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The El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre celebrates its sixth season with its first comedy show, first ballet, and first returning show, plus two one-of-a-kind concerts, and two new plays.

The Jewel Box Series, created by the El Paso Community Foundation to showcase local performing arts groups in the charming Philanthropy Theatre, presents diverse, unusual and inventive programs.

The 2019-2020 season features eight productions, each at 2:30 p.m. on the second Sunday of each month, from October 2019 through May 2020.

The season begins October 13 — during downtown’s Chalk the Block public art festival — with the The Cloud 915 Comedy Showcase, featuring six local comedians.

Singer-songwriter Emily Davis makes her Jewel Box debut on November 3, with Jewel Box returnee Jaimielynn Amato opening, in a concert called Two Women. Two Voices. Unplugged. The first half of the season concludes with a revised version of The Border Theatre improve comedy Icarus Was a Rookie: Run the Jewel Back, which debuted at last year’s Jewel Box Series.

The second half opens January 12 with We Have Each Other, three one-acts by Felix Arenas, that examine the meaning of family.

Our pre-Valentine’s Day show February 9 is The Straussiana, choreographed and directed by Rebecca Meza of Ballet in Session Academy. Mark Watts and Stephanie Karr’s Seven Deadly Shorts (March 8) is a series of 10-minute one-acts. Recording Moving Studios’ yo Soy project on April 19 is a multi-media production that examines identity.

Doug Adamz and Gene Keller join Teresa Tudury in the Southwest Songwriters Series, which closes the season May 10.

Tickets for each show are $16, on sale at the Plaza Theatre Box Office and online.  Season tickets are $103 (a 20% discount), on sale at the El Paso Community Foundation, 333 N. Oregon, by phone at 915-533-4020, or online.

The 191-seat Philanthropy Theatre is located above the Plaza Theatre box office on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex.

The Jewel Box Series is produced in partnership with El Paso Live. 

El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre – SCHEDULE

The Cloud 915 Comedy Showcase

Lando VC, Adam Dominguez, Anthony Austin Brown, Joe Rodriguez, Nico Adjemian and Dante Verduzco

October 13, 2019, 2:30 pm 

Our sixth season starts with laughter. Clean comic Orlando “Lando VC” Cordova hosts this showcase of Borderland stand-ups.

Two Women. Two Voices. Unplugged.

Emily Davis and Jaimielynn Amato                

November 3, 2019, 2:30 pm                         

Fresh from a national tour supporting Bad Religion, edgy singer-songwriter Emily Davis returns to her solo punk-folk roots. Opener is the “Songbird of El Paso,” singer-songwriter — and ace whistler — Jaimielynn Amato.

Icarus Was a Rookie: Run the Jewel Back

The Border Theatre

December 8, 2019, 2:30 pm 

This irreverent bit of interactive, improv theater debuted last year in the Jewel Box Series. It has evolved to include more local talent, but the audience still gets to order from a menu of 30 short pieces, which are performed in 60 minutes.

We Have Each Other       

Felix Arenas

January 12, 2020, 2:30 pm            

Few things are as important as family. Every family comes with its own struggles. This trio of one-acts by Felix Arenas explores those issues and how we feel safe within that family — because we have each other.

The Straussiana

Ballet in Session Academy

February 9, 2020, 2:30 pm                            

The music and dance of old Vienna come to life in this original production from Rebecca Meza of Ballet in Session Academy. The one-act classical ballet is set to music by Johann Strauss, Johann Strauss II and Josef Strauss.

Seven Deadly Shorts

Palmore Productions

March 8, 2020, 2:30 pm

What could aliens, yoga, fortune telling, Cracker Jack, baggage, chess and murder possibly have in common?  SIN!  From Mark Watts and Stephanie Karr, the team that opened the first Jewel Box Series in 2014, comes this series of seven 10-minute plays that will take you down that dark path of the Seven Deadly Sins.

yo Soy project

Recording Moving Studios

April 19, 2020, 2:30 pm    

Written by Adry Love and directed by Diego Muniz, this bilingual production combines music, video projection, film and visual art. The culmination is a multimedia experience exploring personal and geographic identity. It’s part of the 2020 Nuevo Siglo de Oro Spanish drama festival.

The Southwest Songwriter Series

Doug Adamz, Teresa Tudury and Gene Keller

May 10, 2020, 2:30 pm

These three master “poet-composers” will take listeners on an epic journey using only melodies, poetry, and guitars in this special Mother’s Day concert. Singer and multi-instrumentalist Doug Adamz, an El Paso product recently returned from years in California, has worked with Joan Baez and the Kronos Quartet.

