8pmLaurie AuditoriumTrinity University

Joe Bonamassa12/3, Sat @ 8pmFreeman Coliseum

The Dust Devils12/3, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Hall

Scotty Thurman & The Perfect Trouble Band12/3, Sat @ 8pmSisterdale Dancehall

Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan12/3-4, Sat @ 7:30pmSun @ 3pmLila Cockrell Theater

Children’s Chorus of San Antonio: Winter Magic12/4, Sun @ 3pmAlamo Heights United Methodist Church

Musical Evenings at San Fernando Cathedral: Violin Virtuosos by 2Musical Bridges Around the WorldPresentation12/4, Sun @ 6:30pmSan Fernando Cathedral

Reik12/7, Wed @ 8pmLila Cockrell Theater

Camerata San Antonio:An English ChristmasDeirdre Saravia, narrator12/8, Thu @ 7:30pmKerrville First Presbyterian Church12/9. Fri @ 7:30pmBoerne First United Methodist Church12/11, Sun @ 3pmSan Antonio Christ Episcopal Church

Don Irwin’s Holiday Concert12/9, Fri @ 7:30pmKathleen C. Cailloux TheaterKerrville

Roger Creager12/9, Fri @ 8pmGruene Hall

Billy Morgan and the Barnburners12/9, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Year of Jazz: El Corrido de Chuy12/10, Sat @ 7:30pmSay Si

Alamo City Men’s Chorale: Songs of Hope and Joy12/10, Sat @ 8pmLocation TBA



http://woodlawntheatre.com


Wade Bowen12/10, Sat @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Bob Schneider & Susan Gibson12/10, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Hall

Bart Crow Band12/10, Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

Golden Fingers and Golden ToesMusical Bridges Around the World Presentation12/11, Sun @ 3pmMcAllister AuditoriumSan Antonio College

Voci di Sorelle:Comfort & Joy – The Music of Christmas12/11, Sun @ 3pmChapel at Incarnate Word University of the Incarnate Word

Mid-Texas Symphony:Peace on Earth12/11, Sun @ 4pmDavid Mairs, conductorJackson AuditoriumTexas Lutheran UniversitySeguin

Charlie Robison12/16, Fri @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

San Antonio Symphony:Holiday Pops12/16-17, Fri-Sat @ 8pmKen-David Masur, conductorSan Antonio Symphony MastersingersMajestic Theatre

Jerry Jeff Walker12/16-17, Fri-Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

Rocky King & Dance Hall Cowboys12/17, Sat @ 8pmAnhalt Hall

Gary P. Nunn12/17, Sat @ 9pmLuckenbach Hall

San Antonio Chamber Choir: Gladsome Tide-ings12/18, Sun @ 3pmSt. John’s Lutheran Church

Robert Earl Keen12/18, Sun @ 7pmMajestic Theatre

Trans-Siberian OrchestraWinter Tour 201112/22, Thu @ 4pm & 8pmAT&T Center

Kyle Park12/23, Fri @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Kevin Fowler12/23, Fri @ 8pmGruene Hall

Zack Walther Band12/28, Wed @ 8pmGruene Hall

Brandon Rhyder12/29, Thu @ 8pmGruene Hall

Easton Corbin12/30, Fri @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Band of Heathens12/30, Fri @ 8pmGruene Hall

Stoney Larue12/31, Sat @ 7pm (doors open)Cowboys San Antonio

Randy Brown12/31, Sat @ 8pmLuckenbach Hall

Dale Watson12/31, Sat @ 8:30pmKendalia Halle

Two Tons of Steel12/31, Sat @ 9pmJohn T. Floore Country Store

Cody Canada & The Departed12/31, Sat @ 9pmGruene Hall

On StageRocky Horror Show11/3-5, Thu @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 10:30pmWoodlawn Theatre

The Last Night of Ballyhoo11/3-13, Thu @ 7:30pmSat @ 8pmSun @ 2:30pmSheldon Vexler Theatre

Let’s Twist Again11/3-19, Thu-Sat @ 8pm(Dinner @ 6:15pm)Harlequin Dinner Theatre

Stomp11/4-6, Fri @ 8pmSat @ 2pm & 8pmSun @ 2pm & 7pmMajestic Theatre

Gone with the Wurst11/4-13, Mon-Fri @ 7:30pmSat @ 4pm & 7:30pmSun @ 4pmCircle Arts TheatreNew Braunfels

Time Stands Still11/4-13, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 2:30pmCellar TheaterSan Pedro Playhouse



The Glass Menagerie11/4-19, Thu @ 7:30pmFri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 2:30pmBoerne Community Theatre

The Love List11/4-27, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 3pm(No show 11/25)Cameo Theatre

Hal Holbrook in Mark Twain TonightArts San Antonio Presentation11/6, Sun @ 7:30pmLaurie Auditorium,Trinity University

Captain Cortez and the Tri-Lambda Brigade 11/11-12, Fri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:30pm The Overtime Theater atBlue Star Complex

Twelth Night11/11-13 & 16-19 Wed-Thu @ 7[pmFri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 2:30pmStieren TheatreTrinity University

Resurrection Blues11/11-21, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 2:30pmWatson Fine Arts CenterSt. Philips College

Black Ninja: Rock Opera1/11-26, Fri-Sat @ 8pmRose Theatre Company

An Evening with BuddyValastro: The Cake Boss11/12, Sat @ 7:30pmLila Cockrell Theater

Cameo Theatre Presents The Case of the DeadlyDetective Dinner11/12, Sat @ 6:30pmZumbro Lounge by Cameo11/27 & 12/31, Sat @ 6:30pmSpaghetti Warehouse

Christmas at the Point11/18-12/3, Fri-Sat @ 7:30pm, Sun @ 2pmElizabeth Huth Coates Theatre Hill Country Arts FoundationIngram

Stranger11/18-19, Sat @ 8pmSterling Houston Theatre at Blue Star Arts Complex

Disney’s® My Son Pinocchio11/23, Wed @ 7:30pm11/25-12/23, Fri-Sat @ 7:30pmSun @ 3pmWoodlawn Theatre

http://www.vexler.org


Let’s Twist Again:Holiday Edition11/25-12/17, Thu-Sat @ 8pm(Dinner @ 6:15pm)Harlequin Dinner Theatre

The 09ers Christmas12/2-17, Fri-Sat @ 8pmRose Theatre Company

A Christmas Carol: The Musical12/2-23, Fri-Sat @8pmSun @ 2:30pmRussell Hill Rogers Theater San Pedro Playhouse

Chicago: The Musical12/2-31, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 3pm(No shows 12/24-25)Cameo Theatre

The Most WonderfulTime of the Year12/3-18, Thu-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 3pmThe Overtime Theater atBlue Star Complex

Fiddler on the RoofCadillac Broadway inSan Antonio Presentation12/6-11, Tue-Fri @ 8pmSat @ 2pm & 8pmSun @ 2pm & 7:30pmMajestic Theatre

Black NativityThe Renaisssance Guild Presentation12/9-11, Fri-Sat @ 8pmSun @ 4pmJo Long Theatre @ The Carver

Inspecting Carol12/9-18, Fri-Sat @ 7:30pmSun @ 2pmFredericksburg Theatre CompanySteve W. Shepard Theater

Dance

The Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan: Water Stains on the WallArts San Antonio Presentation11/1, Tue @ 7:30pmLila Cockrell Theater

The Kings of SalsaArts San Antonio Presentation11/20, Sun @ 7:30pmMajestic Theatre

The NutcrackerSan Antonio Symphony and Ballet San Antonio Presentation11/25-27 & 12/2-4Fri @ 7pmSat @ 2pm & 7pmSun @ 2pmMajestic Theatre

The NutcrackerArts San AntonioPresentation with Metropolitan Classical Ballet and San AntonioMetropolitan Ballet12/16-18, Fri @ 7:30pmSat @ 2pm & 7:30pmSun @ 2pmLila Cockrell Theater

The NutcrackerAlamo City Dance CompanyPresentation with Maia Wilkins and Michael Levine12/17-18, Sat @ 3pm & 7:30pmSun@ 3pmMcAllister AuditoriumSan Antonio College

Moscow Ballet’s GreatRussian Nutcracker12/27-28, Tue-Wed @ 7:30pmMajestic Theatre

Comedy

David Sedaris11/2, Wed @ 7:30pmLaurie Auditorium,Trinity University

Carole Montgomery11/2-6, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Rachel Feinstein11/3-6, Thu & Sun @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Ward Anderson11/9-13, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Richard Lewis11/10-12, Thu @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Raj Sharma11/13, Sun @ 8pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Carlos Mencia11/16, Wed @ 7:30pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Billy D. Washington11/16-20, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Rudy Moreno11/17-20, Thu & Sun @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club



http://raintribute.com


50 On The Town | July-August 200950 On The Town | July-August 2009

Laura Wright11/19, Sat @ 1pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Cleto Rodriguez11/25-27, Fri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmSun @ 8pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Eric O’Shea11/25-27, Fri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmSun @ 8:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Rickey Smiley11/26, Sat @ 7:30pmLila Cockrell Theater

Chas Elstner11/30-12/4, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

DL Hughley12/2-4, Fri @ 8pm & 10:15pmSat @ 7pm & 9:15pmSun @ 7pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Rahn Ramey12/7-11, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Max Dolcelli12/7-11, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Jeff Dye12/14-18, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Cy Amundson12/14-18, Wed-Thu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri-Sat @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Chris Fonseca12/21-24, Wed-Thu & Sat @ 8:30pmFri @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmRivercenter Comedy Club

Kelly Morton12/22-24, Thu @ 8pmFri @ 8pm & 10:15pmSat @ 8pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Andy Gross12/29-1/1, Thu & Sun @ 8pmFri-Sat @ 8pm & 10:15pmLaugh Out Loud Comedy Club

