Remember Sonny and Cher’s “I Got You Babe”, how about Deniece William’s “Let’s Hear It for the Boy”, but what about Bush’s “Glycerine”? These lyrics that are like Texas grass-stickers in your mind — ones that you can’t quite quit when they grab hold, but that you love to sing when you hear the tune. Take the lyrical tour de Houston this weekend with a pit stop at a Footloose-based pool party for your ’80s, pop in at the Music Box Theater for your dive into the disco era of the 70’s and end it with the melancholic grunge from the ’90s with Bush. Stay tuned for the rest of this weekend’s Best Bets.
Cool Nights is back again, as the Houston Zoo welcomes people to the Coolest Backyard Bash. “We’re gearing it toward the young-adult audience,” says Marketing Manager Lauren St. Pierre. “It’s hot outside in the summer, but we want people to enjoy the cooler weather and fun activities to advance the experience here.” Partake in games fit for even the swankiest backyard parties, including giant Jenga, Connect Four and cornhole. Folks can also groove to a live band as well as purchase beer and snacks. Also, look forward to an up-close experience with the animals. Buy tickets online for a special discount, and make sure to arrive by “last entry” at 7:30 p.m. this Friday night.
5 p.m. to 8: 30 p.m. Friday. 6200 Hermann Park Drive. For information, call 713-533-6500 or visit houstonzoo.org/cool-nights. $10 to $18.
Everybody cut loose, because Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon ends at the SPLASH Pool at Hotel Derek, where Footloose is screening on the three-story movie wall. Float & Flick is one of the coolest ways to enjoy a movie: The ticket price includes gourmet popcorn and a drink, but almost everybody upgrades to the tasty bites and fruit cocktails from Revolve Kitchen + Bar’s summer menu. Don’t procrastinate for this one. If you’re itching to see a young John Lithgow blow his top over the ungodly sin of dance, then secure your spot by emailing ladyderek@destinationhotels.com. There’s still time to reserve your spot for Friday’s pool party, doors open at 7:30 p.m., and the film begins when the sun goes down.
8:15 p.m. Friday. 2525 west Loop South. For information, call 713-961-3000 or visit hotelderek.com. $20.
Between Guardians of the Galaxy’s hit soundtracks and all the nostalgic “remember when?” TV dramas set in times gone by, it seems people can’t get enough ’70s tunes nowadays. Houston audiences can get their fix in person with Music Box’s latest cabaret, Feelin’ Groovy! “This era of music really speaks to people,” says Rebekah Dahl, the powerhouse singer, producer and co-star of the production. “We’ve got everything from rock and roll like Steppenwolf and Janis Joplin to folk music: Arlo Guthrie, John Denver. A little bit of everything makes people happy.” Beyond her enthusiasm to watch co-stars Cay Taylor, Kristine Sullivan, Luke Wrobel and Brad Scarborough (Dahl’s husband) shine, Dahl admits to prizing her chance at a certain Bob Marley tune. “‘Redemption Song,’ to me, is his most beautiful song, and trying something like it just excites me to no end.” Get back to the age when disco reigned supreme and Cher was still with Sonny this Saturday at the Music Box.
7:30 p.m. July 1 to August 26. 2623 Colquitt. For information, call 281-513-1504 or visit musicboxtheater.com. $27 to $37.
Many fans moved on from Bush after the band’s sophomore album, Razorblade Suitcase, didn’t approach the critical or commercial heights of the band’s debut, Sixteen Stone. This makes sense and was fairly common in the ’90s. However, those who stuck with the band have no doubt experienced the ups (their first two records) and downs (the mess that was Golden State) that come with being a fan of Gavin Rossdale and crew. Bush is back on the road again in support of its latest, Black and White Rainbows, which was released in March. Rainbows finds Bush shifting its sound a bit into more of a U2-like, arena-rock type. If Rossdale can mix in the new with the old — yes, it’s a safe bet the band will play “Glycerine,” “Everything Zen” and the like — they’ll give fans one rousing performance this Saturday and show that there is life after radio superstardom.
8 p.m. Saturday. 520 Texas. For information, call 713-225-8551 or visit reventionmusiccenter.com. $25 to $140.
When was the last time you unexpectedly laughed out loud at the theater, screamed with fright or bonded with the other theater patrons? Now, have you ever experienced all these things at one performance? Safe to assume never or probably not all at once. But all that’s about to change thanks to a superbly unique show, The Man From Beyond, meticulously conceived by the newly formed Strange Bird Immersive company. Part séance, part escape-the-room challenge, The Man From Beyond brings an immersive theater (where audience and performer work together through the fourth wall in a collaborative-like style) experience to Houston that rivals the best of these types of shows in London, New York and Toronto. For each performance, four to eight audience members attend a séance hosted by medium Madame Daphne, who calls upon the ghost of Houdini in order to discover who was responsible for his demise. It’s then up to us to solve the clues that will set Harry free, fill in the story blanks we crave and allow us to escape the room that somehow we’ve become locked in during the process. The Man From Beyond isn’t just a show that shuffles us around for the sake of it, or throws in the locked-room notion and cheaps out on the dramatic bits. Head to The Silos this Saturday for the multi-sensory, immersive experience of your own.
8 p.m. Saturday. Continues indefinitely Thursday through Saturday. 1502 Sawyer, No. 213. For information, visit strangebirdimmersive.com. $30 to $40.
Sam Byrd, Jessica Goldman, Clint Hale, Vic Shuttee and Susie Tommaney contributed to this post.
This article appears in Jun 22-28, 2017.