Recap: Good Morning, From Here, October 05 – 11
Monday
Are you rested? You best be – Season opens tomorrow night with a star-studded cast at The Palm Cabaret with a charity concert for RISE at 9 pm.
However, to back-track a bit, Saturday was busy with a visit to Arte Vallarta Museo for their always fun First Saturday of the Month Fiesta. The galleries looked fabulous with Director Nathalie Herling’s obsession with Day of the Dead altars of all types and sizes. Her stalwart helper, wonderful painter Rober(to) Sosa and often bartender for Museo events, was putting the final touches on a sand painting of a Catrina face on the floor, close to the bar, so he could do both. Baseboards have become handpainted skulls, dozens of ’em, lined up. Watching. It is truly remarkable and will remain eerie and creepy into next month, culminating on November’s First Saturday, which just happens to fall on Dia de Los Muertos proper. So much beguilement, so little time…
David Duvall, dressed to the nines, sang and played piano while we sat with his wife Penny, sipped on a special new Muertos red wine, and chatted with so many interesting women, including Colette Zarry, owner of Langostinos resto on the beach. Javier Niño, one of Vallarta’s first famous painters and the new husband of Nathalie, arrived late and greeted everyone warmly. Monumental sculptor Jim Demetro, an old, very dear friend, came to the museum as well, always with lovely hugs and extraordinary energy. We enjoyed our time in conversation and catching up on the summer’s news, knowing next month will be crazy busy and we will see one another across the busy courtyard.
I walked with my erudite, cherished friend Sandra Bradley (you can read her metaphysical musings every Monday in Vallarta Mirror) to our crossroad, where we parted ways – hers to go home, me to head out for Saturday Night, Part Two.
I continued to walk all the way up Juarez almost to Woolworth’s, then headed up Allende to Matamoros and La Gata Foro, a tiny bar and performing arts space I have been seeing daily on Facebook lately.
When I saw a poster for two of my favorite performers ever, Ale Matus and Dabit Azofeifa, I knew I had to go check it out. From what I can gather, La Gata Foro (The Cat Forum) has been open for almost ten years, and I have never been. I spoke to Ale before their performance, and she told me La Gata was where she and Dabit created Circoncierto (their amazing, long-running matinee at Act2PV) a few years ago. They love it so well that they perform there whenever there is a hole in their schedule. The atmosphere is eclectic, perfectly cabaret: intimate and cozy, with a limited, inexpensive food and drink menu.
Saturday night was packed – maybe 30 people, and out of them, I counted all the Anglos on one hand. I am sure that’s the point. Quite a few performers (and members of Artist Spotlight) were in the audience, including Isa Zuleta, Jacob Ordoñez, and Montse. Isabel and Montse each sang a song with Ale, all the while being backed up beautifully on accordion by Dabit – an added Bohemian/Gypsy atmospheric touch. Paul Crist sat with me, shared some future plans he is hard at work building to become reality. We both fell into Alejandra’s bewitching spell as she sang songs by Spanish immigrant to Mexico, Rocio Dúcal. Melancholy, broken-hearted, intimate songs that filled Ale’s eyes with tears more than once. She told me after the show that every time she sings with Dabit playing for her, she falls a little more in love with him. Nothing can beat that From Here.
Tuesday
It’s barely raining – a little chipichipi designed to keep humidity levels high and the dry-rate for clothes hanging outside at two days. One week today is the 15th and the traditional “end of rainy season.” That worked well until 2002, when Hurricane Kenna paid us a visit on October 25. I personally revised the end of the rains to that date, adding ten more days before I can start scraping black crap off the planters on my patio.
Will we make it through without a hurricane this year? Maybe Florida is taking a double-hit, so we don’t have to? There is so much positive energy in the air in Vallarta – despite the humidity! – it may prove to be enough. Seventeen days from today, we’ll have an answer!
I am thinking of The Palm Cabaret and RISE and all the unbelieveably talented people who will be strutting their stuff tonight at the season opener, giving us a taste of what’s coming up. Producer Chis Lopez, the Palm’s in-house creative genius, has ten shows debuting before the end of the year. He was so busy this summer, we could not coordinate a meet up, so I am looking forward to giving him a big hug.
And, The Palm celebrates 25 seasons of entertainment excellence this year. As a present to themselves, they are creating another Cabaret – Coco, a few blocks and a few weeks away from opening.
RISE Children’s Shelter and The Palm have become inextricably bound over the last four years since Lisa Manoogian and Billy Pilawski had an idea of putting together a fundraising talent show. So, You Think You Can Rise? swept everybody involved off their feet and has become a solid staple in Vallarta’s entertainment schedule, culminating in an extravaganza at the 900-seat Teatro Vallarta every February. All proceeds this evening go to the kids at the RISE shelter.
Three guesses what I am doing tonight From Here.
