You might want to bundle up for Friday's screening of It's a Wonderful Life by the Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow. Frank Capra's Christmas classic stars James Stewart as the suicidal George Bailey, who's had such a horrible streak of bad luck, he's determined to kill himself -- on Christmas Eve. Henry Travers stars as George's guardian angel, Clarence, and he's got quite a job trying to turn George around. The heartwarming film is a wonderful family treat.
The 1946 film was nominated for five Oscars, though it didn't win any. Over time, it has become a classic and been named by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 best American films ever made.
It's a Wonderful Life starts at 7 p.m. Market Square Park, 300 Travis. For information, visit www.alamodrafthouse.com or call 713-650-3022. Free.
On Saturday, 40 teams of architects, bakers, designers, engineers and artists will face off in the 3rd Annual Gingerbread Build-Off. The houses must be completely edible (which we're guessing is going to put those engineering skills to the test).
Prizes will be handed out at the end of the day, including Grand Prix de Show, tallest structure, best architectural icon, most creative, and public favorite, among others. Prize winners and other entries will be on display for a week starting December 12 at the Architecture Center Houston (315 Capitol).
See the gingerbread fly on Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Market Square Park, 300 Travis. For information, visit www.aiahouston.org or call 713-520-0155. Free.
Kitty Loco is going to have a hard time of it at POLITIQUEER. A creation of absurdist filmmaker Stephanie Saint Sanchez, the character stars in Kitty Loco in Good Queer/Bad Queer. Kitty will have to maneuver through the explosive minefield of queer political correctness. That's no easy task, especially since Sanchez has no mercy on Kitty; she throws ever more complicated and confusing rules of gay, uh, sorry, queer correctness in the mix.
Several other artists will be presenting work in a variety of mediums. Among those performing is interdisciplinary artist Jonatan Lopez. His piece, Paletero, includes an exploration of freedom and manhood through edible sculptures (which will be auctioned off during the show). Voices Breaking Boundaries Assistant Director Joshua Turner says that while some of the artists will obviously address the issue of queer politics, others will simply present art from a GLBT perspective. They all know what the goal of the show is, but as to how they address that, they've been given free rein, he says.
See what trouble Kitty Loco and friends get into at 6 p.m. Houston Institute for Culture, 708-C Telephone Road. For information, visit www.vbbarts.org or call 713‑524‑7821. Free.
