Category: Festivals

San Antonio Book Festival announces author lineup and new event

San Antonio Book Festival, set for April 15, announces 2023 lineup for festival featuring 100 local, regional, and national authors. Photo: San Antonio Book Festival, used with permission.

The San Antonio Book Festival (SABF) is excited to announce its 2023 author lineup, which includes 100 notable local, regional, and national authors who will be participating in the festival. This year’s lineup includes nationally renowned authors such as Kiese Laymon, Geraldine Brooks, Melissa de la Cruz, Matthew Desmond, and more. The free festival will take place Saturday, April 15, 2023 from 9a.m. to 5p.m. at the Central Library and UTSA Southwest Campus in downtown San Antonio. (San Antonio Book Festival, 2023)

The full author lineup is now available. Locally owned and operated bookstore Nowhere Bookshop will be the Festival’s official bookseller. Book sales and signings will take place at the Nowhere Bookshop tent in the Festival Marketplace (UTSA Southwest Campus parking lot).

The 11th annual San Antonio Book Festival starts at 9a.m., and will officially kick off with an opening ceremony at 9:30a.m. featuring remarks from SABF’s executive director and Mayor Ron Nirenberg.

SABF is a free, family-friendly event that draws anywhere from 15,000 to 20,000 festival goers to downtown San Antonio for a full day of author presentations, panel discussions, book sales, signings, children’s and teen activities, and food trucks. SABF showcases debut authors and established writers, introducing attendees to new literary talents and connecting them with their favorite authors. A detailed festival schedule will be available in late March. 

The 2023 SABF will assemble a wide array of authors—for all ages—who will travel across Texas and the nation for the one-day festival. 

“The past year in US publishing has been vibrant and varied. Readers sought romance books in greater numbers, thanks to the rise of BookTok (TikTok, but for book lovers). For the first time, we will have a romance panel at this year’s Book Festival. There’s also been a trend towards thriller and horror lately, with authors using the genre to discuss trauma and mental health, likely because the past few years have been so anxiety-provoking.” – Anna Dobben, the San Antonio Book Festival Literary Director. 

Joining the festival this year are award-winning authors like Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award Finalist Rebecca Makkai, who will be promoting her new book “I Have Some Questions for You,” a literary mystery set at a boarding school exploring gender, class, and race. Matthew Desmond, MacArthur Fellow and Pulitzer Prize–winning author of “Evicted,” will participate in the festival with his new nonfiction book “Poverty, By America,” a look at why poverty persists in America and who benefits from it. Marytza Rubio and Alejandro Varela will be promoting their 2023 National Book Award–honored novels. 

Popular young adult authors like Adam Silvera, author of the New York Times bestseller “They Both Die at the End,” will join the festival to promote “The First to Die at the End,” the prequel to the aforementioned novel about two strangers who spend a life-changing day together. New York Times bestselling author Melissa de la Cruz will also be promoting her new Snow White retelling, “Snow & Poison.”

Additional award-winning authors participating in this year’s festival include Pulitzer Prize–winning Geraldine Brooks promoting her book “Horse;” 2022 MacArthur Fellow Kiese Laymon and his memoir “Heavy;” New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones with a new thriller “Don’t Fear the Reaper;” and Pulitzer Prize–winning Jane Smiley with a new novel, “A Dangerous Business,” to name a few.

The festival will also bring plenty of Texas authors to the festival, such as bestselling author Jeff Guinn, who will be promoting his new book “Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and a Legacy of Rage,” which accounts the disastrous siege at the Branch Davidian compound in Waco in 1993. Award-winning author Elizabeth McCracken will also participate in the festival with her new novel, “The Hero of This Book,” a story about a writer’s relationship with her larger-than-life mother. Poet Laureate of Houston, Deborah D.E.E.P. Mouton will present her memoir, “Black Chameleon.” 

In honor of its hometown, SABF is also excited to welcome local San Antonio authors to the lineup for 2023, including Lewis F. Fisher and his book about one of the city’s most beloved natural areas, “Brackenridge: San Antonio’s Acclaimed Urban Park.” Marcia Argueta Mickelson brings her young adult novel, “The Weight of Everything,” to the festival, a story about grief and reconnecting with your roots after the death of a loved one. San Antonio favorite Sandra Cisneros will once again join the festival, this time to promote her first published collection of poems in twenty-eight years, “Woman Without Shame / Mujer sin vergüenza.” 

SABF will also host a variety of children’s, middle grade, and young adult authors, including National Book Award finalist Brandon Hobson, whose new middle grade book, “The Storyteller,” mixes the anxieties, friendships and wonders of a Cherokee boy’s life with Cherokee history and lore. Three-time Newbery honoree Christina Soontornvat brings her fantasy middle grade novel, “The Guardian Test: Legends of Lotus Island,” to the festival, a story about a special academy where kids learn to transform into magical creatures that protect the natural world. Children’s author Claudia Guadalupe Martinez will be promoting her bilingual picture  book, “Still Dreaming / Seguimos soñando,” a story about a child’s journey during the Mexican Repatriation. SABF’s children’s lineup also includes Newbery and Caldecott–honored creators Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham with a new picture book from their bestselling Itty-Bitty Kitty-Corn series, “Party Hearty Kitty-Corn.”

