September Newsletter - It's Show Time!

El Paseo Arts Foundation is rolling out the red carpet to kick off  our seventh season of great arts events.  Please join us a 7 p.m. on Thursday, September 15, 20111, at the SPI Hilton Garden Inn for a Mystery Theatre Event and Chair-ity Auction.

Mystery Spoof and Chair-ity Auction Highlights of Kick Off Event

It's the night we've all been waiting for, and you can be one of those lucky enough to snag a ticket! So put on your "Island fancy" garb, and walk down the red carpet when El Paseo Arts Foundation kicks off its seventh season with a Chair-ity Auction and Mystery Theatre Event at 7:00 p.m., on September 15, 2011, at the South Padre Island Hilton Garden Inn.

The featured entertainment for the evening is a local production of the mystery spoof, Murder at the TonyLou Awards.  This star-studded extravaganza includes all the rising and falling stars in the movie business, and audience members are invited to play detective and catch the killer.   What can you expect from an audience participation murder mystery? Fun the minute you walk in the door! The evening of glitz and glamour begins at 7:00 p.m. with a sumptuous hors d'oeuvres buffet and cash bar. You'll get a chance to mingle with the cast as they drop hints about themselves and the show and give you a chance to ask questions.

You'll want to take a close look at the eight chairs for the Chair-ity Auction, each different chair stuffed with valuable gifts. The chairs have themes representing one of the seven 2011-12 Showcase Productions and El Paseo's local production for February.  You'll also want to make a bid on some of the items in the silent auction.

The Chair-ity Auction begins at 7:30 p.m. with the Island's favorite auctioneer Shane Wilson and then the curtain goes up on Murder at the Tony Lou Awards about 8:15 p.m.

The TonyLou Awards Show begins with celebrity gossip columnist Constance Gabbles (Jody Hughes) greeting each celebrity as they walk in on the red carpet. Then we turn the show over to host T.J. Hardcastle (Guy Blatnik), heir of the famous singing, dancing, and flying Hardcastles. But wait, is there trouble in paradise? Lorna Lush (Darla Gilchrist), has-been stage diva, is toting her own flask of booze. Monty Carlo (Shane Wilson)  might be a star in his own country, but his English is almost unintelligible. Celia B. DeMilo (Wanda Ballou) has a weakness for young men, and her newest boy-toy Claude-Jean (Eduardo Guena) will do anything to become a star. M.J. Hardcastle (Stephanie Wilson) carries a grudge against her brother and his wife, Angelina Canoli,(Brenda Bailey) who "wins" an award every year. Funky Brewster (Ciana Perez) is absolutely adorable, or is there a nasty secret lurking under that innocent exterior? The fact is, everyone has a nasty secret including Bill Beaty as the announcer, Delores Dubois as the Trophy Model and Judy Brewer, Mary Hartman and Kristi Smith in their cameo "star" roles. So keep your eyes and ears open and gather clues, because at evening's end, someone will be ruthlessly murdered, and you'll have the chance to guess who done it and why!  Be among the first to correctly identify the murderer and you'll win a prize.

Tickets for the event are $30 per person and are available for puchase at The SPI Visitors Center, Paragraphs Book Store, Designer Consigner in Port Isabel or online at www.elpaseoarts.org.  Proceeds from the evening will help to fund the Arts Foundation's programs which include The Showcase Season, local productions, and student arts programs.

Flutist Eugenia Zukerman and pianist Milana Strezeva will take the stage at the Convention Center on September 26, 2011, at 7:30 p.m., when El Paseo Arts Foundation presents "Women through the Ages- Beautiful Works for Flute and Piano by Women Composers". Tickets for the concert are $25 per person/$20 for El Paseo members and are available for purchase at the SPI Visitors Center, Paragraphs Book Store, Designer Consigner in Port Isabel, and online at www.elpaseoarts.org.

Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Ms. Zukerman is an international triple threat. She is a published novelist, a television commentator and, most impressively, one of the finest flutists of our time. Ms Zukerman entered Barnard College as an English major, but soon transferred to The Juilliard School, where she studied with the renowned flutist Julius Baker. Early in her career, she won the Young Concert Artists Award and made her formal New York debut to rave reviews. The rave reviews have continued throughout her career. Zukerman is a consummate musician. Her elegant sound, referred to as "finely articulated cascades of classical grace," along with her compelling stage presence have contributed to her popularity as an international performer with orchestra, in solo and duo recitals, and in chamber music ensembles in North America, Europe, and Asia.
 
 A versatile artist, Ms Zukerman is respected for her innovative programming as well as for her performances. Critics agree that"few major instrumentalists offer anything comparable to the intelligence and breadth of programming that she brings to her concerts." She served as Artistic Director of the International Vail Valley Music Festival for eighteen years. Under her guidance, the festival has grown artistically and includes residencies with the New York Philharmonic, the Rochester Philharmonic and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. She is currently the Artistic Director of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra's international festival, scheduled to open in Dallas in October, 2014 and a member of the faculty of New York University's Department of Music and Performing Arts.

The multi-faceted Eugenia Zukerman also enjoys successful careers as an author and television commentator. She has been the arts correspondent for CBS Sunday Morning since 1981 and has done over 300 artist profiles in her twenty-four years on the program. She has appeared on a variety of other television programs as a guest, including PBS' Charlie Rose Show, NBC's Today and A&E's Breakfast with the Arts.

Joining Ms. Zukerman on stage is a pianist who is a virtuoso in her own right. Milana Strezeva is a Moldovan-American Pianist. She is a recipient of the Arts Recognition and Talent Search Award and winner of the Young Artist Competition and Yamaha Piano Competition. In 1998, Milana won the IBLA International Competition as a vocal collaborator that led to her debut recital at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall. Milana is also the founding member of the award winning Manhattan Piano Trio.

The duo of Zukerman and Strezeva will bring to the stage not only world-class virtuosity and musicality, but also two dynamic personalities with an electrifying performance style that reveals the heart and soul of the music. There is a passion and joy in their playing that makes listening to them a sheer pleasure.

Arts Bonus:  Eugenia Zukerman Will Do Book Signing At Paragraphs Book Store

As a writer, Ms. Zukerman has been published in a number of periodicals, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, Esquire and Vogue. Ms. Zukerman's newest book, In My Mothers Closet (Sorin Books), an anthology of essays about accomplished women and their thoughts on the mother/daughter relationship was published in April 2003. The book has met with national acclaim,and she continues to tour the country doing book signings and readings. Ms. Zukerman has also published two novels, Deceptive Cadence (Viking, 1981) and Taking the Heat (Simon & Schuster, 1991).

September 26, 2011- 1:00-2:00 p.m.

Ms. Zukerman will be at Paragraphs Book Store for a brief presentation and book signing for ner anthology In My Mother's Closet.  Please join us for this rare opportunity to spend some time with such a versatile talent.