Contributors Abe Asher, Bill Baird, Ron Bechtol, Danny Cervantes, Amber Esparza, Brianna Espinoza, Anjali Gupta, Colin Houston, Kiko Martinez, Mike McMahan, Kevin Sanchez, M. Solis, Dean Zach
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in this issue
25-22/// Oct 30 - Nov 12, 2025
Texas Horror Authors
07
News The Opener News in Brief
Purge Time Again
Texas Secretary of State makes questionable claim that 201 noncitizens may be on Bexar County voter rolls
‘No Guarantees’
Despite promises of new jobs, San Antonio's unionized hospitality workers come out against Project Marvel
Bad Takes
Corruption is the antithesis of participatory democracy, and Texas proves it
16 Calendar
Auditor’s Certification:
Our picks of things to do powerful 22 Arts
Nightmare Before Christmas
San Antonio Krampus Parade to return to King William in December
Maker’s Mark
San Antonio ceramic artists unite for inaugural ClaySA exhibition and studio tour
29 Screens Reel Nightmares
7 San Antonio horror filmmakers pick their favorite scary movies
31 Food Burn Notice
San Antonio food truck Pete’s Hot Chicken brings the heat
Cooking Up Conversation
Künstler Brewing’s Vera Deckard talks craft, community and staying on mission
35 Music
Years in the Making
San Antonio’s Favorite Son releases 20
On the Cover: With the spooky season upon us, the Current has resurrected the 100-word horror stories feature it last curated five years ago. Cover painting: John Picacio. Cover design: Ana Paula Gutierrez.
Shutterstock Romolo Tavani
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SELLBUY TRADE
80 YEARS IN, WE’RE JUST GETTING STARTED.
For 80 years, the Alamo Colleges District has turned education into opportunity one story at a time. Since 1945, we’ve grown into a nationally recognized leader in excellence dedicated to ending poverty through education. This milestone belongs to the people who made it possible: the students, alumni, employees, and community partners whose stories help define our legacy. Now we invite you to share your story as we celebrate 80 years of opportunity and plan for new heights of possibility.
That Rocks/That Sucks
PresidentDonaldTrump’s crusade against immigrants is cratering the Texas economy, new research shows. The state’s job growth numbers so far this year are the worst since the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported. Job growth has fallen to just 1.2% this year, well below the state’s longtime average of 2%. One in five Texas businesses also told the Fed they’re struggling to hire and retain foreign-born workers.
SanAntoniowill request a TexasDepartmentofTransportationexemption so the city can keep its rainbow crosswalk after Gov.GregAbbottordered all municipalities to remove political road markings. City officials maintain that the number of traffic incidents at the intersection has decreased since the rainbow crosswalk was painted in 2018, showing that it presents no public safety hazard.
Texans have long suffered wage theft by employers, and the state agency responsible for investigating such cases is unable to keep up with the volume of complaints, a TexasObserverinvestigation found. The TexasWorkforceCommissionreceived more than 15,000 paycheck complaints last year, the highest number in nearly a decade. Meanwhile, a state audit found that it can take TWC months to assign a wage-theft case to an investigator.
SanAntonio’sKrampusParade is returning to the KingWilliam neighborhood this year after its debut installment last December drew a crowd of 10,000. The event is being held again despite opposition from fundamentalist pastors, who objected to a parade centered around a folkloric demon who’s part of Yuletide celebrations across much of Europe. The parade is free of charge, open to all ages and will take place Dec. 5. — Abe Asher
Pissing on the Alamo’s history with Lt. Gov. Dan
Patrick
AssclownAlertisacolumnofopinion,analysis and snark.
Last week, former Mayor Ron Nirenberg lashed out on social media at Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick over the Republican politician’s demand that Alamo Trust CEO Kate Rogers resign due to an opinion she expressed in her 2023 grad-school dissertation.
“This is really dumb,” Nirenberg wrote in what may qualify as the understatement of the year.
The reality is “really dumb” is par for the course when it comes to Patrick, a former radio shock jock who somehow parlayed his subpar Rush Limbaugh impression into a political career.
Since being elected to the Texas Senate in 2006, Patrick — one of the state’s most vocal culture warriors — has repeatedly shown himself to be both untethered from reality and, despite his proclivity for cowboy cosplay, too fucking stupid to pour water out of a boot.
Let’s run down some of the former Danny Goeb’s greatest hits, shall we?
• T his spring, as the state dealt with pressing issues, including its worst measles outbreak in decades, Patrick threatened to pass a law to change the name of the “New York strip” steak to the “Texas strip” to own the East Coast libs.
• In 2013, Patrick tried to raise campaign cash in a post claiming Duck Dynasty patriarch Phil Robertson was actually channeling the voice of God the he made offensive anti-LGBTQ+ comments to GQ magazine.
• That same year, Patrick told a Baptist congregation in Conroe, “There is no such thing as separation of church and state.”
• And, in 1992, while working in radio, Patrick drew the ire of Asian Americans for joking that journalist Connie Chung’s TV show should be
called Slanted Eye to Eye, a comment for which he refused to apologize.
And we could go on, but this is a newspaper column, not a goddamned book.
Patrick’s asinine assertions would be a laugh riot — a lost outtake reel from Idiocracy — if the state wasn’t drowning in his verbal diarrhea. In other words, his outbursts have real consequences.
Just ask Rogers, who resigned from the Alamo Trust after coming into Patrick’s sights. Her departure comes even though she won copious praise for her fundraising acumen and ability to get things done despite the meddling of Patrick and others intent whitewashing the monument’s history.
Maybe if Patrick runs off enough Alamo Trust leaders, he can install an animatronic version of himself at the front gate narrating a looped tour: “Welcome, patriots! Please keep all critical thinking to yourself.”
Until rational voters start turning up at the polls to bounce this assclown out of office, we can expect more of the same. And, yes, more of the same will be “really dumb.” — Sanford Nowlin
YOU SAID IT!
I don’t know how they’re going to fund everything — the arena, Alamodome, SAWS plant, the convention center. Where’s all this money coming from? Can they do it? It’s confusing.
—FormerCountyJudgeNelsonWolffon ProjectMarvel.
Plans to build a land bridge as part of Project Marvel are on indefinite pause due to federal funding cuts, City Manager Erik Walsh said.
The bridge was slated to connect the proposed Spurs arena at Hemisfair to parking garages at the Alamodome on the other side of I-37. Bexar County voters are currently weighing whether to raise the county visitor tax to help finance the construction of the new basketball arena.
Activists last week filed ethics complaints against four City Council members, alleging they held pro-Project Marvel rallies that they advertised as educational town halls. The complaint, filed by the Defending Public Money for Good PAC and
watchdog group COPS/Metro, names council members Sukh Kaur, Marina Alderete Gavito, Misty Spears and Marc Whyte.
The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality last week unanimously approved a permit sought by Florida-based developer Lennar Corp. to build a wastewater facility in northwest Bexar County. The plant is expected to pump an average of a million gallons of treated sewage daily into the Helotes Creek watershed. Opponents of the project argue it will imperil San Antonio’s drinking water and prevent residents from fishing and swimming in the creek. — Abe Asher
Gage Skidmore
Purge Time Again
Texas Secretary of State makes questionable claim that 201 noncitizens may be on Bexar County voter rolls
BY STEPHANIE KOITHAN
The Texas Secretary of State’s office last week said it flagged more than 2,700 potential noncitizens on statewide vot-
er rolls, including 201 in Bexar County.
In a statement, Republican Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson said she’s asked county elections departments to determine whether the flagged voters are actually ineligible to cast ballots and remove those who
can’t prove their citizenship.
Nelson said her team came up with its list after comparing federal immigration data with records of the state’s more than 18 million registered voters. The crosscheck was enabled by the federal government’s Systematic Alien
Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database, a resource provided to states at no cost by the Trump administration.
“Only eligible United States citizens may participate in our elections,” said Nelson, an appointee of Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican who’s frequently echoed President Donald Trump’s debunked claims of widespread election fraud.
“The Trump Administration’s decision to give states free and direct access to this data set for the first time has been a game changer, and we appreciate the partnership with the federal government to verify the citizenship of those on our voter rolls and
Sanford Nowlin
maintain accurate voter lists.”
However, civil rights groups said they’re suspicious of Nelson’s claim, which comes as early voting for November’s election is already underway. Further, they argue that Texas’ previous claims to have uncovered widespread noncitizen voting have been riddled with errors.
Even if the entire list is proven to be comprised of noncitizens with a voting history, its 2,724 potential voters represents just 0.0146451613% of the state’s 18 million registered voters.
Bexar County had the third-highest number of potential noncitizens on the list, trailing Harris County’s 362 and Dallas County’s 277.
The Current reached out to Bexar County Elections Administrator Michele Carew about how the county is handling Nelson’s order but received no response by press time.
This isn’t the first time an Abbott-appointed Secretary of State Abbott has pushed claims of widespread voter fraud from noncitizens. Indeed, it appears to be a recent requisite of the position.
In 2019, appointed — but, at the time, yet-to-be-confirmed — Secretary of State David Whitley, a longtime Abbott staffer, said his office had flagged 95,000 potential noncitizens after comparing state voter rolls against Department of Public Safety data.
Abbott promptly seized on Whitley’s announcement to stoke fears of widespread voter fraud by noncitizens. However, social scientists have repeatedly found such instances to be extremely rare and statistically insignificant, the New York Times reports.
