Recap: Good Morning, From Here, July 27 – August 02
Monday
Puerto Vallarta has always been a safe, welcoming place for everyone. More and more ex-pats fall in love with the exuberant energy and find ways to settle on our shores, bringing their life stories to date, scattering those tales to the wind, and then learning who is listening. In that quiet time, friendships are solidified, and Vallarta’s loving energy expands.
Georgia Darehshori, her neighbor Brian Bott, and I sat down over mango smoothies and spent a couple of hours sharing fragments of our lives as they came up in conversation.
I bumped into Pam Thompson at La Comer. We had not seen each other for ages so it was good, stopped there by the cat food leaning on our carts catching up somewhat. We have known each other for more than 30 years; it was lovely to see her.
Open Mic, every Friday at 7 pm at Mary Ann’s Ovations Piano Bar, grows a teeny bit every week. The old Incanto crowd has found a new home with David Maiocco playing piano and hosting with Cate Valcic.
The next day, after a quick stop to see my herbalist Ricardo Mazcal on the Isla, I again showed up for David Sabella’s Voice Workshop at Act2. Body and vocal-chord warmups take about 15 minutes, then the fun begins; it really is my fave ‘show’ of the week, all three solid hours of it.
A couple of hours after auditing the Workshop, I returned to Ovations for Saturday afternoon Bingo. I didn’t win again! Amazing run of (rotten) luck! Saving it all for Scrabble, evidently, eh, Sharon?
I spent Saturday night on the Isla at the Cultural Center for the penultimate presentation of Alberto Sosa’s one-man show, “La Scuola di Mangiare.” Hugely overweight, humpbacked Pietro from Naples teaches his love of food in three languages, which he equates with love, and the bigger he gets, the happier he is. Not true, of course, but it is the underlying premise.
Alberto did a masterful job improvising his script to include our small audience in his production. All set to Mario Lanza’s tenor voice. Alberto is teaching acting classes for free for the balance of the summer. Find him on Facebook!
Last night, I rode to Casa Karma with Rob Burton and Jan Dorland to listen to Will Walker sing, accompanied by Bing Young on piano. Soul music was the order of the evening, unfolding into the sunset and sliding into the night. At least 40 of us enjoyed cocktails, the coolness of the living room, passed hors d’oeuvres, and the glorious setting that matched Will’s voice, reminiscent of Harry Belafonte’s – smooth as silk.
There will be at least 17 more mini-concerts at Casa Karma this summer and fall. If you check VallartaCalendar.com under Featured Venues, you will find them added as dates become written in stone. Tomorrow is the next, with Gloria Fiona presenting Adele and pianist Isabel Zuleta.
Enjoy this beautiful day, and be sure to tell someone you love them, From Here.
Tuesday
I am looking at a very dark, foreboding sky this morning. Even the birds are sleeping in, giving me an idea to do the same. Maybe I will, but my darling Bogie needs to be fed first. He is sitting at the window waiting for something to fly by in the air or run on the wires just out of reach; squirrels are so entertaining. Not much is moving at 7 am but us.
News from Act2PV – all shows in August are free; you will just have to consume 200 pesos worth of cocktails. Tomorrow, my dear Scrabble rival, Sharon Gerber Scherer, is hosting the Greatest Show on Earth at 7 pm. It will be fabulous, of course, because that’s who Sharon is. In the aftermath of the unexpected death of Act2 founder Danny Mininni, when the demise of the theater seemed imminent, through her grief, Sharon went to work and raised more than 150K. Without her, without that infusion of cash, we would not be having this conversation about her debut at the GSOE.
I was at the first fundraiser for Act2, before there were even walls. I listened to Danny’s dreams, heard the partner in-fighting, and wondered aloud sometimes at the choice of productions, but through all the growing pains, there was an underlying certainty that the show should go on. Danny’s brilliance shines in the continuing Voice of Vallarta and the Greatest Show on Earth. How fitting Sharon will host tomorrow; she is the unshakeable, resilient foundation of the new Act2PV, From Here.