This year SABF will also host a new 21+ event called Lit Happens on the evening of April 14, from 6p.m. to 9p.m. Lit Happens is a night of engaging literary entertainment with libations on the side. Taking place on the eve of the festival, Lit Happens is a celebration of storytelling and community in the heart of downtown San Antonio. The night will kick-off with an outdoor poetry activation featuring Jose Olivarez and San Antonio Poet Laureate Andrea “Vocab” Sanderson at 6p.m. The second phase of the evening at 7p.m. is Worth Repeating, a live storytelling event at Texas Public Radio. Stacked with San Antonio Book Festival authors, this Moth-style session will include writers Rafael Agustin, Mahogany L. Browne, Rebecca Makkai, and Stephen Graham Jones. The night will officially end with a game of Literary Death Match at 8p.m. with Texas-connected authors–V. Castro, Rubén Degollado, Bobby Finger, Jonny Garza Villa–at nearby Legacy Park. Those looking to extend the celebration can easily walk to several local bars. 

Book It! Luncheons will also be featured in this year’s programming. The SABF will host three separate intimate luncheons with festival authors hosted by various Book Festival board members. Our three luncheon authors are Ada Calhoun, Dean King, and Reza Aslan.

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Slamdance Film Festival’s feature films

This year’s Slamdance Film Festival will take place from January 20 through January 26, 2023. Photo: Google

The Slamdance Film Festival is an annual film festival focused on emerging artists. It was founded in 1995 by Dan Mirvish, Jon Fitzgerald, Shane Kuhn, and Peter Baxter, along with Paul Rachman after they were unable to submit films to the Sundance Film Festival. The annual week-long festival will take place in Park City, Utah from January 20 through January 26 and is the main event organized by the year-round Slamdance organization, which also hosts a screenplay competition, workshops, screenings throughout the year and events with an emphasis on independent films with budgets under $1million. (Wikipedia, Slamdance Film Festival, 2023)

The distinctly different and impactful films making their world premieres this January in Park City, UT offer an insider’s humanistic view into the lives around us. Where a news headline could merely skim the surface, these films engage, inspire, prompt conversations, and offer hope and empathy. Each of these four films has a running time of under 90 minutes.

“Silent Love”
Slamdance Competition Documentary Film
“Silent Love” is an incredibly intimate observational documentary that subtly and tenderly portrays the lives of two women raising a pubescent teenager in the conservative setting of a small Polish village.

Each of the characters is completely different, both visually and in terms of character. Each faces different problems. Each has different obstacles to overcome. Together they form a new family, but most of all, it is a universal story about the hardships of raising a teenager in the face of a parent’s death and about taking on new roles.

After their mother’s death, 35-year-old Aga has to take care of her teenage brother, Milosz. There is one thing she is not telling him about: her ongoing relationship with Maja. An unconventional family is being born in a small, conservative Polish village.

Filmmaking Team: Director, Writer and Cinematographer Marek Kozakiewicz, Editors Anna Garncarczyk, Monument and Agata Cierniak, Music by Bartosz Bludau, Producer Agnieszka Skalska, and Agnieszka Dziedzic, Co-produced by Alex Tondowski, and Ira Tondowski.
Running Time: 72 Minutes

Slamdance Screening Times:
Location: Slamdance Film Festival Headquarters
Treasure Mountain Inn
255 Main St.
Park City, UT
Premiere: Saturday, January 21 at 3p.m.
Second Screening: Wednesday, January 25 at 11:15a.m.

“Starring Jerry As Hinself”
Slamdance Competition Documentary Feature Film
“Starring Jerry As Hinself” is a docu-fiction hybrid that blurs the lines of reality while staying true to the subject and his story. It employs a variety of creative filmmaking techniques to capture the world from Jerry’s perspective. The film is a genre bending meta experience, with our subject Jerry starring in his own recreation of his unique journey. The filmmakers wanted to create something unique that stood out from the traditional documentary, while also reflecting Jerry’s state of mind, so they nested a film within a film.

A family documents how their immigrant father Jerry, a recently divorced and retired Florida man, was recruited by the Chinese police to be an undercover agent, only to discover a darker truth.

Filmmaking Team: Director and Editor Lawrence Chen, Co-Writers Jerry C. Hsu (the star of the film) and Lawrence Chen, producers: Jonathan Hsu, and Lawrence Chen, composer Eric Hölljes with Cinematography by Tinx Chen, and Lawrence Chen.
Running Time: 75 Minutes

“Starring Jerry As Hinself” Slamdance Screening Times:
Location: Slamdance Film Festival Headquarters
Treasure Mountain Inn
255 Main St.
Park City, UT
Premiere: Saturday, January 21 at 7:30p.m.
Second Screening: Monday, January 23 at 2:45p.m.

