Lensic Presents 2023-24 Season - SantaFe.com

The Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe’s year-round home for the performing arts, presents its stellar line-up of events for the 2023-24 season. Included are twenty-five performances, ranging from live music to dance, theater, family shows, and comedy acts, from some of the biggest names in the industry, including Terence Blanchard, Anoushka Shankar, David Sedaris, Judith Hill and more. The season begins June 15, 2023 and runs through May 28, 2024.

Lensic 2023-24 Performance Schedule

On & On: José James Sings Badu
Thursday, June 15, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The Jazz singer for the Hip-Hop generation brings his interpretation of Erykah Badu’s iconic music catalog to Santa Fe, in support of his new project, On & On.

Meredith Monk with Katie Geissinger and Allison Sniffin in Concert
Saturday, August 26, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Recognized as one of the most unique and influential artists of our time, composer/performer Meredith Monk returns to the Lensic with two members of her renowned Vocal Ensemble, offering a rare, intimate concert reflecting six decades of innovation and awe-inspiring vocal mastery.

The Regina Carter Quartet
Thursday, September 14, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
A MacArthur Fellow and Doris Duke Artist Award recipient, Carter is jazz’s leading violinist known for seamlessly traversing jazz, R&B, Latin, classical, blues, and everything in between.

Stefon Harris and Blackout
Friday, September 15, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
A disciple of Lionel Hampton, Milt Jackson, and Bobby Hutcherson, Stefon Harris belongs to the grand lineage of vibraphonists in jazz, displaying passionate artistry, an energetic stage presence, and astonishing virtuosity.

Christian McBride
Saturday, September 16, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
With a career now blazing into its third decade, jazz bassist extraordinaire Christian McBride returns to the Lensic with a vibrant intergenerational band that will raise the roof and leave you wishing for more.

Spanish Harlem Orchestra
Sunday, September 17, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Setting the gold standard for excellence in authentic, New York-style Latin jazz, under the direction of world-renowned pianist Oscar Hernández, the members of Spanish Harlem Orchestra are committed to the unparalleled musical experience that is the raw, organic, and vintage sound of the barrio.

Mariachi Herencia de México
Thursday, September 28, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
At the forefront of a new generation, Mariachi Herencia de México join Grammy-winning La Santa Cecilia vocalist La Marisoul for an unforgettable night that takes mariachi to new heights.

Ryan Hamilton
Friday, October 6, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Armed with the unique perspective of growing up in rural Idaho to becoming a favorite in the New York stand-up comedy scene, Hamilton has won over millions with riffs on the absurdity of his own wholesomeness.

The R. Carlos Nakai Trio, featuring William Eaton and Will Clipman
Thursday, October 12, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The world’s premier Native American flutist, harp-guitarist, and worldbeat percussionist come together for a remarkable night of music spanning from soothing dreamscapes to mesmerizing trance dance grooves.

Anoushka Shankar
Friday, October 20, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The daughter and student of the legendary Ravi Shankar, sitar virtuoso Anoushka is deeply rooted in Indian classical music and has blazed a singular path that encompasses inventive arrangements, sensitive virtuosity, and a neoclassical approach.

An Evening with David Sedaris
Wednesday, November 1 & Thursday, November 2, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
One of America’s preeminent humor writers will be live on stage in support of his newest book Happy Go Lucky, offering a selection of all-new readings and recollections, as well as a Q&A session, and book signing.

Jacob Jonas The Company
Friday, November 10, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The Los Angeles-based creative company that intersects dance across mediums to make original works and initiates nontraditional collaborations brings its fresh take on contemporary ballet, breakdancing, and acrobatic movement to Santa Fe.

123 Andrés
Sunday, November 12, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Deemed “a rockstar for little language learners” by Billboard, the Latin Grammy-winning husband-and-wife duo pack a high-energy punch with catchy songs in Spanish and English.

The Future of Artificial Intelligence with Melanie Mitchell
Wednesday, November 15, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
In this lecture, AI expert Melanie Mitchell will demystify how current-day AI works, how “intelligent” it really is, and what our expectations – and concerns – about its near-term and long-term prospects should be.

The Met Live in HD: X – The Life and Times of Malcolm X
Saturday, November 18, 2023, 11 a.m.
Robert O’Hara, who was nominated for a Tony Award in 2020 for his direction of Slave Play, oversees a new staging that imagines Malcolm X as an everyman whose story transcends time and space.

