Hello Spring Breakers! Beyond being a fantastic destination for your family to enjoy dozens of activities with one another, did you know that you can choose from more than a thousand different live performances and art events each year in Santa Fe?! It’s true! And March has arrived to showcase a whole lot of art in our high-altitude capital city hamlet. So, while it may not be sure if it’s winter or spring, March is clearly excited to put on a show! And TimeOut Magazine has just recognized The City Different as a great Spring Break destination for art, saying, it's "home to one of the country's most eclectic art, architecture and design scenes." 

Oh, and Easter is celebrated Sunday, March 31 this year, so make sure to reserve your special brunch in advance and plan to meet Clover, the Easter Bunny at the Santa Fe Botanical Garden!  


SYMPHONY & CLASSICAL MUSIC

Kronos Quartet(Kronos Quartet)

Classical music is alive and well in Santa Fe with devoted local organizations inviting prominent musicians to our stages. March 2 and 3, New Mexico Performing Arts Society presents Chamber Music for Period Instruments. Then Performance Santa Fe brings pianist Benjamin Grosvenor on March 6 to perform selections from Liszt and Chopin and the beloved Kronos Quartet on March 19. The Santa Fe Symphony delights with Italian Nights on March 21 with Rossini’s L'Italiana in Algeri Overture, Mendelssohn’s Italian Symphony, and Berlioz’s Harold in Italy, featuring The Symphony's Principal Violist Kimberly Fredenburgh. And, finally, Santa Fe Pro Musica presents Baroque Holy Week: Joys & Sorrows on March 23 and 24 in a celebration of French Baroque women composers. 


COMEDY

Wayward Comedy Group(Wayward Comedy)

Santa Fe's comedic bone is evolving into a for-real funny bone with the Wayward Comedy group joking around weekly at Chile Line Brewing and on March 3 at Tumbleroot Brewery & Distillery and plan ahead for the CloudTop Comedy Festival yukking it up May 9–12.


THEATER + DANCE

Jayson Exodus Ensemble(Scene from The Exodus Ensemble's Jayson)


Immersion is the new and true way to experience art, so why not check out Jayson coming to you from theater group The Exodus Ensemble, where 360° of monitors surround audiences in this contemporary version of Euripides’ Medea. Or try a Santa Fe dance staple? The City Different has a love affair with the dramatic and passionate moves of flamenco, and March is the perfect time for an evening performance in two very intimate settings (read: you are seated in such close proximity to the dancers, you can feel the heat!). Pick a Friday or Saturday night dinner show at El Farol or consider offerings during the Spring Season at Entreflamenco just off the Plaza from March 8 through June 22.


BANDS & MUSICIANS

Lunasa(Lúnasa)


Name a genre, name an instrument, and yes, Santa Fe is hosting your musical wish! Here's just a random smattering: On March 16, the "hottest Irish acoustic group on the planet, Lúnasa, returns to Santa Fe for a special St. Patrick’s Day celebration at The Lensic Performing Arts Center, called by Folk Roots magazine "an Irish music dream team." On March 15, "the Michael Jordan of Scottish fiddling," Alasdair Fraiser and his cellist partner Natalie Haas grace the St. Francis Auditorium with a mashup that's referred to as chamber with ecstatic dance energy! March 20, at the Oldest Church in the United States (San Miguel Chapel), don't miss Raul Midón, whose Grammy-winning greatness has collaborated with the likes of Shakira, Bill Withers, and Herbie Hancock. And on March 23, head over to Tumbleroot Brewery and Distillery and check out IV and the Strange Band, described as "Hank Williams’ legacy living through Coleman Williams IV, who’s not afraid to honor his lineage through Nashville’s underground music scene." If you love the snow, check out the local band scene on Saturdays up at Ski Santa Fe’s Totemoff’s Bar & Grill. How will you choose?


MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS

Vladem Virgil Ortiz
(New Mexico Museum of Art, Vladem Contemporary)


Are you familiar with Santa Fe's museum scene? Test your knowledge with our fun quiz (60 seconds of your time) for a chance to win two CulturePasses, good for one free visit to 8 state museums and 7 historic sites. And/or check out a few of the newer museum exhibitions open for your meandering, contemplative pleasure: New to The City Different is Vladem Contemporary, a second location for the New Mexico Museum of Art, where you should see Shadow and Light before it goes at the end of April, featuring Virgil Ortiz (Cochiti Pueblo), Judy Chicago, and Yayoi Kusama, among others! At SITE Santa Fe through September 16, check out the abstract minimalism of the late Cuban-born Carmen Herrera's I am Nobody! Who are you? For something completely different, consider award-winning filmmaker Inuk Silis Høegh's (Danish-Kalaallit) Arctic Vertigo (Green Land) at IAIA's Museum of Contemporary Native Arts, a feature film about Greenland’s monumental nature at a time when it is undergoing drastic changes. At the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian, see Master Glass: The Collaborative Spirit of Tony Jojola, the first show since Jojola's death in 2022, which celebrates his blown and sculpted glass. Jojola (Isleta Pueblo) is considered one of the most influential American glass artists of the 20th century, and worked alongside legendary glass artist Dale Chihuly, among others. 


FILM

BANFF 2024
(Photo Courtesy of Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival World Tour)

Thanks to Santa Fe Conservation Trust, the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival Tour (March 11 and 12) is back for two nights at The Lensic Performing Arts Center, presenting films that offer “an exhilarating and provocative exploration of the mountain world, traveling to exotic landscapes and remote cultures, and bringing you up-close and personal with adrenaline-packed action sports.” Discounted rates for attending both nights!


EASTER SUNDAY

Bishops Lodge
(Photo courtesy of Bishop's Lodge)


Easter Sunday means egg hunts, time with family, chocolate bunnies, and a decadent brunch! You’ll see why on Easter Sunday as local restaurants concoct and prepare some of the most delicious dishes. So while planning that Easter weekend trip to Santa Fe, be sure to make your brunch plans now! Here are some suggestions to get you started: The Compound, just off Canyon Road, SkyFire on the Bishop's Lodge Auberge Resorts Collection property, which has earned numerous accolades since reopening, or for the adventurous, try Sky Railway's special train ride to Brunch at the Legal Tender Saloon! For more ideas, visit our dine page.

And should you have little ones who love a good hunt, Santa Fe has two fun events to hop on over to: On March 23, take part in the festivities over at the grassy fields of the Municipal Recreation Complex—a free Easter Egg Hunt & Touch the Big Trucks event, beginning at 9:45am. Or register to meet Clover the Easter Bunny at the Santa Fe Botanical Garden's Egg Hunt on Sunday, March 31. Beyond searching for eggs, kids can also design their own Easter bags and participate in other fun crafts. Adults may enjoy the special presentation on native rabbits of New Mexico. 


SANTA FE VEGAN CHEF CHALLENGE

Santa Fe Vegan Challenge(Photo courtesy of Terra Restaurant at Four Seasons Rancho Encantado Santa Fe)
 

Throughout the merry month of March, you have the tasty opportunity to try vegan dishes all over Santa Fe and then vote for your faves. Nearly 20 restaurants are competing for your vote in the Santa Fe Vegan Chef Challenge this year. Eating out in Santa Fe is always a marvelous experience, but it's even better when you are aware of the deliciously healthy dining available to you.


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