January 2008

After a whirlwind of holiday celebrations, it is time to ring in a new year and with it, plenty of exciting things to do around town.  The highly acclaimed “Jersey Boys” plays at the Hobby Center; “Love, Janis” plays at the Alley Theatre; and for sporting fans, the Houston Rockets and the Houston Aeros continue their season at the Toyota Center.  The Children’s Museum showcases a new exhibit, Everyone Counts!  Take advantage of the cool, crisp weather and visit the Houston Zoo and Houston Arboretum – both great places for a little exercise and adventure.  For anyone planning a 2008 wedding, you won’t want to miss the Bridal Extravaganza at George R. Brown Convention Center and finally, for those sailors among us, there is the opportunity to learn about all the latest “must haves” at the International Boat Show.  There’s something for everyone this month in Houston!

Holidays

January 1^st:     New Year’s Day

January 21^st:  Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Dance/Music/Theatre

 Alley Theatre   (615 Texas Avenue)

January 16^th – February 10^th:  Love, Janis - A musical about Janis Joplin, Port Arthur, Texas’ most famous daughter, Love, Janis goes behind the music of the legendary rock/blues singer. Following her life from 1966 until her death in 1970, Love, Janis features performances of many of her smash hits: “Piece of My Heart,” “Me and Bobby McGee,” “Mercedes Benz” and “Ball and Chain” resulting in a compelling portrait of an artist who wanted to be remembered for her music and her refusal to compromise.  The greatest white female rock singer of the 1960’s, Janis Joplin was also a great blues singer. First rising to stardom as front woman for San Francisco psychedelic band Big Brother and the Holding Company – and then as a solo artist, she created some of the most exciting performances of the era. She also did much to redefine the role of women in rock with her assertive, sexually forthright persona and raunchy, electrifying onstage presence.  Joplin was raised in Port Arthur, TX and much of her subsequent personal struggle has been attributed to her inability to fit in with the expectations of what she perceived to be a conservative community. She began singing folk and blues music in her teens, and her early style showed a marked influence of Bessie Smith and other early blues singers. When she moved to San Francisco, she fully developed her own personal style. For years, her life was tumultuous  - drugs and alcohol and volatile personal relationships – but her musicianship showed solid growth toward her mature style in blues, soul and folk-rock. Some of her last recordings – “Mercedes Benz”, “Get it While You Can” and “Me and Bobby McGee” are among her best. Sadly, she died before her last album’s release, overdosing on heroin in a Hollywood hotel in 1971.  Janis’ warm, exuberant, letters to her concerned family form the heart of the show, propelled by her extraordinary music.

January 30^th – February 24^th: The Lieutenant of Inishmore - Author of last season’s extraordinary The Pillowman, Martin McDonagh returns to the Alley with The Lieutenant of Inishmore, a gruesome comedy that was Winner of the Olivier Award for Best Comedy. The Lieutenant of Inishmore is the stunningly funny tale of a ruthless Irish Liberation Army enforcer and the one thing he loves more than anything else in the world: his little black cat, Wee Thomas. It’s a wickedly hilarious event that must be seen to be believed. See it for yourself, (but don’t reveal the ending).

for more information, see www.alleytheatre.org or call (713) 228-8421

Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion  (The Woodlands)

Surrounded by a lush forest, The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion is an outdoor amphitheater that provides the Greater Houston region with an array of performing arts and contemporary entertainment in a setting of unparalleled beauty. 

No events scheduled for the month of January.

for more information, see www.pavilion.woodlandscenter.org 

Hobby Center for the Performing Arts   (800 Bagby @ Walker)

January 5^th:  The Ultimate Doo-Wop Show – The recent record-breaking PBS-TV music specials “50 Years of Doo-Wop” were so well received that it created a new showcase and hew audiences for veteran Doo-Wop artists, resulting in additional PBS-TV specials.  Now these eight original artists, whose combined sales number over 80 million records, are back on the road performing live, treating 50-something concert goers to their songs.

January 11^th:  Opposites Attract - Personal relationships take center stage in this program featuring two works by Musiqa composers: Pierre Jalbert’s String Quartet No. 3 and Anthony Brandt’s chamber opera The Birth of Something, with a libretto by playwright Will Eno, plus a film curated by Aurora Picture Show. The performance features Karol Bennett, soprano; Michael Chioldi, baritone; the Maia String Quartet; Jonathan Shames, conductor; Blake Wilkins, percussion; and Brad Dalton, director.

January 16^th – February 9^th:  Jersey Boys – Called “the most exciting musical package Broadway has seen in years” by the Chicago Tribute and “Too Good to be True!” by the New York Post, the Jersey Boys, the new musical about Rock and Roll Hall of Famers (Frankie Valli, Bob Guadio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi), is the story of how four blue-collar kids became one of the greatest successes in pop music history. They wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide – all before they were thirty! Jersey Boys features their hit songs Sherry, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Rag Doll, Oh What a Night and Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You.   The Jersey Boys creative team comprises two-time Tony Award®-winning director Des McAnuff, book writers Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, composer Bob Gaudio and lyricist Bob Crewe.

for more information, see www.thehobbycenter.org or call (713) 315-2525

Houston Symphony  (Jones Hall – 615 Louisiana)

January 4^th – 6^th:  Andrew Lloyd Webber's Broadway - Head for the Great White Way with Andrew Lloyd Webber songs from Cats and Phantom of the Opera. Tap your toes to other Broadway melodies from Beauty and the Beast, A Chorus Line, Wicked, The Lion King and Chicago.