Teresa Tudury is a sultry-voiced Bay Area product described as a cross between Bonnie Raitt and Bette Midler. Gene Keller is an El Paso icon, a singer-songwriter-poet who has performed and inspired audiences for more than 40 years.

Applications are now being accepted for the sixth season of the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre.

The 2019-2020 season will feature monthly productions by area performing arts groups from October 2019 to May 2020 in the 191-seat Philanthropy Theatre in the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex.

The Philanthropy Theatre is located above the Plaza Theatre Box Office on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex.

The Philanthropy Theatre stage is 22-feet wide at the proscenium, 12.5-feet deep from the center of its curved apron.  More details are available on the online application form.

The Jewel Box Series was created by the El Paso Community Foundation to showcase local performing arts groups in the charming Philanthropy Theatre.

The series presents diverse, unusual and inventive programs. It is produced in partnership with El Paso Live.

Applications and detailed information are available online.  The deadline for submissions is 11:59 pm. Sunday, July 14, 2019.

The fifth season of the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre will conclude this Sunday with its first belly dance show.

The mother-daughter duo of Snake Charmer and the Belly Dancer will present Melusine at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 12 in the Philanthropy Theatre, which is on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre.

Melusine is a conceptual piece inspired by the mythic, mermaid-like figure of European folklore. The all-new show features choreographic interpretations of muses, water nymphs, a harpy and Melusine’s mother and sisters.

Melusine features 16 performers (but no snakes) from El Paso, Las Cruces, Alamogordo, Roswell and Anthony, N.M., and a dozen original dances in styles ranging from classic Egyptian to tribal fusion.

Original choreography was created by Snake Charmer and the Belly Dancer and fellow dancers Anala Lahada, Prabvi GuaLoa, Lola, Luna, Nancy Hodgins Hayes, Hypatia Ishtar, Roxanna, Patricia, Ginette Novello, Katrina Doolittle, Linda Sanchez-Azadeh, Stacey Ennis, and Na Imah.

Music will be provided by El Paso-raised, San Francisco-based guitarist and violinist Doug Adamz and Light Rain and drummer Omar Limas of El Paso.

El Paso has a long history with belly dance. Snake Charmer (daughter Senee Barraza) and the Belly Dancer (mother Sonia Flores) have been performing together locally and internationally for 18 years. They produce the annual shows Arabesque and Cat’s Meow, teach classes at their Snake Charmer Studios and conduct workshops. Go to their website to learn more.

The Jewel Box Series was created by the El Paso Community Foundation to showcase local performing arts groups in the charming Philanthropy Theatre. The series presents diverse, unusual and inventive programs. It is produced in partnership with El Paso Live.

The 191-seat Philanthropy Theatre is located above the Plaza Theatre box office on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex.

Submissions for the 2019-2020 season will be accepted beginning Monday, May 13 via the website.

Tickets are $16 at the Plaza Theatre box office and online (service charges apply).

Classically trained, warm-voiced singer-songwriter Jaimielynn Amato headlines the next installment of the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre.

Amato’s concert is set for 2:30 p.m. Sunday, March 10 in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre. This will be her concert debut.

Her concert, Jaimelynn Amato: The Songbird of El Paso, will be a musical blending of Borderland culture. The intimate songwriter-storyteller performance will celebrate women and equality while drawing heavily from her two albums of original songs, starry skies and fragile ties, and new album, 8 years.

“I’ll share my writing process and what influenced the music and lyrics,” says Jaimielynn, who’ll be accompanied by percussionist Corina Villareal.

Jaimielyn has been singing since she was 3. She is a member of the UTEP Opera and Chorale, and has studied with Eike Gunnarson and Diana Esparza. She has been performing originals and songs from all over the world since 2010 and appears regularly at area venues such as Ardovino’s Desert Crossing and Anson 11.

The Jewel Box Series, now in its fifth season, was created by the El Paso Community Foundation to showcase local performing arts groups in the charming Philanthropy Theatre.  The series presents diverse, unusual and inventive programs. The 2018-2019 season features seven shows by local performing arts groups on the second Sunday of each month, through May 2019.

The Jewel Box Series is produced in partnership with El Paso Live. The 191-seat Philanthropy Theatre is located above the Plaza Theatre box office on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex.

Tickets are $16 at the Plaza Theatre box office, online and 800-745-3000 (service charges apply to online and telephone sales).

The El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre opens its fifth season with a futuristic Western co-written by an autistic Del Valle High School student.

The Ballad of Roobie Rookie opens the 2018-2019 Jewel Box Series at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, October 14 in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre Annex, above the box office.

The Ballad of Roobie Rookie is a post-apocalyptic Western with a robot sheriff named Wreckie, and a bad guy named Crooked Beak, who leads a band of animal outlaws.

