weekend event planner

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

Celebrate the music of Star Wars and more with the Houston Symphony.

Photo courtesy of 20th Century Fox

This weekend offers plenty of opportunities to get your drink on, with a cocktail showdown, wine event at the Post Oak Hotel, and a non-alcoholic wine dinner. Work out a brewery, catch the symphony playing greatest movie hits, visit an Asian fest, dive into a Sunday Funday pool party, and pay homage to the great DJ Screw.

Enjoy—here are your best bets for the weekend.

Thursday, May 26

Hotel ZaZa Memorial City presents Cocktail Showdown: Battle of the Brands
Top bartenders from an array of beloved, local hospitality concepts are working to claim the title for best summer cocktail creation, incorporating a curated selection of Beam Suntory products into their recipes. The winning summer cocktail will be determined by event guests, as well as a panel of Houston experts. Tickets are $25 with all proceeds benefiting Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Family Alliance. Attendees must be 21 years or older. 6 pm.

The Post Oak Hotel presents Wines of Rioja
The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston will present a world-class wine experience, featuring live music, curated Spanish cuisine, and over 100 wines to taste from Spain's most iconic region. Attendees will be transported to the sophisticated wine region of northern Spain, with live music and Spanish culinary delights masterfully crafted by the hotel’s esteemed, executive chef Jean-Luc Royere. 6 pm.

Roots x SIPPLE Non-Alcoholic Wine Dinner
Roots Wine Bar will be hosting a one-of-a-kind, six-course dinner with a non-alcoholic wine pairing by Danny Frounfelkner, owner and sommelier of SIPPLE, the only non-alcoholic bottle shop in Texas. This exclusive dinner will feature dishes (like Kosho-cured salmon tiradito and roast squab) from Roots executive chef André Garza, and each of the six courses will feature a non-alcoholic wine pairing from such winemakers as Italy's Prima Pavé and California’s Surely Wines. 7 pm.

Friday, May 27

Houston Center for Contemporary Craft presents Summer Exhibitions opening reception
Houston Center for Contemporary Craft will celebrate the opening of their summer exhibitions: Made to Last: The Legacy of the Jubilee Quilt Circle, a selection of quilts made by current participants and founding members; and A Dressing the Future: The Ecofiction of Nicole Dextras, which explores the craftsmanship of artist Nicole Dextras's set and costume designs from her dystopian film trilogy, A Dressing the Future. The evening will also feature open studios by the current resident artists. 5:30 pm.

Vitacca Dance, Houston presents Soiree 10-Year Anniversary
Vitacca Dance, Houston will celebrate 10 years of strength and beauty through dance. This season's Soirée is a mixed bill of works choreographed and coached by Vitacca faculty and guest artists. The formation of Vitacca Ballet, a creation-based repertoire company based in Houston and The Woodlands, has allowed them to keep talented, home-grown Houston artists employed in the city they love as professional artists. 7 pm (6 pm Saturday).

The Catastrophic Theatre presents Innominate
Dually inspired by Pablo Picasso’s painting Guernica and Iran’s Green Revolution, Afsaneh Aayani's dance-theatre piece combines puppetry, live original music, mixed media, and movement to create a surreal journey through Aayani’s personal experience as an immigrant from war-torn Iran. Caught between a perpetual limbo on her twisted path to American citizenship and unable to return to Iran, she remains a woman without a country. Through Sunday, June 19. 8 pm (2:30 pm Sunday).

Houston Symphony presents The Best of John Williams: Star Wars & More with Chorus
This weekend, audiences will enjoy themes from all their blockbuster favorites — Superman, Star Wars, Harry Potter, nearly every Steven Spielberg movie, and more — as the Houston Symphony and Chorus celebrate the master of film scores, John Williams. We would really like to see the Symphony do selections from 1941 (our favorite Spielberg movie), but that's just us. The Saturday performance will be available to livestream. 8 pm (2:30 pm Sunday).

