• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • JYourA monthly guideN to community . entertainment, recreation & culture “Universe City” by Hal Marcus ©2012 Best CDs of 2013 Liner Notes columnist Brian Chozick J A N U A R Y lists the top albums of the past year. 2 0 1 4 — See Page 37 ww w . e p s ce n e. co m The goofy, the bad & the weird El Paso Scene’s 7th annual Pickaxe Celebration Gecko Awards highlight Twelve artists, including Candy Mayer, above, were chosen for art project the lowlights of 2013 to honor UTEP’s Centennial. — See Page 32 — See Page 25 Page 2 El Paso Scene January 2014 suitable for all ages. Tuesday, Dec. 31 , on the top of UTEP’s Sun Meet at the large parking lot at the trailhead Bowl Drive parking garage, with live music, to Mt. Cristo Rey off McNutt Road (NM 273). games, giveaways and music by both university JANUARY January 2014 Take the Racetrack exit off Paisano and cross bands. Admission is free and the public is invit - the Rio Grande. ed. INDEX ROUNDUP Hyundai Sun Bowl — The 80th annual Days of Remembrance Bridal, Quince football classic begins at noon, Tuesday, Dec. & Sweet 16 Fair — The 24th annual event Roundup 3-9 31 , with UCLA (9-3) from the PAC 12 and is 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 19 , at the El Behind the Scene 4 Virginia Tech (8-4) from the ACC. Tickets; $17, Paso Convention Center, presented by Elegant $22, $32, $42, $52 and $62; Captain’s Club Penguin Productions. The event gathers more Scene Spotlight 8 tickets are $650. Information: 533-4416, 1-800- than 120 experts in the field of weddings, Dance 10 915-BOWL or sunbowl.org. (Ticketmaster). quinceañeras and sweet 16s, including cakes, Here’s the Ticket 11-13 Pre-game activities begin at 11:30 a.m. in the catering, dresses, flowers, halls, hotels, photog - Program Notes 14-15 stadium with introduction of 2013 Legends of raphy/video services, tuxedos and more. Music, Comedy 16 the Sun Bowl Game, Introduction of Sun Court Admission: $5; free for ages 12 and younger. and performances by university bands. Information: 592-8897, eptuxs.com or El Paso FishNet 17 The halftime show features bands from both bridalquince.com. Admission fees benefit the El Viva Juárez 18 teams and a performance by Three Dog Night. Paso Child Crisis Center. Sports 19-22 Other Sun Bowl events: Spring Home Show — The El Paso Nature 23-24 • The 52nd annual WestStar Bank Don Haskins Association of Builders presents the annual Feature: Sun Bowl Invitational is Dec. 28-29 at UTEP’s event Jan. 24-26 at the El Paso Convention 2013 Gecko Awards 25-28 Don Haskins Center. See “Sports” listing for Mount Cristo Rey Hike Through Time Center. The show features booths providing details. At the Museum 29-31 — A guided hike is at noon Monday, Dec. 30 , exhibits, demonstrations, and more. Hours are • Rotary Sun Bowl Football Team Luncheon is Gallery Talk 32,36 at Mount Cristo Rey, Sunland Park, N.M. 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday Monday, Dec. 30 , at the El Paso Convention Length: 5 miles round trip (2-3 hours). Cost: $5 and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Admission: $5.95 SW Art Scen e 33-35 Center. Doors open at 11 a.m. The starting ($2 for children) donation requested for the ($4.95 military, seniors 62 and older; free for Liner Notes 37-38 line-ups from both teams are introduced at Mt. Cristo Restoration Committee. ages 12 and younger). Information: 1-800-756- On Stage 39 Information: 541-1422. No reservation is 11:30 a.m. and the head coaches are highlight - 4788, ext. 47 or HomeShowElPaso.com. Stage Talk 40 required. ed as well. Tickets: $50; tables for eight $450 Keep on Bookin' 41 A presentation on the history of the monu - (eight guests, or six guests plus two football Southern New Mexico ment will be given at the summit. player from each team). Information: 533-4416, History Lessons 42 The four-story-tall statue of Christ on the ext. 200 or 504-9013. Christmas on the Pecos — One of Taking a Look Back 43 • The 16th annual Sun Bowl Fan Fiesta is 4 to 9 cross was built in 1938-40 by sculptor Urbici America’s top holiday traditions, the boat tour Film Scene 44 Soler. The mountaintop is 4,576 feet above sea p.m. Monday, Dec. 30 , at the El Paso along the Pecos River runs through Dec. 31 in February Preview 45 level, in Sunland Park, N.M., near the junction Convention Center, with headliners Three Dog Carlsbad, N.M. The 22nd