ARTS: Our version

I love the arts, I just do. I love anything that makes the world more gorgeous than it already is. I see beauty in the things that are simple, elegant, and not even considered “artsy”. I see my kids lining up leaves on the table as art. I see art in the way knick knacks are arranged on a shelf or in the way certain people sign their name. Art is everywhere.
When we (at KLRN) were first having the discussions earlier in the year about launching our own local arts show, I had to contain myself. I was so excited about the concept, but I had to harbor the excitement and put in place the work it would take to launch the show. The name: ARTS.  The look, the feel, the vibe, the details---there was so much to do, and only a small crew to do it. It is funny too because what is considered good art to one person, may be considered junk to another. Art is very personal and I wasn’t sure how we were going to bring it all together and AGREE on it. But we did.

Our graphic designer came up with a logo that just fit. When she put it into motion on-screen, it fit BETTER. When our editor put the first spot together, even when it was a rough draft, we could tell that the feel of the program was going to be fun and hip and almost eccentric. I realized that our version of the arts was exactly what I was hoping for---less paint on canvas, art history and classical music and more eclectic collectibles, jazz music, and art exploration. It all came together just beautifully.

From the very first moment I met Asia Ciaravino, our host, I knew she was the perfect fit for our program. Funny, knowledgeable, and just easy to like---I liked that. She sees the world as an opportunity, she appreciates quirky things, and she shines on camera. Like I said, she is just perfect.

ASIA ON ARTS: “I love art because it sparks creative thought and emotion. I also love the study of human nature. In art we create an open forum for expression; each art form allows the consumer a different touch point. Theatre is my art. Being an actor has taught me many things about people; most importantly that everyone has different or competing objectives. When you listen, you are able to decipher what people really want and understand how to give it to them. As we grow and understand people, we become better actors. As we listen more and talk less, we become better people. I believe art is a transformative force with the power to change people profoundly. “

We are in the process of completing our fifth show. It is all still new, we are still finding our groove, and we are working on how to make this good concept GREAT.

The hard work was not mine. The hard work came from the graphics, the editor and our crew who had/have to be on location to film anytime, anywhere. I say they “have” to do the work, but it is more accurate to say that they “get” to work on this project. This is a fun one—and they agree that while we all consider this work, we are really lucky that this new program belongs to us.

ARTS for all. I hope you have a chance to see the show and embrace art near and far…

And the next time you see something strategically or not-strategically placed, you stop and appreciate that it’s existence is actually…art.

-Katrina

...I didn't feel sorry for him; I cheered for him...

Viewer Review

LEMON | an episode in Season 3 VOCES

My original intention was to watch the program Lemon with a professional eye. My goal was to pay more attention to the quality of the program from an aesthetic point of view. However that changed in the first few minutes of watching. I found myself almost immediately engrossed in Lemon Andersen's story. I could see him working the streets of Brooklyn as a teenager and falling into the familiar story of forgotten youth. This guy wears his emotions on his sleeve - and that immediately presented him in a sympathetic light. He wasn't a typical street thug; or at least what so many of us assume is a typical street thug. He showed his passion and hopefulness in his writing and rhyming. It didn't take long see his story, wonder how I would or could survive what he'd been through, and see how he overcame odds that would put anyone into a jail cell or a coffin. I found myself simultaneously watching the program and searching Lemon Andersen on Google. It was a profound story that made me happy for him and empathetic to those who don't get the chances he got because they don't have the talent he does.

From the very beginning, I felt the grittiness of Brooklyn. I felt the depressiveness of the projects and of the people who live there who almost seem to resign themselves to the fact that this is their lives and the goal isn't to get out, but rather to get through the night without harm. I also found the footage taken in the theatres and on the streets did the opposite. They showed a hopeful New York where creativity is king. I saw people believing in one person to the point that they found ways of helping him realize his dreams and telling his story. What I found most impressiveness is that this hopefullness was displayed in a very real light - there wasn't any fluff. I could feel the anxiousness that those telling the story felt when there was doubt that this story would be told - and that once it was told - would be welcomed by New Yorkers.

This was an engaging program and what I liked the most about it is that it was about a mostly unknown individual. While sympathetic, I didn't feel sorry for him; I cheered for him. More stories like this need to be told. I look forward to seeing where this program will go.

Joseph Marks
KLRN Viewer

WATCH THE FULL EPISODE OF LEMON ON-LINE.

p.s If you are interested in writing a viewer "review" of a program on KLRN, please send an e-mail to pr@klrn.org.

Hispanic Heritage Month | Riding From The Heart

It’s said that during the Mexican Revolution, women soldareas rode in circles, kicking up dust to lure federales into traps. These adelitas, or women of the revolution, are the inspiration for Escaramuza, an event added to traditional Mexican charreadas 20 years ago.

