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Publisher Michael Wagner Editor in Chief Sanford Nowlin General Manager Chelsea Bourque Editorial Digital Content Editor Kelly Nelson Contributing Arts Editor Bryan Rindfuss Food and Nightlife Editor Nina Rangel Staff Writers Michael Karlis Interns Amber Esparza
in this issue
Issue 23-24 /// November 29 – December 12, 2023
Contributors Abe Asher, Bill Baird, Ron Bechtol, Danny Cervantes, Macks Cook, Brianna Espinoza, Dalia Gulca, Anjali Gupta, Colin Houston, Kiko Martinez, Mike McMahan, Kevin Sanchez, M. Solis, Caroline Wolff, Dean Zach Advertising Account Manager Marissa Gamez Senior Account Executive Mike Valdelamar Local Culture Creative Agency Director Mindi Overman Creative Services Creative Services Manager Samantha Serna Graphic Designers Pedro Macias Events and Marketing Marketing and Events Director Cassandra Yardeni Events Manager Chelsea Bourque Events & Promotions Coordinator Chastina De La Pena Social Media Director Meradith Garcia Circulation Circulation Manager Justin Giles Chava Communications Group Founder, Chief Executive Officer Michael Wagner Co-Founder, Chief Marketing Officer Cassandra Yardeni Operations Director Hollie Mahadeo Director of Agency Services Mindi Overman Social Media Director Meradith Garcia Director of Digital Content Strategy Colin Wolf Art Director David Loyola Digital Operations Coordinator Jaime Monzon chavagroup.com National Advertising: Voice Media Group 1-888-278-9866, vmgadvertising.com San Antonio Current sacurrent.com Editorial: editor@sacurrent.com Display Advertising: marketing@sacurrent.com
Jaime Monzon
32 Feature
Picking Up the Pieces
The messy business of reuniting Girl in a Coma
The San Antonio Current is published by Chava Communications Group
09 News
San Antonio Distribution The Current is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader.
News in Brief
Get listed 1. Visit sacurrent.com 2. Click “Calendar” and then “Submit an Event” 3. Follow the steps to submit your event details Please allow 48 hours for review and approval. Event submissions are not accepted by phone. Copyright notice: The entire contents of the San Antonio Current are copyright 2023 by Chava Group LLC. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Publisher does not assume any liability for unsolicited manuscripts, materials, or other content. Any submission must include a stamped, self-addressed envelope. All editorial, advertising, and business correspondence should be emailed to the addresses listed above. Subscriptions: Additional copies or back issues may be purchased at the Current offices for $1. Six-month domestic subscriptions may be purchased for $75; one-year subscriptions for $125.
The Opener CityScrapes
Mayor’s charter review could improve governance — with the right changes
Done Deal?
San Antonio ISD continues to say school closures will yield student improvements, despite audit report to the contrary
16 Calendar Calendar Picks
27 Screens
Notes from a Scandal
In May December, Todd Haynes turns an old tabloid tale into a firstrate sexual thriller, just like they used to make
29 Food
NOV 29 - DEC 12, 2023
Family Meal
Rico Torres of San Antonio’s Mixtli benefiting his native El Paso with dinner series
32 Music Critics’ Picks
25 Arts Approved auditor info as required for public notices per section 50.011(1)(e), F.S. Circulation Verification Council 12166 Old Big Bend Road, Suite 210 St. Louis, MO 63122 www.cvcaudit.com Auditor’s Certification:
Tall Order
Completing downtown’s 76-foothigh Spurs mural was a team play led by SA artist Andy Benavides
O
n the Cover: Trailiblazing San Antonio band Girl in a Coma is back for four reunion shows. It wasn’t easy to find closure. Cover photo: Jaime Monzon. Cover design: Samantha Serna.
a B
e nd
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• Thousand Oak 2394 s: (2 8010 6 ) )4 10
94 -6 13 1
Gift certificates are the perfect gift for the gardeners in your life. You get to show you care, and they get to pick out exactly what they want. Scan to buy!
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
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y r e v E ! e m i T
Cuando Compras Productos Locales, Estás Apyoando A Tu Comunidad.
a d a C ¡ Vez!
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
A S l a c o L y u #B
When you Buy Local You are giving back to your community.
H
Gov. Greg Abbott last week officially endorsed Donald Trump’s bid to return to the White House. During a Trump photo op on the southern border, Abbott told spectators the former reality show star will “restore law and order” in the country — even though he now faces numerous criminal charges that could imperil his presidential bid. San Antonio’s first-ever gun buyback attracted so much interest that organizers had to end the program several hours early because they’d run out of H-E-B gift cards to give participants. Residents showed up at the Alamodome last week to turn in more than 900 firearms.
H
The Republican-run Texas State Board of Education earlier this month rejected seven of 12 proposed science textbooks for 8th graders over concerns about their positions on the climate crisis. The new proposed textbooks are the first in state history required to have information on climate change. The Texas House has once again shot down school voucher legislation. Earlier this month, lawmakers stripped a “school choice” plan backed by Gov. Greg Abbott from the chamber’s $7 billion education bill. Vouchers remain unpopular with Texas House members — with every Democrat and 21 Republicans voting for the amendment to strike them from the proposal. — Abe Asher
ASSCLOWN ALERT
Tamping down on free speech to score political points with Texas AG Ken Paxton Assclown Alert is a column of opinion, analysis and snark. In his latest foray into performative politics, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton last week announced that his office is investigating watchdog group Media Matters for “potentially fraudulent activity.” Paxton’s probe comes in response to a report by the nonprofit that X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, had been “placing ads for major brands next to content that touts Adolf Hitler and his Nazi party.” Predictably, top advertisers including Disney, Lionsgate, Paramount and Comcast yanked their ads from X, and the social media company’s owner, billionaire Elon Musk, sued Media Matters in federal court in Texas. Musk alleges the watchdog played fast and loose with its reporting and did so to damage his platform’s ad revenue. Legal scholars have pointed out that Musk — a darling of the far-right over his willingness to let Twitter devolve into a cesspit of hateful content — has little hope of winning the suit. Some have even characterized it as a publicity stunt. Even so, that didn’t stop Paxton and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey — who shares Paxton’s penchants for grandstanding and sphincter-snorkeling former President Donald
news
That Rocks/That Sucks
Courtesy Photo / Texas Attorney General’s Office
Trump — from nearly simultaneously announcing they’d assigned lawyers to look into Media Matters. It’s a safe bet Paxton and his legal eagles turn up jack shit, but that’s never stopped these assclowns before. After all, this is the same baldly partisan AG who opened hundreds of investigations into supposed instances of voter fraud only to end up with nearly all of them petering out like wet farts. — Sanford Nowlin
YOU SAID IT!
“It’s fitting that the only university in Texas to graduate a U.S. president will be the first university in Texas to host a presidential debate.” — Texas State University System
Chancellor Brian McCall
announcing that his campus will host the first 2024 presidential debate
Last week, the mayors of San Antonio and Monterrey signed a letter of intent in which they agreed to work together to drive economic growth in both cities. According to the letter, the cities will cooperate on issues including workforce development, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, healthcare and tourism. Mayor Ron Nirenberg and a San Antonio delegation visited the northern Mexican city in October.
Courtesy Photo / City of San Antonio
U.S. Customs and Border Protection is investigating a recent string if migrant drownings near Eagle Pass, an agency source told the Houston Chronicle. At least 13 migrants have died recently while trying to cross the Rio Grande River, which is at unusually high levels.
The families of children killed in last year’s mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde expressed mixed emotions after the Washington Post published a series of graphic images of the attack. Kimberly Garcia, the mother of a child who was killed in the massacre, wrote on social media that the newspaper is not letting the victims rest in peace, while Brett Cross, another parent, wrote that the public needs to see the true results of gun violence. — Abe Asher
Find more news coverage every day at sacurrent.com
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
news CITYSCRAPES
Mayor’s charter review could improve governance — with the right changes BY HEYWOOD SANDERS Editor’s Note: CityScrapes is a column of opinion and analysis.
