Author: Marcia Blondin

The year-long wait for Jordon Carnegie‘s return to The Palm Cabaret in ”Hedwig and the Angry Inch’‘ is over. A packed house – overpacked, actually – embraced the entire production crew in an emotional hug that would not let go. A thunderous standing ovation, two of them, in fact, as the audience tried to convey…

I wasn’t sure who the dreamboys in question were: the dancers from Kim LaRue’s Follies or the singers Seth Sikes, Nicolas King, and Sargento Dan. The answer is: yes! all of the above. I caught the middle of the three ”Dreamboys” shows on the calendar for The Palm Cabaret. The last one is on Wednesday,…

Luna Rumba Productions brought together two of Banderas Bay’s finest musicians a couple of nights ago at Casita & Garden, and the concert sold out immediately after the announcement. Geo Uhrich, on violin, and Eduardo ”Lalo” Leon, guitarist, were mesmerizing, stirring deeply embedded emotions in all of us, yearnings for a primitive gypsy, nomadic life.…

I had the best morning yesterday at the International Friendship Club’s Home Tour. I know, I know, what took me so long, and I am sorry it did; however, I am grateful to the IFC for the opportunity to poke my head into four spectacular residences. I took so many pictures! And, bonus, I knew…

I always wonder, when I listen to BIG voices, how they would sound singing a lullaby. Most of them don’t bother, preferring to steamroll over the audience with power, often hiding behind the sheer force of it all, and lots of people applaud it. Ava Nicole’s second song at her Palm Cabaret debut was the…

With Kevin Anthony as host for the fourth year running, ”Stars with a Heart” kicked off yesterday afternoon at Teatro Vallarta with a short movie about the Vallarta School for Girls. This fundraiser, put together again by Mary Porter, from North Carolina, snagged virtually every entertainer in Vallarta who wasn’t already singing on another stage.…

The Wonderland Gala is over. All in all, it was a smashing success. The interior of Oscar’s Restaurant on the Island was decorated with huge playing cards hanging from the roof beams, and small vases with red roses dotted the tables with clever centerpieces created from Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland. There were a couple…

Our Lady of Guadalupe filled up after Mass last night for a fundraising concert for the Church led by David Boz, a Victoria, Canada trumpeter. David has been putting together these free classical concerts annually for over a dozen years. A difficult task from an organizational standpoint – different countries, languages, and conflicting schedules. David…

The Broadway Boys debuted at Coco Cabaret on Monday, and if you missed them, run to get tickets for their show tomorrow at 5 pm. These four tremendous singers have all been in Broadway shows and share some of their stories with the audience. This quartet is part of the Broadway Boys collective (30 of…

This tall, majestic 61-year-old wife and mother is used to big crowds seeing her perform in such productions as Chicago and Pippin. And here she was onstage at The Palm with her Musical Director, Mark Hartman, on piano, Hamlet CV on percussion, and Jared Garcia on bass guitar. Doing a cabaret show that was intimate…

The staff – more like the family that comprises La Catrina Cantina – gathered their friends and customers together to their collective heart to say goodbye to their bartender, Manuel Betancourt. Last Friday, La Catrina Cantina was filled to overflowing with tearful guests and friends who wanted to pay their respects to a young man…

Trovasi again for breakfast? And why not! Delicious food, an interesting location, excellent wait staff, a charming owner, and new friends with expansive ideas and fresh outlooks; a lovely way to start the day. New residents like Berl and Caleb can spot missing pieces because most of us who live smack in the middle of…

One of my favorite shows of all time returns today at 5 pm at Coco Cabaret. I have seen the real-life brothers Dahl from Ontario perform their international tribute to the Blues Brothers whenever they have been in Vallarta, and I am so looking forward to seeing it again. One time, when they were performing…

Besides a goodly bump of an earthquake this morning in Centro around 7:15, how’s everybody doing? I felt the oddest change of air pressure like someone was squeezing me too tight, then the few bells I have around me rang like crazy for a second or two, then the earth let me go, and all…

It’s a new year, and Nicolas King is starting anew with fresh energy, positively looking forward to whatever is coming, and practicing resilience every day. His first concert of the year at The Palm Cabaret in Vallarta had an interesting twist: he and his Musical Director, Mark Hartman, with whom he rarely works because of…

Season in Vallarta holds great gifts: returning friends and colleagues who come back annually, get in touch, and for a couple of hours, memories and conversation slide between past, present, and future like mercury set free to roam. Brian De Lorenzo, John Amodeo, and I met at Trovasi in Los Mercados for a light breakfast…

There was not a seat to be had at Bar Frida last night as we waited to hear Geo Uhrich play the violin for us again. And the guitar and sing. He and his longtime partner Fernanda looked precisely the same, although about five years had passed since we last met, and none of us…

With an hour left to go, Sanctuary PV, was pushing that magic 300-head count. That’s a lot of cocktails to serve in two hours. I had never been to the space before that keeps on going up and up to two more outdoor terraces. I am looking forward to making the Monday evening Comedy show.…

Dozens of places in Vallarta offer live entertainment. I have put these in alphabetical order, and believe me, this is a short list. Every bar and every other sidewalk offers live entertainment during our busy winter season, but the ones listed below have my personal stamp of approval and are venues I love and visit…

There are lots of people who love Christmas, and then there’s Jamie Alexander. We could call it an obsession; I don’t think Jamie would mind. He decorates any place that will let him loose and gives him free rein(deer). Couldn’t help it. So, Jamie’s husband Josh contacted me and invited me to a surprise party…