Plan Your Weekend: November 18 to 21, 2021

Things to Do All Weekend Long

• 13th Annual Houston Cinema Arts Festival Around Houston | Daily | Virtual – While the live events wrap on Wednesday, November 17, you can still stream screenings celebrating and depicting the Third Coast (that’s us!) online until Monday. Prices and times vary.
• Rooftop Wine Dinner at Liberty Kitchen at the Treehouse | Thursday & Friday – Liberty Kitchen’s Memorial City location has partnered with WineEnthusiast Magazine’s 2020 Wine Maker of the Year, Brewer Clifton, for a special four-course dinner prepared by Executive Chef Emily Trusler. $199. Seating times vary.
• Chocolate & Art Show: 10th Anniversary at Sharespace Downtown | Thursday & Friday – Mark 10 years of up-and-coming artists with live music, live art and complimentary chocolate at the return of the two-night event. $20; $50 VIP. 8pm to 2am both nights.
• Friendsgiving Mulled Wine Making at Buy the Glass Wine Bar | Thursday to Saturday − Just in time for the holidays, learn to make your own mulled wine at an interactive class. $39.95. Advance registration recommended. Offered daily on the hour from 11am to 6pm. 
• Chantal Warehouse Sale in Northwest Houston | Friday to Sunday | No Cover – Stock up for your home or for holiday giving when Chantal—now celebrating its 50th year—opens up its warehouse doors for the final weekend of the popular annual shopping event. Expect high quality cookware and home goods up to 75% off. Times vary daily.
• Home for the Holidays Gift Market Katy at the Merrell Center | Friday to Sunday – The largest gift market in Katy returns with 150 merchants, featuring many new, unique, and one-of-a-kind gifts for all holiday season needs. Expect home decor, handcrafted items, and more. 
• Reptilian Nation Expo at NRG Center | Saturday & Sunday – Wig out to thousands of reptiles, spiders, bugs and more, and shop for supplies, live food, enclosures, and more. $15. 10am to 6pm both days.
• BrickLive Houston: Animal Paradise at Railway Heights | Saturday & Sunday – Take a good, close look at wild animals built by one million bricks. It’s striking, paws-worthy, and perfect for all families. $12; $7 for ages 4 to 12; free for 3 and under. Advance purchase required. 1pm to 9pm both days. 
• 47th Annual Texas Renaissance Festival in Todd Mission | Saturday & Sunday –  Don your kilt or favorite tartan during the highland fling, complete with a bonnie knees contest. Both days conclude with a fireworks show. Prices vary. 9am to 8pm each day.
• Love & Make DIY Workshops in Rice Village | Daily – Grab a friend, date, or just take yourself to one of Love & Make’s multiple DIY workshops, including the popular Home Fragrance Design and Candle-making hands on classes. Times and prices vary.

Pre-Thanksgiving & Friendsgiving Events, Museum Exhibits & More Pop-Up Markets

• Pre-Thanksgiving & Friendsgiving Events Around Houston | Saturday & Sunday – The big feast may not be until next weekend, but there are plenty of ways to prep for it or build up to the big day this week, including a cooking class, outdoor festival, markets, and more.
• Thanksgiving Dine-In Reservations & To-Go Orders | Daily – And with Turkey Day just around the corner next week, be sure to lock in your excellent meal plans with in-restaurant dining options or delicious professional take-out meals (most which need to be ordered in advance. 
• Limited Time Museum Exhibits & Art Installations Around Greater Houston | Daily | Many FREE – Explore the many striking, stunning, and diverse exhibits exploring history, science, art, culture, and creativity around the Greater Houston metro area.
• More Outdoor Markets & Pop-Up Shopping Events Around Greater Houston | Daily | Many No Cover – With so many to choose from these days, you can browse, explore, and shop at one or all of Houston’s multiplying outdoor markets, many with live entertainment, food trucks, and other distractions.

