Michael Tilson Thomas Returns to New World

Author

Susan Bannon
March 08, 2024

Some weeks are slow. Or it's easy to identify the "must see" event. Then there are weeks like this one, with Miami City Ballet's Spring Mix (with some really exciting new works) up against Michael Tilson Thomas returning to conduct New World Symphony. To make matters more difficult, the internationally renowned Paul Taylor Dance Company is performing at the Moss Center and one of my favorite writers, Xochitl Gonzalez, is speaking at Books & Books. Times like these, I remind myself that too many choices are better than none and I'm lucky to live in this town!

One piece of good news: thanks to rave reviews and hot ticket sales, The Museum Plays, a series of short plays inspired by artwork and performed inside the Rubell Museum, has extended its run until March 17th, so you have another week to see it.

When it comes to art, I typically cover exhibit openings rather than ongoing shows because this is an events newsletter (and because seeing art in a noisy crowd with a free glass of wine is just more fun). But if you missed the opening of Lesia Khomenko: Through Waves and Portals at Voloshyn Gallery last weekend, it's worth a visit.

Khomenko is Ukrainian, and these museum-quality paintings explore her very current experience of war, mediated and shared as it is through digital images (the portals of the title) and their effects as they ripple outward through the online world (the waves). The gallery is only open until 5pm, but you could make it an evening by hitting one of Wynwood's happy hours (try Higher Ground) and having dinner at Pastis or KYU, which reopens March 6th (hooray!).

Let's get planning...

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Tuesday, March 5th

An Evening with Randi Braun

Coconut Grove is stacked with great food and bars, but severely lacking in cultural venues (r.i.p. Playhouse). So I'm always happy to see an event at Books & Books Coconut Grove. This evening, you can hear Wall Street Journal best-selling author Randi Braun discuss her latest book, Something Major: The New Playbook for Women at Work. The book promises practical advice for working women looking to stop apologizing and "channel their inner bad-ass".

6:30pm, Books & Books Coconut Grove, Free

Neighborhood: Coconut Grove

Nearby Eats: Eva, Krüs Kitchen, QP Tapas at Mayfair, Bartaco (save a spot in line and have a drink upstairs while you wait) | Drinks: Sipsip, Level 6, Bodega (speakeasy, door at the back behind the counter)

Wednesday, March 6th

An Evening with Xochitl Gonzalez and Ana Navarro

Books & Books Coral Gables is excited to present an in-person evening with New York Times Bestselling author Xochitl Gonzalez, to discuss her new book Anita de Monte Laughs Last. Her last book, Olga Dies Dreaming, was named a Best Book of 2022 by The New York Times, The Washington Post, and NPR. Personally, I'm a huge fan of her commentary writing for The Atlantic, for which she was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. She'll be in conversation with native daughter, political commentator, and co-host of The View Ana Navarro. Quite a pair!

7pm, Books & Books Coral Gables, Free (RSVP required)

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

*Also on March 6th: The New Music Miami Festival brings a mesmerizing soundscape to the Wolfsonian, and artist Germaine Barnes talks about his inspirations inside his Ukhamba pavilion at MOAD. Get the full list for the week here.

Thursday, March 7th

The Museum Plays

Miami New Drama, in collaboration with The Rubell Museum, presents an evening of six new short plays inspired by artworks at The Rubell and performed in the museum, with those artworks as backdrop. Reviewers have raved about this innovative mash-up of theater and art, and demand has been high enough to warrant an extended run. As of this writing, tickets are still available for this Thursday performance, but if they sell out, you have one more weekend to catch it.

8pm, Rubell Museum, $46-$82

Neighborhood: Allapattah

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

*Also on March 7th: The Rotterdam Philharmonic makes its Miami debut at the Arsht, with Grammy-winning pianist Daniil Trifonov. Get the full list for the week here.

Friday, March 8th

Miami City Ballet: Spring Mix

Miami City Ballet's Spring Mix brings us two exciting contemporary ballets alongside George Balanchine’s Agon, a mid-century classic set to a groundbreaking Stravinsky score. I'm particularly looking forward to the second ballet on the program, Following the Subtle Current Upstream. The New York Times published a beautiful profile of Alonzo King, the choreographer, which will make you want to see this ballet. Not to be outdone, the final piece of the evening is the World Premiere of Delight, a highly-anticipated contemporary work set to Bach by Brazilian choreographer Ricardo Amarante.

