Texans, rightfully, should consider themselves marching-band authorities, but as anyone whos seen the movie Drumline can attest, some of our neighbors take the art to a whole new extreme. The phenomenon of drumline mania visits Houston as the Society for the Performing Arts presents DRUMline Live, a thumping, bumping tour de force featuring a roster of the Souths finest college-age percussionists, many of them students at historically black colleges and universities. Forty performers from the likes of Florida A&M, Tennessee State, South Carolina State, Morris Brown College and the University of Georgia will drum out songs from Earth, Wind & Fire and Tower of Power as well as modern-day hip-hop and R&B hits. Steppers and dancers round out the theatrical event, which might make you forget that theres usually a football game in the background. 7:30 p.m. Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana. For information, call 713-227-4772 or visit www.spahouston.org. $20 to $60.
See www.houstonpress.com for information on DrumBREAK, the free performance for kids by members of the DRUMLine Live cast at the Childrens Museum of Houston.
Tue., Jan. 13, 7:30 p.m., 2009
This article appears in Jan 8-14, 2009.