Aventura Arts & Cultural Center Offers A Cornucopia Of Entertainment This November

Performing arts fans will have much to be thankful for this November as the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center presents an award-winning film, a tribute to the beloved melodies of The Carpenters, a thrilling evening of dance, two spell-binding one-act plays, and three celebrations of classical and orchestral music with the works of Rachmaninoff, Rameau, Mozart and two early chamber operas.

From France comes the Aventura International Film Series screening of Happening on Tuesday, November 1 at 7:30 p.m. Winner of the Golden Lion Award for Best Film at the Venice Film Festival, Happening has received critical acclaim including from Rolling Stone that declared this film as "the most urgent movie of 2022" that "has gone from international sensation to a call to arms." The film follows a bright young Parisian college student in 1963 who becomes pregnant and sees the opportunity to finish her studies and escape the constraints of her social background disappearing. With her final exams fast approaching and her belly growing, she resolves to act, even if she has to confront shame and pain and risk prison to do so. Rated R, the film is shown in French with English subtitles. The Aventura International Film Series presented by the City of Aventura is curated and hosted by Shelly Isaacs who introduces the film and leads a post-screening discussion. Screenings are general admission with the lobby doors opening at 6:30 p.m. and the auditorium at 7 p.m. Tickets are $12.

The New World Dance Ensemble will present an exciting program of dance works, performed with passion and skill by the talented New World School of the Arts dancers and professional alumni on Friday, November 4 at 8 p.m. With works by professional choreographers in a variety of genres, styles, and settings, the program will include Gentry Isaiah George's Caribbean-themed work, Land of the Sea and Sun, set to the music of Harry Belafonte; Francesca Harper's powerful contemporary work Sanction 2.1, and Darshan Singh Bhuller's new work, Junun, set to a score by the same title. Kanji Segawa's powerfully athletic work Scorching Bay, Jeffrey Lloyd Smith's work Ghosts, and Geeta Dias's exuberant Bollywood work Bangra Medley complete this varied and engaging program. Tickets are $12.

Dranoff 2 Piano presents Rachmaninoff and his Legacy - Rach 150 featuring Asiya Korepanova and Ilya Kazantsev in a 150th anniversary celebration of the great composer pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff on Saturday, November 5 at 7:30 p.m. The program features two piano suites with performances of Bach and Brahms that explore the polyphonic nature of Rachmaninoff's writing coming from Bach's influence as well as the classical structure that Brahms displays so profoundly while being a Romantic composer and a quality so strong in Rachmaninoff's music. Tickets are $40 with a $60 VIP ticket offering preferred seating and select drink vouchers.

In a captivating double bill of drama and comedy, Don Soffer Aventura High School students perform Eurydice and The Play That Goes Wrong Wednesday, November 16 - November, October 18 at 7 p.m. Reimaging the classic myth through its young heroine's eyes, the drama follows Eurydice who, after dying on her wedding day, must journey to the underworld where she reunites with her father and struggles to remember her lost love. After intermission, comedy takes the stage in The Play That Goes Wrong, which features an unconscious leading lady, a corpse who can't play dead, a ruffled detective and a word-mangling butler who must battle against technical gaffes, forgotten lines and sabotaging scenery in a quest to arrive all in one piece at the final curtain call. These performances are not recommended for children under four. Tickets are $15.

After four sold-out engagements, Top of the World: A Carpenters Tribute returns by popular demand on Saturday, November 19 at 8 p.m. It's "Yesterday Once More" when Debbie Taylor and her seven-piece band recreate the unforgettable, exquisite music of The Carpenters. With a warmth and tone reminiscent of Karen Carpenter, Taylor and her talented, accomplished group of musicians bring to life authentic versions of cherished songs including "We've Only Just Begun," "Close to You" and "Rainy Days and Mondays." This event is presented by Debbie Taylor and Paul Stewart. Tickets are $40-$50.

Russian concert pianist Vyacheslav Gryaznov makes his debut with the Miami International Piano Festival on Sunday, November 20 at 5 p.m. He will perform works by Rameau, Mozart, and the rarely heard "Rachmaninoff Concerto No. 4" with pianist Rexa Han. An arranger and composer, Gryaznov is the author of more than 40 concert arrangements and has gained a reputation as one of the most remarkable young arrangers working today. Musical Life called him, "Extraordinarily inventive, a leading voice and one of the great wonders of modern pianism." Lecturer in residence Professor Frank E. Cooper offers a pre-concert introduction. Not suggested for children under 12 years of age. Tickets are $45-$55.

RK Cultural Productions and the Grammy-winning Boston Early Music Festival have partnered to co-present the Boston Early Music Festival, A Miami Premiere on Wednesday, November 30 at 8 p.m. This Boston Early Music Festival Semi-Staged Opera Series features a double bill of chamber operas with Jean-Baptiste Lully's Idylle sur la Paix and Marc-Antoine Charpentier's La Fête de Rueil. Ticket holders will enjoy a pre-concert talk at 7 p.m. Tickets are $40-$50.

Ticketmaster is the only official ticketing service of the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center. Buy tickets online at aventuracenter.org, by phone at 877.311.7469 or 954.462.0222 or in person at the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center box office Wednesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. and 90 minutes prior to each performance. For Group Sales, please call 954.660.6307.