Calendar

Courtesy Photo / Centro San Antonio

FRI | 11.19

SPECIAL EVENT

ROTARY ICE RINK

After debuting to much fanfare in 2019, then su ering a pandemic-forced cancellation last year, one of SA’s newest holiday traditions is making a comeback on Friday, Nov. 19. The Rotary Ice Rink is returning to downtown’s Travis Park. In addition to daily skating hours, the attraction will host themed nights and o er discounts including free-admission Mondays for military and fi rst responders, a half-o “cheap skate” on Tuesdays and discounted group admissions on Thursdays. Lovebirds can also enjoy “date night” on Wednesdays with live music, and hungry skaters can nosh on snacks from food trucks on Friday evenings. The rink’s $14 admission includes skate rental, since it’s unlikely average San Antonians will be packing their own pair of blades. Rink hours will vary on holidays. $14, 5-10 p.m. Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-11 p.m. Saturday, noon-8 p.m. Sunday, Travis Park, 301 E. Travis St., rotaryicerink.com. — Kelly Merka

Nelson

FRI | 11.19 TUE | 11.30

SPECIAL EVENT

LIGHTSCAPE

First premiering and selling out in the U.K. and Chicago, Lightscape will debut in Texas at the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Visitors will have the chance to welcome the holiday spirit with a spectacular mile-long illuminated path through the garden. They’ll also be able to enjoy a dazzling display of a Winter Cathedral made of 100,000 twinkling lights and be awed by a sparkling fi eld of light-up bluebonnets. The enchanting illuminations feature both the work of local and international artists. To add to the holiday cheer of the light shows, guests can enjoy festive food and drinks, including roasting s’mores. $18-$55, Entry times every 15 minutes from 5:45-9:15 p.m. Friday. Nov. 19-Sunday, Jan. 2, 2022, San Antonio Botanical Garden, 555 Funston Place, (210) 536-1400, sabot.org/ lightscape. — Yukiko Yamazaki

SAT | 11.20

COMEDY

JO KOY

He may be popular enough to headline massive arenas, but comedian Jo Koy has never forgo en the value of family. Born Joseph Glenn Herbert, Koy got his stage handle from a family nickname based on his Filipino American grandmother’s use of Tagalog. His profi le rose considerably after being featured on E!’s Chelsea Lately, and he recently acknowledged that he’s in a romantic relationship with that show’s namesake, comedian Chelsea Handler. Koy has also found success on his own, appearing on VH1’s I Love The… for the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s (the only decades that ma er), Showtime at The Apollo and Jamie Foxx’s Laff apalooza. The comic has also starred in two Comedy Central specials, Don’t Make Him Angry and Lights Out, and is also a regular guest on the podcast The Adam Carolla Show. Most recently, Koy starred in Netfl ix’s Jo Koy: In His Elements, which included other entertainers of Filipino heritage. Earlier this year, he released the memoir Mixed Plate, and in 2021, he’s expected to star in the “dark comedy” Easter Sunday, inspired by his own life and family. $49.50-$79.50, 8 p.m., AT&T Center, 1 AT&T Center Parkway, (210) 440-5000, a center.com. — Mike

McMahan

calendar

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.

FRI | 11.19 TUE | 11.30

Jose Villalobos

Courtesy of the Public Theater of San Antonio

THEATER

SEASON’S GREETINGS FROM SAN ANTONIO

The Public Theater is debuting a new, original production to celebrate the holiday season this year. In Season’s Greetings from San Antonio, an a capella quartet called The Dotz is performing a televised holiday special featuring updated classics, Christmas pop music and seasonal songs representing our city’s many cultures. The Public promises a uniquely Alamo City experience, including surprise cameos, cherished traditions and holiday stories from around the city. Conceived by Matthew Byron Cassi and Darrin Newhardt with contributions from Claudia de Vasco and Linda Kaufman, Season’s Greetings from San Antonio stars Chaz Ingraham, Jeremy Marmalejo, John Berring and Damien DeShaun Smith. $17-$47, 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 19-Dec. 19, The Public Theater of San Antonio, 800 W. Ashby Place, (210) 733-7258, thepublicsa.org. — KMN

SAT | 11.20

TORTILLA SOUP

Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, the comedy-drama Tortilla Soup is an underappreciated Latino fi lm, probably because Real Women Have Curves came out a year later. Whatever the reason it didn’t get as much a ention, Tortilla Soup is a funny and heartfelt movie based on Ang Lee’s 1994 Chinese fi lm Eat Drink Man Woman. In Tortilla Soup, a Mexican American chef named Martin Naranjo (Héctor Elizondo) has lost his sense of smell and taste since becoming a widower. He shares his home with his three adult daughters. The youngest is Maribel (Tamara Mello), who’s moving too quickly into a new relationship; Carmen (Jacqueline Obradors), who shares her father’s passion for cooking; and Leticia (the late Elizabeth Peña), a high school chemistry teacher who has a crush on the school’s baseball coach Orlando (Paul Rodriguez). The fi lm also stars Raquel Welch and Constance Marie. During a recent interview with the Current, Rodriguez said he fondly remembers a scene he shared with Welch during production. “When I was a kid, I had a poster of her in my room that helped me through puberty,” he said. “She is a beautiful lady.” Free, 7 p.m., Mission Marquee Plaza, 3100 Roosevelt Ave., (210) 212-9373, slabcinema.com. — Kiko Martinez