Indeed, a 2017 analysis from progressive nonprofit the Brennan Center for Justice showed that incidents of potential noncitizen voting in the 2016 election accounted for just 0.0001% of the 23.5 million votes cast. Even the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, has refuted claims of widespread voter fraud by noncitizens, calling them “bogus.”
Ultimately, an analysis of Whitley’s list showed that it included at least 25,000 naturalized citizens, likely more, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
Whitley resigned in disgrace over the botched purge, which also resulted in lawsuits from LULAC and ACLU-Texas. In the end, the state abandoned the effort and rescinded the list altogether.
Pattern of errors
Similarly, Florida spearheaded an attempted a 2012 voter purge, initially claiming it turned up 180,000 noncitizens on voter rolls. Under increasing scrutiny, state officials continued revising that number downward until they arrived at a final total of 85.
The Obama administration’s Justice Department sued Florida over the program, arguing that U.S. citizens ended up in its crosshairs.
Officials in Colorado, when conducting a similar voter purge in 2011, started with a list of 11,805 supposed noncitizens, the Texas Tribune reports. Officials later whittled the list down to 141, only 35 of whom had a voting history — and even the veracity of that meager list was left in doubt.
Previous Abbott-appointed Texas Secretaries of State who have pursued claims of voter fraud by non-citizens also include former San Antonio
Mmayoral candidate Rolando Pablos, who lost to Gina Ortiz Jones in this summer’s election. Pablos started the process of comparing the DPS list with voter rolls in 2017, which continued under Whitley, who ultimately resigned due to the bungled purge.
The black eye over Whitley’s mistakes didn’t appear to deter Abbott, however.
In summer 2023, the governor issued a press release boasting that the state had removed more than potential 6,500 noncitizens from its voter rolls under Nelson, whom he’d appointed mere months earlier. An October 2024 investigation by Votebeat, ProPublica and the Texas Tribune later found Abbott’s data was inaccurate.
Casting doubt
Nelson, a Republican businesswoman, began using the feds’ SAVE database when it was unveiled this spring. Within three weeks, she claimed an early victory of discovering 33 voters on Texas rolls who may have been noncitizens.
Now, with early voting under way on the heels of a statewide voter registration backlog, voting rights advocates are eyeing Nelson’s announcement with suspicion.
“Counties and the public should treat these numbers skeptically,” said Tommy Buser-Clancy, senior staff attorney at ACLU of Texas. “Time and again the Texas government has made similar claims only for them to fall apart under scrutiny due to data rife with errors and processes that unfairly and illegally ensnare naturalized citizens.”
Officials with the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) confirmed that they’re weighing legal action to counter the state’s latest voter purge.
“We will consider litigation,” Gabriel Rosales, Texas LULAC State Director, said in a text to the Current. “It appears to be an inefficient use of taxpayer funds, particularly given the 2,700 individuals are likely to be recent graduates of the citizenship process. It’s a narrative they are pushing to justify their voter suppression tactics being deployed against the Latino communities in Texas!”
Meanwhile, the SAVE database is already the subject of a class action lawsuit by voting rights and electronic privacy groups claiming it was a violation of voters’ personal data.
Voters flagged on the list have 30 days to respond to their county elections department and prove their citizenship by furnishing official documentation — such as a passport or birth certificate — before their registration is canceled.
However, roughly 7% of Texans who are U.S. citizens of voting age would have trouble showing documents that prove their citizenship, the Current has previously reported.
That suggests some U.S. citizens erroneously included on the list could automatically have their registrations cancelled at the end of the 30 days if they’re unable to produce the needed documents.
Facebook / Jane Nelson
Jane Nelson,
‘No Guarantees’
Despite promises of new jobs, San Antonio's unionized hospitality workers come out against Project Marvel
BY MICHAEL KARLIS
Despite promises that Project Marvel will generate thousands of jobs, hospitality and service industry union UNITE HERE Local 23 has come out against the proposed downtown sports-and-entertainment district.
The labor group, which represents staffers at the Grand Hyatt convention center hotel and Hyatt Regency River Walk, cautions that its members have heard similar promises before — and been disappointed in the jobs that were actually generated.
Officials with Spurs Sports & Entertainment and the City of San Antonio maintain that the $4 billion-and-still-largely-conceptual Project Marvel will create 3,000 jobs in construction and hospitality. However, UNITE HERE questions the pay and benefits available for workers.
“There are no guarantees about the quality of the hospitality jobs that will be part of Project Marvel,” the local said in a statement to the Current. “Concession workers at stadiums often need to work two or three jobs to make ends meet. If we, as a city, are going to invest millions of dollars into this project, we need to ensure that it doesn’t add to the poverty jobs already available.”
During a town hall hosted early this month by District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo, one attendee pressed Spurs General Counsel Bobby Perez to say whether jobs in the team’s proposed new arena, a key component in Project Marvel, would include union positions.
“There will be prevailing market wages paid on this job,” Perez re-
sponded to boos and jeers from the crowd.
Low-wage, nonunion city
Around 150,000 of San Antonio’s total jobs are in the hospitality and tourism sector, meaning it employs one in seven workers here, then-Visit San Antonio CEO Marc Anderson said during February’s State of the City address.
Despite tourism being one of the “top four most important segments” in San Antonio’s economy, according to Anderson, the city remains among the nation’s least unionized, according to the San Antonio Report.
What’s more, SA is among the nation’s most-impoverished big cities.
Based on current income levels, nearly a quarter of the population struggles to survive, according to U.S. Census data.
Even so, some proponents of Project Marvel and the new Spurs arena project, including Amegy Bank CEO, in an October op-ed in the Express-News, argued that the big-ticket development wasn’t just about creating jobs but attracting investment to the city. McGee isn’t alone. Trish DeBerry,
CEO of downtown-promotion group Centro San Antonio, has also said Project Marvel will attract corporations to San Antonio, creating higher-paying jobs and retaining young, skilled talent.
‘Nothing more than conjecture’
However, Kennesaw State University Professor J.C. Bradbury, an economist who’s extensively studied publicly financed arena deals, told the Current that there’s no evidence to support the claims made by McGee and DeBerry.
“That’s nothing more than conjecture,” Bradbury said. “Economists have studied the impact of new facilities and hosting sports teams on jobs, and they find no effect. None. It’s absolutely been debunked. It’s been studied to death.”
Indeed, Bradbury said young talent usually relocates to where job opportunities are, and that company relocations have little to do with sports and entertainment districts. Rather, corporations are looking for quality of life and a strong pipeline of skilled professionals.
Former Councilman Greg Brock-
house, a two-time populist mayoral candidate, told the Current that projects such as building sidewalks and improving flood prevention would likely have a better chance of attracting high-paying corporate jobs than a new basketball arena.
“Right now in our city, only 59% of our hotel rooms are rented,” Brockhouse said. “We have plenty of inventory and volume. I don’t think we market and sell our city to the extent we should.”
In its statement, UNITE HERE Local 23, urged the city, county and the Spurs to ensure any jobs created by Project Marvel or the new arena, should it be approved by voters, provide a living wage.
“Our community deserves better,” the union said. “We always hear how these projects will bring jobs and business to the city, but the workers that are the backbone of the hospitality industry, who are needed for the success of the industry, are left behind. The City of San Antonio, Bexar County and the Spurs need to make sure these investments help the actual workers that will be making the food and pouring the drinks on game night.”
BAD TAKES
Corruption is the antithesis of participatory democracy, and Texas proves it
Texas’ top Democratic contenders have put anti-corruption front and center in their current campaigns to end the state’s 30 years of GOP reign.
No candidate with a D next to their name has won a statewide race since 1994, and that’s left Republicans in control of every lever of power in the Lone Star State.
In early September, State Rep. James Talarico, D-Austin, announced his intent to change that by winning the seat U.S. Sen. John Cornyn’s comfortably held since 2002.
“We haven’t had competitive elections in this state for a long time,” Talarico told TV station KSAT last week. “When we have politicians who are serving the needs of their billionaire mega-donors instead of the needs of Texans, then you see things like healthcare and housing and child care become way too expensive. ... Republican politicians promised to lower the cost of everything and they promised to drain the swamp. But just a year later, everything is more expensive, working families are falling further behind and corruption in Washington is the worst it’s ever been.”
To Talarico’s point, “Donald Trump just had the most lucrative year of his life,” Dan Alexander reported for Forbes, estimating the former reality show star’s net worth at $7.3 billion. “No president in U.S. history has used his position of power to profit as immensely as Trump.”
Indeed, the Trump family’s expanding cryptocurrency empire alone has “generated $1 billion in profit” this year, the Financial Times reported as the White House distributed Get Out of Jail Free cards to
incarcerated crypto creeps like Halloween candy. Credible media reports of outright bribery and other ethics violations continue to dog members of the administration, while official investigations — not to mention consequences, legal or otherwise — remain elusive.
One needn’t go to Washington to find greased palms, though.
This month, State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, D-Austin, announced a run against Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who’s seeking his fourth consecutive term.
“Hinojosa laid the groundwork for her corruption allegations, calling attention to a report by Public Citizen, the nonprofit consumer advocates,” Brant Bingaman wrote for the Austin Chronicle. That Public Citizen report, featured in the Current’s reporting and my last column, revealed that Abbott awarded $950 million in no-bid state contracts to prominent contributors to his campaign PAC.
