In what San Antonio musician Garrett T. Capps promises will be “better than Fiesta,” the ¡Viva! live telethon is back for a second round.
¡Viva! Uno Más — presented in partnership by Luminaria, Texas Public Radio and Nelco Media — will be livestreamed from 6 p.m. to midnight on Saturday, May 8.
It will be carried on TPR and Luminaria’s websites, via YouTube and on multiple Facebook channels. Thanks to a little help from Slab Cinema, Lonesome Rose — the site of last year’s telethon — will also host an in-person watch party.
Once again hosted by Capps, this year’s telethon will be livestreamed from the Malú & Carlos Alvarez Theater & Studio inside the Irma & Emilio Nicolas Media Center at TPR’s new downtown headquarters.
After raising funds last year for Luminaria and the City of San Antonio’s Corona Arts Relief Program, this year’s event will benefit Luminaria’s new Working Artist Fund, which “addresses the impact of COVID-19, the recent winter storm, and other on-going economic hardships on individual artists living and working in Bexar County.”
The new iteration of the fundraiser will feature live interviews and performances by local talent, pre-recorded special performances, appearances by artists, dancers and filmmakers and even some surprise co-hosts.
The event will also include a viewer poll, in which the audience can vote for three winning videos from a selection of 10 favorites chosen by Luminaria and TPR. The winners’ work will be featured in this year’s Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival in November.
“As we emerge from a difficult pandemic year, we seek to move forward and assist local artists as they adjust to new ways of expressing their creativity,” Luminaria Executive Director Yadhira Lozano said in a statement. “The need for virtual presentations requires costly software, upgrades, and better equipment while costs for traditional expenses have risen due to demand. Through the Working Artist Fund, we hope to address some of these needs.”
6 p.m. to midnight Saturday, May 8, tpr.org/viva, luminariasa.org.
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This article appears in Apr 21 – May 4, 2021.