A new music and comedy series will soon lift San Antonio’s entertainment scene to new heights. Top of the Frost, presented by the Krishna Company, will launch June 20 with a live rooftop show atop the Frost Bank Tower downtown.
The organizers are framing the event as a sort of “San Antonio City Limits.” A few locals will get to see the performers live, while those who can’t make it in person will be able to enjoy the streaming show from the comfort of their homes.
The kickoff event features both acclaimed Texas acts and buzzy national up-and-comers. Leading the lineup is Austin blues guitar phenom Eric Tessmer in his only Texas show of the summer. Other Capitol City standouts include Queen of Austin Soul Tameca Jones, Southern hip-hop duo Blackillac, and outlaw troubadour James Bullard.
Tameca Jones will bring soul (and style) to the Frost Bank Tower.Tameca Jones/ Facebook
Top of the Frost will also fly in some buzzy acts from out of state — Queens nu-gaze outfit Sana Sana, hot off their signing to Republic Records, and Los Angeles punks Abomic Toms. The latter includes genuine rock royalty. Frontman Willem Wolfe is Billy Idol’s son.
The show will be hosted by two well-known comedians: Nacya Marreiro, known for her sharp observational humor, and Austin stand-up fixture Chris Tellez.
Tickets for Top of the Frost range from $100-$150 and are available online. Doors open at 6 pm, with the 18-plus show starting at 7 pm.
Nathan Fielder and Elizabeth Holmes in You Can See Everything.
Elizabeth Holmes faced one of the most public downfalls in recent history after she was accused of defrauding investors in her health technology company, Theranos. Her subsequent indictment and conviction drew the interest of many, including, it seems, comedian/actor/filmmaker Nathan Fielder. Fielder somehow convinced Holmes and her husband, Billy Evans, to make a documentary about her final days of freedom, called You Can See Everything.
It’s not immediately clear why Fielder — who only has one previous feature-length documentary to his credit — is interested in profiling Holmes, but the approach that he and co-director Lance Oppenheim (Primetime) take is one that puts Fielder in the spotlight as much as her or Evans. Fielder looms over the couple — sometimes literally, sometimes from afar — as they care for their children, make meals, try to re-establish business relationships, and prepare for Holmes’ prison sentence, which is due to start about a month after the film begins in 2023.
Fielder quizzes Holmes and Evans about predictable subjects — such as how Theranos worked, her relationship with COO Sunny Balwani, and her conviction — and ones that are slightly off-kilter, including the miniseries The Dropout, which dramatized Holmes’ rise and fall. He is met with seeming openness by both of them — the title of the movie is uttered by Holmes at one point — but there are times when their idea of transparency doesn’t jibe with Fielder’s expectations.
Through it all, the quirky reputation that Fielder has from TV shows like Nathan for You, The Curse, and The Rehearsal colors his participation, as well. He appears sincere, if surprisingly intense, in his questioning, but there are more than a few moments where it’s fair to wonder if the whole thing is an act of performance art. That suspicion grows in the second half of the nearly three-hour film as Fielder and Oppenheim go down roads that stretch the definition of what a documentary is or can be.
The film is utterly fascinating as the filmmakers go on what seems to be a full-on exploration of the meaning of truth. Holmes and Evans, either intentionally or unintentionally, carry on conversations with Fielder with wide-open, unblinking eyes, something that conveys honesty and creepiness in equal measure. Fielder meets them with squinting expressions, looking like he’s trying to determine how candid they’re actually being.
One of the biggest things the film reveals (or does it?) is that — if she’s not a sociopath — Holmes might be someone who’s either oblivious or naive. As cryptic or strange as she can be in words and actions, Evans is even more so, and as the film progresses, his motives and ideas are called into question. Control over the narrative of the film wobbles back-and-forth between Fielder, Holmes, and Evans, and even at the end it’s unclear whose perspective has truly won out.
There is no way to accurately get across what it’s like to watch You Can See Everything for the first time. The motives of everyone involved are up in the air, resulting in a roller coaster ride that’s full of astonishment, laughs, and a number of surprises. It’s an audacious film that can’t be categorized, one that will challenge the thinking of voters when it comes time for awards season.
---
You Can See Everything opens in theaters on October 16.