January 10^th – 13^th:  Graf's Mozart and Haydn - Mozart wrote, "On Tuesday, November 4th, I am giving a concert in the theatre here and, as I have not a single symphony with me, I am writing a new one at breakneck speed, which must be finished by that time."  Mozart composed this Linz Symphony for the Austrian city of the same name in response to their unexpected hospitality.  Haydn’s Symphony No. 83 received its nickname, la poule (the hen), in reference to a dotted-rhythm played by a single oboe.  As was so common, Haydn stretched his musical wings to create something personal and original. Mahler’s Rückert Lieder are a set of five songs for voice and orchestra that range through all the emotions.  You’ll travel through light, playful moods to lush, romantic harmonies, evocative settings of summer and epic grandeur.  His final song, written for his wife, is a highly expressive love song intertwined with tender intimacy and beauty.

January 18^th – 20^th:  Alpine Symphony in Images - Envision the magnificent stillness of morning, before sunrise, as the bulk of the mountain becomes visible.  You’ll encounter a hunting party, cross a brook, feel the spray of a waterfall, pass by a meadow, get entangled in a thicket, traverse a glacier, and feel glorious when you reach the summit.  Finally, caught in a sudden and violent thunderstorm, you’ll retrace your steps and arrive at the foot of the mountain as night falls.  This is the magic of the Alpine Symphony in Images, featuring the breathtaking photography of Tobias Melle.  Elgar’s Cello Concerto is an amplified version of the tender, searching intimacy of his violin concerto.  The Cello Concerto isn’t just introspective; it’s searing in its asceticism. A complex yet immediately touching work, it’s a fitting epilogue to Elgar's lifetime in music.

January 24^th, 26^th & 27^th:  Mozart & Brahms – Brahms’ Symphony No. 4 begins with a tragic tone that develops to soaring heights and then settles into a ethereal hush.  The last movement reconfirms the weight of tragedy as in the beginning.  Brahms approached music with an individual spirit that could be heard through his classical style, refracted through the prism of romanticism.  The opening of Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 is bold and flamboyant.  Mozart moves you through passages of expressive intimacy tinted with melancholy.  The serious, almost brooding mood feeds an intensity that ultimately reaches intense passion.  It is music whose richness of texture, poignancy and passion nourish the heart.

January 25^th:  Steve Tyrell – Houston’s own Steve Tyrell returns to Jones Hall to delight you with music from The Disney Songbook, as well as standards like “Georgia on My Mind” and “I’ve Got a Crush on You”.

for more information, see www.houstonsymphony.com or call (713) 224-7575

Jones Hall  (615 Louisiana)

January 11^th:  The 5 Browns - Dubbed the “Fab Five” by People magazine, The  5 Browns are delivering on their dream to wake up classical music. Desirae, Deondra, Melody, Ryan and Gregory became the first family of five siblings ever to attend simultaneously New York’s Juilliard School. Following the release of their 2005 debut album The 5 Browns, the New York Post proclaimed: “One family, five pianos and 50 fingers add up to the biggest classical music sensation in years…When these kids do Rachmaninoff, they'll make you forget about Marshall amps.” By the end of 2005, The 5 Browns were one of the top classical artists of the year.  For their Society of Performing Arts debut, the twenty-something year old siblings will perform a wildly eclectic program, including Rachmaninoff’s Suite No. 2., Op. 17, “Home Blues” from Gershwin’s American in Paris, Debussy’s Clair de lune, and Stravinsky’s The Firebird, as well as works by Piazzolla, Saint-Saëns, Prokofieff, Scriabin, and Grieg, among others.

January 12^th:  Radio Stories and Other Stories, Ira Glass - You've heard him as the host and producer of the public radio program This American Life, which has recently spawned a feature film and Showtime series. Now Time magazine's 2001 "Best Radio Host in America" brings his award-winning wit and insight to the Cullen Theater stage. The New York Times calls Glass "a storyteller who filters his interviews and impressions through a distinctive literary imagination, an eccentric intelligence, and a sympathetic heart."

January 19^th:   Les écailles de la mémoire (The scales of memory) - A truly unique artistic exchange bridging continents and cultures, The Beauty of Little Things is the culmination of three-year collaboration between Brooklyn’s trend-setting Urban Bush Women and Senegal’s male dance ensemble Compagnie JANT-BI. Seven dancers from each company will join forces for an evening of highly energized dance. 

or more information, see www.spahouston.org  

Toyota Center  (1510 Polk Street)

January 4^th:                Houston Aeros vs. Iowa Stars  7:35 p.m.

January 5^th:                Houston Rockets vs. New York Knicks  7:30 p.m.

January 6^th:                Houston Aeros vs. Iowa Stars  4:05 p.m.

January 10^th:              Houston Aeros vs. Manitoba Moose  11:05 a.m.

January 11^th:              Houston Rockets vs. Minnesota Timberwolves  7:30 p.m.

January 12^th:              Houston Aeros vs. Manitoba Moose  7:35 p.m.

January 13^th:              Houston Rockets vs. New Orleans Hornets  1:30 p.m.

January 15^th:              Houston Rockets vs. Philadelphia 76ers  7:30 p.m.

January 18^th:              Houston Aeros vs. Toronto Marlies  7:35 p.m.

January 19^th:              Houston Rockets vs. San Antonio Spurs  7:30 p.m.

