the shows go on

Houston live music venues maintain COVID safety measures after restrictions lift

Mask on or mask off? That is the question.

Like many in the hospitality and entertainment industry, local live music venues are scrambling to decide what actions to take in the wake of Governor Greg Abbott’s announcement last week rescinding the state-wide mask mandates and opening all businesses at full capacity.

Houston venues still hosting shows instituted strict health guidelines months ago, which included limited capacity, mask requirements, staggered entry times, and enforced social distancing with tables or cordoned off sections. For now, it looks like those most of those measures will remain in place.

White Oak Music Hall, one of the largest venues to host shows during the pandemic, did so by implementing a grid system wherein small groups share a section of the outdoor lawn area. Patrons are required to wear masks should they step out of their section and concessions were ordered online. The venue effectively shut the indoor stage area and has no immediate plans to re-open it.

They’ll move ahead with upcoming grid shows, including two Blue October frontman Justin Furtsenfeld on Friday, March 12 and Saturday, March 13.

White Oak fans can also watch for the Texas Smoke Break Fest Comedy Show with Ali Siddiq, Byrson Brown, and more on Wednesday, March 17. The Texas Smoke Break Fest with Larry June, Le$f, Slim Thug, DevinTheDude, and goes down on Saturday, March 20. Meanwhile, the Read Southall Band performs on Saturday, April 17 with all current safety measures in place.

"We’re thrilled to see COVID rates declining and steps taken to open Texas back up,” Johnny So, managing partner of White Oak Music Hall said in a statement. “We’re still evaluating what that means for us and how that might affect our concerts. We're hopeful that it will allow us to book more shows and welcome more fans, but we need to ensure that those shows can be done safely."

Other venue owners echoed the same sentiment, while not committing to any quick changes to safety measures.

“We have great hope that our venues will return to normal operations very soon,” Edwin Cabaniss with the Heights Theater tells CultureMap. “If we continue to see progress, we anticipate making incremental changes to our protocols on our way to full reopening. We are just thankful to be in a position to safely-reopen after an extraordinarily difficult year - many of our peers were not that fortunate.”

Out of those that responded to requests from CultureMap, the majority of local spots said they elected to keep current safety guidelines in place. Others that shuttered completely will stay closed for the time being.

While some national artists are still touring, namely Staind lead singer Aaron Lewis performing on March 11 and South African punk rap act Die Antwoord booked for May 29 at Revention Music Center, it appears it will be some time before venues get close to hosting full sized crowds.

The following is a list of music venues that responded to requests about the health and safety restrictions in place. All of those hosting shows have hand sanitization stations throughout the venue.

Venues currently open:

Axelrad: Limited capacity; masks required inside and while ordering.

Dosey Doe: Patrons encouraged to wear masks.

Heights Theater: Mandatory social distancing; face mask required except while eating and drinking.

House of Blues: Face coverings mandatory and must be worn at all times except while eating and drinking; guest belongings must be kept in a clear bag or small clutch bag; mandatory social distancing; staggered arrival times.

Main Street Crossing: Face coverings mandatory and must be worn at all times except while eating and drinking; mandatory social distancing; contactless payment.

McGonigel’s Muck Duck: Mask requirements except while eating and drinking; capacity limits

Revention Music Center: Face coverings mandatory and must be worn at all times except while eating and drinking; guest belongings must be kept in a clear bag or small clutch bag; mandatory social distancing; staggered arrival times.

Rudyards: Mask requirements except while eating and drinking; capacity limitations.

Warehouse Live: Limited seating; masked encouraged when not seated; social distancing encouraged.

White Oak Music Hall: Face coverings mandatory and must be worn at all times except while eating and drinking; limited capacity; mandatory social distancing; drinks must be ordered through cocktail server.

Venues closed or currently not booking acts:

Satellite Houston: No shows booked at this time.

Smart Financial Center: No shows until May 15.

The Secret Group: Closed through the month of March and likely through April.

The Continental Club: Remains closed at this time.

White Oak Music Hall will continue to follow safety measures despite Gov. Greg Abbott lifting all COVID restrictions.

Photo by Eric Sandler

White Oak Music Hall will continue to follow safety measures despite Gov. Greg Abbott lifting all COVID restrictions.

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Movie Review

Dark satire Digger could bring an Oscar nomination for star Tom Cruise

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures

Tom Cruise in Digger.

For most of the 21st century, and especially the last 15 years, Tom Cruise has been a “movie star” rather than an “actor.” That’s not to say he’s a bad actor, but rather that his focus has been on making blockbuster movies where his unique ability to go all-in on action supersedes any need for introspection. Now perhaps past his action movie days, he’s giving full-on acting another try in Digger.

Cruise plays Digger Rockwell, an eccentric oil baron whose current project is drilling for oil in Greenland. Turns out that’s a bad idea in multiple ways, most significantly when an explosion at the site manages to calve an ice shelf five times the size of Boston. That humongous piece of ice then starts on an inevitable collision course with mainland Europe, where it is predicted that there will be hundreds of thousands of deaths and uncountable property damage from the ensuing tsunami.

That sounds bleak, and it is, but the film plays the scenario for laughs thanks to over-the-top characters like Digger, his sister Emma (Sandra Hüller), U.S. President Compson (John Goodman), and the unnamed Vice President (Michael Stuhlbarg). As those people and others try to spin the disaster of epic proportions, others like the scientist Ganesh (Riz Ahmed) try to get the leaders to see reason or to take responsibility for their actions.

Written and directed by Alejandro Iñárritu and co-written by three others, the film has more than a few surprises in store, including one big one that will go unspoiled here. Suffice it to say that for anyone who might be put off by how Cruise (who seems to be channeling his Les Grossman character from Tropic Thunder) and others are acting in the trailers for the film may change their minds about the performances after actually having seen the complete product.

What can be said is that the film is a wild, wacky, and occasionally disorienting experience that also doubles as a cogent critique of the governments and corporations responsible for climate change and unchecked capitalism. Digger is a motormouth who often cuts off people with relevant information to impart, having already determined that he knows all he needs to know about a certain topic. He’s stuck in his ways in many respects, including trying to keep alive a 20-year-old cat that clearly wants to die.

Once the full scope of the story is revealed, it becomes easier to understand what Iñárritu and Cruise are trying to accomplish with the film. It has some similarities to Stanley Kubrick’s dark satire Dr. Strangelove, but it also tries to stay grounded in certain ways. The push-and-pull between those who only seem to be out for themselves and those who want to get to the truth of the matter is played out on different fronts throughout the film. Not all of it lands, but enough does to not make the film seem completely unhinged.

Cruise has been nominated for three Oscars, and it’s clear he’s aiming for a fourth nod with this performance. He does his best to sell every quirk and aspect of the character, epitomized by a gonzo speech that utilizes every mental and physical skill he can muster. The supporting actors are hit-and-miss, but Ahmed comes off the best as a person serving as Digger’s moral conscience. He’s an antidote to Cruise’s mania, but then turns it up to 11 when needed.

Not everything is as it seems in Digger, and the out-there approach by Iñárritu and his team falls into the love-it-or-hate-it dichotomy that applies to many of his films. The very fact that everyone involved was willing to dedicate their whole selves to such an off-the-wall concept makes it deserving of attention, even if not everything is a success.

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Digger opens in theaters on October 2.

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