Kelly Morton12/28-1/1, Wed @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmThu & Sun @ 8:30pmFri @ 8:30pm & 10:30pmSat @ 8pm & 10:15pmRivercenter Comedy Club

For The Kids

Who Let the Ghosts Out?11/1-12, Tue-Fri @ 9:45am & 11:30amFri @ 7pm, Sat @ 2pmMagik Theatre

Nutcrackers11/18-12/23, Tue-Fri @ 9:45am & 11:30amFri @ 7pm, Sat @ 2pm(No shows 11/24-25)Magic Theatre

Yo Gabba Gabba! Live! It’s Time to Dance!Presented by Kia Motors11/30, Wed @ 6pmLila Cockrell Theater

Eric Carle Treasured Stories By Mermaid Theatre of Nova ScotiaChildren’s Fine Arts Series Presentation12/6, Tue @ 6:30pmLaurie Auditorium,Trinity University

Sesame Street Live: Elmo’s Super Heroes12/16-18, Fri @ 10:30am & 7pmSat @ 10:30am, 2pm & 5:30pmSun @ 1pm & 4:30pmFreeman Coliseum

On Exhibit

ARTPACE

Hudson (Show) RoomJanet Cardiff and George Bures MillerThru 12/31

Window WorksJustin BoydThru 12/31

International Artist-In-ResidentNew Works: 11.3Frank BensonGraham FagenJeff WilliamsRussell Ferguson, curatorOpens 11/17

BIHL HAUS ARTS

Deborah Kruetzpalin VasquezSobreviviente11/18-12/17



BLUE STAR CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER

Chuck RamirezMinimally BaroqueThru 11/6

Rudolpho ChoperenaRecent WorksThru 11/6

Carlos BetancourtArchaic SubstanceThru 11/6

GUADALUPE CULTURAL CENTER

By Permit OnlyThru 11/19

INSTITUTE OF TEXAN CULTURES

Griff Smith’s Texas: A Retrospective through the Lens & Images of Texas Highways Thru 3/31

40 Years of Texas Folklife Festival MemoriesThru 8/26

Timeless Texas Toys11/19-8/5

McNAY ART MUSEUM

Shakespeare to Sondheim:Designs from the Tobin CollectionThru 12/18

Nightmare Before ChristmasThru 1/1

The Orient Expressed: Japan’s Influence on Western Art, 1854-1918Thru 1/15

Cassatt and the Orient: Japan’s I nfluence on PrintmakingThru 1/15

http://eljarro.com


Art + Present: Gifts from the Peter Norton FamilyThru 1/15

MUSEO ALAMEDA

Revolution & Renaissance: Mexico & San Antonio 1910-201011/20-3/18

SAN ANTONIO BOTANICAL GARDEN

Amazing ButterfliesThru 1/8

Art In The Garden: Texas Uprising – Selections from The Texas Sculpture GroupThru 1/12

SAN ANTONIO MUSEUM OF ART

Paul Jacoulet: Views of KoreaThru 11/6

Animal Instinct: The Photographs of Daniel LeeThru 2/19

5000 Years of Chinese JadeThru 2/19

The Chinese Art of Cricket Keeping: The Ernest K.H.Lee Collection12/2-6/15

SOUTHWEST SCHOOL OF ART

Barbara Riley:BittersweetThru 11/13

Laura McPhee:River of No Return Thru 11/20

University of Texas at San Antonio Graduate Students:Emerging TalentThru 11/20

Shannon Brock:Gene Pool Therapy11/17-2/12

Maria Swartz:Constant Churning12/8-2/12

Sonya Clark:Solo Exhibition12/8-2/12Amazing ButterfliesThru 1/8

WITTE MUSEUM

Odyssey’s SHIPWRECK! Pirates and TreasuresThru 1/8

Opening the Witte Wardrobe:85 Years of Collecting TextilesThru 3/25

Out of the Vault85 Years of Collecting at the Witte MuseumThru 4/29

Witte Through Time: 85 Years and Still GrowingThru 5/26

The British Invasion:Phillip King, Phil EvettAnd Harold Wood12/1-2/12

Miscellaneous

Tejas RodeoThru 11/19, Sat @ 7:30pmBulverde

First Friday Art Walk 11/4 & 12/2, Fri / 6-9pmSouthtown / Blue Star / King William

Lebanese Festival11/4-6St. George MaroniteChurch and Center

Primer Sabado: Tamalada Fest11/5, Sat / 12pm-6pmMarket Square

Diwali San Antonio Festival of Lights11/5, Sat / 5pm-10-mHemisfair Park Fountain Plaza

Arts & Eats 201111/16, Wed / 7pm-11pmBlue Star Contemporary Arts Center

25th Annual Light The Way University of Incarnate Word11/19 – End of Year

Tree Lighting Ceremony11/25, Fri / 5pm-7:30pmAlamo Plaza

Ford Holiday River Parade & Lighting Ceremony11/25, Fri @ 7pmRiver Walk

Ford Holiday Boat Caroling11/26-12/18River Walk

52 On The Town | July-August 201152 On The Town | November-December 2011


Holly Daze on the Riverwalk11/26-27, Sat @ 1pmSun @ 2:30pmArneson River Theatre

La Gran Tamalada11/27, Sun / 10am-6pmLa Villita

Holidays on Houston Street12/1, Thu @ 6pmBohanan’s Prime Steaks and Seafood

Ford Fiesta de las Luminarias12/2-4 & 12/9-11River Walk

Los Pastores12/3-10 / 7pm-9:30pmLa Villita

Bazar Sabado12/10, Sat / 10am-4pmSan Antonio Museum of Art

25th Annual Blessing of the Animals12/10, Sat / 12pm-6pmMarket Square

Art.i.copia12/10, Sat / 10am-5pmSouthwest School of Art

La Gran Posada12/18, Sun @ 6pmMilam Park

Chanuka on the River12/2, Wed / 3pm-6pmRiver Walk

Photo Credits

Page 42 (L-R)

Dwight YoakamCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Sebastian Lang-LessingPhoto by Marks Moore

San Antonio Rose SingersCourtesy sanantoniolive.com

Rockbox Theatre PerformersCourtesy rockboxtheatre.com

September-October 2011 | On The Town 53

http://yosa.org


Page 43 (L-R)

Heidi NewfieldCourtesy heidinewfield.com

HoneybrowneCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Mark AckermanCourtesy olmosensemble.org

SOLI Chamber EnsemblePhoto by Kemp Davis

Page 44 (L-R)

Jason Boland and the StragglersCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Morganstern TrioCourtesy morgansterntrio.com

Cory MorrowCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Bob SchneiderCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Page 46 (L-R)

Charlie RobisonCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Michael Martin MurpheyPhoto by Barry McCloud

San Antonio BrassCourtesy sabrass.org

Henry BrunCourtesy Arts San Antonio

Page 47 (L-R)

Max StallingCourtesy maxstalling.com

Reckless KellyCourtesy recklesskelly.com

Page 48 (L-R)

Three Mo’ TenorsCourtesy Carver Community Cultural Center

Mariachi VargasCourtesy mariachimusic.com

Wade BowenCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Voci di SorrelleCourtesy bennisimomusic.com

Page 50 (L-R)

David MairsCourtesy mtsymphony.org

Ken-David MasurPhoto by Greg Harrison

Jerry Jeff WalkerCourtesy jerryjeff.com

Gary P. NunnCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Page 51 (L-R)

Robert Earl KeenCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Trans-Siberian OrchestraCourtesy trans-siberian.com

Kevin FowlerCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Zach WaltherCourtesy liveatfloores.com

Page 52 (L-R)

Brandon RhyderCourtesy brandonrhyder.com

Stoney LaRueCourtesy stoneylarue.com

Two Tons of SteelCourtesy twotons.com

StompPhoto by Junichi Takahashi

Page 53 (L-R)

Hal Holbrook in MarkTwain TonightCourtesy Arts San Antonio

The Case of the Deadly Detective DinnerPhoto by James Teninty

(L-R)

Fiddler on the RoofPhoto by Carlo Rosegg

The NutcrackerCourtesy Ballet San Antonio and San Antonio Symphony

The NutcrackerCourtesy Alamo Dance Company

Rachel FeinsteinCourtesy rachelfeinstein.com



http://childrensfineartseries.org


http://brauntex.org


Visual Arts58-72

Visual Arts58-72


'Tis the Artful Seasonby Cassandra Yardeni

The holidays are upon us, and there is no better time to treat yourself (and your family) than now. San Antonio’s local galleries and museums get in the spirit, hosting

a slew of dazzling -- and festive -- exhibits this season. Head down the Texas highways, tap into your inner child or take a dive into the deep blue and beyond, without setting foot outside of San Antonio. ‘Tis the artful season!

Through Jan. 8, the Witte Museum invites visitors on an interactive journey 1,700 feet below the shores of the Atlantic with SHIPWRECK! Pirates and Treasure. Making its Texas debut in San Antonio, the exhibit chronicles the world’s most infamous shipwrecks discovered by Odyssey Marine Exploration. See artifacts from the SS Republic, a side-wheel steamship lost in a hurricane off the coast of Georgia in 1865; peruse genuine gold bars and silver coins; operate the cutting-edge technology used to discover the wreck; get acquainted with the most notorious pirates to sail the seven seas, including Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, Privateers and Buccaneers, and much more.

This October, the Witte Museum celebrated its 85th anniversary. The museum hosts three exhibits to honor this milestone: Out of the Vault: Celebrating 85 Years of Collecting at the Witte Museum; Opening the Witte Wardrobe: 85 Years of Collecting Textiles; and Witte Through Time: 85 Years and Still Growing.

Through April 29, Out of the Vault displays the best and most coveted artifacts from the Witte’s vast collection, including art, arms and armor, anthropological and historical items. Opening the Witte Wardrobe is a veritable

style retrospective, highlighting fashions ranging from a fur-trimmed coat dating back to 1907, to a satin, sequined jumpsuit belonging to the 1980s.

