ASA judged show
The Ajijic Society of the Arts (ASA) annual judged show opens Saturday, March 4, 5-7 p.m. at the Ajijic Cultural Center. As well as showing in ten categories, artists vie for Best of Show and the People’s Choice Award.
Enrique Velazquez collected last year’s Best of Show gong, while Janis Meloche was the winner of the People’s Choice Award.
Guests will be able to cast their votes for their favorite pieces. Refreshments will be served. For more information, contact ASA President Barbara Passarello, 766-1915.
Naked Stage Audition
The Naked Stage Readers Theatre is auditioning for “Four Places,” by Joel Drake Johnson. Director Pierre Blackburn is looking for three women and one man. Production dates are April 28-30. The auditions take place Tuesday, March 7, 10 a.m. at the theater, Hidalgo 261 (Carretera), in Riberas del Pilar. Contact: Pierre Blackburn at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for a script or questions.
Linda Ronstadt (almost) live
Do you remember these songs: Blue Bay, You’re No Good, Poor, Poor, Pitiful Me, When Will I Be Loved, Different Drum, Heatwave, It’s So Easy, Desperado?
Brittany Kingery offers an excellent evening of musical memories in her new show called “Hasten Down The Wind,” a tribute to the timeless music of Linda Ronstadt, Wednesday, March 8, 6 p.m. at the Auditorio de la Ribera.
Kingery has won three 2015 Troprock Music Awards, including Female Vocalist of the Year, Song of the Year and Horizon Award. She has released two CDs of her original tropically-inspired music, Edge of the Ocean (2013) and Dream in Blue (2014).
This show was the number one selling show in Puerto Vallarta last year. Tickets are available at Dianne Pearl, Jose Melendez and Wildes or via This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Bravo! Theatre comedy
Chekhov is alive and well in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, where adult siblings Vanya and Sonia reside in their old family home, mourning their lost dreams and missed chances.
Winner of the Tony and Drama Desk Awards for Best Play in 2013, “Vanya and Sonia and Masha & Spike” is a laugh-out-loud comedy that will tickle your funny bone and stimulate your mind. Show dates at Bravo! Theater are March 9-12 and 16-19 with 4 p.m. matinees Thursdays and Sundays and 7:30 p.m. shows Fridays and Saturdays. Directed by Lynn Phelan. Cast members are Tina Dawn Leonard, David Wharff, Diana Rowland, Christian Garcia, Amaranto Santos and Deborah Kloegman.
Tickets, 250 pesos, are available at Mia’s Boutique, Diane Pearl or at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
LCS film buffs
English-language films are shown Thursdays at 2 p.m. to LCS members (bring your card). On March 9 the featured film is “I am Nojoom, Aged 10 and Divorced” (2016, Yemen). A ten-year-old Yemeni girl asks a judge in Sana’a to grant her a divorce from a horrible marriage. This was Yemen’s entry for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film.
Galeria Sol Mexicana
Galeria Sol Mexicano will hold an artists’ reception Friday, March 10, 4-7 p.m. featuring three female painters with very different styles.
Isabel DeBlanc specializes in oils and pastels in classic still life studies, village and lakeside scenes; Carol Rome uses oils to create character studies and portraiture; while Geraldine Classen’s unique work characterizes village life in acrylics or mixed media collages. All welcome, show continues until April 2.
Live from the Met
Viva La Musica sponsors Saturday bus trips to the Teatro Diana in Guadalajara to view productions of Live from the Met. Operas screenings are March 11, “La Traviata” by Verdi; March 25, “Idomeneo” by Mozart. April 22, “Eugene Onegin” by Tchaikovsky, and May 13, “Der Rosencavalier” by R. Strauss.
Bus tickets, 400 pesos (500 for non-Viva members), are available at LCS on Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to noon.
Democrats Abroad movies
Democrats Abroad is sponsoring movies each Sundays dealing with U.S. politics, racial, economic and humanitarian issues. All the films are shown at Cinema del Lago in the Bugambilias Plaza in Ajijic, 1:30 p.m. A double feature is scheduled for March 12. “The Other Side of Immigration” gives people disparaged as “threatening” and “illegal” a human face and reveals the devastating personal effects of U.S. immigration and economic policies on Mexico. Afterward, “A Day Without A Mexican” is a 2004 mockumentary that ponders the potentially catastrophic results that would occur if California-based Mexicans, who make up over a third of the state’s population, were suddenly to disappear, leaving social, political and economic disaster in their wake. Tickets are 60 pesos and proceeds support the Democrats Abroad Lakeside Voter Registration program. For more information, email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..">.
JPO bus trips
Viva la Musica hosts bus trips to the Jalisco Philharmonic Orchestra concerts. Sunday, March 12: Latin rhythms and Lalo symphony with A. Olivo solo violin: Thursday, March 16: Dvorak’s “New World Symphony” and a clarinet concerto; Sunday, March 26: Old Testament themes including Bernstein’s “10 Commandments,” “Nabucco Overture” and “Samson and Delilah.”
Bus tickets, 450 pesos (550 for non-Viva members), are available at the Lake Chapala Society on Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to noon.
Standards
Mac Morison puts on a show with Cindy Paul and Judy Hendrick of “Simply Standards,” Tuesday, March 14, 7 p.m. at Club Exotica on the Ajijic Plaza. Morison sings jazz standards including those made famous by Frank Sinatra, Mel Torme, Vic Damone and Tony Bennett. The show also features excepts from LLT’s recent musical “Chicago,” sung by Alexis Hoff and Christine Molly.
Morison has selected Ajijic Cares to receive proceeds from 44 VIP balcony seats at this concert. VIP seats are 500 pesos and include two glasses of wine and flourless chocolate cake during intermission. Ajiic Cares is a program that educates local teens on sexually transmitted diseases and provides free testing for AIDS, HIV and other STDs. Regular tickets, 350 pesos, are available at Diane Pearl, Mia’s Boutique and Chicas, or call Dan, 766-2489, or CeCe, 766-3964.
Writers Conference
Authors Rachel McMillen and Michael Hogan will be on hand at the 12th annual Lake Chapala Writers Conference, Wednesday, March 15 to Thursday, March 17 at Ajijic’s Hotel Danza del Sol.
The program will feature panel discussions and one-on-one consultations with New York editor Sandi Gelles-Cole, Hollywood literary and script agent Ken Sherman and independent publishing and printing experts Judy Briles, Mikel Miller and Carsten Groppe.
The event opens Wednesday, March 15, 5 p.m., with a cocktail reception for participants and presenters. Working sessions on Thursday and Friday run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Table space will be available for registered scribes to sell their books.
Early sign-up, open through February 28, is offered at a reduced rate of 2,000 pesos. After that date the cost goes up to 2,500 pesos. Registration forms with full details are now available at Diane Pearl or by email request.
International Jazz Festival
Sweet notes and tantalizing rhythms will fill the air Friday, March 17 through Sunday, March 19 when Chapala welcomes a throng of talented musicians for the Muestra Internacional de Jazz.
The program features headline performances by Grammy winner Gordon Godwin, famed leader of Big Phat Band, and virtuoso drummer-composer Waldo Madera and his quintet.
Mexican groups making an appearance include the Chucho Lopez Big Band, Sherele Jazz Klezmer, Pepe Hernández Groove Gang, Bosquejo en Riesgo, Las Billies, Adrián Oropeza Trio, Camouflage Big Band, Barrimi Jazz, MxFusión and Big Band de Rafael Terríquez.
Shows will be held at the big outdoor stage next to the market area at Chapala’s Malecón, open to the public free of charge.