Man, I’m exhausted just thinking about what’s ahead this week (March 3-9). As always, these are just some highlights. There are dozens of weekly shows by our own world-class musicians, performers, writers, painters, and the like.

To find out WHAT ELSE is going on, as usual, I recommend the Big 3:

DiscoverSMA: https://discoversma.com/events/events/

Lokkal Events: https://www.lokkal.com/

San Miguel Live: https://sanmiguellive.com/events/

Feel free to share this with your friends. Pick a night. Go out together. Have fun. Get out of my hair. Without further ado, let’s dig in. We’ve got some booking to do. (Click on any image to enlarge it.)

Sunday, March 3

Don’t fiddle around

Passing by St. Paul’s Church on Friday evening, just as the concert was letting out, the reviews seemed to be summed up in one word “Fabulous.”

New Zealand violinist Geneva Lewis and her 1766 Guadagnini instrument return to St. Paul’s today at 5 p.m. for a last concert — featuring Handel’s Sonata in A Major, Bach’s Partita No. 3 in E Major; and Elgar’s Violin Sonata in E Minor. 

Tickets are $200, $300, and $600 mxn from www.promusica.org. Or 45 minutes before the start of the concert.

Tuesday, March 5

Whose Supreme Court is this, anyway? 

If you are an American, this question has been bugging you for the past eight years. Linda Greenhouse has been a keen observer of the Supreme Court for even longer and she is here in San Miguel to try and explain what’s going on. No small challenge. Greenhouse was the Supreme Court correspondent for the New York Times for 30 years (1978-2008), winning a Pulitzer Prize in 1998 for her coverage. She has taught at Yale Law School. Her sixth and most recent book is “Justice on the Brink: A Requiem for the Supreme Court” (Random House, 2021).

I think she will have a lot to say in this i3-sponsored lecture.

Her talk, titled “How the Supreme Court Lost the American Public,” begins at 5 p.m. at La Casona Event Center (across from Luna de Queso). 

Purchase tickets for $15usd ($260 mxn). At the door, $350 mxn.

Tickets

Tuesday, March 5 & Thursday, March 7

Exploration of an American musical legacy: Leonard Bernstein

As part of the Instituto Allende Lifelong Learning Program,  Owen Cantor will examine the career of Leonard Bernstein through his extraordinary body of work. Bernstein conducted the world’s greatest orchestras, pioneered education on television, was successful in writing Broadway theater, and at the same time was a serious symphonic composer and concert pianist. And now is the subject of a popular biopic that is up for a few Oscars.

Over the two days of lectures, educator/musician/dentist Cantor will “discuss and sample among other things: 1) The original pioneering television ‘Young People’s Concerts,’ 2) His Broadway masterpieces including ‘West Side Story,’ ‘On the Town’ and ‘Candide,’ 3) Bernstein’s triumphant conducting career and stunning worldwide orchestral engagements, and finally, 4) his three exciting and emotional symphonies: ‘Jeremiah,’ ‘The Age of Anxiety,’ and ‘Kaddish.’ ”

Time: 1-3 p.m. each day. Fee: $500 mxn.  Register here.

Wednesday, March 6

Hoppe springs eternal

If you’ve ever heard the music of composer and San Miguel resident Michael Hoppé, you’ve likely been moved deeply to emotional places previously unsuspected. I’m thinking of his “Requiem of Peace and Reconciliation” performed here by San Miguel Chorale and a host of other singers and musicians in November 2022.

You’re in luck. A whole concert of his music titled “Forever” is planned this week in the 7th annual benefit concert for The Children’s Art Foundation at the Angela Peralta Theater. The concert will feature Hoppé’s newest compositions as well as 12-year-old violin prodigy Axel and a much beloved violin prodigy David Mendoza.

The two-hour performance begins at 5 p.m. Tickets are available at the Angela Peralta Theater box office, Hernandez Marcias #62, Centro – as well as OKO Noodle Bar, Cafe Lavanda, and Heche en Mexico restaurants. Prices range from $350 to 950 mxn.

Wednesday, March 6

Musas | Ensamble De Mujeres

This week is the International celebration of women and how better to celebrate than with some of San Miguel’s finest female musicians?

