A few years back I took this picture on the streets of Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. This small ensemble of percussionists was slowly ambling down the street to the rhythm’s staccato beat.

I watched curiously for a bit, but this particular side street was empty of people so there was no one around to ask what was going on.

Due to leave soon on a boat back to Buenos Aires I didn’t think too much more of it until reviewing my photos. Later, at home, I posted the photo on a few travel forums soliciting answers, but I didn’t receive any replies.

I recently received an email from Shirley - answering my question and directing me to the site candombe.com- which explains the art, history, music, dress, and everything else beyond what’s captured in this small group.

From candombe.com:

Candombe (can-dome-bey) is an African derived rhythm that has been an important part of Uruguayan culture for over two hundred years. Uruguay, with a population of approximately 3.2 million, is a small country located in South America, bordered by its two massive neighbors, Brazil (162 million) to the East, and Argentina (34 million) to the West. This rhythm traveled to Uruguay from Africa with black slaves, and is still going strong in the streets, halls and carnivals of this small enchanting country.

Frequently, many drummers assemble onto the streets of Montevideo, playing their drums under the moon lit sky. As these drums move down the narrow streets of Montevideo, doors and windows swing open wide to receive this message that’s being delivered. At intervals the cuerda will pause, and by setting a fire, will heat their drums’ skins for tuning purposes. Pure candombe.

To learn more about this Afro-Uruguayan music, and it’s history and long journey from Africa check out candombe.com. And thanks Shirley for the email!

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I wrote up a brief post about “Neighborhood Flix” last fall, and finally did dinner and a movie last week.   Neighborhood Flix, or their self created nickname “Flix on the Fax,” is the newest independent theater in Denver. However Flix has a twist:  In addition to three comfortable theaters showing the latest Indy films, they also have a spacious restaurant and bar incorporated into the venue.

Patrons can enjoy dinner and drinks, then retire to the theater.  Or - order your meal and eat during the show.  In the entry and dining area framed movie posters adorn the walls.  It’s studio themed, but not over the top kitschy like movie themed diners.

Last week I dined with Caleb and our friend Michael.  We had the Penne Pasta with Plum Tomato Basil Sauce, the Louisiana Cat Fish, and the Shrimp Gumbo with Dirty Rice. If you want to ditch your diet for the night I recommend the Sesame Ginger Sweet Potato Fries. If you just want a drink before the show there’s a large soft lit bar, and you can bring your drink into the show as well.

The intimate “Bistro” cinema has sofa/lounge style seats with tables in the rear (behind the seating rows,) allowing you and your other to dine during the movie, (just like at home.)  Initially I didn’t think much of hearing my fellow movie goers chomping and slurping behind me, but while watching the film “Lars and the Real Girl,” I was not at all distracted, as the tables are set back from the seating rows, and the large furniture absorbs any noise.

While I would never put down the fine group of Landmark theaters in Denver, one advantage that Neighborhood Flix has, (being a brand new venue,) is very comfortable seating.  Older theaters have small and narrow seats.  In contrast, enormous high backed reclining seats are found in suburban stadium-plexes.  Flix is cozy and comfortable, and each theater is of a proportionate size with their largest, the “Premiere Cinema,” at 189 seats.

They’re centrally located in the Lowenstein Theater Complex at 2510 East Colfax. It’s adjacent to the Tattered Cover, Twist and Shout, and the now open “Encore Restaurant.”   Check out what’s playing and plan your visit.

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The Denver suburb of Broomfield has a new event center. I’ve never visited this venue but apparently it’s becoming popular and frequently used being home to the NBA development team the Colorado 14ers and Central League Hockey Team the Rocky Mountain Rage.

From December 3rd through the 13th the venue will be home to Cirque du Soleil’s show “Saltimbanco.” This Italian themed performance will feature the usual acrobatics and colorful imagery that Cirque is known for, and should be well worth seeing in this smaller venue.

Boulder Daily Camera Article and more on Saltimbanco from Cirque du Soleil

Saltimbanco -from the Italian “saltare in banco”, which literally means “to jump on a bench”-explores the urban experience in all its myriad forms: the people who live there, their idiosyncrasies and likenesses, families and groups, the hustle and bustle of the street and the towering heights of skyscrapers. Between whirlwind and lull, prowess and poetry, Saltimbanco takes spectators on an allegorical and acrobatic journey into the heart of the city.