January 20^th:              Houston Aeros vs. Hamilton Bulldogs  4:05 p.m.

January 21^st:              Houston Rockets vs. Seattle Supersonics  1:30 p.m.

January 22^nd:             Foo Fighters  with Jimmy Eat World  8:00 p.m.

January 25^th:              Houston Aeros vs. San Antonio Rampage  7:35 p.m.

January 26^th:              Houston Aeros vs. San Antonio Rampage  7:35 p.m.

January 27^th:              Houston Rockets vs. Utah Jazz  6:00 p.m.

January 28^th:              Van Halen  7:30 p.m.

January 29^th:              Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors  7:30 p.m.

for more information, visit www.houstontoyotacenter.com or call (866) 4HOUTIX

Warehouse Live   (813 St. Emanuel Street)

January 5^th:        J.J. Worthen (CD release) with The Armada, The 71's, Three Fantastic, and Electric Touch  7:00 p.m.

January 10^th:      Brown vs. Board with Another Run, The Arms of Sleep, Via Linda, and Scale The Summit   8:30 p.m.

January 11^th:      Penny Royal with Lazlo, Two Star Symphony, and The Feiro's  7:30 p.m.

January 17^th:      Poison the Well with The Locusts, Dance Gavin Dance, and A Girl A Gun A Ghost  7:30 p.m.

January 23^rd:      Five Times August Stephen Speaks   7:00 p.m.

January 26^th:      The Greyboy Allstars   9:00 p.m.

for more information, see www.warehouselive.com 

Wortham Center – Houston Ballet (Texas & Smith)

February 21^st – 29^th & March 1^st – 2^nd:  Gershwin Glam - Glamorous gals with legs that never stop, giddy sailors on leave, gangsters, reporters, tourists galore. It’s Stanton Welch’s fun-filled, tongue-in-cheek tribute to the mythical New York of the 1940s, choreographed to the ever-popular melodies of George Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F. Presented with the brilliantly crafted choreography of Christopher Bruce’s Swansong and the stunningly romantic beauty of George Balanchine’s Serenade, this is a premiere not to be missed.

for more information, see www.houstonballet.org or call (713) 227-ARTS

Wortham Center – Houston Grand Opera (Texas & Smith)

January 18^th - February 2^nd:  Mozart: The Abduction from the Seraglio - This charming production of Mozart's  comic opera is a ride you won't want to miss! Two beautiful young women are taken hostage on the Orient Express and must endure both the advances of their captors and an elaborate rescue by their fiancés that goes off the rails. 

January 25^th - February 9^th:  Mozart: The Magic Flute - Sarastro, a priest of Isis and Osiris, takes Pamina to his temple in order to release her from the influence of her mother, the Queen of the Night. The Queen sends Prince Tamino to rescue her daughter - which he does, but not before he falls in love with Pamina and becomes the disciple of Sarastro. Eric Cutler, Rebekah Camm, Patrick Carfizzi, Albina Shagimuratova and Ray Aceto star; Steven Sloane conducts

for more information, see www.houstongrandopera.org or call (713) 228-6737

DaCamera of Houston   (Wortham Theatre Center – Texas @ Smith unless otherwise noted)

January 24^th:  Dreamworlds - This program, focusing on Freud’s Vienna, features works of Brahms, Schumann and Schoenberg performed by world-renowned violist Tabea Zimmerman (pictured), Metropolitan Opera star and Houston Grand Opera favorite Susanne Mentzer and pianist Sarah Rothenberg.

January 29^th:  Kafka Fragments – György Kurtág and The Keller Quartet - György Kurtág, born in 1926, is recognized world-wide as Hungary’s leading composer and one of the world’s most important living artists.  The Keller String Quartet, Hungary’s leading string quartet, has worked closely with Kurtág, whose music is remarkable for its intimacy, imagination and expressiveness.  With this program and the following concert, DaCamera audiences are introduced to Kurtág’s music through one of his most widely performed works – the powerful Kafka Fragments for soprano and violin – followed by a magical concert by the Keller Quartet, interweaving his exquisite writing for string quartet with works by three of his greatest influences: Bach,Mozart and Schubert.  Performance at The Menil Collection – 1515 Sul Ross at 7:30 p.m.

for more information, see www.dacamera.com    

Miller Outdoor Theatre (Hermann Park)

Located on nearly eight acres in the heart of Hermann Park, Miller Outdoor Theatre is the only free open-air theatre of its kind in the United States. It is a home away from home for some of Houston's most dynamic arts organizations such as HITS Unicorn Theater, Houston Grand Opera, the Houston Ebony Opera Guild, Festival Chicano, Houston Symphony, Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) and a host of other multi-cultural groups and theater companies. Every performance in our March to November season is free.

No performances scheduled for January.

for more information, see www.milleroutdoortheatre.org  

A.D. Players  (2710 West Alabama)

No performances scheduled for January.

for more information, see www.adplayers.org   

Main Street Theatre   (2540 Times Blvd.)

January 2^nd - January 20^th:  Caroline, or Change - In Lake Charles, Louisiana in 1963, Caroline Thibodeaux is a maid for a Jewish family whose young son, Noah, prefers Caroline's company to that of his stepmother, Rose. While Caroline is not happy working in the hot, muggy basement laundry room, she is much more disturbed by the changes that the American civil rights movement threatens to bring about in her carefully ordered world. When Rose enlists her help in teaching Noah not to leave money in his pants pocket, the tide of social change begins to affect her life firsthand, and she must come to terms with the end of segregation. Featuring Tamara Siler as Caroline.