Handel’s Messiah
Saturday, November 18, 2023, 7 p.m.; Sunday, November 19, 2023, 4 p.m.
Don’t miss The Symphony’s annual performance at The Lensic—a Santa Fe tradition and a musical rite of the holiday season—conducted by Maestro Thomas Heuser and featuring the full Symphony Orchestra and Chorus with choral direction by Carmen Flórez-Mansi.

The Golden Gays – Thank YULE for Being a Friend
Wednesday, November 29, 2023, 7 p.m.
Before traveling to spend the Holidays with their families, Dorothy, Blanche, and Rose participate in a golden gift exchange full of hilarious surprises. Just as they get to the airport a winter storm blows in, leaving them trapped! In an unexpected Charles Dickens twist of events, the three grannies must visit their past, present, and future to save Christmas.

Jessica Vosk
Friday, December 1, 2023, 8 p.m.
The Broadway star makes her return to Santa Fe! Following her rapturously received Santa Fe debut in 2022, Jessica Vosk leads us on another journey of song and holiday celebration.

Mariachi Christmas 2023
Saturday, December 2, 2023, 7 p.m.
Mariachi Christmas 2023 is one of Santa Fe’s winter holiday premier event. Featuring traditional Mariachi music and folklorico dancers performing holiday music in Spanish and English. This is family friendly event that is festive, joyful, and entertaining.

Keep Hope Alive
Sunday, December 3, 2023, 6:30 p.m.
Join us for our Keep Hope Alive – Voices of the Community Holiday Event and Fundraiser featuring some of Santa Fe’s most acclaimed musicians performing holiday songs to bring good cheer. In addition, enjoy presentations from community leaders, and elected officials, as well as members of The Life Link community sharing stories of hope and inspiration.

Kings Return Christmas
Thursday, December 7, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The unique, harmonizing group-turned-internet sensation captures the essence of an old-school a cappella quartet with sounds inspired by gospel and R&B, and has a reputation for performing diverse arrangements, including those from their joyous 2021 Christmas release.

Something Must Be Wrong With My Mistletoe
Friday, December 8, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Kick off your holiday season with the New Mexico Gay Men’s Chorus. We all know the holidays can get hectic. This concert highlights the fun, frivolity, mishaps, and mayhem that can often occur during this time of year.

The Met Live in HD: Florencia en el Amazonas
Saturday, December 9, 2023, 11 a.m.
Sung in Spanish and inspired by the magical realism of Gabriel García Márquez, Mexican composer Daniel Catán’s 1996 opera tells the enchanting story of a Brazilian opera diva who returns to her homeland to perform at the legendary opera house of Manaus—and to search for her lost lover, who has vanished into the jungle.

Sounds of the Season
Sunday, December 10, 2023, 4 p.m.
Join The Symphony for Sounds of the Season! The whole family is invited for an afternoon of holiday pops and winter favorites.

The Nutcracker
Saturday, December 16, 2023, 2 p.m.; Sunday, December 17, 2023, 5 p.m.
Usher in the holiday season with the magic of Aspen Santa Fe Ballet’s The Nutcracker. Join Clara on a festive carousel trip around the world and celebrate the holidays with ballet, flamenco, Chinese ribbon dance, circus artists, and more.

A Celtic Family Christmas
Tuesday, December 19, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
The holidays truly become a family affair when married duo Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy—two of the globe’s best and brightest fiddle players—invite their children onstage for an unforgettable night of holiday fun.

Macy Gray
Thursday, December 21, 2023, 8 p.m.
Forever full of ear-tugging/eye-popping surprises, ever-eclectic singer/songwriter and actress Macy Gray returns in top form with an inspired new 11-song Moonslice Records album – The Reset – and within a fresh new presentation – fronting her own band, The California Jet Club.

Nochebuena Clasica!
Sunday, December 24, 2023, 4 p.m.
On Christmas Eve, Grammy® Award-winning guitarist Jason Vieaux takes center stage with The Santa Fe Symphony for Vivaldi’s epic Guitar Concerto and Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez, plus Corelli’s Christmas Concerto and Mozart’s Symphony No. 36.

Seth Meyers
Friday, December 29, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Seth Meyers is an Emmy Award-winning writer, New York Times bestselling author, and host of NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers. Don’t miss him at the Lensic for a rare night of standup!