“The Underbug”
Slamdance Breakout Selection Feature Film
While the nations came to a standstill owing to the pandemic, another more familiar kind of virus – that of communal violence raged more aggressively than earlier. India witnessed a uniquely cross-sectional humanitarian crisis: the burgeoning of xenophobia fueled by Covid, commingled with the toxic wave of sectarian violence. What India experienced, as did the rest of the world – we live immersed as a world in the great fracture of our times. “The Underbug” is a psychological horror that explores the psyche of people who live on the fringe of society. These are subaltern populations, easily weaponized for the narrow benefit of the political system. Thus began the story of two such men, in a deserted house, playing out what hopefully feels like the abstract psychopathology of our troubled times. The filmmakers hope that ‘The Underbug’ sparks conversation, offering an insight on hate politics and contributes in some small way towards empathy, courage and love.

As India is ravaged by sectarian violence on the eve of its Independence Day, two rioters take refuge in an abandoned house. An eerie presence in the house, however, haunts the men to the edge of sanity.

Filmmaking Team and Stars: Starring Ali Fazal and Hussain Dalal, Directed by Shujaat Saudagar, Written by Shujaat Saudagar, Abbas Dalal, and Hussain Dalal, Produced by Vikesh Bhutani, Shujaat Saudagar, and Aman Mann, Executive Producers Shaunak Sen, Richa Chadha, Ali Faz al, Hussain Dalal and Abbas Dalal.
Running Time: 68 Minutes *In Hindi with subtitles*

Slamdance Screening Times:
Location: Slamdance Film Festival Headquarters
Treasure Mountain Inn
255 Main St.
Park City, UT
Premiere: Saturday, January 21 at 10p.m.

“With Peter Bradley”
Slamdance Competition Documentary Feature Film
“With Peter Bradley” embodies the cinematic storytelling that made “The Kid Stays In The Picture” an iconic documentary. “With Peter Bradley” is a celebration of artmaking, resilience, and the creative contributions of Black artists to American life. It focuses a long-overdue lens on Peter Bradley and shines a light on his rightful place in the ongoing movement toward racial equity in the arts and our society. Despite the systemic racism of society in general and the art world in particular, Peter Bradley built an incredible resumé before the age of 35: the first Black art dealer on Madison Avenue (at the prestigious Perls Galleries); likely the first Black abstract artist represented by a major New York gallery (André Emmerich); and curator of what is considered the first integrated modern art show in America (The DeLuxe Show). Peter Bradley explores innovative methods of applying paint to canvas, inspired by nature and the colorful flowers he tends daily in his garden and greenhouse.

79 years old and overlooked since the 1970s, abstract artist Peter Bradley reflects on life and shares his artistic process on the cusp of his rediscovery.

Filmmaking Team: Director, Cinematographer, Editor and Producer Alex Rappoport, Composer Javon Jackson, Executive Producers Adger Cowans, and Robina Riccitiello, Consulting Producers Diane Kolyer, and Beth Levison, and Music Supervisor Ed Gerard.
Running Time: 86 Minutes

Slamdance Screening Times:
Location: Slamdance Film Festival Headquarters
Treasure Mountain Inn
255 Main St.
Park City, UT
Premiere: Sunday, January 22 at 12:45p.m.
Second Screening: Tuesday, January 24 at 5:30p.m.

 

Documentary world premiere: The Elephant 6 Recording Co.

Elephant 6 Collective. Photo: Amy Hairston, used with permission.

The Elephant 6 Recording Co. shares the unique inside story of the collective creative evolution behind the sounds of 1990s psychedelic rock bands Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel, and The Apples in Stereo— the founding groups behind the Elephant 6 collective, as well as a host of other artists — with inspirational resonance for today’s music makers, and music lovers everywhere. (The Elephant 6 Recording Co., 2022)

Around 1985, a group of Ruston, Louisiana area high schoolers began experimenting with whatever random instruments and gear they could lay their hands on. Moving to other small college towns including Denver, Colorado and Athens, Georgia, their musical coming of age coincides with the new consumer availability of old-school 4 and 8 track recording technology and cassette tapes. Sharing like-minded sensibilities, influenced by past sounds and psychedelia, and with little to distract them, their efforts to create whole new musical worlds become the bands Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel and The Apples in Stereo, and many more. While the collective grew to a natural breaking point, its founding members overcame obstacles and remained closely bonded, reuniting for tours and still collaborating today.

The Elephant 6 Recording Co. provides insight into this revolutionary era of popular independent music in America, the defiant DIY spirit in music making, and championing the integrity of an authentic quest for artistic expressiveness over the more mainstream image of being a “successful” musician in our fame obsessed times.

