weekend event planner

Here are the top 14 things to do in Houston this weekend

Do your downward dog with some adorable dogs.

Photo courtesy of Lola's Lucky Day/FM Kitchen & Bar

This weekend is going to the dogs, with two events featuring adorable fur-baby fun, all benefitting local animal charities. Also look for fun at Hermann Park, free Houston Ballet performances at Miller Outdoor Theatre, and a trip to Motown.

Enjoy; here are your best bets for the weekend.

Thursday, May 12

Hermann Park Conservancy - Urban Green presents Ticket to Ride
Urban Green members and other young professionals can participate in this fun-filled gathering, with all proceeds going towards the stewardship and improvement of Hermann Park. Participants can ride the rails of the Hermann Park Railroad to see some twilight views, take a pedal boat out for a spin on tranquil McGovern Lake, enjoy some food and drink from local sponsors, and bid on some items at the silent auction. 6 pm.

Improv Houston presents Affion Crockett
Actor/dancer/comic Affion Crockett has had supporting roles in Soul Men and The Wedding Ringer. He also starred in and co-executive produced his own sketch comedy show, In the Flow with Affion Crockett. But if you don't check him out this weekend, you gotta follow him on his Instagram, where he puts on funny-as-hell live shows like the Verzuz post-shows he does with fellow, online dang fool Spice Adams. 8 pm (7:30 and 9:45 pm Friday; 7 and 9:30 pm Saturday; 7:30 pm Sunday).

Friday, May 13

Houston Art Gallery Association Spring Art Gallery Celebration
The Houston Art Gallery Association will host this city-wide, inaugural celebration. HAGA is composed of the finest art galleries in Houston, each with their own distinct programming, representing the most outstanding artists in Texas and around the world. HAGA member galleries include Anya Tish Gallery, Bill Arning Exhibitions, Bisong Art Gallery, Foto Relevance, G Spot Contemporary Art Space and so many others. 6 pm. (Noon Saturday and Sunday).

Sicardi | Ayers | Bacino presents "Elsa Gramcko: The Invisible Plot of Things" opening reception
A groundbreaking, Latin American post-war artist, Elsa Gramcko (1925-1994) never identified with a formal artistic movement but freely explored geometric abstraction, surrealism, and informalism through her painting, assemblage, and sculpture. This exhibition, curated by Brooklyn-based independent curator and writer Gabriela Rangel, will offer a comprehensive survey of Gramcko's artistic practice from the mid-1950s through the mid-1970s. On display through Saturday, July 2. 6 pm.

DACAMERA presents Artemis
Blue Note artists Artemis, the supergroup comprising of the most acclaimed musicians in modern jazz, makes its first Houston appearance, with four of the musicians appearing for the first time on DACAMERA’s stage. Featuring pianist and musical director Renee Rosnes, tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover, clarinetist Anat Cohen, trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, bassist Noriko Ueda, and drummer Allison Miller, Artemis conjures a powerful collective voice from this sextet of visionary bandleaders and composers. 8 pm.

Houston Ballet at Miller Outdoor Theatre
For two nights, Houston Ballet will perform a free evening of dance showcasing the company's internationally recognized company of dancers. Audiences will witness the athleticism and artistry of the dancers as they perform moments from some of the company’s most recognizable and beloved ballets. The Ballet's mission is to inspire a lasting love and appreciation for dance through artistic excellence, exhilarating performances, innovative choreography and superb educational programs. 8 pm.

Saturday, May 14

Heartmade Art Market
Heartmade Art Market returns to historic Market Square Park this weekend. This carefully curated and juried art market features more than 60 regional artists, makers and creatives who are some of the best ambassadors of the art community. Attendees can enjoy interactive art for the kids, musical stylings by a DJ and mimosas flowing all day long. Free and open to the public, a portion of the booth proceeds goes to The Periwinkle Arts in Medicine Program at Texas Children’s Hospital. 10 am.

BLCK Market Pop-Up
Let's see what's going down at this month's BLCK Market pop-up: In addition to shopping, guests will enjoy a live performance by local alternative hip-hop artist San/Sim; a live DJ; craft cocktails by women-owned mobile bar Bubble O’Clock and more. The food truck park will feature delectable fare from Houston’s favorite tastemakers, including a deluxe funnel cake experience by The Funnel Bar, and delightfully healthy juices, açaí bowls and smoothies from Hype Juicery. 1 pm.

Houston Pets Alive! presents Dog Fest
Houston Pets Alive! presents this event, open to families and friends of all ages (human and dog). It will feature local beer, food trucks, vendors, prizes, photo opps, and a "Goodest Dog" competition judged by local celebrities. Proceeds will benefit Houston Pets Alive!, a leading, local animal rescue that relies on the generosity of Houston's animal lovers to carry out its mission to save the lives of at-risk cats and dogs and find them loving homes. 2 pm.

Lola's Lucky Day Party and Puppy Yoga at FM Kitchen & Bar
Lola's Lucky Day dog rescue and adoption organization will host their second annual fundraising event at FM Kitchen & Bar (1112 Shepherd Dr.). Look for drink specials from Hornito's Tequila, Maker's Mark and Jim Beam Black Bourbon, outdoor gaming, raffle items, dog portraits and puppy yoga. Puppy yoga will be a professionally guided outdoor session by Southern Flow Yoga, with puppies provided by Lola's Lucky Day. The event also will feature a cornhole tournament on the patio. The tournament will start at 3:30 pm. with a total of sixteen teams competing ($100 per team). All event proceeds will go to Lola’s Lucky Day. Free; $25 donation gets you drinks and more.2:30 pm.

