There ain't nothing like "the raunchiest, cheapest event of Fiesta." Cornyation started back in 1951 as part of A Night in Old San Antonio. After one irreverent poke too many, the show was kicked out of NIOSA, and lay more or less dormant until its revival in 1982 by Bob Jolly and Ray Chavez. Today, this spoof on the Fiesta Coronation brings together hundreds of volunteers including politicians, business owners, restaurateurs and basically anyone available, for three elaborately costumed nights of tacky troubles and campy politics, all in the name of a good cause (the organization has donated more than $1.5 million to local AIDS charities). For a scholarly take on Cornyation, keep an eye out for Trinity professor Amy Stone's forthcoming book on the politics of sexuality in urban festivals. Charline McCombs Empire Theatre, 226 N. St. Mary's St., (210) 226-3333, fiestacornyation.org