It was adapted for the stage from a screenplay by Del Valle student Robert De La Rosa and The Border Theatre Director Austin Savage.

It debuted at the high school on April 2, 2018 — World Autism Awareness Day — and was performed by students from the Del Valle’s theater department, led by school Theatre Director Marissa Thurman. She returns to direct a new student cast for the Jewel Box Series performance.

The Jewel Box Series was created by the El Paso Community Foundation to showcase local performing arts groups in the 191-seat Philanthropy Theatre, located above the above the Plaza Theatre box office on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre annex

The Jewel Box Series is produced in partnership with El Paso Live, and presents diverse, unusual and inventive programs.

Next up is Lisa Loomer’s one-act Bocón, performed by Los Actores and directed by Hector Serrano, at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, November 11.

Tickets are $16 at the Plaza Theatre Box Office, online and via phone at 800-745-3000. Season tickets are $90, available by calling 915-533-4020 or going to the foundation’s website.

Three actors play 15 characters in five different settings in the Scaffolding Theatre Company’s production of Five Course Love, the next presentation in the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre.

In Five Course Love, director Megan McQueen joins Algernon D’Ammassa and Brandon Brown to play 15 characters in search of true love in five different musical and physical settings — a BBQ joint, a mob hangout, a German restaurant, a Mexican cantina and a diner.  “It’s kind of like five musicals for the price of one, because each has such a different, spot-on musical style,” McQueen said. “It’s sure to get the toes tapping and heart singing.”

Scaffolding Theatre Company, an affiliate of New Mexico State University theater department, performed two sold-out shows of its adaptation of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast in last season’s Jewel Box Series.

The Jewel Box Series is produced in partnership with El Paso Live, and is supported by the City of El Paso’s Museums and Cultural Affairs Department.

Performances of the irreverent Gregg Coffin musical comedy will be at 7 p.m. Saturday, January 13 and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, January 14 in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre Annex (above the box office).

Tickets are $16 at the Plaza Theatre box office, Ticketmaster outlets, online, and 800-745-3000.

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El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre SCHEDULE

Amor — The El Paso Society for Musicians of the Future offers another of its thematic programs, just in time for Valentine’s Day. Mezzo-soprano Cherry Duke, guitarist George Salas and violinist Sandra Rivera perform songs and music about love and romance.

2:30 p.m. Sunday, February 11

Hellman v. McCarthy — Camilla Carr directs and acts in this new play by Brian Richard Mori. It’s about the legal battle that raged after writer Mary McCarthy accused fellow author Lillian Hellman of lying during an appearance on Dick Cavett’s PBS talk show.

2:30 p.m. Sunday, March 11

Soldadera  — Josefina Niggli’s 1938 one-act English-language drama, directed by Hector Serrano, explores how women’s roles in the Mexican Revolution helped changed Mexican society. Seven female soldiers capture a spy and must confront their own demons.

2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 15

Nouveau Chamber — Saxophonist Daniel Rivera and a seven-piece string ensemble will perform his original chamber works. The pieces are influenced by classical, Latin and film music, and explore travel and human history.

2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 20

Applications for the fourth season of the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre are now being accepted.

In its first three seasons, the Jewel Box Series has hosted programs by a number of area artists and groups, including Tony Award-winning playwright Mark Medoff, actor/playwright Camilla Carr, the Border Theatre, the El Paso Society for Musicians of the Future, Ted Karber Jr., Scaffolding Theatre, Tumbleweed Dance Collective, Los Actores, Eden Enterprises, and Impact|Programs of Excellence.

The Jewel Box Series is designed to foster and showcase community talent in an inspiring atmosphere that is part of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre.

The El Paso Community Foundation partnered with El Paso Live to help ease the financial burden of producing a show in the sparkling little jewel box we call the Philanthropy Theatre, its name inspired by all who helped build it.

The intimate space seats 191 and is ideal for live theater, dance, music, multi-media and other productions. The proscenium stage is 12.5-feet deep and 22-feet across.

Performances are on the second weekend of each month; and the fourth season will launch in September 2017 and run monthly through May 2018.

The deadline for submissions is July 28, 2017. Submission forms are available at epcf.org/jewelbox

The third season of the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre will go out with a bang this weekend.

EPStageBusiness’ uproarious Banging the Bell: A Texas Comedy in Two Acts concludes the 2016-2017 season with performances at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 20 and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 21 in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Annex in the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre.

The play was written and directed by El Paso’s Ted Karber, Jr., whose Precious Heart closed last season’s Jewel Box Series.Banging the Bell, which premiered last year at the Eclipse Theatre in Columbus, Ohio, is about a group of women in Mt. Parnassus, Texas, who plan to be the belles of the town ball. Infidelity, a corpulent corpse and a dimwitted sheriff could change their plans.