January 30^th - February 22^nd:   The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 - It’s 1963 and the Watsons, an African-American family in Flint, Michigan, travel to Birmingham, Alabama to take their juvenile delinquent son, Byron, to live under, they hope, the civilizing influence of his Grandmother. Their struggle to mend their family lands them in one of the darkest moments in America’s racial history -- the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing. The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963 received the Newbery Honor and the Coretta Scott King Awards.

for more information, see www.mainstreettheater.com or call (713) 524-6706

Opera in the Heights   (1703 Heights Blvd)

January 24^th – 30^th & February 1^st – 2^nd:  Adriana Lecouvreur - Preparing for a performance, the company bustles around Michonnet, the stage manager. The Prince de Bouillon, admirer of the actress Duclos, is with his companion, the Abbé. Adriana enters reciting. The Prince hears that Duclos is writing a letter and arranges for its interception. Left alone with Adriana, Michonnet wants to express his love for her, but Adriana explains she has a lover - a soldier in the service of the Count of Saxony. Maurizio is in reality the count himself. He enters and declares his love for Adriana, 'La dolcissima effigie'. They will meet after the performance. Adriana gives him some violets to put in his buttonhole. The Prince and the Abbé return. They have obtained the letter from Duclos - asking for a meeting with Maurizio later that evening near the Prince's villa. The Prince decides to arrange a party for the company at the villa in order to expose the couple. He sends the letter on to Maurizio who then cancels his appointment with Adriana. She receives his letter on stage. Adriana agrees to join the Prince's party.

 for more information, call (713) 861-5303 or see www.operaintheheights.org    

Playhouse 1960   (6814 Grant Road)

Jan 25^th - Feb 16^th:  Arsenic and Old Lace - The play, a clever combination of the farcical and the macabre, centers on two elderly sisters who are famous in their Brooklyn neighborhood for their numerous acts of charity. Unfortunately, however, their charity includes poisoning lonely old men who come to their home looking for lodging. The two women are assisted in their crimes by their mentally challenged nephew who believes he is Teddy Roosevelt and who frequently blasts a bugle and yells ‘‘charge’’ as he bounds up the stairs. Matters get complicated when a second nephew, a theater critic, discovers the murders and a third nephew appears after having just escaped from a mental institution. In his adroit mixture of comedy and mayhem, Kesselring satirizes the charitable impulse as he pokes fun at the conventions of the theater. 

Jan. 26^th  - Feb. 17^th:  The Shoemaker and the Elves - Poor Lockhart Cobblestone is a kind shoemaker with a gentle heart yet little money. Despite his problems, the generous man helps an old beggar woman by giving her his last pair of shoes. Now Lockhart has only enough leather to make just a single pair. The penniless man sets the material out to work on the next morning. Upon his exit, out spring five eccentric and endearing elves. Mortz, Schwartz, Hazel, Gracie and Studebaker create the most incredible and magical shoes the town of Clankbottom has ever seen. This charming version is filled with silly roles, such as ballerina Loretta Le Pointe and Olympiad Zoom Corrigan, who both need specialized footwear. A number of delightful tunes include "We Love To Dance," "Smack, Smack, Smack," and the toe-tapping "Shoes." 

for more information, see www.playhouse1960.com or call (281) 587-8243

Radio Music Theatre   (2623 Colquitt)

November 23^rd – January 19^th: A Fertle Holiday - Twenty-three years and counting. Once again, the Fertles are home for the holidays. Grab your butter pie and make your reservations early. This one sells out fast.

for more information, see www.radiomusictheatre.com or call (713) 522-7722

Stages Repertory Theatre   (3201 Allen Parkway)

December 7^th – January 13^th:  Altar Boyz - Broadway's smash hit musical sensation comes to Houston! Armed with angelic voices, divine dance moves and plenty of hair gel, the Altar Boyz are a Christian boy-band (with one nice Jewish boy) looking for their big break and saving souls along the way. Packed with clever lyrics and catchy tunes, this hilarious, tongue-in-cheek spoof pokes gentle fun at modern religion as these pop-loving apostles convert the world's sinners one adoring fan at a time.

for more information, see www.stagestheatre.com or call (713) 527-0123

Verizon Wireless Theatre  (520 Texas Avenue)

Verizon Wireless Theatre is the source in downtown Houston for the best in live entertainment. From rock to country, comedy to musicals, they offer everything you want in an entertainment venue.  Verizon Wireless Theater puts on over one hundred events every year.

January 6^th:               Craig Ferguson  8:00 p.m.

January 12^th:             Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular Show   8:00 p.m.

January 25^th:             Larry the Cable Guy   8:00 p.m.

January 26^th:             Larry the Cable Guy   5:00 & 8:00 p.m.