At this gathering, musicians will perform and talk about what it is like to be a woman working in the musical field at Teatro Santa Ana de La Biblioteca at 5:30 p.m. Tickets: $330 mxn

On stage will be  Gabriela Espinosa (Voice and percussion); 

Sharon Itoi (Voice, percussion, and piano);  Elisea Valdez (Voice, Flute, Sax, and percussion); Esther Asulito (Voice, Flute, and percussion); Rosa Andrea Obregón (Voice, bass, and percussion ); Mairead O’Grady (Voice, percussion, and drums); and special guest singer-songwriter Felecia Ford.

Wednesday, March 6

Why not help some animals and learn a little Spanish while playing Mexican bingo, aka Loteria?

The place will be Geek & Coffee and the cause is in support of a local organization helping the animals, Yo Heart Animalitos. A donation box will be set up to collect dog food, leashes, collars, blankets or beds. Tunes provided by DJ Zurik.

Cost is $400 mxn per person which includes four loteria (Mexican bingo) games and a welcome drink. There will be food and drinks for purchase. Prizes for each game have been donated by Geek & Coffee, La Mezcalaria, Aurora Books, El Pavo Real, and Alejandro Trejo. There is also a bonus  raffle for an SMA “staycation.”

Time: 5-7 p.m. (Cash only.) 

Thursday, March 7

A Secret Chord: Leonard Cohen’s Sacred/Secular Songs

Poet and novelist Amy Gottlieb will unpack a few of the singer’s songs and look at how Cohen wrestled poetically with Jewish texts and theology. She will lead an open discussion on on his music.Gottlieb’s debut novel was “The Beautiful Possible.” She lives in New York City and often visits San Miguel de Allende.

Time: 4-6 p.m. Tickets: $300 mxn ($200 for members). Phone: +52-415-185-9191

Location:  JC3 CHESMA Jewish Cultural & Community Center, Callejon De Las Moras 47, Guadiana.

March 7, 8, and 9

All that Jazz – since 1975

In 1979, Salomón Maawad and three other musicians formed The Downbeats Jazz Quartet at the Mama Mia restaurant. This week Maawad and a host of jazz musicians will celebrate that auspicious moment over three nights of great music at the Teatro Angela Peralta. The event features international guitarist Francisco Lelo de Larrea and local icon of song and drums Bobby Kapp, who was a Downbeats co-founder with Maawad.

Performances vary from night to night so check out the poster for prices and details:

March 7 – Salomon Maawad | Music from Brazil Samba and Bossa nova

March 8 – The Cool Jazz Era Group | Jazz Fusion Funk Original project

March 9 – Boddy Kap Jazz Quartet | Tribute to Wayne Shorter and Joe Henderson.

Thursday, March 7

What’s going on with home prices in San Miguel de Allende?

Have you seen this T-shirt on Facebook? Anyway, it is stirring up some conversation in San Miguel.

So timely that on Thursday at 10 a.m. a couple of real estate pros, Don Ron Walters and Lane Simmons, will try to answer such questions as: Are home prices continuing to rise? Is it currently a buyer or seller market? Who is buying and why? They hope to provide the facts needed whether you are considering buying, selling or investing in San Miguel de Allende.

The event takes place in the Santa Ana Theater in the Biblioteca at 10 a.m. 

You can join in on Zoom.  

March 7 and 9

She wasn’t just a pretty face on a 200-pesos bill. 

“Sor Juana & the Chambered Nautilus” is an original 80-minute multimedia theater production, crafted and performed by Angeles Romero. Despite the pressures from the Church to which she was “wed,” Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz was a prominent 17th-century Mexican nun renowned for her insatiable thirst for knowledge and exceptional literary talents. And that was her “sin” – to be an educated woman who incorporated indigenous Nahuatl into her poetry. Romero explores the inner dialogue that the nun must have undergone to challenge the Church’s dictates. Directed by Sergio Rodriguez,

Thursday, March 7 at 6 p.m. and Saturday, March 9 at 1 p.m. tickets are 300 pesos.

