VIVA MEXICO

Cinco de Mayo

[ SUNDAY, MAY 5 ]

Quick--for a Cuervo margarita, salt and lime: What is it exactly that is being celebrated on Cinco de Mayo? Mexican Independence Day, you say? Que? You think because it's the fifth of May it must be the Mexican version of our fourth of July? Muy stupido, Señor Gringo! Cinco de Mayo commemorates the victory of 4,500 poorly armed Mexicans over 6,500 well-armed Frenchmen in the 1862 Battle of Puebla, a triumph that halted the invasion of Mexico. (Mexican Independence Day, by the way, is Sept. 16.) It's fitting that so few Americans know what's being celebrated, since the U.S. version of the giant fiesta is generally devoid of all ethnicity and amounts to little more than an excuse to eat and drink and make merry, à la St. Patty's Day. Still, despite the innumerable slapped-together tequila and taco specials you'll see hyped this week, there are some genuine fiestas of merit, even here in Philadelphia, where the Mexican population is small. Best place to call first is the Mexican Cultural Center (215.592.0410). The center is celebrating the fifth with a major party, featuring the only known female mariachi band. There are also block parties in the city--one on the 3400 block of Sansom (for info, call the White Dog at 215.386.9224) and another on South Street (call Copabanana, 215.923.6180). And WMMR will broadcast live from the Arroyo Grille (215.487.1400) in Manayunk from the third through the fifth. Also, best to check your favorite Mexican restaurant, since nearly all of them will be marking the day with special festivities. (Tim Whitaker)

FALL OF THE SERIOUS EMPIRE

Madame Ranevskaya

Talk about being misunderstood. When Anton Chekhov penned his classic The Cherry Orchard back in the early 1900s, he intended it to be a comedy. But that's not how the folks at the Moscow Arts Theatre interpreted the piece, and ever since its extraordinarily dark and gloomy premiere at the MAT in 1904, Orchard has more often than not been performed as a weighty and somewhat tedious drama. Now 1812 Productions--which as the area's only company dedicated to presenting humorous works is already enjoying a marvelous season with acclaimed productions of Another Vaudeville and Amputation Nation-- is hoping to restore Chekhov's original intent with Madame Ranevskaya, a new adaptation from Russian director/adaptor Yury Belov. A political dissident "asked" to leave his homeland in the early '80s, Belov has moved the action from the Russian countryside to a daffodil farm in modern-day North Carolina. There we encounter Vivian Steele (Grace Gonglewski) a descendant of Ranevskaya's doomed to follow in her ancestor's footsteps. This new interpretation is heavy on physical comedy and over-the-top characterizations, and Belov hopes the modernization will allow "the comedy of the piece to shine through." He certainly has the cast to achieve his aim, with Barrymore winners Gonglewski, John Lumia and Pete Pryor joining Pig Iron's Dito van Reigersberg and Geoff Sobelle to form one of the season's most esteemed ensembles. (J. Cooper Robb)
2pm Through June 2. $15-$20. The Adrienne, 2030 Sansom St. 215.592.9560