January 27^th:             Larry the Cable Guy   8:00 p.m.

for more information, see www.livenation.com or call (713) 230-1600

Museums

Blaffer Gallery   (University of Houston campus, entrance 16 off Cullen Boulevard)

January 19^th – March 29^th: Chantal Akerman: Moving Through Time and Space –This exhibition includes five major works: D'Est (From the East), 1993; Sud (South), 1999; De l'autre côté (From the Other Side), 2002; Là-Bas (Down There), 2006; and features a new project filmed in Siberia commissioned especially for the exhibition. Akerman is widely regarded as one of the most important woman directors in film history, but her work in the crossover genre of film and visual art has never been fully explored. Beginning with D'Est in 1993, Akerman developed an artistic practice melding documentary filmmaking techniques with video installation. Imbued with social and political undertones, her multi-channel works contain the artist's characteristically slow moving action, mesmerizing attention to detail, and visual grace. This exhibition, her first solo survey in a U.S. museum, reveals Akerman's explorative and creative energies, as well as her singular understanding of some of today's most challenging concepts and themes: the transformative impact of cultural diaspora, memory, and history.

for more information, see www.hfac.uh.edu/blaffer or call (713) 743-9530

Children’s Museum of Houston  (1500 Benz)

The Children’s Museum of Houston offers a wonderful array of ongoing exhibits, created to inspire children’s imaginations and help them to learn through curiosity and hands-on activities and experimentation.

Thru January 7^th:  Chagall for Children - Life imitates art in a never-before-seen exhibit at the Children’s Museum of Houston. Using 20th Century reproduced masterpieces by renowned artist Marc Chagall, the thought-provoking Chagall for Children exhibit will spark creativity and imagination in kids and parents alike.  Known as one of the world’s most fascinating artists, Marc Chagall was an art revolutionary of the Impressionism Era. He would use folk-life and biblical themes as subjects for his inspiration. His dream-like fantasy creations instill a sense of happiness and optimism through his use of vibrant colors.

January 10^th – 16^th:  From Zero to Hero Wonder Week - Superheroes are not born. They are made! Build up some superpowers engaging in our exhilarating activities during From Zero to Hero Wonder Week. Exercise your brain power in our Super Hero Logic challenge, use your pattern knowledge to see how numbers are related, and design your own Super Shape Cape!  Mime Aaron Callis will be tickling your funny bone and have you dancing on your super seat.

January 12^th – March 2^nd:  Everyone Counts! - Kids can count on fun and adventure as they explore the fascinating, fun-filled world of math in the hands-on, bilingual exhibit, Everyone Counts! This exhibit is a collection of brain teasers, games from around the world and activities that show how everyone counts in many ways every day. Everyone Counts! is filled to the brim with math games and activities from the floor to the ceiling. Families will learn the mystery behind the Magic Square, a challenging puzzle, and Kalah, an ancient game of strategy. They'll have a blast with tantalizing tessellations and tangrams, a giant geoboard and dominoes. Those interested in architecture will enjoy the Blueprint House, where kids will be able to brush up on their geometry skills, spatial sense and problem-solving. Next, they can move over to Building Shapes and design buildings or construct replicas of ancient Mayan pyramids. Everyone Counts! provides an engaging environment for kids to explore math. Any way you add it up, this exhibit equals fun!

Thru March 2^nd:  Tales from the Land of Gullah – You may have heard the story of the “Tortoise and the Hare” or even sang “Kumbayah”, but have you the slightest idea of where these came from?  These answers and more will be revealed when you explore this new and exciting exhibit, which celebrates the rich heritage of African American people through the Gullah culture.  But who are the Gullah people?  The Gullah people are the descendants of West Africans who were enslaved in the Sea Islands, which are along the coast of South Carolina and George.  Because they remained relatively isolated from mainland America, the Gullah people were able to create a unique culture that blended their West African heritage with European-American and slave traditions.  In Tales of the Land of Gullah, which takes place in a setting reminiscent to that of a 1940s setting, visitors get to enjoy the fruitfulness of this enduring culture.  Whether it’s making simple sweet grass dolls or intricate weave baskets or listening to moralistic puppet show, this exhibition will allow you to appreciate the perseverance and vitality of the Gullah culture and will help you understand how they’ve managed to remain culturally unscathed even to this day.  Children will experience the rhythms of Gullah life through sounds, crafts and musical traditions.

Building Zone - With wrenches, pulleys and hovering vehicles, kids will surely find an outlet for their creative needs in this expanded exhibit. They’ll learn how to construct buildings that withstand the forces of nature or what makes trucks go, plus much more! Featuring hands-on activities that will encourage exploration into physics and engineering, you can test out new materials as you design a scaled down skyscraper or try your hand at building a kid-sized house.

Farm to Market - Kids will be shopping 'till "the grown-ups" drop all while learning all about nutrition, money-management and more in Farm to Market. Kids can start out by clocking-in, donning an apron and then proceed to the cash registers or even the real-life scanners to serve as a cashier or stock person. As food is scanned, not only will the kids learn how much they are spending, but also what part of the food pyramid the food comes from.  Or, should they prefer to shop, kids will want to start at the ATM to get their shopping money, pick up a grocery list and GO! They can shop through the bakery, produce, meat and dry goods departments to fill a recipe and even use coupons-- just like Mom and Dad might do.  Adjacent to the market, kids can mosey on down to the farm where they can milk a robotic cow or see live chicks. If they're lucky, they'll even get to see some hatching! Kids can also explore the worm farm, take a virtual reality journey on the back of a bee, and get decked out in aprons, hats or bonnets to take care of the barn, gathering 'eggs' from the chicken coop and more.  Farm to Market is sponsored by Randalls Food Markets

How Does It Work? - Did you ever wonder why you can't see in the dark? Or how your wireless telephone worked? Or even what really happens when you turn the ignition in your car? This multi-level exhibition challenges you to ask and discover the answers to your own science questions with tons of hands-on, investigative experiences.  You will explore light and color and can even become part of the exhibit with Light Warehouse, see what makes a car go with the '66 Mustang in Auto Alley, watch your messages be sent via fiber-optics and check out the history of communication in Phone Zone or challenge yourself to discover something new in the Science Station. You can even lift yourself 5 feet into the air to see how pulleys can make life a lot easier with the Kid Lift.  Then, step into a whimsical factory from the future in The Matter Factory, a new area in the How Does It Work? exhibit. Kids will develop the understanding that everything is made up of material or matter. They will learn that molecules and atoms are the building blocks of matter as they investigate materials and solve factory problems. 