Saltimbanco is a Cirque du Soleil signature show inspired by the urban fabric of the metropolis and its colorful inhabitants. Decidedly baroque in its visual vocabulary, the show’s eclectic cast of characters draws spectators into a fanciful, dreamlike world, an imaginary city where diversity is a cause for hope.

I will take issue and nitpick the Broomfield Event Center’s press release:

The production features 47 artists, about 15 of whom were part of the show’s last big top tour. The cast hails from and 19 other countries.

Does that mean “other” countries outside the U.S.,? Or outside of their home in Canada? The line would sound a lot less “insular American” by simply stating “from 19 countries”

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Peter Max, American painter laureate, will feature his works along with discussion and entertainment for two evenings on Saturday and Sunday, November 17th and 18th. 

His colorful work from the 60s has grace Life Magazine’s cover, the 10 cent postage stamp, and his works are found in hundreds of museums and galleries worldwide.

Peter Max has painted world leaders including the last six U.S. Presidents.  He has captured the colorful generation of the 60s to montages of 80s life amid scenes and commentaries from the Cold War.

Peter Max will be at 2721 3rd Street, at 3rd and Clayton in Denver’s Cherry Creek North Neighborhood.   Along with two nights of events you can also schedule a private preview beginning today, November 9th.   More at petermax.com

by James Van Dellen

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There are three independent theaters in Denver, all operated by Landmark Theaters: The Mayan on Broadway, the Esquire on 6th, and the Chez Artiste on Colorado Boulevard.  Between those three you’re always able to find a complete rotation of current indy films on any given night.

I was pleased to find a brand new independent theater just blocks from my front door: The locally owned Neighborhood Flix takes indy film to a new level of service with modern design and an in-house restaurant. They’re located in the Lowenstein Theatre complex, an old theater on Colfax that that was renovated one year ago and now home to the new Tattered Cover Bookstore and Twist and Shout independent records.

This evening I visited with co-owner Melodie and my friend Mark who came on board as the bar/beverage manager.  Neighborhood Flix is an upscale independent theater. Their three theaters are of moderate size with comfortable seats and modern acoustics. They were also kind enough to give me a tour of all three theaters:  The “Premiere Cinema” is the largest with 189 seats, followed by the “Screening Room” at 163, and “The Bistro” which seats 94.  “The Bistro” will feature love seats in the rear to allow hushed food and drink service during the shows.

The Flix Cafe serves a complete lunch and dinner menu with fresh salads and hand tossed pizzas. The attached garage provides easy parking, and the shared courtyard/patio with Tattered Cover makes it a wonderful place to sit when meeting friends. Think of how many times you’ve met friends for dinner and abruptly terminated your meal so you could arrive in time to get good seats. I welcome a place like this where I can enjoy dinner, have some drinks, and retire to a plush theater just steps away.

Showtimes here. Online at Neighborhoodflix.com  or flixonthefax.com From their site:

Neighborhood Flix is a premiere multi-screen independent cinema and café with the ambiance of a neighborhood bistro. The Neighborhood Flix facility has a setting much like an exclusive studio screening room with upscale amenities and state-of-the-art projection & sound equipment. Independent, foreign, documentary and classic films are the forte of our establishment and this is accomplished in a comfortable, innovative and intimate environment with a contemporary and superb café operating separate and in concert with our cinemas.

The Flix Café offers health conscious & vegetarian entrees. In addition to traditional movie snacks like candy, nachos and popcorn our menu features appetizers, salads, gourmet finger foods, personal pizzas, hamburgers, and other exquisite and carefully prepared dishes. Our bar serves mixed drinks, beer, wine, juice, soda and gourmet coffees and teas. The Flix Café has a seating capacity for 80 guests and in the style of a sports bar displays independent, classic and documentary films as ambiance on projection screens throughout the Café. A separate destination, The Flix Café is specifically designed to be a gathering place where people can meet, create, discuss, critique and enjoy all that is cinema.

James Van Dellen

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Another stop during my rushed stay in Chicago was A.Okay Official. This store opened earlier this year by husband and wife team Jason and Jessica Uzarraga, and is a blend of all things enjoyed and interesting to them. Their primary stock is custom and limited edition sneakers, and collectible and custom modern toys. Their store is clean, sleek, merchandised well, and contains a large selection in the moderate sized space.

Completing this independent business are paintings and works by local artists adorning the walls, which range in styles and prices. The entire establishment has a local, unique vibe which fits the community perfectly. Got some well conditioned stuff to sell? They do consignment too. Check out this Chicago Reader Article for more info and photos.

