ArrowFest -- alternately titled MulletFest -- is a daylong trip back to junior high dances and fist-pounding power ballads. In other words, the show should be good for a few laughs. The Fabulous Thunderbirds are on the bill, and that's funny in itself. Be careful not to chuckle too hard, though, unless you feel like getting your ass kicked. Just sit tight and wait for REO Speedwagon. The pure sight of singer Kevin Cronin may induce belly laughs, but keep your composure. This is a good time to check out the silly merchandise and protect your ears from "Can't Fight This Feeling." Make sure to find a good spot to watch Survivor perform "Eye of the Tiger." Behold the moment. Styx is probably next. Dennis DeYoung is missing, but so what? Respectfully rock out. It's still, more or less, Styx. Gear yourself up for the trick you're about to play on yourself: believing that Steve Augeri is actually Steve Perry of Journey. Now the joke's over. Close your eyes and imagine your first French kiss as "Faithfully" washes over the hill in an emotional wave of lost love and regret. Don't stop believin'. 2 p.m. Saturday, June 7. Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, 2005 Lake Robbins Drive, The Woodlands. For information, call 281-363-3300. $29.50 to $95. -- Troy Schulze
SAT 6/7
On the Range
A new dance festival takes root in Houston
Big dance, big movement, big range. Welcome to the first, and hopefully
annual, Big Range Dance Festival. Houston is gaining on New York City in the
modern dance realm, and this festival is another jeté in that direction.
This lineup includes several evening-length premieres, a rarity here in Houston.
Suchu Dance will perform Skylark, a humorous look at childhood that incorporates
twirling batons, and Davidson Dance/KineticArchitecture will take an adult look
down the rabbit hole with Alice Fell. "We're hoping to make it a big
festival, with classes and maybe other venues," says Karen Stokes of Travesty
Dance Group, which will perform Hometown. The show blends modern choreography
with a cappella singing and interprets several aspects of Houston, including
Range, Bayou, Weather, Ranch, City, Channel and Space. The only thing missing
is Traffic. Big Range Dance Festival runs from Saturday, June 7, through June
28. Barnevelder Movement/Arts Complex, 2201 Preston. For tickets and a full
schedule of performances, call 713-529-1819 or visit www.barnevelder.org.
$13 to $16. -- Marene Gustin
Aida for All
Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida is big, splashy and, unlike the opera
version, comprehensible. Sure, the tale of the enslaved Nubian princess who
finds true love is the same, but the score for this Disney epic has won several
Tonys and a Grammy (think Lion King success here). The show's national
tour stops in Houston this week, bringing all the mechanical magic and over-the-top
effects of the Broadway wonder to the one-year-old, $100 million Hobby Center
for the Performing Arts. Aida runs through June 15. 800 Bagby. For tickets
and a full schedule, call 713-629-3700 or visit www.ticketmaster.com.
$25 to $66. -- Marene Gustin
Freak Show
In local playwright Diana Howie's
bizarre one-man show, Judy's Friend & Marilyn's Boy, actor Jason Howard
transmogrifies himself from the illegitimate son of Marilyn Monroe into Judy
Garland's favorite Munchkin. The actor meets the freakish physical demands of
playing two characters at the same time when they meet in front of an abandoned,
soon-to-be-demolished Los Angeles bookstore. His shape-shifting will dazzle
you. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 4 p.m. Sundays, from Friday, June 6,
through June 21. Country Playhouse, 12802 Queensbury. For information, call
713-467-4497. $10. -- Troy Schulze