Kid TV - The Adler-Sarofim KID-TV Studio Lights! Camera! Action! Think your child might be the next Matt Lauer or Barbara Walters? Let them show their stuff on camera in this exhibit, which teaches kids and parents what television is like behind the scenes.  KID-TV includes a dramatic backdrop of downtown Houston, video cameras, props and costumes, a teleprompter, a story board activity, a sound booth with a computer sound generator, director's board and cut-out figures of multi-cultural men and women who explain the different jobs in video production.  KID-TV is sponsored by Sarofim Trust Co. 

Think Tank - In this hands-on, minds-on exhibit, kids will get to explore different thought processes and learn how effective problem-solving can boost self-confidence.  After meeting the Think Tank Guides (Carlos, Felicia, Rosie and Isaac), you can jump right into solving the riddles...or you might want to put on custom-made thinking caps and lounge in the thinking chairs to get those brainstorming juices flowing. Either way, inventive, "outside the box" thinking is sure to occur!

Tot Spot - Tot Spot is the place to bring your newborn, toddler and two-year-old.  It’s where play is learning and learning is play for children from birth to thirty-six months.  The eye-catching bubble machine is a first stop, but not the last as tots crawl, cruise or walk throughout the exhibit which has four distinct areas.  These areas promote exploration, discovery, experimentation and wonder.

for more information, see www.cmhouston.org or call (713) 522-1138

Contemporary Arts Museum   (5216 Montrose)

Thru January 6^th:  Mary Heilmann: To Be Someone - This is the first retrospective for this influential New York-based painter. The exhibition will include 75 works from 1972 to the present, along with key earlier works, and will also examine Heilmann's interest in ceramics, decorative arts, film, and music. The retrospective will highlight her development of a deceptively simple, even offhand, approach to painting that has become a hallmark of contemporary abstraction. One of the very few female abstract painters of her generation, Heilmann was born in San Francisco in 1940. She received a BA from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 1962 and a MA from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1967. Her solo museum exhibitions include Mary Heilmann: A Survey at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston (1990). Her works are included in the permanent collections of museums worldwide, including the Whitney Museum of American Art and the Guggenheim Museum, New York.

January 26^th  – April 20^th:  Design Life Now: National Design Triennial - Design Life Now: National Design Triennial will present the experimental projects, emerging ideas, major buildings, new products and media that were at the center of contemporary culture from 2003 to 2006. Inaugurated in 2000, the Triennial seeks out and presents the most innovative American designs from the prior three years in a variety of fields, including product design, architecture, furniture, film, graphics, new technologies, animation, science, medicine and fashion. Design Life Now: National Design Triennial will focus on four principal ideas that characterized elements of the design world during the last three years: emulating life; community; hand-crafted and do-it-yourself design; and transformation. On view throughout the exhibition will be the work of 87 designers and firms, ranging from established design leaders such as Apple, architect Santiago Calatrava, and Nike, Inc., to emerging designers like Joshua Davis, Jason Miller, and David Wiseman. The National Design Triennial is organized by the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, Smithsonian Institution, and curated by Barbara Bloemink, Ellen Lupton and Matilda McQuaid, along with guest curator Brooke Hodge of The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.

Thru March 9^th: Perspectives 159: Superconscious, Automatisms Now -  Organized by Senior Curator Paola Morsiani, Perspectives 159: Superconscious, Automatisms Now focuses on contemporary artists who use free association or “stream of consciousness,” a designation originally coined to describe a creative writing method deployed by innovative early-20th century novelists like Virginia Woolf and James Joyce. The group exhibition includes key works by Rachel Harrison, Sean Landers, Oliver Payne & Nick Ralph, and Danica Phelps. While stream of consciousness in literature strives to depict human experience at a spiritual level, Perspectives 159: Superconscious, Automatisms Now will demonstrate a method of the past two decades that allows for artwork to connect autobiographical and conceptual contents and yet remain open to interpretation.

March 14^th  – May 11^th:   Perspectives 160: Dawoud Bey - Since 1992 Chicago-based photographer Dawoud Bey has been working exclusively on large-scale portraits of American teenagers. These photographs reveal the individual character of members of this age group. In his recent work Bey, made in high schools around the country, Bey has included texts that the subjects have written about themselves. For Bey, the creation and presentation of these portraits and texts allows for a more complex and nuanced representation than the photographic portrait alone. Perspectives 160: Dawoud Bey marks the artist’s debut at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, where Bey will collaborate with the Museum’s Teen Council. Perspectives 160: Dawoud Bey is organized by Aperture, a not-for-profit organization devoted to photography and the visual arts, and installed at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston by curator Valerie Cassel Oliver. It will be accompanied by a Perspectives-format catalogue with an interview of the artist by Cassel Oliver, reproductions of exhibited work, and documentation on the artist’s career.

