Where to Celebrate Dia de los Muertos

17 festive Day of the Dead celebrations taking place across Houston

Discovery Green Dia de lo Muertos Day of the Day

Discovery Green will recognize the holiday with an ofrenda, art activities, and more.

Courtesy of Discovery Green

Call us wacky, but whenever this time of year rolls around, we get more psyched about the Dia de los Muertos (aka Day of the Dead) events going down than anything Halloween-related.

Maybe it’s because, after dealing with all the trick-or-treating and drunk people in Spirit Halloween outfits, Dia de los Muertos is a two-day holiday where people can learn about and/or engage in Hispanic culture, as well as honor friends and family who have passed away.

For those interested in observing the holiday, here is a rundown of some events taking place across the Houston area:

Friday

City Place will kick off its fourth annual, two-day Dia de los Muertos celebration with a free Pix on the Plaza screening of Coco. On Saturday, a ceremonial altar will be unveiled for the community to recognize their dearly departed loved ones. 6:45 pm (4 pm Saturday).

Discovery Green’s Day of the Dead celebration features a community ofrenda (built by Houston artist Angel Quesada) to help visitors remember their loved ones. Families can enjoy hands-on art activities, artist demos, vendors, and more. 7 pm.

Downtown Houston+ will have a two-day weekend celebration at Trebly Park. It will feature a family movie night, the unveiling of a community ofrenda, and a festive Día de los Muertos Mercado with handcrafted items available for purchase. 6 pm (2 pm Saturday).

Locopotions in Magnolia will host its first Dia de los Muertos Celebration. The John Barraza Project will kick things off on Friday night, while Mike Casey and Amado J. Garcia will be there for Saturday performances. 7 pm (3 pm Saturday).

Metropolis & Extravaganza will have a Dia de los Muertos: Catrina Edition. There will be a Catrina costume contest, where the winner will receive $600. Girls get in free all night and guys get in free until 11 pm. 9 pm.

Miller Outdoor Theatre will have help for its celebration. FLAS and Índigo (Indigo Theater Group) return to celebrate “Calavera con Calavera” (Skulls), an original piece written by Indigo president Eddie Gonzalez, on its 11th anniversary. 7:30 pm.

The National Museum of Funeral History will have a Day of the Dead Market, filled with music, shopping, and costumes/makeup. Over 40 small business vendors, with a mix of Hispanic heritage, oddity, and artisan cottage vendors, will be there. 6 pm.

Old Town Harrisburg will have a three-day party called Ay de mi llorona “Dia de muertos.” An exciting raffle (or loteria) and market will kick things off on Friday, while Saturday and Sunday will have an art exhibition, live music, and ballet folklorico. 1 pm.

Urbe, Hugo Ortega's street food-inspired restaurant in Uptown Park , will commemorate the day with a lavish party featuring food stations, drink specials, a DJ and mariachis, face painting, a photobooth, festive decorations, and prizes for the best dressed attendees. Tickets, $85 per person plus tax and gratuity, are available online.

Saturday

East End Houston is welcoming folks to remember their friends and family who have passed on at its Day of the Dead celebration. The celebration includes an exciting local market featuring local businesses selling food and other items. 11 am.

Gloria’s Nightlife wants Houstonians to dance the night away this Dia de los Muertos. They’ll have live music from Orquesta Mi Rumba and the hottest beats from DJ Boris. Customers are encouraged to show up in your best catrina or sugar skull (or calavera) attire. 11 pm.

Historic Houston Cemetery will have a Dia de los Muertos gathering for those who want to honor and celebrate the memories of departed loved ones. They will have face painting, costumes, dancers, food, drinks, and more. 10 am.

Hope Farms will have a Day of the Dead event where children and their families can explore the rich culture behind this holiday. Kids will engage in activities including learning about the ofrenda, creating mementos for the altar, and more. 2 pm.

