Hello and Goodbye to Some Very Funny Ladies

The Culture Edit, May 13th-May 26th

This coming Sunday we must bid a sad farewell to Elena, the “Super Latina” holding it all together in Zoetic Stage’s Cuban Chicken Soup: When There’s No More Café. Fortunately, GableStage is providing consolation with the opening of Laughs in Spanish, featuring another Miami Latina and her formidable movie-star mother facing down Art Basel, crime scenes, and Wynwood tourists. In fact, we have three excellent local theater productions running this week, with the opening of A Rock Sails By at Actor’s Playhouse.

Miami City Ballet’s official season is over, but you have a last chance to see them before the summer break in two pop-up performances on Miami Beach. Thursday’s performance is followed by a reception at the Bass Museum, with music by cellist Phillip Capuzzi, in Social Assembly, an art installation that happens to feature tables, chairs, and a bar - how fabulous!

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Wednesday, May 15th

A Rock Sails By - Opening Night!

Actor’s Playhouse presents the South Florida premiere of A Rock Sails By, a play by Sean Grennan filled with humor, heart, and astrophysics. Dr. Lynn Cummings, an astrophysicist, tries to bring science and faith into balance while grappling with the loss of her husband. When an unidentified object is discovered heading toward Earth, a sketchy online magazine misquotes her, casting doubt on her credibility. As Dr. Cummings investigates, she hopes to witness nothing remarkable and thus save her reputation, but there’s no telling what she’ll discover beyond the stars. 

8pm, Actor’s Playhouse at the Miracle Theater, $40

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Also on May 15th: a performance of Cuban Chicken Soup at Zoetic Stage.

Thursday, May 16th

MCB Studio Performance + Bass Museum Reception

Miami City Ballet’s pop-up performances began as a pandemic-era gift to the city, but proved so popular the company decided to make it an ongoing tradition. The free performances give MCB dancers the opportunity to choreograph and perform new works in venues around the city, and give us the chance to see these world-class dancers in a more casual setting, which is especially welcome now that their official season is over. This edition will be at the MCB studios on Miami Beach, followed by a reception at the next-door Bass Museum, offering free admission and music for its Third Thursday event. Rsvp required.

6:30pm, Miami City Ballet Studios & Bass Museum, Free

Neighborhood: Miami Beach

Also on May 16th: “My Octopus Teacher” filmmaker Craig Foster speaks at Books & Books, Ascaso Gallery celebrates the 80th birthday of Cuban artist Julio Larraz, and a “golden-toned baritone” sings songs of love at Sanctuary of the Arts, plus performances of Cuban Chicken Soup and A Rock Sails By.

Friday, May 17th

Laughs in Spanish - Preview Night!

GableStage caps off its 2023-24 season with Laughs in Spanish, a cafecito-fueled romp through Miami’s art scene. The plot centers around Mariana, a young woman trying to keep her art gallery ready for Art Basel when it’s suddenly become a crime scene, and her movie-star mother, who tries to save the day but just makes everything more complicado.

7:30pm, GableStage at the Biltmore, $25-$50

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

Also on May 17th: two masters of Cuban jazz piano at Sanctuary of the Arts, a live broadcast from the London stage of Andrew Scott in Vanya, a second Miami City Ballet pop-up performance at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden, and performances of Cuban Chicken Soup and A Rock Sails By.

Saturday, May 18th

New Art on 22nd Street

Once longtime Miami gallerist Mindy Solomon opened her expansive new space in Allapattah, and three exciting new galleries opened on the same street, Miami suddenly had a quorum of great galleries all in one spot. On May 18th, Mindy is celebrating three new exhibits: two by South Korean artists and an exhibit of Miami-based artists Frances Trombly and Leyden Rodriguez-Casanova. Stroll down the street to check out Jeffrey | Merik at Andrew Reed, Sam Stewart: Anonyme Skulpturen at KDR, and the last night of Haunted I at Voloshyn Gallery.

Opening Reception 6-8:30pm, Mindy Solomon Gallery, Free

Neighborhood: Allapattah

Nearby Eats: Leku, Hometown BBQ, Morgan’s | Drinks: Dante's Hifi, Higher Ground (both Wynwood)

Also on May 18th: A lot! Dance NOW Miami premieres a new work set to 80’s music in Aventura, Locust Projects celebrates the opening of Kerry Phillips: The Patience of Ordinary Things, ChamberFest Miami presents award-winning pianist Zhu Wang, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish, Cuban Chicken Soup, and A Rock Sails By.

Sunday, May 19th

Cuban Chicken Soup: When There’s No More Café - Final Performance!

From Zoetic Stage and the creative team behind the hugely successful ¡Fuácata! A Latina's Guide to Surviving the Universe comes a new one-woman, comedic tour de force starring the incomparable Elena Maria Garcia. All the powerful, eccentric and very funny women introduced in ¡Fuacata! return, as Elena’s story continues 10 years later.

2:30pm, Carnival Studio Theater at the Arsht Center, $55-$60

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

Nearby Eats: Verde at PAMM (lunch only), Julia & Henry's Food Hall, Jaguar Sun (dinner only) | Drinks: Night Swim, Biscayne Bay Brewing Co.

