weekend event planner
Here are the top 10 things to do in Houston this weekend
Heads up, oenophiles: National Red Wine Day is going down this Saturday. In honor of the day, Sixty Vines is highlighting its red wine on tap with customizable wine flights. Guests can enjoy an off-the-menu experience (guided by your server or bartender) and sip on three to four, 2.5-ounce pours from the 60-tap wine system.
That’s happening this weekend, and so is a tasty “anti-food festival,” an ice-cream-themed outdoor market, a James Harden concert (!), and a battle of the bands. Here are your best bets for the weekend.
Thursday, August 26
Holocaust Museum Houston presents Displacement and Art: Artist Talk with Jessica Carolina González
Houston artist Jessica Carolina González, first-prize winner of the juried exhibition Withstand: Latinx Art in Times of Conflict, will talk about the influence war and displacement has in her artwork. Her winning piece The Respondent is from her Es Una Lucha series, which superimposes legal documents of deportation and legalization on archived family images and merges the intimate with the removed, forming a comprehensive record of what is and has been experienced. 6 pm.
Commune Preview Event
Since the “anti-food festival” known as Commune will be delayed until March 2022, there will be a preview held Thursday, Friday and Sunday. Thursday will have the Indie Chefs Collaboration Dinner, as well as a late-night pop-up with chefs serving Americanized Chinese food. Another collaboration dinner will be on Friday. As for Sunday, there will be a collaboration dinner, a Jewish DelicaTexan event and another pop-up, this time with Palestinian rotisserie chicken. 6:30 pm (11:30 pm Sunday).
Friday, August 27
The Parkway at Regent Square presents Market Days
Popular, outdoor local artisan market series Market Days beats the heat with this month’s ice cream-themed event, in partnership with The Art Cellar of Houston. Grab a bite from one of the onsite food trucks and a frosty cocktail from The Traveling Spirit as you peruse vendors selling specialty jewelry and accessories, artwork, culinary treats, and more. It’s free to attend, and the first 50 attendees will receive a complimentary, Warhol ice cream painting art kit. 5 pm.
Harris County Cultural Arts Council presents Fly Dance Company: The Gentlemen of Hip-Hop
This Friday and Saturday, Harris County Cultural Arts Center will present this world-renowned dance company, which has been delighting audiences around the globe since 1995. Their expert delivery of hip-hop dance with a classical flavor is a treat for music and dance lovers of any age. This crew expertly infuses multiple, creative elements in its performance, creating a whole new genre known as "theatrical hip-hop." The event includes an opportunity to meet with the performers after the show. 6 pm.
Near Dark 2: Black Magic Art Show at Hardy & Nance Studios
On Friday and Saturday, Insomnia Gallery will host an art show featuring local artists creating work that will be black-light sensitive. They will dark out any windows, kill the house lights, and replace them with black lights to create a unique experience unlike any art show you've ever seen. Guests are encouraged to wear neon colors and highlighters will be on hand if you want to bedazzle yourself. Beer and cocktails will be available. 7 pm (5 pm Saturday).
Saturday, August 28
Aerie Houston Takeover
Leading fashion brand/retail powerhouse Aerie will be running a body confidence and empowerment event at Baybrook Mall, in partnership with Food Truck Promotions. They will be giving out free t-shirts and clothing to the first 175 attendees, as well as free baked goods from local, female-owned businesses. There will also be a 20-percent-off coupon given out that’s available to use in-store or online — and only given to those who attend the event. 10 am.
James Harden & Friends at Bayou Music Center
Nine-time NBA All-Star, entrepreneur, and music executive James Harden will be hosting this charity concert, in conjunction with Spotify’s popular hip-hop playlist RapCaviar. The show will feature some of the biggest names in hip-hop and sports. (The lineup is still to-be-announced.) All proceeds from the event will go to Harden’s charity organization 3 The Harden Way. Proof of vaccination or negative COVID-19 test within 48-hours of the event required for entry. 7:30 pm.
Houston Cinema Arts Society presents Memory Builds the Monument
Musical legends Ray Charles, James Brown, and Aretha Franklin often performed at Fifth Ward nightclub Club Matinee, known as “the Cotton Club of the South” by musical legends and area residents alike. This new documentary short, from Fifth Ward filmmaker Isaac Yowman, taps the recollections of current and former residents who remember those magical years. The film is the centerpiece of a larger project that includes ongoing oral history interviews. 8 pm.
Sunday, August 29
The Conrad O. Johnson Music & Fine Arts Foundation presents Scholarship Brunch and Concert
The Conrad O. Johnson Music & Fine Arts Foundation will present this event, featuring sounds, brunch, and entertainment by Saturday Night Live trombonist Steve Turre, guitarist Joe Carmouche, and the talents of its Regional Youth Orchestra. Proceeds from the event benefit The Conrad O. Johnson Education, Scholarship and Outreach Program, which directly funds its youth orchestra. The nonprofit formed the youth orchestra to provide students from underserved communities with access to arts education. 2 pm.
National Battle of the Bands at NRG Stadium
For those of you who love seeing college marching bands musically go at it on a football field, NRG Stadium will be having many bands throw down with this Cracker Barrel-sponsored showdown. Among the colleges scheduled to bring it: Tennessee State, Southern, Langston, Norfolk State, North Carolina A&T and, of course, Houston’s own Texas Southern University, who will most likely have its Ocean of Soul band dropping hella jams. 4 pm.