MON | 11.22

p.m., AT&T Center, One AT&T Center, (210) 444-5000, a center.com, Bally Sports Southwest. — M. Solis

SPORTS

SPURS VS. SUNS

Earlier this month, Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul notched the 10,336th assist of his career, passing Suns icon Steve Nash for third place on the league’s all-time list. Paul now trails only John Stockton and Jason Kidd in career assists, and his arrival in Phoenix last season proved to be a catalyst for the Suns’ potentially franchise-altering run to the NBA Finals. Heading into the new season, expectations were sky high for the Suns and their potent backcourt, which pairs Paul with ascending superstar Devin Booker. Early season shooting woes resulted in a slow start for the Suns, who have since turned things around with a timely winning streak. Like Phoenix, San Antonio also stumbled out of the gate, with an early season four-game string of losses that came despite stellar play from Spurs captain Dejounte Murray. In the absence of closer DeMar DeRozan, who signed a three-year, $85 million contract with the Chicago Bulls this summer, the Spurs have struggled with crunch-time execution, resulting in a handful of tight losses. $15-$1,435, 7:30

improvtx.com/sanantonio

618 Nw Loop 410, SaN ANTONIO, TX 78216 210•541•8805 NOV 18 NOV 21

arnez j

NOV 24 - NOV 28 & DEC 2 - DEC 5 DEC 9 - DEC 11

steve treviño Christina P

Courtesy of Visit San Antonio

FRI | 11.26

SPECIAL EVENT

FORD HOLIDAY RIVER PARADE AND RIVER LIGHTING CEREMONY

The 40th Annual Ford Holiday River Parade is back in 2021 with the theme 40 Years of Magic, which presumably means more toys, glitter, Santa and all other kinds of holiday joy. The local tradition features illuminated fl oats and costumes on a one-hour parade along the San Antonio River Walk. While this is a ticketed event, free viewing areas are available on a fi rst-come basis between Pecan Street and Richmond Avenue, and the parade will be broadcast live from the Arneson River Theatre, airing on KABB-TV/CW35 from 7-8 p.m. $17-$42, 6 p.m., Friday, November 26, San Antonio River Walk, 849 E. Commerce St., thesanantonioriverwalk.com/ events/ford-holiday-river-parade. — YY

FRI | 11.26

SPORTS

SPURS VS. CELTICS

Refl ecting on a recent home loss to the Dallas Mavericks, Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich plainly surmised his young team’s late game struggles. “You don’t want to lose games because you didn’t execute,” Popovich told reporters. “We’re not ready to be a team that’s just fl owing in the fourth quarter. That’s going to take some time, but it’s hard in the meantime because no one likes losing. We just have to stick with it, understand what the mistakes are and hope that they reduce as the year goes along, so that’s what we’re trying to do.” Next up for the Spurs is a Friday night showdown with Jason Tatum and the Boston Celtics. Tatum scorched the Spurs for 60 points last May in Boston, tying Larry Bird’s franchise record for most points scored in a game. With former Spur Ime Udoka handling head coaching duties, and Tatum recently breaking out of a scoring slump, the Celtics appear to have weathered an early season rough patch. San Antonio looks to turn the corner at home before a tough three-game road trip. $21-$2,702, 7:30 p.m., AT&T Center, One AT&T Center, (210) 444-5000, a center.com, KENS-TV. — MS

SAT | 11.27

FILM Y TU MAMÁ TAMBIÉN

Mexican fi lmmaker Alfonso Cuarón started his career with the well-received A Li le Princess and gave his take on Charles Dickens’ Great Expectations with Ethan Hawke, Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert De Niro, but it wasn’t until his 2001 fi lm Y tu mamá también that afi cionados realized just how special Cuarón could potentially be in the industry. The fi lm is a coming-of-age story that follows two teenage boys (Diego Luna and Gael García Bernal) who invite a woman in her late 20s (Maribel Verdú) on a road trip to a fi ctitious beach known as Boca del Cielo (“Heaven’s Mouth”). During their trip through rural Mexico, the trio talk about their relationships, sexual experiences and life in general. Y tu mamá también was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and only lost because it was up against another masterpiece in Pedro Almodóvar’s drama Talk to Her. If you must choose between watching the R-rated cut of this fi lm or the unrated version, see the la er. It makes a diff erence and hits harder thematically, especially during the fi nal act. Also, just for context, Cuarón entered the industry’s consciousness around the exact same time fellow Mexican fi lmmakers Guillermo del Toro did with The Devil’s Backbone and Alejandro González Iñárritu with Amores Perros. In the past eight Academy Award ceremonies, one of “The Three Amigos” has won the Best Director Oscar fi ve times. $10, 7 p.m., Arthouse at Blue Star, 134 Blue Star, (210) 212-9373, slabcinema.com. — KM