Today is International Information Overload Day, and in honor of the day we have done our best to curate the best of the week’s entertainment options for you. There’s always a lot going on in Houston, but you can bet that all the events that make this list won’t disappoint. Keep reading for more.
Giuseppe Verdi’s La traviata is “one of the most frequently performed operas in the world” and for good reason. The storyline, about a courtesan who gives in to love only to be asked to sacrifice that love – features “big themes” like “love, death, sex, sacrifice, regret” all set to “one of the most iconic, romantic and tragic scores of all time.” On Friday, October 21, at 7 p.m. Houston Grand Opera will open a revival of the show, a co-production with Lyric Opera of Chicago and Canadian Opera Company, featuring three HGO first-timers: baritone Andrei Kymach, tenor Matthew White, and soprano Angel Blue, who earned a Grammy in the Best Opera Recording category in 2021 for her role of Bess in Metropolitan Opera’s production Porgy and Bess, as the tragic heroine Violetta. In an interview with the Houston Press, Blue told us that she doesn’t mind the death scenes she’s done, in fact it’s one of her favorite things to do on stage. Performances continue through November 4 at the Wortham Theater Center at 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 23, and Sunday, November 6; and at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, October 29, Tuesday, November 1, and Friday, November 4. Tickets can be purchased here for $26 to $305.
Bruce Graham’s Coyote on a Fence can be traced back to 1997, and an article in The Philadelphia Inquirer about a death row inmate in Huntsville who wrote surprisingly positive obituaries for his fellow inmates. Inspired by the man, James Beathard, Graham created a character: John, a well-educated but aloof writer, guilty of killing a drug dealer, who gets a new neighbor from the Aryan Nation. On Friday, October 21, at 8 p.m. Dirt Dogs Theatre Co. will open the “provocative play,” which explores themes of “punishment, justice, morality, race and the greater good” that are sure to “get audiences thinking and conversations started.” Performances are scheduled for Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 2 p.m., and Thursdays and Monday, October 31, at 7:30 p.m. through November 5 at The MATCH. Tickets can be purchased here for $30. Note that Sundays and Mondays are pay-what-you-can, also with a suggested price of $30.
The Korean Festival Houston returns to Discovery Green on Saturday, October 22, from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for a full-day celebration of the best of Korean culture. The free festival, presented by the Korean American Society of Houston (KASH), features everything from traditional performances and games, plenty of food, a kimchi-eating contest, and – of course – K-pop. The mini cultural experiences will culminate in a sunset performance from K-pop acts Triger and Asome.D. The Houston Press recently spoke with KASH president Janet Hong and marketing director Kimmy Gaskins and they gave us lots of advice on how to approach the busy festival. You can find the story here. Also, if you can’t get enough of K-pop idols Triger and Asome.D, KASH will host a fan meet with the artists at 2 p.m. on Sunday, October 23, at Tom N Toms Coffee Galleria. Tickets can be purchased for the intimate KFest Houston: Triger & Asome.D Fan Meet here for $139.
Africa may be the most diverse continent in the world, and it’s huge. With 54 countries, home to one-third of the world’s languages and more than one billion people, the continent “is bigger than China, India, the contiguous U.S. and most of Europe—combined.” Needless to say, that leaves a lot to explore on Saturday, October 22, when the Nigerian-American Multicultural Council (NAMC) hosts its 9th Annual Houston AfriFEST from noon to 7 p.m. at Houston Baptist University. Experience Africa through food, music and live entertainment, traditional and contemporary African dance, exhibitions, and plenty of vendors selling art and other wares. Families should also swing by the Kids’ Zone, where they can enjoy African storytelling, face-painting, arts and crafts, and the always popular African safari. Claim your tickets here. Adult tickets are $5 and children, students, seniors and veterans get in free.
Sweden is well known for its neutrality, and in the ‘60s and ‘70s, Swedish filmmaker Goran Olsson attempted to bring, if not that neutrality, a desire to see – and tell – the real story of what was happening in the United States. The resulting footage, combined “into one coherent vision,” became the 2011 documentary The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975, a film that is both “a mashup history of the Black Power movement as seen through the eyes of Swedish news and documentary filmmakers,” and an “impressionistic visual record” of the time. It also features icons of the era including Stokely Carmichael, Huey P. Newton, Angela Davis, and Eldridge Cleaver, as well as everyday residents of cities like Harlem and Oakland. Together, these voices restore “a complex human dimension to the racial history of the era.” The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 also screens on Saturday, October 22, and Thursday, October 27, at 2 p.m. Tickets can be purchased for $7 to $9.
Great dance and collaboration can be found this weekend at Asia Society Texas Center when chuthis. and Houston Contemporary Dance Company (HCDC) present Liminal Traces on Saturday, October 22, at 7 p.m. and Sunday, October 23, at 3 p.m. Both performances will feature three works from chuthis. Artistic Director and Choreographer Peter Chu, including “Tracing Rhythms,” a section of a larger project called Rhythmic Identity that will be performed by both HCDC and chuthis.; “4yous,” a quartet which will be danced by HCDC; and “(in)formed,” which will be performed by chuthis. Chu recently explained the program’s title to The Dance Dish, saying, “‘Liminal’ for me personally, with its double entendre, was the best way to explain what the work is about,” adding that “‘Trace’ is tracing the history of this person physically and culturally.” Tickets can be purchased here for $22.75 (member price) to $35 (non-member price).
On Saturday, October 22, at 7:30 p.m. Rec Room will open the Houston premiere of Put Your House in Order, and aside from the “true-blue, old-school horror setup,” the less you know, the better. At least so says playwright Ike Holter. What Holter has said of Put Your House in Order is, “Without giving away too much away — because I know we’re living in a crazy spoiler culture — I think it’s best just to know that it’s about two people who are in their late 20s or early 30s” on “maybe their third date, maybe their fifth date” who are “tested when they’re thrown into this circumstance that is instantly life-altering.” Everything else, you’ll need to find out when you step into Rec Room for one of the shows. Performances continue Wednesdays through Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. through November 12. You can purchase tickets here for $21 to $52.
“There’s no such thing as an overnight success. Brantley Foster took two weeks,” says the tagline for the 1987 Michael J. Fox-vehicle The Secret of My Success. Though the film, about a young Kansan who finds that climbing the corporate ladder in New York City doesn’t quite go according to plan, isn’t exactly remembered as one of the best films of the ‘80s, it has inspired a fresh new musical which will open at Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS) on Tuesday, October 25, at 7:30 p.m. Sally Wilfert, who stars in the production, recently told the Houston Press that the musical is a “super funny” and “wildly renovated” take on the 1987 film, and that she thinks “everyone can see themselves somewhere on the stage in regards to what success means.” Performances will continue at 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Thursdays and Sundays, 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, and 2 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through November 6 at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets can be purchased here for $40 to $135.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2022.