R
on Nirenberg is in his fourth, and last, term as mayor of San Antonio. The next two years provide the last chance to define and cement his legacy and shape his political future. And the mayor has apparently decided that our city government needs fixing — lots of fixing. Indeed, Nirenberg recently issued call to reconstitute the city’s Charter Review Commission, looking to a potential November 2024 vote on changes to the current charter, adopted in 1951. The mayor’s charge to the commission is a lengthy one — a laundry list of changes covering no less than nine specific issues. They include creation of an independent ethics auditor and revisions to the ethics review board, indexing compensation for members of city council and changing council terms to four years with a limit of two terms. Also on the agenda are altering the limits on city manager tenure and compensation, adding additional council members and creating an independent redistricting committee. He also wants to modernize the charter “to more accurately reflect current processes, acknowledgments, and roles.” For some, the proposed changes promise nothing less than a significant improvement in city government: attracting more candidates to compete for key city roles, stabilizing the city manager’s office, emphasizing ethics standards and boosting the abysmal turnout in city elections. Even so, the mayor has offered no specific goals or overarching purpose for the numerous issues which will define the charter review commission’s work. Perhaps he will elaborate his own vision in the months to come. But he has been clear in recent years that he wants to see changes in the way things work — particularly in undoing charter changes that came from outside city hall and were approved by voters. We have term limits because a majority of local voters endorsed them in 1991 — a reaction to the extended tenure of then-mayor Henry Cisneros and a number of his council colleagues. That outcome reflected a wave of dissatisfaction with a number of city policies and initiatives, including rising public debt and the purchase of a number of downtown buildings without a public vote. While those limits have been loosened in subsequent charter change votes, previous mayors and councils have been unwilling to
Sanford Nowlin
propose eliminating them all together. Nirenberg’s proposed changes to the tenure and pay of the city manager would undo a proposition put on the ballot by the firefighters union in 2018 — one supported by 59% of local voters. The city’s business leadership has made no secret of its desire to change or eliminate the limits on the manager. They clearly enjoyed the stability and policy focus of Sheryl Sculley’s lengthy tenure as city manager, even as dozens of members came and went from city council. The charter review group has a substantial workload ahead if it’s to report back to council ahead of a June 2024 deadline. Perhaps Nirenberg will provide a more full, more compelling and ultimately salable justification for each of the issues he’s set out. It’s also imperative that the review body encourages comments from a broad array of individuals and groups. The business of city government is too important to be left to narrow interests and insiders. I had hoped that any charter review would consider how things actually work at city hall these days, and what often doesn’t. In that regard, an independent ethics auditor sounds just fine. But a much more compelling case can be made for two other independent entities, separate from the manager and city staff. All too often, council enacts policies that are poorly explained, poorly understood and poorly evaluated in terms of implementation and results. Examples abound. The deal to purchase the old
The vast number of bond-funded street projects in recent years have often taken too long and been too disruptive to residents and businesses.
M
Frost Bank building ended up costing more than promised. The vast number of bond-funded street projects in recent years have often taken far too long and been too disruptive to residents and businesses. The city’s disposal of the Grand Hyatt hotel happened too quickly with too little information and likely at the bottom of the market. And we still await what former mayor Julián Castro’s “Decade of Downtown” promised. We could use an independent policy and program review entity comparable to the U.S. Government Accountability Office at the federal government level — an entity with a watchdog role. Further, council would benefit from an independent budget analysis organization comparable to the state’s Legislative Budget Board or the Congressional Budget Office. Above all, council — and the public — need far more information about the city’s public business as well as an independent analysis of the performance of its agencies. Heywood Sanders is a professor of public policy at the University of Texas at San Antonio. sacurrent.com | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | CURRENT
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Done Deal?
San Antonio ISD continues to say school closures will yield student improvements, despite audit report to the contrary BY MICHAEL KARLIS
S
an Antonio Independent School District’s Board of Trustees voted Nov. 13 to close 15 schools and merge others, despite an independent audit that said doing so would yield worse grades, poor attendance and lower test scores. The board’s 5-2 decision has prompted concern by parents, especially since the board members only had 72 hours to read the audit. Indeed, of 100 SAISD families surveyed by the audit’s authors, the “majority experienced the rightsizing process as shocking, moving too quickly, and a ‘done deal,’” according to the document. Despite the quick pace of the process, SAISD Superintendent Jaime Aquino has repeatedly said the closures are necessary. The district’s enrollment has dropped from 61,000 in 1998 to around 45,000 this year. Meanwhile, around 60% of SAISD students graduate lacking college readiness in English and math, according to the district. Aquino argues that closing 16% of the district’s campuses will create a more equitable district since resources will be distributed more evenly, improving student outcomes overall. However, the audit report — created by SAISD at the request of the San Antonio Alliance of Teachers and Support Personnel and authored by a team of three academics — tells a different story. Instead of
creating more equitable outcomes, school closures across the nation, including earlier rounds by SAISD, “did not yield better educational equity of outcomes,” the analysis states. A team of three academics led by Dr. Terrence L. Green, an associate professor at the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy at the University of Texas in Austin, authored the Equity Audit of SAISD’s Right Sizing Process. Even though the teacher’s union requested the audit when the district this summer announced plans to consider school closures, Green and his team were given only three weeks to complete the report before the November meeting. “Typically, an equity audit can take between 6-9 months or even an academic year,” Green stated in the report. During the Nov. 13 board meeting, concerned parents blamed the time crunch on SAISD’s drawn-out process of signing a contract with Green. Members from the San Antonio Alliance first met with Green about the report on July 17. However, Aquino didn’t sit down with Green until a month later to discuss the project and review the proposal, according to the district. SAISD and Green began negotiating Aug. 14 on a “three-phase, one-year contract,” a district spokesperson told the Current in their
Jaime Aquino and the SAISD board listen to comments from parents and concerned citizens at Nov. 13’s meeting.
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emailed statement. That contract wasn’t finalized until Oct. 13, giving Green and his team only 30 days to complete the audit. What’s more, the report was finalized at 6 p.m. on Nov. 10 –– 72 hours before the crucial vote. “The reason that our union and our coalition requested the report in the spring is because we knew the information that was going to be generated by it needed to inform the decisions that are being made,” San Antonio Alliance President Alejandra Lopez said at the November board meeting. “I think that the board needs to do its due diligence and pause this process so that they can grapple with what’s in [the report].” During that gathering, SAISD Board member Sarah Sorensen, an outspoken critic of the school-closure proposal, told colleagues the process was moving too fast. Prior to the vote, she tried to introduce two amendments to save some of the schools slated for closure. Both failed. “I feel like we just sat through a bunch of questions that should have been asked in July and not the night of the vote, which just reiterates my point that this process was rushed, completed before key data was available, like the audit,” Sorensen said.
The Audit During the evaluation process, district officials have said the “rightsizing process” would help 15 sacurrent.com | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | CURRENT
13
Frost Bank Center 1 AT&T Center Parkway San Antonio, TX 78219 For tickets visit FrostBankCenter.com
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
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Michael Karlis
13 alleviate problems with student performance. However, Green’s audit found that students affected by SAISD’s 2015 closures of Steele and White elementary schools had worse grades, attendance, and test scores than their peers who didn’t experience a school closure. Students who were in the 3rd and 4th grades when those schools closed had worse grades than their peers at the receiving school for two years following the shuttering of their original campuses. What’s more, it took them until the 8th grade on average to catch up, according to the audit. Those in the 5th grade at the time of the school closures never recovered grade-wise during that period, earning lower grades on average during the three years following the campus closure compared to their peers who never experienced a school closure. When it came to STAAR test scores, students in the 3rd and 4th grades at the time of the closure scored 75 points lower on average on the reading comprehension section by the time they were in 8th grade, according to the audit. Those in 5th grade scored 100 points lower on average by that time. During the Nov. 13 meeting, Green told board members in the historical cases analyzed in the audit, including those in Chicago, Detroit and Washington, D.C., the only time school closures resulted in better student outcomes was when the students were sent to “higher-performing” campuses. “The problem oftentimes is that those schools, geographically — because of decades of redlining and structural racism — [are] so far apart, and that often never happens,” Green said of SAISD’s plans. “In the case here in San Antonio, our data would suggest that students go to comparable schools at best.”