for more information, see www.camh.org or call (713) 284-8250

The Heritage Society   (1100 Bagby)

Thru February 3^rd:  Sounds of the Past: Phonographs, Radios, and Records - Before the iPod, with its state of the art technology and sophisticated sound, the phonograph was the one of a kind innovation of its day. Though seemingly unimpressive, this instrument was the first device ever to record sound and play it back. Thanks to Thomas Edison, we can now enjoy the latest hits on our portable MP3 players. To see and hear more, come to The Heritage Society’s newest exhibition, Sounds of the Past: Phonographs, Radios, and Records. This exhibit will be showing all the facets of sound through the museum’s wonderful and extensive collection of phonographs, radios, cylinders, and disc records. Chronicling the transition of recorded sound from the phonograph to the radio, the exhibit will also present famous and historic radio broadcasts. Not only will visitors be able to see how these musical machines work, but they’ll hear them too! For some visitors, it will be a reminiscent trip into their past, but for many, young and old; it will be an educational exploration of the history of sound.

January 17^th:   Edgar Lovett and the Creation of Rice University - Hill/Finger Lecture Series - Dr. John Boles is the William P. Hobby Professor of History at Rice University and Managing Editor of the Journal of Southern History. Dr. Boles will discuss the life and career of noted educator, Edgar Odell Lovett, who served as president of Rice Institute for nearly forty years. Dr. Boles’ recently released book, University Builder: Edgar Odell Lovett and the Founding of Rice Institute is an exceptional account of Lovett’s remarkable academic achievement and an insightful view of American higher education in the first half of the twentieth century. 

January 19^th:  Vintage Radio Roadshow - Do you have an old radio around the house? Would you like to know more about it? Bring your vintage radio to The Heritage Society and experienced collectors from the Houston Vintage Radio Association will be on hand to evaluate old radios. If you can't bring the actual radio, bring pictures.

January 27^th:  Heritage Family Day:  What's That Sound – You won’t want to miss Heritage Family Day, which takes place from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. In conjunction with the current museum exhibition, "Sounds of the Past", the theme of this event will be "What's That Sound?" Learn about the history of sound machines and their inventors. Visit with local collectors who will demonstrate some of the vintage phonographs and radios on exhibit in the museum. Try your hand at sending messages using a telegraph key and Morse code. Enjoy a swing dance performance by Second Cup Swing that showcases music from past decades. Create your own musical experience in the karaoke studio. Head over to the craft area to make an old fashioned communication device or a CD critter.

February 12th - May 25^th:  "It is in service that you will grow the greatest" Jesse Jones: City Builder and Public Servant - No figure in Houston’s history has had as much of an impact on the city’s success today than Jesse Holman Jones. Therefore, The Heritage Society proudly presents its newest exhibit, “It is in service that you will grow the greatest” Jesse Jones: City Builder and Public Servant. Not always remembered, Jones was an influential figure behind the scenes on the local, state, and national front. Dubbed Mr. Houston, Jones was a banker, businessman, politician, and philanthropist for the Houston community. As Secretary of Commerce for F.D.R., Jones was instrumental in bringing the nation out of the Depression while also insuring that not one Houston bank would go under. The exhibit will document his key role in U.S. history as well as feature extensive collections once owned by him.

February 21^st:  Jesse Jones – Hill/Finger Lecture Series - Steven Fenberg will present a lecture on one of the most important figures in Houston’s history, Jesse H. Jones. Mr. Fenberg is the Community Affairs Officer of Houston Endowment, Executive Producer and co-writer of the PBS documentary, Brother Can You Spare a Billion: The Story of Jesse H. Jones. Dubbed “Mr. Houston”, Jesse Jones was known for his business acumen in real estate, banking, and building, his aptitude for civil service and his commitment to philanthropy.  Mr. Jones was an influential figure behind the scenes on the local, state, and national fronts.  He served as Secretary of Commerce under F.D.R. and was instrumental in bringing the nation out of the Depression and bolstering the local Houston economy so that it would become a hub of international commerce for the South. 

for more information, visit www.heritagesociety.org

Holocaust Museum Houston   (5401 Caroline)

Permanent Exhibit:  The Permanent Exhibit is personalized with the testimony of Houston-area survivors who lived through a genocidal war that inflicted mass death on unprecedented numbers of innocent civilians. The exhibit begins by carrying visitors back to pre-war Europe and revealing the flourishing Jewish life and culture there. Authentic film footage, artifacts, photographs, and documents expose Nazi propaganda and the ever-tightening restrictions on Jews in the steady move toward the "Final Solution." Visitors learn of the horrific conditions within the Nazi-imposed ghettos, the special mobile killing units that murdered thousands, and the industrialization of death at complexes like Treblinka, Chelmno, and Auschwitz-Birkenau.

Thru February 3^rd:  Dr. Robert O. Fisch: Illustrated Works from ‘Light from the Yellow Star’ and ‘The Metamorphosis to Freedom’ - Holocaust Museum Houston presents a collection of illustrated works from two books by Holocaust survivor and distinguished visual artist Dr. Robert O. Fisch. On display will be works from “Light from the Yellow Star: A Lesson of Love from the Holocaust” in which Fisch describes his experience in a Nazi concentration camp. Also on view will be works from “The Metamorphosis to Freedom,” which Fisch wrote as a testimonial to the value he treasures above all others: freedom.