Charreadas, which are similar to rodeos, evolved from competitions between vaqueros and their haciendas in old Mexico. Escaramuza, which means skirmish, is the only women’s event in today’s charreadas. Eight women wearing flowing dresses, wide-brim hats and riding sidesaddle on horses weave precision, strength and beauty into a fast-paced dance that is both sport and art. They train for years to perfect a four-minute routine that dazzles crowds in dusty arenas. One wrong move, in a split second, can mean a loss.

“This work is not easy,” says an instructor for Las Azaleas, a team of first-generation Mexican American hosewomen in California. “To have good results, there’s no other thing than work. Nothing else.”

“Riding From The Heart” follows Las Azaleas on a two-year odyssey to represent the United States at the National Charro Championships in Guadalajara, Mexico. Like their instructor said, the path wasn’t easy for this close-knit team of friends and family. They paid with sweat, fears and even some tears to reach elated peaks. In the end, something happens that they didn't expect.

The film is part of VOCES 2012, a four-part series celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.

Have a look:

• PREVIEW
• FULL SHOW

Keeping the lights on...

Being CFO is not easy. You are the person who always has to say "no". You have to hound people for budgets, pricing, and financials. You have to monitor spending even though you have a team that has to monitor their own spending--because ultimately, the responsibility is yours. Many times, the CFO is the unsung hero, the one who stays behind a closed door balancing a budget, filling out paperwork and ensuring that all is right to keep the lights on.

I think this is why it is so exciting that our CFO was recognized by the San Antonio Business Journal as one of the top CFOs in San Antonio for 2012. Patrick Lopez does his job well, very well, making sure that we can continue to do what we do every day in our community and on-air. Congrats Pat! We are all proud of you--and we are very lucky that you belong to us.

Fiesta - Now that's Speaking My Language!

Cascarones, medals, special hats, food goodies and more!  The signs, smells and sounds of Fiesta are here.  I’m not a San Antonio native, but when I moved here twelve years ago, my San Antonio friends quickly introduced me to some of the festivities like Oyster Bake and NIOSA, and without hesitation taught me all about the Fiesta traditions. One of the traditions that totally surprised me about the consecutive eleven-day party was the fact that people actually save their vacation just for this time of the year.  My first thought twelve years ago, “Now that’s speaking my language!”

There are so many Fiesta events (roughly 100) that I’m not sure how one would attend all of them without taking vacation. This year for the first time in a while, I am actually “working” during Fiesta…if I can even call it work.  I already love what I do here at KLRN, and this year I get to play a part in the Fiesta parade productions.  And, well, I think that’s pretty cool.  So I hope you join us for the three parades, whether it’s in person, on-air or online, and as with everything that we do here at KLRN, I hope we make you proud to call us YOUR public television station. 

In the spirit of Fiesta, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter so you don't miss out on conversations with your community. We'll be talking about everything—favorite floats, dresses (and shoes!), the bands and all that Fiesta entails.   

Going Beyond Adventures on “America Revealed”

Does the name Yul Kwon ring any bells?  Yes, you guessed it…he’s the winner of Survivor: Cook Islands 2006.  But more importantly, he’s now the host of the new PBS four-part series America Revealed.  And this isn’t your typical hosting gig.  Yul jumps out of aeroplanes in Kansas, climbs to the top of wind turbines in the Columbia River Gorge and takes part in a giant tomato fight in Nevada.  Talk about checking off things on the bucket list!

AMERICA REVEALED goes beyond outdoor adventures.  The program takes viewers on a journey high above the American landscape to reveal the country as never seen before travelling through time, space and systems to reveal a nation of interdependent and intricately interwoven networks that feed and power the nation, produce millions of goods, transport people great distances and still come together to make America work.

Meet a pastor in DC who has led his ministry to go green. Discover the people responsible for managing the traffic in America’s skies.  Go inside the New York Mercantile Exchange.  And where else can you find programming that digs deep into your food trash and explains how less than 2% of the population can feed the other 98%? PBS and AMERICA REVEALED do just that, and it just all sounds fascinating! 

Beginning April 11th, Tuesdays at 10p

CHECK OUT YUL KWON’S GRAND ADVENTURES IN THIS SNEAK PEAK!

Being Elmo's Mom

As a mom, I was never really into parenting books. I barely picked up parenting magazines…I preferred to make my way trying to find solutions for situations that actually plagued me as opposed to looking for situations that may not even exist in my life. That said, I do depend heavily on stories from other mothers on how they raise their kids, what they did well, what they didn’t do well, lessons learned, etc…and those stories are the ones that I store in my mind and I reflect on them when I need to.

