• Home
  • popular
  • EVENTS
  • submit-new-event
  • CHARITY GUIDE
  • Children
  • Education
  • Health
  • Veterans
  • Social Services
  • Arts + Culture
  • Animals
  • LGBTQ
  • New Charity
  • TRENDING NEWS
  • News
  • City Life
  • Entertainment
  • Sports
  • Home + Design
  • Travel
  • Real Estate
  • Restaurants + Bars
  • Arts
  • Society
  • Innovation
  • Fashion + Beauty
  • subscribe
  • about
  • series
  • Embracing Your Inner Cowboy
  • Green Living
  • Summer Fun
  • Real Estate Confidential
  • RX In the City
  • State of the Arts
  • Fall For Fashion
  • Cai's Odyssey
  • Comforts of Home
  • Good Eats
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2010
  • Holiday Gift Guide 2
  • Good Eats 2
  • HMNS Pirates
  • The Future of Houston
  • We Heart Hou 2
  • Music Inspires
  • True Grit
  • Hoops City
  • Green Living 2011
  • Cruizin for a Cure
  • Summer Fun 2011
  • Just Beat It
  • Real Estate 2011
  • Shelby on the Seine
  • Rx in the City 2011
  • Entrepreneur Video Series
  • Going Wild Zoo
  • State of the Arts 2011
  • Fall for Fashion 2011
  • Elaine Turner 2011
  • Comforts of Home 2011
  • King Tut
  • Chevy Girls
  • Good Eats 2011
  • Ready to Jingle
  • Houston at 175
  • The Love Month
  • Clifford on The Catwalk Htx
  • Let's Go Rodeo 2012
  • King's Harbor
  • FotoFest 2012
  • City Centre
  • Hidden Houston
  • Green Living 2012
  • Summer Fun 2012
  • Bookmark
  • 1987: The year that changed Houston
  • Best of Everything 2012
  • Real Estate 2012
  • Rx in the City 2012
  • Lost Pines Road Trip Houston
  • London Dreams
  • State of the Arts 2012
  • HTX Fall For Fashion 2012
  • HTX Good Eats 2012
  • HTX Contemporary Arts 2012
  • HCC 2012
  • Dine to Donate
  • Tasting Room
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2012
  • Charming Charlie
  • Asia Society
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2012
  • HTX Mistletoe on the go
  • HTX Sun and Ski
  • HTX Cars in Lifestyle
  • HTX New Beginnings
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013
  • Zadok Sparkle into Spring
  • HTX Let's Go Rodeo 2013
  • HCC Passion for Fashion
  • BCAF 2013
  • HTX Best of 2013
  • HTX City Centre 2013
  • HTX Real Estate 2013
  • HTX France 2013
  • Driving in Style
  • HTX Island Time
  • HTX Super Season 2013
  • HTX Music Scene 2013
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2013 2
  • HTX Baker Institute
  • HTX Comforts of Home 2013
  • Mothers Day Gift Guide 2021 Houston
  • Staying Ahead of the Game
  • Wrangler Houston
  • First-time Homebuyers Guide Houston 2021
  • Visit Frisco Houston
  • promoted
  • eventdetail
  • Greystar Novel River Oaks
  • Thirdhome Go Houston
  • Dogfish Head Houston
  • LovBe Houston
  • Claire St Amant podcast Houston
  • The Listing Firm Houston
  • South Padre Houston
  • NextGen Real Estate Houston
  • Pioneer Houston
  • Collaborative for Children
  • Decorum
  • Bold Rock Cider
  • Nasher Houston
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2021
  • CityNorth
  • Urban Office
  • Villa Cotton
  • Luck Springs Houston
  • EightyTwo
  • Rectanglo.com
  • Silver Eagle Karbach
  • Mirador Group
  • Nirmanz
  • Bandera Houston
  • Milan Laser
  • Lafayette Travel
  • Highland Park Village Houston
  • Proximo Spirits
  • Douglas Elliman Harris Benson
  • Original ChopShop
  • Bordeaux Houston
  • Strike Marketing
  • Rice Village Gift Guide 2021
  • Downtown District
  • Broadstone Memorial Park
  • Gift Guide
  • Music Lane
  • Blue Circle Foods
  • Houston Tastemaker Awards 2022
  • True Rest
  • Lone Star Sports
  • Silver Eagle Hard Soda
  • Modelo recipes
  • Modelo Fighting Spirit
  • Athletic Brewing
  • Rodeo Houston
  • Silver Eagle Bud Light Next
  • Waco CVB
  • EnerGenie
  • HLSR Wine Committee
  • All Hands
  • El Paso
  • Avenida Houston
  • Visit Lubbock Houston
  • JW Marriott San Antonio
  • Silver Eagle Tupps
  • Space Center Houston
  • Central Market Houston
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Travel Texas Houston
  • Alliantgroup
  • Golf Live
  • DC Partners
  • Under the Influencer
  • Blossom Hotel
  • San Marcos Houston
  • Photo Essay: Holiday Gift Guide 2009
  • We Heart Hou
  • Walker House
  • HTX Good Eats 2013
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2013
  • HTX Culture Motive
  • HTX Auto Awards
  • HTX Ski Magic
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2014
  • HTX Texas Traveler
  • HTX Cifford on the Catwalk 2014
  • HTX United Way 2014
  • HTX Up to Speed
  • HTX Rodeo 2014
  • HTX City Centre 2014
  • HTX Dos Equis
  • HTX Tastemakers 2014
  • HTX Reliant
  • HTX Houston Symphony
  • HTX Trailblazers
  • HTX_RealEstateConfidential_2014
  • HTX_IW_Marks_FashionSeries
  • HTX_Green_Street
  • Dating 101
  • HTX_Clifford_on_the_Catwalk_2014
  • FIVE CultureMap 5th Birthday Bash
  • HTX Clifford on the Catwalk 2014 TEST
  • HTX Texans
  • Bergner and Johnson
  • HTX Good Eats 2014
  • United Way 2014-15_Single Promoted Articles
  • Holiday Pop Up Shop Houston
  • Where to Eat Houston
  • Copious Row Single Promoted Articles
  • HTX Ready to Jingle 2014
  • htx woodford reserve manhattans
  • Zadok Swiss Watches
  • HTX Wonderful Weddings 2015
  • HTX Charity Challenge 2015
  • United Way Helpline Promoted Article
  • Boulevard Realty
  • Fusion Academy Promoted Article
  • Clifford on the Catwalk Fall 2015
  • United Way Book Power Promoted Article
  • Jameson HTX
  • Primavera 2015
  • Promenade Place
  • Hotel Galvez
  • Tremont House
  • HTX Tastemakers 2015
  • HTX Digital Graffiti/Alys Beach
  • MD Anderson Breast Cancer Promoted Article
  • HTX RealEstateConfidential 2015
  • HTX Vargos on the Lake
  • Omni Hotel HTX
  • Undies for Everyone
  • Reliant Bright Ideas Houston
  • 2015 Houston Stylemaker
  • HTX Renewable You
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • Urban Flats Builder
  • HTX New York Fashion Week spring 2016
  • Kyrie Massage
  • Red Bull Flying Bach
  • Hotze Health and Wellness
  • ReadFest 2015
  • Alzheimer's Promoted Article
  • Formula 1 Giveaway
  • Professional Skin Treatments by NuMe Express

    Song In Summer

    Houston theaters are whistling a happy tune this summer: 7 don't-miss musicals

    Tarra Gaines
    Jun 8, 2015 | 10:08 am

    Do you hear that Houston — a lofting melody floating on the summer breeze? Well, get used to it because the whole city is about to break out into catchy tunes. You can thank this seasonal shower of songs to H-Town’s theater community, as they’ve all gone musical crazy this year.

    Yes, the usual suspects like Broadway at the Hobby Center, Theatre Under the Stars and new kid on the block, Bayou City Theatrics, have summer offerings, but it seems many of our regional drama theaters have also caught the musical summer flu. Some — looking at you Stages — even have two musicals dueling (dueting?).

    In fact, you can pretty much pick a musical genre or era and there’s a show for you. But with so much out there — over 10 shows at my last count, from outdoor revivals to world premiere cabaret — it’s hard to choose. So let’s take a trip across town and through musical history and find that perfect show to cool your summer time blues, with great stories set to rock, pop, country, and yes, even the blues.

    Trav’lin the 1930s Harlem Musical at Ensemble Theatre

    Time travel back to the Harlem Renaissance with a jazzy show celebrating the work of songwriter and pianist J. C. Johnson. While his name recognition might have faded in some circles, the man was quite the influence on jazz and blues and collaborated with icons like Bessie Smith and Fats Waller. Each of the show’s characters are based on or inspired by the stories Johnson told about his own life in Harlem.

    Runs June 24-July 26.

    George Gershwin Alone at the Alley Theatre

    If you’re not ready to leave 1930s New York just yet, check out this one-man show about one of America’s greatest composers, George Gershwin. Playwright Hershey Felder, who first publicly performed Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” when he was 16, created and stars in, well alone, this tribute and examination of George Gershwin’s life and music. Felder just might be persuaded into a sing-along encore, so brush up on your “Summertime” before the show and get ready to join in on the fun.

    Runs now until June 21st.

    Motown the Musical at the Hobby Center

    Let’s groove through several decades and states to join music legend Berry Gordy in Detroit where he’s about to discover the likes of Diana Ross, Michael Jackson, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder. They're all set to make an appearance in this multiple-Tony-nominated story, based on Gordy’s autobiography. The show features over 40 Motown hits, so there’s sure to be your favorite in here somewhere.

    Runs July 21-26.

    Mack and Mabel/Honky Tonk Angels at Stages

    Stages is playing overachiever when it comes to summer musicals. Mack and Mabel, on now, depicts the sometimes funny sometimes tragic love story of real life silent film makers Mack Sennett and Mabel Normand. Director Kenn McLaughlin integrates some 21st century innovative video work into this revival of the 1970s Broadway musical about the dawn of Hollywood.

    When Mack and Mabel closes, the three Honky Tonk Angels on a journey to follow their dreams for Nashville stardom take the mike for a this jukebox country musical. Sure it looks to be light on plot, but with it stuffed full of country classics like “Delta Dawn” and “Stand by Your Man” who’s going to care?

    Mack and Mabel runs now until June 28; Honky Tonk Angels runs July 15-Aug. 24.

    First Date at The Hobby Center

    We arrive back in the 21st century and 21st-century relationship problems, where all the single 20 to 30-somethings are still looking for “The One.” The Broadway hit, set up as a date in real time between dating veteran Casey and blind-date-newbie Aaron, lets the whole restaurant butt in to give their own opinion as to whether this date is from heaven or hell. First Date is the final show of Theatre Under the Stars wild child, TUTS Underground’s 2014-2015 eclectic season, and features many of our favorite hometown actors in the cast.

    Runs June 11-21.

    The University of Tamarie at Catastrophic Theatre

    If you’re looking for a more edgy comic show, enroll in this Houston tradition. In the 18th installment of Tamarie Cooper’s annual musical extravaganza, she puts education and more specifically the Texas State Board of Education, John Hughes movies, standardized tests, and college life on her satire curriculum. When the Catastrophic Theatre gang puts that all into a theatrical blender and presses Tamarieize, it’s bound to be some crazy August fun.

    Runs July 17-Aug. 29.

    Rhapsodize with George in George Gershwin Alone.

    Alley Theatre presents George Gershwin Alone
      
    Photo by Mark Garvin
    Rhapsodize with George in George Gershwin Alone.
    unspecified
    news/arts

    most read posts

    Casual River Oaks restaurant will shutter after 10 years

    Houston fave Frank Billingsley's house hits the market for $1.5 million

    Houston company ranks No. 13 worldwide on new Forbes Global 2000 list

    Salutations, Soon Youn

    Houston Ballet principal dancer announces retirement after 13 years

    Holly Beretto
    Jun 20, 2025 | 10:00 am
    ​Houston Ballet Principal Soo Youn Cho
    Photo by Amitava Sarkar (2016). Courtesy of Houston Ballet.
    Houston Ballet Principal Soo Youn Cho and in Theme and Variations.

    Houston Ballet principal dancer Soon Youn Cho has announced her retirement, after 13 years with the company.

    For more than a decade, she has captivated audiences with her elegance, emotional authenticity, and technical brilliance. Audiences have seen her in roles such as Aurora in The Sleeping Beauty, Kitri in Don Quixote, Odette/Odile in Swan Lake, the Sugar Plum Fairy in The Nutcracker, and Suzuki in Madame Butterfly, among many others.

    Cho’s retirement follows a period of recovery from spinal surgery prompted by chronic back issues that intensified during and after her pregnancy.

    "This decision was not made lightly, but with a great deal of reflection and acceptance over the past year," said Cho. “Since I first began ballet at the age of four, it has been the greatest love of my life. Even through pain and injury, I felt joy and purpose in every moment. I gave my best to every step along the way, and I now leave the stage with a peaceful heart and deep gratitude.”

    Cho further said that even before becoming pregnant, she had been managing chronic back issues throughout her career.

    “With dedication, careful conditioning, and the unwavering support of those around me, I was able to continue dancing for many years,” she said. “Despite my best efforts to recover, I’ve come to the difficult realization that I won’t be able to return to dancing at the level I once did. With a heavy but full heart, I’ve decided to retire from the stage.”

    Born in Korea and trained there, as well as in Canada and Germany, Cho danced with Opera Leipzig Ballet in Leipzig, Germany and the Tulsa Ballet in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where she was promoted to principal in 2010. She joined the Houston Ballet in 2012 as a demi soloist. She quickly rose through the ranks, promoted to soloist in 2014, then first soloist in 2016. In 2018, she became the Houston Ballet’s first Korean principal.

    Upon achieving the designation, she said, “I feel like I have made an important mark in history, along with other great dancers, for my people in such a great company.”

    Cho’s roles onstage reflected her wide artistic range and commitment to storytelling through dance. Her Houston Ballet colleagues and audiences admire and praise the passion and sincerity she brought to every performance. One of those, Cho’s portrayal of Suzuki in Madame Butterfly, is especially close to her heart, not only for its emotional depth but for the lifelong friendship it sparked with fellow principal Yuriko Kajiya.

    “Becoming part of this Company and working alongside such extraordinary people has been one of the greatest blessings and privileges of my life. I close this chapter with a full heart and immense appreciation for the art, the audiences, and the people who made it all so meaningful.”

    Cho said that while she doesn’t yet know what will come next, she departs the company filled with gratitude.

    “Looking back, I feel nothing but gratitude,” she said. “Gratitude for the incredible colleagues and mentors I’ve shared the studio with. Gratitude for the audiences who supported us performance after performance. And gratitude for the art form itself — so demanding, so beautiful, and so deeply rewarding. I leave the stage with peace in my heart. Because I gave everything I had to this journey, I can move forward without regret.”

    \u200bHouston Ballet Principal Soo Youn Cho
      

    Photo by Amitava Sarkar (2016). Courtesy of Houston Ballet.

    Houston Ballet Principal Soo Youn Cho and in Theme and Variations.

    houston balletsoon youn choperforming-arts
    news/arts
    CULTUREMAP EMAILS ARE AWESOME
    Get Houston intel delivered daily.
    Loading...