Location: Teatro Santa Ana in La Biblioteca, Relox 50A, Centro

Friday, March 8

International Women’s Day – Red Dress event

On International Women’s Day, all women are invited to create their own red dress tribute at 3 p.m. at Geek and Coffee. Over 100 dresses have been donated. Each dress will have the name of a disappeared woman to be read aloud. The event will be highlighted by the music of local artist, Liah Alonso. All women are encouraged to wear red to show solidarity with the disappeared women and their families.

Friday, March 8

A night of sonatas

Violinist Adolfo Alejo and pianist Alexandra Gabriella Balog will perform the great sonatas of Brahms, Grieg, and Beethoven in Casa Europa at 6 p.m. Tickets are available at Casa Europa for $300 mxn, located at San Francisco #23, Centro.

Alejo is a renowned Mexican soloist and recording artist on violin and viola. He has conducted and performed with prestigious orchestras worldwide. Balog was the winner of the Béla Bartók International Piano Competition in 2017 and graduated with distinction from the Royal Academy of Music in London in 2019 In 2022, she won first prize at the Franz Liszt Center International Piano Competition in Spain. She is the founder and artistic director of the Altalena Music Festival and the Altalena Ensemble.   

March 8 and 10

Pianist Ran Dank – redux

An annual favorite for ProMusica patrons, pianist Ran Dank returns for two nights at St Paul’s Anglican Church.

Pro Musica uses words like “phenomenal” and “astonishing” to describe his piano work. Probably no exaggeration. Dank will perform works of Schumann and Rachmaninoff on Friday and a mostly Lizt concert on Sunday.

Both performances begin at 5 p.m. and tickets are $300, $450, and $650 mxn through http://www.promusicasma.org. Or they are available at St. Paul’s 45 minutes before the show but I wouldn’t count on that for this one.

Saturday, March 9

Ride, she said!

You might say that San Miguel de Allende is not a bicycling town. But you’d be wrong. The sport and recreational preoccupation on two wheels is growing big time and this Saturday, you’ll see evidence of that when the Classicissima launches with three – count ‘em – rides to offer. Pick one: 275 km | 140km | 70km.  Organizers expect up to 700 cyclists to enter. “Ride The Classicissima by Milano Sanremo” will be broadcast on Canal TV4. The first places will win trips to Italy, high-end Italian-branded bikes, sporting goods, and medals.

The main race will start in San Miguel de Allende, pass through Guanajuato Capital and Dolores Hidalgo CIN, and finish at the San Lucas SMA Vineyard.

Registration comes with a jersey, medical support, bike mechanics, and of course a medal at the finish. The 140-kilometer ride even offers an option for couples to sign up. What a great first date! 

For registration and details go to https://classicissima.com.mx/.

Saturday, March 9 

Cabaret Beyond Borders!

The talented Dutchman Frans Bloem, living in Amsterdam, New York and San Miguel, is performing at Sindicato. It’s a fundraiser for the migrant care center, Abba House in Celaya. My Dutch friend Ben Gall says “I have seen him performing in San Miguel a few years ago and it was fantastic. You don’t want to miss Frans and…..Maxime. The last person is a big surprise!!” Good enough endorsement for me.

Bloem sings with a Euro sophisticate’s flair and his repertoire includes songs of Charles Aznavour, Brel, Piaff, and Piazolla.

Show starts at 5 p.m. in El Sindicato Cultural Center, Recreo 4, in Centro. Tickets are $250 mxn.

Saturday, March 9

Do you yearn to entertain instead of being entertained?

Chorale  San Miguel is looking for a few good voices (OK, maybe a lot of voices) for its March 30 performance “Sábado de Gloria” during Holy Week. 

Chorale San Miguel will hold rehearsals on Saturday afternoons in March to prepare Théodore Dubois’ “The Seven Last Words of Christ.” This dramatic work will be performed in Latin with a chamber orchestra and soloists, and take place during Holy Week on Saturday, March 30 at noon in the Templo de la Tercera Orden. 

Singers from the community and church choirs are invited to sing with the Chorale and do not need to do a lengthy audition as required for the more demanding regular programs of the Chorale. All you have to do is sing either one verse of “Amazing Grace”  or “Cielito Lindo” a cappella in any key. For more information, email artistic Director Malcolm Halliday at rmhallidayjr@gmail.com .