Saturday, May 28

Dreamland presents DreamFest
Dreamland will host the inaugural DreamFest music and arts festival. Performances will include Bob Schneider, Carolyn Wonderland, Del Castillo, Sir Woman, Gina Chavez, and much more. In addition to the musical performances, DreamFest will host an artisan market,offering a curated selection from dozens of artists of various mediums showcasing their work and offering it for sale. There will also be a beer garden, miniature golf courses, disc golf, pickleball, and more. 11 am.

Asian Night Market
Asian Night Market, where you can sample international street food made by local Houstonians, is coming back to Railway Heights Market. This two-day event will have over 50 vendors, outdoor and indoor. Join them for some great Asian street food, desserts, drinks from two different bars, local retail pop up shops, live music, a lion dance performance, kids entertainment, and so much more. So, head over to Washington Ave. and dive headfirst into the exotic, hipstery fun of it all. 2 pm.

14 Pews presents Bicycle Thieves
Vittorio De Sica's Oscar-winning 1948 film defined an era in cinema. In poverty-stricken postwar Rome, a man, on the first day of a new job that offers hope of salvation for his desperate family, gets his bicycle — which he needs for work — is stolen. With his young son in tow, he sets off to track down the thief. This film embodies the greatest strengths of the Italian neorealist movement: emotional clarity, social rectitude, and brutal honesty. 7 pm.

Rivkah French Choreography presents From the Ground Up: A Visual Wonderland
Produced by Rivkah French Choreography and their team, this event will raise awareness and funds for a new performance space being built in the Fifth Ward: the future Q’astle Theater. The event will feature the talents of Rivkah French and dance collaborators, alternative drag artist Dyna with a D, an immersive projection installation by Jeremy Keas, as well as visual art and a live water feature. Attendees will have the option to bid on auction items. Drinks and light bites will be included. 8 pm.

Sunday, May 29

POUND and Pour at Ingenious Brewing Company
Come join Ingenious Brewing for its first POUND and Pour, hosted by instructor Jenny. This workout is inspired by drumming where you will become the music. It combines cardio, conditioning, and yoga inspired movements to make a lot of noise. $15 includes a one-hour class and one free beer after class. Just make sure to bring your yoga mat and a towel if needed. (Jenny will provide the lightly weighted drumsticks.) 10:30 am.

Memorial Weekend | Sunday Funday | Pool Party Edition
Space Cowboy will be having a Memorial Day pool party edition of its weekly Sunday Funday. Festivities include bottle service, games, live music and a brunch menu that features chicken fried steak and eggs; Bananas Foster French toast; a breakfast burger with chorizo and ground beef patty, cheese, bacon and valentina aioli on a sesame seed bun; and breakfast tacos on flour tortillas with eggs and cheese and a choice of chorizo, bacon, migas or potatoes. Noon.

Lance Scott Walker DJ Screw A Life in Slow Revolution Author Event & Book Signing
This weekend, journalist/author Lance Scott Walker will be all over the Houston-Galveston area promoting his latest book, an oral history of the life and times of DJ Screw, the late, local rap icon. He'll be speaking at Screwed Up Records and Tapes (the record store Screw started) on Friday night. On Saturday night, he'll be at the Galveston Bookshop and the Proletariat Gallery's anniversary party. His final, H-Town stop will be over at Cactus Music. 2 pm.

event-planner

weekend event planner

Here are the top 15 things to do in Houston this Labor Day weekend

Photo by Brian Bowen Smith

See Josh Groban in The Woodlands on Thursday night.

Houstonians who are still mourning the loss of the one-and-only Dolly Parton can celebrate her music and her acting at two Houston events this weekend.

Rooftop Cinema Club Uptown will screen the 1989 tearjerker Steel Magnolias, starring Sally Field, Julia Roberts, and Parton, on Thursday. (10 percent of ticket sales will go to Parton’s Imagination Library.) Or head over to Echoes in Montrose, where local DJs are playing an all-night “Dolly’s Country Music Carousel.”