The Witte’s Fotoseptiembre exhibit, Witte Through Time: 85 Years and Still Growing, celebrates the Witte’s past by exploring historic photographs that showcase how the Witte has grown and changed with the community since 1926, as well as artist renderings of its exciting future.

Opening Nov. 17, Artpace introduces staggering works of artistry from its most recent international artists in residence, Frank Benson, Graham Fagen and Jeff Williams. Benson, a New York-based artist, investigates manufacturing processes and the suspension of movement. Much of his work features manipulated found objects, like an inverted rubber trashcan and a melted glass pitcher. From Glasgow, Scotland, Fagen examines cultural relations, their “forms,” “formers” and boundaries through mixed media, combining video, photography and sculpture with text, live media and even plants. Williams is a Texas artist whose sculptural works are site-specific and involve manipulating a structure’s architecture to reveal layers of a building’s historicity. Past practices include sealing voids, compressing spaces, and opening and constructing walls. Often he uses natural phenomena such as air, light, water and gravity to marry the present with the past. In Sunlight/Substratum from 2009, he redirected sunlight using mirrors through subterranean passages in the oldest building of the American Academy in Rome, where Galileo briefly worked. The piece was viewable for only a few minutes each day, when the sun was in position, thus contrasting



centuries of the building’s existence with the fleeting moments of light.

Also on display at Artpace is work by artistic dream team Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller. Each of the video and audio works in their exhibition explores the process by which fantasy is made real and reality is turned into cinematic fantasy.

Through Dec. 31, San Antonio-based artist Justin Boyd’s Window Works will showcase installations which employ sculpture, video, light and sound to produce layered narratives that investigate Americana folklore and what it means to participate in the collective experience of being American.

Until Jan. 15, the McNay takes viewers on a trip through the Orient, with its captivating exhibition, The Orient Expressed: Japan’s Influence on Western Art, 1854-1918. The collection is a valentine to Japonisme, which influenced Western art and culture throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This traveling exhibit showcases more than 150 objects, to include ceramics, drawings, glass, paintings, prints and silver.

Continuing with their nod to the East, the McNay hosts Cassat and the Orient: Japan’s Influence on Printmaking, an exhibition that chronicals Japanese motifs and their staggering inspiration on French and American artists alike.

All the world’s a stage at the McNay, where the Shakespeare to Sondheim: Designs From the Tobin Collection boasts Greek gods and heroines, remorseless Elizabethan villains, Romantic ballets with tragic lovers, and artifacts from Broadway’s most beloved musicals. Through Dec. 18, visitors are encouraged to step behind the curtain and feast on visual confections such as maquettes from Hector Berlioz’s opera Les Troyens and William Shakespeare’s Richard III. Center stage are costume designs, including Ivan Bilibin’s exquisite watercolor of Odette in Swan Lake and Ann Hould-Ward’s drawings for Sondheim’s Sunday in the Park With George.

Also on display through Jan. 1 at the McNay is The Nightmare Before Christmas, a haunting revisit to Tim Burton’s 1993 stop-motion masterpiece. Explore original character puppets of Jack Skellington; Oogie Bookie; Lock, Shock and Barrel, and relive the mischeif as they kidnap “Sandy Claws” and remake Christmas in the ghoulish image of Halloween.



Head over to the Institute of Texan Cultures for a restrospective ride down the state’s remarkable highways. Griff Smith’s Texas features more than 50 photographs taken by J. Griffis Smith, photo editor of Texas Highways Magazine. Among the diverse collection is a cowboy silhouetted against a neon Texas flag, a stately lighthouse in Port Isabel and a trick roper from Bandera. The exhibit also examines the creative process of magazine publication, from concept to finished product.

Timeless Texas Toys, an ITC exhibit on display beginning Nov. 19, is a veritable treasure chest for tots, teens and parents alike. The collection explores the cultural values, ingenuity, art and design expressed in handmade folk toys. In a child’s hands, these playthings come to life in the world of make-believe, engraining in the children societal mores and cultural expectations through adulthood.

Delve into the world of pulp painting and paper at the Southwest School of Art’s Gene Pool Therapy. Opening Nov. 17, this exhibit features work by Brooklyn-based artist Shannon Brock.

Local artist Marie Swartz presents Constant Churning, on display at SSA beginning Dec. 8. Swartz masterfully interweaves elements from folk tales, personal viewpoints and mysterious happenings to produce out-of-this-world digital collages.

Rounding out SSA’s impressive roster of art this season is work by prolific Virginia artist Sonya Clark. In her Solo Exhibition, Clark explores the potency of ancestry and historical biases, marrying subversive humor with traditional American iconography. One noteworthy artifact is Afro Abe II, a hair-raising depiction of the 16th president, hand-embroidered and French-knotted thread on a $5 bill.

From Nov. 18 through Dec. 17, Bihl Haus Arts presents Sobreviviente, an exhibition of new works, video and installation by Deborah Kuetzpalin Vasquez. The collection is composed of recycled material used as metaphors for the mujeres that have survived violence at the hands of love ones across the border. Each woman tells her tale on film, and the artwork and video will be placed within the installation of a home characteristically defined by Chicana culture, with nuances of the violence transformed.

The San Antonio Museum of Art hosts 5,000 Years of Chinese Jade, a renowned international exhibit held



in conjunction with the city of San Antonio’s yearlong celebration of Taiwan. With its broad historical approach, the exhibition provides an opportunity to experience the great breadth of Chinese history through outstanding works of art. The exhibition is arranged chronologically, and showcases ritual objects, weapons, scholar’s objects, adornments and jewelry, and vessels, all in various shades, and sizes, of jade.

Tap into your wild side and explore Animal Instinct, a survey exhibition of Daniel Lee’s photography from 1993 to 2010. The collection, on display at SAMA through Feb. 19, portrays animal and human-being hybrids, and the idea that people often exhibit behavioral, personality and physical traits which resemble those of animals. Across the city and all around town, art is thriving and offers an assortment of cultural and historical explorations. A museum membership, an exhibit tour or an afternoon at your favorite gallery may be the perfect present this holiday season.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • Photo Credits:

Page 58John La Farge (American, 1835–1910), The Great Statue of Amida Buddha at Kamakura, Known as the Daibutsu, from the Priest’s Garden, 1887. watercolor and gouache on off-white wove paper. 19.25 x 12.5 in. Collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York. Gift ofthe Family of Maria L. Hoyt, 1966, 66.143.Courtesy McNay Art Musuem

Page 60

(Above)Shannon BrockCheck Your Tension, 2009, pulp painting, 8.5 x 8.5 in.Courtesy Southwest School of Art

(Below)SHIPWRECK! Pirates and TreasuresGold on the ocean floor from Courtesy Witte Museum



Page 61

(Above)SHIPWRECK! Pirates and TreasureBottles from a sunken shipPhoto courtesy Witte Museum

(Below)Celebration (from Harvest)2004, ink jet on vinyl48 x 96 in.San Antonio Museum of Art

Page 62

(Above)Deborah Kuetzpalin VasquezI Didn’t Mean to Break It! – Sobreviviente Exhibit Courtesy Bihl Haus Arts

(Below)Laura McPheeRiver of No Return –Snowmobile Headlights, Valley Road, Custer County, Idaho, 2004, analog c printCourtesy Southwest School of Art

(Above)Louis Rhead (English-born American, 1857–1926), Woman with Peacocks (published in L’Estampe Moderne), 1897. lithograph. 8.86 x 13.39 in. (image). Private Collection. Courtesy McNay Art Museum

(Below)BearLate Western Han dynasty to Early Eastern Han dynasty, 1st centuryBC-1st century AD, NephriteM. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution,Washington, D.C.:Gift of Arthur M. Sackler, S1987.25Courtesy San Antonio Museum of Art



I n 2005, seeds were planted to help further the momentum for the arts in San Antonio. At the time, the co-founders of the Artist Foundation

(AF), Patricia Pratchett and Bettie Ward, did not imagine the support and readiness to give life to the project they were envisioning existed in San Antonio. The idea of an entity that would identify and recognize the artistic excellence of local area professional working artists seemed improbable, but as it turns out there was critical mass -- and then some.

Fast forward to November 2011. Today the Artist Foundation celebrates its sixth year of awarding grants to accomplished artists in Bexar County. Pratchett, a former USAA executive, and Ward, a visual artist, reflect on how their labor of love has blossomed into a springboard that helps to catapult both San Antonio and local artists’ names to a national arena. “One thing we knew for certain, we wanted to create monetary awards that would nourish, honor and recognize professional working artists in San Antonio. That was the genesis of it all,” Pratchett said.

Founded in 2005, the first grants were awarded the following year. “We took our first call for applications in 2006 and received over 200 applications. We were blown away,” Pratchett said. Since then, AF has awarded $400,000 to 74 area artists in diverse disciplines.

Each award the foundation approves is for $5,000 and is made for the creation of new, original work. The awards are designed to recognize artistic achievement, dedication to an artistic discipline and the potential for further professional development in the categories of literary, visual, media and performing arts. Additionally, winners in each category are considered for the Tobin Prize for Artistic Excellence in the amount of $7,500.

To nurture AF’s vision, funding is gathered from a variety of sources, such as estates, foundations, private funds and, of course, fundraising events. Ward remembers planning the Artist Foundation’s first fundraiser, The Artball, in February 2007. She recalled the reaction from some when developing the idea for the event. “We told them we wanted

The Art of Growing ArtThe Artist Foundation of San Antonio Nourishes the Arts for the FutureBy Regina VillalobosPhotography Dana Fossett



to give a party for 500 people, and they said, ‘Oh, yeah, right. You’re never going to get that many people,’ ” Ward said.

