This weekend in the arts: A lot of theater, including the Black Artist Collective "Black Lady Showcase" at the Globe, Moxie's "Mother of the Maid," WOW Festival and "Rent"; a last chance to see the Yolanda López exhibition at MCASD downtown and Irma Sofia Poeter at Bread and Salt; Anya Gallaccio at Quint ONE; the San Diego Symphony take on Mendelssohn and Andrés Martín; and Spellling, Carrie Feller and Dear Donna play the Casbah.
Last chance: Yolanda López, Irma Sofia Poeter
Visual art
Two exhibitions that have been on my radar are closing this weekend. "Yolanda López: Portrait of the Artist" at the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego's downtown campus closes Sunday, Apr. 24, 2022. The exhibition opened just weeks after the iconic Chicana artist's death, and it captures a specific, formative period in López's work, and includes her "Virgen de Guadalupe" series, her "¿A Dónde Vas, Chicana? Getting through College" running paintings, and a stunning set of oversized portraits called "Tres Mujeres," plus notes, ephemera, photography, sketches and more. MCASD's downtown space is open Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 1100 Kettner Blvd., downtown. Free.
At Bread and Salt, the Tecate, Mexico-based fiber artist Irma Sofia Poeter's "New Man: A Woman's Gaze" will also close on Sunday. These are new works from Poeter, all upending gender binaries and proposing a gentle, vulnerable masculinity. Expect lots of phalluses. Bread and Salt is open Tuesday through Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. Free.
'Rent' 25th anniversary farewell tour
Musical theater
Broadway San Diego is bringing the final Broadway tour of "Rent" to town this weekend. It's hard to believe in the world of theater revivals that it is the final-final, nor will this stop local companies across the country from putting on their own productions of Jonathan Larson's stunningly popular 1996 musical. But for now, and for the sake of the Broadway touring cast, this is the end. "Rent" is a 1990s retelling of Puccini's "La bohème," following a group of friends and artists, struggling with their careers, love, the AIDs crisis and more.
Details: Five shows this weekend: Friday April 22, 2022 at 8 p.m., Saturday, April 23 at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m., and Sunday, April 24 at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. San Diego Civic Theatre, 1100 Third Ave., downtown. $35.50-$135.50, or via $23.50 lottery.
'Black Lady Showcase'
Theater
"Black Lady Showcase" is a production of the San Diego Black Artist Collective (BAC) during their residency at The Old Globe. For this three-night-only showcase, they'll show three brand new plays: "In the Courtyard," and "A Promise of New Life," by Joy Yvonne Jones, and "Quick Change," by Andréa Agosto. Each work is directed by Carla Banu Dejesus and will feature a cast of BAC actors, including Danielle Bunch, Alyce Smith Cooper, Kandace Crystal, Jaeonnie Davis-Crawford, Carla Banu Dejesus, Yolanda Marie Franklin, Joy Yvonne Jones and Eboni Muse. The plays will explore themes of family, art, marriage, racism, police brutality, COVID-19 and so much more. The production is free, but you'll need to reserve an assigned seat in the Globe's Sheryl and Harvey White Theater.
Details: Friday, April 22, 2022 and Saturday, April 23 at 8 p.m., Sunday, April 24 at 7 p.m. The Old Globe, 1363 Old Globe Way, Balboa Park. Free.
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'Mother of the Maid'
Theater
Moxie Theatre will produce the talented and prolific playwright and screenwriter Jane Anderson's "Mother of the Maid," a play told through the eyes of Isabelle, the long-suffering, hardworking mother of none other than Joan of Arc.
The production is directed by Desireé Clarke, and the cast looks just as extraordinary as the premise: Moxie cofounder Jennifer Eve Thorn returns to the stage in the role of Isabelle, emerging artist Mikaela Rae Macias as Joan, and actor/choreographer Zack King as Pierre, Joan's brother. Dave Rivas, Mark C. Petrich, Sarah Alida LeClair and Segio Diaz-Delgado are also in the cast.
Details: Begins Sunday, April 22 with a 2 p.m. show. Additional shows continue Thursday, Apr. 28 through May 22, 2022. Moxie Theatre, 6663 El Cajon Blvd., Ste. N, College Area. $15-$22.
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Anya Gallaccio: 'Rêvons D'or'
Visual art
If you hit up the Irma Sofia Poeter exhibition at Bread and Salt, check out the newly installed work by Anya Gallaccio, "Rêvons D'or" that is opening at the small Quint ONE space. It's a beautiful, surprising cast bronze tree trunk, with its branches fanning down toward the ground like legs. Porcelain apples are strung from red rope wrapped around the tree. They're not holding an artist reception until May 14.
Details: On view Saturday, Apr. 23 through June 4, 2022. Gallery hours are Tuesday through Sunday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Quint ONE (at Bread and Salt), 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. Free.
San Diego Symphony: Mendelssohn's 'Italian'
Music
Conductor Ankush Kumar Bahl leads the Symphony in Felix Mendelssohn's bright and majestic "Symphony No. 4 in A major," or the "Italian Symphony," written to bring to mind the landscapes of Italy. The Symphony's principal bassist, Jeremy Kurtz-Harris, will also perform "Double Bass Concerto No. 1," a sweeping piece by Tijuana-based contemporary composer and bassist Andrés Martín.
Also in the program is the overture from Rossini's "L'Italiana in Algeri." Saturday's concert at Patrick Henry High School's PHAME concert hall will wrap up a three-show tour around the county of this program.
Details: Two performances left: Thursday, April 21 at 7:30 p.m., at the Joan B. Kroc Theater (6611 University Ave., College Area), Saturday, April 23 at 2 p.m., at the PHAME Performing Arts Center at Patrick Henry High School (6702 Wandermere Dr., San Carlos). $25-$55.
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Spellling, Carrie Feller, Dear Donna at the Casbah
Music
Spellling is the moniker of Oakland-based artist Chrystia Cabral, an experimental pop artist whose latest album, "The Turning Wheel," saw a departure from her traditional synth roots to orchestrate and record something like 31 different instruments for the record.
She's touring with a full band (not 31 instruments, but that's probably for the best on the Casbah stage), and you can expect mesmerizing, complex but still catchy, gut-punching music.
The album's opener, "Little Deer," which is inspired by the famous Frida Kahlo "Wounded Deer" painting, is fantastic, but I'm partial to the second track, the seemingly timeless "Always." It sounds like it could be about a romance from the 1950s or maybe the late '80s, or even a hundred years in the future.
Opening is local Carrie Feller (listen to her 2020 EP, "Damage Orbit," here) and Orange County pop artist Dear Donna (listen to her latest single, 2022's "stash" here).
Details: Friday, April 22, 2022. 9:30 p.m. The Casbah, 2501 Kettner Blvd., Midtown. $20.
More music: Here's a list of the local independent record stores that are participating in Record Store Day on Saturday.
For more arts events, or to submit your own, visit the KPBS/Arts calendar.