However, ”the executives identified by Public Citizen did not include Pennsylvania billionaire Jeff Yass, who gave Abbott a record-setting $12 million last year as the governor moved heaven and earth to win approval [for] allowing families to spend public taxpayer money on private schools for their children,” Bingaman wrote.
Even so, Hinojosa has criticized the Texas Comptroller “for providing a $50 million contract to Odyssey, a tech company that received a $500,000 prize from Yass in 2023, to oversee the voucher program.”
“It’s just another grift,” Hinojosa told CBS News. “It is a way to pad the pockets of the well-connected.”
be about change and reform.”
Ossoff cited his record of not accepting contributions from federal lobbyists or corporate PACs and sponsoring legislation to ban members of Congress from trading stock.
“We have to acknowledge that the corruption is bipartisan,” he advised. “The whole Congress is captured by big money, and people want to hear that we recognize that, because it’s true.”
Retired Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy penned that infamous Citizens United decision, and FiringLinehost Margaret Hoover quizzed him about it this month when he appeared on her PBS program.
“In 2024, over $1.4 billion of non-disclosed dark money was spent on political advertising trying to influence voters in the election. Do you ever think about the unintended consequences?” Hoover pointedly asked.
But Hinojosa wasn’t done there.
“You don’t get that kind of campaign cash by doing the bidding of the people,” she told Texas Monthly of Abbott’s $87 million campaign war chest. “You get it because you’re corrupt. And that is a primary issue in this campaign: He can keep his dirty money, and we’ll get the people of Texas on our side.”
Dems don’t own a monopoly on anti-corruption messaging, however. Nate Sheets, a Republican candidate for Texas Agriculture Commissioner, spilled the tea on Sid Miller, the current holder of that office, in a recent Express-News op-ed.
In 2021, Miller’s longtime political consultant, Todd Smith, was arrested on charges that he solicited more than $150,000 in bribes for procuring hemp licenses that cost $100. Even though Smith pled guilty, he was subsequently rehired as Miller’s chief of staff.
“This is how Miller operates: one set of rules for his insiders, another for everyone else,” Sheets wrote. “That’s not leadership, that’s rewarding corruption.”
Texas aspirants could certainly learn a thing or two from U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia.
“Since Citizens United, this political system has been corruption on steroids, and that is a big part of why policy doesn’t serve ordinary people,” he told the middle-of-the-roaders over at Pod Save America. “So, as Trump poses this radical threat to the rule of law and the Constitution — things that we have to protect — we can’t just become mere guardians of the status quo. We have to
Kennedy admitted that the sleazy death spiral was predictable, but put the responsibility back on voters.
“What the voters must do is demand disclosure — see where the money’s coming from,” he said. “And if they see that some millionaire or billionaire from another state is pouring huge amounts of money into their district, they can vote against that candidate. An educated citizenry is necessary to make democracy work. You can’t be indifferent.”
Except, according to Pew Research, 80% of Americans already believe campaign donors hold too much influence over Congress. What do we do, Justice Kennedy, when most every candidate is on the take?
The anti-monopolist Matthew Stoller, in a must-read piece for the conservative journal American Affairs, noted, for example, that the corrupting tentacles of Meta, the world’s sixth-largest corporation by market cap, encircle the elites of both parties.
“Joe Biden’s chief of staff served on Meta’s board of directors prior to his White House role,” Stoller noted, adding “under Donald Trump, Deputy Chief of Staff Steven Miller and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick are well-known and fierce allies of the firm.”
The bottom line is corruption is the antithesis of participatory democracy.
For instance, can anyone truly contend that regardless of how the Project Marvel vote comes out this November, the negotiations were maximally transparent or that ordinary San Antonians had a substantive role in the process?
“America is a very cynical place for a reason,” as Stoller ominously stated.
Shutterstock / Maxim Elramsisy
THU | 10.30
SPORTS
SPURS VS. HEAT
The Spurs capped off their first undefeated preseason since Tim Duncan’s rookie year with a lopsided 133-104 win over the Indiana Pacers. Victor Wembanyama led San Antonio with 17 points and 12 rebounds, and Stephon Castle dazzled the home crowd with 16 points, 9 assists and his signature highlight reel dunks. After the game Castle addressed the optimism around the team. “There definitely is a different energy,” Castle told reporters. “I feel like coming into the season guys are a lot more locked in. We have obviously high expectations for this year, so maybe that changes things a little bit, but the energy’s been great all training camp.” After a three-game homestand that closes out against the Heat, the Spurs take a quick trip west with stops in Phoenix and Los Angeles versus the Lakers. The timely return of De’Aaron Fox and emergence of rookie Dylan Harper round out one of the most intriguing three-guard rotations in recent memory as San Antonio looks to keep pace in a crowded Western Conference. $15 and up, 7:30 p.m., Frost Bank Center, 1 Frost Bank Center Drive, (210) 444-5140, frostbankcenter. com, Fanduel Sports Network-Southwest. — MS
SAT | 11.01
SPECIAL EVENT
DÍA DE MUERTOS 2025
The Esperanza Peace and Justice Center’s 30th annual Día de Muertos, or Day of the Dead, celebration is a free, family friendly event in honor of our ancestors and loved ones. The event features twenty altars built by members of the surrounding West Side community, live music, a visual art exhibition by MujerArtes Cooperativa de Esperanza and readings by Teatro Esperanza. Organizers encourage attendees to don traditional calacacostumes and join them as they parade from the Rinconcito de Esperanza to the Alázan-Apache Courts, accompanied by the Kalpulli Ayolopaktzin dance troupe at 6 p.m. Feel free to bring photos of past loves, friends and family to add to a community altar. You may also email photos to ofrendas@esperanzacenter.org by October 30 for inclusion. Once specific to Mexico, Día de Muertos is now celebrated world over. Macabre but simultaneously life-affirming, it’s an exquisite spectacle to witness that also offers catharsis through community. Free,4-10p.m.,RinconcitodeEsperanza,816S.ColoradoSt.,(210)2280201,esperanzacenter.org.— Anjali Gupta
SPECIAL EVENT
DIWALI SA
Diwali, the “Festival of Lights,” is the most widely celebrated Indian holiday in America. Originally a Hindu religious observance, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs also celebrate the holiday for their own spiritual reasons. However, stateside festivities tend to put religion in the back seat, instead foregrounding universal themes such as the triumph of light over darkness and the resilience of the human spirit. The Alamo City’s Diwali SA gathering draws up to 20,000 visitors a year, making it the largest city-sponsored Diwali festival in the United States. Included in the revelry are light displays, dance and musical performances, art displays and a River Parade honoring each of India’s 28 states. Vendors selling street food and handicrafts add to the overall ambiance, echoing the wonderfully chaotic sights, sounds and smells that make the Indian subcontinent such a treat for the senses. The evening ends with a massive fireworks display over the Tower of the Americas. Free,4:30-11:59p.m.,HemisfairPark,434S.AlamoSt.,(210)273-2200,anujasa.com.— AG
SAT | 11.08
WORKSHOP PAINT BY STICKER
A clever twist on the popular seventies and eighties paint-by-number fad, Paint by Sticker provides a relatively mess-free way to conjure your inner child. Organizers encourage participants to recreate artistic masterpieces, which provides the perfect opportunity for rewriting art history — or at least a little creative revisionism. Think Georges Seurat’s pointillist masterpiece ASunday AfternoonontheIslandofLaGrandeJattefashioned out of tiny squares, or Edvard Munch’s The Scream festooned with Teletubbies. Surely something wall-worthy can come out of this experiment. Free,1-2p.m.,MollyPruittLibraryatRooseveltHighSchool,5110WalzemRoad,(210) 650-1122,mysapl.org.— AG
SPORTS
SPURS VS. ROCKETS
San Antonio’s evolving defense faces an early season test against Kevin Durant and the Houston Rockets, the Spurs’ I-10 rivals. Now in his 18th season, Durant recently signed a two-year, $90 million contract extension with the Rockets and remains the game’s most gifted scorer since Carmelo Anthony. Durant’s leadership and playmaking will be key for Houston with starting point guard Fred VanVleet recovering from a torn ACL, and Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard expected to help run the offense. Prior to erupting for 40 points and 15 rebounds in an opening night win over the Dallas Mavericks, Spurs center Victor Wembanyama doubled down on the team’s postseason goals. “Success would be getting into the playoffs and not the play-in,” Wembanyama told reporters at practice. “That means sixth seed.” With back-to-back home games versus Steph Curry and the Warriors on the horizon, Head Coach Mitch Johnson and the Spurs continue to forge their defensive identity. $36 and up, 6:30 p.m., Frost Bank Center, 1 Frost Bank Center Drive, (210) 444-5140, frostbankcenter.com, Prime Video. — MS
Instagram / Spurs
Courtesy Photo San Antonio Public Library
Jaime Monzon
TUES |
11.11
SPECIAL EVENT
WORTH REPEATING: CLOUD 9
Worth Repeating, Texas Public Radio’s live storytelling series and podcast is back at it with Cloud 9, tales about one’s highest high. Submissions are already closed, so no need to incriminate yourself, but with a theme this broad, there should be some Gonzo-esque doozies in the mix. To participate in future events, go to the TPR website, find a theme that appeals to you and submit a story that when read aloud is about seven minutes long. A producer will contact you if your submission is selected. If so, each event requires attendance at a storyteller workshop (online or in person), a rehearsal (in person) and, of course, the event itself (in person). This is the perfect format to experience crowd response to your work, whatever the genre. It’s like a free focus group for a chapter of the next Great American Novel, a film script in progress or your next comedy routine. Feedback can be invaluable, and first-timers are given preference over returning storytellers. $10, 7:30-9 p.m., Texas Public Radio, Malú and Carlos Alvarez Theater, 321 W Commerce St., (210) 614-8977, tpr.org. — AG
JOHN MULANEY
Award-winning comedian, actor and writer John Mulaney is bringing the laughs to town as part of his 31-city John Mulaney: Mister Whatever tour. Mulaney, a former Saturday Night Live writer, got a big boost in visibility through his Netflix talk show Everybody’s LivewithJohnMulaney,which mixes celebrity interviews with often-bizarre comedic turns. He’s also a three-time Emmy Award winner and a winner of both the Critics’ Choice Award and WGA Award. The comic bagged two of those Emmys for his 2023 standup special BabyJ,in which he frankly discusses his stint in drug rehab and struggle to stay sober. Beyond the awards and accolades, Mulaney has managed to build an enviable standup career because of his approachable style. He’s conversational, sometimes confessional, and a masterful storyteller who can move seamlessly between folksy and edgy material while using his charm and deft mastery of language to drag the audience along for the ride. $72-$384,7:30p.m.,MajesticTheatre,224.E.HoustonSt.,(210)226-3333,majesticempire.com.— Sanford Nowlin
WED | 11.12
SPECIAL EVENT
PETER HESSLER
Award-winning narrative nonfiction writer Peter Hessler, a staff writer at the NewYorker,contributing writer at National GeographicMagazineand author of four books, has spent the bulk of his career abroad. In 1996, the Peace Corps placed Hessler in a small city in southwestern China where he taught English and American literature. After his tenure he remained in China, witnessing tumultuous social and economic changes as they unfolded. This experience forms the foundation of his first three books and together they comprise his “China trilogy,” covering the decade in which he lived in the country. Each volume addresses various aspects of rapid social change and how those sweeping alterations impact the average citizen. Ruminations on mass migration, economics, urbanization, time, history and one’s sense of place all add up to a holistic exploration of a society in flux. Hessler’s lecture will certainly cover this material as well as his time spent in Nepal, Egypt, Japan and rural Colorado. Expect to hear the musings of a true citizen of the world.Free,7-9 p.m.,TrinityUniversity,ChapmanAuditorium,1TrinityPlace,(210)999-7011,events.trinity.edu.— AG
Courtesy Photo TPR
Shutterstock / Kathy Hutchins
Facebook / Peter Hessler
100-Word Nightmares from 13 Texas Horror Authors
EDITED BY MAX BOOTH III
It’s almost Halloween, boils, ghouls and gender-neutral creatures of the night. And if there’s one thing about Halloween everybody universally loves, it’s small, fun-sized pieces of candy.
