A few people milled about outside in small groups waiting. Just before 9 p.m. the first riders glided from Calzada Independencia into the parking lot wearing reflective yellow vests and came to a stop at the back near the short but wide inviting mouth of the grey concrete Teatro Experimental. Tonight, Al Teatro en Bici would be holding its three-year anniversary—three years of Tuesday night bicycle rides to various artistic venues throughout Guadalajara, with the aim of promoting both health and art.
Like the sputtering then breaking of a dam the next wave came in force, three lanes wide and swinging into the parking lot on whirring bicycles. A concert speaker strapped to the back of a bicycle beat out trance music. When it stopped and its rider dismounted wearing a suit he smiled a wide set of even teeth and stood tall to welcome the rest of the riders with this posture.
His name was Alberto Eller and as head honcho of the Al Teatro en Bici organization, he had been on this and many other such nighttime bicycle rides through Guadalajara, although not many of them glowed and sparked with anticipation like this one. Instead of biking their way to an evening’s entertainment, tonight, Al Teatro en Bici was the entertainment—the focus of a full variety show of music, theater and back-patting awards.
Their tropical folk romantic music settled the crowd in for the show and the second song in their set was accompanied by a memories slideshow of the year’s many bike rides. Groups of people mugged for the camera on bicycles, usually in front of bigger groups of impatient automobiles.
Luckily, just as quickly as tedium had settled, the tuxedoed MC appeared to introduce what would become an awards ceremony before being interrupted by an actress wearing an afro wig and a fake Cuban accent and who drummed up some enthusiasm from the crowd before the next performance, a silent slapstick dance routine between two men who began as rival matadors before one of them became a bull and then the other lip synched romantically to it.
By now the evening was truly entertaining and the giddy crowd was ready for the slower male-female dance pair that followed. They put on a display of physicality and countless hours of practice in lifts and throws and aerial poses that dared gravity to break bones though they remained stubbornly intact.
The entertainment cooled way off when it came to the night’s raison d’être, an awards ceremony that highlighted both outstanding cyclists and artists (actors, directors, promoters) of the previous year. The audience clapped dutifully and fulfilled a night of satisfying achievement for the winners, who lined up across the back of stage holding their new bicycle helmets and certificates. The prizes were taken home by actors, actresses and directors for a number of theatrical productions from the previous year, including Lluvia Implacable, Timboctuo, Croll, Horizontal Vertical, El Sonido de los Huesos Que Crujen, Un Tutu Muy Apretado, 7 Colores, El Pingüino, and Rebelbox. Congratulations to the winners.
The five-piece all female Guadalajara band, Dolhaus, closed the evening with several renditions of simple rock grooves bumping over 80s hair reverb guitar-cum-pop and kind of fem Bunbury vocals. It was enough to animate the crowd again for a very Oprah check-under-your-seat finale that gave many people a free post-show beer and had some lucky few walking away with the University of Guadalajara’s substantial coffee table book, “Teatro Experimental de Jalisco, 50 años.”
It was truly a vaudeville night, an unabstracted diversion so often underestimated in this electronic age. It was also a private pageant, affectionately enjoyed by the small circle of regular devotees to the cause and infectiously enjoyed by onlookers. In such ways, a quirky group like Al Teatro en Bici has been able to build an unlikely fusion community of artists and cycling enthusiasts in just three years. As long as they keep enjoying it themselves, there’s no reason it won’t see many more.
Join Al Teatro en Bici any Tuesday. Just bring a bicycle. Rides usually count 60 to 70 riders and depart from Parque Revolución at 7:30 p.m. or 8:00 p.m. They end up at various theaters and cultural venues throughout the city. Search “Al Teatro en Bici” on Facebook to find their page and get updates.