This documentary will have its World Premiere at DOC NYC 2022 on Thursday November 10 at 9:30p.m. (IFC Center). There will be a Q&A session with C.B. Stockfleth, Greg King, Lance Bangs, and executive producer Rob Hatch-Miller after the first screening. The second screening will be on Tuesday, November 15 at 9p.m. (Cinepolis)

C.B. Stockfleth is a filmmaker currently based in New Orleans, LA. He grew up in Central Kentucky and dropped out of high school. He eventually went to film school at Full Sail University in Orlando. For the last 20 years, he has worked as a commercial director and photographer mostly in Louisville, KY. He has made award winning music videos and live concert videos for bands including the Apples In Stereo and the Olivia Tremor Control, and has directed uncountable regional commercials and corporate videos.

Feature Documentary, Running Time; 93 Minutes, USA

No Def Presents:
The Elephant 6 Recording Co.
Directed by: C.B. Stockfleth
Produced by: Lance Bangs (Jackass , Portlandia)
Edited & Produced by: Greg King (Other Music)
Executive Produced by: Rob Hatch-Miller (Other Music)

Starring: Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Apples in Stereo, Elf Power, Of Montreal, Beulah, The Gerbils, Dressy Bessy, The Minders, The Music Tapes, Great Lakes, Elijah Wood, James Mercer (The Shins), Danger Mouse, David Cross and many more.

The film also features never-before-seen additional footage of the bands, shot by filmmaker Lance Bangs.

Austin Food & Wine Festival

The Austin Food & Wine Festival will take place November 4 – 6. Photo: Austin Food & Wine Festival, used with permission.

Tickets are still available for the eleventh annual Austin Food & Wine Festival which will take place November 4-6, 2022 at Auditorium Shores. Presented by FOOD & WINE Magazine and C3 Presents, the Austin Food & Wine Festival is one of Texas’ most beloved food festivals. The three-day celebration of food, wine and spirits will welcome top tier talent from all over the country. (Austin Food & Wine Festival, 2022)

The festival will feature chefs, restaurants and wine and spirits experts over three days at Auditorium Shores. Festival highlights include the new Wurst Weekend Kickoff event; the fan-favorite Rock Your Taco competition; the Fire Pit featuring bites hot off the flames; engaging cooking demonstrations + conversations; samples of signature dishes from local chefs and restaurants; dynamic wine, beer & cocktail tastings; live music, and more.

Showcasing a dynamic roster of local, regional and national chefs throughout the weekend, attendees can sample signature dishes from top chefs around the country. 

WURST WEEKEND KICK-OFF

Join Chef Tim Love and Jesse Herman to kick-off the weekend at Auditorium Shores on Friday evening. Enjoy a Bavarian-themed menu of sausage, brats, pork, and more cooked over a live fire. Featuring regional wines and beers, the best (wurst) way to kick off the weekend. 

ROCK YOUR TACO

Rock Your Taco, Saturday evening’s signature tasting event, will take place this year at Auditorium Shores. Chefs will square off against one another to create the ultimate taco, as deemed by a People’s Choice award. Rock Your Taco competitors include Shion Aikawa; Nicola Blaque; Jo Chan; Tiffany Derry; Ford Fry; Sarah Grueneberg; Sarah Heard and Nathan Lemley; CJ Jacobson; Steve McHugh; Shota Nakajima; Laura Sawicki, and Brooke Williamson.

CHEF DEMOS

Festival attendees keen on learning from the pros can listen in as a host of chefs, including Jo Chan; Tiffany Derry; Kevin Fink; Ford Fry; Diego Galicia and Rico Torres; Sarah Grueneberg; and Fermín Núñez.

FIRE PIT

The Fire Pit portion of the festival features bites hot off the flames and the chance to interact with pit masters and chefs cooking over live fire. Enjoy exceptional BBQ and other dishes cooked over open flame and get first-hand advice from the pros. Featured chefs this year include Sonya Coté; Jason Dady; Jorge Luis Hernandez; Andy Knudson; Jesse Kuykendall; Shota Nakajima, and Kristina Zhoa.

Tickets are available online.  All attendees must be 21 years of age or older.

The Austin Food & Wine Festival is the benefactor of the Texas Food & Wine Alliance, a non-profit dedicated to fostering awareness and innovation in the Central Texas food and wine community through grants, educational programming and events. To date, Austin Food & Wine Festival has contributed over $1.3 million to the Alliance.

The Austin Food + Wine Festival marks a compelling collaboration between C3 Presents and some of Texas’ most exciting chefs and restaurateurs, including Tim Love and Restaurateur Jesse Herman. C3 Presents is the Austin-based event company that produces Lollapalooza in Chicago’s Grant Park, and Austin City Limits Music Festival in Austin’s Zilker Park. The Austin Food + Wine Festival will take place this fall,, bringing an array of taste, talent and culinary entertainment to the Capital City.

Culinaria’s Tasting Texas Wine + Food Festival

Tickets are still available for some events for
San Antonio’s premier wine and food festival, taking place October 27-30. Photo: Culinaria, used with permission.