Of course, a lot of other things are worth checking out this Labor Day weekend — like Jack Harlow, who will be at 713 Music Hall on Monday night.

Thursday, September 3

Mid Main Houston First Thursday Block Party
Mid Main Houston’s First Thursday Block Party starts up another season of monthly, indoor/outdoor fun this weekend. Local bands Blue Heron Yacht Club, Hudson Mueller & The Texas Teardrops, and Juke Box Train Wreck will perform. HISD Foundation, this month’s nonprofit partner, will have an HISD art car show and student performances, while the CAMH Teacher Advisory Group will have a “The Sequence Is Yours” art show at the Mid Main Gallery. And don’t forget about DJ Count Chocula spinning tunes in the breezeway. 6 pm..

Asia Society Texas presents Author Talk: Shern-Min Chow on If Not You...
Inspired by true events, retired KHOU anchorperson Shern-Min Chow's debut novel If Not You… follows a young girl who survives a devastating fire and rises from the slums of India to the elite cancer research labs at MD Anderson. Heartfelt and compelling, the novel highlights the resilience of the human spirit and the bonds that shape people's lives. A copy of the book is included with ticket purchase, and Shern-Min will be available to sign copies following the talk. 6:30 pm.

Josh Groban in concert
Singer and occasional actor (remember when he was in Muppets Most Wanted?) Josh Groban has gone full Hollywood with his latest album Cinematic. This collection has him performing such classic, Oscar-winning themes as “Moon River,” “Can You Feel the Love Tonight,” and “Skyfall.” Catch him perform these big-screen anthems when he comes to The Woodlands, as part of his Stage, Screen, and Symphony tour. 7:30 pm.

Friday, September 4

Lone Star Flight Museum presents "Moments of Heroism: Stories of Sacrifice, Selflessness and the American Spirit on 9/11" opening day
This panel exhibition features stories drawn from the 9/11 Memorial & Museum collection in New York, in remembrance of the 2,977 people who lost their lives and honors many more who stood with first responders to help others. The exhibit chronicles powerful accounts of rescue and great courage on that fateful day. Through Sunday, January 3. 10 am.

Photo by Brian Bowen Smith

See Josh Groban in The Woodlands on Thursday night.

The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston presents Some Like It Hot
Celebrate Marilyn Monroe’s centennial with a glorious-35mm showing of Billy Wilder’s classic 1959 comedy. After a police raid on a Chicago speakeasy, jazz musicians Joe and Jerry (Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon) find themselves unemployed and on the run. When they stumble upon a gang war, they land a gig in Florida with Sweet Sue and Her Society Syncopators. Transforming themselves in drag, they befriend the alluring Sugar Kane (Monroe), but things derail for the pair as they start attracting unwanted attention. 7 pm (5 pm Sunday).

Improv Houston presents Russell Peters
Internationally-known Canadian comedian Russell Peters will be in H-Town at Improv Houston this weekend, giving his takes on the current state of the world. But did y’all know he’s been apparently getting back into DJing? Earlier this year, he did a set at the kickoff party for Toronto’s Departure Festival + Conference, returning to the gig he used to do back in the day when he wasn’t making money doing stand-up. We don’t know if he’ll be doing any late-night sets in the city, but it would be wild if he did. 7:30 and 9:45 pm (7 pm and 9:30 pm Saturday).

Carolyn Wonderland in concert
Texas’ award-winning, guitar-slinging, soul-singing Carolyn Wonderland will perform at Shoeshine Charley’s Big Top Lounge this weekend. Wonderland has more than earned her reputation as a fiercely independent artist. She has been performing professionally since the age of 15 and has been on the road her entire career. Wonderland has played with icons from Townes Van Zandt to Levon Helm, from Buddy Guy to Hubert Sumlin, from Bob Dylan to John Mayall, all while writing her own story. 9 pm.

