weekend event planner

Here are the top 10 things to do in Houston this Valentine's Day weekend

Enjoy a Valentine's Day dinner at Liberty Kitchen Treehouse.

Photo courtesy of Treehouse Houston/Visit Houston Texas

Many Houstonians who have a special someone, will be pouring the wine, putting on some Marvin Gaye, and getting cozy at home with their aforementioned loved one this Valentine's Day Weekend. Or, if you're rounding up the ladies, check out or handy Galentine's Day guide.

Look for a virtual gala, art openings, a beer Olympics, and Valentine's Day fun. Whatever your plans, we wish you all the love. Here are your best bets for Valentine's Day weekend.

Thursday, February 11

American Heart Association presents Heart of Houston
This year, American Heart Association’s Houston chapter is pivoting from the annual Heart Ball to a digital experience, and calling it Heart of Houston. The heart-healthy organization will present a lively and festive virtual event supporting and celebrating its mission and their collective success in driving change, funding science and improving behaviors. Guests can dress up in ball gowns and tuxes or cozy up in their loungewear and enjoy this signature event from their own homes. Expect a stirring performance by classical music legend Yo-Yo Ma. 7 pm.

Main Street Theater presents The Book of Magdalene
Main Street Theater is going digital for its presentation of Caridad Svich's The Book of Magdalene, the first-ever showing of her new work. Staged and filmed at Main Street, this piece is a contemporary drama of sharp encounters, winding faith, tough love, and tenderness suffused with grace and magic. It's a story about finding the courage to move on when life feels as if it is stuck in place. It will be available to view online at any time through Sunday, February 21. 7 pm.

Friday, February 12

Asia Society Texas Center presents Virtual Lunar New Year
Asia Society celebrates the Year of the Ox with a virtual celebration ringing in the Lunar New Year. Participants can enjoy two weeks of free activities from home, learning about traditions through dance and food demonstrations, a Lion Dance performance, and read-along story times. Families can purchase an at-home activity kit that includes supplies for all the Lunar New Year crafts, plus a red envelope, stuffed ox, handkerchief, or fan for an interactive dance and various Asian snacks. 9 am.

The Heather McDonald Experience: Stand Up Comedy and Juicy Scoop at Improv Houston
Heather McDonald has certainly glowed up ever since her days as a recurring player on Chelsea Handler's late-night dishfest Chelsea Lately. (Some of us still remember her from her time on MTV's hip-hop skitcom The Lyricist Lounge Show.) These days, she not only juggles a career as a nationally touring stand-up, actress, and accomplished writer. She's also a devoted wife and mother — when the rest of her family isn’t driving her up the wall. 7:30 and 9:45 pm (7 and 9:30 pm Saturday).

Saturday, February 13

We Love Our Members Event at Lone Star Flight Museum
Lone Star Flight Museum will be showing love to its members this Valentine's Day Weekend with this event. WWII veteran and LSFM volunteer Bob will kick things off by talking about the Thunderbird and his WWII experience. Members will also be able to take a photo with the B-17 Thunderbird and take a look inside the Flying Fort. There will also be Valentine Make & Take for kids and families all day. 10:30 am.

M-K-T Lonely Hearts Fest
What better way to tell that special someone you love them than by buying them a bunch of stuff at an outdoor market?! This fest (presented by M-K-T Heights and Shop Local Market) will feature a vintage art and maker's market, live music by DJ Gonz⁠, food trucks (Planet Churro will be there!)⁠, live tarot card readings⁠, a pet adoption booth with Friends for Life, Love Yo Selfie photo opp⁠s⁠, Cupid dunk tank (weather permitting), and more. Noon.

Valentine’s Day Rooftop Wine Dinner at Liberty Kitchen Treehouse
Liberty Kitchen Treehouse is hosting a rooftop dinner for Valentine's Day weekend, featuring a four-course dinner paired with carefully selected wines. There will also be live music and raffle prizes from Kendra Scott Jewelry. There are three seatings available on both Saturday (where the vino will come from Long Shadows Wines) and Sunday (Chateau Ste. Michelle), Pricing is $200 per ticket plus tax and gratuity. 1, 5, and 8 pm.

Sunday, February 14

Revelry on Richmond Mardi Gras Party
Get your Fat Tuesday on with this socially distanced, Mardi Gras parking lot party to kick off crawfish season and celebrate Valentine’s Day. They will be offering their famous, in-house crawfish for an all-you-can-eat crawfish special. For 30 bucks, you can get crawfish until they run out. (If you want it by the pound, will be priced at $7.99.) Live music will be performed by the Zydeco Dots and plenty of beads will be given out. 1 pm.