Cypress Creek FACE presents Forever Motown
Imagine seeing the greatest Motown groups of all time, all on one stage together again. That's what you get with this show. A fabulous cast, backed by a band of incredible musicians, represents Motown royalty — performing the beloved songs from the greatest groups, artists and songwriters of all time: The Four Tops, The Temptations, The Supremes, Smokey Robinson, Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye, Tammi Terrell, and Stevie Wonder. 8 pm.

Sunday, May 15

Cigna Sunday in the Park
Cigna Sunday in the Park, a reimagined version of the Cigna Sunday Streets series that spotlights Houston’s most unique neighborhoods, will close out the spring 2022 series at Hackberry Park in Alief. The event will include activities for the entire family, including a photo booth, live entertainment & dancing, free food, inflatables, NEO Outdoors games and COVID-19 vaccinations & flu shots by the Health Department. Noon.

Asia Society Texas presents Michelle Zauner in Conversation with Bryan Washington
Asia Society Texas will welcome indie rockstar Michelle Zauner and acclaimed author Bryan Washington for a conversation on the development of her New York Times best-selling memoir Crying in H Mart, the origins & successes of her band Japanese Breakfast, writing about food, and how her family & Korean heritage has influenced her art. Books will be available for purchase at the event, and there will be an on-site book-signing following the program. 7 pm.

Third Space Music presents Steinway Charity Concert
This all-Brahms chamber music concert features a lineup of strings from the Houston Symphony, including concertmaster Yoonshin Song, principal cellist Brinton Averil Smith, and two guest pianists, Steinway artist Evelyn Chen and the international, award-winning Mei Rui. One hundred percent of the concert proceeds will be donated to the Buffalo Soldier National Museum. 7:30 pm.

event-planner

Movie Review

Reminders of Him taps into grief, grace, and the power of moving on

Photo by Michelle Faye / Universal Pictures

Maika Monroe and Tyriq Withers in Reminders of HIm.

Texas author Colleen Hoover has gone from being a popular writer to a full-on celebrity in the 2020s. The new film Reminders of Him marks the third adaptation of her books in just 19 months (a fourth, Verity, is scheduled for release in October 2026). All of her books that have been adapted so far — most notably It Ends With Us — are female-led stories that feature elements of romance and trauma, catnip for studios looking to appeal to the underserved demographic of women.

Leading the way in this film is Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe), who returns to her hometown of Laramie, Wyoming after spending years in prison for killing her boyfriend, Scotty (Rudy Pankow), in a car accident. That relationship resulted in a daughter, Diem (Zoe Kosovic), whom Kenna gave birth to while imprisoned and is now being raised by her grandparents, Patrick (Bradley Whitford) and Grace (Lauren Graham).

Yearning to be a part of Diem’s life, Kenna tries to reconnect with Patrick and Grace, only to be rebuffed by Scotty’s best friend, Ledger (Tyriq Withers), a former NFL player who now owns a local bar. In running interference, Ledger starts to become closer to Kenna, discovering that her tragic mistake shouldn’t be the only thing that defines her.

Directed by Vanessa Caswill and written by Lauren Levine, the film features mostly surface level examinations of its themes and average performances, yet it winds up being effective thanks to a willingness not to rush through its storytelling beats. The filmmakers take the slow and steady approach toward the coupling of Kenna and Ledger, setting up their bond through a series of heart-to-heart conversations that makes any romance feel earned.

The majority of the focus is on Kenna reclaiming her place in the world, and on Ledger coming to terms with the fact that the person who killed his best friend is not inherently a bad person. The film definitely could have gone deeper in its explorations of grief and anger, but the sheer amount of time it takes in addressing the characters’ doubts and fears turns out to be sufficient for a film that’s not aiming to be considered a dramatic masterpiece.

It also helps that Caswill and Levine do a solid job of establishing the variety of characters that inhabit the film. Kenna and Ledger don’t always feel like fully-formed people, but they become so through their interactions with each other and the other townspeople. Lady Diana (Monika Myers), a girl with Down syndrome who lives in Kenna’s apartment complex, and Roman (Nicholas Duvernay), Ledger’s co-worker at his bar, help to broaden the appeal of the two leads.

Monroe has, to this point, been best known for starring roles in horror films like It Follows and Longlegs. While she does somewhat well in this role, her delivery is often more flat than you’d expect for a character going through what she does. Withers thankfully doesn’t remind viewers of his recent bomb Him, demonstrating a crossover appeal that should serve him well in the future. Whitford and Graham don’t get to do much, but their combined experience gives their roles exactly what is needed.

It may sound like damning with faint praise, but Reminders of Him is a competently made film that knows how to serve its core audience without insulting anyone who may not automatically be all-in for such a story. The filmmakers don’t try to force any of the key moments down the audience’s throat, and that stands out in a genre that’s not always known for its subtlety.

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Reminders of Him opens in theaters on March 13.

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