7:30pm, Ziff Ballet Opera House at Adrienne Arsht Center, $45-$255

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

*Also on March 8th: R&B icon Mavis Staples performs at Knight Concert Hall at the Arsht, and artist Hander Lara visits Pan American Art Projects in their new Design District gallery space to discuss his solo show, Nothing is Abstract Anymore. Check out the full list for the week here.

Saturday, March 9th

Michael Tilson Thomas Conducts: Free WALLCAST

Michael Tilson Thomas, New World Symphony's beloved co-founder and former artistic director, is back to conduct two programs with NWS this spring, and this is the only one at New World Center. World-renowned pianist Emanuel Ax will be joining MTT, and Beethoven is on the program. Needless to say, this was a hot ticket and sold out. But lucky for us, NWS is projecting this concert live as a free WALLCAST, outside in adjacent SoundScape park. If lawn chairs aren't your thing, there's also a Sunday matinee of this performance inside New World Center.

7:30pm, SoundScape Park at New World Center, Free WALLCAST (byoblanket)

Neighborhood: Miami Beach

Nearby Eats: Joliet, Casa Tua, Zaytinya | Drinks: MILA, Water Lion at the Sagamore

*Also on March 9th: So much! Miami Light Project's Global Cuba Fest closes with a Piano Marathon Cubano , world-renowned contemporary dance troupe Paul Taylor Dance Company performs at the Moss Center, Miami City Ballet's Spring Mix has its second performance at the Arsht, and Breach Gallery celebrates the opening of Together: Ed Broner+Anthony Coleman. Check out the full list for the week here!

Sunday, March 10th

Paul Taylor Dance Company

The Paul Taylor Dance Company, hailed by the New York Times as "one of the most exciting, innovative, and delightful dance companies in the entire world", returns to The Moss Center to celebrate its 70th Anniversary. The program features Taylor's iconic Promethean Fire, set to J.S. Bach’s “Tocatta and Fugue in D Minor”, and Amy Hall Garner's Somewhere in the Middle, set to Count Basie, Sarah Vaughan, and other Big Band favorites.

3pm, The Moss Center, $25-$65

Neighborhood: Cutler Bay

Nearby Eats: Not much! Grab lunch at Golden Rule Seafood on your way down there and have some rooftop cocktails at Mamey on 3rd or La Terrazza on your way back.

*Also on March 10th: Nice Work If You Can Get It, a concert by baritone Jamal Moore, inspired by Alberto Checa's current art show at Oolite. Also, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore visits Books & Books, Michael Tilson Thomas conducts an encore matinee performance at New World, and Miami City Ballet's Spring Mix has its final performance the Arsht. Get the full list for the week here.

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.

Tuesday, March 12th

Miami City Ballet Pop-Up Performance at The Bandshell

Miami City Ballet began its free pop-up performances around the city during the pandemic, when we all desperately needed some art in our lives and everything had been canceled. Fortunately, they have kept it up and this is the first of three pop-up's scheduled for this season. No official program is announced because it's free and, well, you get what you get and you don't get upset.

7pm, Miami Beach Bandshell, Free

Neighborhood: North Beach

Wednesday, March 13th

Jazz Series at Faena: Richard Bona and Asante Trio

As part of its spring Jazz Series, Faena Theater presents Cameroonian multi-instrumentalist and Grammy winner Richard Bona. Best known for his unique bass sound and enchanting vocals, Bona taps into his African origins, the continent’s traditions, culture, and beauty. Speaking to his versatility, Bona has been nominated for Grammy's in three different categories, winning for Best Contemporary Jazz Album back in 2003.

8pm, Faena Theater, $65 and up

Neighborhood: Mid Beach

Nearby Eats: Los Fuegos at Faena, also 27 Restaurant and Cecconi's | Drinks: Choose from three great bars at the Faena - Tree of Life, Living Room, and The Saxony Bar, or head to WunderBar for a change of scenery.

Thursday, March 14th

Zoetic Stage: Cabaret - Opening Night

The Kit Kat Club, that notorious jazz age den of iniquity, is open for business again, as Zoetic Stage brings Cabaret to the Carnival Studio Theater at the Arsht Center. Zoetic has turned this space into a soccer pitch and the inside of a young man's mind for past performances, so the club setting is sure to be an immersive good time, especially if you opt for the VIP table seating.

