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    weekend event planner

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

    Craig Lindsey
    Feb 16, 2023 | 6:00 am
    La Diabla Bar Houston

    La Diabla Retro Bar opens this weekend.

    La Diabla Retro Bar Houston/Facebook

    This weekend marks the last of Mardi Gras! Galveston, as the party on the island wraps up on Fat Tuesday, February 21. Those is Sugar Land don't have to head to Galveston to celebrate the season, as Pardy Gras hits the 'burb on Saturday.

    A cool retro bar dedicated to '80s and '90s Mexico City pop culture (how's that for niche?) opens this weekend, and a James Beard Award winner pops up for a special collab with a local restaurant. Look for some cool art openings showcasing Islamic and Asian art, plus an age-old comedy with a special twist for Valentine's Day.

    Enjoy; here are your best bets for the weekend.

    Thursday, February 16

    Musiqa Mixer | New Galleries for Art of the Islamic Worlds at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

    To celebrate the upcoming opening of the Hossein Afshar Galleries for Art of the Islamic Worlds, enjoy a free Musiqa Mixer concert in the Kinder Building, with music selections inspired by the art that will be on view in the Law Building. The program features music by Aftab Darvishi, Erberk Eryılmaz, Gity Razaz, and Kareem Roustom. Performers include Caio Alves Diniz, Jackson Guillen, Jacob Schafer, and Sergein Yap. 6:30 pm.

    Cone Man Running Productions and Boiling Point Players present The Importance of Being Earnest

    The Importance of Being Earnest is a trivial comedy for serious people, just in time for Valentine's Day. Do you want to know how important it is to be earnest when in love? First performed on February 14, 1895 in London, this is a farcical comedy in which the protagonists maintain fake alibis to escape social obligations. What happens when they fall in love and their fake alibis are discovered? This production from Cone Man Running Productions and Boiling Point Players will feature an all-female cast. 8 pm.

    La Diabla Retro Bar Grand Opening

    La Diabla Retro Bar by La Calle Tacos, a bold, new nightclub and bar from the authentic Mexican street food masters, will open its doors in Houston’s Market Square Park this weekend. At its heart, La Diabla is an ode to '80s and '90s Mexico City pop culture, joyfully expressed through cocktails, chelas (beers), music, and art. The grand opening will feature local music artists Jaky Alarcon, Stereo Cover, and DJ Cris, while guests sip frozen margaritas, mojitos and piña coladas, and enjoy mouthwatering flautas. 8 pm.

    Friday, February 17

    BBCC Artist Showcase Opening Mixer at Project Row Houses

    This event will display artwork from seven Building Blocks of Creative Careers (BBCC) program participants and established local artists they were paired with, serving as mentors during this six-month process. Throughout the course of this program, the paired mentees and mentors have worked together to develop each mentees’ creative practice. Enjoy light bites by Shakti Baum, tunes by Mookie Copeland, and celebrate Cohort 2 and their growth in the Artist Mentorship Program. 6 pm.

    Asia Society Texas Center presents Mekong: SOUL

    In their new, multi-disciplinary performance piece, Emmy Award-winning musician Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ and composer Jonathan Berger tell three powerful and multi-sensory stories about life on the Mekong River in Southeast Asia. Joined by artists from Southeast Asia, Vân-Ánh Vanessa Võ and Houston’s Apollo Chamber Players present stories about one of this planet's greatest natural phenomena, which sustains not only life, but also mind, body, and soul. 7:30 pm.

    Houston Symphony presents Songs of the Earth Festival: "Debussy’s La mer"

    Debussy’s La mer is one of classical music’s most unforgettable and immersive experiences. Fragments of La mer ebb and flow throughout Tōru Takemitsu’s haunting concerto for two pianos and orchestra, Quotation of Dream. The conclusion of the Songs of the Earth festival, these concerts also offer the chance to experience Toshio Hosokawa’s breathtaking meditation on nature, Autumn Wind, which features a solo role for the shakuhachi (Japanese bamboo flute). 8 pm (2 pm Sunday).

    Saturday, February 18

    Chef Robert McGrath at Leaf & Green

    Local restaurant company Leaf & Grain will host chef/James Beard Award winner Robert McGrath for a special steak collaboration. The company is hosting a guest chef series to celebrate the return of steak to their menu next month. McGrath won the prestigious Best Chef: Southwest JBF award for his Roaring Fork restaurant, and will be collaborating with Leaf & Grain on a Texas "steak nicoise" salad, featuring a fire-roasted tomato vinaigrette. 11 am.

    Pardy Gras at Sugar Land Town Square

    Sugar Land Town Square will transform into the Big Easy for Party Gras! The Square is bringing the best of New Orleans with entertainment by Soul Rebels and DJ Flash Jordan, beverages and bites from The Rouxpour, a street art market, Mardi Gras style bingo, a king cake and oyster-eating contest, and more.Party Gras festivities will be located on Texas Drive. Admission is free, but an RSVP is required. 4 pm.