Joe Illick & The New Year’s Eve Orchestra
Sunday, December 31, 2023, 1 p.m.
Ring out 2023 with a holiday tradition that keeps getting better every year. Santa Fe’s own Joe Illick brings his all-star orchestra to ring in the new year with soloist Augustin Hadelich.

The Met Live in HD: Nabucco
Saturday, January 6, 2024, 11 a.m.
Ancient Babylon comes to life in a classic Met staging of biblical proportions. Daniele Callegari conducts Verdi’s exhilarating early masterpiece, which features the ultimate showcase for the great Met Chorus, the moving “Va, pensiero.”

Leo Kottke
Friday, January 12, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Leo Kottke is a celebrated acoustic guitarist known for his distinct fingerpicking style, which he utilizes to create rich melodies, intricate chord progressions, and unique compositions.

Philippe Quint in Charlie Chaplin’s Smile
Sunday, January 14, 2024, 4 p.m.
Ring in the New Year with the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra and Grammy®-nominated violinist Philippe Quint in “Charlie Chaplin’s Smile.”

The Lone Bellow Trio 10 Year Anniversary Tour
Tuesday, January 16, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Throughout its lifespan as a band, The Lone Bellow has cast an indelible spell with their finespun songs of hard truth and unexpected beauty, frequently delivered in hypnotic three-part harmony.

The Aunties: Women of the White Shell Water Place
Wednesday, January 24, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
A multimedia storytelling experience conceived and created by Indigenous Performance Productions, featuring three Native American matriarchs from Northern New Mexico, The Aunties cultivates a space for these re markable individuals to tell the stories of their lives.

The Met Live in HD: Carmen
Saturday, January 27, 2024, 11 a.m.
Acclaimed Carrie Cracknell brings a vital new production of one of opera’s most enduringly powerful works, reinvigorating the classic story with a staging that moves the action to the modern day and finds at the heart of the drama issues that could not be more relevant today: gendered violence, abusive labor structures, and the desire to break through societal boundaries.

Celebrate Mozart
Sunday, January 28, 2024, 3 p.m.
Celebrate Mozart’s birthday with his last great symphony, the “Jupiter.” Also invited to the party are colorful works by 20th century Norwegian Carl Nielsen and 21st century American Jessie Montgomery.

BENISE – Fiesta!
Saturday, February 3, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
It’s one hot night as Benise, “The Prince of Spanish Guitar,” and his Emmy Award winning production come to town as part of his global tour. Armed with his Spanish guitar, Benise will take the audience on an unprecedented and epic adventure through Spanish Flamenco, Cuban Salsa, Brazilian Samba, Parisian Waltz, exotic drumming, and more!

MOMIX
Tuesday, February 6, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Aspen Santa Fe Ballet kicks off their winter season with the return of the internationally revered company, MOMIX. This year, audiences will be sent flying down the rabbit hole in Moses Pendleton’s newest creation, Alice, inspired by Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland.

Delfeayo Marsalis’ Uptown Jazz Orchestra
Saturday, February 10, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
NEA Jazz Master Delfeayo Marsalis brings the soul of New Orleans to Santa Fe! The Marsalis family are the most celebrated ambassadors of New Orleans’ unique jazz heritage. Celebrate Mardi Gras in style with the Uptown Jazz Orchestra!

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
Monday, February 12, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
For the second presentation of their winter season, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet presents the world’s foremost all-male comic drag ballet troupe, Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo. Join in on the fun as this technically stunning and shockingly elegant company celebrates their 50th anniversary season!

Rosanne Cash with John Leventhal
Wednesday, February 14, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
One of the country’s pre-eminent singer-songwriters, Rosanne Cash comes to Santa Fe and Albuquerque for back-to-back shows this February!

American Classics
Sunday, February 18, 2024, 4 p.m.
Recipient of a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Award and an Avery Fisher Career Grant, violinist Alexi Kenney was named “a talent to watch” by The New York Times. He has earned widespread acclaim across the globe and returns to Santa Fe to perform Barber’s Violin Concerto No. 1 for “American Classics.”

Giordano Dance Chicago
Wednesday, February 21, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
America’s original jazz dance company return to Santa Fe for a night of timeless dance performance. The company’s new works continually expand the boundaries of jazz and contemporary dance, stunning audiences across the globe.

