Holiday help

Here are the 8 best ways to ring in New Year's Eve in San Antonio

San Antonio fireworks Tower of the Americas fourth july independence day new years eve

Ring in 2020 with these special San Antonio events.

The dawn of a new decade is just a day away and soon all of the highs and lows of the 2010s will be nothing more than images on the timeline of our social media pages.

Whether you’ve already shared a personal top nine list on Insta or are kicking it old school and writing down a list of new year’s resolutions, no one should miss out on the fanfare and merriment when the clock strikes midnight. Below are eight ball-dropping picks for New Year’s Eve events taking place in San Antonio.

Celebrate SA! New Year’s Eve Celebration
Ring in 2020 in what San Antonio City Councilmember Roberto Trevino dubs, “the heart of the city.” Revelers from all walks of life will head to Hemisfair Plaza to see the annual fireworks extravaganza light up the South Texas sky. Live musical performances will play from three stages and carnival games and rides and a colorful array of festival food vendors will add to the excitement. 6 pm to midnight. Free.
434 South Alamo St.

New Year’s Eve at the Observation Deck of the Tower of the Americas
On the last night of the year, tap into your higher self — 750 feet higher — by attending the holiday celebration at the Observation Deck in the Tower of the Americas. Savor the spectacular downtown fireworks display from the top of the city’s crown jewel, arguably the best panoramic view of the nation’s seventh largest metropolis. Guests will have the opportunity to enjoy red carpet photos, casino games, live entertainment, party favors, dancing, an appetizer buffet, and a cash bar. 9:30 pm to 1 am. Admission is a nifty $97.31 (tax and gratuity included).
739 East Cesar Chavez St.

A Roaring New Year's Eve
As a new decade roars in, the folks at Pastiche are producing a stylish New Year’s Eve affair unlike any other. This lavish celebration of decadence and années folles is sure to razzle and dazzle guests, who are invited to don their fanciest Gatsby-inspired finery. The sounds of live jazz music will fill the air as celebrants mix, mingle, and dance the night away At the stroke of midnight, guests will raise a glass to good fortune as they eat twelve grapes — one at each stroke of the clock. Tickets are limited to only 100 guests. The ticket price includes the toasting grapes and a glass of Champagne. 21 and over. 6 pm-2 am. $20.
1506 East Houston St.

New Year's Eve Bash with Nightbird: A tribute to Fleetwood Mac and Stevie Nicks
On New Year’s Eve, a tribute to one of the rock’s greatest bands will be taking place at Sam’s Burger Joint. Nightbird, a band that specializes in the music of Fleetwood Mac and their famous lead songstress, Stevie Nicks, will hit the stage at 9 pm. The act has toured extensively and opened for such classic names as The Doobie Brothers and Jefferson Starship. An added treat will be a recreation of some of Nicks’ iconic flowing stagewear by Brooke Alyson and Jill Focke. Doors open at 8 pm. Ages 18 and up. (Minors will be charged an additional $5 at the door and will only be admitted with a parent or guardian). $20-$130.
330 East Grayson St.

Melissa Villaseñor at Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club
Some prefer to end the year with knee-slapping laughter. For one night only, Saturday Night Live cast member Melissa Villaseñor will be the featured headliner at Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club this New Year’s Eve shindig. Villaseñor, who is the first-ever Latina comedian hired on the long-running show, joined the SNL cast in 2016. Performances at 7:30 pm and 10 pm. $35.
618 NW Loop 410

New Year's Eve Celebration at Maggiano's Little Italy Ballroom
Maggiano’s Little Italy Ballroom will be celebrating New Year’s Eve in a big way. Enjoy an appetizer buffet, family-style dinner, dessert buffet, premium open bar, party favors, DJ and the must-have midnight toast. Table and individual reservations available. Please note that space is limited, so as Cher says in Moonstruck, “Snap out of it!” and make your New Year’s Eve plans as soon as possible. Ages 21 and up. 8 pm-midnight. $100 per person, all-inclusive.
17603 Interstate Hwy 10

New Year’s Eve Party at the St. Anthony San Antonio
The luxurious St. Anthony hotel presents its annual New Year’s Eve party at the Anacacho Ballroom featuring entertainment by the Bellagio Band. The downtown soiree promises an opulent menu that includes appetizers, salads, prime rib, salmon, breast of chicken piccata, and scrumptious desserts. This dinner and dancing gala will take place from 7 pm to 1 am. Party favors will be handed out, champagne toast at midnight ringing in the new year. $148 per person (tax and gratuity included).
300 East Travis St.

