Every time I see those words, New York City, I hear the incredulous and judgmental tone of the cowboys in the Pace Picante Sauce commercials that were popular on TV decades ago. Authentic Mexican salsa was made in San Antonio, NOT New York City. Thanks to Jet Blue’s free wi-fi, I googled and watched several of those old commercials while en route to New York. They were entertaining then and continue to amuse. For a flashback, click on the numbers to watch one, two, three of these commercials.
In addition to the commercials, my google search found an article titled: Did the Pace Picante commercials of the 1990s predict our current culture wars? An interesting read, available here.
The iconic Pace Picante New York City ad also served as a springboard for a piece about why Michael Bloomberg’s $12 million gun violence ad campaign didn’t fly in regions outside of New York. Read here.
But I digress. I’m in New York attending my first Association of Performing Arts Professionals (APAP) Conference and doing a 15-minute showcase of my solo show, Why Would I Mispronounce My Own Name? Three other Bay Area solo artists are also attending as part of The Marsh on Tour Showcase. The Marsh Theater (San Francisco/Berkeley) is where I had a five-month run of my show in 2018-2019.
My APAP performance will be on Sunday night, Jan 12th @ 7:20 pm at The Midtown Hilton, Gibson Suites, 2nd Floor. If you are in New York, you are welcome to attend, no charge. Learn more about The Marsh on Tour and my fellow Marsh performers Candace Y. Johnson, Lorri Holt, and Stephanie Weisman here.
There are hundreds of showcases during APAP since the conference brings together performing artists, venues that exhibit their work, as well as agents and managers. It’s an opportunity for presenters of all sizes from different types of venues to see artists they might be interested in booking for their organizations.
It’s my first time at APAP, and I am always happy to spend a few days in New York, catching the sights and seeing friends who live here. I am eager to learn and given that I am relatively new to the performance art world, I'm hoping to meet lots of people and to see other showcases as well.
On a final note, I was thrilled that the Drama Guy at Bay Area Theater named, Why Would I Mispronounce My Own Name? as one of the Ten Best Shows of 2019. Read his year in review here.
If you haven't yet seen my show, or if you want to see this newest version I have three Bay Area performances as part of Brian Copeland's Best of SF Solo Festival in San Leandro, CA on March 6, 7, and 8. The Best of SF Solo is a subscription-based program, but they have made 25 tickets available for each of the shows. Click here to buy tickets.
I'm eager to see what this new year has in store for me and I wish you much success and good fortune in 2020.