Culinaria is back for a four-day Tasting Texas Wine + Food Festival, October 27-30, in partnership with Visit San Antonio (VSA) and the iconic James Beard Foundation (JBF). Culinaria welcomes renowned and up-and-coming Texas chefs as well as national all-stars focusing on platforms that will showcase their diversity of culinary talent and heritage at events ranging from walk-around tastings, intimate dinners, outdoor lunches, hands-on workshops, educational panels, and more. (Culinaria, 2022)

Festival attendees can customize their gastronomic experience by choosing between all-inclusive festival packages or a-la-carte event options starting at $100. Sportscaster and former San Antonio Spur Sean Elliott and his wife Claudia Zapata Elliott co-chair Culinaria host committee, an elevated sponsor package of $5,000 that includes recognition as an official host of Culinaria Tasting Texas Wine + Food Festival and VIP access to events. Culinaria Tasting Texas Wine + Food Festival will showcase James Beard Award Winners, nominees, and other titans of the food and beverage industry including:

GUEST CHEFS

  • Rick Bayless, past winner of Bravo’s Top Chef Masters, host of “Mexico, One Plate at a Time” highly-rated Public Television series, and owner of Frontera Grill. See Chef Bayless in action at Agave, Saturday evening and at The Collective Grand Tasting on Sunday.
  • Alex Raij, Txikito, New York
  • Michelle Wallace, Gaitlins BBQ Houston
  • Tony Luhrman, El Topo Houston
  • Hugo Ortega, H Town Restaurant Group, Houston
  • Ruben Ortega, H Town Restaurant Group, Houston
  • Bobby Matos, State of Grace, Houston
  • Alex Au-Yeung, Phat Eatery, Katy, TX
  • Keisha Griggs, Ate Kitchen, Houston
  • Emiliano Marentes, Elemi, El Paso
  • Karla Espinoza, Mad Houston, Houston

LOCAL SAN ANTONIO CHEFS

  • Jason Dady, Dady Restaurants
  • Jeff Balfour, Southerleigh Hospitality
  • John Brand, Hotel Emma
  • Laurént Rea, Mon Chou Chou
  • Kristina Zhao, Dashi
  • PJ Edwards, Meadow
  • Geronimo Lopez, Botika
  • Elizabeth Johnson, Pharm Table
  • Esaul Ramos, 2M Smokehouse
  • Andres Farias, Mokara
  • Stéphane Leopoldo, Signature Restaurant
  • Camille De Los Reyes, Sari Sari

Visit Culinaria online for more information, including a complete list of chefs.

TASTING TEXAS EVENT HIGHLIGHTS

  • The Collective Grand Tasting: Friday, Saturday, Sunday, noon to 6p.m., Travis Park
    • The Collective is an expanded Grand Tasting event located at Travis Park featuring more than 100 chefs, restaurants, hundreds of beverage brands, Texas Wine Garden, live fire activations, cooking demonstrations, educational seminars, mercantile market, and more.
  • Southern Hospitality: Friday, 7p.m. to 9p.m., Pearl Brewery
    • Mashup of food and beverage celebrating the “Y’all Means All” culture of

Texas. From biscuits and gravy to hearty enchiladas and, of course, top-shelf cocktails, in a walk-around tasting event granting guest all-access to a front row seat of hospitality the Texas way.

  • Celebrate Agave: Saturday, 7p.m to 9p.m., Travis Park
    • Aged, sipped, neat, or mixed, this walk-around tasting event celebrates all things agave and the cuisines that embrace it.
  • Lunches and Dinners: Thursday, Friday, and Saturday
    • Festival goers will have exclusive access to unique chef collaborations at dinner and lunch events held at varying locations across the city.
  • Seminars and Workshops: Thursday, Friday, Saturday, times and locations vary
  • With a theme to satisfy every interest, attendees will be able to sign up for seminars and workshops across a range of topics, including hands-on, small-group activities—from crafting cocktails and smoking meat—to panel discussions on women in the beverage industry, and concise eating and drinking.

TICKET PACKAGES

  • Super VIP – $1,025
  • Choice of one dinner on Thursday night plus Southern Hospitality, VIP Access to all three days of The Collective, Celebrate Agave, VIP Parties and VIP Only Seminars.
  • The Weekender – $600
  • General Admission to The Collective (all three days), Celebrate Agave and Southern Hospitality/
  • Just the Collective – $300
  • All three days of The Collective. Enjoy this all-inclusive and immersive experience. All food and beverage are included. You’ll only need one ticket to enjoy it all.
  • Individual Tickets – starting at $100

“Culinaria is a lover of all things wine and food. We curate experiences for those who love to enjoy amazing pairings, in all forms. We can’t wait to welcome locals and visitors to the great city of San Antonio to experience the confluence of culture found across the culinary landscape.” – Suzanne Taranto-Etheredge, President and CEO, Culinaria.