The Drag Clinic: New Year’s Eve Celebration at Brick
The Blue Star Arts Complex will be aglow with entertainment and holiday lights at this year-end variety show, which will feature music, burlesque, poetry, and drag performances. Local stars like Bruce Vayne (The Overtime Theater’s How Burlesque Saved Christmas) will appear along with Austin’s Rachel Monica Kline, and Alaska’s Scarlett Crypt are scheduled to perform. Merrymakers will enjoy food, drinks, art and copious amounts of post-Christmas shopping from vendors surrounding the bustling venue. Although producers recommend the show for people 18 and over, all ages are welcome. 7 pm-12:15 am. $10-$15.
108 Blue Star

event-planner holidays

Movie Review

Movie musical Emilia Pérez makes the right choices in the strangest ways

Photo courtesy of Netflix

Zoe Saldaña and Karla Sofía Gascón in Emilia Pérez.

Musicals have been used as a medium to convey all sorts of different stories, from the Old West, to cats, to one of the Founding Fathers. But it takes a certain kind of imagination to think that a cartel boss making a gender transition as she quits the drug business is a prime candidate for an original movie musical, as is done in Emilia Pérez.

The person with that unusual thinking is French writer/director Jacques Audiard, who in addition to making the film a musical, decided to do it almost entirely in Spanish, a language he doesn’t even speak. Adding to all the other atypical aspects, the main character of the film is not the one after whom the film is named. Instead, the main character is Rita Mora Castro (Zoe Saldaña), the lawyer hired by cartel boss Manitas Del Monte (Karla Sofía Gascón), to help her achieve her dream of becoming a woman.

Of course, that dream comes with consequences, most importantly how to separate the soon-to-be Emilia Pérez from her wife, Jessi (Selena Gomez), and her kids without arousing suspicion. The solution, as well as the “death” of Manitas, is elegant, but after a period of time Emilia finds herself longing for her kids again. Rita re-enters to set up the arrangements, setting in motion a series of events that are both predictable and unpredictable.

The musical sequences of the film are fascinating, mostly because they don’t adhere to the rules typically used in musical films. More often than not they pop up out of nowhere, with a character speaking normally and then deciding that the next line needs to be the start of a song. This allows Audiard to utilize all sorts of locations as the settings for the sequences, as well as the incorporation of unorthodox elements, such as the loading of guns as musical beats.

Even though 90 percent of the film is in Spanish with English subtitles, none of the feeling of the story is lost in translation. Several of the songs are certified bangers, with the repetition of phrases giving them a great rhythm even if you have to keep glancing down to understand what they’re singing. Each of the main three characters get a chance to shine even though none of the songs require the actors to belt them out.

Audiard does a subtle job of commenting on the experience of being a transgender woman in the position that Emilia finds herself. Her desire to live her life as she’s always wanted is in conflict with still wanting to see her kids, as she doesn’t want to reveal the person she used to be. Her personal life is also in conflict with a newfound urge to help families that were victimized by Manitas. The ever-changing story keeps both the characters and the audience on their toes.

Saldaña, whose time in the worlds of Star Trek, Marvel, and Avatar the past 15 years has been her biggest exposure, digs deep into this character, putting on a compelling performance. So too does Gascón, a Spanish transgender actor who embodies every aspect of her role in a manner only someone like her could. Gomez seems slightly miscast, but she has enough solid scenes to justify her presence in the film.

Emilia Pérez is a film that upends expectations at almost every turn. While it might have also worked as a non-musical, the music side of it supports the story in unconventional ways, drawing the audience deeper into a story that itself is out of the ordinary.

---

Emilia Pérez is now streaming on Netflix.

movies film