Make the most of your weekend with our Houston Weekend Guide for Thursday, April 24 to Sunday, April 27, 2014.
[quote_box_right]Weekend Shortcuts
Sunday, April 27[/quote_box_right]The final weekend of April 2014 is filled with spring time, wine tastings, crawfish boils, concerts indoors and out, free park celebrations and more. Shell Eco Marathon is taking over Discovery Green by day, with free music and movies by night. At two corners of the greater Houston metro area, Galveston and Sugar Land are each hosting their own wine festivals, with Messina Hof Winery in Bryan (and even farther third corner) vying for wine fanatics attention as well.
Not sure what to do this weekend? We’ve got your back with our handy weekly Weekend Guide.
Things to Do All Weekeend
Shell Eco Marathon at Discovery Green | FREE | Friday through Sunday – See more than 100 teams and thousands of students from across the Americas compete as they put their ultra energy efficient vehicles to the test, seeing who can go the farthest distance with the lease energy used. 8am to 4pm Friday; 8am to 7pm Saturday; 8am to 4:30pm Sunday.- 44th Annual Houston International Festival Celebrating Australia in Downtown | Saturday and Sunday – See more than 40 musical acts on five stages on the first weekend of Houston International Fest in Sam Houston Park. 11am to 8pm.
- Galveston Island Food & Wine Festival | Friday through Sunday – Indulge in wine tastings, food pairings and more at this collection events in Galveston over the weekend.
- 3rd Annual Houston Improv Festival at Midtown Art Center | Daily – Take in one or more of the five hilarious improv shows featuring 15 improvised acts including troupes from Houston, Austin, New York, Chicago and LA. Sunday features a screening of the new film festival comedy favorite Close Quarters. Discount tickets available. Times vary.
- Texas Crawfish and Music Festival at Old Town Spring | Friday through Sunday – Enjoy mudbugs with live music from the Charlie Daniels Band and Jason Boland. $10 Friday; $15 Saturday and Sunday ($13 Saturday and Sunday if purchased online); Free for kids 12 and under attending with parents. 6pm to midnight Friday: noon to midnight Saturday; noon to 8pm Sunday.
- Houston Celtic Festival and Highland Games | Saturday and Sunday – Grab your best tartan, or at least your favorite plaid, and head to the Houston Farm and Ranch Club for a couple of days of highland competition and live music from Flashpoint, Brian McNeil, Rathkeltair and Murder the Stout. Most ticket prices vary between $10 and $15. 9am to 8pm Saturday; 9am to 6pm Sunday.
- 58th Annual Sylvan Beach Festival in La Porte | Friday and Saturday – Enjoy live music, cook-offs, carnival rides, food booths and more at this annual spring festival by the bay. $10. 5pm to 11:30pm Friday; 9am to 11:30pm Saturday.
- Georges Bizet’s Carmen by Houston Grand Opera at Wortham Theater Center | Friday and Sunday – Catch Bizet’s classic fiery opera about the gypsy Carmen, a sexual bird of prey whose charms lead Don José into a fatalistic chain of events, uncontrollable passion, jealousy and bloodshed. Sung in French with English subtitles. Starts at $55; 7:30pm Friday. Starts at $40; 2pm Sunday.
- Provocative comedic play Cock at Obsidian Art Space | Thursday through Saturday – After separating from his boyfriend, a gay man finds love in the arms of a woman in this complicated, contemporary love triangle from Britain’s provocative playwright Mike Bartlett. Discount tickets available. 8pm nightly.
- Really, Really at The Frenetic Theatre | Thursday through Saturday – A wild party at an elite university goes awry in this tragicomedy about sexual politics and class warfare from Black Lab Theatre. Discounted tickets available. 8pm nightly.
- Godspell at the Houston Family Arts Center | Friday through Sunday – Grammy and Oscar-winning composer and lyricist Stephen Schwartz retells the Gospel of Matthew with an eclectic pop-rock score. Discount tickets available. 7:30pm Friday and Saturday; 3pm Sunday.
