🎆 The Tapa Weekend: September 6
Street markets, food festivals and flamenco shows. We're back, baby!
By @IanMount and @AdrianBono | September 6, 2024 | Madrid | Issue #65
🎉 Welcome to a new issue of The Tapa: Weekend Edition! An English-language newsletter about what to do this weekend in Madrid (plus memes!)
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Here Are 5 Things to Do in Madrid This Weekend
Happy Friday, everyone!
We’re back after a very much-deserved break, in which rather than following the news from the loneliness of a dark basement, we spent the entire month of August following the news from the loneliness of a crowded beach.
Madrid is once again coming back to life after a bucolic month, with sunny (but chilly) mornings, pumpkin-spiced lattes and the slow return of weekend activities that do not involve getting drunk in La Latina until 5 a.m.
We’re happy to be back. We missed you and we hope you missed us too.
Enjoy!
1. An amazing flamenco experience with Sara Baras’ Vuela
Let’s face it, Madrid is not fully awake yet so it’s not like you have a lot of options to choose from. But there’s still hope for ye of little faith, so let’s kick off this new season with something as Spanish as jamón serrano: a flamenco show.
Renowned dancer Sara Baras is celebrating the 25th anniversary of her dance company with a show that pays tribute to Spanish musician and composer Paco de Lucía, currently considered the greatest flamenco guitarist in history (and if you don’t know him, you should).
This new show is titled Vuela (“Fly”) and is a choreographic journey consisting of 15 pieces centered around a single word. It is divided into four acts: “Madera (“Wood”), about the strength of roots and the intrinsic warmth of being; Mar (“Sea”), about passion, adopting the fluidity of water; Muerte (“Death”), which explores human emotions at their deepest; and Volar (“Fly”), presented as the only way to escape without running, “simply letting oneself be carried away by celebration and joy”.
Baras is also a choreographer, an actress, and a director, regarded as one of the top professionals in flamenco. So if you’re hoping for an unforgettable experience this weekend, try getting tickets to Vuela.
Totally worth it.
Sara Baras’s Vuela. Teatro EDP Gran Vía. Gran Vía 66, Madrid. Thursdays to Sundays, September 5 to October 13. Tickets start at €25,50.
2. Ingmar Bergman’s Scenes From a Marriage (with an Argentine twist)
Whether you love the Swedish 1973 classic miniseries or the 2021 American remake (starring Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain) of this unforgettable drama, this is your chance to see it on stage (and in Spanish!).
The play stars legendary Argentine actors Ricardo Darín (star of the Oscar-winning film The Secret in their Eyes) and Andrea Pietra, and is directed by another Argentine legend, actress and playwright Norma Aleandro (star of the Oscar-winning film The Official Story).
In the play, Juan and Mariana narrate to the audience their personal relationships during their marriage and after their divorce. The scenes reflect experiences that many in the audience will find relatable due to the fact that, well, everyone divorces these days. The irony and sharpness of the dialogue add a humorous touch to the heartbreak and disappointment.
Scenes from a Marriage has become a modern classic since Bergman created the six-episode miniseries for Swedish television, starring Liv Ullman and Erland Josephson, and that achieved spectacular ratings.
Scenes from a Marriage. Teatro Rialto, Gran Vía 54, Madrid. Wednesdays to Sunday. Through September 29. Check website for schedule. Tickets start at €43,20.
3. Head over to Las Rozas for the Arriquiñam Food Festival
Come on now, it can’t always be in Malasaña. If you’ve never been to Las Rozas, in the northwest of the city, then this is a good excuse for you to go.
The Arriquiñam gastronomic and music festival returns for another edition, offering the best national and international cuisine through its food trucks, live musical performances, and entertainment for the weekend.
World-renowned chefs will showcase their skills with dishes that reflect the diversity of global cuisine: gourmet burgers, Neapolitan pizzas, delicious baos, Latin American and Asian delicacies, sweets, and, of course, drinks and cocktails (because of course there’s alcohol).
There will also be live performances, bands, tributes, and shows covering a wide range of musical genres. Guitars strumming passionate chords, drums setting the party’s rhythm, and DJs pumping up the energy (again, you can thank the alcohol).
So take an Uber with your friends and get out of your comfort zone for a weekend of food (and alcohol).
Arriquiñam Food Festival. Centro Multiusos Las Rozas. Avenida del Polideportivo, 22, Las Rozas, Madrid. Through Sept. 8. Free admission.
4. Los Sábados del Rastro
Did you know that the Rastro street market comes alive on the first Saturday of every month as well? Yes, we’ve all been there on Sundays but if you’re a contrarian, here’s your chance to go against the current.
At the Plaza del General Vara del Rey, you can not only find vintage items, collectibles and antiques but also street food options, amazing cocktails, arts, craft, music and much more!
Back in the 70s there was something called the Feria de Desembalajes (“the unpacking fair,” we guess) and the Saturday edition of this classic Madrid destination tries to recreate its original allure. So if you think it’s just like every other Sunday, you should know you’re wrong. Head there tomorrow and you will find:
Feria de Desembalajes: antiques, collectibles, and vintage clothing on display.
Gastro Circuit: a route to savor traditional and innovative Madrid gastronomy.
Shopping Circuit: a route to discover the best neighborhood shops.
Family Circuit: a variety of family activities at La Glorieta de Puerta de Toledo.
Seriously—what more do you need?
Los Sábados del Rastro. Plaza del General Vara del Rey, La Latina, Madrid. Sept. 7. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.. Free admission.
5.🛍️ A Street Market: Mercado de las Ranas
We’ve covered this one before and we continue to include it because it’s the one that everyone loves. The Mercado de las Ranas is back this Saturday so if you’re wondering where to spend your hard earned euros, this is the place.
This street market is similar to the Portobello Road or Camden Town markets in London. This Saturday, stores participating in this mercado near Plaza Santa Ana, in the Las Letras district, bring their goods outside into the street so visitors can buy their favorite book, t-shirt or grab a slice of pizza on the go.
If there’s one thing we love about Madrid (and there are actually many), it’s the street market scene, and this one doesn’t disappoint. After a bit of retail therapy, grab a table at the plaza and sip a cool caña - or a pumpkin-spiced latte.
You’re welcome.
Mercado de las Ranas. All along Calle de las Huertas in Las Letras, Madrid. Saturday, Sept. 7, Noon to 7 p.m.
👨🏻💻 Viral Stories of the Week
🍍 The Mercadona pineapple pickup memes are without end
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🥳 Young Chinese peregrino wakes up early to walk the Camino de Santiago and runs into Burgos village party. The rest is history.
😜 For those who love esoteric rural Spanish sports…
🔔 A Message From Our Sponsor
Secret Kingdoms is your English bookstore in Madrid. It specializes in Spanish history and literature, contemporary and classic novels, books for children and young adults of all ages, history and historical fiction, thrillers, science fiction, fantasy, poetry, biographies and much more.
Located on Calle de Moratín 7 — a few blocks away from the Prado Museum — and with over 20,000 new and used books, Secret Kingdoms has something for everyone.
Find out more at www.thesecretkingdoms.com
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We’ll be back next week with more.