Pratchett said, “People said, ‘What? You have no history. How are you going to do this?’ ” In fact, 500 people came to an art party with local artists being the principal designers, and the AF raised more than $80,000.

In the past six years, the Artist Foundation has seen enduring, cutting-edge work emanating from its awards. Pratchett is enthusiastic about what’s next. “My goal now is to publish a catalog where this is documented for the community and for supporters and funders to see the collected works created with AF grants,” she said.

Exciting outcomes occurred recently when USA Artists, a national organization that gives awards to individual artists, selected the Artist Foundation as a USA Partner. This is significant for AF award winners who will be able to post their proposed art projects on the USA micro grant site. (www.unitedstatesartists.org). This gives AF artists more visibility and exposure, which in turn should help them get additional funding.

Moving forward, the Artist Foundation continues to encourage the cultivation of its program and the talent it brings. It’s evident its efforts have harvested great works, and it appears there are more to come upon the horizon.

For information, visit www.artistfound.org.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Photo Credits:

Page 64Bettie Ward

Patricia Pratchett


www.artistfound.org


http://boerneperformingarts.com


Witte Museum Celebrates Milestone AnniversaryBy Shannon Huntington StandleyPhotography Courtesy Witte Museum


O ct. 8, 2011, marked the 85th anniversary of San Antonio’s beloved Witte Museum. The city’s first museum

celebrates this milestone with three collection-based exhibitions that highlight the depth, diversity and importance of the Witte’s collections of almost 200,000 artifacts and archives amassed over 85 years.

Discover some of the best artifacts drawn from the vast Witte collections that have been growing since 1926 through Out of the Vault: Celebrating 85 Years of Collecting at the Witte Museum. On view through April 29, this exhibition gives visitors a glimpse into the wide variety of the permanent collection, including natural history, art, military, arms and armor, anthropology, textiles, archives and history. Learn how the diversity of the Witte’s collections reflects the heritage of South Texas and our place in the world. The Witte Museum’s collection grew rapidly after the museum opened in 1926, shaped by judicious purchases and donations. Today,

guided by a collection plan, areas of the collection continue to grow.

Highlighting one of the Witte’s largest collections, textiles, is Opening the Witte Wardrobe: 85 Years of Collecting Textiles. On view through March 25, this exhibition presents the beauty and artistry of a portion of the Witte’s textile collection—the fashion collection. Through a selection of clothing and accessories spanning more than 150 years of fashion, beginning with the 1830s, Opening the Witte Wardrobe illustrates how fashion for men, women and children changed from decade to decade in South Texas. The Witte Museum began collecting historic clothing after opening its doors to the public. Over the next 50 years, the collection grew rapidly. In 1976, curator Cecilia Steinfeldt sought to bring order to the collection and focused on a fashion-based collection, chronologically, which became a resource for a variety of organizations, from university costume history classes to needlework guilds. In 1995, Michaele

September-October 2011 | On The Town 69


Haynes, Ph.D., became curator, and her background in anthropology brought a new perspective to the textile collection, adding emphasis to the everyday artifacts and their social context. Today, the Witte Museum continues to collect textiles that tell the story of life in South Texas.

Witte Through Time: 85 Years and Still Growing, which also was the Witte’s 2011 Fotoseptiembre exhibit, is on view through May 26. This exhibition provides the opportunity to see how the Witte began, where it is going and the 85 years in between. The photographic exhibition celebrates the Witte’s vibrant history by exploring historic photographs that showcase how the Witte has grown and changed with the community since 1926. See major moments, vital growth and important changes that the Witte went through to become the vital institution it is today. Then catch a glimpse of the fast-approaching future Witte through campus expansion artist renderings.

The Witte’s anniversary exhibits are all included with museum general admission. Take a moment to experience history through art, artifacts and archives, and see what truly has made the Witte Museum the “people’s museum” for the past 85 years and many to come.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • •Photo Credits:

Page 68Crockett Street looking WestOut of the Vault Exhibit

Page 69Street Scene in Old San AntonioOut of the Vault Exhibit

(Above)1934 Evening GownOpening the Witte Wardrobe:85 Years of Collecting Textiles

(Below)Dawn in the HillsOut of the Vault Exhibit



December 11, 2011 | 5:30 p.m. & 7:15 p.mThis annual presentation of the glorious sounds of the most beautiful season of the year is presented by the 150 voice Sanctuary Choir with the additional 130 voices of the Children’s and Youth choirs of First Baptist Church San Antonio. A professional symphony orchestra accompanies these choir members on stirring and worshipful arrangements of traditional carols which tell of Christ’s birth. Congregational caroling and gifted soloists are also featured.

Stephen T. Carrell, Associate Pastor, Worship & Music

Free tickets are available beginning November 13thCall (210) 226-0363

First Baptist Church515 McCullough Ave | San Antonio, Texas 78215

www.fbcsa.org

Christmas at First

Christ...Glory

the

ofGod Revealed

http://fbcsa.org


http://santikos.com


Culinary Arts 74-90

Culinary Arts 74-90


Jeffrey Balfour:Executive Chef of Hotel Valencia and CitrusBy Ashley FestaPhotography Greg Harrison

J effrey Balfour ’s girlfriend taste-tested recipes the fledgling chef invented while he was in college and developing his skill.

She later became his wife. That’s how you know Balfour is good at what he does.

The executive chef of Hotel Valencia and its upscale restaurant, Citrus, didn’t attend a culinary school. Apparently he had all the schooling he needed while imagining new dishes and letting his five roommates and girlfriend, now wife, Allison, do the grading.

“I spent a lot of time reading,” Balfour said. “I would sit in the library reading old classic cookbooks and make copies.”

Balfour grew up in Galveston. After getting an undergraduate degree at the University of Texas at Austin, he went on to the University of Houston to study hotel and restaurant management.

When opening the cabinets in the kitchen shared with his roommates and finding only a “block of Velveeta and two potatoes, I learned how to make something out of nothing,” he said. Those early masterpieces weren’t polished, but the challenge of working with what little he had helped him develop his inner creativity. Now, he rarely follows a cookbook and couldn’t write a recipe to save his life.

That creative talent has paid off in many ways,

most notably when he was asked (on the day of his daughter’s birth almost 10 years ago) to move to San Antonio and open a new restaurant called Citrus. Still in his 20s at the time, Balfour knew it was a great opportunity, and it’s still one of his proudest achievements.

“It was really scary,” he said. “We built it from nothing.” Because the hotel was not a chain, he and the rest of management had no template to work from. They developed everything from scratch, just like Balfour learned to do in the kitchen.

“ We had to f igure out who we were going to buy s i lver f rom,” Bal four sa id. “ What k ind of g lasses do we want?” Even now, he’s in charge of a l l the food and beverage, the bar, and the look of the restaurant .

When he’s not work ing, he st i l l enjoys cook ing at home, but with t wo elementar y school-age k ids, he doesn’t have the luxur y ver y of ten. H is daughter, Alex , and his son, Jackson, keep him busy. “ We eat out at Chuy ’s at least once a week . I t ’s a k id thing,” he sa id. “Or someplace with a playground.”

Occasionally when he runs into someone during the week, he’ll visit the friend’s restaurant if he hasn’t been in a while. But typically, the family tries to eat vegetarian at home. Allison is more dedicated to the diet than Balfour, who usually orders meat when dining out.



Balfour real izes that the dining- out experience is often not a healthful one, and though he does tr y to have wholesome options on his menus to accommodate ever yone, “ I t ’s not my intent to be healthy.

“We don’t try to be bad for you, either, but we use a lot of butter and cream,” he said. “Honestly, it tastes good. And we’re trying to be the best.

“But we try to buy straight from the farm whenever possible,” he said.

When venison or boar is available, it makes for an interesting menu. But the chef admits to getting bored quickly with any particular dish, so he likes to keep up with trends and change his menus often. “I always want to do what I haven’t done before,” he said.

The one thing he doesn’t like to cook, however, is pastry. “It’s an entirely different form of cooking altogether,” he said.

“It’s too by-the-book,” says the chef who used to argue with his father about following recipes to the T when he was younger. Now, he finds he enjoys leaving more room for creativity with his dishes than pastry allows.

It’s especially fun when he gets together with his team to brainstorm new dishes. The flow of multiple ideas often results in an even better dish than he originally imagined. “My ideas don’t always end up the way they are in my head,” he said.

With the quickly approaching holidays, this award-winning chef offers all at-home cooks a word of advice when planning a meal. “Focus on one or two ingredients and go from there,” he said. “Too often people see a huge, broad recipe. But it’s about what you have [on hand]. Create from one idea.

“Think in terms of color, flavor and textures. Then add and build from there.”

Thanks, at least in part, to that basic thinking, this chef has earned many culinary awards. When considering his biggest, he admitted, “I don’t know if I’ve gotten there yet. It’s not something I can say, ‘OK, I’m done.’ I think maybe it’s still out there.”



http://cp1.photoreflect.com


Holiday Tables: A Conversation with Di-Anna AriasBy Bonny OsterhagePhotography Greg Harrison

The holidays are upon us, filled with fabulous foods, beautiful decorations, family, friends and fun. Of course, they also can be a stressful time

as we try to balance all of the demands of life with the demands of the season, but you don’t have to be Martha Stewart or have a full-time staff to pull it off.

In fact, you can design a beautiful holiday table laden with delicious holiday fare without spending a fortune

and by using items found around your home. Not only will you be creating a memorable event, you will be creating a lasting memory.

Di-Anna Arias, director of culinary vision at Don Strange of Texas Inc., is known for her creativity and her ability to think outside the box. But regardless of how elaborate an event she designs, Arias always starts with a firm foundation based on the basics.



“I am a traditionalist, and I love the classics,” Arias said. “But I also like to tweak it and infuse that ‘what if ’ factor.”