Funding dispute At the meeting, Aquino continued to dispute Green’s findings. The superintendent questioned whether Green had ever examined the process under which SAISD planned to decide on its current round of closures. He argued that prior SAISD boards and administrators oversaw the 2015 shutdowns, appearing to insinuate that he and the current group of trustees could achieve different outcomes. “Your study, like most scholarship around school closures, has not focused on the quality of the school board, how would they do [the closures], what are their support systems, what did they do before,” Aquino said. Green admitted there’s been little research on how other districts across the nation proceeded with closing schools and the type of support systems they offer to students. “I have not studied that implementation, and hopefully we can study that here,” Green said. “But regardless of the implementation, I think the data is pretty clear on what the impacts are unless they go to particular [schools],” the professor added. Green also took issue with Aquino’s claim that closing schools would be an effective cost-saving measure for the district. Green and his colleagues found that SAISD’s pending closures could yield $47.7 million for distribution to the surviving campuses. However, the professor warned that a slew of variables could prevent schools from ever seeing those funds. Of the 100 parents surveyed for the report, 70% said that if their child’s campus closed, they would pull
Michael Karlis
Representatives of SAISD’s teacher’s union (left) and parents of district students (right) let their signs do the talking.
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the child from SAISD, resulting in less money for the district. Many teachers also said they would leave the district if their school closed, Green added. Even if every student affected by a closure remains in the district and funds were distributed evenly between the remaining schools, there’s no guarantee that that money would be distributed evenly amongst students, the professor also maintained. “So, yes, [SAISD schools] will receive more funds based off of what we projected,” Green said at the meeting. “However, in our projections, it would suggest that there actually would be around 600plus more students going to receiving schools, which would create some unintended consequences.” Some of those consequences include larger class sizes, Green added. “There’s nothing magical about being in a place that may have more resources, if the resources are not distributed equitably,” Green said. Green added that most parents surveyed as part of the audit understood the challenges that the district was facing. However, many felt burned by how the process was handled, feeling as though the district was deceptive and lacking transparency — a claim Aquino has publicly disputed. Time — and future SAISD student outcomes — will suggest whether Aquino or Green is right.
sacurrent.com | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | CURRENT
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THU | 11.30
up after college — which should serve as a hint what to expect from the creators’ latest venture. $39.50-$69.50, 8 p.m., Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston St., (210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — Michael Karlis
SPORTS
SPURS VS. HAWKS
FRI | 12.01 SUN | 12.10 SPECIAL EVENT
Earlier this month, 19-year-old Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama commented on the adversity facing his team — the youngest in the
BALLET SAN ANTONIO: THE NUTCRACKER
NBA — following its fifth consecutive loss. “It just motivates me more,”
For many families, the holiday season isn’t complete without a produc-
Wembanyama told reporters after a 113-118 trouncing by the Miami
tion of Tchaikovsky’s 1892 ballet The Nutcracker, which is aptly set at
Heat. “Nobody in the locker room is putting their head down and giv-
the foot of a Christmas tree on Christmas Eve in the world of a child’s
ing up, so we’re here and we’re ready.” It’s been a rough November for
imagination. Ballet San Antonio’s 2023 production of the iconic ballet
the Spurs, who after enduring an extended losing streak that included
offers live performances of the score by Classical Music Institute’s
the team’s second 40-point loss of the season, are likely ready to turn
Orchestra, the return of choreographers Haley Henderson Smith and
the page on the NBA calendar. San Antonio’s recent rough patch served
Easton Smith and a cast of 25 professional ballet dancers and approxi-
as a stark reminder that the team is in year two of a rebuild, and won
mately 100 children. For Nutcracker superfans, Ballet SA also is hosting
only 22 games last season. Former Spurs Dejounte Murray and Patty
a Sweets and Treats Party, which will feature photos with Nutcracker
Mills make their only appearance at the Frost Bank Center this season,
characters, craft stations and a backstage tour led by the Mouse Queen.
as San Antonio looks to improve its woeful home record on Thursday
In addition to eight regular showings, Ballet SA will present senso-
night against the Atlanta Hawks. $15 and up, 7 p.m., Frost Bank Center,
ry-friendly and abbreviated student matinee performances. $36-$132,
1 Frost Bank Center Drive, (210) 444-5140, frostbankcenter.com,
7:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, additional
Bally Sports SW-SA. — M. Solis
showtimes available online, H-E-B Performance Hall, Tobin Center for the Courtesy Photo / Majestic Theatre
Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, (210) 223-8624, balletsanantonio.
FRI | 12.01 SUN | 12.17 TH EATER
A CHRISTMAS CAROL: A GHOST STORY A seasonal staple at the Public Theater of San Antonio, A Christmas Carol returns to the Russell Hill Rogers stage this December with a twist. In partnership with the organization Stage Hands, the Public Theater will present the beloved yuletide tale through a combination of spoken word and American Sign Language (ASL). The production brings signing to the center of every scene, with an inclusive cast featuring Deaf, Hard of Hearing and hearing actors. Some performers will sign and speak their lines simultaneously while others will only sign, accompanied by a spoken translator, and the entire performance will be supertitled. Additionally, ASL shadow performances will backdrop the actors, enriching the show’s visual experience and adding emotional nuance, with hands arcing and fingers fluttering as Scrooge (Jim Mammarella) reconciles with his plentiful regrets from Christmases past. This innovative take on a Christmas classic captures the communal and compassionate spirit of the holidays by uniting audiences across language barriers. The show will have a limited three-weekend run, including two Thursday performances on December 7 and 14. $18-$48, 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, The Public Theater of San Antonio, 800 W. Ashby Place, (210) 733-7258, thepublicsa.org. — Caroline Wolff
Reginald Thomas II / San Antonio Spurs
THU | 11.30 COMEDY
THIS IS IMPORTANT Adam Devine, Anders Holm, Blake Anderson and Kyle Newacheck, the creators of hit sitcom Workaholics, are inviting guests to sit in, listen and even participate in their hit podcast This Is Important. San Antonio fans will be able to listen to the gang discuss society’s most important issues, including diarrhea, boners and naked grandmas, during this live episode taping. Known for its tongue-in-cheek humor, Workaholics ran for seven seasons on Comedy Central before coming to a close in 2015. The show followed the lives of a group of men who never grew 16
CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
Bobby Foxx Photography
Marty Sohl Photography
calendar
Courtesy Photo / Wonder Theatre
FRI | 12.01 SAT | 12.23 TH EATER
MEET ME IN ST. LOUIS
Based on the beloved 1944 film of the same name, the musical Meet Me in St. Louis follows a turn-of-the-century family through a tumultuous turning point in their lives. The Smiths and their five children lead a comfortable yet complacent upper-middle-class lifestyle until the arrival of the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis ignites a sense of hope and possibility within them. In the months leading up to the fair, the Smiths take on unexpected vibrancy as they shop for new outfits, play practical jokes and — for some family members — uncover new romantic prospects. When faced with the sudden news that they will have to relocate due to the father’s job, causing them to miss the World’s Fair, the family members are distraught, knowing they will have to uproot everything they’ve ever known — and everything they’re just becoming acquainted with. Presented via an enchanting musical catalog that includes the seminal holiday ballad “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas,” Meet Me in St. Louis tells an unforgettable and ultimately uplifting tale of a family relearning how to love and be loved in the face of loss and uncertainty. $18-$32, 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Sunday, additional showtimes available online, Wonder Theatre at Woodlawn Theatre, 1920 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 267-8388, wondertheatre.org. — CW
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calendar org. — Macks Cook
SAT | 12.02 SPECIAL EVENT