But why stop at tiny candy? What else can we shrink? Could we shrink children? What about a man? What about ourselves? What about … hear us out … what about horror stories? Could we shrink those too, do you think?
Trick question, sucka. We already did.
On the five-year anniversary of the Current’s 100-word horror feature that ran in 2020, we asked 13 San Antonioand Austin-area writers to conjure up stories that clock in at exactly 100 words (including the title). And that’s what they delivered.
Do us a favor and read them out loud to children as they fist your cauldrons for candy on Halloween night. Their parents will love you.
Holes
By L.P. Hernandez
Old Man Jones was known for two things. Digging holes and giving out full candy bars for Halloween.
“Trick or treat!” I’d say.
“Heathen,” he’d reply, dropping chocolate into my open sack.
Went on for years like that. His backyard looked like the surface of the moon. Treasure, he’d say to anyone asking what the holes were for.
“My stomach hurts bad,” Jenny said. My trick or treat days were over, but hers were just starting. I noticed the wrapper.
“Old Man Jones, huh? He call you a heathen when he dropped it?”
“No. He called me a treasure.”
L.P. Hernandez writes horror and speculative fiction, including Stargazers and No Gods Only Chaos . He co-owns the indie press Sobelo Books.
Who’s Got the Salt?
By Jess Hagemann
I search the pantry, the cupboards, the counters: no salt. The spell book
says I need salt. There’s baking soda. Will Clabber Girl suffice? Shrugging, I tip some in. Stir. Say the magic words. Next: Three liters of innocent blood. Hmm. I wouldn’t call them “innocent,” but between the two of them, they should have enough. Excited to see it work, I stalk up the stairs to their bedroom. Consider the sleeping faces of the little snots I’m babysitting. In the moonlight, their skin is pale as salt. But not as pale as it will be.
Austin novelist Jess Hagemann writes best on extended solo retreats, so she’s building one (open to other writers!) in Maine. More at lincolnretreat.com.
Listen to My Walls!
By Miguel Villa
The noise is deafening. I can’t think straight, can’t focus on my work. So many things to do I write them down on sticky notes. I start working and the noise starts up again. I ask my neighbor over to listen, but it goes away. They must think I’m losing it. Am I losing it? WHY DO THEY KEEP POUNDING ON THE WALLS? I decide to go over and see for myself. I knock on the door, then walk in. I see it, crawling along the walls … I get it. I start pounding on the walls too.
Miguel Villa is a failed podcast host trying his luck at writing horror comics and short stories. He likes horror movies and Ice Nine Kills.
The Cure
By Sanford Allen
Rats skittered through the moonlit chapel as Brother Edmund tended to the dying, blue boils blossoming on their necks and faces. Between rattling coughs, the villagers begged for salvation, but all he could offer was empty hope. Prayer and water from the communal well. Once he’d burned the bodies and no more of the sick crawled to the abbey steps, he opened his journal filled with careful notes about the sickness he’d brewed deep in the well. “At last,” he wrote, smiling and tilting
back a sip from his wine goblet, “alone in a world purified of sin.”
Sanford Allen is author of the novel Deadly Passage and lots of scary short stories. Under another name, he edits an alt-weekly.
Y-INCISION
By Reneé Hunter Vasquez
She never believed in an afterlife because she couldn’t see or feel it for herself. But she could feel now that the
table beneath her was cold. The sanitized air assaulting her nose. Gloved hands prodding and meticulously inspecting. The useless hunk of meat inside her skull was somehow still firing off cruel warnings of fear and pain. Warnings that the broken husk of her body simply could not heed. When the speculative conversation above her began, she could not contribute. When they scrubbed her down, she could not move. And when the cutting began, she could not scream.
Courtesy Image John Picacio
Reneé Hunter Vasquez takes horror way too seriously. She co-hosts Pod Mortem: A Horror Podcast and writes scary stories. Follow her on socials @bloodandsmoke.
What I’ve Learned Since Crossing Over
By Celso Hurtado
Routine is important. I float around every night, slamming doors and moaning. It took practice to get the sound right, since I no longer have vocal cords and must manipulate the air, but I managed it.
I love being invisible. And watching. Once, a woman yelled, claiming she could see me.
“You must be a medium,” I said. She denied it, the liar. So, I haunted her. That makes four hauntings total. A surprising tidbit about haunting someone … so much blood!
One more thing I’ve learned. Ghosts scream. In fact, my throat never stops hurting.
Celso Hurtado was born and raised in San Antonio. His first book, The Ghost Tracks, was praised by NPR and won an International Latino Book Award. The Devil’s Promise is his second novel.
At first, she was devastated about the pregnancy…
By Sloane Fitchett
But now? She was elated. She tenderly stroked her belly’s slope as she studied the dwindling supply of cans. When her family had first retreated to the bunker, they were certain they’d only be down there a month, two at most. How long could the sickness last? But now, nearly five months in, supplies were dangerously low. They were down to just cans of corn and beans.
The baby kicked her ribs and she smiled. “We can’t wait for you to be born!” In a few weeks, they’d feast on fresh meat.
Sloane Fitchett lives in San Antonio.
Slow Burn
By Susan Snyder
An odor of burning hair and flesh permeates my nostrils. Yet, I hardly notice because of the searing pain. The unbearable licks of flame char my back, legs and arms. I can’t escape the fire. There is no room to move.
I am keenly aware of the cremation process. After all, I am usually the one running this crematorium. I only went inside to fix it. Not to be trapped inside. This process takes two hours. At what point will I die? Please, soon.
Who locked this door? Who stands on the outside, laughing, while I’m burned alive?
Susan Snyder is an Austin-based Wonderland and Splatterpunk award nominee who writes horror fiction, poetry, non-fiction and satire. Every day is Halloween!
I’m cursed.
Daytime Violence
By Lesly Julien
You always come back, like a haunted doll. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve killed you.
I can’t help the intrusive visions of pouring gasoline all over you and setting you alight.
You cling to me.
To remind me of what I’ve done.
Just when I think I’m free. There you are again.
So the rage builds. My knuckles tighten. I hate you for what you make me do.
I did not ask for this.
Why don’t I stop? Because the HOA won’t let me.
So I cut you. Again and again and again.
Lesly Julien is the indie comic writer of the spooky comedy Ghost Gauntlet, slapstick fantasy miniseries Savage Wizard, crime thriller miniseries Headcases as well as long-gestating horror drama Lost Lake .
RTO
By Richard Z. Santos
Mom died, which sucked, but what’s really unfortunate is she came back. Not a zombie, vampire or vicious thing like in that book with the misspeeled title, but like herself. When she returned to work she didn’t notice her photo on the breakroom fridge or the gaping mouths. She scared the new girl out of her desk and started replying to emails. The quality of her work was, well, fine. After battling traffic home, she sighed, turned on the TV, and sat on the couch. She ordered delivery. I asked why she came back. She said, “This is better.”
Richard Z. Santos’ debut novel, Trust Me, was a finalist for the Writer’s League of Texas Book Awards and was named one of the best debuts of the year by Crime Reads. He’s the editor of the acclaimed collection A Night of Screams: Latino Horror Stories
He Said/She Said By Lori Michelle Booth
He said, “How come you didn’t cook dinner?”
She said, “I’m sorry.”
He said, “Why can’t you clean up anything?”
She said, “I’m sorry.”
He said, “Why didn’t you make that bill payment on time?”
She said, “I’m sorry?”
He said, “Why didn’t you do your hair nice?”
She said softly, “I’m sorry.”
He said, “Why would you want to do that instead of be with me?”
She said quietly, “I’m sorry.”
He said, “Why can’t you ever do anything right?”
She said in a whisper, “I’m sorry.”
He cried to her tombstone, “My love, I’m sorry.”
Lori Michelle Booth is the quiet half of the Ghoulish Books enterprise. In the evening, she is Mrs. Lori, dance teacher extraordinaire. She spends most of her time being surrounded by costumes, books, formatting projects and barking dogs.
A Message from the Principal By
Clayton Hackett
Dear Parents/Guardians,
This is to inform you about an incident that occurred on campus today. An unauthorized individual breached the perimeter and was able to access multiple classrooms during the educational period. The individual was armed with military-grade firearms.
We are proud to say that the District’s rapid response tactical unit was able to successfully neutralize the intruder in under two hours.
Unfortunately, as of the time of this message, there were twenty-three casualties, three of which were…
***CLICK HERE to upgrade your subscription to one of our “Paid” options to receive more valuable information!***
Clayton Hackett is a short fiction writer and attorney living here in San Antonio.
The Fall
By Johnny Compton
People said this road was cursed, but it was worse than that. This road was malevolent. Aware and cruel. He learned this just before the bridge fell away and dropped his car into endless fog.
The road taunted him with a sign before he fell.
IT’S NOT THE FALL THAT KILLS YOU
He passed a tour bus that must have been silver once upon a time but was closer to brown with age.
He passed a rusted motorcycle on the way down. Its driver and sidecar rider were skeletonized.
Then he passed three more signs.
IT’S
THE TIME
JohnnyComptonistheStokerAward-nominated author of The Spite House, Devils Kill Devils and Dead First, as well as the short storycollection Midnight Somewhere.
ABOUT THE EDITOR: Max Booth III runs GhoulishBooksonSouthSaintMary’sStreet inSanAntonio.Findthemtheremostdays besidesMondays.DoNOTgototheshopon Monday.Youwillgetpissedoff.
arts
Find more arts coverage every day at sacurrent.com
arts
Nightmare Before Christmas
San Antonio Krampus Parade to return to King William in December
BY STEPHANIE KOITHAN
The San Antonio Krampus Parade will return to the historic King William neighborhood for its second annual Ghoultide celebration on Friday, Dec. 5, according to details shared by organizers.
Last year’s illuminated night parade drew as many as 10,000 attendees and
participants, and organizers expect this year’s celebration to draw throngs once again. The parade, which is free and open to all ages, will begin at 7:30 p.m.
Krampus parades are an ancient tradition of Central Europe, where participants dress as the folkloric creature that hauls off wicked children in a basket or punishes them with switches.
Krampus’ triumphant return comes after much remonstration from certain
community factions, including fundamentalist Christian groups and a few influential King William residents.
Despite the controversy the event generated when it made its debut last year, most respondents to a King William Association survey said they wanted the parade to come back for a second installment.
After much ado and some pushback from within the King William Association, the German folklore tradition will once again be held in the historically German neighborhood. And this time, organizers are answering naysayers with a message of positivity centered around the German concept of gemütlichkeit, or togetherness.
“Gemütlichkeit is sort of […] another
way to reinforce the idea that we’re here to have a good time,” Grand Marshall Bob Crittenden told the Current. “And I hate that I have to say that, because 10,000 people understood that. But we want to just remind everybody that we’re here to have a good time. And that’s why we are embracing this concept of gemütlichkeit.”
Like many words in the German language, there’s no literal translation of gemütlichkeit, which is frequently used in beer hall toasts. However, Crittenden said the word encapsulates “a sense of warmth, community, social fun, being together [and] having fun.”
“That’s what this parade is all about,” he added.
In addition to the new theme, this
Jaime Monzon
arts
year’s parade will incorporate other changes.
First of all, only members of parade krewes can march in the krampuslauf. Those who wish to march can register at KrampusPortal.com.
This update is a response to last year’s issue of fundamentalists crashing the parade, which marred the experience for some children and families, parade organizers said.
“The only people scaring little kids were the protesters saying, ‘You’re going to Hell,’” the late David Uhler, then-president of German biergarten Beethoven Männerchor, told the Current in April about the presence of demonstrators who inserted themselves into the parade.
Crittenden also said organizers are working to close off traffic so they can host a block party in front of the outdoor biergarten, doubling the afterparty’s capacity. However, that plan has yet to be finalized, he added.
Beethoven Männerchor is also a more secure location, Crittenden added.
“[P]erhaps Krampusgate will not grip the city this year. But if it does, we know that there’s a 7-foot-tall wrought iron fence around Beethoven,” Crittenden said. “So […] that is a secure location for people that want to enjoy festivities without the distraction of protesters, if that should even happen.”
As such, Crittenden recommends carpooling, arriving early and parking outside the parade route to minimize congestion.
Like last year, participants are encouraged to incorporate illumination into their costumes in the form of lanterns, strings of lights, battery-operated candles or other light-up features, since the parade route is dark at night.
This year’s parade route has also changed.
Rather than lining up at Blue Star Arts Complex and ending at bar and bowling alley Hermann Sons, the route will be a loop, starting and ending at Beethoven Männerchor, 422 Pereida St. The route length has also been extended by a half mile, now totaling 1.7 miles.
Crittenden said the event’s afterparty has also been moved to Beethoven Männerchor to accommodate a crowd of 1,000 as opposed to the 100-capacity Hermann Sons Rathskeller bar, which resulted in many would-be revelers being turned away last time.
DJ Sue Problema and DJ Thurderatt will provide the soundtrack to this year’s post-parade festivities.
Though Hermann Sons initially enlisted Crittenden to put on last year’s parade as a way to celebrate German tradition and draw crowds to the bar, he said the venue hasn’t reached out since the barrage of angry phone calls it received last year.
“I haven’t heard anything from them,” he added. “But the Valkyries [the Krampus Parade organizing committee] were so touched by the support of then-President David Uhler and the Beethoven Männerchor last year that they jumped at the opportunity to partner with them.”
In German folkloric tradition, Krampusnacht always falls on Dec. 5. This year, that also happens to be First Friday, a monthly arts event that already generates plenty of traffic and parking woes in King William.
This year’s parade will feature new krewes, including groups representing whimsical beer garden Elsewhere, the San Antonio River’s Go Rio river barges and horror bookshop Ghoulish Books. Krampus Parade organizers have been fundraising all year in preparation for the return of the December festivities, including a Fiesta Krampus Pachanga. During Krampus’ foray into Fiesta, parade krewe Bewitching Brujas performed a skit opening up the “demonic portal” that fundamentalists warned the inaugural parade would summon upon the city.
The “demonic portal” has since become a long-running joke for parade organizers, who even sell merchandise reading “Puro pinche Krampus portal” as a playful sendup of the controversy. Through the various fundraisers, organizers have pulled in enough cash to cover expanded traffic control, insurance and other expenses, Crittenden said. However, he added that the parade is looking for sponsors going forward.
Jaime Monzon
Courtesy Image San Antonio Krampus Parade
arts
Maker’s Mark
San Antonio ceramic artists unite for inaugural ClaySA exhibition and
studio tour
BY BRYAN RINDFUSS
“We have this crazy idea, and we would really love your help.”
That intriguing plea crossed the desk of Contemporary Art Month Executive Director Roberta “Nina” Hassele last spring in the form of an email exchange between San Antonio artists Michelle Hernandez, Hilary Rochow and Rikkianne Van Kirk.
CLAYSA STUDIO TOUR
“They’re all women that I really respect,” Hassele told the Currentfrom her artfilled office at the Southtown art space Mercury Project. “I respect their creative work, and I respect them as women, individually and as a whole. So I was like, ‘Yeah, of course!’ So we scheduled a meeting.”
During that meeting, the “crazy idea” in question began to develop into ClaySA — a grassroots initiative to connect and uplift San Antonio’s growing ceramics community. Kicking off in November, the
collaborative event combines “The Mark of the Hand,” a group exhibition uniting 23 local artists working in clay, and 12 studio tours spread across two weekends.
The new program represents the work of an all-volunteer committee that comprises Hassele, Hernandez, Rochow and Van Kirk along with artists Dani Becknell, Michael Foerster, Jesselyn Gordon, Linda Perez and Jackie Saha.
Curated by Rochow and opening Nov. 8, “The Mark of the Hand” in certain ways
‘THE MARK OF THE HAND’
expands on “Clay Symphony,” a group show Hassele and Van Kirk presented at Mercury Project last year.