Terence Blanchard, E-Collective and Turtle Island String Quartet
Thursday, February 22, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Film composer Terence Blanchard and his acclaimed collaborators pay tribute to iconic jazz composer Wayne Shorter, reimagining songs from across and inspired by Shorter’s adventurous catalog.

Judith Hill
Friday, February 23, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Praised by Rolling Stone for her stellar powerhouse vocals, Hill’s music is rich in throwback soul, stunning piano balladry, and swaggering psychedelic funk that will both glue you to the back of your seat, and have you dancing in the aisles.

Taj Mahal Quartet and Sona Jobarteh
Friday, March 1, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
With three Grammy Award wins and fourteen nominations, Taj Mahal has been a giant on the Blues and Americana scene for more than 50 years, but he continues to bring his own spin on music of all kinds for his loving fans.

The Psychology of Serial Killers
Saturday, March 2 ,2024, 7:30 p.m.
The Psychology of Serial Killers is a touring masterclass in this very dark subject, tackling questions like: Who are these monsters and why do they commit their horrific crimes? What are common traits that they share? Why are we fascinated with them?

Charlotte’s Web
Sunday, March 3, 2024, 3 p.m.
This reimagined production by TheatreWorksUSA features bluegrass music and a clever set design, telling the treasured story of selfless love and the true meaning of friendship between a pig named Wilbur and a little gray spider named Charlotte.

Grupo Corpo
Friday, March 8, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
The final presentation in Aspen Santa Fe Ballet’s winter season is the exhilarating contemporary Brazilian dance company, Grupo Corpo (“Body Group”). Experience the iconic music of Brazil. Choreographer Rodrigo Pederneiras creates a profound and compelling statement about humanity’s relationship to the divine or the supernatural.

The Met Live in HD: La Forza del Destino
Saturday, March 9, 2024, 10 a.m.
Director Mariusz Treliński delivers the Met’s first new Forza in nearly thirty years, setting the scene in a contemporary world and making extensive use of the Met’s turntable to represent the unstoppable advance of destiny that drives the opera’s chain of calamitous events.

Lúnasa
Saturday, March 16, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with the hottest Irish acoustic group on the planet, Lúnasa, returning by popular demand for the second year in a row.

Italian Nights
Sunday, March 17, 2024, 4 p.m.
Italian Nights presents Rossini’s L’Italiana in Algeri Overture, Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony, and Berlioz’s Harold in Italy, commissioned for the composer by virtuoso violinist Niccolò Paganini in 1834 and featuring The Symphony’s Principal Violist, Kimberly Fredenburgh.

Kronos Quartet
Tuesday, March 19, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
The San Francisco-based ensemble celebrates its 50th anniversary with the KRONOS Five Decades tour, bringing new commissions, signature works from its repertoire, and pieces from Kronos’ Fifty for the Future project to Santa Fe.

The Met Live in HD: Roméo et Juliette
Saturday, March 23, 2024, 11 a.m.
Two singers at the height of their powers—radiant soprano Nadine Sierra and tenor sensation Benjamin Bernheim—come together as the star-crossed lovers in Gounod’s sumptuous Shakespeare adaptation.

American Ballet Theatre Studio Company
Thursday, March 28, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
The junior company of the American Ballet Theatre, comprised of rising stars who will become iconic dancers of tomorrow, perform new custom pieces commissioned by a wide variety of choreographers.

Neko Case
Saturday, March 30, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Neko Case is an inventive and fearless singer-songwriter whose career spans twenty-one years of solo albums that explore the wonder and malice of the world. Her distinct melodies bend in unpredictable
directions, shifting from ballads to rock beats and recalling symphonies with their segmented structure.

Drum Tao
Tuesday, April 2, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Combining highly physical, large-scale drumming with contemporary costumes, precise choreography, and innovative visuals, the performers of Drum Tao deliver an edge-of-your-seat, tour-de-force evening of strength and driving rhythms.

Kenny Barron and Regina Carter
Wednesday, April 3, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Revered innovators of two generations of jazz music join forces for a very special performance: pianist Kenny Barron and violinist Regina Carter. Both Barron and Carter have the distinguished honor of being named NEA Jazz Masters, Barron in 2010 and Carter in 2023. They appear in celebration of Barron’s 80th birthday.

Chris Botti
Thursday, April 4, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Chris Botti returns to the Lensic once again for a stunning night of music! The Grammy-winning trumpeter has been one of the most popular instrumentalists in the world for nearly three decades.

