WHAT?!! This is for Us?! And It's In Our Back Yard?

I go to lots of entertainment.  My favorite place is South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center (SMDCAC), way down in Cutler Bay.  It's overwhelmingly worth the trip.  I'm there often.  Then, there are other places I go, depending on what I want to see and hear, and what organization is putting something on.  There's a ton of great entertainment in south Florida.  You can be busy most of the time.  And a lot of it, apart from whatever is at the Arsht, is very competitively priced.

I've mentioned one place I've been frequenting in the past couple of years, and it's very near us.  It's the Sandrell Rivers Theater (SRT), and more or less all programming is under the auspices of the Fantasy Theater Factory (FTF).  They put on their own stuff, and they sublease the theater to other groups. A common FTF tenant is the M Ensemble.  This is an African-American cultural organization that began in the '70s, I think, and one or two of the founders are still active.  The other main founder has died.  It's interesting and funky stuff, and some of it is absolutely top shelf.  I've attended concerts, plays, and other presentations at SRT.

The SRT, like SMDCAC, is a county-owned venue.  The county-- our Miami-Dade County(!)-- has, for whatever reasons, decided to get solidly behind culture in Dade County.  Not only did they build SMDCAC in Cutler Bay, where there is no reason to imagine very first rate cultural events, but they also built SRT, in an otherwise sketchy part of mid-county.  The building is on NW 7th Avenue at about 60th Street.  I told you this is in our back yard.  And not only did they build these two venues, but they-- the county-- are a very major supporter of many local cultural organizations which are private and/or non-profit.  The county and its Commission do plenty of things wrong, but I will be forever in their debt for what they have chosen to do for local culture.  It's unbelievable.

Shows at SRT are variably priced.  Some of them are as expensive as $30, although old people like me get a "senior" discount.  This is frankly dirt cheap, if you also take into account the free parking in the on site garage with the security guard, and the people who are beside themselves with how friendly and appreciative they are.  It's the same thing as SMDCAC.  You go there, and you think you're with close friends who are deeply pleased and honored that you chose to spend time with them.  And all they do is work there.  At SMDCAC, my main people are Eric, of course, who is the Director of the place, and Dora, Tom, and the charming Melody.  And really, everyone else.  At SRT, it's Rommel and Patricia and Shirley.  Yeah, it's like that.  And I'm Fred to all of them.

This year, I attended, among other things, a SRT/FTF concert put on by a group that calls itself Cortadito.  They had a wonderful Cuban-oriented band, and the featured guest performer was Sammy Figueroa.  Sammy freakin' Figueroa.  For the price of... nothing.  They say donations are welcome.  OK, so I leave $10 per person with them.  I suppose it should be $20 per person.  Next time.  And speaking of next time, on June 1, at 8:00 PM, it's Cortadito again, and this time, they're featuring Nestor Torres.  Right, Nestor freakin' Torres.  Right, for nothing.  Oh, yeah, the donation you're "welcome" to leave.

Technically, as I said, it's a sketchy neighborhood.  I have never felt anything but completely safe, and they do have security guards, but it's imaginable that someone, noticing the address, might assume it's not the first place they would want to go at night.  Sure, gentrification, which includes the SRT, but still, some people are skittish.  Maybe that's why there are usually very few patrons in the audience.  I really don't know.  It's certainly not the ticket "price."  They did better with Cortadito/Sammy Figueroa (yup, I said it before, and I'll say it again, Sammy freakin' Figueroa, and it was a wonderful concert, with and without him; he didn't participate in every song), and I have no doubt they'll do well with Nestor Torres.  Nestor Torres would fill any auditorium for any price he wanted.  We're talking here about Nestor freakin' Torres:

Fantasy Theatre Factory's Music@SRT series is back! Join us on June 1 at 8 p.m. as Cortadito with an extraordinary guest Nestor Torres, legendary flutist, take the stage for one night only celebrating the traditional music of Cuba in a lively jam session for everyone to dance! For this FREE special concert, Grammy Award-winning Torres and Cortadito will dazzle the audience a seamless blend of Latin jazz, pop, straight-ahead jazz, and classical styles. He has been described as "an exotic mix of styles that takes the listener through American, Brazilian, and Afro-Cuban jazz."

So, words to the wise, you know what I mean?  ftfshows.com.  305-284-8872.  You don't need any more help from me than I've given you already.  I'm leading you to water.  You know what to do.  FILL THE PLACE!  BRING EVERYONE YOU KNOW!  You'll feel foolish later, if you let this get away from you.

By the way, I owe an apology.  I didn't make a big deal of a recent M Ensemble play, "The Old Settler."  It was a wonderful play, and it was very expertly presented.  The actors and director were all local, and they all did a spectacular job.  I should have tried to send you to SRT for that.