AN EVENING WITH PRISCILLA PRESLEY Priscilla Presley, the former wife of the King of Rock ’n’ Roll, brings her touring show to San Antonio as Sofia Coppola’s critically acclaimed film Priscilla introduces a new generation to the complicated relationship between Elvis and his then-teen bride. The movie is based on Priscilla Presley’s 1985 memoir Elvis and Me, and it’s a sure bet the businesswoman and actress will end up dishing on plenty of details surrounding the book and film. Some of the most fascinating of those will probably center on how she moved beyond an often-stifling sixyear marriage with one of the planet’s most famous figures to find success on her own terms. Past iterations of the show have included a Q&A session with an interviewer followed by Priscilla Presley responding to inquiries from audience members. We’ll be disappointed if someone doesn’t ask what it was like to have Michael Jackson as a son-in-law. After all, the late Lisa Marie Presley — the sole child from Priscilla Presley’s marriage to Elvis — was hitched to the Prince of Pop for two years. $49 and up, 8 p.m., Charline McCombs Empire Theatre, 226 N. St. Mary’s St.,
©Sara Hoffman2014
WED | 12.06 SPECIAL EVEN T
MANNHEIM STEAMROLLER CHRISTMAS BY CHIP DAVIS
Performances by Grammy Award-winning musician and songwriter Chip Davis and Mannheim Steamroller have become such a holiday tradition that it’s almost hard to imagine that the group once was credited for revolutionizing Christmas music. For its current tour, the ensemble will perform Mannheim Steamroller Christmas, the classic holiday album that’s reverberated for nearly 40 years with fans. In addition to its blend of classical music and rock featuring instruments such as the violin, harpsichord, keyboard and electric guitar, the show boasts dazzling multimedia effects. Sure, compared to the pyrotechnics and instrumental shredding of Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller’s approach might seem quaint, but plenty of fans would argue it’s aged well. $49 and up, 7:30 p.m., Majestic Theatre, 224 E. Houston St., (210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — Colin Houston
Courtesy Photo / Empire Theatre
(210) 226-3333, majesticempire.com. — Sanford Nowlin
SUN | 12.03 DRAG
A DRAG QUEEN CHRISTMAS Some of the most exhilarating queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race are here to slay — or should we say, sleigh. The longest-running drag tour in America, now in its ninth year, is a fab holiday extravaganza that’s bringing a dazzling array of former Drag Race contestants to the stage. Hosted by Miz Cracker, runner-up on the fifth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, the spectacular also includes the winning queens from the latest seasons of both Drag Race and All Stars: Sasha Colby and Jimbo the Drag Clown. Performer and choreographer Todrick Hall as well as queens Alyssa Edwards, Brooke Lynn Hytes, Crystal Methyd, Jessica Wild, Heidi N Closet, Luxx Noir London, Marcia Marcia Marcia and Trinity the Tuck round out the wild and ribald coast-to-coast tour. $53 and up, 8 p.m., Aztec Theatre, 104 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 812-4355, theaztectheatre.com. — Dalia Gulca
Courtesy Photo / Murray & Peter Present
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THU | 12.07 SUN | 12.17
Courtesy Photo / Teatro Audaz
TH EATER
IT’S A WONDERFUL VIDA
San Antonio theater company Teatro Audaz offers a look inside the home of a 1950s Chicano family and their atypical Christmas experience with Herbert Siguenza’s It’s A Wonderful Vida. Set in Corpus Christi’s Molina neighborhood, the play follows the immigrant Pacheco family as they work to assimilate and chase the elusive American dream. While the Pachecos may seem like a normal Mexican American family, their holiday experience veers beyond the ordinary as mysterious figure Santi Clos “Nick” intervenes to help the family so he can earn his Santa Hat. Directed by Nora Moreno-Jarrell, the play makes its Texas premiere Thursday, Dec. 7, at San Antonio College’s McCreless Theater. San Diego-based playwright Siguenza will attend the Dec. 9 performance and hold a post-show platica, or talk, with the cast and audience. $15-$35, 7:30 p.m. Thursday-Saturday, 5:30 p.m. Sunday, McCreless Theater, 799 W. Dewey Place, teatroaudaz.com. — Amber Esparza
THU | 12.07
Shutterstock / Michael Mattes
COMEDY
ADAM SANDLER
Even as his star power as a screen actor continues to shine strong, funnyman Adam Sandler hasn’t forgotten that standup comedy was how he first gained the spotlight. After getting his start on Saturday Night Live in the early ’90s, Sandler became a household name through roles in cult-classic comedies including Happy Gilmore (1996) and The Water Boy (1998). More recently, he racked up critical acclaim for his role in the tense 2019 thriller Uncut Gems. Sandler’s stop in the Alamo City as part of The I Missed You Tour follows his successful Adam Sandler LIVE tour, which sold out venues earlier this year. $69.50 and up, 7:30 p.m., Frost Bank Center, 1 Frost Bank Center Drive, (210) 444-5140, frostbankcenter.com. — MK
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arts
Tall Order
Completing downtown’s 76-foot-high Spurs mural was a team play led by SA artist Andy Benavides BY ANJALI GUPTA
A
t 76 feet tall and visible from the busy Houston Street thoroughfare, the new mural by San Antonio artist, creative director and educator Andy Benavides is literally one of downtown’s highest-profile pieces of public art. Despite its dramatic size, the mural celebrating San Antonio’s love affair with the Spurs sprung from humble origins, according to Benavides — “a vision that was inspired by my mom and her sisters’ love for their team.” In late October, Centro San Antonio, a nonprofit placemaking organization, announced that Benavides had won a highly competitive open call to create a massive mural downtown celebrating the city’s unyielding admiration for its NBA team. The commission, part of Centro’s Arts Everywhere initiative, places public art on privately owned spaces. It also came with a healthy $100,000 honorarium to cover the sizable fees and expenses the conception and execution of such a large-scale mural demands. Shortly after the initial announcement, Centro San Antonio declared that the next phase for the mural had moved forward with approval by the city’s Department of Arts & Culture Public Art Committee and was heading for approval through the San Antonio Arts Commission. The proposal passed Nov. 3 — a turnaround practically unprecedented in the realm of public art. Also moving with remarkable speed, Benavides and his team completed the mural Por Vida (For Life) Nov. 22. “When we work together great things happen,” Benavides explained via text. “This was the thought that crossed my mind and inspired my organizing of a team to bring my vision to a reality.” In the piece, which scales the side of the Houston Street Garage at the intersection of Houston and Navarro streets, a pair of aged hands cradle a “Super San Anto” prayer candle. The candle’s label features a Spurs jersey surrounded by a ring of red roses. A banner reading “1973” features prominently under the jersey, referencing the year the Chaparrals relocated to San Antonio, becoming the Spurs. Below, an NBA trophy ring reminds us of the Spurs’ incredible accomplishments and the indelible mark the team has made on the community. Like the Spurs, Benavides is no stranger
Sanford Nowlin
to operating at high velocity. Continuing that analogy, he also moves with purpose, although eschewing NBA-style safety glasses for his signature horn-rimmed specs. In addition to his practice as a visual artist, Benavides serves as executive director of Supporting Multiple Arts Resources Together (SMART), a nonprofit dedicated to building community through the arts. The organization includes educational and exhibition spaces, both located on South Flores Street in the same building as Benavides Picture Framing and BZ Designs, Benavides’ for-profit businesses. The two ventures are among the top choices for artists and collectors alike when it comes to handling and presenting their work. Benavides runs both the for- and nonprofit
entities alongside his wife and partner Yvette. A single thread of great import carried Benavides’ latest mural project from start to finish: teamwork. Those included the nonprofit and city entities that pushed the project forward, the underpinnings of what makes the Spurs a remarkable sports team and the talented individuals he tapped to realize the massive endeavor. “Special thanks to Centro/Art Everywhere project for funding us,” Benavides said in the recent text, “the City of San Antonio, The San Antonio SPURS and my thanks to SOUPE, Matt Tumlinson, Jose Cosme, Christina Duncan and Danielle Edwards for helping bring this vision to a 76’ tall reality, and my storytellers behind the cameras, Santiago ‘SLIM’ Lopez, Rey Silva, and Christie Gallegos.”
Find more arts coverage every day at sacurrent.com
SAMA Holiday Market Saturday, December 9 | 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. | Free to all Shop for gifts from 40+ local artists and makers including: • Get Stoked Handmade • Katrina O'Day Designs
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Plus: Enjoy artmaking, live music by Jorge and Nicole and The Dirty River Jazz Band, and children’s story time with Kay Karcher Mijangos & Laura Mijangos. Food and drink available for purchase.
