Interestingly, today is National Barbershop Quartet Day. We don’t have any barbershop quartets on this week’s list of best bets, but we do have plenty of musical performances, from a Tony Award-winning musical about an American icon to Bollywood in the Bayou City, as well as films, dance, and theater shows. Keep reading for these and more events on our list of best bets.
For decades, Rob Reiner’s 1987 film The Princess Bride, “a high-spirited adventure that pits true love against inconceivable odds,” has been charming “legions of fans with its irreverent gags, eccentric ensemble, and dazzling swordplay.” On Thursday, April 11, at 7:30 p.m. Performing Arts Houston will welcome the actor who played heroic farm boy Westley, Cary Elwes, to Jones Hall for The Princess Bride: An Inconceivable Evening with Cary Elwes. Following a screening of the film, Elwes, who authored As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales From the Making of The Princess Bride, will join Houston Public Media's Ernie Manouse to give audiences a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film during a moderated discussion. A second screening is scheduled for Friday, April 12, at 7:30 p.m. and tickets to either are available here for $39 to $99.
The 1950s-style American sitcom meets William Shakespeare in Classical Theatre Company’s upcoming production of The Bard’s The Taming of the Shrew, which opens at The DeLuxe Theater on Friday, April 12, at 7:30 p.m. Director Dana Bowman has noted that the classic is “definitely a sexist play,” and their approach is to “look back at the 1950s and sort of see what parallels we can draw” while staging it as sitcom – like Father Knows Best or The Dick Van Dyke Show – so “it can still be fun.” The production, which will conclude the company’s season-long celebration of iconic women, will run through April 20 with performances scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday and April 15; 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday. Tickets can be purchased here for $10 to $30.
Art on wheels once again comes to the streets of Houston as The Orange Show Center For Visionary Art presents the 37th Annual Art Car Parade, led by Saint Arnold’s founder Brock Wagner and scheduled to start at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 13, on Allen Parkway between Bagby and Dallas. Orange Show Executive Director Tommy Ralph Pace recently told the Houston Press that he thinks the event “is more about celebrating the spirit of creativity that the city of Houston has,” adding that “it's such an incredible honor to be able to steward this celebration for the city.” If you can’t get your fill of art car celebrations, information about the events around the parade, such as the Art Car Ball on Friday, April 12, can be found here. The parade is free to attend.
There’s a new dance collective in town, and you can get your first look at the Skylar Campbell Dance Collective when they present their debut showcase, titled Rebirth, at 7 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, at the MATCH. Campbell, a principal dancer with Houston Ballet, curates the evening, which features works from Guillaume Cote, Kristina Paulin and Alexei Ratmansky, along with world premiere commissions from Julia Adam, Robert Binet, Connor Walsh and Jack Wolff. Completing the program will be the talents of dancers from Houston Ballet and National Ballet of Canada, as well as live music provided by Tonya Burton and Yvonne Chen of the Monarch Chamber Players. Tickets to the performance, which is expected to run about 60 minutes, can be purchased here for $45.
In 1979, tension between the fishing community of Seadrift, Texas, and an influx of Vietnamese immigrants led to the shooting of a local white man by a Vietnamese man, an incident that got the attention of the Ku Klux Klan and would later inspire the film Alamo Bay. On Tuesday, April 16, at 7 p.m. Asia Society Texas, in partnership with Humanities Texas, will present a screening of the documentary Seadrift followed by a talk and audience Q&A with Tim Tsai, the film’s director. Tsai has said that questions about Seadrift – like “Are the Vietnamese still there? Is it possible for a community to heal from past division and violence? If yes, how?” – “compelled” him “to find out more.” Admission is free, but registration is required here.
The Tony Award-winning musical about the woman born Cherilyn Sarkisian but known today simply as Cher will come to the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts on Tuesday, April 16, at 7:30 p.m. when Theatre Under the Stars opens the national touring production of The Cher Show. Cher is played by three actresses in the production, and one of those actresses, Morgan Scott, recently told the Houston Press that she thinks Cher’s “re-invention of herself is what makes her absolutely so incredible,” adding that the show – even for non-Cher fans – is “a really uplifting and empowering show to go to.” Performances will continue at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Sundays through April 28. Tickets can be purchased here for $40 to $139.