- The Philadelphia Story by the University of Houston School of Theatre and Dance | Daily – Catch a fresh retelling of the early 20th Century that set the gold standard for American comedy, combining wit, satire and genuine excitement. Comped tickets available. 8pm Thursday through Saturday. 2pm Sunday.
- Discover a new Houston date idea (or a new date) | Sponsored – Looking for a popular date idea, or for someone to join you? Either way, Howaboutwe.com has some suggestions for you.
Thursday, April 24, 2014
- Dining Out for Life at restaurants throughout Houston – Eat at one of the many participating Houston restaurants and a portion of your check will be contributed to AIDS Foundation Houston.
- Free Museum Thursday in the Museum District | FREE – Enjoy free admission to the Houston Museum of Natural Science, Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Children’s Museum and more during special hours today.
- On the Rock Bartenders Challenge at Sugarland Regional Airport – Houston mixologists vie to create the best cocktail made with Hendrick’s Gin at this signature event at the 11th Annual Sugar Land Wine & Food Affair. $40. 6:30 to 9pm.
- Wine + Art “Four French Soirées” No. 3 at MFAH – Take part in a class pairing great French art with delicious French wines, led by instructor James King of the Texas Wine School. $65 nonmembers; $55 MFAH members. 6:30pm to 8pm.
- Da Camera Jazz JAM featuring Jackie Sutton in Concert at Discovery Green | FREE – Catch a free jazz concert under the stars, with the Frontier Jazz Orchestra Frontier Jazz Orchestra opening for Jackie Sutton. 6:30 to 10:15pm.
- Reinzi Spring Party – $150. Enjoy poolside cocktails, a buffet and live entertainment as this special soiree at MFAH’s house museum for European decorative arts. Email [email protected] to RSVP. 7pm.
- Duckhorn Portfolio Wine Dinner at The Bird & The Bear – Enjoy an exclusive five-course dinner featuring specialty culinary dishes from Chef Martin Valerio paired with top selections from Duckhorn’s premiere collection. $95. 7pm.
- More Great Things to Do All Weekend Long – Some of the biggest things happening in Houston this weekend are happening all weekend long. Click here to scroll up and see our list.
Friday, April 25, 2014
- Family Friendly Food Truck Feastival at First Christian Church | FREE to attend with a canned good donation – Find 12 of Houston’s favorite food trucks along with four bouncy castles, Watermelon the Clown and Kidventure Games. 5:30pm to 8:30pm.
- Evening in the Park at Hermann Park – Take part in Hermann Park Conservancy’s largest annual fundraiser, with dining beside McGovern Lake, and dancing under the stars on Molly Ann Smith Plaza. $500. 6:30pm.
- Critical Mass Houston Bike Ride starting at Market Square Park | FREE – Join thousands of accomplished and novice cyclists and bike riders in a large community ride through the streets of Downtown Houston and throughout the Loop. 7pm.
- The Grand Tasting at the Sugarland Wine and Food Affair – Enjoy samples and tastings of delicious wines, beers and liquors, along with the culinary creations of some of Houston’s most popular culinary stars. $125. 7pm to 9:30pm.
- Asia Society Presents! Malta Kano, TX at Asia Society Texas Center – Take in a world premiere dance-film performance. $25 nonmembers; $15 members. Discount tickets available for $12.50. 7:30pm.
- Food Patriots Documentary Film Screening at Discovery Green | FREE – See the story of how one family became clean food activists following their son’s battle with a food borne bug. Attendees are encouraged to bring fresh produce items for the Houston Food Bank. 8:30pm.
- I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change Musical Comedy at The Music Box Theater – Described as “Seinfeld set to music, this new production of one of the longest-running musicals in off-Broadway history celebrates and laments the ups and downs of all different types of relationships in a hilarious revue. Discount tickets available. 8pm.
- More Great Things to Do All Weekend Long – Some of the biggest things happening in Houston this weekend are happening all weekend long. Click here to scroll up and see our list.
Click here to find more things to do in Houston on Saturday, April 26 and Sunday, April 27, 2014.