October 3
While his band emanates from the Seattle grunge scene, Pearl Jam front man Eddie Vedder is actually an Illinois native. As such, he is also a diehard Chicago Cubs supporter, one of many long-suffering fans who were rewarded when the team finally broke its World Series drought last year. As a way to pay homage to Vedder’s hometown, Pearl Jam chronicled its 2016 performance at Wrigley Field with a concert film, the aptly titled Let’s Play Two. “Pearl Jam has left its undeniable mark on the music world and pop culture — anytime they give audiences something new, whether it’s a film, an album or a tour, there’s excitement,” says Robert Saucedo, programming director for the Alamo Drafthouse. 7 p.m. Tuesday. Alamo Drafthouse Cinema – Mason, 531 South Mason Road, Katy. For information, call 281-492-6900 or visit drafthouse.com/houston. $10. – Clint Hale
A dystopian novel, the sacrifices made by Mexican immigrants, a woman awaiting the return of her love – the reprises, premieres and works-in-progress to be featured during Dance Source Houston’s Mind The Gap, the first showcase of their second season, have been inspired by a variety of sources. The program includes Ashley Clos’s A Yearning for Clarity, a solo excerpt from Hazards of Being Free, her hour-long MFA thesis concert inspired by David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest; Elisa De La Rosa’s inmigrante, which includes a dance film documenting the process of migrating across the Rio Grande made with Kassandra Sanchez-Alvarado; and Kalpana Subbarao’s Beloved, the story of a woman whose eyes turn to stone as she waits for the return of her beloved told utilizing Kathak, a classical Northern Indian dance form. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. The MATCH, 3400 Main. For information, call 713-521-4533 or visit matchouston.org. $15. — Natalie de la Garza
October 4
Mickalene Thomas’s creative vision knows no boundaries. For the first time, the celebrated artist will be the focus of her first solo exhibit in Texas. From panel painting and color photography to a room-size tableau that features an immersive short-film experience, the Brooklyn-based artist’s work crosses many dimensions. Her art is extremely relevant at a time when women in the corporate world are leaning in and speaking out, with far too few examples of black female empowerment in the mix. Thomas presents bold representations of the female experience intertwined with popular culture. “Mickalene Thomas: Waiting on a Prime-Time Star” is lavish, challenging and sexy. “Her work has a really rich underpinning of ideas and themes that explore relevant topics. She’s looking at what defines the female African-American experience,” says Alison Weaver, the executive director of Rice University’s Moody Center for the Arts. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday. Continuing 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. Through January 13. 6100 Main. For information, call 713-284-2787 or visit moody.rice.edu. Free. — Camilo Hannibal Smith
Who says Facebook stalking is a waste of time? Director Eliza Hittman was inspired to make her latest film, Beach Rats, the follow-up to her 2014 directorial debut, It Felt Like Love, by the hypermasculine, homoerotic vulnerability she saw in the shirtless selfie of a “beach rat” from Brooklyn’s Gerritsen Beach. The resulting slice-of-life film about a 19-year-old who hangs out with macho stoner friends by day but trolls gay websites for hookups with men by night premiered at Sundance this year (where Hittman also picked up an award for directing), features the cinematography of Hélène Louvart and has drawn comparisons to the work of Claire Denis, Lynne Ramsay and even Larry Clark. This film is 18 and up; children six and up will only be allowed in with an adult. 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. Alamo Drafthouse Cinema – Mason, 531 South Mason Road, Katy. For information, call 281-492-6900 or visit drafthouse.com/houston. $6.91. — Natalie de la Garza
October 5
The characters in Wallace Shawn’s Evening at the Talk House gather for a reunion in some unspecified country at some unspecified time in the future. All were involved with a certain unsuccessful play ten years before. They are there to catch up on the usual stuff of countless high school and college reunions. But in what co-director Kyle Sturdivant (Best Actor, 2017 Houston Theater Awards) calls one of Shawn’s “more accessible” plays, what soon develops in this one-act is a far darker — while still comedic — story line of how politics, survival instincts and compromise can take over the lives of even the most idealistic members of the citizenry. “The world of theater has just about died in the world of this play. It’s not really looked upon romantically anymore,” Sturdivant says. “Everybody involved in the show had to go on to other careers.” 7:30 p.m. Thursdays. Continuing 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays; special performance 7:30 p.m. October 16. October 5 through 21. The MATCH, 3400 Main. For information, call 713-521-4533 or visit catastrophictheatre.com. Suggested ticket price $35. – Margaret Downing