Culinaria is an independent, not-for-profit organization, committed to promoting San Antonio as a premier food and wine destination, while fostering community growth and enrichment within the city we call home. For the past 22 years, Culinaria has been promoting locally sourced food and wine experiences in the San Antonio region through community events and culinary education opportunities, including Restaurant Weeks, a festival, and many others. Proceeds from events directly support this mission, enabling Culinaria to be a largely self-sustaining organization

 

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2022 Monarch Butterfly & Pollinator Festival

Brackenridge Park Conservancy announces this year’s Monarch Butterfly & Pollinator Festival in Brackenridge Park. Photo: Google

The Brackenridge Park Conservancy, in partnership with the Texas Butterfly Ranch, is proud to present the 2022 Monarch Butterfly & Pollinator Festival. The event  will take place Saturday, October 8 from 10a.m. to 2p.m. in the Pecan Grove at Brackenridge Park as part of a month-long celebration of pollinators. Festivities include the People for Pollinators Parade, a monarch butterfly migration obstacle course for kids, butterfly tagging, live bee hive demonstrations, and more. (Brackenridge Park Conservancy, 2022)

The festival is free and open to the public and brings together more than 20 community partners to educate the community on the importance of the monarch butterfly and other pollinators. Activities for the whole family will take place starting at 10a.m. with the Caterpillar Train launching from the train depot in the park. The train was transformed with the assistance of local landscape architecture firm MP Studios and the beloved and nostalgic San Antonio Zoo train will be converted to a monarch butterfly caterpillar for the month of October.

“Brackenridge Park is thrilled to host the 2022 Monarch Butterfly & Pollinator Festival. The Park means so much to the people, plants and animals in this city so we look forward to being a home to free and fun educational events like this.” – Lynn Osborne Bobbitt, Brackenridge Park Conservancy Director of Development and Special Events

Throughout the day, visitors can tag monarch butterflies with trained docents as part of the Monarch Watch citizen science initiative. Festival goers can also participate in the Forever Journey, a program started in 2020 that tags butterflies in honor of deceased loved ones.

“Just as San Antonio sits in the heart of the migratory flyway for monarch butterflies and other wildlife, Brackenridge sits in the heart of our city. It makes for an ideal roost for this year’s Festival.” – Monika Maeckle, Festival founder and director of the Texas Butterfly Ranch.

More initiatives from this year’s festival include a monarch migration obstacle course organized by Blooming with Birdie, butterfly bike rides with the Austin Bike Zoo, a birding tour of the park and adoption events for hundreds of trees provided by the San Antonio Parks Department and pollinator-friendly native plants made available by SAWS. 

The Brackenridge Park Conservancy has listened to and been a voice for those who use this cherished San Antonio park and its facilities. The organization operates under a long-term Management Agreement with the City that is administered by the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Department. The only organization dedicated solely to protecting Brackenridge Park, the Conservancy raises funds for projects that benefit the Park, implements park-based programs and projects, advises City staff and elected officials, supports the evolution and implementation of plans for the Park, and acts as a forum for users to address common issues and build consensus.

The mission of the Monarch Butterfly & Pollinator Festival is to raise understanding and appreciation of the insect pollinators that make one of every three bites of our food possible, underscore our inherent interconnectedness, encourage the use of native nectar and host plants in gardens and landscapes, and reinforce San Antonio’s strategic role in the monarchs’ annual migration as the First Monarch Butterfly Champion City.

 

Texas Pinners Conference & Expo celebrates educators

Texas Pinners Conference & Expo combines shopping and hands-on classes and brings online creativity to life. Photo: Texas Pinners, used with permission.

As the new school year begins and as a way to celebrate Texas educators with a special back-to-school gift, Texas Pinners Conference is providing them with two free general admission tickets to its conference on Friday, September 30 and Saturday, October 1, at the Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth. (Texas Pinners Conference & Expo, 2022)

Texas Pinners Conference is an annual fun-filled event focused on artistry, crafting, beauty, fashion, photography, food arts and more, with a trade show inspired by creativity and Pinterest-like projects. In addition, more than 200 vendors and exhibitors will be on site with over 100 Pinterest-based classes and some of the best Texas shopping opportunities.

“As a former educator, I know that teachers are some of the most inspiring individuals, especially in our children’s lives. So, what better way to encourage their creativity and show appreciation than to give them access to one of the largest creative events offline. We’re excited to provide access to Texas Pinners Conference in the hopes they can spend a weekend enjoying our Pinterest-inspired classes, shopping floor, make-and-takes and so much more. We can’t wait for them to experience a fun-filled and creative experience.” – Roxanne Bennett, co-founder of Pinners Conference.

The expo was established in 2013 to bring people together who share the common interest of learning, creativity, hobbies and do-it-yourself projects. The tradeshow floor is a unique design combining a shopping conference environment with hundreds of small business vendors selling various goods and services. Attendees will have a chance to explore their creativity outside the classroom and experience two full event days focusing on inspiring others.