A.Okay is at 3270 North Clark just north of Belmont. Online at aokayofficial.com

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The Monterrey Forum 2007 is an 80 day series of events being held in Monterrey, Mexico through December 8th.   The events consist of lectures, concerts, art, and exhibits.  Spanning a wide range of varied topics, the overall theme is living and sustainability via the discussion of education, science, human rights, politics, culture, and spirituality.

Not being a beach resort, the cosmopolitan metropolis of Monterrey and capital of Nuevo León is often overlooked by many travelers.  However Monterrey is located only about 250 miles from San Antonio in northeast Mexico.  It was ranked as the safest Latin American city in 2005, and one of the two safest in 2006.  Monterrey is an extremely modern and progressive city, and well educated being home to the University of Monterrey and the Autonomous University of Nuevo León.   It’s a hub of art, culture, and music - and also home to one of my favorite bands, Kinky.

More from MonterreyForum2007.org

In a period of accelerated globalization that is permeated by multi-culturalism and diversity, the Universal Forum of Cultures Monterrey 2007 promotes interaction, encounter, and dialogue to foster understanding and participation. 

The Dialogues program endeavors to: Achieve an exchange of values, emotions, and contents to encourage mutual acceptance with dignity and respect towards one another. Utilize the spoken word as a tool to listen more profoundly to the conversations of our fellow human beings. Promote dialogue as a vehicle for generating meaningful learning experiences.

Exhibitions:  Inspired by the objects, these exhibitions will encourage multi-sensorial and dynamic learning by creating an interaction between the graphics, audiovisuals and atmospheres, transforming each space. This will increase each object’s potential as well as its communication properties and meanings, emphasizing and accentuating the main subjects of the Universal forum of Cultures Monterrey 2007.

Culture:  A celebration of diversity: the music, words, language, traditions, beliefs, food and the obvious expression of humans.

This article from the Brownsville Herald describes more of the exhibits and events including ancient Egyptian artifacts, and the work of Mexican painter Frida Kahlo.  Lots of art.  One city.

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With fall approaching and the days getting shorter your social gatherings are probably migrating from summer barbecues and stroller jogging to the indoor activities of dinner gatherings, cocktail parties, and work holiday functions.

Still yearning for a return trip to Argentina I try to soak up as much Argentine culture as I can find locally - which usually consists of empanadas and Quilmes beer at the Buenos Aires Pizzeria. 

However here’s something more intense than the spiciest empanada - Tango Colorado is an extremely active organization with over 500 members that’s been around since 1996.  The next time you want a night of the exotic, classy, or just different - this group should be your first stop.   Dancing the tango is the type of activity you can feel comfortable at with your partner, in a small group, or solo.  On the outside it appears a regimented and strictly controlled environment, but learn more and you’ll see it’s relaxed and a great way to have fun and meet new people.

Comprehensive tango lessons and sessions of the milonga, (an informal tango dance,) are held in Denver, Boulder, and throughout Colorado in clubs and meeting halls.  Their largest gatherings are held at the Denver Turnverein, a historic event center at 17th and Clarkson.

Their site is chock full of details, including an etiquette primer on dancing the milonga and social norms in general.  If you’re not experienced they can set you up with classes led by established teachers as well.  Check out their shockingly full Calendar for a gathering near you.

Much more info (and these photos) at  Tangocolorado.org

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Blake Street Glass Studio is having an open house.   Have you ever wondered how designs like these are created?  Now for an evening or afternoon you can watch talented glass artisans at work in searing heat as they morph shapes and mold ideas into the physical.

The team of Blake Street Glass, detailed here, consists of Denver local Kit Karbler, his partner Dimitri Rudenko, plus three young and skilled craftsmen with varying backgrounds and experience.

The exhibit is Friday October 5th from 6pm to 10pm, then Saturday and Sunday from 10am to 3pm.

More at Blakestreetglass.com

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Mi profesora de español sent me this info about the Los Angeles County Museum of Art’s exhibit “The Arts in Latin America.” showing through October 28th.

I haven’t visited the LACMA since living in L.A. six years ago and would love to view this, especially the differences between Mexico/Central America and the South American region.  Did you know they have free admission after 5pm?   What better date night than dinner in West Hollywood and taking in these works.  Oh you’re a tourist in Hollywood?  No problem - they aren’t far from “The Price is Right” studios either.

This video from La Opinión highlights some select works in detail.

