Sneak peek at fall season

UH Arts Open House gets school year off to a rousing start

UH Jazz Quartet played a number of sets during the open house the FIne ArtsQuadrangle
Photo by William James Gerlich
A demonstration of Chuck Ivy's video/electronic project kept people entertainedin between tours and performances in the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for theArts.
Photo by William James Gerlich
Glass Mountain's fiction editor Bret Forsberg read his latest short story to acrowd outside the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts
Photo by William James Gerlich
Tour guides let groups into the Wortham Theatre for a behind the scenes look atthe stage.
Photo by William James Gerlich

A festive, tailgate-like party atmosphere filled the University of Houston's Fine Arts Quadrangle Tuesday afternoon at the third annual Arts Open House, which proved that the Cougar campus is alive with fresh, innovative artists with a bright future.

Clusters of quartets and experts in the arts represented their respective schools, enlightening students, alumni and Houstonians alike about what’s to come in the way of arts during the school year. Although the many of those in attendance were students who seemed interested in free refreshments, the open house, presented by the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts, proved to be an entertaining ensemble of artists, musicians and writers.

“Every [building] is within walking distance, so people can come to the art museum, then see a show at the theatre all in the same evening. There aren’t many parts of Houston like that.”

Mitchell Center director Karen Farber said the event was intended to resonate a message of unity within the Fine Arts departments, and the city as well.

“We are trying to enliven this part of campus and make it a regular destination for students, alumni and the public, so they can get more familiar with where the buildings are and how to get here,” Farber said. “Every [building] is within walking distance, so people can come to the art museum, then see a show at the theatre all in the same evening. There aren’t many parts of Houston like that.”

A demonstration by second-year Master of Fine Arts student Chuck Ivy properly summed up the event. Ivy, a quintessential interdisciplinary artist, showcased a marriage of music, movement and graphic design in his three-dimensional electronic demonstration entitled Infrared Musical Activity. He developed his theremin-inspired musical video/electronic project by manipulating a Kinect video camera to play like a piano upon movement in front of a 3-D TV. Ivy plans to enter his project in the Supercomputing Conference this November in Seattle for competition.

As the UH Jazz Quartet, Flute Quartet and Men’s Choral Ensemble performed around the Quadrangle, student guides offered tours of the university’s public art, Opera House and Wortham Theatre.

Though he’s not an art authority, UH engineering and technology student Jason Levins said that he attended because he is interested in the robust art culture at the university.

“I’m interested in art because I think there’s something magical about it, although I don’t always understand it,” he said.

With the help of knowledgeable student tour guides and artists explaining their plans for the upcoming year, Levins and others on the tour were able to get a much better understanding of what UH has to offer — and the story behind the art.

unspecified series568664000

Fun times in the city

Houston lets loose as one of America's 10 most fun cities in 2024

RodeoHouston.com

undefined

Houston is showing off its fun-loving side in WalletHub's new ranking of the top 10 most fun cities in America in 2024.

The annual report ranked H-Town No. 9 this year, in a 10-place hike from its 2023 ranking of No. 19.

WalletHub's experts compared 182 U.S. cities across 65 metrics to determine the level of "fun" for each city. The metrics were split among three main categories: entertainment and recreation, nightlife and parties, and cost.

According to the study's findings, Houston performed the best in the overall nightlife and parties category (No. 15). The city earned special recognition for having the No. 1 most dance clubs per capita in a three-way tie with Las Vegas (No. 1 overall) and San Francisco (No. 7 overall).

In the category for entertainment and recreation, Houston ranked No. 23 with the fifth highest number of park playgrounds per capita. Consider The Commons at Hermann Park, which has one of the best free playgrounds in the city. NRG Stadium, the home of the Houston Texans, is also one of the most affordable tailgating destinations in America.

Houston performed the worst in the overall cost category, but it technically only ranked No. 25 out of all 182 cities, which demonstrates just how affordable Houston is in comparison to the rest of the country.

Potential Newstonians should do their research before deciding to move here, rather than basing their decision on short trips and vacations. But we won't blame them for wanting to live in one of the best cities in the world.

"The top cities offer affordable options for year-round fun for their residents, which is good for residents’ wallets and their mental health," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo in the report.

Austin (No. 6) was the only other Texas city to earn a spot in the top 10 most fun U.S. cities list, moving up one spot from its rank as No. 7 in 2023. Other fun-filled Texas cities that made it in the top 100 are San Antonio (No. 25), Dallas (No. 31), El Paso (No. 53), Fort Worth (No. 55), Plano (No. 78), Arlington (No. 79), and Corpus Christi (No. 99).

The top 10 most fun U.S. cities are:

No. 1 – Las Vegas, Nevada
No. 2 – Orlando, Florida
No. 3 – Miami, Florida
No. 4 – Atlanta, Georgia
No. 5 – New Orleans, Louisiana
No. 6 – Austin, Texas
No. 7 – San Francisco, California
No. 8 – Chicago, Illinois
No. 9 – Houston, Texas
No. 10 – New York City, New York

Cities were evaluated based on the number of attractions per capita, nightlife activities per capita, the average prices for eating at a restaurant or buying a movie ticket, and more. Data was sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau, The Trust for Public Land, Council for Community and Economic Research, among others.

dance clubs fun cities houston houston texans nightlife parties recreation wallethub

Sneak peek at fall season

UH Arts Open House gets school year off to a rousing start

Houston’s 13 most festive holiday bars serve lots of Christmas cheer

13 festive light displays illuminating Houston this holiday season

Ben Stiller delivers lighthearted fun in new Hulu movie Nutcrackers

Fun times in the city

Houston lets loose as one of America's 10 most fun cities in 2024

Sneak peek at fall season

UH Arts Open House gets school year off to a rousing start

Houston’s 13 most festive holiday bars serve lots of Christmas cheer

13 festive light displays illuminating Houston this holiday season

Ben Stiller delivers lighthearted fun in new Hulu movie Nutcrackers

Fun times in the city

Houston lets loose as one of America's 10 most fun cities in 2024

CultureMap Emails Are AwesomeGet Houston intel delivered daily.

We will not share or sell your email address.

CultureMap Emails Are Awesome
Get Houston intel delivered daily.