Bisong Art Gallery presents Wayne Bell: 'W.A.T.E.R. | What Are The Expectations after Rebirth" opening reception
Get ready for some trippy stuff when Chicago-bred, Houston-based artist Wayne Bell premieres his latest work at Bisong Art Gallery. Bell calls his movement "Atmospherism" because it defines what can be made from time and space. His forms compel the viewer to recognize patterns within themselves. It lends perspective with the saturation in its color and light. The striations generated from the the brushstrokes create gradients of hues. Take an artful stroll before dinner. 4 pm.

The Indo-American Association-Houston presents “East Marries West"
The Indo-American Association-Houston will present a special Valentine's musical treat to begin its 2021 season. Expect a virtual concert with husband-wife duo and world-renowned sitar artist Pt. Shubhendra Rao and cello maestro Saskia Rao - De Haas. Anyone who becomes a patron will have dinner for two delivered to their door just before the concert starts. Ddinner and a show — what more do you want on this beautiful day? 7 pm.

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Movie Review

Star TV producer James L. Brooks stumbles with meandering movie Ella McCay

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios

Emma Mackey in Ella McCay.

The impact that writer/director/producer James L. Brooks has made on Hollywood cannot be understated. The 85-year-old created The Mary Tyler Moore Show, personally won three Oscars for Terms of Endearment, and was one of the driving forces behind The Simpsons, among many other credits. Now, 15 years after his last movie, he’s back in the directing chair with Ella McCay.

The similarly-named Emma Mackey plays Ella, a 34-year-old lieutenant governor of an unnamed state in 2008 who’s on the verge of becoming governor when Governor Bill (Albert Brooks) gets picked to be a member of the president’s Cabinet. What should be a happy time is sullied by her needy husband, Ryan (Jack Lowden), her agoraphobic brother, Casey (Spike Fearn), and her perpetually-cheating father, Eddie (Woody Harrelson).

Despite the trio of men competing to bring her down, Ella remains an unapologetic optimist, an attitude bolstered by her aunt Helen (Jamie Lee Curtis), her assistant Estelle (Julie Kavner), and her police escort, Trooper Nash (Kumail Nanjiani). The film follows her over a few days as she navigates the perils of governing, the distractions her family brings, and the expectations being thrust upon her by many different people.

Brooks, who wrote and directed the film, is all over the place with his storytelling. What at first seems to be a straightforward story about Ella and her various issues soon starts meandering into areas that, while related to Ella, don’t make the film better. Prime among them are her brother and father, who are given a relatively small amount of screentime in comparison to the importance they have in her life. This is compounded by a confounding subplot in which Casey tries to win back his girlfriend, Susan (Ayo Edebiri).

Then there’s the whole political side of the story, which never finds its focus and is stuck in the past. Though it’s never stated explicitly, Ella and Governor Bill appear to be Democrats, especially given a signature program Ella pushes to help mothers in need. But if Brooks was trying to provide an antidote to the current real world politics, he doesn’t succeed, as Ella’s full goals are never clear. He also inexplicably shows her boring her fellow lawmakers to tears, a strange trait to give the person for whom the audience is supposed to be rooting.

What saves the movie from being an all-out train wreck is the performances of Mackey and Curtis. Mackey, best known for the Netflix show Sex Education, has an assured confidence to her that keeps the character interesting and likable even when the story goes downhill. Curtis, who has tended to go over-the-top with her roles in recent years, tones it down, offering a warm place of comfort for Ella to turn to when she needs it. The two complement each other very well and are the best parts of the movie by far.

Brooks puts much more effort into his female actors, including Kavner, who, even though she serves as an unnecessary narrator, gets most of the best laugh lines in the film. Harrelson is capable of playing a great cad, but his character here isn’t fleshed out enough. Fearn is super annoying in his role, and Lowden isn’t much better, although that could be mostly due to what his character is called to do. Were it not for the always-great Brooks and Nanjiani, the movie might be devoid of good male performances.

Brooks has made many great TV shows and movies in his 60+ year career, but Ella McCay is a far cry from his best. The only positive that comes out of it is the boosting of Mackey, who proves herself capable of not only leading a film, but also elevating one that would otherwise be a slog to get through.

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Ella McCay opens in theaters on December 12.

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