Original Greek Festival co-chair Fote Demeris admits that after Harvey, they considered postponing or even canceling the annual celebration of all things Greek, but “decided to keep it because it gives people an escape.” Houstonians have been escaping to the festival for 51 years, and Demeris attributes that to one simple factor. “I think our biggest draw is the authenticity of our food.” From spanakopita and gyros to baklava and kourambiedes — not to mention 20,000 shish kebabs — it’s no surprise Demeris advises festival-goers to “come hungry.” Also, try zTrip; users who download the app will get a $25 credit from Yellow Cab. 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday. Also 5 to 10 p.m. October 5; 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. October 6; Noon to 6 p.m. October 8. Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 3511 Yoakum. For information, call 713-526-5377 or visit greekfestival.org. Free to $25. – Natalie de la Garza
Drama is in his blood, so when guest director James Bohnen arrived in Houston to find a brutally hot climate followed by a hurricane and floods, he thought to himself. “What happens in the third week? Frogs?” In town to direct the cerebral Man and Superman by George Bernard Shaw for the University of Houston School of Theatre & Dance, Bohnen says there was one silver lining to our weather woes. “The fact that the school was closed for ten days just after we started rehearsal; they didn’t have classes — or me — to distract them,” says Bohnen. “Not that I would ever wish or advocate any kind of natural disaster.” 8 p.m. Monday. Also 8 p.m. October 6 and October 11-13; 2 and 8 p.m. October 7; 2 p.m. October 8. Wortham Theatre, 3351 Cullen Boulevard. For information, call 713-743-2929 or visit uh.edu/kgmca/theatre-and-dance. $5 to $20. – Susie Tommaney
Javier Mejía, the protagonist of David Lozano and Lee Trull’s play Deferred Action, is a Dreamer who captures the nation’s attention when he goes viral after a traffic stop. It also drops him, the new face of the Dreamers, squarely between both the Republican and Democratic candidates for president who’d both like to get him on their side. The play, originally produced by Cara Mía Theatre from Dallas, is the second of a planned trilogy from Cara Mía about the Latino experience in America and will be performed in English with some Spanish. Be sure to stay after the show; there will be a talkback after each performance to discuss the Dreamers, immigration reform and Latinos in politics. 7:30 p.m. Thursday. Also 10 a.m. October 5; 10 a.m. and 7:30 a.m. October 6; 1:30 p.m. October 7. Talento Bilingüe de Houston, 333 South Jensen. For information, call 713-222-1213 or visit tbhcenter.org. $10 to $15. — Natalie de la Garza
October 6
Houston director Julia Traber’s new take on the George Bernard Shaw classic Mrs. Warren’s Profession comes from a place of frustration. “It’s certainly an indictment on the social conditions of women, the labor market and prostitution,” she says. “What’s immoral? There’s still the wage gap and there’s the prejudice of woman choosing to have children. In an indirect way, this play is still very relevant.” Traber admits to having trouble setting this Classical Theatre Company production of Shaw’s 1894 play, which stars Celeste Roberts, Shanae’a Moore, Ted Doolittle and more, in modern times. “I couldn’t fully commit because it adds a negative spin on Mrs. Warren, because so much of prostitution today is woman in bondage, where they’re kidnapped. Shaw was arguing woman may [have chosen] this lifestyle. [With] women today, it is much more complicated.” 8 p.m. Friday. Continuing 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays (with post-show talk-back); special performances 8 p.m. October 11 and 16. October 6 through 22. 4617 Montrose. For information, call 713-963-9665 or visit classicaltheatre.org. $10 to 25. – Vic Shuttee
HSPVA alum Robert Glasper won a Grammy for collaborating on Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly and composed the score for Don Cheadle’s Miles Davis biopic Miles Ahead. The 39-year-old Missouri City native also inspired former New York Times jazz critic Nate Chinen to recently write, for NPR, “there’s no way to tell the story of jazz in our time without talking about Houston.” The Robert Glasper Experiment’s performance at Da Camera’s “Homecoming Residency” also comes with a side trip to area schools, “so that young students who dream of a future in music can see themselves as next in line to receive and pass on this great heritage,” says Artistic and General Director Sarah Rothenberg. 8 p.m. Friday, Cullen Performance Hall, 4800 Calhoun. For information, call 713-524-5050 or visit dacamera.com. $42.50 to $72.50. – Chris Gray
Soon globetrotters will be able to celebrate and honor the last 100 years of Indian moviemaking at the National Museum of Indian Cinema, which will finally open later this year in Mumbai, but here in Houston enjoy some contemporary Indian film at the 9th Annual Indian Film Festival. The two-day festival features cocktail receptions, live entertainment, Q&A sessions and six screenings, including the opening night feature film, Mango Dreams, about an unlikely friendship between a Hindu doctor and Muslim auto rickshaw driver; short films like The Leftovers, about two women who set up makeshift schools in Mumbai’s slums; and documentaries like The Argumentative Indian, film about the life and times Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen. 4, 5:15, 7:15 and 7:45 p.m. Friday and 4, 4:35, 6:30, 7 and 9 p.m. October 7. Asia Society Texas Center, 1370 Southmore. For information, call 713-496-9901 or visit iffhinc.org. $15 to $35. — Natalie de la Garza