Several weeks ago, I had the chance to watch “Being Elmo: A Puppeteer’s Journey.” I was captivated. Not only was the story of this big guy who plays the voice of a small, furry character interesting, but in everything he did as a child, I was looking at his parents. As a child, Kevin Clash was always interested in puppetry. Building his own sets, creating characters, acting them out, watching the programs, and in his mind he was dreaming about how he could do that job one day. He had the passion, he had the creativity, he had the drive, and clearly he has the heart…but one key element that he had that made it all possible…he had the parents.

Sometimes I hear parents creating a path for their children, steering them in a direction that they want them to go in. Sure their children may be interested in something by default (a dentists' child will surely know a lot about teeth)…but do they LOVE it? Do they have a passion for it?

In “Being Elmo,” I watched all of the video clips of Clash as a kid putting on community puppet shows and I saw many photos of him and his characters. I heard him speak about all of the shows that he put on and how he had to search for the right fabric and sewing technique for his puppets. As a 10-year-old, I can’t say that he would have been able to do all of that if he hadn’t had such supportive parents. His parents were the ones allowing him to set up a show in the middle of the living room (surely disrupting normal “living”), his parents were the ones helping him pick out and purchase the fabric that he needed, and his parents were the ones who were holding the video camera or taking photos of his sets and his characters. Clash felt supported, justified, celebrated and he felt like he COULD do it…that is why he did.



I am a sucker for a good documentary. I am. This program is fantastic and I know that different people will get different things out of it. Whether it is seeing how the puppets work, what the Sesame Street scene looks like behind the cameras, or learning about how one puppeteer is living the dream…I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Now, I’m off to hang out with my kids, and I’m going to see what THEY want to do today…as opposed to what I want them to do today.

You Won't Be Disappointed. “Masterpiece Classic: Great Expectations” SUNDAYS at 8p

Are you on the edge of your seat waiting for the next season of Downton Abbey? I am right there with you!  But while waiting for Season 3, PBS doesn’t disappoint.  Get ready for a wild ride of love, obsession and forgiveness as PBS introduces a brand new GREAT EXPECTATIONS on MASTERPIECE.

I was absolutely drawn into the program preview. The beautiful, mysterious Gillian Anderson plays the starring role as the manipulative Miss Havisham. Great Expectations is a Charles Dickens’ tale of rags to riches to self-knowledge.  This most familiar story — an orphan boy meets an escaped convict, a crazed rich woman, a bewitching girl, and grows up to have great expectations of wealth from a mysterious patron — appropriately airs during the bicentennial of Dickens’ birth, and this marks the fifteenth MASTERPIECE adaptation of the great novelist's works.

Tune in on Sundays at 8p or set your DVR because I guarantee you don’t want to miss this.  Time and time again, MASTERPIECE continues to set the bar.

HERE’S AN AMAZING PREVIEW OF WHAT’S TO COME!

Watch Great Expectations Preview on PBS. See more from Masterpiece.

Beginning March 25th — “Finding Your Roots” SUNDAYS at 7p

As I watched a preview of this program, FINDING YOUR ROOTS, I couldn’t help but think back to my past Christmas holiday.  The best present that I received was from my eighty year old grandfather.  With no help, he created a family photo album — a flip book of old black and white photos — for each of his grandchildren.  And on the back of each photo, he attached a label with a description, names of the people in the photo and their ages.  I sat with him that day and went through each photo, and although the description was on the back, he added so many other charming details to the story that I just would have never known if we hadn’t spent that time together.  I learned that my great, great grandfather moved from Germany to Africa, married a woman in South Africa, and although she died during childbirth, a family was created — one that I have never met and one (after researching online) that owns a coffee plantation in which you can tour.  So it’s no secret where my passport will take me next.

Whether it’s anecdotes about ancestors from generations past, or stories of recent relatives, each of us has a rich, unique genealogical heritage to share.  In all this research you find yourself, and it makes you cognizant of what kind of legacy you want to leave with this world.

If this fascinates you in the least, you will no doubt enjoy FINDING YOUR ROOTS, one of the newest PBS series airing Sundays at 7p.  The program examines the histories and family genealogies of a number of well-known personalities.  Renowned cultural critic and Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. journeys deep into the ancestry of a group of remarkable individuals and provides new understanding of personal identity and American history. 

CLICK HERE FOR A SNEAK PEAK!

Raising the Curtain on another Great Performance, Tuesday, March 20

Growing up I wasn’t really ever introduced to musicals, operas and theater. And now that I’ve had the opportunity to experience a handful, I’m a total fan of live performances and excitedly jump at any chance to attend. It would be a dream of mine to watch live the Phantom of the Opera — the danger, the tragedy, the romance, the mystery and most of all, the magical element!

Like many, I try to be financially careful, and it’s nice to know that I can turn on the TV to my local PBS station and find arts programming.

