Two encores for education

Inside Joe Ely's night at the Rockefeller: More than an iFest tease

Just like old times: the Joe Ely Band returned to Rockefeller Hall Friday nightfor an electrifying show reminiscent of many great performances from the club’spast.
Photo by Ray Redding
Interim iFest president and festival performing arts director Rick Mitchellannounced highlights of the festival line-up on Friday night. Tickets are now onsale at ifest.org.
Photo by Ray Redding
Ian Goldberg and Eva Wolod stopped by Rockefeller Hall to check out the scene.
Photo by Ray Redding
Joe Ely’s next Houston appearance will be on the final day of the HoustonInternational Festival on Sunday, May 8.
Photo by Ray Redding
Rick Heysquierdo, host of the popular KPFT program “Lone Star Jukebox,” emceedthe concert.
Photo by Ray Redding
Joe Ely’s wife Sharon, who works as a hair and make-up stylist in the filmindustry, drove in from a movie set in Austin to catch the show.
Photo by Ray Redding
Singer-songwriter Mike Stinson opened the show. Stinson relocated to Houstonfrom Los Angeles, where he was named “Best Country-Western Artist in L.A.” byLos Angeles magazine.
Photo by Ray Redding
After advance tickets sold out, crowds lined up outside Rockefeller Hall tosecure the few remaining tickets available at the door.
Photo by Ray Redding
Veteran Houston drummer John Grayum and wife Sharon enjoyed the evening.
Photo by Ray Redding
Jim Jard and Larry and Tatiana Seligmann (with CultureMap contributor SusanDarrow) staked out a spot near the stage in the balcony for the show.
Photo by Ray Redding
Houston musician Herschel Berry (center) visited with friends at RockefellerHall Friday.
Photo by Ray Redding
Allen Hill, the ringleader of Houston’s own Allen Oldies Band, was inattendance.
Photo by Ray Redding

During its heyday in the 1980s and 1990s, beloved Houston live music venue Rockefeller’s hosted everyone from B. B. King and The Band to Townes Van Zandt and Warren Zevon. After the club closed as a music venue at the end of 1997, it reopened as Rockefeller Hall, a private event facility.

Hundreds of live music aficionados got the chance to recapture the magic of Rockefeller’s at a benefit for the Houston International Festival (iFest) education programs on Friday night.

Popular Texas troubadour Joe Ely was responsible for many unforgettable shows at Rockefeller’s during its tenure. This weekend, he returned to the Washington Avenue venue for a take-no-prisoners set that featured guitar ace David Grissom and the outstanding rhythm section of Davis McLarty on drums and bassist Jimmy Pettit.

After an 80-minute set that included many of Ely’s best-loved rockers, including “Musta Notta Gotta Lotta”, “Lord of the Highway”, and “Letter to L.A.”, the band left the stage, only to be called back for an extended encore that included Billy Joe Shaver’s “Live Forever” and Terry Allen’s “Gimme a Ride to Heaven.”

Not ready to say goodnight to Rockefeller’s again quite yet, the crowd clapped and cheered for more, and the band obliged with a second encore of high-energy versions of “Lucky” and “Dallas”.

Houston singer-songwriter Mike Stinson kicked off the evening and won over many new fans with his well-crafted honky-tonk songs.

The Joe Ely Band will return to Houston on Sunday, May 8, to close out iFest, and they’ll be bringing saxophonist Bobby Keys (from the Rolling Stones) with them. Other headliners from the iFest lineup include Lucinda Williams, Robert Cray Band, Jonny Lang, and Michael Franti, and Spearhead. Tickets for the festival are $12 per day before April 26 and $18 per day after that early-bird discount.

For more details on the iFest lineup, read Caroline Gallay's CultureMap story.

Darrow works with the Houston International Festival staff and freely admits she is not exactly impartial. Currently in her 13th year (give or take) of working with the iFest team in some capacity or other, Darrow figures she’s been attending the Houston International Festival for at least 20 of the 40 years the festival has been around, which makes her feel pretty old.

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Fun with Time

Interactive adventure Time Mission clocks into Houston development

Photo courtesy of LOL Entertainment

The immersive experience Time Mission will open at the MarqE Entertainment District n summer 2026.

Time for a new immersive experience to come to Houston: Time Mission, a kid-friendly, team-based adventure, is scheduled to land at the MarqE Entertainment District in summer 2026.

Created by LOL Entertainment, a location-based entertainment company specializing in immersive attractions, Time Mission blends physical and mental challenges in a fast-paced experience, a release says.

Players take on real-world tasks like cracking codes, dodging lasers, solving riddles, and exploring hidden tunnels to earn points for their team.

Racing through 25+ unique portals, teams of two to five players embark on a time-travel journey across the past, present, and future, all while collecting points and battling the clock.

The website says the attraction is appropriate for "players age 6 to 106."

“We’ve seen a shift in how people seek entertainment, choosing immersive adventures that foster connection and excitement," says Rob Cooper, CEO of LOL Entertainment, in the release. "We’re excited to introduce Dallas to an experience where strategy, innovation, and teamwork collide.

There are currently Time Mission locations in Pennsylvania, New York, Rhode Island, Virginia, Illinois, and Belgium. Dallas will be the first Texas location, with another opening in Houston in summer 2026.

Immersive attractions have been popular in Houston for several years, from Meow Wolf just north of downtown to interactive experiences dedicated to balloons and more.

Time Mission will be located in a 10,000-square-foot space at the Marq Entertainment District (7620 Katy Fwy, Suite 355). The exact opening date will be announced at a later time.

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