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Unforgettable elephant art installation rumbles into Houston's Hermann Park

They say an elephant never forgets. And it’s very likely that those who see the upcoming Great Elephant Migrantion installation in Hermann Park won’t forget it. One hundred life-sized Indian elephant sculptures will be on view from April 1-30.

The majority of the herd will take up residence in Hermann Park’s newest destination, the Commons. Smaller herds will be located at the Houston Museum of Natural Science and the Texas Medical Center. The installation is open daily during park hours and is free to view.

Houstonians also get a chance to see the newest — and biggest — member of the herd. His name is Matt, a real life Kenyan elephant who stood 10-feet tall and weighed more than six tons. As one of Kenya’s largest tuskers, he was closely monitored by Save the Elephants. Matt was fitted with a GPS collar in 2002, revealing groundbreaking insights into elephant migration. Over his 52 years, Matt roamed farther than any other tracked elephant in Kenya, covering hundreds of kilometers. Matt died of natural causes in 2019, leaving behind a legacy that continues to inform conservation efforts.

The exhibit is part of Hermann Park Conservancy’s Art in the Park Initiative. This is the fourth U.S. stop for the installation, which was previously seen in Newport, Rhode Island, New York City, and Miami Beach. The Great Elephant Migration is a women-led conservation effort, reflecting the matriarchal structures that elephants uphold in the wild. CBS Sunday Morning profiled the exhibition last year.

Each elephant is one-of-a-kind. The pachyderms were created by The Real Elephant Collective, a community of 200 Indigenous artisans living within India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve in southern India. The herd is made from reclaimed Lantana camara, an invasive plant species that has entangled 300,000 square kilometers of India's forests and diminished food sources for all herbivores. The Great Elephant Migration is designed to spread a message of peaceful coexistence between humans and wildlife.

“The Great Elephant Migration is more than an art installation — it is a call to action and a place to experience joy,” said Cara Lambright, president and CEO of Hermann Park Conservancy. “By bringing this breathtaking global effort to Hermann Park, we are inviting our community to be part of a worldwide movement to protect ecosystems, eradicate invasive species, and inspire change. These are shared values that span continents.”

Parkgoers will see every elephant the artists live alongside, from female cows, male bulls (with and without tusks), and baby calves. They’ll also be part of a global awareness campaign. In addition to the pride and financial stability provided to the 200 members of theSoligas, Bettakurumbas, Kattunayakan, and Paniyas communities who created and coexist with the real wild elephants the herd is based on, the exhibit has raised more than half a million dollars.

While the installation is on display, Hermann Park Conservancy, in partnership with the Houston Parks and Recreation Department and Houston Museum of Natural Science, will present a series of engaging activities designed to help people learn more about these incredible creatures. The activities will be announced soon.

Following their stop in Houston, the elephants will continue their migration west, with stops in the Blackfeet Nation; Buffalo Pastures in Browning, Montana; Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and Los Angeles.

Elephant sculptures part of The Great Elephant Migration

Photo by Corey Favino, Courtesy Elephant Family USA and Newport Restoration Foundation

The Great Elephant Migration is coming to Hermann Park in April.

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Musical theater veteran joins prominent Houston company

Courtesy of Stages

Stages has named Valerie Rachelle as its new associate artist director.

A Houston theater company is adding an accomplished artist to its ranks. Stages announced that Valerie Rachelle will be the company’s new associate artistic director beginning in January 2026.

For more than a decade, Rachelle has been artistic director of the Oregon Cabaret Theatre in Ashland, Oregon, where she oversaw artistic vision and operations. That theater specializes in musical theater performances offered in a cabaret setting.

Rachelle comes to Houston with a career spanning nearly 30 years as a director and choreographer. She has extensive experience in developing new musicals and plays for regional theaters and opera companies across the United States, including the Tony Award-winning Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the Utah Shakespeare Festival, and Sierra Repertory Theatre. She was appointed to her position at Stages following a nationwide search.

“I’m beyond thankful for this opportunity to join this incredible company, and I’m excited to be a part of a creative entity that has a strong mission and vision as Stages,” Rachelle said in a statement.

In her role with Stages, she will support artistic director Derek Charles Livingston with season planning and casting; liaise with artists, press, and staff; and coordinate day-to-day operations for the artistic department. She will also assist with crafting educational materials, direct and choreograph productions, and serve as the primary liaison with theatrical unions.

“We are thrilled to welcome Valerie to Stages in this role,” said Livingston. “I have seen her work as a director and director choreographer — she's excellent. Those skills combined with her experience as a theatre artistic director and manager only further fortify Stages' commitment to artistic excellence and community engagement.”

Born and raised in Eugene, Oregon, Rachelle began her career as a dancer and apprentice ballerina with the Eugene Ballet Company before earning her BFA in acting from California Institute of the Arts. She received her MFA in Directing from the University of California, Irvine. She has held teaching and directing positions at numerous institutions, including the University of Southern California, Southern Oregon University, Pacific Conservatory of the Performing Arts, and others. She has also served as a mentor through Statera Arts, an organization dedicated to gender equity in the arts.

Rachelle teaches musical theater, auditioning, and singing at Southern Oregon University when she isn’t on the road as a freelance director and choreographer. She’s also a classically trained singer and toured the world with her parents and their illusionist show as a child.

“Joining the team that has a long-standing reputation of excellence in theater is an honor,” Rachelle added.

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