The LACMA is halfway between downtown and West L.A., at 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles CA 90036. 

Museum Info and Exhibit Link:

The Arts in Latin America, 1492-1820 is an ambitious, multimedia, pan-national presentation of approximately 250 works of art created in the Spanish viceroyalties of New Spain (which today comprises Mexico and Central America) and Peru (now the countries of Ecuador, Colombia, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, and Peru) and in the Portuguese colony of Brazil during the three hundred years between the discovery of the “New World” by the “Old” and the creation of new, independent nation-states. The Arts in Latin America, 1492-1820 will be the first exhibition to disregard the national boundaries created in the early nineteenth century, instead exploring both the artistic differences and commonalities throughout colonial Latin America in a new, synthetic context. Spectacular examples of painting, sculpture, feather-work, shell-inlaid furniture, objects in gold and silver, ceramics, and textiles will be borrowed from public and private collections throughout the Americas and in Europe.

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I heard an interview on BBC’s Outlook with Ines Wurth, a Croatian now living in Los Angeles, and performing her one woman show “I Miss Communism” in London. Wurth reflects on her childhood and satirizes the social system in which she and her family was raised. Despite the provocative title Wurth loves her life in Los Angeles as an American citizen since 2002, but the opportunity to hear the juxtapositions of these two lives would be well worth seeing firsthand.

More about Ines Wurth from I Miss Communism.com

Ines Wurth, a Croatian actress and writer, lives and works in Los Angeles. She started her acting career in London when she left Croatia as a teenager. As a member of Compass Theater in London, she performed numerous roles including Nora from A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen and Varya from The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov. Wurth received her BFA from UCLA, School of Theatre, Film & Television and is a company member of the award-winning Zoo District (theater company), www.zoodistrict.org

In her One Woman Show, “I Miss Communism”. She transforms herself into 15 characters and introduces her life of growing up under the communist regime; the life full of opposites: war and peace, love and hate, innocence and violence. Bringing this show to the stage is very important to her in today’s times of the shortage of awareness, consciousness and tense humanity dynamic around the world.

“I Miss Communism” is a touching, personal story based on her life. The show is about freedom; political, psychological, spiritual, personal. It’s about a young woman coming of age, it’s about war, it’s about Oliver Twist.

“I Miss Communism” is playing in London at the Hackney Empire studio until September 23rd.

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I saw Eric Durchholz’s promo on the Gawker artists list.  Durchholz is a Nashville artist who primarily works in photography and 3D images.  His upcoming show “gameboys” gives homage to the overlooked segment of gamers:  gay guys.

For Durchholz, gaming is sexy. He considers himself a hardcore gamer. “I don’t watch much television, nor do I read many books. I do play a lot of games and most of my gay friends play games and I wanted to reflect some of that culture into my work. Most people are shocked to hear that gay guys play games. In my world, gaming and gay go hand in hand and I realize that not everyone sees that way. Hopefully this exhibit can help change the perception that just straight teenage males play games and some games with specifically gay content will start to be developed.”

Durchholz has published a full coffee table book titled 3dboys, and also heads up Concrete7, a small group of Nashville artists who, as explained on their site, “make cool stuff.”

Gameboys shows for two weeks beginning October 2nd at Tribe Nashville,  1517 Church Street, Nashville.

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Mayan paintings inside the Merida Government Palace.

The site Yucatan Today has a detailed briefing on all the paintings adorning the halls and rooms of this public building.

The daily free walking tour begins here every morning at 9:30 in front of the Palacio de Gobierno (Government Palace) on Plaza Mayor, and visits every major building surrounding the Plaza.  They cover all the paintings and their history as well.  On my tour I was joined by a Spanish and French couple, and my guide spoke all languages.

(more…)

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During our few short days in Chicago I stumbled upon a show at the Steppenwolf Theatre called “Lost Land.”   In this production one of my all-time favorite actors John Malkovich plays a government official intent on returning a vineyard owner back to his former position as a government official in post World War 1 Hungary.

Martha Lavey plays the part of a bitter the all-business middle age sister perfectly.  Her verbal barbs are sharp, and a perfect compliment to Malkovich’s subtle, sly, and easy going manner.  

The entire cast was excellent, and it was certainly a treat to see such a talented and well known actor perform in an intimate environment just a few rows away from me.

“Lost Land” plays through June 5.  The Steppenwolf Theatre is at 1650 North Halsted Street, Chicago.  More at Steppenwolf.org

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