annual event show - of Mexico, Texas and New Mexico. Night at 7:15 p.m., along with marching bands cases the winter wonderland of more than 100 The hike is sponsored by El Paso Convention and other activities 6:30 to 7 p.m.. Admission: festively decorated houses. Twelve to 15 tours El Paso Scene User’s Guide 38 & Visitors Bureau and El Paso Scene. Security is $5 (free for ages 12 and younger and military are offered nightly 5:15 to 9:30 p.m.; ticket Advertiser Index 46 provided along the trail and in the parking lot. personnel). • The 2nd annual Sky Party is 9 to 11:30 a.m. Subscription Form 46 The 5-mile hike is easy to moderate, and is Please see Page 5 January 2014 El Paso Scene Page 3 ike an elf who toils all year long for the end-of-the-year delivery of Lhis work, the Scene’s associate edi - tor, Lisa Tate, collects her “geckos” for our January issue. These are the 7th annual El Paso Scene Gecko Awards. We were inspired by the example of Esquire magazine’s Dubious Achievement Awards and Texas Monthly’s Bum Steer Awards. While Esquire had the whole country to pick from and Texas Monthly has the entire Lone State State, Lisa confines herself to El Paso and surrounding region. Nevertheless, she has plenty of “the goofy, the bad and the weird” items from local media to fill our feature space. couple of times I’ve gone to a show at Both Lisa and I lamented that nothing UTEP, it’s been like an episode of “The this year could match the sheer insanity Amazing Race” where ticketholders are of the City of Sunland Park shenanigans given the challenge of finding their way that earned last year’s top honor. For this to Magoffin Auditorium. year’s top prize, we had to pick from an My personal perseverance award goes to eclectic assortment of bizarre nominees. Juanita Vasquez of Lola Productions, who Which, when you think about it, was like uses the auditorium as her main venue. asking El Pasoans to choose from among She has three more shows in February. the finalists of strange mascot names for Another award goes to the UTEP Dinner our new Triple-A baseball team. Theatre, which continues to put on a We picked the El Paso Chihuahuas as great season of shows despite the fan- this year’s Gecko of the Year not because unfriendly parking and walking situation. we wanted to make fun of the new mas - From what I’ve seen of the plans for cot, but because the whole uproar over UTEP’s new Centennial Plaza, the wait the mascot symbolized the best and worst and inconvenience should all be worth it. of the Sun City. Only in El Paso could UTEP already is El Paso’s most beautiful something so small make such a fuss. manmade creation, and the redesigned As this month’s story points out, 2013 campus will be even more of an attraction will be remembered in El Paso as the when completed. year the old made way for the new. We As part of our own salute to UTEP’s hope 2014 will be remembered as a year upcoming 100th anniversary, this month’s of accomplishment instead of demolition. cover features Hal Marcus’s tribute to the For myself, I am looking forward to school, “Universe City.” enjoying a ballpark frank in the new The El Paso Chihuahuas and the UTEP downtown stadium and watching the Centennial will be the big stories of 2014, Chihuahuas play ball. Never mind what - and, hopefully, non-Gecko-worthy. But El ever misgivings I may have had concern - Paso being El Paso, Lisa will have plenty ing the stadium, what’s done is done. All of Geckos scampering out of the pages of of us stadium skeptics might as well take local newspapers and local TV news ourselves out to the ball game and root broadcasts. for the home team. Some construction projects may take all Another experience I am looking for - of 2014 to finish. Maybe the businesses ward to in 2014 is walking unencum - along Country Club Road can survive its bered through the UTEP campus and not reconstruction. And I hope I can ride my being forced to navigate a maze of con - bicycle across the new, improved struction barriers and detours. The last Transmountain Road before year’s end. January 2014 Randy Limbird El Paso Scene is published by Cristo Rey Editor and Publisher (915) 542-1422 Communications as a monthly guide to entertainment, recreation and culture in the Albert Martinez El Paso area. Copies are provided free Advertising & at selected locations. Subscriptions are Circulation Director $10 a year, sent by 3rd class mail.