Theater & Arts Performances

• Broadway Across America presents Tootsie at the Hobby Center | Daily – The ‘80s movie comedy starring a genderbending Dustin Hoffman comes to life in this musical adaptation about a struggling actor who masquerades as a woman to land a part and accidentally becomes a massive star. Tickets start at $35. Times vary.
• Motown Christmas at Ensemble Theatre | Opens Thursday – Celebrate the start of the holiday season with an ensemble of traditional Christmas carols paired with the soulful sounds of Motown musicians like Marvin Gaye, the Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, and the Supremes. Showtimes vary.
• Houston Symphony: Hélène Grimaud Plays Ravel at Jones Hall | Friday to Sunday – Get swept away as brilliant French pianist Hélène Grimaud performs one of the greatest of all French masterworks, Ravel’s jazz-infused Concerto in G. Showtimes vary.
• Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol at Alley Theatre | Opens Friday – The Alley’s holiday tradition returns to the stage with a brand new production of the classic tale featuring Ebenezer Scrooge and his wintry visits from the ghosts of Christmas Past, Present, and Future. Showtimes vary.
• Catastrophic Theatre presents 4.48 Psychosis at MATCH  | Opens Friday – Poet and performance artist T. Lavois Thiebaud heads this show that explores identity, depression, dysphoria and the body/soul dilemma. Showtimes vary.
• Opera in the Heights presents Il Trovatore at Lambert Hall | Ends Sunday – A towering Verdi masterpiece, this enduring opera is a story of love, dark secrets and an obsession for vengeance. Final performance is on Sunday. Tickets start at $74.50. Times vary.
• Cirque du Soleil‘s Allegría at Sam Houston Race Park | Daily – Cirque du Soleil’s return to H-Town presents its classic show, Allegría, reimagined for a new generation. Tickets start at $50; VIP and other packages available, but you may find cheaper or better seats on the online resale market. Showtimes vary.
• Mildred’s Umbrella presents El Huracán at the DeLuxe Theater | Daily – This story of four generations of Cuban women—presenting its final performance this Sunday—is an examination of family, rebuilding and hope. Pay-what-you-can. Showtimes vary.

Tickets to Houston Pro Sports Games

• Houston Rockets Tickets on Sale | Sponsored − Save on 2020 Rockets games with cheaper, better or hard-to-find seats on TicketNetwork’s resale market.
• Houston Texans Tickets at NRG Stadium | Sponsored – Hit the gridiron with seats to cheer on the Texans. Search for cheaper, better, or hard-to-find seats so you can see Houston Texans at home, with the TicketNetowork online marketplace.

Neighborhood & Destination Highlights

• Must Do Things Around Arts District Houston − Get to know the artist compounds that surround Sawyer Yards, interspersed with vivid murals, great dining, tasting breweries, Downtown views, and more. 
• Must Do Things in Sugar Land − Explore the majestic BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Hindu temple, wander through Sugar Land’s impressive park system, get your science and dino fix at a HMNS satellite location, and more.

• Brew Lights at Houston Zoo – Enjoy the stunning Zoo Lights displays with a Saint Arnold beer, hard seltzer, or spiked hot chocolate in hand. $35 for general admission; $45 for a brew pass that includes 2 drink tickets. 5:30pm to 10pm.
• Library Voyage with Apollo Chamber Players in Concert at Evelyn Meador Library | FREE | Virtual Option – The Apollo quartet is joined by Grammy-winning bandoneonist Hector del Curto and narrator Sarah Pearl Hall, a member of the Blackfeet and Hunkpapa Sioux tribes, at a special hour-long concert and presentation in Seabrook. Livestream available. 6pm.
• French Food & Wine Festival at The Cannon −Buy your palette a one-way ticket to France at this tasting event featuring more than 20 restaurants, French wines & champagne, French music, and more surprises. $155; $255 with bubbles pass. 6:30pm to 10:30pm.
• Disney’s Cruella Movie Screening at Midtown Park | FREE − Watch Emma Stone vamp her way through Cruella de Ville’s live action origin story at a free screening of the 2021 hit. 7pm.
• Boy Pablo in Concert at House of Blues − Catch of live show by Chilean–Norwegian singer songwriter Nicolas Muñoz’s indie pop music project in Downtown. $20. Show at 8pm.
• Baby Keem at Warehouse Live – Catch a live show from LA-based rapper and cousin to Kendrick Lamar, who debuted with the album, The Melodic Blue, earlier this fall. $30 in advance; $35 day of the show. 8pm.
• Wizard Fest at SpindleTap Brewery | No Cover – Celebrate like the “boy who lived”, with Harry Potter- and Wizarding World-inspired drink specials, trivia, live DJ, magicians, quidditch pong tournament, and a costume contest. 8pm.

• More Great Things to Do All Weekend Long – Some of the biggest things to do are happening all weekend long. Click here to scroll up and see our list, or browse Houston Experiences to save on museum passes, tours, and more.