Musical Marvel

Phoebe and Bobby Tudor
Phoebe and Bobby Tudor

Always a highly anticipated event, this year’s Symphony Opening Night marked the start of a social season celebrating the recovery of Houston’s art scene post-Harvey. The evening began with a concert featuring renowned pianist Yuja Wang, who mesmerized the crowd with her surprisingly powerful performance.


The petite and stylish musician threw her whole body into works by Rachmaninoff, and into a long piece, accompanied by the full symphony, the latter played with only her left hand. After the concert, 400 partygoers made their way to The Corinthian for dinner and dancing. The décor recalled black-and-white keys, and even the desserts were in the shape of tiny chocolate pianos, filled with delicious mousse.

The Royal Dukes Band got the black-tie-clad crowd on their feet, but only after a lucrative auction, which contributed to the evening’s till of $750,000, and included a Model M player piano signed by Wang herself. Jo Dee and Cliff Wright were the lucky recipients. Bravo, bravo!

Gustavo Gimeno and Yuja Wang
Party People
Lawyers Can Be Cool — Especially Lauren Varnado and Energy Experts at Michelman & Robinson!

Lauren Varnado

Law firms aren’t typically associated with cool, but then again, Michelman & Robinson, LLP is no ordinary law firm. Fact is, M&R is different, special and, yes, cool. Especially the lawyers in its Houston office, which is the hub of the firm’s robust energy practice.

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Decadent pasta and wine awaits at Milton's.

IT WAS LOVE at first bite of the tender, housemade pasta — think mushrooms, garlic and hints of lemon and white wine — at the preview party of new Milton’s in Rice Village, which officially bows Sept. 27.

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A detail of one of Conley's new metal sculptures

IT’S BEEN A while (2017 to be exact) since we featured Houston metal sculptor Tara Conley in our inaugural A Day in the Life of the Arts photo essay. That image of Conley in her Montrose studio, dressed in jeans, a long-sleeve flannel shirt, and a welders mask, holding a blow torch and staring down the camera while crouched behind one of her elegant steel sculptures, certainly conveyed the “work” that goes into being a “working artist.”

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Art + Entertainment