saturday
march 9
Mega Mess-A-Mania Live Tour How many family events ask everyone to dress "head to toe, in orange or green clothing" and to "wear a green or orange frizzy wig"? I mean, does your family even know where to get green or orange frizzy wigs? (Hint: Southern Importers.) Mega Mess-A-Maniacs are also expected to bring a flashlight and a cleverly designed "pick me" sign. Those lucky enough to be chosen will be Gaked and slimed by Nickelodeon's official Gakmeisters and Slimeologists. Happy Happy Joy Joy! Two shows, noon and 3:30 p.m. The Summit, 10 Greenway Plaza, 629-3700. $11.50 and $15.50. Also, a limited number of VIP seats are available, though what VIP means at a Mega Mess-A-Mania show is anyone's guess.
The Johnsonville Big Taste Grill My how things change. Not too long ago it would have seemed unthinkable that the world's largest touring barbecue grill wouldn't be from Texas, and yet here comes a grill the size of a truck, and it's from Wisconsin! Yes, the world's largest touring grill is from Sheboygan, and it cooks bratwurst. It has, the Johnsonville people boast, "the ability to cook more than 750 brats at a time, or approximately 2,500 an hour." Bratwurst! Pale bratwurst is the meat of choice on such a grill? In any case, you can see it, and the 12 grillmasters who man the flames, at a "brat fry" today, 3-8 p.m. Albertson's, 525 South Fry Road. Free.
Orange Show opens Spring is here, and that can only mean one thing -- seniors singing and dancing at the seasonal opening of the Orange Show. The folk art tribute to the orange and the artist in everyone begins the 1996 season with live entertainment. The Skylarks, a Texas trio, will perform "A Salute to Irving Berlin." The ladies' showcase features singing, dancing and costume changes. Other senior citizens will strut their stuff on the Orange Show stage, video from a senior citizen performing troupe in Kalamazoo, Michigan, will be shown and, finally, the young Men of Houston Morris Dancers will perform. 3-9 p.m. The Orange Show, 2401 Munger, 926-6368, orangeinsync.net. $5; $1, seniors.
sunday
march 10
15th Annual K-9 Fun Run Often, dogs are left at home while their owners go out and run -- can you imagine anything worse? Running is a dog's idea of a good time. This unhappy situation is corrected at the Houston Humane Society's K-9 Fun Run. The run comprises a doggone great one-mile run, a one-mile non-competitive dog jog, a one-mile walk and a post-race party with a doggy costume contest and the crowning of the 1996 HHS spokesdog. All run events are broken down into size (dog-size) categories. Registration begins at 6, with the first race off and running at 8 a.m. In Sam Houston Park downtown. Vets will check all dogs to make sure they're fit to run; no puppies under six months or female dogs in heat will be allowed to compete. To register, or for more information, call 433-6421. $20; free, wheelchair entries.
King Lear Over the centuries, Shakespeare has shown as much as anyone that great literature knows no cultural bounds. His works have been performed and reworked by almost every national group across our globe, and most of the time the results have been outstanding. (Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa loved Shakespeare, and his greatest film, Ran, is a version of King Lear, mixed with a little Macbeth.) Now, the Whirlwind Art Group comes to show us Shakespeare in Chinese. The costumes are divine, so if you know the story at all (and if you don't, shame on you) you should be able to enjoy the production. 2 p.m. University of Houston, Cullen Performance Hall (entrance no. 1 off Calhoun), 870-1573. $10.
monday
march 11
Okavango: Africa's Last Eden This is not a Foto Fest show, but confusion is inevitable. All the galleries in town and a slew of other places are papered with high-quality photos, and now here's a whole floor of the Museum of Natural Science decked with 80 glossy prints. These photos were taken by Frans Lanting, 1991 BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year. Whether his subject is a flock of flamingos or a solitary chameleon, his pictures are breathtaking. And most of these were taken in Okavango, the only place left where African wildlife is unaltered by modern man. If these still photos aren't enough, Africa: the Serengeti is now playing in the IMAX theater. Okavango: Africa's Last Eden will be displayed on the second floor mezzanine through June 23. Houston Museum of Natural Science, 1 Hermann Circle Drive, 639-4600. $2; $1.50, kids under 12.