7:30pm, Adrienne Arsht Center, $65-$85

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

*Also on March 14th: Nina Johnson Gallery celebrates the opening of Rachel Martin: Believe the Rumors and City Theatre presents a pop-up showcase of funny and thought-provoking short plays at Books & Books. Check out the full list for the week here.

Friday, March 15th

The Lehman Trilogy - Opening Night

GableStage presents The Lehman Trilogy, an epic piece of storytelling that tracks three members of the Lehman family through 163 years of history, right up to the devastating collapse of their family firm, Lehman Brothers. Beginning in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1844, a Bavarian immigrant dreams of a better life. In 2008, his descendants unleash an unprecedented financial disaster. The story in between is both an intimate family saga and a colossal exposé of unquenchable capitalism.

7:30pm, GableStage, $45

Neighborhood: Coral Gables

*Also on March 15th: Zoetic Stage's Cabaret, with a special pre-performance Champagne lounge, and a live broadcast from the National Theatre in London of Joseph Fiennes in Dear England, being screened at Coral Gables Art Cinema. Read the full list for the week here.

Saturday, March 16th

Michael Tilson Thomas Conducts Tchaikovsky's 4th

Michael Tilson Thomas rounds out his Miami reunion with New World Symphony with this blockbuster performance at the Arsht Center. Hailed as one of the greatest conductors of our time, MTT will conduct the New World fellows for Tchaikovsky’s powerful Fourth Symphony, a meditation on fate and fortune. Also on the program, Grammy Award-winning baritone Dashon Burton joins MTT for Copland’s Old American Songs, a collection of iconically American lullabies, ballads and hymns that speak to the heart and our history.

8pm, Knight Concert Hall at Adrienne Arsht Center, $35-$215

Neighborhood: Downtown Arts & Entertainment District

*Also on March 16th: A lot! You can catch performances of Cabaret, The Lehman Trilogy, and a second live broadcast of Dear England at Coral Gables Art Cinema. Plus an adults-only, Parisian-style burlesque show at the Moss Center and a performance of three new dance works by Syncopate Collective at the Sanctuary of the Arts in Coral Gables. Check out the full list for the week here.

Sunday, March 17th

Dance NOW! Miami x Compagnia Opus Ballet

Compagnia Opus Ballet, direct from Florence, Italy, joins Dance NOW! Miami for a collaborative performance of Gli Altri/The Others, and selected works from each group. This joint performance is also a collaboration of choreographers from both groups, inspired by the cinematic imagery of Federico Fellini and confessional storytelling.
 
3-5pm, Miami Theater Center, $45

Neighborhood: Miami Shores

Nearby Eats: The Citadel Food Hall, Tigre, Blue Collar | Drinks: rooftop at the Citadel, OFF SITE Nano Brewery

*Also on March 17th: Performances of Cabaret and The Lehman Trilogy. You can see the full list for the week here.

Planning Ahead:

Miami's most anticipated events sell out and those new restaurants you want to try book up. Here are a couple of upcoming events you need to lock down now...

Friday, April 5th

An Evening with Bestselling Author Amor Towles

Books & Books and The Hub at Temple Beth Am present an evening with mega-bestselling author Amor Towles, whose novels A Gentleman in Moscow, Rules of Civility, and The Lincoln Highway have delighted millions of readers and been translated into over 30 languages. Amor will be discussing his new book, Table for Two, a collection of short stories set in New York City and one noirish novella set in Hollywood's golden age. Our own Mitchell Kaplan, who founded Books & Books in 1982 and co-founded the Miami Book Fair, will be in conversation with the author. Tickets include one copy of Table for Two.

8pm, The Hub at Temple Beth Am, $36

Neighborhood: Pinecrest, Coral Gables

Saturday, April 20th

Late Night: Drake X. Tchaikovsky

Late Night with New World Symphony is back, turning the concert hall into a club with a thrilling mashup of two hopeless romantics separated by almost a century: Drake and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky. For one night only, NWS—along with conductor-creator Steve Hackman, vocalists and a rapper—weaves 22 Drake songs, from “Started from the Bottom” to “Marvin’s Room,” into Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony in every way imaginable. Roam the dance floor to be up close to the performers or immerse your senses in the lounge vibe from a seat upstairs. According to the program notes, Drake himself will not be in attendance, but you never know with that guy.

9pm, New World Center, $30

Neighborhood: Miami Beach

Nearby Eats: Zaytinya, Tropezón, Casa Tua | Drinks: Medium Cool, Water Lion at the Sagamore

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