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    swing for the fences

    Taiwan-based batting cages and arcade opens first U.S. location in Katy

    Brianna McClane
    Apr 2, 2025 | 2:30 pm

    A sports and leisure venture from Taiwan has arrived in Houston, with the aim to bring America’s favorite pastime to a broader audience.

    Taroko Sports unveiled its first American venue in Katy last week, featuring 12 state-of-the-art batting cages, two pitching mounds, and a wide range of arcade games spread over 20,000 square feet.

    Taroko Sports in Katy

    Alex Montoya

    Katy has gained a new sports and entertainment destination with the opening of Taroko Sports.

    “With this opening, we are thrilled to bring a unique entertainment concept to one of Houston’s fastest-growing and most vibrant communities,” Gordon Hsieh, founder and CEO of TRK Corporation, said in a statement. “We view Taroko as a place for all ages and baseball skill levels, and we are excited to welcome those who have hopes of playing in the big leagues to those who have never picked up a baseball bat before to our concept.”

    Players can channel their inner Jose Altuve regardless of experience, with fast-pitch and slow-pitch softball cages, as well as eight baseball lanes featuring adjustable pitch speeds from 50 mph to 80 mph. For those who dream of being the next Framber Valdez, Taroko has two pitcher mounds with pitching challenges to complete.

    “Batting cages have become ubiquitous with training and are too often seen only as a means for serious baseball athletes to improve their hitting prowess as they seek to advance in their career,” Hsieh said. “Our goal is to broaden the appeal of the batting cage, which can be fun for all baseball skill levels, and bring it out of tucked away facilities.”

    Located at 24539 Katy Freeway, this venue offers much more than just baseball. Its expansive arcade boasts games such as basketball, air hockey, first-person shooters, and electronic darts. Patrons can try their hand at miniature bowling (no special shoes required) and experience immersive 5D racing simulators. A card system is used to pay for each attraction, with prices varying accordingly.

    When it’s time to refuel, Taroko offers a menu featuring pizzas priced from $11 to $21 and chicken wings for $12. Customers can also enjoy $4 appetizers, including tots, fries, corn dogs, and pretzels. With beer and wine available, plus 13 large-screen TVs — 8 dedicated exclusively to sports — it’s easy to watch an Astros game with friends before hitting the batting cages.

    The Katy launch sets the stage for a broader expansion, with venues planned in California, Arizona, New York, Florida, and throughout Texas. TRK Corporation is no stranger to expansion, having concepts spread across 36 international locations.

    Taroko Sports is open Monday through Friday from 11 am to midnight and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to midnight.

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    Movie Review

    Billie Eilish takes fans behind the scenes in immersive 3D tour film

    Alex Bentley
    May 7, 2026 | 3:30 pm
    Billie Eilish in Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D
    Photo by Henry Hwu/courtesy of Paramount Pictures
    Billie Eilish in Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D.

    In 2021, at the tender age of 19, singer Billie Eilish was already the subject of a documentary, The World’s a Little Blurry. At that point, she had only released one album, so the film threatened to feel too early for such treatment. The ensuing five years have only made her a bigger star, though, so in many ways that movie now feels prescient for the person on display in the new concert documentary with the unwieldy title of Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D.

    Directed by Eilish and blockbuster filmmaker James Cameron, the film takes viewers inside Eilish’s 2024-2025 tour in support of her latest album, 2023’s Hit Me Hard and Soft. Filmed mostly at her series of shows in Manchester, England, the movie is a showcase for Eilish’s music, but it also serves as a smaller exploration of the type of person she is, as well as the impact she has had on her legion of fans.

    The draw of the film is the use of Cameron’s beloved 3D technology, which he has employed in each of the three Avatar films. Unlike in those films, where the 3D has the odd effect of making the visuals too realistic for their own good, the technique brings an intimacy to the large-scale show that underscores the unique bond the singer has with her supporters.

    Eilish and Cameron go back and forth between performances at the concert to behind-the-scenes sequences, detailing the enormous effort it takes to put on a show like that and how Eilish spends her time getting ready for it. As in The World’s a Little Blurry, this film continues to portray the singer as down-to-Earth, someone who yearns to maintain the connection to her fans that she’s had since she released her first single, “Ocean Eyes,” 10 years ago.

    And as the many emotional songs in Eilish’s concert playlist prove, the feeling from the crowd is mutual. While Eilish has multiple bangers like “Bad Guy,” “Therefore I Am,” and the Charli XCX collaboration “Guess,” it’s the sad songs like “Everything I Wanted,” “Happier Than Ever,” and the Oscar-winning Barbie anthem, “What Was I Made For?” that hit the hardest. The depth of feeling emanating from her many sobbing fans singing along to crushing songs cannot be understated.

    For audiences of the film, though, it’s the breadth of camera angles and shot choices that make it truly dynamic. There are cameras everywhere, including in the crowd, inside a cube at the center of the stage that rises and descends, following Eilish as she traipses every inch of the long, rectangular stage, and even a small one Eilish uses to bring an extra personal touch to the in-arena screen. Combined, they capture the complete energy of the concert, something that is not always the case in a film of this type.

    Eilish has almost as many movies — two — as she does albums — three — which borders on overkill for a singer of her age. But both her music and the movies show her to be a person who knows the responsibility of being a celebrity, someone who understands that her fans are the reason she’s famous at all. Her career may go up or down from here, but it’s clear she’s already made a huge impact on those who love her most.

    ---

    Billie Eilish: Hit Me Hard and Soft - The Tour Live in 3D opens in theaters on May 8.

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