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
In May December, Todd Haynes turns an old tabloid tale into a first-rate sexual thriller, just like they used to make BY KAYLA MCCULLOCH
Y
ou do it nicely, ‘cause it really does matter how it looks.” So says Gracie (Julianne Moore) to Elizabeth (Natalie Portman) in Todd Haynes’ May December. Ostensibly, she’s talking about arranging the maraschino cherries in a pineapple upside-down cake. But, spoken from the lips of a registered sex offender to the ears of a famous Hollywood actress in a sunny Savannah, Georgia, kitchen, there’s bound to be something deeper underneath this basic baking tip. They’re too peculiar a pairing in too abnormal a circumstance for her remark to be anywhere near surface level. You see, they’re making a movie out of a local woman’s headline-grabbing affair with a middle school student, and Elizabeth is starring as the lead. Gracie is the inspiration for that role. This unassuming middle-aged mother with strawberry blonde hair plastered the covers of pulpy grocery store tabloids in the early 1990s. The cause of all the hubbub? Her criminal relationship with a seventh grader (and, later, the birth of her children with him). The couple — now married — has carved out a cozy niche amidst the antebellum homes and Spanish moss, away from the harsh spotlight of media frenzy. Now, in the opinions of those who’d rather not dwell on it, some uppity Hollyweird celeb has come to tear down the facade. It’s not surprising that Elizabeth’s arrival has people nervous. It’s been decades since what happened … happened. Why dig it all up again? While she’d never admit it to anyone but herself, this is undoubtedly Gracie’s position. She and her husband Joe (Charles Melton) have established as much normalcy and security as possible for their family in the wake of such a controversy. Alas, as is the duty of any good (albeit kooky) housewife in the Hostess City of the South, Gracie welcomes her guest with open arms, tight lips and a guarded attitude. Whether it comes from the film’s unsettling score, its jarring interludes with creepy-crawly close-ups or all those backhanded pleasantries being exchanged, there’s an energy that feels volatile in the world of
screens
Notes from a Scandal
© MAY DECEMBER PRODUCTIONS 2022 LLC
May December. It was hard for me to shake the feeling that, at any moment, someone or something was going to blow. To some extent, this may be what daily life feels like in wealthy suburbs. It’s beyond a small inkling, though. Past all the polite conversations, the fake smiles and the please-and-thank-yous, Elizabeth’s investigative digging into Gracie’s troubled past starts to feel worse than bad manners. It feels dangerous. As Elizabeth searches for the most honest angle to embody the role of Gracie, Gracie works to make sure it’s never found. With not-so-subtle shades of David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive and Ingmar Bergman’s Persona— not to mention the urtext for this type of film, Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo — May December takes what we know about the trope of the blonde/brunette doppelgänger and uses it to tell a story about telling a story. While Haynes’s interests here are decidedly not as nightmarish as Lynch’s or Bergman’s (and far less twisty than Hitchcock’s), he still explores the age-old idea of dark doubles through the visual motif of hair color (plus plenty of reflections, twins and mimicry to drive the point home). Haynes also toyed with this hair color thing in his 2015 Carol. The age gap romance, too. And yet, if ever there was an anti-Carol, it would be May December. Haynes traverses similar themes across both films, but the approach is much more lurid than languid this go-round. Forget about the gentle, literary aesthetic Haynes so beautifully brought to the pair of star-crossed lovers in midcentury New York. His latest offers the kind of outrageously brash take on sexual promiscuity more often found in a Lifetime movie. I don’t
mean to use that Lifetime label as an insult, either. Until recently, the network was one of the only places I could find shamelessly sensual, hilariously campy melodramas en masse. The tides are turning, however — and it’s not just Haynes’s doing. From film historian Karina Longworth’s recent deep-dive into the erotic thrillers of the ‘80s and ‘90s on her podcast You Must Remember This to the return of genre greats like Adrian Lyne and his underrated (and, I must say, unceremoniously dropped) Hulu release Deep Water, May December fits snugly into a growing trend. Right when I feared the subgenre dead, Haynes has used his auteur status to bolster the erotic thriller — and, in doing so, quenches modern audiences’ very real thirst for sinister, seedy, seductive fare. It’s one of his strongest, most intoxicating works to date. To be clear, Haynes is not some provocateur hoping to resuscitate a sordid style of film for shock value alone. May December is more complex, more layered, more intelligent than that. Above all else, it’s a titillating exploration of the nuances of truth. Elizabeth and Gracie, the film’s doubles, can be seen as the two sides of the scandalous story. There’s the version Gracie tells — her truth, no matter how honest or dishonest that may be — and there’s the objective truth that Elizabeth seeks. The story being told and the reality of what actually went down are not the same. Cover-ups, threats, deception, bottled emotions … all come with the price of protecting some form of truth or another. Remember: when telling a life story, you do it nicely, ‘cause it really does matter how it looks.
Find more film stories at sacurrent.com
THU RSDAY, D E C E M B E R 7 • 5 - 8 P M
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CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
food
Family Meal
Rico Torres of San Antonio’s Mixtli benefiting his native El Paso with dinner series BY NINA RANGEL
C
hef Rico Torres has racked up national accolades for being half of the team behind Mixtli Progressive Culinaria, a lauded San Antonio restaurant that explores regional Mexican cusine using indigenous ingredients and techniques. Through his travels on the festival circuit, Torres also has connected with other El Paso-born culinarians to launch Family Meal, a series of one-night dinners that benefit his native city. Typically cooked and served during restaurants’ service lulls to feed staff, “family meals” are short interludes that allow employees to break bread before getting back to the grind. We caught up with Torres to chat more about Family Meal, and the connections borne from the effort.
Let’s start at the beginning: where did where did Family Meal come from?
So, back in about 2015 and 16, we were doing a lot of festivals, the circuit, and kept running into friends that were also from El Paso. I didn’t know chef Andre [Natera, formerly of the Fairmount Austin,] was from there. And so the conversation kind of got rolling, like, “Hey, we should go back home and cook. But if we cook together, then we should raise money to help the community.” And it was really kind of a way for us to get together and hang out and cook, and it had to be open fires and it had to have views of the mountains. Gabe Erales, Fermin Nunez, Alan Delgado, Jake Rojas, Daniel Calleros, Omar Flores, myself. We were in the first roster, and we went to El Paso. I started working on logistics, hooked up with the owners of Ardovino’s Desert Crossing, and they are about half a mile outside of El Paso. From there, you can see New Mexico, Mexico and El Paso — and the mountains, and the train passes by through the mountain. It was the perfect venue for us to have our first event.
How have the events fared so far?
The jokes were ridiculous, the camaraderie was, you know, something that I have personally been missing. And I just I loved it. And I know that it’s really fun that we have that experience in common. We did the second one in Austin at the Fairmont, where chef Andre was executive chef at the time. The gang came out again. The third one was last year, again at Ardovino’s, but a little bit bigger. And by this time, El Paso has a little bit of a fever for
TxTroublemaker
it. You know, the chefs there recognize that there’s something big happening with their city, and it’s a place that has so much talent. This last one, we were able to include more people, add a lot of diversity in our group, but some of the chefs had some stuff going on. It was tough for them, but they still made it, because this is such a big commitment. And it’s not like, “Hey, I want to cancel on this next big food festival that has millions of dollars and sponsors, and you know, it won’t be a big deal if I’m not there.” I would disappoint this group of guys that started this thing together. And so one of them had food poisoning, and he showed up anyway. He was like, green. The other one had had some family stuff going on, but he still showed up. And we made it all work out.
Tell me about the beneficiaries.
We donate to Annunciation House, they are a group in El Paso that will receive people being released from ICE detention centers, sometimes they’re released right onto the street with no idea where they are, where they’re headed. And [Annunciation House helps] with maybe a couple of months of shelter, some directions, a ride, some food, you know, some some basic human stuff to get them going on to their next the next leg of their destination. And that was great. El Paso Community Foundation connected us with El Paso’s food bank, which reaches almost 10,000 square miles with community outreach groups and satellite kitchens. Be-
cause there’s a lot of elderly people that live in some pretty rural areas out of the deserts. With seven cents, they can make one meal, so when we made our last donation, I think we sent enough for just over 92,000 meals. It sounds like a lot, but it’s still such a huge effort that they’re trying to make.
What’s next? You’re planning the next one in El Paso?