MECA will have its two-day, 24th Annual Día de los Muertos Festival. This free community event invites Houstonians to experience the rich traditions of Mexico's Day of the Dead through art, music, and cultural expression. 11 am.

Scout Bar has a Dia de los Muertos Music Spectacular, for people who’d like to spend their Day of the Dead rocking out. Los Skarnales is scheduled to be the headliner, along with opening acts InDaSkies and Marshall Falcon & the Texas Muthatruckas. 7:30 pm.

Tejas Brewery & Taproom will have a vibrant and festive celebration, complete with a DJ, photo booth, costume contest, and more. Plus, enjoy a limited-time menu featuring tamales, warm champurrado, mini conchas, and traditional pan de muerto. 8 pm.

Verde Garden will have a two-day fest with face painting, folklorico dancers, live mariachi performances, live DJs, food and drink specials, and more. Houstonians can also contribute to Verde Garden’s special ofrenda. 11 am.

day of the dead holidays dia de los muertos

Movie Review

Anthony Bourdain biopic 'Tony' shows the chef at a critical moment

Photo courtesy of A24

Antonio Banderas and Dominic Sessa in Tony.

The reason that most biopics fail is because they try to do too much, telling a “cradle-to-grave” story or one taking place over a long period of time that only scratches the surface of understanding the full measure of a particular person. A better approach is the one taken in the new film Tony, which uses a formative period of time in the life of Anthony Bourdain to identify a larger truth about him.

The film finds Tony (Dominic Sessa), as he liked to be known at the time, in his early college years, trying to BS his way through life. He tells lies to professors, his parents (Dagmara Dominczyk and Rich Sommer), his old classmate Nancy (Emilia Jones), and even himself in an attempt to skate by without actually doing anything.

When one con falls through, he follows Nancy to Provincetown, Massachusetts to try to find her. A series of events result in him getting drunk in a restaurant owned by a chef (Antonio Banderas), who takes him in. Tony starts working as a dishwasher and hanging out with Sal (Leo Woodall), who barely has his own act together. With no other options, he spends his summer on Cape Cod, hoping something will happen to change his lot in life.

Written and directed by Matt Johnson (Blackberry) and co-written by three others, the film gives barely a hint of the man who would go on to become a celebrity chef and acclaimed author. It does indicate that his brashness was always there, but this Tony is aimless and too often rash in his decision-making. His biggest success in the film only comes when he finally recognizes that lying has brought him nothing but misery, and that telling the truth, even if it’s painful, sets him free.

The restaurant at which Tony works, the now-defunct The Flagship, is the heartbeat of the film, containing a motley crew of people who bond over slinging mostly mediocre seafood. Johnson evolves Tony’s relationship with the chef (who’s never given a proper name) into a strong one as Tony spends each night in a hammock on the chef’s porch, only to be woken up each morning with a pot of water thrown in his face.

Tony continues to pursue Nancy for most of the film, and even though their relationship is not fruitful in terms of storytelling, it serves to enforce the mindset of the young man. Nancy only exists as an object of desire for Tony, with just the barest touch of an interior life of her own. While the intent of including a romantic interest for Tony makes sense in a way, it ultimately is the weakest part of the film.

Sessa, who made a bold film debut in 2023’s The Holdovers, has turned into one of the industry’s bright young stars. He embodies the moodiness of Bourdain, stalking around the town with a scowl and lanky walk that tells the audience everything they need to know about the character. Banderas and Woodall (Tuner) bring different types of great energy, and while Jones’ part is not great, she proves that — following CODA — she’s going to be around for a long time, as well.

Fans of Bourdain may lament that Tony doesn’t show anything from the years in which he became famous, but the small and personal film makes a great case that the period it depicts is equally significant to his life. It demonstrates that Tony’s summer on Cape Cod gave him some direction, a reason for being that allowed him to become who he eventually became.

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Tony opens in theaters on August 21.

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Where to Celebrate Dia de los Muertos

17 festive Day of the Dead celebrations taking place across Houston

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