Wednesday
Gloria Fiona reprised and unplugged her sold-out Palm Cabaret Adele Tribute last night at Casa Karma. The chill living room was full of friends, fans and supporters of Gloria and her dreams. She has secured Teatro Vallarta for her Adele Tribute in January; tickets will be available soon.
Last night’s intimate concert began with Carla, a young classical guitarist who began playing at the after-school music programs offered at Club Vallarta.
Gloria gifted 20% of the ticket sales of last night’s show to Carla. Gloria’s music director and Carla’s guitar instructor, Jacob Ordoñez, played a lovely tango duet.
Then Gloria, resplendent in black sequins, sang to each person in the room, beautifully accompanied by Isabel Zuleta on piano and backup vocals. Gloria often invited us to sing along; it was quite a choir!
Sumptuous hors d’oeuvres were passed, another sunset slipped away into the night, and, of course, dancing followed From Here.
Thursday
Happy first day of August; we are galloping toward the end of the rainy season, er, I mean summer. No hurricanes yet, and not much rain down here on flat land but loads up in the mountains, judging from a raging Rio Cuale last night carrying gigantic trees out to the fishies in the deep blue sea.
Every ex-pat on the south side of Vallarta filled the Casa Karma Red Room for the Greatest Show last night for one reason: to pay homage to Act2PV’s number-one cheerleader, Sharon Gerber Scherer. All that was missing was pom-poms, but she glittered enough in silver from head to toe. She sang, danced a bit, told dreadful jokes, cast aspersions on my bingo-playing skills, and had super repartee with the audience and music director, David Maiocco; in other words, she was a perfect host.
It was a brilliant career move! I can hear her husband, Rob, groaning from here, but seriously – she is utterly perfect.
The rest of the talent last night was perfect, too. (There, three times with a word that shouldn’t even exist!)
Sargento kicked off the evening with a snippet of his upcoming Mexican musical at Casa Karma, Mentiras (Lies). He and his Musical Director, the amazing Salvatore Rodriguez at the piano, explained the premise of the play and had us laughing at his antics, and so intrigued to see more!
Yutzil and Gabe preceded Yoalli, who has a show tonight at Mary Ann’s Ovations Piano Bar with her Lovers’ bandmate Chabe.
Gabriela sang, gorgeous in clingy black satin, Alfredo came next with a great Italian Mambo, and Steven Retchless reprised a song from his show Ecstasy. By then, we were all in the mood for a little Sound of Music. Andrew Sands flew through a medley of his Favorite Things as the evening wound down to Cate and the Supreme girls ending the show.
It was a triumph, Sharon. You were, as you always are – perfect (dammit!), From Here!
Friday
I stopped by La Catrina Cantina last night to give Marco Camacho a big hug just before his final show. He returns to Kansas today and will be missed.
I caught the tail end of Happy Hour with Jacob on guitar and Isabel singing and playing piano in Mary Ann’s Ovations Piano Bar with some saucy Brazillian bossa nova in Portuguese. They stayed, shared a bottle of wine, and listened to Lovers Duo, rock ‘n roll with classical guitar and virtuoso piano on a few songs by David Maiocco.
I heard Yoalli (Jo-alley) and Chabe at Casita and Garden a couple of weeks ago and was even more impressed with them last night. Yoalli started their set effortlessly with Janis Joplin’s “Me and Bobby McGee” and soared through Lady Gaga’s “Shallow.” Her style is very much her own; she doesn’t ‘sound’ like anyone but Yoalli, with her heart plainly pinned to her sleeve; what a joyous, loving voice. Her rendition of “She Used to Be Mine” from Broadway’s Waitress reduces me to blubbering- idiot status every time she sings it.
Sargento and Salvatore star in The Mentiras Experience at Casa Karma tonight at 7 pm. See you there, From Here.