We’re looking at March or April, and much, much bigger. A lot more families, better price point. Just a little more inclusive. And, yeah, sometimes it’s herding cats a little bit. But I think everybody has learned to appreciate the structure of it, because it’s gonna be a much better event. And everybody’s just making that happen with that one motto: We’ll figure it out. I’ve been figuring it out for 20 years, and now we’re figuring it out together to help our community. It’s beautiful. Name: Rico Torres Birthplace: El Paso, Texas Claims to Fame: Chef, co-owner of Mixtli Progressive Culinaria and founder of El Paso Family Meal Tipple of Choice: Mezcal, neat Money Quote: “There are a lot of little details [in making a successful restaurant], from storytelling to the food to the cohesion to how the team grows. But harmony is probably the number one rule.”
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31
Picking Up the Pieces
The messy business of reuniting Girl in a Coma BY MIKE MCMAHAN
S
ure, there were rumors. But for most fans, the announcement last August that San Antonio’s beloved alt-punk trio Girl in a Coma would reunite for a brief series of “closure” shows came as a total shock. The group had been in limbo for years, formally disbanded. Even though interviewers regularly pressed the members on whether they’d ever reunite, they’d since moved on to other projects. Singer-songwriter Nina Diaz had a solo career that includes prolific self-releases and singing on the opening track of a Spanish-language reimagining of Elvis Costello’s This Year’s Model titled Spanish Model. Meanwhile, bassist Jenn Alva and drummer Phanie Diaz — Nina’s big sister — tour regularly as the core of Latina punk group Fea, a hard-hitting outfit that’s earned accolades from Rolling Stone and Iggy Pop. Just the same, the reunion — however short-lived — is real, and the shows are nearly here. GIAC will play San Antonio’s Paper Tiger on Friday, Dec. 8, and Sunday, Dec. 10. Both San Antonio shows are sold out. The Offbeats will open the Friday performance, while Ready Revolution kicks things off Sunday. Also on the books: a Thursday, Dec. 7, gig at Houston’s Continental Club and Saturday, Dec. 9, at the Mohawk in Austin. Just the same, many fans are left wondering the same thing: despite the premise, could this be the inevitable prelude to an album, a full tour and a return to full working status? Like so many things surrounding Girl in a Coma, it’s complicated. However, during a series of October interviews with the band’s members, individually and as a group, all three expressed an excitement about the upcoming shows. During a recent practice, the band ran through powerful versions of classics including “Clumsy Sky,” “Smart,” “Adjust” and “Ven Cerca.” If the power of that practice is any indication: it’s unlikely that fans hitting the December shows will walk away disappointed. The Girls still have it. Once the music started, it was like the magic never went away. Nina still commanded attention with her passionate, wavering vocals. Jenn still bobbed her head in classic punk style, charging ahead with her powerful bass lines. Phanie held down a strong foundation, despite Nina jokingly admonishing her for playing too fast. “This isn’t Fea!” her sister reminded her. But before we can talk about what the future might hold beyond the four upcoming shows, it’s vital to look back.
Sisters in arms “I remember when my mom brought Nina home, 32
CURRENT | November 29 – December 12, 2023 | sacurrent.com
my brother was really upset,” said Phanie, 43. “I remember her being placed in the crib and my brother was like, ‘Great.’ Really mad about it.” Unlike her brother, Phanie wasn’t jealous. Instead, she was excited to have a sister. Jenn, 43, remembered that she and Phanie met in 8th grade in an art class at Longfellow Middle School. They had the same shoes in different colors. Jenn suggested a swap. Phanie declined. Shoes aside, they began to talk about music that summer, and Jenn suggested they start a band. Jenn lied about being able to play bass, but luckily Phanie knew enough to show her the basics. “We’ve been best friends ever since,” Jenn said. The pair spent years playing in “dirty punk bands” before setting their sights higher as they entered their 20s, according to Phanie. After those dues-paying years, they envisioned the band that became GIAC. The only problem was the seasoned rhythm section needed someone up front. Even though many musicians wouldn’t have considered adding a member eight years their junior, Phanie recognized the talent blooming in her sister, then nearly 14. Nina, now 35, was developing chops on the guitar and starting to write her own songs.
Not to mention, she had a unique vocal style that recalled influences spanning Bjork to Patsy Cline to Morrissey, the singer of The Smiths. Adding to that diversity of influences, the three young women hadn’t just grown up on punk, altand classic rock. Given their hometown and cultural roots, Tejano was also part of the mix. The blend helped form a distinctive sound. Still, the members of Girl in a Coma always emphasized they’re none of these things individually. At the end of the day, they’re simply a rock ’n’ roll band. By 2001, the trio was serious about playing live, and the band took its name in homage to The Smiths song “Girlfriend in a Coma.” All three members were fans, but the moniker would prove fortuitous. Little did they know, Morrissey would pop up in their story again. The trio was thrown into the deep end with its first show, a bill at now-shuttered goth and punk club Sin 13. “I was working at a thrift store and a girl from a band called Burning White Lines was a regular thrifter there,” Phanie said. “I told her I was starting a band.” After another group dropped off the Sin 13 bill, the customer asked Phanie if Girl in a Coma could fill in.
music Jaime Monzon
The other two members of GIAC were less than enthusiastic, since the fledgling group only had three songs. Despite the reservations, they soldiered ahead. By the time of the show, Nina got so nervous she couldn’t make eye contact with anyone. And Phanie? “I didn’t know how to set up the drum kit correctly.”
Team GIAC Despite its rough debut, Girl in a Coma persevered. The band thrived due to teamwork. Each of the three strong women brought something to the mix. Phanie excelled at managing social media, once landing GIAC opening slots for Canadian alt-pop duo Tegan and Sara by reaching out with an unsolicited message. Meanwhile, Jenn played the role of organizer and motivator, and Nina wrote the songs. It didn’t hurt that Phanie’s and Nina’s mom became a solid supporter once she realized how committed her daughters were to the band. She even got the trio a loan so they
could update their equipment. Nor did it hurt that Nina took a deeply analytical approach to improving her songwriting. She learned by ear, picking apart others’ songs and learning what made them work. “I analyzed cover songs, and it made me the kind of writer I am,” she said. “This song is three chords? I thought it was a zillion. It seems so complicated.” She also brought a unique vocal style, heavy on a wavering tremolo that’s been one of her trademarks. At one point, that wavering pitch became so prominent that the band’s other members asked her to dial it down. Her early Morrissey influence was so pronounced some early listeners thought she was British. Jenn’s hard-charging bass provided a perfect foil and created a musical tension at the core of Girl in a Coma’s best work. “[She] goes in blindly and doesn’t follow rules,” Phanie said of Jenn. “She took off with the little bass I showed her. There’s no rules to the way she writes stuff. She’s lead-driven. There’s this melody battle between her and Nina that I really appreciate.”
San Antonio’s Girl in a Coma released three albums of original material and toured relentlessly before a 2018 breakup.
M
Beyond adding sonic balance, Phanie emerged as the band’s undisputed leader. Even today, all parties agree. “I am [the leader] with Fea, and I guess so with Girl in a Coma, looking back,” Phanie said. “The girls did rely on me.” Phanie showed her drive and dedication by booking early road dates with a dial-up internet connection from the library near the Diaz family home. “I booked our first tour, and it was two months,” Phanie recalled. “I don’t know what the fuck we were thinking doing that. We left with $500 and went coast to coast.” The members of Girl in a Coma ran out of money in San Francisco and went to bars with a Walkman, asking people to listen to the band’s demo. They asked anyone who liked what they heard to donate $5. 35
Reminder:
Although live events have returned, the COVID-19 pandemic is still with us. Check with venues to make sure scheduled events are still happening, and please follow all health and safety guidelines.
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Jaime Monzon
33 Finally, the band collected $170 — enough to get home. Eventually, those tribulations gave way to successes. During a subsequent tour, the band ended up meeting Morrissey at LA’s famed Viper Room — a connection that turned into a tour opening slot for the alt-rock icon. “It was our first time playing [the Viper Room],” Nina said. “I love River Phoenix, and I’m morbid as well. I took a photo of where he passed. Morrissey was in the back corner, and it’s so dramatic because there’s a curtain, but you know he’s there.” Faith Radle, who managed Girl in a Coma for the majority of its run, said the tour opening for Morrissey was a watershed moment. Although the singer’s cultish fans had a tendency to treat opening bands with indifference or outright disdain, the three young women from San Antonio won over the crowds. “There was a moment where they played a song and the crowd turned and embraced them,” Radle said. “They just won over this sold-out crowd in New York City, and no one [was] there to see them.”
