OPERA San Antonio (OSA) opens its 10th Anniversary Season with the Mariachi Opera, Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon), on October 3 and 5, 2024 at The Tobin Center. Producing this show achieves several important “firsts” for OSA: the first Spanish language opera and the first contemporary opera performed on The Tobin Center’s H-E-B stage.
The opera was commissioned by Houston Grand Opera (HGO) in 2010. The music is by José “Pepe” Martínez of the world famous Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán with lyrics by Broadway Director Leonard Foglia who joins many of the original HGO cast members for the OSA production. Cruzar has become a smash sensation, weaving together the powerful story of a Mexican American family divided by borders yet united by heritage. OSA’s production features the nationally acclaimed Mariachi Campanas de America onstage. This opera promises an unforgettable experience where music and story converge in a celebration of familial bonds and enduring traditions.
“I am overjoyed to introduce the mariachi opera to San Antonio,” says E. Loren Meeker, OSA General & Artistic Director. “It beautifully merges two powerful musical genres, highlighting the cultural importance of mariachi music in our community. This show is a fantastic start to our 10th anniversary season, celebrating a decade of artistic excellence.”
The cast is comprised of opera and mariachi singers, many of whom are from Texas and have connections to San Antonio. Vanessa Alonzo, who plays Lupita, is a singer/songwriter, opera singer, and mariachi musician from Houston, Texas. In 1999 she captivated the judges of the Mariachi Vargas Extravaganza and won the Title of Grand Champion Vocalist. She has since returned to San Antonio many times, most recently this summer as a teacher for the Mariachi Extravaganza Summer Vocal Camp.
Octavio Moreno, Laurentino, is a Mexican-American baritone who began his career in the Houston Grand Opera Studio and went on to represent Mexico in the 2009 BBC Cardiff Singer of the World Competition and the 2010 Paris International competition, as well as taking third place in the Carlo Morelli Competition in Mexico City. He originated the role of Laurentino and has performed in Cruzar around the world. He joined Alonzo as a teacher in June 2024 for the Mariachi Extravaganza Summer Vocal Camp.
Reprising the role of Mark is Efraín Solís, whose career has taken him from Houston Grand Opera to San Francisco Opera to Staatsoper Hamburg, to Santa Fe Opera and beyond. Mezzo-soprano Cecilia Duarte also joins this estimated cast in the role of Renata which she originated at HGO.
“As a Mexican-American man deals with the approaching death of his father, he is forced to face questions about his own place in the world—straddling two cultures—as well as that of his immigrant father and his American daughter,” says librettist and director Leonard Foglia. “As long-buried secrets are revealed, he finds himself dramatically re-evaluating his own understanding of what makes a family. Like the Monarch butterflies that migrate every year to the birthplace of his father, the members of the Velásquez family must travel both physically and spiritually between Michoacán and Texas and look deep into their hearts before they learn where they truly belong.”
Also featured is San Antonio’s very own Campanas de America performing under the direction of long-time mariachi musician and educator Juan Ortiz (pictured below).
SHOW DETAILS:
The group will perform with a total of 13 musicians of which most of them are from in and around San Antonio. Jonathan Palomar, former member of the world renowned and Mexico City based Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, will join the group as a guest guitarist.
Title: Cruzar la Cara de la Luna (To Cross the Face of the Moon)
Dates/Times: Thursday, October 3, 2024 at 7:00 PM and Saturday, October 5, 2024 at 7:30 PM Location: The Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, San Antonio, TX, 78205 Length: The show is approximately 90-minutes long with no intermission
Language: Sung and spoken in Spanish and English with translations projected above the stage
Patrons are encouraged to arrive early to enjoy the mercado in the lobby of the Tobin. At the end of the performances there will be local student mariachi groups entertaining audiences as they make their way out of The Tobin Center.
TICKETS:
Single tickets are on sale now starting as low as $30. There are also discounts available through The Tobin Center Box Office such as:
$15 Child (12 or under) Ticket (in person only, any seat in the house with the purchase of 1 full priced adult ticket)
Groups of 10+ receive 10% off (must email groups@tobincetner.org to make a reservation)
Groups of 20+ receive 20% off (must email groups@tobincetner.org to make a reservation)
Tickets can be purchased online at tobincenter.org, via phone at 210-223-8624 or in person at The Tobin Center Box Office, located at 100 Auditorium Circle. Box Office hours are Monday through Friday from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Saturday from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