October 7
The Beatles were so inspired by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi that they gave up psychedelic drugs in favor of a sitar. “I think what’s very interesting about Indian classical music is how much of an influence it’s had on American composers like Philip Glass and Terry Riley,” says Matthew Detrick, co-founder and artistic director of Apollo Chamber Players. “Also The Doors and Beatles.” Even rarer is when Indian composers draw from the West, as does slide instrumentalist and composer Chitravina N. Ravikiran. “He’s considered the Mozart of Indian music. He intersects western classical and jazz with Indian music,” says Detrick. Ravikiran is debuting two world-premiering compositions during Houston Melharmony, an eclectic season opener that includes Houston Symphony’s Robin Kesselman on double bass, guest artist Erode Nagaraj on the mrdangam and performances by bharatanatyam dancers. Dig deeper with the 7:30 p.m. – Q&A session before the concert. 8 p.m. Saturday. Hobby Center, 800 Bagby. For information, call 832-496-9943 or visit apollochamberplayers.org. $15 to $54. – Susie Tommaney
Cecilia Villanueva’s work crashes through dimensions, taking viewers into an inner space of city landscapes, taking into account how light passes through urban zones and the way people standing near and inside buildings give off their own vibrations. “Houston is so different; when you stand in the middle of the city, you see 360 degrees of light. There’s so much light, so much blue, and because we are so close to the ocean, the sky is turbulent,” she says. And it was that turbulence that caused the major flooding from Harvey, a natural disaster that turned her home into an island and violently changed the pallet while she was completing four of the pieces in her show, “Embraced by the Void.” Villanueva will take questions about her work during the opening reception. 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday. Continuing 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays; 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. October 7 through November 2. Archway Gallery, 2305 Dunlavy. For information, call 713-522-2409 or visit archwaygallery.com. Free. – Camilo Hannibal Smith
The Manhattan Short Film Festival has come a long way since founding director Nick Mason threw a screen against the side of a New York City truck in 1998 to screen a few shorts. Now, more than 100,000 people will gather around the world to watch and vote on this year’s finalists in a filmic Olympiad that you can only see on two nights at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. “The films you see with other people you remember, and you remember longer,” says Mason. He adds that this creation of community, here at the MFAH, makes the festival feel “like it’s yours, even though it’s happening in 300 places across six continents.” The films include Spanish horror, American comedy and a critique of materialism using fruit, from Switzerland. 6 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. October 7. 1001 Bissonnet. For information, call 713-639-7515 or visit mfah.org/films. $8 to $10. – Natalie de la Garza
The Texas Renaissance Festival continues its nine weeks of merriment this weekend with 1001 Dreams — the ultimate amalgamation of Arabian Nights’ 1001 tales and Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. “1001 Dreams weekend is a celebration of fairies, elves, goblins and all those fantasy creatures from storybooks. We encourage people to let their flights of fantasy run wild,” says RenFest spokesman Travis Bryant. “It’s probably one of our biggest family weekends because little boys and girls like to see all the characters.” Start the day off with a greeting at the gates from the fairy court along with the King and Queen, and don’t miss the “dragon” wing-eating contest. (In lieu of actual dragons, the festival organizers may have substituted very hot chicken wings.) Game on! 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., Saturday and October 8. 21778 FM 1774. For information, visit texrenfest.com. Free to $30. – Sam Byrd
Think back to world history class and remember the Reformation, a call for reform in the Catholic Church that led to the birth of Protestantism, which began when a monk, Martin Luther, nailed his 95 theses to a church door in 1517. Mercury is using the 500th anniversary of the Reformation as a jumping off point for Brahms & Mendelssohn, a concert including Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 5, called the “Reformation,” and Johannes Brahms’s Symphony No. 2. Mendelssohn “Reformation” symphony was commissioned in 1829 for a commemoration event to be held the following year that was eventually cancelled. And Brahms’s Symphony No. 2, often called “Pastoral” due to its relation to Beethoven’s famous symphony, is a cheerful work written in a matter of months on Brahms’s summer vacation. 8 p.m. Saturday. Stude Concert Hall, Rice University, 6100 Main. For information, call 713-533-0080 or visit mercuryhouston.org. $19 to $70. — Natalie de la Garza