Asleep at The Wheel with Bill Hearne
Sunday, April 7, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
For over fifty years, Asleep At The Wheel’s Ray Benson has been traversing the globe as an ambassador of Western swing music and introducing its irresistible sound to generation after generation.

John Edgar Wideman with Mitchell S. Jackson
Wednesday, April 10, 2024, 7 p.m.
John Edgar Wideman chronicles contemporary life while considering the historical and existential questions that underlie it. A novelist, short story writer, essayist and critic, he has contributed to a new humanist perspective in American literature, distilling personality and history, crime and mysticism, art and the exigencies of material life into his work.

Angel Olsen
Monday, April 15, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Singer-songwriter Angel Olsen plays a rare solo set at the Lensic. Her latest album, Big Time, is about the expansive power of new love, but this brightness is tempered by a profound sense of loss. Loss has long been a subject of Olsen’s elegiac songs, but few can write elegies with quite the reckless energy as she.

Jordi Savall and Hespérion XII
Tuesday, April 16, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Be transported to a world of emotion and beauty by the true maestro of the early music movement! For more than 50 years, Jordi Savall, one of the most versatile musical personalities of his generation, has rescued musical gems from obscurity and given them back for all to enjoy.

Peking Acrobats
Thursday, April 18, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Accompanied by live musicians, the world-renowned troupe perform awe-inspiring acrobatic feats with high-tech special effects that have astounded audiences for generations with amazing displays of contortion, flexibility, and control.

The Met Live in HD: La Rondine
Saturday, April 20, 2024, 11 a.m.
Puccini’s bittersweet love story stars soprano Angel Blue and tenor Jonathan Tetelman in Nicolas Joël’s Art Deco–inspired staging, which transports audiences from the heart of Parisian nightlife to a dreamy vision of the French Riviera.

Oceana
Sunday, April 21, 2024, 4 p.m.
In Celebration of Earth Day and presented in partnership with WildEarth Guardians, Oceana presents Native American composer Jerod Tate’s Chokfi’ (Rabbit)—Sarcasm for String Orchestra and Percussion, Handel’s Water Music, and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, introducing cellist Gabriel Martins, 2020 Sphinx Competition First Prize winner.

The Mozart Requiem
Saturday, April 27, 2024, 7:30 p.m.; Sunday, April 28, 2024, 3 p.m.
Santa Fe Pro Musica’s season ends with Mozart’s Requiem, a powerful masterpiece, paired with Anna Clyne’s poignant Within Her Arms, a tribute to her late mother.

José James Presents 1978
Thursday, May 9, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
José James—the forward-looking, genre-defying jazz singer for the hip-hop generation—presents 1978, a brilliant new album combining his deep love of jazz and hip-hop with songwriting and production nods to R&B heroes Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson, and Leon Ware.

The Met Live in HD: Madama Butterfly
Saturday, May 11, 2024, 11 a.m.
Extraordinary soprano Asmik Grigorian tackles the demanding role of Cio-Cio-San, the loyal geisha at the heart of Puccini’s devastating tragedy.

Beethoven’s Ninth
Sunday, May 19, 2024, 4 p.m.
For The Symphony’s grand finale on May 19, experience Beethoven’s greatest and final symphony—Beethoven’s Ninth, showcasing the full Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra & Chorus.

Sarah Jarosz: Polaroid Lovers Tour
Tuesday, May 28, 2024, 7:30 p.m.
Sarah Jarosz’s seventh album, Polaroid Lovers, is a sonic and creative evolution for the Texas-born, Nashville-based singer-songwriter.

Ticket Information

Box office hours are Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, noon to 4 p.m. If a show is scheduled on a Sunday, the box office will open that day from noon to 4 p.m. To purchase tickets and for more information, visit the website, call 505-988-1234, or visit the Lensic box office.

About the Lensic

Lensic Performing Arts Center, a historic venue in downtown Santa Fe, New Mexico, is home to nearly 200 events each year. Built in 1931 as a vaudeville stage and movie palace, the Lensic was fully renovated in 2001 and reopened as a nonprofit, community-supported organization that provides high-quality arts experiences for everyone. Our stage is a home for Santa Fe’s performance groups and welcomes touring artists throughout the year; our original Lensic Presents programming series showcases world-class artists from near and far; and our life-enriching arts education programs reach more than 15,000 students annually. Learn more at the website.

This article was posted by David Salcido

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