Texas Pinners Conference will showcase learning, connecting and shopping through scrapbooking, arts, fashion, beauty, self-improvement, party-planning, food arts, do-it-yourself projects, home décor, and more. The expo will also have several hour-long classes taught by exceptional presenters.

Texas Educators can get into the event for free and general admission tickets for the public start at $10. Some ticket packages include access to classes and passes to both event days. Helping Texas Pinners Conference host the event through sponsorships include The Home Depot, Ryobi, Chalk Couture, Joann’s, Plaid Crafts, Texas Appliances, Janome, and MakerFlo Crafts.

Texas educators must reserve their tickets in advance of the show by using the code TEACH. Educators are limited to two complimentary tickets and are encouraged to bring their school ID badge with them.

A list of available presenters, classes, exhibitors and vendors is available online as well as tickets and class passes. Texas Pinners Conference will be held on Friday, September 30 and Saturday, October 1, at the Will Rogers Memorial Center, located at 3401 W Lancaster Ave, Fort Worth, Texas 76107.

Texas Pinners Conference encourages attendees to stay updated with the latest news on all social platforms. Visitors are also encouraged to use the #PinnersTX and #pinnersconf tags to follow and share their content featuring one of the most unique events this fall.

The Pinners Conference features two great events in one—a conference featuring 100+ Pinterest-based classes taught by the best presenters in the nation and a show with 200 top businesses providing beautiful options in the world of DIY, crafts, cooking, self-improvement, photography, party planning, scrapbooking, holiday, beauty and fashion, and more. It will feature local artists, shops and offer awesome creative classes from some of the best presenters that explore creativity and the fun of learning new techniques.

Big Cedar Lodge’s Cedar Fest celebrates the fall season

Big Cedar Lodge’s Cedar Fest is a family friendly celebration that celebrates flannel and pumpkin spice season. Photo: Big Cedar Lodge, used with permission.

The award-winning wilderness resort Big Cedar Lodge is kicking off its annual Cedar Fest celebration featuring pumpkin patches, hayrides, spooky corn mazes, and so much more. As the leaves turn and you reach for that extra sweater for a cozy fall season, there is no better place to celebrate the season in the Midwest than at Big Cedar Lodge. (Big Cedar Lodge, 2022)

Below are some of the festive activities available for both guests and locals between September 18 through October 31.

  • Fall Festivals: Enjoy some good old fashioned fun with a guided tram ride to Big Cedar’s pumpkin patch, where participants can decorate pumpkins, paint pottery, enjoy tie dye and face painting, ride a mechanical bull by day; and roast marshmallows for s’mores and enjoy a movie on the lawn by night.
  • Ozark’s Lost Soul Maze: Get lost in Big Cedar’s iconic, 3,700-square-foot maze that has haunted ghosts and spooky spirits of the Ozarks’ past. Keep an eye out for spiders, skeletons, spooks, and more.
  • Fall Chuckwagon Tour: Back in the beauty of the Ozarks with a relaxing evening tram ride and history tour, a piping hot bowl of soup or chili, and a glass of wine or beer for the adults.
  • Show your Fall Flair: Celebrate your artistic side with instructor-led Fall Wreath Making ($65 per wreath, families and groups welcome) and Fall Centerpiece Building ($65 per centerpiece). Guests can take home their masterpiece to display for the season.
  • Fall Golf Getaway: Big Cedar Lodge boasts one of the leading resort golf portfolios in the country, and there is no better time to tee off than Fall. Enjoy the watercolor foliage on Payne’s Valley, the first Tiger Woods-designed public course, or the award-winning Ozarks National.

For even more Fall Fun, the nearby Dogwood Canyon Nature Park is inviting locals and visitors alike to explore the park’s 10,000 acres covered in magnificent fall foliage; and America’s #1 aquarium, Wonders of Wildlife, is hosting spooky and festive activities including the Out to Sea Shark Feeding, Yarn Pumpkin Crafting, a Halloween Bash Teen Night including a scavenger hunt and mini Fall Festival, and a Bat Bonanza event.

disABILITYsa presents AbilitySTRONG Parade and AccessAbility Fest

This year’s downtown parade and march event’s motto “My Ability is Fierce” highlights important issues for people living with disabilities. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

The fourth annual abilitySTRONG Parade, San Antonio’s annual Disability Pride Celebration, will take place on October 1 from 9a.m. – 10:30a.m. in downtown San Antonio. The abilitySTRONG Parade, presented by Wave Healthcare, LLC, is San Antonio’s only disability pride parade seeking to change the way people think about and define disability. It is presented by disABILITYsa, City of San Antonio’s Disability Access Office, and Hemisfair’s Inclusion Programming. (disABILITYsa, 2022)

The parade’s theme “Super Heroes: saving the world with unique abilities” will serve as the official kick-off event to the 16th annual AccessAbility fest, an annual free celebration, held in October during Texas Disability Awareness Month.