Arias recommended approaching table design in much the same way as an architect would a building. That is, start with the foundation and work your way up. Perhaps it is a beautiful set of glassware, silver, or linens. It could be a color, a shape or anything that inspires your creativity.

“I run across items every day that inspire me,” said Arias, who once designed an entire wedding around a Texas Clam, a heart-shaped fossil she stumbled upon at the Don Strange Ranch.

“I keep an inspiration board with swatches of color, photographs, fabrics, quotes, anything that inspires me. I might not use it today but I might in a year or two.”

Build on the BasicsOnce you have settled on your central theme or

inspiration, take a mental inventory of what you already have available to carry the theme throughout the décor.

“Think of like things,” said Arias, who once pulled together every blue item in her home to create a table that was inspired by a blue and white English-style plant container. “Pick a color, pick a shape, pick a word and run with it!”

Just because you are decorating a holiday table doesn’t mean you are limited to specific colors. After spying a copper ball in a grocery store, Arias was inspired to create a holiday table using red and antique copper for an old-world feel.

“I simply took inventory in my mind of items in my home and in my office, and picked up a few items from other stores to pull it together,” she said.

Make It PersonalA traditionalist at heart, Arias loves honoring family and


incorporating items that evoke fond memories or create new ones.

“Make whatever you do all about you,” she said. “Don’t ever feel like you have to create something directly from a magazine or trend. You may be inspired by a trendy color or theme, but make it your own.”

Arias recently put that advice into practice when creating a vintage-themed wedding for her sister. In addition to all of the vintage coffee cups and vintage suitcases for holding party favors, Arias offered her own collection of vintage cake stands, crystal candlesticks and depression glass for the florist to use as vessels for the centerpieces at the head table.

“It was breathtaking, unique, and gave the event a personal touch,” she said. “We tend to keep special things put away in a box when what we should do is get them out, live with them and enjoy them!”

Keep it Real The most beautifully lain table in the world means nothing if it is not functional. A gorgeous centerpiece becomes an eyesore if it impedes your view and keeps you from communicating with your guests. You need to make sure that the table flows and guests are able to serve and be served easily, and that they can communicate, pass food, get up if necessary and move about without impediment. Although creativity is a must, Arias cautioned against going too far.

“Don’t go so far overboard with the theme and décor that guests don’t get it, but do cross that ‘safe’ line,” she said.

Demonstrate Good TasteYour good taste extends far beyond the table to the palate of your guests. When planning a menu, Arias said, the same rules apply: Start with the basics and give them a “tweak.” For example, Thanksgiving guests might expect a succulent turkey accompanied by a tangy cranberry sauce and creamy mashed potatoes. What they might not expect is a turkey and cranberry crepe, or brie-infused mashed potatoes.

Avoid trying to carry your color theme throughout the menu -- it rarely works. Instead introduce color through cocktails and beverages such as a pomegranate-infused mimosa or even with a punch — a beverage that is making a huge splash once again at parties and brunches.


As for desserts, again keep it real and make it personal. People love the tradition of pumpkin pie, but you could serve pumpkin tarts, or serve a large platter of cookies made from a time-honored family recipe.

“People want the real deal,” Arias said. “That’s what the memories are made from.”

Tips For A Table To Remember

• Begin with a basic foundation such as linens, china, silver or crystal.

• Find your inspiration or theme and keep it consistent.

• Look for objects around your home that can be incorporated into the theme, such as items of a similar color or shape.

• Keep an inspiration board of ideas—you never know when you might use them.

• Make it personal by using those “special” items that you usually keep tucked away.

• Make sure your table is fabulous but also functional.

• Combine traditional foods in non-traditional ways.

• Add color to the menu through cocktails and beverages.

• • • • • • • • • • •

“Even though life is hurried, you must take the time to stop and create memories. When will you do it if not now?”

–Di-Anna Arias

“A table can look fabulous but if it isn’t functional, forget it!” –Di-Anna Arias


M ax’s Wine Dive is the kind of place where you feel instantly at home -- the combination of great food and an

amazing wine collection sets your happiness meter somewhere between pulling up a bar stool at Cheers, where everyone knows your name, and getting the VIP treatment.

This hot new haunt -- which is intimate with an open kitchen, but deceptively large -- has seating for 120 and a reserved area available for private dining. Featuring exposed ceilings, dark wood tables, and floor-to-ceiling windows, Max’s rocks a warm version of “industrial chic.” The main attraction is a 50-foot-long steel bar where guests can enjoy a drink and listen to a vintage jukebox with songs from the 1960s and ’70s. Marking its second anniversary in the Quarry Village (across from the smokestacks), Max’s Wine Dive is known for excellent gourmet comfort food and a wine list to please every palate. And here’s a little something we want to let you in on: Max’s Black Door wine retail program gives members amazing deals on some of the world’s best wines. Jonathan Horowitz, Max’s owner, along with Jerry and Laura Lasco, said: “It ’s been a fantastic first year in San Antonio. The reception we have received here has been incredible. Wonderful folks we’ve partnered with have become our regular clientele. Of course, it is wonderful to have that, but the other thing that is great is that we have been able to get involved with the Witte Museum, the Junior League and other charities. That’s important to

us, and we do that in all the cities in which we operate. That’s been great for us to be involved, to help us get to know the community as a company.” Max’s commitment to charity extends a bit into the Dive itself. Wish you could sample an expensive vintage without making a major investment? You can! Many of the most expensive wines, once uncorked, are kept in a special Enomatic wine-dispensing system which makes it possible for Max’s to serve them as a taste or by the glass. A clever concept of being a restaurant-cum-wine retailer allows patrons to buy their favorite wines (more than 150 are on hand) by the case, with the added bonus of being able to mix reds, whites and a choice of vintages in one nicely discounted case. Henry, the wine steward, said, “Being able to offer the retail price on our wine makes it very reasonable for people to take home their favorite selections, and it ’s also very affordable for giving wine bottles as gifts.” Horowitz, a former lawyer who happily found his way from litigation to libations, said: “When I was practicing law, after six years I realized it wasn’t going to be my life’s work. I was figuring out what to do, and I knew I had an appreciation for family, good food and wine. At the end of 2004, I met the founders of the company, and about six moths later I became their first partner. Since that time, we’ve grown the business, added tasting rooms and developed Max’s Wine Dive concept.” More reasons to pop a cork? The number of company

Max’s Wine Dive Is DiVine!By Michele KrierPhotograpy Dana Fossett



employees has grown from five to more than 300, perhaps not surprisingly due to powerfully effective word-of-mouth recommendations. “No need to advertise -- we think our philosophy of not doing paid advertising and instead working directly with charities and nonprofits helps us because we get written about a lot. We don’t rely on a lot of advertising. We do a lot of relationship marketing to get people into the space, to get them to know about us. And we then work with media through these relationships,” Horowitz said. The company’s new concept, the Boiler House Grill and Wine Garden, will open at the Pearl complex in April. “Boiler House is a different concept: a much larger restaurant which is double the size of Max’s Wine Dive. We’re going into the old historic building connected to the brewery and the smokestack, and it will feature Texas ranch-style grilling,” he said. Horowitz’s personal favorite item on the menu at Max’s Wine Dive? “I’m a real fan of our classics, and I am especially partial to the mac and cheese, and our fried chicken (recently named by Travel and Leisure as ‘one of the best fried chickens in the country’) has always been my favorite.”

Among other popular choices are the pear salad, cauliflower soup and Kobe beef burgers. The left side of the menu features Max’s classics, and the right side features chef James Moore’s selections, which vary by season and his inspiration. Expansion plans for the privately held company include other cities in Texas. “We’re working on Dallas right now and will look at a few more cities before we look outside of the state,” Horowitz said.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • Photo Credits:

Pages 82 & 84

Jonathan Horowitz



http://cappysrestaurant.com/

http://cappyccinos.com/

http://lafondaonmain.com/


A city-wide cocktail party is taking place in downtown San Antonio. The inaugural San Antonio Cocktail Conference will kick off at

Bohanan’s Restaurant and Bar on Thursday, January 26, and conclude with a Bloody Mary brunch at the same establishment on Sunday the 29th. In between, there will be plenty of tastings, seminars and events designed to combine cocktail culture education with fun. Proceeds from the four-day event will benefit HeartGift, an organization dedicated to providing life-saving heart surgery to disadvantaged children in developing countries.

“This is not a cocktail festival, it’s a cocktail conference,” stresses Bohanan’s Bar manager Carlos Faz. “Fun though it may be, the necessary ingredient of a cocktail conference is that it takes the form of education on the art of classic cocktails, and provides information and instruction for those interested in learning more about the craft.”

Mark Bohanan, chef-owner of Bohanan’s adds, “the San Antonio Cocktail Conference is a four-day event that is modeled after the wildly successful Manhattan Cocktail Classic and New Orleans’ Tales of the Cocktail Event, both of which draw more than 20,000 people. We are bringing in 19 of the most talented and notable bartenders from across Texas, the United States and Australia, to teach the 24 classes that will be held over the course of the weekend. Those classes will include topics such as ice making, crafting perfect cocktails for home entertaining, an introduction to gin cocktails and many more. There will also be contests with celebrity judges, tastings, seminars, and other special events designed to combine cocktail culture education with good old-fashioned fun.”

Sasha Petraske, proprietor of Milk and Honey in New York City, is one of the dignitaries coming to the conference. He is credited with starting the current

revival of classic cocktails in 1999. After the success of Milk and Honey, he went on to create Little Branch, also in the Big Apple, as well as The Varnish in Los Angeles and The Everleigh in Melbourne, Australia.

Petraske was introduced to San Antonio through Chef Bohanan who brought him into his restaurant as a bartending consultant in 2009 to spruce up the cocktail offering at the downstairs bar, and to educate the Bohanan’s bartenders on what it takes to elevate a cocktail from a mere drink to a one-of-a-kind experience.