Wednesday
How I wish I could have bottled the energy in the air at The Palm Cabaret’s and grand reopening last night. The kick-off Special Show was spectacular, produced by Chris Lopez (of course), and emceed beautifully and hilariously by Nacho Granados.
After being in the entertainment business for 25 years, The Palm has raised their own bar every year, particularly in the past five or six years. As Daniel Celis told me last night, “It’s hard! Every season, we have to come up with something better.” And, they do.
Performers who were in the audience cheering on their compadres included Nick Rogers, ‘Paco’ Guizar Martinez, Steven Retchless, Losanna Diaz, and Brian Peters (Mama Tits). The stage could not have held more performers, and there was not an empty seat in the theatre.
This week, I am going back to see Pink (tonight at 9) and Beyonce tomorrow. The new tango show called Buenos Aires at 5 pm, starring Sebastian Coronel, opens on Friday. Saturday at 9, Born This Way, Lady Gaga tribute starring Maru, who was sporting the snazziest costume with matching boots last night. Sunday is the debut of the ABBA Tribute with Dani Celis’ band Monaco.
I got to see and hug hard Chris Lopez and Patty Macias, who came flying out of the sound booth to say hi as I was on my way out after the show. I walked a straight line from the Palm across the bridge and home. The night was almost cool! I don’t think my feet touched the ground for a second after listening to Freddie Mercury, Lady Gaga, Pink, Rihanna, Whitney Houston, Michael Bublé, and more. What a night From Here!
Thursday
Our overcast but unrainy days prevail; I love walking to an event and arriving relatively dry instead of dripping like a forgotten tap. Back-to-back blockbusters at The Palm with Eva Jimenez’s spectacular tribute to Pink unfolded last night. With four dancers using every bit of space on the Palm’s expanded stage, Eva danced, kicked, jumped, tumbled, and flew through every emotion imaginable, her voice catching a couple of times during “When I Get There,” remembering her dad. The sudden, deep missing surprised her and engaged the audience’s collective in a heartbeat.
Eva steered Pink’s anger against injustice well, focusing on joy, freedom, and change to be better. Her smile radiated through the night.
“Let’s Get This Party Started” is much improved over last season, something I couldn’t imagine happening after seeing her debut just six months ago, almost to the day.
(A side note about Eva’s hair: it takes Joshua Breau four months to get her hair to its gorgeous color! Bravo, bravo, Josh!)
The Starboys and Stargirl dancers were impeccable as always, as was Losanna, the show’s co-producer, in her duet with Eva.
This Tribute to Pink has high drama, incredibly fast-paced choreography, terrific background visuals, and so much love pouring from Eva’s heart to touch everyone in the house personally. An eclectic, electric zap of life unfolded in pat-able, soft Pink, Just Go, From Here.
Friday
Thursday started off happily at the Vallarta Factory for mango smoothies with dear Sunny (is she ever) Rossi, President of the Vallarta Garden Club. The upcoming Isla de los Muertos festival on November 01 will be bigger and better this year, with spectacular entertainment, great food and drinks, and very groovy dead stuff. More details on this day of community as we nudge closer. We also discussed the upcoming VGC Gala in January, which is traditionally THE party of the year. So much planning months in advance to make these things happen and make them appear spontaneous.
After lunch and an obligatory short nap, I turned into a billy goat and climbed up a notoriously steep hill to Richard Di Via’s house for wine and Arte Vallarta Museo (Richard is the Curator) chatter before heading to the first Out & About PV Magazine Gay Mixer of the 2024/25 season.
We were met at the door personally by Publisher Jerry Jones, name-tagged, and scooted up to the pool level of Cuale Condo Hotel and blended with more than 150 other delighted party-goers. The food was fabulous and kept coming until I had to leave to get over to The Palm for the opening night of Beyonce.
I LOVE front-row seats – I can focus on the show’s star, come back mid-season (or when my sister arrives!), and take in more of the background, dancing, videos, etc. And the costumes! Cecille and the entire cast reoutfitted six times! I don’t mean just a different dress – jewelry, boots (spectacular boots!) and gloves. I would love to be a fly on the wall in the Palm’s dressing room. Whoever is backstage – take a bow.
From my front-row seat, I marveled at how beautiful Cecille was. Is. She stood still rarely, interacting with the Starboys and -girl dancers and always in touch with her audience. Beyonce aficionados, who know every word to every song, were in their glory from the B-girl’s early days to recent Grammy-award-winning hits.
After the show, Producer Chris Lopez apologized for the too-bright lights shining into my eyes; I didn’t notice, mesmerized by the power of everyone on the stage, choreographed beautifully. This production does not have a weak millisecond and moves at lightning speed from start to finish. Everyone looked as fresh at the end of the show, 90 minutes later as they did at the beginning. It is an absolute smash hit From Here.
