2010-05-01/31 Monthly LOVIEE

posted 2010-04-30T18:30 last mod. 2010-04-30T23:30

Welcome to May, the last full month before the summer. And it’s definitely starting to feel like summer, too. Lots of good times are ahead this month and it’ll only get better as we get into the summer.

All Month

Keep It Slick: Infiltrating Capitalism with The Yes Men, DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway, Wed-Sat noon-6pm. The Yes Men pose as seminar speakers and spokesmen to expose the misdeeds of corporations; this exhibit documents the history of the group. Exhibit continues through June 5. 10-DWYM

Saturday 05-01

Mayday Mayhem On Main, Continental Club, 3700 Main, doors at 5pm, cover charge not mentioned. Featuring: George Kinney & The Golden Dawn, Shapes have Fangs, Something Fierce, Roky Moon & Bolt, Spain Colored Orange, the Mahas, Brandon West & the Black Hats, the Big Black Spiders, Davey Crocket, No Resistance, & Anarchitex. 10-M05-1

Thursday 05-06 through Saturday 05-08

Mixed Rep, Hobby Center (Zilkha Hall), 7:30pm, $24.25-$81.25. The final performance of the season from Dominic Walsh Dance Theater features a smorgasbord of contemporary ballet: a revival of Mauro Bigonzetti’s Pression; Matthew Bourne’s White Swan duet from Swan Lake; and Walsh’s own I Napoletani. 10-M05-2

Saturday 05-08

Orange Show Art Car Parade, Sam Houston Park, 1pm. The annual showcase of artwork on wheels rides yet again. 10-M05-3

Continuing through Sunday 05-16

Man From Nebraska, Stages Reportory Theater, 3201 Allen Pkwy., Wed-Thu 7:30pm, Fri-Sat 8pm, Sun 3pm, $26-$36. Nebraska is a story of a man who wakes up one day and realizes he no longer believes in God, and the resultant rediscovery of his spirituality. 10-NEBRASKA

Friday 05-28

Steel Lounge Underground, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, 5216 Montrose, 8-11pm. Two visual art exhibits are joined by a backdrop of local musicans and DJs. The exhibits are Perspectives 170: Cruz Ortiz (honoring the namesake artist from San Antonio) and Hand+Made: The Performative Impulse in Art. The musicial artists this month are: DJ Melodic, Andrew Karnavas & Bart Maloney, DJ Little Martin, and Fly Nice featuring Karina Nistal & Fly Girl T. 10-M05-4

posted by Shawn K. Quinn

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2010-04-26/05-02 Weekly LOVIEE

posted 2010-04-26T18:10 last mod. 2010-04-26T23:11

The end of April means we are only one more month away from summer. Heck, this being Houston, it already feels like summer on some days.

I know a few of these are a bit lacking in details; I was a bit pressed for time this week. If any of these are particularly good or bad, do let me know.

Tuesday 04-27

Coheed & Cambria, Warehouse Live, 813 St. Emanuel, doors 7pm, show 8pm, $28 advance/$31 day of show. Progressive/punk/emo rockers from Nyack, New York (approx. 25 miles north of NYC), who won two MTVU Woodie Awards in 2004, a Metal Hammer Award in 2006, and a Kerrang! Award in 2008. 10-M04-6

Wednesday 04-28

An Evening with David Sedaris, Jones Hall, 8pm, $22-$57. Humorist/author also known for humor pieces featured on NPR’s This American Life. Presented by the Society for the Performing Arts. 10-W17-1

Wednesday 04-28 through Sunday 05-02 (and beyond)

Man From Nebraska, Stages Reportory Theater, 3201 Allen Pkwy., Wed-Thu 7:30pm, Fri-Sat 8pm, Sun 3pm, $26-$36. Nebraska is a story of a man who wakes up one day and realizes he no longer believes in God, and the resultant rediscovery of his spirituality. 10-NEBRASKA

Friday 04-30

Bright Men of Learning/Arthur Yoria/The Gary, Rudyard’s, 2010 Waugh, 10pm, cover charge not listed. 10-W17-2

Opening reception for Keep It Slick: Infiltrating Capitalism with The Yes Men, DiverseWorks, 1117 East Freeway, 6-8pm. The Yes Men pose as seminar speakers and spokesmen to expose the misdeeds of corporations; this exhibit documents the history of the group. Exhibit continues through June 5; regular hours are Wed-Sat noon-6pm. 10-DWYM/W17-3