As a result of Petraske’s relationship with Bohanan’s, he and Faz were able to collaborate on the idea of the conference. “We are very excited about this first effort,” says Faz. “We hope that the cocktail conference will be around for years to come.”

The San Antonio Cocktail Conference is not only about educating people on the art of classic cocktails, but also about highlighting a non-profit with a heart. HeartGift is the proud recipient of proceeds from the event that will go towards helping this group of surgeons, pediatric cardiologists, medical personnel, volunteers and host families in their efforts to provide life-saving heart surgery to disadvantaged children in developing countries where specialized treatment is scarce or nonexistent. Since its establishment in 2000, HeartGift has helped more than 120 children in 22 countries on five continents.

“We are delighted to be able to support this amazing group,” says Faz. “The work they do is inspired and we are blessed to be a part of it.”

For more information on the San Antonio Cocktail Conference and a schedule of classes, go to www.sacocktailconference.com.

Mixing Things Up DowntownInaugural San Antonio Cocktail Conference to Benefit HeartGiftBy Ana FloresPhotography Greg Harrison

November-December 2011 | On The Town 87Jake Corney - Bohanan’s Bar

www.sacocktailconference.com

www.sacocktailconference.com


Pinch Pennies & Dine Well:


Bon Appétit at a Discount! By Marlo Mason-Marie

W hile in New York City a few months ago, my husband and I lunched at Le Perigord, a legendary bastion of traditional French

cuisine on the upper eastside, and saved $25 because I was in possession of a gift certificate acquired for $2 from Restaurant.com.

On the evening of that day we enjoyed a wonderful “two filet plus all the trimmings” dinner at Gallagher’s on West 52nd Street. For this occasion, at one of America’s most prestigious steakhouses, I offered up a $100 gift certificate secured for $50 from the website of CBS Radio. After our first two meals in Manhattan, we were well ahead in the “saving money on absolutely incredible food” department.

Day two in the city featured a short cab ride from our midtown hotel to Bobby Flay’s Mesa Grill near Union Square for lunch. At this distinguished eatery we feasted for zero thanks to a $50 dining check I earned by making a series of free reservations on Open Table.com. Steak was once again on the menu that evening at The Palm, the original one at 837 Second Avenue. As a member of the restaurant’s 837 Club, I accrued sufficient points to walk through the door with a $50 gift certificate to offset the overall cost of what was a delicious dining experience.

Over the course of four meals we saved $175, a privilege purchased for $52. My investment of time in researching the many ways to accumulate dining dollars paid off big-time in the Big Apple and allowed us to make culinary memories at four of the city’s finest restaurants.

The point is, it doesn’t matter where you live or where you might be visiting, you can salt away cost cuts at quality restaurants by being deal savvy and unafraid to say to your server “This is for you” while handing him or her whatever certificate the dining establishment has made available through the myriad of discount services now in existence.

Taking advantage of dining bargains isn’t rocket science but rather a study in Internet surfing followed by the use of organizational skills to inventory purchases. Believe me when I say you really should become familiar with Groupon, Living Social, KGB Deals, Buy With Me, Eversave, Dealfind, Urban Dealight and other daily deal sites on the web. They make it possible for you to save 50 percent or more at cafes and restaurants down the street, up the road and across the nation. Buy the offer of your choice, print it today and use it tomorrow. It’s that simple. Entertainment Book, the old standby, has entered the daily deal arena in addition to its regular coupon book. I’m betting Val-Pak will be next to join the ranks of daily dealers.

It’s also a very good idea to check out restaurant loyalty programs offering the opportunity to build up points (based on purchases) that are redeemable for gift certificates. Included are upscalers like McCormick & Schmick’s, The Palm, Del Frisco’s and Sullivan’s Steak House, to name a few.

Two other favorite savings services are Restaurant.com and Open Table.com. The former offers amazing discounts at more than 18,000 restaurants nationwide for as little as $2 for a $25 gift certificate and $4 for a $50. The latter lets you make free reservations across the country and awards points toward free dining checks valid for use at any of its member restaurants.

Restaurant e-clubs are important savings vehicles as well. Via email, club members get everything from “buy one, get one free” coupons to complimentary entrees on birthdays and anniversaries. To join costs nada and the benefits are noteworthy.

What I have offered here is food for thought. Research, purchase, organize and use – the four steps to spending less and enjoying more. Bon appétit at a discount!

November-December 2011 | On The Town 89© James Camp / dreamstime.com


Literary Arts92-96

Literary Arts 92-96


Book Talk:


E-BOOKS ARE CHANGING THE PUBLISHING BUSINESSStory and Photography by Jasmina Wellinghoff

There is no question that the birth and steady growth of e-book publishing represents the most revolutionary transformation of the book business since the invention of the printing press. It snuck up on us gradually, and some publishers and many readers still are resisting it. What’s more, many of us are still confused about the whole thing. So, Book Talk decided to talk to a publisher and a writer who have embraced e-publishing in the hope of benefitting from wider exposure and improved sales.

The Publisher’s Experience: Bryce Milligan, owner of Wings Press

The small but nationally respected Wings Press currently offers about 100 titles in poetry, fiction, memoirs and non-fiction. Though most of these originally were released as print editions, Bryce Milligan has been working hard to convert them all into e-books, as well. At present, about 65 percent already have undergone the e-transformation. Milligan defines “e-book” as any book that can be read on an e-reader, the latter referring to portable digital devices such as the Kindle, the Nook, the iPad or the Sony Reader. “ The evolution has been going on for 10 years,” Milligan said. “It began with PDF files that made it possible for libraries to put coding on them for lending. It wasn’t commercial at first. Then Amazon came up with its Kindle that used proprietary software and competition started.” Fearing that Amazon would garner the new market for itself, other companies such as Barnes & Noble and Apple rushed to develop their own electronic readers, each using different proprietary software. As a result, there is no uniformity of format, making life more difficult for publishers such as Milligan. Nevertheless, four years ago he decided to go digital in a big way.

“It just seemed like common sense,” he said. “It became obvious that (this form of publishing) was going to have a major impact on the market, and it had clear advantages for our markets. A lot of our books are bilingual and read in Latin America. Getting books to Latin America was costly and uncertain. But as e-books they go everywhere quickly and easily. There was also another aspect that appealed to me. With e-books, somebody who reads a good review of one of our books – and we usually get good reviews – can go online and instantly purchase what they want. So we get the advantage of impulse buying.” Translating intentions into reality, however, involved a lot of learning. Though there are specialists who can convert your texts into various e-formats for an ever-increasing price, Milligan opted to do it in-house. With the help of an assistant, he eventually mastered the “computerese” necessary to turn his files into the three most commonly used formats: Mobipocket (or its very slightly modified version known as AZW) used in Amazon’s Kindle; e-pub used by Barnes & Noble’s Nook and other readers, and the Adobe PDF format still favored by many libraries. Each format also required its own separate ISBN number. (The Library of Congress, however, does not catalog e-books.) Wings Press’ e-book sales have gone up 300 percent in one year, increasing total revenues by about 20 percent. This is largely due to renewed online interest in titles that were no longer selling in hard copy. The intangible “books” are sold through the company’s website and through traditional distributors who pitch e-products to retailers such as Amazon and iBookstore, albeit at substantially lower prices. Milligan described a recent case in which a retailer wanted to set prices very low for certain offerings– like 99 cents – while promising publishers to offset the loss in revenue through massive advertising and potentially huge

November-December 2011 | On The Town 93Bryce Milligan


sales. Milligan refused to play that game. His prices are about half of what a traditional volume would cost. Once a consumer purchases a title it’s hers to keep, but there are limitations regarding usage, known as DRM or Digital Rights Management protections, which vary depending on the retailer. There’s also another aspect to consider: the possibility that the material can be altered, Milligan said. “Last week (a company) published an e-book with lots of errors and then automatically issued a corrected version to all buyers. That sounds fine but it’s actually scary,” he said. “You can rewrite history that way. You can (theoretically) download things into people’s readers without them knowing.” For the time being, Wings Press has no intention of abandoning print, but editions are likely to get smaller and more specialized. Certain scholarly titles, for instance, will be printed “on demand” in the numbers needed. Some hard copies also will continue to be published for general-interest material, mostly to send to reviewers and the Library of Congress. If there’s enough interest, printing-on-demand is always an option. Poetry, however, will remain a printed pleasure. Most poetry is sold at readings, the publisher said, where people directly experience the impact of the poems and enjoy the contact with the author. That cannot be duplicated via high tech. In fact, Milligan said readings and book signings will continue to attract readers and buyers across the board simply because there is a human need to meet the creator of “the world I am reading about.”

The Writer’s Experience: Les Coalson, author of eco-thrillers

A former manager of military recreation programs who has a master’s degree in natural resources development, Les Coalson is also the author of two environmentally minded mysteries set in the Texas Hill Country: Sever the Darkness and Color of Blood, published by Eakin Press in 2003 and 2008, respectively. But despite an award from Austin-based reviewing organization Reader Views for Color of Blood, sales were poor, partly because the price was set too high, the novelist said, and partly due to lack of promotion. While writing his third thriller in what has become a series, Coalson recently decided to take

matters in his own hands. He successfully negotiated for the return of his copyright from Eakin and then proceeded to research digital self-publishing options, “to breathe new life into some sales.” “I just finished my third novel, and I am in the process of finding an agent,” Coalson said. “If it becomes popular, people will want to read the other two.” His first step was to take a Writer’s Digest webinar called “Do Your e-Book Right (and Start Making Money).” Like Milligan, he quickly came up against the need to convert the PDF files he got from Eakin into formats used by various e-readers. But unlike Milligan, Coalson opted to go with an existing online service, and after some research, chose BookBaby.com. The company charges $99 for the conversion plus $19 for a new ISBN. “They also collect my sales and make deposits into my account, and there’s no fee for that,” the author said. “When you go to e-publishing, you need a new cover, and they can provide that, too. Basically, you upload your files, pay, and in 10 days they send it down (to retailers).” Barnes & Noble took a month to make the novel available to Nook owners, but others were much faster, he said. Coalson said he picked BookBaby.com primarily because his files were PDFs. Writers dealing with Word files can upload them themselves to, say, Amazon by following the company’s website instructions. Of course, the difficult part is: How do you get someone to notice and read a new book? Since newspapers won’t review self-published work, websites and blogs, such as GoodReads.com and the afore-mentioned Reader Views, have sprouted on the Internet to review and comment on books issued by small and non-traditional publishers. And retailers such as Amazon have author pages and readers’ reviews, as well. Links to groups that may be interested in the subject matter – environmentalists in this case – are helpful, and the old standard, advertising, is perennially useful. “It takes years to get published through a traditional publisher,” Coalson said. “With this, I keep the rights and if I choose to do so I can remove my book (from the Web) with a stroke of a key and give it to a publisher, should one become interested.”

