Recap: Good Morning, From Here, February 22 – 28
Monday
ART VallARTa on Pilitas was again the center of attention as Jamie Brickhouse presented his one-man show “Dangerous When Wet – Booze, Sex, and My Mother” to a sold-out rapt audience.
Jamie’s monologue, nearly 90 minutes of a one-sided conversation, is based on his book by the same name. It was published after his mother’s passing (of Lewy Body Dementia) as per her strict instructions, and like a good gay boy, Jamie complied.
Every person in the audience could identify with some part of Jamie’s story. Please don’t think this is just another “gay coming out” tale; far, far from that.
Jamie is an exuberant storyteller with a rich, modulated voice. I wonder if he sings? And he has amazing, beautifully muscular legs accentuated by his black patent heels.
He clearly takes good care of himself now, but his coming-of-age stories and how he got to here from there are hilarious with an undertone of Holy S**T! as he recovers from one adventure and plunges avidly into another. It is a breathtaking and brave walk through his colorful life.
After spending time quietly listening to his Texas drawl tell all, I want to read everything he has written; I need more Jamie Brickhouse. Just over an hour is insufficient time to be in this once-struggling human being’s company who has leaned on humor hard and a great deal of love to heal himself. Mama Jean may have made him, but the fleshed-out parts that still stand on those wickedly strong legs are his very own.
Dangerous When Wet has only two more shows – this coming Thursday and Friday at 7 pm. I fully expect them both to sell out as the theater at ART VallARTa is tiny and when word hits the streets about the caliber of this brilliant monologue, Teatro Vallarta may not be big enough.
Glee’s last performance is tonight at 7:30 at Nacho Daddy, starring Gouda Gabor and Sargento. If you loved the TV series, don’t miss this show. For news about the Grand Finale for the So, You Think You Can RISE talent contest, meet me back here tomorrow morning for all the glorious details From Here.
Tuesday
Teatro Vallarta’s lobby was all abuzz last Sunday evening, before the start of the RISE Grand Finale, with head paparazzi Josef Kandoll snapping away, making all of us look better than we really do. Folks crowded the bar and the conversation levels were excited and loud. Towering over us all was the coach for contestant Natalia Juliet, Steven Retchless, dressed as Britney Spears in enormous heels, putting him between six and a half and seven feet tall.
The 4th Annual So, You Think You Can Rise talent competition was hosted by Nacho Granados and Jessy Ruiz, who kept the show moving quickly in two languages.
This year, the esteemed judges – Eva Jimenez, Chris Lopez, and Al Carswell – did not comment after each performer, which lopped a good 45 minutes off the running time of the show. Their choices were F91, an all-girl dance troupe coached by New York City choreographer Kimberly LaRue and Vizente Cañas, coached by Lady Gaga herself, Maru Prado Conti, in the vocal category. Crunch time came after they each performed again, and the audience’s applause decided that F91 would take home first prize and 20,000 pesos.
Lisa Manoogian, who started this talent competition with her husband Billy Pilawski, reminded us that the reason we were gathered together was to raise money for the RISE Children’s Shelter. The number of kids currently living at RISE has nearly tripled this past year, from 14 to 38, and includes more than half a dozen newborns. They are severely underfunded and rely 100% on private donations, so if you can find it in your heart to help, the best way is to pledge a specific amount of money per month so the Shelter can plan accordingly. Billy and Lisa have made it very easy; check it out https://donorbox.org/2025-sytycr-sponsor-donor
The annual budget at RISE has doubled to over 2 million pesos, and as they do not receive any government funding, it is up to us to support these cast-off kids who, through no fault of their own, have been removed from their homes by DIF (social services).
Volunteers are also needed, so if you have recently retired and are looking for something to do, get in touch with Lisa on Facebook. Kudos to her and Billy for another spectacular evening. The same goes for the coaches who did an amazing job of helping to create the performers we witnessed Sunday night. And the volunteers who helped with seating, gathering donations, and applying makeup backstage; we are the village From Here.
Wednesday
A lot of people journeyed up the Cuale River yesterday afternoon to Rancho Santiago to feast on Hollis’s barbequed ribs and the music of Fleetwood Mac.
It was a warm, sunny day, and I arrived early, thanks to Hollis picking me up while I was waiting at a bus stop on Lazaro Cardenas. I caught the last set of Kurt Sinner’s band, Perros del Rio; they are much tighter and quite delightful to listen to on a lazy February afternoon.
Megan Schroder was so happy to be in Mexico and out of Canada’s nasty winter cold. It was her third visit as Stevie Nicks/Christine McVie to El Rio BBQ Bar/Rancho Santiago and bandmate Ian Hebert’s first.
In the crowd were Wanda Grift and her boyfriend, Doug, newlyweds Shirley and recovering-from-surgery-Karl dancing – I saw your feet move, Karl! And Nick and Cherry DeLorenzo made it to the party from their home in Boca de Tomatlan.
Megan and Ian covered Fleetwood Mac’s greatest hits beautifully with Landslide, Don’t Stop, Go Your Own Way, Rhiannon, and The Chain, especially standing out. Megahits to sing along with and to dance to.