The Diaz House Girl in a Coma toured relentlessly. It also dropped three LPs of original material: Both Before I’m Gone (2007),
Trio B.C. (2009) and Exits & All The Rest (2011) along with the covers album Adventures in Coverland (2010). By alt-rock standards, it was a successful run, but it’s not like the members got rich. Nina currently lives with her parents in the same home where she grew up — and where Phanie has lived intermittently. It’s the same place that houses her studio, Beat Girl Productions, where she records her solo material and is building up to record other acts. “My parents have always been very accommodating,” Nina said. “GIAC was practicing here, Fea was here, my solo stuff. This is a very musical house.” Nina’s and Phanie’s mom grew up southeast of San Antonio in the small town of Runge. She moved to the Alamo City at 19 after becoming pregnant with Phanie. “She’s always been mindful to encourage what we’ve been interested in, even in our relationships,” Nina said. “Not to control anything as long as we’re safe — even though we’d lie about being safe on some things, you know? She’d say, ‘I don’t have a lot of money, but I have this room.’” But it’s not just blood family at the heart of GIAC’s success. Fans connected with the group’s approachability and treated the members like family. “It’s like we’re your cousins or your sisters,” Nina said. “Or the girl you
might have a crush on down the street, but she’s cool and actually talks to you.” Despite plenty of fans cheering them on, the band’s youth presented challenges. Jenn and Phanie were barely out of their teens when success started to snowball. Meanwhile, the even younger Nina was even more inexperienced. Without a lot of life experiences to guide her, she made poor choices. “Later on, as I started to have moments of sobriety, I realized that being in that environment early makes you say, ‘I can do whatever I want,’” she said. “But then my moments of sobriety and spirituality began to clash with whatever roads Jenn and Phanie were on personally. That’s when things would start to get chaotic.” Perhaps it was inevitable that tensions would rise as three tough, strongwilled women navigated touring life and a dog-eat-dog music business. Even so, the road went on and on, and pioneering woman rocker Joan Jett signed the trio to her Blackheart Records label. Radle recalled watching Jett light up as she watched GIAC perform. That gig ended up prompting her to bring the group into her fold. “I was standing next to [Jett], watching her watching them — and seeing her reaction was pretty special,” Radle said. “She’s a genuine person, and her reaction to them was very genuine.”
Girl in a Coma practices at the Diaz sisters’ family home ahead of the band’s upcoming reunion shows.
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Tours and gigs with Jett followed. So did road dates with the Pogues, Social Distortion, Smashing Pumpkins, Frank Black, Minus the Bear and Cursive. Girl in a Coma even landed a song in the Robert Rodriguez film Machete. The hard work paid off, and the band accumulated fans around the globe. The base crossed genders, ages, ethnicities and sexual identities. In particular, Phanie treasures memories of the band’s performance at Polish Woodstock, which it headlined with multi-platinum rap-rockers Papa Roach. “We played in front of half a million people,” Phanie said. “Jenn got sick real quick, she was so nervous. Our manager told us how many people were out there, and I was like, ‘Holy shit!’ Once you’re up there, you look out, and people are just ants.”
Deep wounds After nearly two decades flogging the road, more pressures accompanied the successes. GIAC’s members were also growing up, growing older and spreading their wings. 37
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By 2018, the band was winding down. The breakup left wounds — in some cases deepened by the group’s family connections. Girl in a Coma played that year’s Taco Fest, a San Antonio food and music festival. At the time, only Nina knew it was the last gig. “You could see a lot on their faces,” Radle remembered of the performance. “I was very aware that things were going on, but none of us were aware it was the last show.” Phanie didn’t want to see the breakup happen, but she now recognizes that it was the right move. “I always thought we would be a strong family but things change,” she said. “Time changes you.” “All the cliches came into play,” Jenn said of the end. “Phanie and I were OK with drinking here and there. Nina was young, so that was intense. I felt like I was more naïve to her drug use. Maybe I hadn’t been around a lot of people that used drugs or whatever.” For Nina, the first step to sobriety was being called on the severity of her problem. “It was always, ‘Don’t tell Jenn and Phanie’ — and that was my teens, until I got sober,” she said. “Finally, I had a moment where a friend said, ‘Hey, Nina, I can’t be your friend anymore if you’re going to do this.’” Nina recalls having a profound conversation with her brother about her need to get clean. Eventually, she joined AA. “What drugs I had left, I put in this heart-shaped box, taped it up, and threw it away,” she added. Although Jenn and Phanie never formally intervened, the three later talked about Nina’s sobriety. “I remember Jenn crying and saying, ‘We thought you were gonna die,’” Nina said. “And I’m thinking, ‘Why didn’t you say something?’ They weren’t the wake-up call.” Nina decided to move on and pursue her own musical path, relocating to LA, taking a day job and pursuing a solo career. Jenn and Phanie put their heads down, tough as ever. They shifted their focus to Fea. “If you look at it from the outside, maybe Nina would be more successful without us,” Jenn said. “I think that’s what drove her, maybe. The not getting along, the wanting to do her own stuff and not being told anything by us.” Despite the pain that came with the breakup, all three members said they
also gained an eventual understanding of why the split occurred — and why it may have been beneficial. “Nina had been getting help, therapists, this and that. Phanie and I didn’t, and we had to deal,” Jenn said. “Sometimes we were very upset, and sometimes we were fine with it.”
Breaking the silence Radio silence held steady between two camps until COVID-19 hit U.S. shores in 2020. The three reunited to play a set for Phanie’s and Nina’s mom’s 60th birthday — a gig she requested. Playing a one-off gig at the house made sense. Jenn and Phanie were both living there to ride out the pandemic. Eventually, Nina moved back to the GIAC house as well, meaning the band — the family — was all under the same roof. The tension remained, and at one point, Nina threatened to move out. But then came a gradual thaw. Nina and Phanie began talking after the death of a close mutual friend — a discussion that led Nina to realize life’s fleeting nature. “I love Jenn too, but Phanie is my sister,” she said. The healing took time, Phanie added. “We grew separately, even Jenn and I as best friends,” she explained. “Becoming individuals instead of relying on each other. We realized it’s OK to do these [closure shows] and not be mad anymore. We’re all going to be sad, and I’m sure I’ll cry playing drums.”
‘Someone has to be the bad guy’ With long-simmering tensions repaired, is Girl in a Coma looking to make a permanent return? That decision ultimately comes down to Nina, according to Phanie. “I don’t know how Nina will feel when it’s done, or whether in two years from now she’ll be like ‘Do you want to have another show?’” she said. “From day one, I’ve said yes to everything. It’s one of those things where it will be OK if it doesn’t happen again. I have to keep it in my head that it’s my sister first.” Nina said she knows Jenn and Phanie would like GIAC to create new music and operate as a working band. She also understands she’s the one standing in the way. “I remember telling Phanie — after I ended the band and we got into it
Jaime Monzon
— ‘This is a chance for you to explore,’ Nina said. “Now look at Phanie. She owns Bang Bang and Bar America. She’s become this entrepreneur. And Jenn has her family now. I don’t think that would have happened if GIAC was still GIAC.” Nina added: “Girl in a Coma ran its course. We’ve done what we can. But there’s still so much more as an artist and as a person that I have to learn and do. … Let’s focus on what we can do, which is jam and laugh. And I’m going to have my sister back. Not a parental figure.” Despite the short-lived nature of the reunion, Phanie is looking forward to seeing familiar faces. She’s also eager to see old fans bring the next generation
‘Girl in a Coma ran its course,’ singer-guitarist Nina Diaz said.
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of GIAC fans to the show: their kids. So, even though the gigs are meant to provide closure, they’ll be a new beginning in some ways. With a family there are always more chapters to be written. “Doing these closure shows, this is how I wish it had ended,” Nina said. “It was a classic breakup. Someone has to be the bad guy, you know?” Sold out, 8 p.m. Friday, Dec. 8 and Sunday, Dec. 10, Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary’s St., papertigersatx.com.
