I love it when surprise visitors drop by our MPR offices, and today we got a visit by Juan De la Cruz (proud father of our beloved Sebastien De la Cruz, aka “El Charro de Oro”). Juan filled us in on Sebastien’s busy year for 2018. Several projects are in the works, including an appearance at the 2018 Mexico-U.S. Soccer Tour, several shows with the San Antonio Symphony and possibly the premiere of a film he’s been working on titled The Margarita Man.

Look for Sebastien tomorrow night at the Alamodome, where he’ll be singing the National Anthem at the opening of the Mexico vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina soccer game, starting at 8 pm. He’ll be sporting, of course, one of his favorite trajes de charro and singing a cappella in front of a live audience of over 60,000 people, thanks to an invitation from the Major League Soccer organization. “El Charro de Oro” continues to represent the heart and soul of San Antonio, the Latino community and the mariachi community at grand events like this, and we wish him much luck in his performance.

Sebastien will also be performing three Fiesta Pops shows with the San Antonio Symphony at the Tobin Center, April 20-22. If you’ve never seen him perform with the San Antonio Symphony, it’s a real treat, and something you’ll definitely want to plan on attending. It’s simply thrilling to see one of our own Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza family members on stage with an entire 80-piece orchestra, conducted by Israel native Noam Aviel. Expect to see Sebastien singing songs like Por Ti Volaré, Alma Llanera, La Flor de la Canela and Aquellos Ojos Verdes with the symphony and Mariachi Campanas de América. The Guadalupe Dance Company will also make an appearance in this fun-filled fiesta show. This is always one of my ‘must-do’ events during Fiesta week, as it’s one of the most elegant occasions during San Antonio’s biggest party of the year.

This will be Sebastien’s fifth appearance with the San Antonio Symphony. A unique aspect of these shows is that they bring in a very mainstream audience, which is a great way to broaden appreciation for mariachi music and the Latino culture beyond traditional Hispanic audiences. It also introduces many nontraditional symphony goers to classical music.

Tickets for the San Antonio Symphony’s Fiesta Pops concerts can be purchased at SASymphony.org.

Be on the lookout for the film premiere of The Margarita Man, which is expected to come out sometime this spring. It’s an ’80s-era comedy, directed by Daniel Ramos and filmed in San Antonio. It features Sebastien with Corpus Christi native Pepe Serna, and San Antonio natives Jesse Borrego and Anthony Guajardo. There is great anticipation for this film, as it will be Sebastien’s first feature-length motion picture.

To all our mariachi family, please call us at 210-860-9633 when you’re in San Antonio and arrange to stop by our offices. We always enjoy seeing and hearing from you, and publishing updates on what’s happening in the mariachi community.

Also, please visit us here regularly on mariachimusic.com — where mariachi music lives!

—Cynthia