Amanda Vasquez, who starred in December’s production of A Barrio Christmas, stars, along with Carol Bernstein, Michael Bernstein, Kathryn Forest, Rafaela Graffos, Valerie Hart, Shaun Nixon, George Spelvin and David Villanueva.

The Jewel Box Series, a showcase for area performing arts groups, is produced in partnership with El Paso Live. The El Paso Community Foundation will accept submissions for the 2017-2018 season in June.

The Jewel Box’s fourth will be announced in August after the El Paso Community Foundation’s Plaza Classic Film Festival, which celebrates its 10^th anniversary August 3-13.

Tickets are $16 at the box office, Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com (plus service charges), and 800-745-3000.

Indigo Twilight, the next production in the El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre, is a classical-jazz crossover concert that explores that magical time“when the colors of day dissolve into the mysterious hues and rhythms of the night.”

The El Paso Society for Musicians of the Future presents Indigo Twilight at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, January 15 in the Philanthropy Theatre on the second floor of the Plaza Annex in the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre.

Indigo Twilight features visuals by Joshua Baird and performances by mezzo-soprano Mariana Sandoval, clarinetist and saxophonist Yasmin A. Flores, pianist Richard McDole, double bassist Luis Antonio Lizcano-Lopez and drummer Lawrence Edward Brown.

They will interpret a varied, 16-song program of classical, standards and jazz pieces connected by the twilight theme.

It includes Bella’s Lullaby from the popular Twilight movies, Hoagy Carmichael’s Stardust, Thelonious Monk’s ‘RoundMidnight, Antonio Carlos Jobim’s Corcovado, Lionel Hampton’s Midnight Sun, Earle Hagen and Dick Rogers’ Harlem Nocturne and “With Tranquility,” the second movement of Paul Creston’s Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano, Op. 19.

The Jewel Box Series, a showcase for area performing arts groups, is produced in partnership with El Paso Live.

Tickets are $16 at the box office, Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com (additional online charges may apply), 800-745-3000 and 915-534-0609.

El Paso Community Foundation Jewel Box Series at the Philanthropy Theatre SCHEDULE

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast — The New Mexico State University-affiliated Scaffolding Theatre Company presents this musical valentine, a reimagining of the Disney musical. It centers around a family that re-enacts the play in their grandparents’ home, and features familiar songs, including Be Our Guest. 7 p.m. Saturday, February 11; 2:30 p.m. Sunday, February 12

Killing Buddha — Deming’s Theatre Dojo offers this award-winning modern take on an ancient North Indian legend about a serial killer seeking atonement from the divine teacher. Writer-director Algernon D’Ammassa plays all of the characters, accompanied by nationally known Native American musician Randy Granger on wind, string and percussion. 2:30 p.m. Sunday, March 12

Bernabe  — Just in time for Earth Day, Eden Enterprises presents this Luis Valdez play about a young man whose love of the earth is rooted in Aztec mythology. Directed by local theater veteran Hector Serrano, it’s a cry against the exploitation of the planet by modern forces. 7 p.m. Saturday, April 8; 2:30 p.m. Sunday, April 9

Banging the Bell: A Texas Comedy in Two Acts — El Paso playwright Ted Karber Jr.’s EPStageBusiness presents this original comedy about a group of women who plan to be the belles of the ball. Infidelity, a corpulent corpse and dimwitted deputy could change their plans. 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 21

*American Sign Language Interpretation will be provided for selected Sunday performances.

The Jewel Box Series returns to the Philanthropy Theatre this weekend with a special holiday performance.

Christmas Spectacular is about the magic and wonder of Christmas told in a story full of music and dance. A mixture of classic and familiar comfort peppered with modern tales will tickle your funny bone and warm your heart. This is sure to put you in the holiday spirit. Performed by kids of all ages, this extravaganza is written and directed by Tanisha Lewis and co-directed by Mia Carreon.

Christmas Spectacular will be performed at the Philanthropy Theatre on Saturday, December 12 at 7:00PM and Sunday, December 13 at 2:30PM.

The Jewel Box Series, produced in partnership with the El Paso Community Foundation(EPCF), is designed to showcase homegrown talent in one of the city’s most dazzling — and intimate — spaces, the Philanthropy Theatre, part of the Plaza Theatre Performing Arts Centre.

Tickets are on sale now and cost $15.00 plus fees.  They may be purchased at Ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster outlets, charge-by-phone at800-745-3000, and the Plaza Theatre Box Office.

Author: El Paso LIVE!