Calendar - Entertainment

December 10 — December 19

Tucson Pastorela' turns 10. The traditional Mexican Christmas pageant continues, with the legacy of Albert Soto’s devil present in spirit

Maybe compared to the 500-year history of the pastorela in Mexico, this traditional Christmas pageant's 10-year history as "A Tucson Pastorela" is just a drop in the bucket. But Tucsonans have sucked up and savored this drop of biblical and cultural nourishment like the desert dwellers we are. Borderlands Theater produced the Old Pueblo's first Pastorela on the west campus of Pima Community College back in 1996 and never looked back. Now the 10th annual "A Tucson Pastorela" will begin Dec. 10 with performances continuing through Dec. 19 at the downtown Leo Rich Theater in the Tucson Convention Center.

What has always made "A Tucson Pastorela" different from every other holiday celebration in the Old Pueblo is its generous mix of secular and Christian elements. The premise of the play has never changed over the centuries. As the three shepherds see that bright star in the east and make their way toward Bethlehem to celebrate the birth of Jesus, they are set upon by all manner of obstacles and temptations posed by a colorful variety of devils who know their pop culture.

December 17

Tamal Festival

Tamale lovers will have plenty to choose from next month when Casino Del Sol holds its inaugural Tucson Tamal Festival. The daylong event Dec. 17 will feature various non-profit organizations selling varieties of the Mexican staple. Also included in the festivities are tamale-making demonstrations and cooking contests, live music, cultural presentations, art galleries and a children's carnival. The festival is from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. at the casino, 5655 W. Valencia Road, Tucson, Arizona. For more information, call 838-6793.

November 18-19 Too Late, You will have to wait for next year

Rapt in tamales

Latina culture is wrapped in and passed down through tamale-making in a new comedy. Call it the passing of the olla. The time when a Mexican-American woman figuratively and sometimes literally hands her daughters the jumbo-sized family pot and teaches them how to make tamales. In the Latino community not only do real women have curves – they also make their own tamales. It's an ability Latinas are proud of because preparing the Mexican staple requires skill, patience and stamina.

If You Go

What: Catalina Players’ “Las Nuevas Tamaleras (The New Tamale Makers)”

When:  Nov. 18-19. A tamale dinner is served at 6 p.m. with the play at 7:30. Saturday matinees begin at 1:30.

Where: Atria Bell Court Gardens, Academy Hall, 6653 E. Carondelet Drive (east of St. Joseph’s Hospital) Tucson, Arizona

How much: $15 show only, $24.50 dinner and show

Details: For reservations, call 409-8407.