November-December 2011 | On The Town 95Les Coalson


http://sanantoniocomedyclubs.com


Eclectics98-120

Eclectics98-120


F i ve d ays a we e k at 7 : 3 0 a . m . , I d r i ve f ro m t h e s u b u r b s a m i d s t s e m i - s to p p e d t ra f f i c o n I - 3 7 to a d ow ntow n p a r k i n g g a ra g e.

Fro m t h e re, I wa l k a co u p l e o f b l o c k s to my o f f i ce n e a r H o u s to n S t re e t . Co n s i d e r i n g I h ave a t wo -we e k va c at i o n , p l u s a fe w d ays o f f fo r h o l i d ays , I p ro b a b l y m a k e t h i s t re k m o re t h a n 2 2 5 t i m e s a ye a r.

When five o’clock rolls around each work day, I reverse the process and do it all over again. My daily round trip measures 28 miles, which extrapolates to 6,300 miles on a yearly basis. At 22 mpg, the annual commute swallows up 287 gallons of gasoline. At $3.50 a gallon (the price at the time of this writing) that ’s $1,004, not to mention two oil changes. These hard, cold

If I Lived Downtown By Giles ArmstrongPhotography Greg Harrison



numbers are only overshadowed by the singular thought that my downtown experience is all work and no play. Bummer, eh?

Since I feel this way, why haven’t I left suburbia in my rearview mirror and moved to the center city? The truth is, I ’ve planned a move for years but just couldn’t seem to pull the string, until now. I ’ve finally gotten off stuck by taking steps toward relocating to within a few blocks from my work. What got me off the snide? I f i l led in the blank. I f I l ived downtown, I would _____.

Here’s the thought process that led to my upcoming move. I f I l ived downtown, I wouldn’t spend an hour each workday on an expressway (225 hours equals more than nine days in total) . By l iving close to work, I could go home for lunch, something I haven’t done since high school. I f I

l ived downtown, I could walk to my power walk on the museum reach portion of the river. I could rent and ride a white bicycle anytime I wanted. I f I l ived downtown, I could free myself of many issues involved in home ownership, such as yard work. I could simplify my life and have more time for the things I truly enjoy. I f I l ived downtown, I could become more in touch with the history and culture of the city. I could easily hop on a trolley and explore. I f I l ived downtown, I could convert my $1,004 annual savings on gasoline into quality-of-l ife items such as delicious dining at downtown restaurants and tickets to the symphony or Majestic shows. After work I could be home at 5:05 p.m. What ’s wrong with this picture? To me, the answer is absolutely nothing. I f I l ived downtown, I could work and play.



Holiday Traditions Begin with the 2011 Ford Holiday River Parade and Lighting CeremonyBy Marcie HernandezPhotography courtesy Paseo del Rio Association & Rio Magazine


U sher in the holiday season on the River Walk this year with the 2011 Ford Holiday River Parade and Lighting Ceremony. Join

the Paseo del Rio Association as they stage the 30th per formance of a parade that has gained national acclaim. Watch the San Antonio River Walk come alive under approximately 1.8 mill ion LED lights at 7 p.m. Nov. 25. Tourists and locals alike can enjoy the show from seats located along the parade route.

The k ickoff to the holiday season begins with the ceremonious fl ipping of the switch that starts the l ights a-glowing. Always festive, the San Antonio River Walk will be brighter than ever this holiday season with 20 times more Christmas l ights. I t ’s part of the city ’s plan to switch from incandescent to more eco-friendly LED lighting. In total, the River Walk will be dressed with 1.8 mill ion holiday l ights; a stunning sight for the city ’s many holiday visitors.

Almost 200 trees will be wrapped in 10,000 l ights each, while some 20 stone bridges will be color fully i l luminated in various patterns. Local ar tist Bil l FitzGibbons is the designer behind this new lighting scheme. Known as an international ar tist and art leader, FitzGibbons also is the executive director for San Antonio’s Blue Star Contemporary Art Center.

To complement the R iver Walk ’s new l ight ing scheme, the Cit y of San Antonio is holding i ts inaugural L ight Up Downtown Hol iday Contest , which encourages downtown business owners to compete for the most decorat ive and creat ive use of LED l ights. This wi l l combine downtown’s r iver and street levels into one magical hol iday dest inat ion.

A grand produc t ion, the 2011 Ford Hol iday R iver Parade and L ight ing Ceremony is the of f ic ia l k ickoff to this fest ive hol iday season. This year ’s parade wi l l be centered on the theme “Hol iday Tradit ions.”

“ The theme Holiday Traditions was chosen to showcase some of our community ’s uniquely special traditions that set us apart from other places,” said Nancy Hunt, executive director of the Paseo del Rio Association. “Our grand marshal represents one of the oldest and most-



treasured holiday traditions in San Antonio.”

Leading this year ’s parade is Patricia Jimenez, daughter of the late Raul Jimenez, founder of the Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner. During the holiday season, many senior citizens are alone and cannot afford to prepare a holiday meal for themselves. In 1979, San Antonio restaurant owner and businessman, Raul Jimenez, recognized this need in his community and established a Thanksgiving Day event designed to serve these forgotten individuals.

For more than three decades, the Raul Jimenez family has provided a traditional Thanksgiving dinner and celebration to thousands of San Antonians. Volunteers from every walk of l ife have joined the Jimenez family in giving of their time, resources and support, to ensure that San Antonio’s elderly and needy are not forgotten on America’s national day of Thanksgiving.

Never hesitating, Patricia Jimenez stepped forward when her father passed away 12 years ago. To honor him and his legacy, the family continues to work alongside the San Antonio community to serve 25,000 traditional turkey dinners on Thanksgiving Day. Her countless hours and personal dedication are just some of the reasons that Patricia Jimenez was chosen as grand marshal of this year ’s parade.

“I am very honored to serve as this year ’s grand marshal of the Ford Holiday River Parade,” Patricia said. “ To be chosen to represent the Raul Jimenez Thanksgiving Dinner in one of San Antonio’s favorite holiday traditions is a testament and tribute to all of the volunteers, donors and sponsors that make the event a great success each year.”

All of this year ’s parade floats will be decorated to compliment the Holiday Traditions theme, and guests watching them go by will recognize hints of some favorite San Antonio traditions including midnight Mass at San Fernando Cathedral, La Gran Posada, Holiday Pops and the HEB Christmas tree at the Alamo.

During a two-hour tour, the parade will f loat past the Drury Plaza Hotel and Casa Rio, as well as many other hotels and restaurants, many of

which have prepared dinner, room and parade ticket specials for guests who schedule ahead for one of the most memorable River Walk events of the year. The Ford Holiday River Parade and Lighting Ceremony also will be broadcast on networks statewide and nationwide.

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, the San Antonio River Walk will usher in the holiday spirit with colored l ights in the trees that will reflect the warmth of the season into the waters of the river and the eyes of visitors and residents of the city. “ We are so honored to be a part of the Ford Holiday River Parade,” Patricia said, “and in the spirit of the holiday season, we look forward to celebrating this momentous occasion with the San Antonio community.”

This ar ticle is published cour tesy of Paseo del Rio Association and Rio Magazine.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Photo Credits:

Pages 100-101

Starbuck ’s Holiday River Parade float

Page 102

(Above)Santa and Mrs. Claus at Arneson River Theatre

(Below)Barge carolers serenade folks along the River Walk




Artistic Destination:

L ooking at Chattanooga, you never would believe the Tennessee town once was declared the most polluted city in

America – by Walter Cronkite, no less, on the evening news in 1969 – where white shir ts turned black from the fi lthy air, sulfuric acid ate holes through laundry hanging on clotheslines, and cars had to keep their l ights on during the day just to navigate through the choking haze.

Such devastating news might have destroyed a

lesser city. But Chattanoogans had no time for a pity party. Determined to save their hometown – the victim of atmospheric inversions that kept stagnant air trapped against the mountainous terrain – the city formed an air pollution control board and worked with area businesses to get a handle on the problem. By 1972, the number of airborne particulates had been reduced greatly, and by 1974, Chattanooga made the national news again – this time in recognition for its drastic reductions in air pollution.

Chattanooga's Comeback By Julie Catalano



In short, Chattanooga cleaned up its act. Now, in an incredible turnaround that has served as a model for other industrial-type cities, there’s hardly a year that goes by that it doesn’t make one “best of ” list or another. There’s Top Destination to Live, Work and Play (National Geographic Traveler, Southern Living), Bike-Friendly City in the United States (Bicycling Magazine), and 2011 Best Town Ever (Outside Magazine), to name a few.