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critics’ picks Friday, Dec. 1
Thursday, Dec. 7
Frozen Soul, 200 Stab Wounds, Judiciary, Tribal Gaze, Slaughter Swamp Fort Worth-based death metal mavens Frozen Soul are serious about the cold weather vibe. Their latest LP, Glacial Domination, follows up 2021’s Crypt of Ice. The band’s surprisingly accessible riffs, many rooted in classic metal, are the perfect fit for those who like their death metal straight up — or, perhaps more appropriately, on the rocks. $20-$25, 7:30 p.m., The Rock Box, 1223 E. Houston St., (210) 772-1443, therockboxsa.com. — Mike McMahan
MISSIO, Wildman Austin’s dark electronic duo MISSIO are offering “an evening of music therapy” on this stop of its acoustic tour. Vocalist Matthew Brue formed the group in 2014, then asked producer-engineer friend David Butler to work on an EP of his demos. Early success led to a deal with RCA for the 2017 release Loner, which spawned the hit “Middle Fingers.” $30, 7 p.m., Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary’s St., papertigersatx.com. — DC
We Are Scientists, NEWSKI Keith Murray and Chris Cain, the duo behind We Are Scientists, have banged out eight studio albums over the years with a variety of collaborators, the latest being drummer Keith Carne. In January, the group released Lobes, which eschewed the synth-heavy sound of earlier releases, adding more guitars while retaining a danceable and upbeat sound. $20, 8 p.m., Paper Tiger, 2410 N. St. Mary’s St., papertigersatx.com. — Danny Cervantes The Meteors London’s The Meteors have described themselves as the originators of the psychobilly scene. While it’s open to debate whether The Meteors bear sole responsibility for the genre, the band has been at it since 1980 and it was certainly among the first to blend punk, rockabilly, horror and macabre imagery. Thanks to touring and a stream of releases, the group continues to command respect from psychobilly fans worldwide. $18-$18-$20, 8 p.m., Vibes Underground, 1223 E. Houston St., (210) 2553833, facebook.com/vibesunderground. — DC Old 97’s, Janet Ray Reddick Dallas alt-country outfit the Old 97’s is looking to kick the season off right with a show it’s billing as a “Holiday Hoopla.” It’s not unreasonable to expect tunes from the band’s 2018 Christmas LP Love the Holidays. $25, 8 p.m., Gruene Hall, 1281 Gruene Road, (830) 606-1281, gruenehall. com. — MM
Saturday, Dec. 2 The Frog and Bandit, The Khost, Mary Maria, Medusa Complex This lineup of San Antonio- and Austin-based bands offers a variety of indie sounds. The Frog & Bandit combine twinkly guitar work with gloomy lyricism, while The Khost lean into trance-inducing music with gooey vocals. Mary Maria makes music with a sad-yet-unhurried air, and Medusa Complex offers a grittier sound with abrasive, wailing vocals emblematic of Midwest-style emo. Free, 7 p.m., Tandem, 310 Riverside Drive, (210) 455-5400, tandemsatx. net. — Dalia Gulca
Bizzy Bone
Saturday, Dec. 9 Bizzy Bone, Lil Yodaa, C.T.G., Dub-Zero “We have been a great group for San Antonio, and I think that relationship has built a friendship over the years as well as a certain love,” Bone Thugs-N-Harmony member Bizzy Bone told the Current in 2019. Both as a member of the Cleveland-based rap group and as a prolific solo artist, Bizzy Bone has certainly continued to put in San Antonio appearances, bringing along his distinctive rapid-fire rhyme skills and eagerness to experiment. This time, he’s touring behind Tha Waste Lands, his fifth fulllength release in as many years, and meet-andgreet packages are available for an extra $40. $40, 8 p.m., Fitzgerald’s Bar and Live Music Venue, 437 McCarty, Suite 101, (210) 607-7007, fitzrockssa.com. — Sanford Nowlin Trans-Siberian Orchestra Yeah, Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s holiday spectacles are kinda cornball, what with all the prog pomp, over-the-top pyrotechnics and guitar shredding. But they’re also kinda fun and life-affirming, which probably explains why the group has grossed a reported $668 million during its career. TSO clearly fills someone’s need for holiday entertainment — and if that’s you, have a good time and ignore the haters. $49 and up, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Frost Bank Center, Frost Bank Center, 1 Frost Bank Center Drive, (210) 444-5140, frostbankcenter.com. — SN
Sunday, Dec. 10 MDC, W. Witosky & The Dirty Dog Dick Eaters, Sykotic Tendencies, Sýr Long-running hardcore punk band MDC has kept its left-wing politics current. The band — whose name originally stood for Millions of Dead Cops but has periodically changed to skewer new targets — took on homophobia, racism and Ronald Reagan in the 1980s and grabbed attention with its debut single “John Wayne Was a Nazi.” Frontman Dave Dictor remains the sole original member, but the band has lost none of its fury over the years. For the sake of transparency, opening band Sýr features Current staffer Sanford Nowlin as a member. $10, 8 p.m., Jandro’s Garden Patio,
Courtesy Photo / Fatal Entertainment
2623 N. St. Mary’s St., facebook.com/Jandrostx. — MM
Tuesday, Dec. 12 Thelma and the Sleaze, Volk, Mockingbird Express Southern-fried country-rock typically doesn’t call to mind an all-female, queer lineup, but Nashville-based band Thelma and the Sleaze are all about subverting expectations. The
group’s latest album, Holey Water, is the capstone to ten years of zealous work on the road. Like the headliner, cowpunk duo Volk — also hailing from Nashville — pushes the boundaries of what Southern music can be by combining bluesy vocals with guitar-driven instrumentals. San Antonio’s Mockingbird Express will bring its gritty guitar work and psychedelic flair to the party. $15, 9 p.m., The Lonesome Rose, 2114 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 455-0233, thelonesomerose.com. — DG
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METAL MONDAYS $3 WELLS ALL NIGHT LONG
“De-Famed”--is this name recognition? by Matt Jones © 2023 Matt Jones Across 1. Bottom-of-the-drink addins 5. Color Me ___ (1990s R&B group) 9. “Harold & ___ Go to White Castle” 14. M.B.A. class subj. 15. Dog voiced by Harvey GuillÈn in 2024’s “The Garfield Movie” 16. Absurd 17. Element in diner signs 18. Pass out hands 19. Farmland measures 20. 1990s singer who’s foolish, per hip-hop lingo of the time? 23. Bone of the forearm 24. “Diners, Drive-___ and Dives” 25. Hockey milieu 26. Late English presenter Paul whose drag persona was Lily Savage 28. Paddock parent 30. Rotate like a baton 32. Trophy or medal 34. Come up 35. Everyone seems to be following it now 38. Mopey designer who says “Thanks for noticing the new look”? 41. Tater ___ casserole
42. Gorme who sang “Blame It on the Bossa Nova” 43. Cozy spots 44. Discourage 45. Poker variety 46. A-ten-tion span? 49. Took a lunch break 50. General of menus 53. “Top Gun” org. 54. 1950s-’60s singer trying to get himself to the front of the alphabet? 58. “___ Game: The Challenge” 60. Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys 61. Air conditioning conduit 62. Elephant’s long teeth 63. Whipped up 64. State the same way 65. “Now you ___, now you don’t” 66. Just manages, with “out” 67. Ad option that might take a while in the free version Down 1. Good Charlotte guitarist Madden 2. Arctic, for one 3. Well-read but not experienced, perhaps 4. The A in A.D. 5. Laced Victorian garment 6. Her albums are named for ages 7. Watch face 8. Sandwich shop 9. Sportage automaker
10. Relax, as one’s toes 11. Actress Gibbs of “The Jeffersons” 12. Come to ___ (finish up) 13. State the same way 21. Stuff thrown from a park bench, maybe 22. Distractions 27. High-antioxidant drink 29. Actress Graynor 30. Hiking path 31. Content of some cellars 32. Talent show talent 33. Question starter 34. Assistant 35. Source of a movable feast? 36. Noah’s vessel 37. Start of a U.S. capital 39. Laid-back, personality-wise 40. “Baba is ___” (puzzle game) 44. Mandrill in “The Lion King” 45. “Watermelon Sugar” singer Harry 46. Does some cleaning 47. Ending like “-like” 48. Reason why 49. Tolerate 51. 2014 Winter Games host city 52. In first place 55. “My treat” 56. Woodpecker’s tool 57. Citrus refreshers 59. “Spring ahead” letters
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