Hello Spring Breakers! Beyond being a fantastic destination for your family to enjoy dozens of activities with one another, did you know that you can choose from more than a thousand different live performances and art events each year in Santa Fe?! It’s true! And March has arrived to showcase a whole lot of art in our high-altitude capital city hamlet. So, while it may not be sure if it’s winter or spring, March is clearly excited to put on a show! And TimeOut Magazine has just recognized The City Different as a great Spring Break destination for art, saying, it's "home to one of the country's most eclectic art, architecture and design scenes."
SYMPHONY & CLASSICAL MUSIC
(Isidore Quartet)Classical music permeates The City Different in March with devoted local organizations inviting prominent musicians to our stages. March 9, the Santa Fe Symphony and Chorus presents Gaelic, featuring the “impeccable technique” and “extraordinary musicianship” of violinist Sirena Huang. March 22 and 23, New Mexico Performing Arts Society delights with its annual Bach Society Concerts, featuring homegrown musicians. And, finally, Santa Fe Pro Musica offers three March events: On the 2nd, enjoy Isidore Quartet and on March 15 and 16, the annual Spring Orchestra Concert, titled The Lark Ascending.
COMEDY
(Wayward Comedy)
Santa Fe's comedic bone is evolving into a for-real funny bone with the Wayward Comedy group joking around weekly on Wednesdays at Chile Line Brewing. On March 6 at Chocolate Maven's Unit B, yuk it up with Karen Morgan, who has many comedy specials under her belt and entertains audiences nationwide with her relatable observations of family and everyday life.
THEATER + DANCE
The performing arts of theater and dance are alive and well in Santa Fe and have been for decades. Point of fact, Santa Fe Playhouse has been staging performances for 100+ years! It's the oldest, very-nearly-continuously operating theater west of the Mississippi. Check out their spring lineup or see what's happening in a handful of other small theaters throughout The City Different through Theatre Santa Fe. Or try a Santa Fe dance staple! We have a love affair with the dramatic and passionate moves of flamenco, and March is the perfect time for an evening performance in two very intimate settings (read: you are seated in such close proximity to the dancers, you can feel the heat!). Pick a Friday or Saturday night dinner show at El Farol or consider offerings during the Spring Season at Entreflamenco just off the Plaza from March 7 through June 29.
BANDS & MUSICIANS
(Lúnasa)Name a genre, name an instrument, and yes, Santa Fe is hosting your musical wish! Here's just a random smattering: On March 14, Madi Sato delivers a tribute show to her late mentor Chris Calloway at a new and funky edition to the music venue scene called Paradiso. On March 17, the "hottest Irish acoustic group on the planet, Lúnasa, returns to Santa Fe for a special St. Patrick’s Day celebration at The Lensic Performing Arts Center, called by Folk Roots magazine "an Irish music dream team." And enjoy more jazz on March 22 with New Mexico's own Hillary Smith, when she lays down jazz stylings at the chic new venue Unit B. Or choose something referred to as "Western gothic" for your March 22 at the rough and tumble Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery where The Handsome Family takes the stage. If you love the snow, check out the local band scene on Saturdays up at Ski Santa Fe’s Totemoff’s Bar & Grill. How will you choose?
MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS
(New Mexico Museum of Art, Vladem Contemporary)
Are you familiar with Santa Fe's museum scene? Check out a few of the newer museum exhibitions open for your meandering, contemplative pleasure: At the newest addition to our 20+, Vladem Contemporary, a second location for the New Mexico Museum of Art, you should see Off-Center: New Mexico Art, 1970-2000 before it goes at the beginning of May, featuring 125 artists drawn to New Mexico by its distinctive climate and landscape! At SITE Santa Fe through May 19, check out Dakota Mace's inaugural museum solo exhibition, DAHODIYINII – SACRED PLACES. Through photography, weaving, sound, and installation, Mace chronicles Diné history and heritage. Also consider Northern Cheyenne Jordan Ann Craig's On My Way Home at IAIA's Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, a series of striking geometric abstractions and delicate dot drawings that blend traditional influences with modern forms and dynamic explorations of color. Travel up to Museum Hill to explore any of those four museums and consider this traveling exhibition compliments of one of the Hill's most popular destinations, the International Museum of Folk Art. It's titled Staff Picks: Favorites from the Collection and it's on view at the Governor's Gallery at the Roundhouse.
FILM
Thanks to Santa Fe Conservation Trust, the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival Tour (March 18 and 19) is back for two nights at The Lensic Performing Arts Center, presenting films that offer “an exhilarating and provocative exploration of the mountain world, traveling to exotic landscapes and remote cultures, and bringing you up-close and personal with adrenaline-packed action sports.” Discounted rates for attending both nights!
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