After the ugliness of old, the “new ” Chattanooga became a haven for creatives, ready and will ing to help in the reinvention. “ They saw this k ind of cool, hip place to move to, to try something new and different,” said Stephen Genovesi, vice president of sales and marketing for the Chattanooga Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The result is that Chattanooga is one of the most surprising, enticing and exciting artistic destinations in the South. Check out these must-sees on any visit to the Scenic City :

-The BluffView Art District (bluffviewartdistrict.com). A picturesque collection of galleries, gardens, shops and dining on the bluffs overlooking the Tennessee River, the award-winning BluffView is a cultural and culinary center. The River Gallery Sculpture Garden – l isted in Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Gardens – features an impressive permanent collection and changing exhibit. The charming, European-style district also allows visitors to get up close and personal with their food. Watch chefs, bakers, pasta makers and coffee roasters per fect their craft.

-Hunter Museum of American Art (huntermuseum.org). The undisputed masterpiece of the city, the Hunter is actually three buildings representing 100 years of architecture in the original mansion, a 1970s addition, and the ultra-modern expansion in 2002. The stunning complex houses one of the nation’s largest collections of American art. The lobby ’s 40-foot wall of glass offers spectacular


views of the Tennessee River. Equally spectacular is the Holmberg glass bridge connecting the Hunter to the Walnut Street pedestrian bridge.

-Bessie Smith Cultural Center African American Museum and Per formance Hall (bessiesmithcc.org). Named for the “Empress of the Blues” – native daughter Smith is considered the greatest classic blues singer of the 1920s – the center ’s mission is to recognize and promote the history and achievements of the African and African American heritage. In addition to permanent and traveling exhibits, the center hosts an annual heritage music and arts festival.

The $120 mill ion, 21st century River front Project – on track to spur even more development by 2015 – also was a huge factor in Chattanooga’s rebir th, with the Tennessee Aquarium (tnaqua.org) credited with sparking the “Renaissance on the River.” Even if you think you’re not an aquarium fan, you will not be disappointed in this awe -inspiring facil ity, named the nation’s top aquarium (Impacts 2010 survey) for its amazing exhibits and innovative layout. Visitors also can navigate easily from there to surrounding attractions via paths and bridges. The river front is also home to the annual Riverbend summer festival (r iverbendfestival.com) and its major musical acts.

With a calendar over flowing with artistic events, ongoing commitment to revitalization, top museums and galleries, a walkable, eco-friendly environment, and a youthful ambience that transcends age, Chattanooga has r ightfully earned its title of “comeback k id.”

“A lot of cities talk about their renaissance,” Genovesi said, “but they ’re talk ing about maybe two or three streets. We took a whole city approach. I t ’s really the entire city, and a lot of people don’t believe what ’s going on here until they see it for themselves.”

What you need to know: A new visitor center opened in 2011 at 215 Broad St. , and is a one -stop information/hospitality/ticketing center. The free, downtown electric shuttle runs daily about every five minutes, connecting downtown hotels, restaurants and the river front. The




Chattanooga Metropolitan Airport (chattairport.com) has daily f l ights on Delta, Allegiant, American Airl ines, American Eagle and U.S. Airways.

For more information, visit chattanoogafun.com.

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Photo Credits:

Page 104

Aerial View of BluffView Art District Courtesy BluffView Art District

Page 105

Riverbend FestivalCourtesy Chattanooga Area CVB

Page 106

(Above)

BluffView Art District entranceCourtesy BluffView Art District

(Below)

Tennessee AquariumCourtesy Tennessee Aquarium

Lover’s LeapCourtesy Rock City


Seasonal Changes in Your Fitness RoutineBy Tom Trevino

The change of season in South Texas doesn’t mean you’ll be getting out your snowshoes anytime soon, but it does mean you may

need to change your routine a bit so that you can continue to remain active and stay healthy. Here are a few ideas, tips and tricks, to help you do exactly that.

Get StrongChances are you spent most of the year outdoors: hiking, biking and swimming. So now is a great time to get in the gym and focus on the element that most folks seem to neglect: strength training. It ’s an element of health that even the CDC recognizes as vital, encouraging all adults to partake in at least two 30-minute full-body training sessions a week. Need a quick routine? Try dumbbell chest presses, cable pull-downs, squats and planks, for starters. Shoot for three to five rounds of six to 10 reps of these exercises, and modify them as you get more proficient.

Get Out, and Stay OutI f you’re determined to continue to hike, bike, or run outdoors, make sure to follow some basic rules when dealing with the cold weather. Dress in layers, and make sure to tuck your base layer into your shorts or pants to keep in body heat

(you can “untuck” once you warm up). For runners and walkers, gloves and a thermal hat that covers your ears will be worth its weight in gold; for cyclists, thicker gloves, shoe covers and a helmet cover or Lycra head sleeve will work wonders. Those minor adjustments should get you through just about all but the most frigid of days.

Hit the WaterTh e p o o l p a r t i e s a n d b a c k ya rd b a r b e c u e s m ay b e ove r, b u t t h at d o e s n’t m e a n yo u n e e d to s to p s w i m m i n g. I n d o o r p o o l s a re te m p e ra t u re co nt ro l l e d, m e a n i n g e ve n i n t h e d e a d o f w i nte r t h e wate r s h o u l d b e m a i n t a i n e d a t a to l e ra b l e l e ve l . Po i nt b e i n g, e ve n i f i t ’s f re e z i n g o u t s i d e, yo u h ave n o e xc u s e to m i s s yo u r wate r a e ro b i c s c l a s s .

Hot StuffClasses of all kinds continue throughout the winter, so if you choose to stay indoors, use it as an opportunity to try something new, like a bootcamp or spin class. And if you really want to get away from the cold, consider taking a specialty class, like hot yoga, where the room temperature can reach a toasty 105 degrees. You’ll be hot on the inside, even though it ’s cold on the outside, just like a microwave burrito.



Office OlympicsFact is, you don’t need a gym, pool, or any special equipment to stay fit when it ’s rough outside. If you work in an office, use the stairwells as your personal training space. Walk up five to 10 flights of stairs (two at a time if possible) and follow that up with a set of incline pushups on the stairs or handrails. Walk back down and finish the circuit with a set of dips. If you’re more fit, you can do a series of stair jumps followed by a set of pull-ups. You can even buy an inexpensive band or two, securely attach it to the handrails, and really expand your repertoire. The more creative you are, the better. Everyone in the office may think you’re crazy, but crazy never looked so good.

Move ItExtreme temperatures outside (cold or hot) usually mean we spend more total time indoors and less time moving, and that is not a good thing. So at the very least, whether you’re at work or home, get up once an hour during the day and either stretch (especially if you’re hunched over a computer) or go for a short walk, or both. If need be, set an hourly timer on your watch or computer as a reminder. Also, whenever possible, split your lunch break in half, and spend half the time walking or doing mobility work, and the other half standing and consuming your healthy vittles. Your goal, if you have a desk job (and most people do), is to get your work done, but spend as little time as possible in a seated position. More and more research is beginning to support the idea that we sit way too much, and that the old office chair is the new office coffin.

• • • • • • • • • • • • •Photo Credits:

Page 109 © Gregory Pashin / dreamstime.com

(Above) © Robert Lerich / dreamstime.com

(Below) © Rafer / dreamstime.com


http://cynthiaclarkphotos.com


8th Annual Urban Spaces TourBy Angela Rabke Photography Greg Harrison

D owntown Alliance’s eighth annual Urban Spaces event is scheduled from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Dec. 1. Kick off the holiday season

and support one of San Antonio’s most important institutions, the Downtown Alliance, with this fun-filled, guided walking tour that covers downtown’s most exciting residential, commercial and cultural spaces, with a focus this year on the freshly renovated River North portion of the River Walk, which extends from the San Antonio Museum of Art to the Pearl Brewery, and includes many points of interest in between.

With a dedication to making downtown a better place to live, work, eat and play, Downtown Alliance hosts the Urban Spaces tour to give participants a true feel for downtown living. The event weaves together all aspects of urban living, such as residential properties, cultural spaces, dining experiences, and office or retail environments. I t ’s a perfect chance for folks

inside and outside of the loop to check out buildings, renovations and residences that they might not get to see otherwise.

“ This event is educational in nature,” said Downtown Alliance founder Ben Brewer. “Our goal is to familiarize people with an urban lifestyle and to show them all of the amazing things that downtown has to offer.” The walking tour includes about a dozen stops and is kept to a fairly tight geographic area.

While the exact locations on the tour are kept a surprise, planners have announced that the 2011 event will include a VIP tour of the San Antonio Museum of Art, a behind-the -scenes look at 1221 Broadway and visits to several private residences. Stops at the Pearl Brewery will be included, and the tour also includes a stop at a top-secret “iconic veterans’ post” located on the River walk .



“We joke that the tour is perfect for ‘nosy ’ folks, because these are places you usually would not have access to,” Brewer said with a laugh. Delicious food and drink are another important part of the event, which begins with a reception at the San Antonio Museum of Art and ends at the Center for Architecture at the Pearl, home of San Antonio’s American Institute of Architects.

Groups (each with 20 to 25 people) also will enjoy libations and snacks at some of the other stops along the way and will close the evening with a river taxi ride from the Pearl Brewery back to SAMA, compliments of Rio San Antonio.

“ This is such a fun and edgy event,” Brewer said. “People get all of their friends together, many wear crazy outfits, and this year we have temporary tattoos and fake body piercings. We have great tour guides who are in the urban studies degree program at Trinity University, and they really bring the tours alive.” This is the first time the tour has focused on the River North area, so tickets are likely to move quickly.

To reserve space in this year ’s tour, visit www.downtownsanantonio.org or call (210) 225-3862.

• • • • • • • • • • • • • •


“This event is educational in nature. Our goal is to familiarize people with an urban lifestyle and to show them all the amazing things that downtown has to offer.”

- Ben Brewer Founder of Downtown Alliance

www.downtownsanantonio.org

www.downtownsanantonio.org


http://alamo-kiwanis.org


http://www.oncologysa.com/

http://oncologysa.com

november/december 2011 issue

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