Tribute Tuesdays are winding down after a successful seasonal run. Matt Cage, one of the world’s finest Elvis tribute artists, is next week, March 04. The BeeGees follow, then Neil Diamond wraps up the series on March 18.
My sister Patrice arrives March 26 (a month today!) for a few week’s vacay. It will be exhausting and exhilarating as it always is when she is here!
Tomorrow, we will dissect Open Mic from Nacho Daddy and go to the Opening Night, “The Shadow of Her Smile,” of Ann Talman at Act2PV From Here.
Thursday
Open Mic at Nacho Daddy this week held a few surprises, including having Nick Dorado filling Gouda Gabor’s enormous shoes as host for the evening. His lovely voice has been missed in Vallarta, and it was terrific to have him back home from Chicago at last. Another beautiful surprise was seeing and hearing Patsy Meyer sing again. I have not seen this Emmy Award nominee perform since Incanto, and her absence from Mexico, which involved dealing with the death of her brilliant husband, American composer John Henry Kreitler, a couple of years ago, has been keenly felt. Welcome back, dear Patsy. What a delight to see your smiling, exuberant face and sit in your expansive energy again.
Elke Zilla had another revelatory Spoken Word; I hope she sends me the text so I can publish it for those who weren’t there. It is no mean feat that she can write then remember these long poems and recite them without missing a beat.
Up-and-coming comedian Jordan Parker does not have to leave his house to find material; the fact that he has a Mexican girlfriend is sufficient fodder and hilarious.
Vallarta entertainment beloveds – Gloria Fiona, Steven Retchless and Mark Hartman do what they do with perfection and ease. Andrea, flautist played beautifully with Patsy and Mark Hartman, and Delilah paired with Mark for some smooth jazz.
The Vallarta Garden Club needs new board members; the most important criterion is to love Vallarta and how she presents herself to the world. Perhaps you are a recent retiree looking to spend some of your newly available time on a worthwhile project? Please email or message me, and we’ll go from there. It does not take a huge amount of time.
Industry tonight at 6 for the Best of Everything Gay Awards. All the nominees are worthy. Another contest I am glad I don’t have to choose!
See you around town From Here.
Friday
On this day, in 1991, 34 years ago, I got on a plane in Vancouver, two suitcases containing my life stored onboard, and flew to Puerto Vallarta to be reunited with the soul that I left here in 1986 after my first bewitching visit. That block of five years was the longest of my life.
I had a standing order with my travel agent to get me down to Vallarta at any time there was a seat sale for a week or 10 days; I didn’t care. The only thing I required was 24-hour notice to get off Vancouver Island, either to Seattle or Vancouver, and down here, where I could breathe salt air and be warm again.
Five years in the making, and the ONLY thing that kept me going day by day was that every morning I got out of bed, went to work, and did whatever was required of me, is that I was one day closer to moving to Mexico forever.
It is 34 years later; it is hard for me to believe my luck that I am still here, growing old in my adopted city that I adore and never want to leave. My gratitude for the abundance in which I live – beautifully warm weather daily, gorgeous beaches, green mountains, the freshest food grown just outside the city limits, and the populace of kind Mexicans and our vibrant and also kind ex-pat community, knows no bounds. I am beyond blessed, and – these words fail miserably, but thank you, Vallarta, for everything you have so freely and easily given me every day of these 34 years – nearly half of my life; I love you.
I was lined up outside Industry before 6 pm last night, eagerly awaiting the start of the Second Annual Vallarta Gay Best of 2024 Awards. I only had an hour as I was seeing Ann Talman at Act2 at 7 pm.
The crowded sidewalk held fascinating conversations with Mikel Alvarez, owner of Thrive Spas, and Tamale Ringwald, who penned Burlesque, the extravaganza currently blowing everybody away at Coco Cabaret every Tuesday. I explained to Tamale I had not seen the show because of Tuesday commitments until mid-March and was assured they would be performing until April. As I told her, nobody likes Burlesque; the raves have been unanimous that the show is LOVED and one of the best in Vallarta E V E R!
Finally, we were allowed in, and access to the bar, but the door into the nightclub remained firmly closed. Host Alison Lo, currently taking a medical leave from singing, wandered through the crowds greeting friends and fans. The gorgeous Chris Lopez, costumed as Sam Smith, was scheduled to perform, as were Palm and Coco Cabaret-mates, Maru as Lady Gaga, and Eva as Pink.
Time ticked down, and I had to fly up the street to Act2 to see a truly remarkable show starring Ann Talman and I missed everything at Industry! I will have to rely on sponsors Jerry Jones and Jet de la Isla for the list of winners. See you for that on Monday!
What a Drag is coming on March 09, and don’t forget Gouda Gabor’s Birthday Party at Nacho Daddy with Enrique de Allende, Amy Armstrong, and David Maiocco – woo-hoo, on Monday, March 03 at 7:30 pm.
Have a terrific weekend, everyone – let’s share some hugs From Here.