Currently, one in every seven individuals living in San Antonio has a disability. The parade is a public expression of the belief that disability is a natural and beautiful part of human diversity in which people living with disabilities can take pride.

This year’s motto is “My Ability is Fierce” and leading the parade and march with the parade banner will be the men and women of City Council followed by its 2022 Grand Marshals, Batman of San Antonio, and Tommy Flores, 2018 Fiesta Especial King.

Immediately following the parade, the 16th Annual AccessAbility fest will take place at Hemisfair’s Yanaguana Garden and the Magik Theatre parking lot from 9a.m. – 2p.m. and will feature numerous activities and exhibitors with information, products, programs and services that promote independence and inclusion where individuals with disabilities live, work and play. This FREE celebration also features live entertainment including Tejano artist Sunny Sauceda.

Parade Grand Marshal Batman of San Antonio; Tommy Flores, 2018 Fiesta Especial King; City Council and Civic Members.

Saturday, October 1, 2022
abilitySTRONG Parade (9a.m. – 10:30a.m.) – downtown
AccessAbility fest (10a.m. – 2p.m.) — Hemisfair and the Magik Theatre

Downtown – Parade will line up at 7:30a.m. and stage along Avenue E in front of First Presbyterian Church and the San Antonio Express-News building. The route will step off at Avenue E, heading west on E. Houston Street, South on N. Main Ave, West on E. Commerce Street, South on South Flores St, East on E. Nueva St., South on South Alamo St. and finish at the dismount location. The judges’ stand and VIP seating will be on East Nueva and South Alamo at Hemisfair. The parade is estimated to last 1.5 hours and will conclude at 10:30a.m. The parade route is 1.5 miles.

Immediately following the start of the parade, the 16th annual AccessAbility fest takes place from 9a.m. to 2p.m. This annual event is a free, family-friendly festival with a tree adoption, information booths, a costume contest, games, health screenings, food concessions, live entertainment, product and program demonstrations, and an adaptive climbing wall coming in from No Limits Tahoe. The fest is a gateway to information, resources and opportunities for individuals overcoming barriers to independence and inclusion due to physical, cognitive, sensory and mental health challenges. AccessAbility fest is inclusive of individuals of all backgrounds and diversities.

Established in 2016, disABILITYsa is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization working to educate, advance and engage individuals living with disabilities by sharing information, creating opportunities, and strengthening the disability service organizations in San Antonio.

Planet Bluegrass announces Mabon, an autumn equinox concert series

Tickets are now on sale for Mabon, taking place September 16 – 18 in Lyons, Colorado. Courtesy photo, used with permission.

Planet Bluegrass, organizers of Rockygrass, Lyons Folks Fest, and the famed Telluride Bluegrass Festival—which has coincided with the summer solstice for 5 decades—are pleased to announce Mabon, a new concert series programmed in conjunction with longtime Planet Bluegrass fan-favorite, Watchhouse. Mabon will take place September 16-18 in Lyons, Colorado, at the Planet Bluegrass Ranch during the Autumn equinox. Tickets are on-sale now. (Planet Bluegrass, 2022) 

The series kicks off on Friday, September 16 with Regina Spektor and a special duo set from hosts Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz—aka Watchhouse. Saturday, September 17 continues with a could-only-be-at-Planet-Bluegrass billing of Emmylou Harris with Watchhouse as her backing band and sets from Thee Sacred Souls, Big Richard, and a performance from one half of Watchhouse, Andrew Marlin with his instrumental string band. Sunday will kick off with Yasmin Williams and fans will ease into the fall season and afternoon with Waxahatchee and The Lil’ Smokies. The weekend will be bookended by a final, full band Watchhouse set. 

“We are so excited to be curating this series with Watchhouse!,” says Grace Barrett, Planet Bluegrass’ director of partnerships and communications. “They are dear friends whose music has inspired us for years. The Planet Bluegrass calendar really functions around the sun, and we can’t think of a better way to say ‘so long’ to summer.” 

Frantz and Marlin share in that enthusiasm. They add, “We’ve been lucky enough to play so many festivals and events and have always loved the ones hosted by Planet Bluegrass. We haven’t been able to sit in on the curation side until now and we’re so grateful for the opportunity to reach out to artists whose songs have meant a lot to us over the years, or just recently. Autumn solstice feels like the perfect time to cozy up and sink into some feely songs together.” 

For over 30 years, Planet Bluegrass has been redefining the musical festival by creating exceptional experiences that protect the planet through environmental leadership and a strong community. Fiercely and decidedly independent, their three festivals make a unique musical mark: each takes place in breathtaking natural Colorado environments, each features the world’s finest musicians and songwriters, and each embraces a “Leave No Trace” ethic that defines Planet Bluegrass as a leader in Sustainable Festivation. Planet Bluegrass presents Telluride Bluegrass, Rockygrass, Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, all bucket list musical gatherings for artists and fans alike. Planet Bluegrass is invested in the next generation of songwriters and musicians as evidenced by Rockygrass Academy and Song School. 

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