Saturday, September 5

First Saturday Arts Market
At Houston’s original monthly outdoor art market, First Saturday Arts Market, visitors will find artists with paintings, sculpture, photography, jewelry, and more art mediums. This month’s artists include Aimee Kudla, Annette Cenci Smith, Jose Canales, Art by Butter, Arthur Deatly, Barb Mueller, and Vivre Coffee Collective. A food truck will be on site, and local singer/songwriters can often be found providing entertainment at the market. 11 am.

Axelrad presents KG BBQ
Austin's Egyptian-inspired, Michelin-recognized barbecue joint returns to Houston for another day of smoked brisket, lamb chops, Mediterranean rice, and more. Beginning at 8 pm, DJ Caballero Cosmico will teach attendees to two step, while Tyson Webb's Outlaw Boogie will keep the crowd moving. Pre-order at the link above to skip the line. Noon.

Moody Center for the Arts presents "Radiant Geometries: Vectors of Knowledge from the Indigenous Americas" opening reception
"Radiant Geometries: Vectors of Knowledge from the Indigenous Americas" brings together contemporary Indigenous and Latin American artists whose practices illuminate knowledge as a living technology, through which the mathematical, metaphysical, and artistic realms converge. The exhibition features national and international artists, including Nanibah Chacon, Jordan Ann Craig, Patricia Domínguez, Sara Flores, Natalia Montoya Lecaros, Cisco Merel, Caroline Monnet, and Eamon Ore-Giron. Through Saturday, December 19. 6 pm.

The Tune Up: A Texas Folklife Benefit Concert
This night of accordion-driven Texas music will power the heritage programming from Texas Folklife. The event is the warm-up to Accordion Kings & Queens, and every ticket sold helps Texas Folklife keep these traditions alive on stage and in communities across the state. The night will be headlined by Conjuntazzo, featuring Grammy Award winner Joel Guzman and Sarah Fox. Opening the show is Mark Halata Texavia. 7 pm.

Katrina Walker presents Miss Dee's Kitchen
Meet Miss Dee, the Queen of the Hood — rocking her housecoat, smoking a cigarette, pushing her oxygen tank, and keeping everybody laughing with her unfiltered mouth. When her hood friends gather in Miss Dee’s kitchen, secrets spill, gossip flies, and drama unfolds. The show also features her nosy mama Sugapie, a murder mystery surrounding Frankie J’s wife, the neighborhood sidepiece Sweetbaby, Reverend Theodore Bucky aka “The Funky Preacher, “Crow,” the meanest man on the planet, and Bougie “Blu.” 8 pm.

Sunday, September 6

Trailblazers & Trendsetters Hair Show and Beauty Expo
Visitors can experience the artistry, culture, and innovation of the beauty industry at the inaugural Trailblazers & Trendsetters Hair Show and Beauty Expo. Attendees can explore the Expo and Vendor Marketplace, participate in professional education sessions, enjoy live demonstrations, and experience dynamic main-stage programming. The event will culminate with a Hair Presentation Showcase, where stylists, salons, and beauty brands will present their best work and compete for a $5,000 business grant and other prizes. 10 am.

Watercolor Art Society presents “Just Say Yes to Yupo” General Meeting and Demo
Join Fontaine Jacobs as she shares her passion for painting on Yupo. She is a self-taught artist who has shown in galleries and won awards for both her commercial and fine art throughout the United States. Fontaine paints portraits, landscapes, animals, and abstracts. She strives to merge impressionism with realism to capture an image or go completely abstract. From time to time, she gives instruction in watercolor. 2 pm.

Mildred's Umbrella Theater Company presents Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties
Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties by Jen Silverman explores anger, sex, love, and the “thea-tah” through the experiences of five women named Betty. Betty is rich; Betty is lonely; Betty’s busy working on her truck; Betty wants to talk about love, but Betty needs to hit something. And Betty keeps using a small hand mirror to stare into parts of herself she’s never examined. Through Saturday, September 19. 2:30 pm.

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