Category: Calendar

When the small black ”Rage Box” was handed to me, along with a pen and a block of large yellow post-it notes, I looked at the question: ‘What enrages you?’ I thought for a minute, then another. I was assured that my answer would be confidential. I thought a second more, then wrote truthfully, ”Not…

Puerto Vallarta has a lot of things in abundance – sunshine, tequila, guacamole, sand, and salt water, etc. What we don’t have is a plethora of straight men. And while we salute, embrace, and completely adore our gay friends, these past few days have highlighted the straight men among us on two separate occasions. Ha!…

Storyteller, writer, and stage performer Jamie Brickhouse is bringing his acclaimed solo show I Favor My Daddy: A Tale of Two Sissies to Puerto Vallarta for four performances at ART VallARTa. The shows take place at 7:00 PM on Friday and Saturday nights, March 13, 14, 20, and 21. For audiences in Puerto Vallarta, Brickhouse’s…

My first taste of Jasmine Rice was during the recent Mr Vallarta beefcake beauty pageant at Coco Cabaret. A couple of drag queens entertained as the contestants changed into their outfits for the next round. I wasn’t paying attention until I glanced at the stage and saw this gorgeous vision. The dress was absolutely stunning,…

My beautiful friends Art and Angela Curley invited me to join them in making chocolates at Xoxodiva last Friday. And not just chocolates, but t r u f f l e s. So chocolates stuffed with ganache. AND, they were hand-painted. Six of us willing students were met by Xocodiva owner Laura Story at their…

What a glorious Celebration of Life last night for Jean-Guy Comeau. Two choirs, an entire symphony orchestra, and two soloists took over Santa Cruz Church on Aguacate and played and sang tributes to one of the kindest, most joyful humans I have ever met. How Jean-Guy would have loved this send-off. Right up his alley,…

In Puerto Vallarta, where live music is woven into the rhythm of daily life, Brad Mallett has found his second act. His show, Forever in Blue Jeans: A Neil Diamond Tribute, presented at Act2PV Theater, has become a favorite among locals and visitors alike, blending nostalgia, storytelling, and an intimacy that feels more like a…

After a very productive and well-attended board meeting of the Vallarta Garden Club at Di Vino Dante’s Restaurante, I walked slowly down Basilio Badillo to Olas Altas and hung a left. The sky was threatening rain, but even that didn’t put a damper on the number of people (over 200!) who poured into Kathleen Carrillo’s…

The results are in, a week later than originally planned due to The Troubles, but Vallarta has a new Mister. The fourth annual Mr Vallarta unfolded this year at Coco Cabaret with a variety of hosts for the first two rounds of judging. Still, the finale starred the fabulous Nacho Granados, who can slide between…

Happy Monday, Happy March and to the hundreds of friends who took the time to comment on my February 28 thank-you note/love letter to Vallarta on my 35th anniversary of moving to Mexico, thank you. The only negative consequence of living in Vallarta is that time passes in ‘Vacation Mode.’ Two weeks sitting behind your…

”Robert Will Show You the Door,” opened last night in the tiny theatre at Art Vallarta. The stage could hardly contain the number of characters that sprang from this one-woman show that goes from here to London, England. Starting with the unmistakably New York accent and bouncing through various inner-city barrios with lightning speed and…

A quiet triumph occurred last night at the International Friendship Club’s meeting space when my friend Elena Hiatt Houlihan presented her book, ”An Unrealistic Life.” This project, 20 years in the making, and Elena’s entire life pushing against the mainstream, has become a fabulous testament of a woman saying ‘no’ to convention and ‘bring it!’…

On Sunday, March 8 at 8 PM, the curtain will rise once again at Teatro Vallarta for one of Puerto Vallarta’s most anticipated and meaningful nights of the year: What A Drag! Now celebrating its 12th year, this wildly entertaining straight-men-in-drag beauty competition continues to prove that sequins and stilettos can do far more than…

This gorgeous, still cool morning follows on the heels of one of my dearest friends’ 75th birthday party last night. Garbo’s Piano Bar on Pulpito was packed with friends and well-wishers as we hugged, patted, squeezed, and piled love on Jan Dorland. Jan’s partner of over 20 years, Rob Burton, orchestrated the festivities with their…

I left my house yesterday to meet a dear friend for brunch and to pay my water bill. I hunted for an unmolested OXXO and found three still standing, unburned, and barricaded from within; lights on, and nobody home. I passed a torched OXXO and an equally destroyed Kiosko across the street, both on Morelos.…

I caught Brian’s show a year ago at the newly opened Coco Cabaret and was happy to see him once again this season. There was a noticeable change this year, however — Brian is in love with a Canadian he met on a Vallarta Beach a year ago, and he is so very happy. The…

In my shower last night, I looked down at pitch-black water sluicing over the white bathtub from my feet. I had, like the rest of the population, not been out of the house. I realized it was oily soot that had settled on my patio from at least three separate fires close to the Church,…

We sat in the gazebo at the River Cafe, had lunch, and talked for a good two hours. We couldn’t come to a consensus on when it was the last time we sat across from one another, but maybe 10 years? Christopher Riordan looked good. To me, he has always looked the same, a dancer’s…

There’s something about Puerto Vallarta that invites reinvention. People arrive here at turning points — retirement, recovery from burnout, the start of a new chapter, or the quiet realization that life needs to feel different. The sunsets are slower. The ocean air softens the edges. And yet, for many, the nervous system is still running…

It is so cold this morning, I can’t open my windows yet, and it’s nearly 8 am! Nice to be back with typical February weather, and I must say, I am looking forward to summer and some humidity – my cheeks crack from the dry air every time I smile! I smiled a lot yesterday,…