weekend event planner

Here are the top 12 things to do in Houston this weekend

Millions of Lego bricks make for cuddly animals at Bricklive Houston: Animal Paradise.

Photo courtesy of Brick Live Group Limited

This weekend, baseball fans will be rallying around the Houston Astros as the team looks to close out the series against the Boston Red Sox either Friday or Saturday.

But before and after the games, plenty of happenings are vying for your attention. Look for a limited-edition bourbon party, a night at the symphony, a bike trip around Galveston Bay, cuddly animals made of Lego bricks, or a celebration of chocolate — perfect for Sunday Funday.

Here are your best bests for the weekend.

Thursday, October 21

Bayou & Bottle Bourbon Release Party
This exclusive event will debut Bayou & Bottle’s four-and-a-half-year-old single barrel, picked in partnership with Garrison Brothers master distiller Donnis Todd and Four Seasons Hotel Houston team Tom Segesta (general manager) and Michael Rodriguez (director of food and beverage). This limited, single-barrel release yielded a total of 48 bottles, so bourbon lovers beware. If you would like to taste this creation, this is the only place it will be featured this year. 5 pm.

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston presents 33rd Annual Great Futures Dinner
The Great Futures Dinner is the premier annual fundraiser of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston. Included in the festive evening will be the silent and live auctions, the Big Board, pre-event cocktails, a seated dinner and entertainment provided by BGCGH Youth. All proceeds benefit programs of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston to ensure that all Club members are on track for success and great futures. 5:30 pm.

Sicardi | Ayers | Bacino presents Liz Cohen: "The Poet" opening reception
Sicardi | Ayers | Bacino presents the gallery's first solo exhibition for contemporary artist Liz Cohen. Cohen's constructivist installation Him features photographs, collages, weavings, and masks that grew out of the collaborative research project and 12-hour improvisational performative environment produced by the artist in collaboration with her friend Eric Crosley, a poet who began a failed gender reassignment surgery 20 years ago, which "explores the constantly shifting definitions of 'self' of both artist (Cohen) and subject (Crosley)." On display through Saturday, December 18. 6 pm.

Friday, October 22

Bricklive Houston: Animal Paradise
Bricklive Houston: Animal Paradise is Houston's first and only animal safari paradise that will feature animals made out of more than a million bricks. As guests explore the imaginary plains, they'll see an array of life-size, brick-built animals, including breeds of alligators, dolphins, elephants, pandas, giraffes, rhinos, lions, tigers, bears, and more. Through Friday, December 31. 11 am.

Alley Theatre presents 72 Miles to Go…
The play follows one family over a decade as they come of age, fall in love, fight in wars, and fight for each other, against the backdrop of deportation, DACA, and changing immigration laws. The gripping family drama by Hilary Bettis returns to the Alley following development in the 2019 Alley All New Festival and its world premiere Off-Broadway at Roundabout Theatre Company. Through Sunday, November 14. 8 pm (2 and 8 pm Saturday; 2:30 and 7:30 pm Sunday).

Houston Symphony presents Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony
Houston Symphony presents Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony, where audiences will be transported to a world of ancient ruins and windswept Highland beauty, inspired by the composer’s trip to the British Isles. Acclaimed British conductor Jane Glover leads these performances, which also feature music of Ethel Smyth, and Prokofiev’s effervescent Symphony No. 1. Plus, principal bassoon Rian Craypo shines in Variations on an Arietta by Pergolesi. The Saturday performance will be available to livestream. 8 pm (2:30 pm Sunday).

Saturday, October 23

Galveston Bay Foundation presents Bike Around the Bay
Galveston Bay Foundation, a non-profit conservation organization that works to preserve and enhance Galveston Bay as a healthy and productive place for generations to come, will highlight the natural beauty of Galveston Bay during this fully supported, two-day, 175-mile ride. This unique cycling event takes riders in a complete loop around the largest and most productive estuary in Texas. A one-day, 97-mile option is also available. 9 am.

Daughters of the British Empire presents 47th Annual British Bazaar
Over at Arabia Shrine Center Ballroom, this British Bazaar celebrates all things British. Local Anglophiles will enjoy performances from the Houston Highlanders Pipe Band, traditional British food, a pub lunch and afternoon tea service, along with several British-themed vendors. There will also be a raffle featuring 75 door prizes. 10 am.

Levy Park presents the Prelude Concert Series
Families with young children are invited to sing and dance as Levy Park presents this concert series, sponsored by Primrose School at Greenway Plaza and Primrose School of Upper Kirby. For 45 minutes, babies, toddlers, preschoolers and their grown-ups can join in live music classes with a curriculum aimed at nurturing creativity, self-expression and the development of children through a variety of musical styles. 4:30 pm.