Also on May 19th: a second performance of award-winning pianist Zhu Wang at Miami Beach Community Church, the final live broadcast of Andrew Scott in Vanya, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Happening NEXT Week:

Because maybe your friends are busy this week. Or you're busy this week. Or this week just seems too soon to pull your act together and make a plan.

Wednesday, May 22nd

Author Talk: Liz Cheney with Ana Navarro

Books & Books and the Adrienne Arsht Center present an in-person evening with former Wyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney, to discuss her new book Oath and Honor. She’ll be in conversation with native daughter, political commentator, and co-host of The View Ana Navarro. Rsvp required.

7pm, Knight Concert Hall at the Arsht Center, $55 (book included)

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

Also on May 22nd: performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Thursday, May 23rd

Jasmine Little: The Olive Garden

Nina Johnson Gallery presents The Olive Garden, a solo show of new work by ceramicist, sculptor and painter Jasmine Little. Best known for her hand-carved and inlaid stoneware vessels referencing historical sources, this exhibit marks Little’s return to painting. Two large-scale oil paintings depicting classical still life motifs will sit in conversation with her stoneware. Opening the same night in the adjacent gallery will be Jonathan Rajewski: Together Apart.

Opening Reception 6-9pm, Nina Johnson Gallery, Free

Neighborhood: Little Haiti

Nearby Eats: Phuc Yea, Blue Collar, Boia De | Drinks: Bar Kaiju at the Citadel, Offsite Nano Brewery

Also on May 23rd: ChamberFest Miami presents a genre-bending evening of classical masterworks in the klezmer style at Temple Beth Am, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Friday, May 24th

FREYLAKH: From Classical to Klezmer

As part of its ChamberFest 2024 festival, Miami Chamber Music Society presents an evening of masterworks by Mozart, Ravel, and Bartók, blended with the high-energy tradition of klezmer music. Three award-winning musicians - Ukrainian-American pianist Marina Radiushina, violinist Arnaud Sussmann, and clarinetist Moran Katz - will lead the audience on this boundary defying musical exploration.

7:30pm, Miami Beach Community Church, $10-$35

Neighborhood: Lincoln Road

Nearby Eats: Tropezón, Macchialina, Zaytinya | Drinks: Abbey Brewing Co., Water Lion at the Sagamore

Also on May 24th: choreographer Alice Arya presents Dancing Sinatra at Sanctuary of the Arts, Spirited Away kicks off the “Ani-May” series at Coral Gables Art Cinema, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Saturday, May 25th

Carolina Sardi: Whispers of Nature

Pan American Art Projects presents Whispers of Nature, a solo show of new sculptures and wall installations by Argentinian artist Carolina Sardi. Sardi’s sculptural metal works seek to reflect the interplay of forms in the natural world, encouraging a deeper appreciation of our environment and our interconnectedness with it.

Opening Reception 6-9pm, Pan American Art Projects (Design District), Free

Neighborhood: Design District

Also on May 25th: ChamberFest Miami presents an interesting fusion of film and live classical music at Coral Gables Art Cinema, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Sunday, May 26th

Peter London Dance: Heart of the Garden

The versatile dancers of the Peter London Global Dance Company bring their signature high energy and genre-crossing skills to Heart of the Garden, a free performance at the Miami Beach Botanical Garden. The program includes new company productions of I Am My Brother’s Keeper by Haitian-American dancer and choreographer Vitolio Jeune and Steppe Tango by Armando Gonzalez, principal dancer with Grand Ballet de Geneve, Switzerland.

4-6pm, Miami Beach Botanical Garden, Free

Neighborhood: Lincoln Road

Also on May 26th: Radio host and media mogul Charlemagne Tha God talks about his new book Get Honest or Die Lying at Books & Books, plus performances of Laughs in Spanish and A Rock Sails By.

Planning Ahead:

With the summer approaching, you don’t really need to plan ahead - events probably won’t sell out and it’s easy to get a table at even the buzziest restaurants. But it’s always nice to have a few good outings on the calendar…

June 6th-23rd

Summer Shorts: Flipping the Script

A Miami tradition for 27 years, City Theatre Miami’s Summer Shorts has been dubbed “Miami's equivalent to Saturday Night Live” (Broadway World). This year’s edition, presented in partnership with Adrienne Arsht Center, stages eight provocative and hilarious ten-minute plays, four of which are new plays by local Miami playwrights. For the June 7th performance, the Arsht Center will host a party on Thompson Plaza with live music and local eats for purchase.

Carnival Studio Theater at the Arsht Center, $50 or $75 VIP (includes upfront cabaret-style seating and a free drink!)

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

June 21st-23rd

National Theatre Live: Dear England

Coral Gables Art Cinema is proud to present National Theatre Live, a groundbreaking project to broadcast the best of British theater, live from the London stage to cinemas around the world. In this sold out performance, Joseph Fiennes takes on the role of Gareth Southgate in James Graham’s Dear England, a gripping exploration of nation and game. Showings Friday thru Sunday.

12pm Friday & Saturday, 1pm Sunday, Coral Gables Art Cinema, $15

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

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