“We put ‘Clay Symphony’ together because we really wanted people to be exposed to this beauty that we have here,” Hassele explained. “So many people, to the best of our knowledge, just don’t realize that they’re [around so many San Antonio artists who make] this incredible ceramic work.”
story, pointed out that ClaySA isn’t the first or only organized group of ceramic artists in San Antonio.
“We’re passionate about the idea of bringing clay artists together,” Rochow said. “And there is a San Antonio Potters Guild. But clay is such an interesting medium because it spans fine art and the craft world. And I personally like to break [those] barriers any chance I get. Curatorially speaking, I don’t think it makes a whole lot of sense that there are harsh lines between those worlds in a post-industrial society. So, we just wanted to celebrate clay as a medium — and the people working in it — whether they were doing more functional work or more sculptural work.”
As its title suggests, “The Mark of the Hand” also celebrates the inimitable nuances of handcrafted ceramics.
“Clay is such a fascinating medium,”
Rochow said. “You can do anything with it, and it’s fun to see different people’s approaches to it. Clay people are great about sharing their techniques — because there’s no way that you’re going to copy [them exactly]. It’s not possible. That’s why we named the exhibition ‘The Mark of the Hand.’ Especially with the advent of AI, I think there is a push towards handmade items. And one lovely thing about handmade ceramic items is that you can see the mark of the hand. You can see that it was made. It is clearly something special.”
Fittingly, ClaySA is taking shape at a time when San Antonians have more access than ever to ceramics classes and workshops at community-minded spaces such as Mud Studio, Oblate Clay, Breva Creative and Thrown Studio, the latter of which was founded by ClaySA committee
Clay Persuasions
To get a glimpse into the work of the makers behind ClaySA, we asked committee members what they consider their specialty and what they’re most drawn to when appreciating ceramics.
“My specialty is exploring the seemingly infinite diversity of forms and shapes and textures both alone and in combination with one another. I usually like to start a work on the wheel and then remove and alter it and sometimes combine it with other pieces. Think of all the different feathers comprising the wings of a bird, as well as thousands of
member Jesselyn Gordon. When asked about any wow moments in “The Mark of the Hand,” Rochow said she’s excited about allof it.
“It’s a good mix of lots of different clay bodies and different glaze techniques,” Rochow explained. “Carolyn Adams has these really interesting sculptures, and it was really fun visiting her studio and learning about her practice. The way that she finishes the sculptures is really fascinating. She uses a lot of cold work like wax, so you end up with these fascinating lusters that you wouldn’t be able to achieve with the kiln alone. … Anita Becerra is [contributing] some lamps, and I’m excited to see her interpretation. … [And] Brooke Armstrong makes these huge sculptures out of tiny little spikes of clay … and then she hangs them in this beautiful way [that] feels like one piece — like it’s floating.”
Hassele, whom Rochow describes as ClaySA’s “North Star,” is also thrilled about seeing everything in one place.
“I’m excited about experiencing the whole month and just watching and observing people and having conversations about this artist and that artist and this piece of work and that piece of work in this open studio,” Hassele said.
“One of the studio visits that I’m really excited about is Linda Perez’s studio in Floresville. We’re going to caravan from Mercury Project. It’s 40 minutes out of town, but it feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere. It’s beautiful. … I’m going to bring a cooler with snacks and beverages and we’re just gonna camp out for the day.”
As for the future of ClaySA, Hassele sees it as an annual event with potential to evolve.
“We do know that we want to continue it and let it grow organically. So we may continue with the same format into 2026 and then just see how it moves forward,” she said. “It’s a labor of love right now [but we may] look for some financial sponsors so we can pay the artists that are part of the exhibition or help contribute towards the open studios.”
One of the women who was on the original email thread that helped sparked ClaySA, committee member Michelle Hernandez says she wants the event to set an example for the San Antonio community at large.
“One of my favorite things about the clay community is that we are always so giving and ready to lend a hand to each other,” Hernandez said via email. “I want more people to know and feel that community support and maybe even allow it to be a model for more than just the clay community.”
different birds, especially when in flight, and how unique each feather is both alone and when together as a wing. Clay is a material with many characteristics such as color, texture and pliancy, that allow it to be made into unlimited forms and shapes. Its texture is very adaptable to transformation as well, which can enhance the surfaces and influence the entire piece. If an idea doesn’t work you can start again — it’s clay and it lets you keep trying.” — Linda Perez
“Right now, I am really enjoying hand-building, versus throwing forms
on the wheel. I like the freedom in forms it allows and the challenge of working against gravity. The hand-building process is also slower, which allows me more time to meditate on the meaning of the pieces and keeps me at a pace where I am able to explore and shift within the piece more.”
— Michelle Hernandez
“I consider myself a sculptor who works predominantly in clay. Working with clay is a tactile connection to the earth. I find it to be very grounding. When collecting or merely appreciating ceramics, I tend to lean towards pieces that still have the mark of the maker. I find there is something soulful to that bridge between artist and other.”
— Dani Becknell
“I primarily work on the wheel to make functional ware for restaurants. However, when time and money allows, I use the wheel and hand-building techniques to make much larger vessels. I tend to gravitate towards the wheel, but have been branching out more frequently into hand-built sculptures.”
— Jesselyn Gordon
“I make sculptural work that typically incorporates interactive elements with the aim of playing with the audience, pushing them to respond in different ways while giving me the opportunity to observe, akin to a social experiment.”
— Michael Foerster
Andrew Leo Anita Becerra
Diana Kersey
Reel Nightmares
7 San Antonio horror filmmakers pick their favorite scary movies
BY KIKO MARTINEZ
Even with the flood of content on streaming services, it can be hard to avoid recycling the same few horror movies once spooky season comes around. To that end, we asked a few San Antonio horror filmmakers to recommend some of their favorite fright flicks. So, grab some popcorn, dim the lights and get ready for a nightmare-inducing movie marathon.
Max Booth III (Writer of WeNeedtoDoSomething)
The 2014 film TheGuestfeatures one of the coolest haunted house set pieces I’ve ever seen in a movie. It’s unhinged, stupid and a total blast – plus, that score! I came to the 1988 horror-comedy Elvira:MistressoftheDarkkind of late, but my God, it’s perfect. I don’t understand why it isn’t considered a Halloween classic. Nobody is cooler than Elvira! I rewatch one movie every Halloween night, and that movie is Ghostwatch. Bonus points if you check it with someone unaware of its context. Ghostwatchhas my heart forever.
Colin Bressler (Director of TheMummyMurders)
I love the ’80s horror/sci-fi classic TheThing so much. It creates an incredible atmosphere — freezing temps and isolation. Even before the creature appears onscreen, the audience is locked in. Jordan Peele’s 2019 film Usis underrated and very creepy. The horror really comes from the intense acting. The cast sends chills through me every time I watch it. GoodBoyis a recent film that shows the world from a dog’s point of view. It unfolds in a very scary way.
Jess Castro (Director of Get the Hell Out)
Chaos ensues in the 1985 horror movie Demonswhen the titular plague inexplicably comes to life from a Euro theater screen, eye-gouging and hair-pulling moviegoers to gory deaths. College kids and punk coke fiends don’t stand a chance as they fight for their life amongst a backdrop of hair metal and synth rock music. A young monster-movie nerd becomes a hero in the 1983 film TheDeadlySpawn after slug-like aliens invade his home, eat his
parents and terrorize old ladies at a Jell-O party. Chock full of indie filmmaking spirit, this one’s an innovative bloody blast made with heart. TerrorintheAislesfrom 1984 is a spectacular horror-clip show that features the best bits from all-time classic horror films. It oozes with latenight sleazy grindhouse vibes.
Sam Lerma (Director of Squeezebox)
I love M. Night Shyamalan’s 2015 film The Visit, because it was his comeback after several flops. It’s a dark, found-footage film filled with creepy moments, a creepy “grandma” and some great dark humor. Another film that uses found footage is the 2007 Spanish film [REC]. It follows a camera crew trapped in a building after a deadly virus outbreak. I love the fresh take on the undead as the crew makes its way to the top floor. The 2005 British horror film TheDescentis about a group of girlfriends who get trapped in a cave and are stalked by amphibious humanoid creatures. There’s always something lurking in the darkness.
Rob Mabry
(Director of TheLegendofElChupacabra)
The 2010 film Tucker&Dalevs.Evilis a tale of backwoods buddies who are mistaken for a couple of deranged killers by college campers. It’s a sharp parody of slasher films that doesn’t hold back on the gore, even if it’s played for laughs. The 2015 movie TheFinalGirlsis an ’80s meta-slasher comedy about a group of high school students who must survive a machete-wielding psycho with their wits and knowledge of horror movie tropes. Does the world need a film about a murderous pair of designer jeans? If you’re into absurd horror-comedy that takes aim at corporate greed and the drudgery of working in retail, 2020’s Slaxxmight be the movie for you.
Marcella Ochoa (Writer of Madres)
Sinnersis my favorite movie of the year. I love how it blends genres and uses horror as a commentary on historical and cultural issues. Director Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan are a winning combination, and the visuals, performances and music are beyond incredible. Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro’s beautifully haunting 2001 ghost story TheDevil’s Backboneis one of my favorite films. It masterfully blends genres using supernatural elements to explore trauma and war. The original The TexasChainSawMassacrealso is a great watch for Halloween with its intense claustrophobic feel, great cinematography and awesome sound design. And, of course, it’s set in Texas!
