Spring into the Season with These Fun Events (That Don't Involve Rodeo Crowds)

Spring into the Season with These Fun Events (That Don't Involve Rodeo Crowds)

Houston Arboretum

WE ALL LOVE a Rodeo, but sometimes we need options for events that have a different energy, speed — and crowd size. Check out some artsy, unique happenings around Houston in March!


Bayou City Art Festival

Work by Jasmine Bousie

The alfresco art festival returns to the streets of Downtown March 29-30. Walk the streets, sidewalk, and grounds of Sam Houston Park along Allen Parkway and enjoy hundreds of artist booths, a craft beer garden, live music, craft stations and more! This year's spring fest features four Houston-area college art students in a special exhibit. Maryam Abdullahi of Houston Community College, Jasmine Bousie of the University of Houston Downtown, Tetzal Cornejo of Rice University, and Ashley Guevara of the University of Houston will debut their artwork while representing their school to showcase and sell their art at Houston's signature art festival.

'Monarch Story' at the Houston Arboretum

The migratory path of the Monarch butterfly goes through Texas, and the Houston Arboretum & Nature Center has erected an interactive art installation celebrating the beautiful creature and its habitat! A collection of larger-than-life sculptures by artist Michelle Matthews is located near the Butterfly Bungalow just north of the nature playscape at the Arboretum, which in total is home to more than 600 native plant species. Check it out over Spring Break!

'Make Believe: Poems for Hoping Again'

A Houston-based yoga influencer and "handstanding poet" known as the Daily Victorian, Victoria Hutchins is now a published author. The TikTok star (with more than 1.1M followers) celebrates the release of her book, Make Believe: Poems for Hoping Again, at Blue Willow Bookshop on March 19. Blue Willow has sold more than 1,000 pre-orders of her book (and counting!), one of its largest, most successful pre-orders ever. Make Believe tells the story of Victoria abandoning her job as a burnt-out corporate lawyer deep in the midst of a spiritual crisis. She rediscovers herself as a creative person and finds her happiness (and provides the same tools for others).

Dinner and a Show at Brennan's

Mardi Gras doesn't have to be over! On March 16, savor Creole fare at Brennan's and enjoy an evening of top-40 rock from the 1960s and '70s courtesy of P.F. & the Flyers. A three-course dinner — salad, creole-stuffed chicken or beef tenderloin, and the famous bananas Foster — is served at first-come-first-served communal tables of 10-12 guests. Doors open at 5:30pm and entertainment begins at 6:30. Rock on!

Duos, Trios and Teams: ‘Mutual Respect and Trust’ Key at M Penner

Murry & Karen Penner

HOW DID THIS duo come about? We’re a husband-and-wife team in a family business. We met in 5th grade at Kolter Elementary School and became lifelong friends. For the record, we didn’t start dating until a few years later — and we just celebrated our 40th anniversary!

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Lady Stephanie Kimbrell, Cory McGee, and Butler Studio artists, Ani Kushyan, Alissa Goretsky and Elizabeth Hanje (photo by Michelle Watson)

ALL OF THE top performing arts organizations in Houston have now officially opened their 2024-2015 seasons, now that Houston Grand Opera has bowed with a stirring performance of Verdi’s Il trovatore at The Wortham followed by a lavish al fresco dinner in a tent on the plaza out front.The Houston Ballet and the Houston Symphony held their own grand opening night festivities earlier in the fall.

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Art+Culture

Photo by Lynn Lane

HOUSTON GRAND OPERA’S second fall repertoire production is Gioachino Rossini’s Cinderella. The colorful, commedia dell'arte-inspired production opens Friday, Oct. 25, and stars Grammy Award-winning mezzo-soprano Isabel Leonard — a breathtaking brunette beauty, even when doused in soot — in bel canto role of Angelina, known to her mean step-sisters as “Cenerentola.”

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Art + Entertainment