The Palm Wooed Vallarta Feb 14

Puerto Vallarta, Mexico – For Valentine’s Day, The Palm Cabaret featured two romantic musical concerts – both performed to a full house. Appearing at 7:30 pm was Bohemia Viva, Vallarta’s fabulous Argentinian duo, in Desde de Corazón (‘From the Heart’). And at 9:30 pm, Branden & James presented their special, ‘All You Need is Love’ show. Both performances were magnificent. The songs, instrumentals and musical introductions were all spectacular!

Bohemia Viva opened the evening with a delightful selection of popular love songs and gorgeous Spanish numbers. With a stage of colorful lights and decorative background, the couple delivered a flawless performance, entertaining the audience with humorous stories and awe-inspiring music. We heard the Dusty Springfield number, “I Only Want to Be With You,” as their opening song. Al Green’s, “Since We’ve Been Together,” followed along with “Endless Love” made famous by Lionel Richie and Diana Ross.

Joining Luis Lujan and Andrea Mottura for this show were José Luis Rosales (Mexico) on drums and percussion and Javier Nuñez (Argentina) on bass and cello. Luis led with his guitars and stunning vocals and Andrea’s solos, harmonies and percussion were thrilling. There were many standing ovations and cheers of appreciation throughout their performance. Some songs were sung in Spanish and others were a mixture of English, Spanish and Italian. And their South American musical influence was appreciated by everyone.

Andrea shared a spicy Latin solo that the audience totally enjoyed. And Andrea and Luis’ version of David Foster’s, “The Prayer,” was incredibly moving, bringing tears to our eyes. Roy Orbison’s, “Cryin’,” was a crowd favorite with a breathtaking solo from Luis. We were treated to a heartfelt song from the musical, ‘Evita,’ that reminded us of their beloved country of Argentina. And the final number was a rousing medley of “Unchained Melody,” “You’re Beautiful,” “Only You” and “I Just Called to Say I Love You.”

Bohemia Viva’s last performance of Gravity will be on March 4th at 7:30 pm at The Palm Cabaret. With plans to spend time in Italy starting in April, this is your last opportunity to experience these fabulous musicians in Puerto Vallarta this season. Don’t delay, get your tickets TODAY at ThePalmCabaret.com.

They also have a scheduled a final performance of ‘Gravity’ for their North Shore fans at Luna Lounge Bucerias on February 29th at 6:30 pm. For more information and tickets to this fabulous dinner/show, go to LunaLoungeBucerias.com.

At 9:30 pm on Valentine’s Night at The Palm Cabaret, Branden & James’ show, ‘All You Need Is Love,’ was a magical romantic thrill ride. With Branden on piano and lead vocals and James on cello and harmony, they opened with a gorgeous Italian rendition of the theme from Love Story, followed by a spirited medley of popular romantic songs.

The duo’s version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” was breathtaking with a verse in Spanish. And their Spanish version of Bryan Adams’ “Have you Ever Really Loved a Woman” was spellbinding.

Branden surprised James with a special song dedicated to their love and life together. And we also heard “Never Enough” from The Greatest Showman with the most inspiring cello and piano performance. We loved “Winner Takes It All,” sung in both Spanish and English. And we were treated to the music video Chasing Cars, that the duo recently produced. With Branden on vocals and James on the piano, we enjoyed “It All Fades Away” from the musical, Bridges of Madison County.

James performed a beautiful cello solo, “Liebertango,” by Argentinian composer Astor Piazzola; and they also dedicated a deeply romantic mash up of “Make You Feel My Love” and “Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?” to visiting friends from Santa Fe, celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary.

Lightening up the mood a bit, they sang a spoofy song about a date gone wrong. The punch line being, ‘you kissed your dog on the mouth.’ And to finish up the evening, Branden & James delivered a awesome medley from Phantom of the Opera.

Truly, two of the very finest musicians to have ever ‘graced the stage’ in Puerto Vallarta, Branden & James are on their way to musical stardom. With Branden’s new biography coming out next month, the world will soon know of these amazing musicians.

Branden & James’ final show in Vallarta was on Sunday night, but you can see them on tour in their new show, ‘The Lady Gaga Songbook,’ beginning in March in cities like New York, Chicago, Palm Springs, San Francisco, Santa Fe, San Diego, U.K., Provincetown, Ogunquit, Rehoboth Beach, Saugatuck, and the United Kingdom just to name a few. Go to BrandenJames.com for more information and tickets.

Open 7 nights a week, The Palm Cabaret and Bar features 3 shows per night, with performances at 5:30 pm, 7:00/7:30 pm and 9:30 pm. For more information and the 2019-2020 season’s complete line-up, visit ThePalmCabaret.com.