Bryan Ortiz (Director of Doctor S Battles the Sex Crazed Reefer Zombies: The Movie)
John Carpenter’s TheFog from 1980 offers a perfect blend of eeriness and tension, making it one of the best cozy horror movies out there thanks to a slow-burn ghost story set in a misty coastal town. The haunting score, combined with its minimalist horror creates a sense of unease that’s more comforting than frightening. The 1997 film Event Horizon is a mind-bending, otherworldly nightmare that terrified me as a kid by blending sci-fi with pure cosmic horror. It’s a terrifying journey into the unknown that delivers both psychological dread and visceral imagery. The 2024 film Cuckoo is a hypnotic dream that slithers between reality and nightmare, wrapped in an atmosphere thick with dread and mystery. Mix its haunting Alpine setting and unnerving soundscape for a movie that will deliver the ideal spooky mood for Halloween.
screens
Find more film stories at sacurrent.com
Sony Pictures Classics
Burn Notice
San Antonio food truck
Pete’s Hot Chicken brings the heat
BY KAT STINSON
Chicken’s a versatile bird. It can be prepared whole, or dismembered into legs, thighs, breasts, wings and “fingers.” Some cultures even consume the feet and cockscomb. It can be roasted or rotisseried, skewered and grilled, ground and formed into meatballs or slowly simmered with leeks and other aromatics.
But the chicken preparation that’s most captured America’s attention, and no small part of the culinarily colonized world outside our borders, is frying. There are variations involving such ingredients as buttermilk and sweet-tea brine, but the motherland of most of them is the South.
In the case of Pete’s Hot Chicken, a food truck now posted up on South Presa Street, the point of origin is Nashville. I’ll spare you the history. You should probably know, though, that hot in Pete’s case means hot. The chain offers six degrees of intensity, most of which is supplied by a lightly sweetened and lethal chili paste, and unless you are atoning for some truly egregious sin, it’s hard to imagine ordering any chicken dish at a level higher than 4. “Hot — It’s ridiculously spicy,” the menu warns about that level. On the other hand, it’s equally hard to imagine choosing level 1, or ordering the bird plain. Where’s the fun in that?
My first experience with Pete’s “Hot” level came with the Dirty Bird, a mashup of loaded fries, seriously fried chicken parts, mac and cheese, crumbled bacon and, somewhere in all that, aged cheddar. The upscale mac and cheese is a more sophisticated version than the usual,
PETE’S
HOT CHICKEN
utilizing shell pasta and a light hand with the cheesy stuff. It would be worth ordering as a separate side.
It’s also a welcome antidote to the craggy and crunchy chicken, which at “Hot” teeters right on the edge of masochism. The buried and heavily seasoned fries are inevitably soggy and seem unnecessary. Maybe if they were piled on top, the story would be different.
I have never been a chicken and waffles fan. Never saw the point. But never have I had them with Nashville-style bird. Having learned my lesson, this time I picked “Medium,” and the combo of crisp waffle and just-spicy-enough chicken in a sandwich really worked. But what truly sealed the deal was the accompanying mix of hot honey and poblano butter. I’d drizzle it over anything, including ice cream. I could, however, do without the dusting of powdered sugar. The honey provided plenty of sweetness.
There’s outdoor seating next to Pete’s yellow food truck, but nobody was in the mood for that kind of heat on any of my visits, so the cool and dark interior beckoned. While waiting for your order, be sure to peruse the display shelves that
2418 S. Presa St., (210) 420-6444, instagram.com/peteshotchicken
Hours: 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, 11 a.m.-10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Sunday
Price point: Main plates run $7-$17
Best bets: Dirty Bird, Roscoe, Chili Crisp Sprouts, Poblano Slaw
The lowdown: Pete’s yellow-and-red food truck has found at home for now on South Presa Street. The mobile kitchen is parked outside, but the interior of the adjacent building is cool and dark. Seriously hot Nashville-style chicken is the draw in several forms — including the classic quarter bird with bread and pickle and the better-than-usual chicken and waffle sandwich. Beware any heat level above 4, call ahead if you are interested in the chicken fried Akaushi beef, and don’t skimp on sides such as Chili Crisp Pprouts. A house Margarita or a Michelada might soothe the heat.
are the focus of the space. Amongst the awards, including one from the Current’s United We Brunch event, are several books that suggest a chef with, at the very least, an appreciation of the wider world of cuisine.
There are tomes from high-toned places the likes of Chicago’s Alinea and Copenhagen’s Noma and cookbooks from chefs as well-regarded as Thomas Keller. Mexican food doyenne Diana Kennedy’s Oaxaca al Gusto is here as well — along with works by restaurant management guru Danny Meyer and cocktail capo Dave Arnold.
Chicken may be just a stepping stone. Which prompted me to return to Pete’s for the chicken fried steak with Akaushi beef. At least the beef choice speaks of aspirations. Know that that Pete’s does a brisk after-church business and that the Sunday-best crowd has an apparent hankering for chicken fried steak.
For that visit, I arrived at 12:15 p.m., only to find the CFS already sold out. Turns out that the fancy beef is often MIA. On my second try a few days later, the order taker assured me that this was not always the case. I also had to take into consideration that the same server accidentally took my name down as “Bruce” on an earlier visit.
One thing I’ve learned in years of reviewing is that mistakes happen and there’s often a need for a pivot. I subbed a selection of sides for the no-show CFS and wasn’t disappointed. Indeed, the Chili Crisp Sprouts — of the Brussels variety — were almost meaty with their deep char, toasted pepitas and dusting of cotija cheese, all smoothed out with a side serving of chili-lime mayo.
A slaw of finely shredded cabbage with prominent cilantro added slivered poblanos for a subtle, vegetal heat. It would be great alongside the waffle sando.
And red potato salad proved itself cool, tangy and another good chicken companion.
So, the CFS scarcity and other minor deficiencies are forgiven except for one thing: I mean, really, Bruce?
Instagram peteshotchicken
food
Cooking Up Conversation
Künstler Brewing’s Vera Deckard talks craft, community and staying on mission
BY KAT STINSON
With more than 25 years in the beverage industry, Künstler Brewing co-owner Vera Deckard has experienced it all — from California’s wine country to the heart of Southtown San Antonio. Her journey from sommelier to brewer began as a personal gesture and ultimately led her to launch one of the city’s most beloved neighborhood breweries.
Name: Vera Deckard
Years in the food & beverage industry: 25
Claim to fame: Deckard started Künstler Brewing in 2017 with her husband, Brent, an Air Force veteran.
Money quote: “Our customer base has evolved over the past eight years. When we opened, it was the height of the craft beer boom — now, people come for the community aspect. Breweries have become gathering spaces, and that’s where we really thrive.”
Go-to drinks: Puro Southtown — Künstler’s Mexican lager — or her own handmade spritz with bubbles, elderflower and lime.
Favorite local spot: “I love Outlaw Kitchen — it’s such honest food. If I ever opened a restaurant, that’s the kind of menu that would appeal to me. Other favorites are Longtab, Roadmap and Mixtli’s bar.”
Book reading right now: Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros.
Must-watch TV show: Master Chef
How did you first get into the beverage world?
It’s always been a learn-as-I-go experience. I worked in the wine and restaurant industry in California. That’s where I learned the fine art of tasting. That’s also where I met my husband Brent, who was a home
brewer. My focus was always wine, but this was right when the craft beer boom was starting.
Fast forward to 2011. He was deployed to Afghanistan, and I wanted to come up with the perfect homecoming gift. I realized creating my own brew for him would be just that. When he came back, I wanted to brew every weekend. He’d walk through our King William neighborhood and laugh, saying, “This is like Breaking Bad!”
When did Künstler officially come to life?
We closed on our original Künstler space in 2015. Some landlords at the time didn’t even know what a brewery was. The building was pretty decrepit, and Brent and I did most of the renovation work ourselves.
We’ve known the Mixtli crew since 2012, back when they were still in the boxcar. Since I was homebrewing then, I thought
it would be fun to bring them beer. Eventually, they asked if they could incorporate one of my beers into their menu, and we’ve stayed connected ever since.
Diego helped us organize our kitchen. For Hispanic Heritage Month, we decided to collaborate again — he said, “Tell me what ingredients you want,” and we landed on a milk stout we dubbed La Cabrona with cajeta, cinnamon, vanilla, sea salt and pecans. It’s a limited release that feels really special.
What’s next for Künstler?
Right now, we’re taking a moment to catch our breath. The biggest lesson we learned from opening our second location is what it really takes to grow sustainably. Brent and I are focused on making the original location even better.
We’re constantly adapting to what customers want, but we also have to make sure we don’t lose sight of who we are. Our branding guy always asks, “Is this who you
are?” Staying within our framework and mission, that’s vital.
What’s something people might not know about you?
My husband was an Air Force pilot. He flew C-5s.
Courtesy Photo Künstler Brewing
Years in the Making
San Antonio’s Favorite Son releases long-awaited debut album Juniper
BY JEPH DUARTE
Country-rock quartet Favorite Son’s debut album Juniper has been a long time coming. A dozen years to be exact.
The band’s earliest shows took place at the late, lamented Imagine Books and Records, and by 2013, the things were really starting to take place.
However, life took Cooper Greenberg, Favorite Son’s singer, guitarist and primary songwriter, away from San Antonio, putting the band on hiatus and leading him to release solo albums until his 2019 return. In between, the members got together for periodic gigs, most centered around live renditions of Greenberg’s solo work.