Spend a Saturday focusing on the odd and wacky when the second annual Houston Weird Homes Tour returns. The self-paced, self-driving tour will lead you through at least eight of the weirdest dwellings Houston has to offer, including Susie and Dirk Stronck’s “Journey Through Time” house, boasting a collection that includes Egyptian, African and pre-Columbian artifacts and an original Lutheran Bible; art car artist Rebecca Lowe’s hand painted “House of Tree”; and “The Hippolotofus Home,” owned by a hippo enthusiast and member of the Hippolotofus Society. Children under 13 can go on the tour free, and VIP tickets are available that include access to exclusive homes (like that of Houston art collector Lester Marks) and a VIP party. Ten percent of the proceeds will go to local nonprofits fighting for affordable housing. 10 a.m. Saturday. Various locations around Houston. For information, call 512-308-6215 or visit weirdhomestour.com. $30 to $50. — Natalie de la Garza
There are many ways to celebrate everyone’s favorite Volksfest – most involving beer – but try the German composers, including Mendelssohn and Beethoven, featured in the Houston Choral Society’s Oktoberfest concert. The program that kicks off their 2017-2018 season includes the skillful blend of Catholic and Lutheran religious styles that defines Hans Leo Hassler in his Cantate Domino; Friedrich-Wilhelm Möller’s The Happy Wanderer, a folk song written after World War II; and the highlight of the concert, Johannes Brahms’s Liebeslieder Walzer, Op. 52. Literally translating to “love song waltzes,” the 18 songs feature lyrics from Brahms’s favorite poet, philosopher Georg Friedrich Daumer. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m., but come early for a pre-show presentation at 7 p.m. and stay after for a reception. 7:30 p.m. Saturday. The Foundry United Methodist Church, 8350 Jones. For information, call 832-478-6986 or visit houstonchoral.org. $10 to $25. — Natalie de la Garza
October 8
From Hollywood icons to bona fide royalty and more than one First Lady (Jacqueline Kennedy, Laura Bush), Dominican fashion designer Oscar de la Renta had women clamoring for the privilege of wearing his clothes. The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is showcasing his life and work through almost 70 ensembles in “The Glamour and Romance of Oscar de la Renta” and there’s a local connection. “There are works from our own collection as well as loans from local Houstonians,” says Cindi Strauss, Sara and Bill Morgan Curator of Decorative Arts, Craft and Design, who collaborated with former editor-at-large for Vogue magazine André Leon Talley, and others, in curating the show. This jewel of an exhibit sparkles with antique furniture, paintings and clips of celebrities wearing his clothes. 12:15 to 7 p.m. Sunday. Continuing 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 12:15 to 7 p.m. Sundays. October 8 through January 28. 1001 Bissonnet. For information, call 713-639-7300 or visit mfah.org. Free to $25. – Susie Tommaney
Alyssa Morris is a composer with a wicked sense of humor. She mixed in all sorts of tricks and twists for her world premiering commission Nik-NAK, sort of a rub-your-belly-while-patting-your-head challenge. “It turned out to be a complicated piece,” says Alecia Lawyer, ROCO’s founder, artistic director and principal oboe. “Each of us has to play another instrument. I have to hit a foot pedal with a wooden block, a little coordination issue. We have bottles we have to blow for certain sounds; triangles.” The program for ROCO Unchambered: Nik-NAK includes a dozen works by female composers, not all of whom will be familiar to modern audiences. “Back in the day it was hard to be published as a man, but much more so as a woman. Only the good ones got through.” 5 p.m. Sunday. The MATCH, 3400 Main. For information, call 713-665-2700 or visit rocohouston.org. $15 to $25. – Susie Tommaney
When the FBI showed up at Tyler Graham’s door in 2010, the newly appointed manager of his grandfather’s million-dollar horse breeding business was shocked to learn that he was inadvertently working for Mexico’s Los Zetas crime syndicate, who were laundering money by buying, breeding, training and racing horses. In Bloodlines: The True Story of a Drug Cartel, The FBI, And The Battle for a Horse-Racing Dynasty, Texas Observer investigative reporter Melissa del Bosque expands on her 2014 article with three years of research and in-depth interviews to tell the story through the eyes of the two FBI agents – one of whom was a rookie – on the case. Del Bosque’s book has garnered a lot of attention, including from movie star Channing Tatum, who’s signed on to produce and star in a movie based on it. 5 p.m. Sunday. Brazos Bookstore, 2421 Bissonnet. For information, call 713-523-0701 or visit brazosbookstore.com. Free. — Natalie de la Garza
This article appears in Sep 28 – Oct 4, 2017.