The Dukes Old School Oldies, Bohemeos, 708 Telephone, 8:30-11:30pm. 10-W17-3

Saturday 05-01

Mayday Mayhem On Main, Continental Club, 3700 Main, doors at 5pm, cover charge not mentioned. Featuring: George Kinney & The Golden Dawn, Shapes have Fangs, Something Fierce, Roky Moon & Bolt, Spain Colored Orange, the Mahas, Brandon West & the Black Hats, the Big Black Spiders, Davey Crocket, No Resistance, & Anarchitex. 10-M05-1

Sunday 05-02

Third Ear Caravan, Bohemeos, 708 Telephone, 1-5pm. 10-W17-4

posted by Shawn K. Quinn

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Recap: HITS Theatre presents Cats at Miller Outdoor (10-CATSMOT)

posted 2010-04-26T00:12

It is so easy to forget what it’s like to see an event at a venue like the Miller Outdoor Theatre when one hasn’t been in months. And I don’t like to knock a venue at all, but a show like Cats performed by such a great group as HITS Theatre deserves better than this.

(This recap is for the Saturday 04-17 show, when I went. Others may have and probably did differ slightly.)

And I do mean both of those sincerely. Cats is a great musical; there’s a reason it was on Broadway for most of two decades. The quality of the performance was well above student level and could easily have passed for that of an adult cast. Spectacular dancing, great singing, and superb acting made for an easily enjoyable play. I noticed what may have been a couple of minor mistakes here and there, but everyone is human after all, and even the performers on Broadway goof every now and again. There were no particular standouts, but in this case that means the performers were great across the board and that’s a good thing. If this group represents the feature of live theatre in Houston, we have nothing to worry about because it’s going to be great.

JoAnne Woodard mentioned quite a few people involved with the show at the beginning; I did not catch all of the names, but it was quite an impressive list, including the set designer, sound designer, choreographers, and lighting designer. Their work complemented that of the cast nicely and helped make the show a success.

Which brings me to perhaps the most difficult part of this recap, that being a mini-rant on the kind of people that go to shows at “the Miller” as it’s often called. I was with my mom and she was sitting on my left. On her left was a quite chatty group of four younger women who could easily have done their socializing at a local coffee shop (I’m pretty sure at least the Starbucks at Montrose and Hawthorne was still open, if not the two in the Texas Medical Center).

There were people in my line of sight standing or walking by at rather inopportune times, and maybe some will say it’s partly our fault for not trying to get a seat in the covered area (we were seated about halfway up the hill). There was a younger woman that sat on a folding chair in front of me toward the end of the second act, on the part of the hill where folding chairs weren’t supposed to be allowed. Granted it was not a raised chair but it raised her up a good three inches or so, enough to put the top of her head into the bottom of my view of the stage where it would not have been otherwise.

Regardless, as much as I love this city and its arts scene, it pains me to see otherwise great shows booked at the Miller just knowing we have to put up with some of these things. If you got seats in the covered area, then none of this should have been a problem for you. But please, if you see shows at the Miller and you wind up on the hill, try not to be part of the problem.

(Note: This was written last week, and was supposed to post then but for some reason it did not.)

posted by Shawn K. Quinn

1 comment

 

2010-04-19/25 Weekly LOVIEE

posted 2010-04-20T14:08 last mod. 2010-04-20T14:07

And here we are, closing in on the end of April, which means only one more month until summer. Spring has sprung, and there are lots of great things to do this week.

Wednesday 04-21

Porcupine Tree and Bigelf, House of Blues, 1204 Caroline, 7pm, $18.75-$50. Two progressive rock bands; Porcupine Tree hails from the UK, Bigelf from Los Angeles. 10-W16-1

Thursday 04-22

Beetle and Quadraphonic, Continental Club, 3700 Main, 7pm (Beetle)/10pm (Quadraphonic), no cover. 10-W16-2

Friday 04-23

Murals Under the Stars, Discovery Green, 8pm. Digital projections of murals by various artists, including Diego Rivera and Clemente Orozco, and a lecture given by Gregorio Luke, the Latin American art expert curating the show. 10-W16-3

Jimmie Vaughan and the Tilt-A-Whirl Band, Warehouse Live, 813 St. Emanuel, 8pm, $22 (advance)/$25 (day of show). Jimmie is one of the founding members of The Fabulous Thunderbirds and the older brother of Stevie Ray Vaughan. 10-W16-4

Saturday 04-24

Pasadena Napalm Division/Burn the Boats/HRA, Rudyard’s, 2010 Waugh, time not listed, $10. A trio of hardcore metal bands. 10-W16-5

Chris Knight and Asylum Street Spankers, McGonigel’s Mucky Duck, 7:30pm, $20. Americana/folk. 10-W16-6

posted by Shawn K. Quinn

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