This past year like never before, PBS reaffirmed its passion in delivering the arts, and it continues to impress with Great Performances: Phantom of the Opera, Tuesday, March 20 at 8p. In celebration of its blockbuster 25th anniversary year, Andrew Lloyd Webber presents The Phantom of the Opera in a fully-staged, lavish production, set in the sumptuous Victorian splendor of London's Royal Albert Hall.

If you are a fan of the Phantom of the Opera, I encourage you to check this out:

Watch The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall on PBS. See more from Great Performances.

And for those who enjoy a bit of research, here are some interesting facts about the play: The Phantom of the Opera first opened in 1986. It has been produced in 145 cities in 27 countries and played to more than 130 million people. The show has won more than 50 major theatre awards, including seven Tonys and three Olivier Awards in the West End. In 2006, it became Broadway's longest running show ever, and it is currently showing in London, New York, Budapest, Las Vegas, and Kyoto.

Just Good Music, Thursday March 15

Walk down the street and just mention the name Aretha Franklin. You won’t find many who do not recognize the Queen of Soul’s name and don’t be surprised if you come across a few who will even sing some tunes from her collection of hits.

PBS definitely knows when it’s just good music, and that’s why Aretha Franklin returns to public television on Thursday, March 15 at 9p. Delight in a festival of original Soul Hits of the 1960s and special love ballads from the 70s. Aretha Franklin Presents Soul Rewind is a comprehensive collection of rare performances by legendary R&B performers, offering an abundance of long-lost archival material that has been recovered from film vaults across the United States, England, Germany and France.

Open the musical treasure chest for a sneak peak:

Never Too Late to Get Control of Your Health, Tuesday, March 13

Each year many of us make a New Year’s resolution to get healthy, and around this time, many of us tend to forget what we set out to do. The gym classes don’t seem as full, and you may find yourself saying “oh, it’s just one piece of cake”.

If you want to get back on track, here’s a clip with excellent tips from Dr. Amen sharing the 7 best types of food to keep your brain young and strong.



According to Dr. Amen, the fountain of youth is literally between your ears. A healthy brain is the key to staying vibrant and alive for a long time. Be inspired to tune in on Tuesday, March 13 at 8p for more motivational tips on Use Your Brain to Change Your Age with Dr. Amen.

Can’t Hardly Sit in My Seat, Tuesday March 6

I was caught dancing in my office today (not completely unusual for me), but who can resist snapping your fingers, tapping your feet, and in my case, spinning your office chair, to hits from the 40s, 50s and 60s. It also doesn’t hurt that these talented singers — Michael Ingersoll, Shonn Wiley, Michael Cunio and Christopher Kale Jones — are pretty good looking!

Under the Streetlamp is an engaging concert of classic hits from the recent leading cast members of the Tony-Award winning musical, Jersey Boys. You'll hear Doo-Wop, Motown, old time Rock 'n' Roll and your favorites from the American radio songbook, including tunes made popular by The Drifters, The Four Seasons, The Beach Boys, The Beatles and many more.

Tuesday, March 6 at 8p: Under the Streetlamp is, without a doubt, a modern classic! Check out America’s hottest new vocal group:



And I’m sure attending a Straight No Chaser concert would be a fantastic experience, but watching it on Tuesday, March 6 at 9:30p at home from the comfort of your own couch and not having to worry about anyone blocking your view, well that’s pretty cool too!

Filmed live at Harrah's Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey, this male a cappella phenomenon takes us on a journey through the decades of the pop songbook in Straight No Chaser: Songs of the Decade. Hear songs like "Heartbreak Hotel," "Big Girls Don't Cry," to name a few.

Even Madonna may have some competition. A sneak preview of “Like A Prayer” can currently be viewed here:

Watch Musical Legacies, Sunday March 4

Do you ever find yourself clicking through your TV guide wondering what show to watch next? Let me help by saying, “the answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind…” That’s right, let the legendary Peter, Paul & Mary guide you right to your local PBS channel.



That was 1966. And on Sunday, March 4 at 8p, PBS is re-releasing the Peter Paul & Mary: 25th Anniversary Concert in celebration of 50 years! Perhaps as much as anyone, in a period of great turbulence and transformation, Peter, Paul and Mary inspired America to be the best we could be. That, indeed, is a formidable legacy and one that has made this trio and its music a true and enduring national treasure.

And as we draw closer to St. Patrick’s Day, dig through our closets for green shirts, and dream of Guinness, tune in on Sunday, March 4 at 10p and enjoy a warm and nostalgic parade of Irish favorites from the past, When Irish Eyes are Smiling: An Irish Parade of Stars.

Hear some of Ireland's most beloved ballads and folk songs, performed by some of the world's greatest vocalists. Among the traditional favorites to be featured are "Too Ra Loo Ra Loo Ra," "Molly Malone," "McNamara's Band," "It's A Long Way To Tipperary," "Danny Boy" and "When Irish Eyes Are Smiling”.

Lucky shamrocks! Check out the sneak peak: