a star's tribute

World-renowned violinist strings together classical tribute in new Houston Symphony shows

Itzhak Perlman returns to Houston to pay tribute to Beethoven.

Photo by Lisa Marie Mazzucco

A classical music legend is making a triumphant return to Houston’s hallowed Jones Hall.

Globally renowned violinist Itzhak Perlman will return to Houston on Saturday, May 22 at 8 pm and Sunday, May 23 for live and livestreamed performances as part of a three-year partnership with the symphony.

Tickets are available now online.

Shows include All-Beethoven with Itzhak Perlman, featuring radiant Violin Romances, the Coriolan Overture, and Symphony No. 7, according to a press release.

The program is a season-long salute to Beethoven’s 250th birthday. Programming opens with the Grammy award-winning Perlman bringing his trademark work to two violin romances by Beethoven: Romance No. 1 and Romance No. 2.

Shows continue with Beethoven’s Coriolan Overture, inspired by Shakespeare’s five-act tragedy Coriolanus. Perlman closes out the commemorative program with Beethoven’s celebratory Symphony No. 7, one of the iconic composer's most popular works.

Here is the full list of shows, per the symphony, with Itzhak Perlman, conductor and violin:

Saturday, May 22, at 8 pm
“All Beethoven with Itzhak Perlman”

Sunday, May 23, at 2:30 pm (livestreamed)
Itzhak Perlman; conductor and violin:
Beethoven: Romance No. 1
Beethoven: Romance No. 2
Beethoven: Coriolan Overture
Beethoven: Symphony No. 7

“I’m so looking forward to coming to Houston to perform for the Houston audience with the wonderful Houston Symphony,” Perlman said in a statement. “What could be better than a concert of music by Beethoven. You will hear the Lyrical Beethoven in the two beautiful Romances for violin and orchestra. In Beethoven’s overture to Coriolan, his musical portrayal dealing with the tragic play of Coriolan and then the great Symphony No. 7. This monumental work exemplifies Beethoven’s sense of drama and his obsession with rhythmic tension.”

music symphony

taking center stage

Stage adaptation of iconic Black movie Jason's Lyric to debut in Houston

Courtesy of Jason's Lyric

Most of the movie's cast will appear in the play.

Next year, Houston writer/producer/director/promoter Je’Caryous Johnson will be bringing another beloved Black movie to the live stage.

Jason’s Lyric will join New Jack City and Set It Off in the lineup of ‘90s Black-movie favorites that Johnson has adapted for the stage. The 1994 made-in-Houston drama stars Allen Payne and a pre-Will Smith Jada Pinkett as young lovers trying to maintain a relationship as conflicts and obstacles keep getting in the way.

Jason’s Lyric Live will go on a nationwide, 22-city tour, premiering right here in H-Town on Thursday, February 13 — just in time for Valentine’s Day.

“Houston is my home, and bringing Jason’s Lyric Live to life here first is my way of paying homage to the city and its people who inspired this story,” Johnson said in a statement. “This is more than a play; it’s a love letter to the community.”

Payne will reprise his role as Jason, with actress/model Eva Marcille stepping in Pinkett’s role as Lyric. Naughty by Nature rapper Treach, who played Lyric’s criminal big brother Alonzo in the movie, will also return to the role for the stage production. Tyrin Turner (Menace II Society), K. Michelle (Love & Hip Hop), and Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (Welcome Back, Kotter) will round out the cast.

"Jason’s Lyric is one of the films that defined my career as an actor,” Payne said. “To bring it to life on stage for audiences who loved the movie — and a new generation experiencing it for the first time — is an incredible honor."

Marcille is also psyched for the show, taking on the role that Pinkett memorably brought to life. "Lyric is a character who embodies resilience and hope, and I’m honored to bring her story to life on stage,” Marcille said.

Tickets will go on sale this Friday, December 13, at 10 am. For a full list of dates and ticket information, visit the website.