    16th Annual Houston Film Critics Movie Awards

    Now in its 16th year, the Houston Film Critics Society (HFCS) presents its annual “Oscars-style” event, where the critics vote on their year-end favorites in 17 categories. Hosted by local film critics and movie industry notables, the event also features live, abridged performances of the five Best Song nominees, the awarding of the Texas Independent Film Award, and a few surprises. 7 pm.

    Sunday, February 19

    Lake Houston Home and Outdoor Living Show

    The 3rd Annual Lake Houston Home and Outdoor Show will feature special guest appearances and over 100 exhibitors with the latest in-home products and services on the market. Tom Tynan (HomeShow Radio), Randy Lemmon (host of AM 740 KTRH GardenLine), and Diane Cowen (Houston Chronicle) will all be present. The featured speaker will be Patric Richardson as the Laundry Evangelist, who will share tips on how to wash everything and never use a dry cleaner again. 9 am.

    Alzheimer's Association presents Unforgettable Play

    From the creators of the stage play Forget Me Not comes a story about one family’s journey when a loved one seems to be fading in front of their eyes. After coming to grips with the journey that they must face, life has a new meaning. They see the importance of paying closer attention to warning signs and the importance of taking part in clinical trials in an attempt to cure a disease that has forced them to live in the moment and make unforgettable moments that they can cherish forever. 5 pm.

    Matt Andersen and Mariel Buckley in concert

    Powerhouse vocalist Matt Andersen teams up with indie roots singer-songwriter Mariel Buckley for a show at Dosey Doe in The Woodlands this weekend. The two Canadians will be touring the western United States together to promote their most recent albums – Matt’s The Big Bottle of Joy, coming next month, and Mariel’s Everywhere I Used To Be, released last summer. 7:30 pm.

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    popular

    Movie Review

    Michelle Pfeiffer visits Houston in new Christmas movie Oh. What. Fun.

    Alex Bentley
    Dec 5, 2025 | 3:30 pm
    Michelle Pfeiffer in Oh. What. Fun.
    Photo courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios
    Michelle Pfeiffer in Oh. What. Fun.

    Of all the formulaic movie genres, Christmas/holiday movies are among the most predictable. No matter what the problem is that arises between family members, friends, or potential romantic partners, the stories in holiday movies are designed to give viewers a feel-good ending even if the majority of the movie makes you feel pretty bad.

    That’s certainly the case in Oh. What. Fun., in which Michelle Pfeiffer plays Claire, an underappreciated mom living in Houston with her inattentive husband, Nick (Denis Leary). As the film begins, her three children are arriving back home for Christmas: The high-strung Channing (Felicity Jones) is married to the milquetoast Doug (Jason Schwartzman); the aloof Taylor (Chloë Grace Moretz) brings home yet another new girlfriend; and the perpetual child Sammy (Dominic Sessa) has just broken up with his girlfriend.

    Each of the family members seems to be oblivious to everything Claire does for them, especially when it comes to what she really wants: For them to nominate her to win a trip to see a talk show in L.A. hosted by Zazzy Tims (Eva Longoria). When she accidentally gets left behind on a planned outing to see a show, Claire reaches her breaking point and — in a kind of Home Alone in reverse — she decides to drive across the country to get to the show herself.

    Written and directed by Michael Showalter (The Idea of You), and co-written by Chandler Baker (who wrote the short story on which the film is based), the movie never establishes any kind of enjoyable rhythm. Each of the characters, including competitive neighbor Jeanne (Joan Chen), is assigned a character trait that becomes their entire personality, with none of them allowed to evolve into something deeper.

    The filmmakers lean hard into the idea that Claire is a person who always puts her family first and receives very little in return, but the evidence presented in the story is sketchy at best. Every situation shown in the film is so superficial that tension barely exists, and the (over)reactions by Claire give her family members few opportunities to make up for their failings.

    The most interesting part of the movie comes when Claire actually makes it to the Zazzy Sims show. Even though what happens there is just as unbelievable as anything else presented in the story, Showalter and Baker concoct a scene that allows Claire and others to fully express the central theme of the film, and for a few minutes the movie actually lives up to its title.

    Pfeiffer, given her first leading role since 2020’s French Exit, is a somewhat manic presence, and her thick Texas accent and unnecessary voiceover don’t do her any favors. It seems weird to have such a strong supporting cast with almost nothing of substance to do, but almost all of them are wasted, including Danielle Brooks in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo. The lone exception is Longoria, who is a blast in the few scenes she gets.

    Oh. What. Fun. is far from the first movie to try and fail at becoming a new holiday classic, but the pedigree of Showalter and the cast make this dismal viewing experience extra disappointing. Ironically, overworked and underappreciated moms deserve a much better story than the one this movie delivers.

    ---

    Oh. What. Fun. is now streaming on Prime Video.

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