Sunday, October 24

The Women’s Fund for Health Education and Resiliency presents 11th Annual Rockin’ Resiliency Luncheon
The Women’s Fund for Health Education and Resiliency, along with Luncheon co-chairs Lara Bell and Aliza Dutt, and honorary chair Edna Meyer-Nelson, will present the 11th Annual Rockin’ Resiliency Luncheon. The afternoon will feature Olympic medalist and world champion boxer Marlen Esparza as the keynote speaker, a silent auction, a baubles and bubbles champagne raffle, and more. 11:30 am.

Emery Entertainment presents An Evening with C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien
An Evening with C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien is a play set in Oxford’s Eagle & Child pub. Aging and legendary authors Tolkien and his great friend Lewis meet for what turns out to be the very last time. They were lions of 20th century British fantasy, giants of a literary genre that reached millions of readers, young and old alike, with mystifying adventures to entertain and deep truths to move people’s hearts. 2 pm.

Cosmic Creature Events presents Melt My Heart: A Celebration of Chocolate
Melt My Heart will feature a special selection of chocolates all made by Cosmic Creature Events, one of Houston’s very own bean-to-bar chocolate makers. A ticket will include a chocolate merch bag, two signature chocolate bars, a sample pack of chocolate tea (five-count package), stickers, BOGO coupon, and access to the chocolate fountain buffet. 3 pm.

event-planner

Movie Review

Timothée Chalamet cements star status in new movie Marty Supreme

Courtesy

Timothée Chalamet

In a time when true movie stars seem to be going extinct, Timothée Chalamet has emerged as an exception to the rule. Since 2021 he has headlined blockbusters like the two Dune movies and Wonka, and also earned an Oscar nomination for playing Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown (his second nomination following 2018’s Call Me By Your Name). Now, he’s almost assured to get his third nomination for the stellar new film, Marty Supreme.

Chalamet plays Marty Mauser, a world-class table tennis player living in New York. But reducing Marty to his best skill doesn’t do him justice, as he’s also a motormouth schemer who will do almost anything to achieve his dreams. He doesn’t have any qualms about wooing married women like neighbor Rachel (Odessa A’zion) or actress Kay Stone (Gwyneth Paltrow), or hiding his true ping pong skills to win money in scams with friends like Wally (Tyler the Creator).

Marty is seemingly on the go the entire movie, whether it’s trying to convince Kay’s millionaire husband Milton Rockwell (Kevin O’Leary) to fund his table tennis ambitions; or trying to track down the dog of Ezra (Abel Ferrara), a man he accidentally injures; or trying to avoid the ire of the boss at the shoe store where he works. Just when you think he might slow down, he’s off to the races on another plan or adventure.

Directed by Josh Safdie and written by Safdie and frequent co-writer Ronald Bronstein, the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives, and yet the throughline of Marty keeps everything tightly connected. His particular type of brash behavior turns much of the film into a comedy as he does and says things that are both shocking and thrilling.

Another thing that makes the movie sing is the fantastic characterization by Safdie and Bronstein. Almost every person who is given a speaking line in the film has a moment where they pop, which speaks to airtight dialogue that the writers have created. Characters will be introduced and then disappear for long stretches of time, and yet because they make such an impression the first time they’re on screen, it’s easy to pick up their thread right away.

Safdie, as he’s done previously with brother Bennie (Uncut Gems), calls on a host of well-known non-actors or people with interesting faces/vibes to inhabit supporting roles, and to a person they are crucial to the film’s success. O’Leary (of Shark Tank fame), rapper Tyler the Creator, director Ferrara, magician Penn Jillette, and fashion designer Isaac Mizrahi each deliver knockout performances. The relative unknowns who play smaller roles are just as impressive, making each beat of the film feel naturalistic.

Leading the way is the powerhouse performance by Chalamet. For one person to believably play both the famously reserved Dylan and also a firecracker like Marty is astonishing, and this role cements Chalamet’s status as his generation’s movie star. A’zion is a rising star who gets great moments as Marty’s on-again/off-again love interest. Paltrow pops in and out of the film, lighting up the screen every time she appears. Fran Drescher as Marty’s mom and Sandra Bernhard as a neighbor also pay dividends in small roles.

Josh Safdie’s first solo directorial effort is unlike any other movie this year, or maybe even this century. Thanks to its breakneck storytelling, a magnificent performance by Chalamet, and countless intangibles that Safdie employs expertly, the film smacks viewers in the face repeatedly and demands that they come back for more.

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Marty Supreme opens in theaters on December 25.

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