With Greenberg back in town and Favorite Son back to regular gigging, the members late last year decided to commit to recording an album of original material. The end result is worth the trials and sidetracks that kept the band on hiatus for so long, Greenberg told the Current.
“There’s some songs on here that have been ideas for a really long time,” Greenberg said. “This is finally that the time and the means to record something all came together.”
The album by Greenberg and bandmates Ramon Botello on guitar, Andres Ovalle on drums and Joseph Cantu on bass offers a solid introduction to the band in the form of eight songs steeped in traditional country ethos and Southern rock riffs. But the influences don’t end there. The material also leans heavily into ’70s grooves, soul, blues and folk with the musicians’ jam-band tendencies sometimes percolating up.
It’s quite a concoction to take in, but Favorite Son make it their own. Juniper’s myriad components come together in a toe-tapping flow. It simultaneously manages to remain fresh while comforting and familiar.
Musical friends
The group’s core members weren’t alone in creating the album, however. It also features guest vocals from Isabel Paillao and Brandon Padier, bandmates of Greenberg’s through his work in Chavela and The Texases, respectively. Anthony Soriano
contributes saxophone and Jordan Stern pedal steel.
Favorite Son is celebrating the album release with a Friday, Nov. 7 performance at the Lonesome Rose. The venue is somewhat of a second home to Greenberg, who plays there often as a solo artist and as a member of The Texases, a supergroup of local country musicians playing classic covers.
“We’ve got a bunch of friends playing with us that night,” Greenberg said of the release show. “A lot of those people have played on the record, so it’ll be a nice fun, group jam. We’re playing through the album and some of our older stuff. I’d like to get all the friends involved in this.”
To that end, Jerid Morris — another of Greenberg’s bandmates in The Texases — will open the night with his band Very Old Morris.
‘The guys who brought guitars to school’
Favorite Son began as a high school project between Greenberg and Botello. The two were introduced while attending Health Careers High School.
“We just met there and were the guys who brought guitars to school,” Greenberg said. “At lunch we’d jam. Ramon knew Andres [Ovalle] and we’d jam with him. At first it was me on guitar, Ramon [Botello] on bass, and Andres on drums, and then we met Joseph [Cantu]. He and Andres went to St. Mary’s and were jazz guys.”
The quartet jumped into gigging without having chosen a name.
“Our band went through a lot of different names beforehand — Dr. Crab, Catfish Johnson and the Hushpuppies — a lot of bad names,” Greenberg said. “And then we wanted
to go play shows, and we asked what are we going to call ourselves? I said, ‘I’ve got the name: Favorite Son.’ It works.”
The name stems from Greenberg’s relationship with his father.
“My dad always called me ‘favorite son of a favorite son’ because he and I are both only sons,” he explained. “My grandpa was an only son. It worked out that we’re all favorite sons.”
While the writing on Juniper is credited to Greenberg, the album credits the material as being “performed by Favorite Son.”
“Everybody has a lot of creative power and everybody’s sound is a little different,” Greenberg said of the band’s members. “[The songs] all started with a riff or chord progression, but each member added their own piece. They fill it out in creative and cool ways. Most of them started instrumentally, and they were built out in the months before and in the studio.”
With inspiration as diverse as Wilco, Radiohead, Steely Dan, Sturgill Simpson and Marvin Gaye, Greenberg receives influence from a vast swath of genres and eras.
That’s yielded some interesting comparisons. Greenberg’s brother-in-law described him as “Blonde Zappa” after hearing the harmonized riff that shaped the song “Flamingo,” while the album’s recording engineer said its title track sounded as if “Radiohead was from West Texas.”
For all the diversity of Favorite Son’s influences, Greenberg said the collaborative process helps create something new.
“You write something yourself and you play it by yourself so many times, and you kind of get numb to it,” he said. “And the first time someone says, ‘Let’s layer this on there,’ it reawakens and you realize this is a cool song.”
Find more music coverage every day at sacurrent.com
Courtesy Photo Favorite Son
critics’ picks
Friday, Oct. 31
DJ Kowboy and DJ Genesis
DJs Kowboy and Genesis are coming up from the Rio Grande Valley to spin the best in cumbia, funk and everything in between for an all-ages show dubbed “Noche del Cucuy.” The venue is also of note here, since Cruz Blanca operates at the site of one of San Antonio’s most storied musical venues. In a former life, it was Don Albert’s Keyhole Club and operated on the chitlin circuit of music venues that hosted Black performers including Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and Sarah Vaughan. Beyond that, the Keyhole Club is recognized one of the South’s first racially integrated nightclubs, if not the first. $5, 6 p.m., Cruz Blanca, 1619 W. Poplar St., facebook.com/p/Sociedad-Fraternal-Cruz-Blanca-100064029461178. — Bill Baird
Saturday, Nov. 1
Nile Rodgers and Chic
Legendary performer and producer Nile Rodgers and the band Chic will transform the Tobin Center into San Antonio’s biggest dance party with this benefit concert for the venue. Rodgers and Chic are known for infectious and funky songs such as “Le Freak” and “Good Times,” which transcend the disco era. However, Rodgers’ work as a producer might be more impactful, since he’s worked with artists as diverse as Diana Ross, Madonna and Daft Punk. $58.50 and up, 8 p.m., Tobin Center for the Performing Arts, 100 Auditorium Circle, (210) 223-8624, tobincenter.org. — Danny Cervantes
Sunday, Nov. 2
Nikki Lane, Ramsay Midwood
Nikki Lane is the reigning queen of outlaw country, delivering a no-bullshit take on grooving C&W that should resonate with fans of Tammy, Willie, Waylon and all the greats. She’s collaborated with Dan Auerbach and the Dropkick Murphys, so like her outlaw predecessors, it’s clear she’s comfortable blurring musical lines. Ramsay Midwood, meanwhile, has led a varied and fascinating career spanning music, film and TV. These days, he might be best known as the proprietor of Sam’s Town Point, arguably Austin’s coolest old-school venue. His infectious country blend is equal parts John Prine and JJ Cale. $26, 8 p.m., Lonesome Rose, 2114 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 455-0233, thelonesomerosesa.com. — BB
Destiny Navaira, Max Baca, Raulito Navaira
The Pearl will celebrate Día de Los Muertos at the Pearl with performances by Tejano and conjunto royalty. Destiny Navaira and Raulito Navaira are part of the late Emilio Navaira’s musical clan. Destiny briefly moved to Mexico and came back with a renewed vigor. She’s been
nominated for a Latin Grammy, in case anyone needs proof. Meanwhile, Grammy winner Max Baca holds down the musical legacy of traditional conjunto, having collaborated with all the greats and performed at the Smithsonian. $15, 8 p.m., Stable Hall, 307 Pearl Parkway, stablehall.com. — BB
Monday, Nov. 3
Acid Mothers Temple, The Macks, Shiva’s Medicine Chest
Japan’s Acid Mothers Temple is one of the great modern psychedelic bands. Not “psych” as in a garage band in leather jackets with a couple of reverb pedals, but truly psychedelic. This is a group that bends minds for a living, actually makes the audience feel like it’s tripping. A typical set can jump from crushing doom riffs to atonal noise to flowing jams, all with precision and intention. Since its 1995 formation, Acid Mothers Temple has undergone numerous lineup changes but somehow survives the shifting tides of taste by consistently kicking ass and melting brains. Portland’s The Macks
Nile Rodgers and Chic
and San Antonio’s Shiva’s Medicine Chest, led by guitarist Marc Smith — both bands psych masters in their own right — will open the show. $20, 8 p.m., Lonesome Rose, 2114 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 455-0233, thelonesomerosesa.com. — BB
Thursday, Nov. 6
Susto Stringband, Patton Macgee
Justin Osbourne, lead singer of Susto Stringband, an indie act that’s cultivated a loyal following with their blend of rock and Americana, continues to expand the genre by offering a new spin on his older works. The group’s latest effort, Volume 1, takes Osbourne’s catalog of songs and reworks them in bluegrass style, playing to his new hometown of Asheville, North Carolina. $25.54-$59.34, 8 p.m., Stable Hall, 307 Pearl Parkway, stablehall.com. — DC
Friday, Nov. 7-Sunday, Nov. 9
Tony Danza
Following a long line of actors-turned-singers, here comes Tony Danza. However, unlike many
of his peers, Danza croons jazz standards rather than doubling as a rock shouter. It is a refreshing take, and combined with a bit of storytelling, it adds up to what’s likely to be fun three-night run. Especially fun for those of us who grew up watching Who’s the Boss. $180, 7 p.m. Friday, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday, JazzTX, 312 Pearl Parkway, (210) 332-9386, jazztx.com. — BB
Saturday, Nov. 8
Yelawolf, J. Michael Phillips, JT Loux Alabama-born and Tennessee-raised rapper Yelawolf found major-label success when Eminem’s Shady Records released his second studio album, Radioactive, catapulting him out of the underground. Since then, the artist has jumped back into the indie world. His latest album, a release with Americana singer-songwriter J. Michael Phillips called Whiskey & Roses, mixes multiple genres but can best be described as country rap. $41.75-$86.15, 8 p.m., Aztec Theatre, 104 N. St. Mary’s St., (210) 8124355, theaztectheatre.com. — DC
Shutterstock / Nikola Spasenoski
“My Wish List”--some numbered items. by Matt Jones