Thru February 3^rd:  Medical Ethics and the Holocaust - Holocaust Museum Houston presents "Medical Ethics and the Holocaust" - a lecture series and exhibit that will explore how the medical practices of the Third Reich influence modern-day society. "Medical Ethics and the Holocaust" will attempt to reveal the origins behind the Nazi philosophy of "a perfect race" and investigate its implications for contemporary times and future generations. Some of the world’s most influential scientists, physicians, academia and authors, including three Nobel Laureates, will be discussing the various facets of this subject throughout the Museum's five-month program.

Thru February 10^th: Through the Eye of the Needle: Fabric Art of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz - This exhibition features the work of Esther Nisenthal Krinitz, a survivor from Poland who, at age 50, began creating works of fabric art to tell her story. Trained as a dressmaker but untrained in art, she created a collection of 36 fabric pictures of strong, vivid colors and striking details with a sense of folk-like realism. Meticulously stitched words beneath the pictures provide a narrative. 

Open Mon. – Fri. 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Sat. & Sun. 12:00 – 5:00 p.m.

for more information, see www.hmh.org or call (713) 942-8000

 Houston Museum of Natural Science  (One Hermann Circle Drive)

Thru January 6^th:  Treasures from Shanghai: 5,000 Years of Chinese Art and Culture - Treasures from Shanghai: 5,000 Years of Chinese Art and Culture features 77 sets of objects from the Neolithic period (circa 3000 B.C.) to the Qing dynasty (1644-1911 A.D.). This incredible collection, on loan for the first time from the acclaimed Shanghai Museum, portrays the evolution of Chinese technology, art and culture utilizing rare examples of bronze vessels, oracle bones, polychrome potteries, sculptures, porcelains, paintings, jade/bamboo carvings and lacquer works. It is only the third collection ever brought to the United States from the Shanghai Museum and the first in more than 20 years.

Thru January 6^th:  Lizards & Snakes:  Alive! - An engaging exhibition that features more than 60 live lizards and snakes from five continents, introduces visitors to a diversity of squamates—the group that includes legged and legless lizards, including snakes.  Lizards & Snakes showcases live animals and their remarkable adaptations, including projectile tongues, deadly venom, amazing camouflage, and sometimes surprising modes of locomotion. Representing 26 species occurring in countries such as Australia, Cuba, Egypt, Guatemala, Kenya, Madagascar, Mexico, Sudan, and the United States, the specimens range from a four-inch Tropical Girdled Lizard to a fourteen-foot Burmese Python and are shown in re-created habitats complete with ponds, tree limbs, rock ledges, and live plants.

Thru February 10^th:  Fragile Nature:  The Photography of Joel Sartore - Fragile Nature takes the viewer on assignment with the world’s greatest magazine, National Geographic.  For the past 16 years with National Geographic, Joel Sartore's work has focused primarily on endangered species and preservation of their habitat.  This exhibition takes viewers on a journey into the natural world across much of North and South America to witness majestic animals from jaguars and macaws, to gray wolves and grizzly bears.  The exhibit details why species become endangered, their chances of recovery, and most importantly, what we can do to help.

Thru  February 17^th:  Verdura: The Life and Work of a Master Jeweler - Timeless, elegant and distinctly original, Verdura jewelry has been coveted by royalty, Hollywood and high society for nearly 70 years. In the premiere exhibition, Verdura jewels dating from the 1930s with original design sketches will be on public display. More than any other designer of the twentieth century, Duke Fulco di Verdura (1898–1978) elevated jewelry to the status of an art form. Born a Sicilian Duke, his creations were inspired by classical patterns and natural forms, brightened with intense colors and infused with a sophisticated wit that Verdura displayed throughout his intensely creative life.

Thru April 20^th:  Lucy’s Legacy: The Hidden Treasures of Ethiopia - Discover the rich history and culture of Ethiopia, the cradle of mankind. From the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela and the massive, ancient obelisks at Axum to the beautiful highlands of Gondar and the arid desert in which the famous fossil Lucy was discovered, Lucy’s Legacy tells the amazing story of Ethiopia over the past 5 million years. In addition to the fossil of Lucy, over 100 artifacts such as ancient manuscripts and royal artifacts from a dynasty Ethiopians believe stretches back to the son of the biblical King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba will be on display.  This is an international exhibition organized by The Houston Museum of Natural Science in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and the Ethiopian Exhibition Coordinating Committee.

Thru April 20^th:  Morena Moderna: Virgin de Guadalupe - Our Lady of Guadalupe is one of the most venerated symbols of our time. Throughout the United States and Mexico, communities commemorate her with altars, processions, dances, songs and prayers.  The story of Morena Moderna: Virgin de Guadalupe unfolds and evolves as the meaning and style of her image is depicted by different individuals and communities.  Photography by Diana Molina documents Our Lady of Guadalupe as an important cultural image.

Recent Addition to the Permanent Exhibit:  Lester & Sue Smith Gem Vault - Intensely hued jeweled masterpieces float wondrously in utter darkness, embodying the ultimate combination of natural perfection and flawless artistic execution.  Don't miss the chance to see this exciting new permanent exhibit.

Planetarium Showings:

Lucy’s Cradle, the Birth of Wonder – Over a hundred planets and moons of all sizes orbit the sun, yet only Earth has intelligent life – or perhaps any life at all.  What are the required conditions to foster life?  Solar energy, a protective atmosphere, liquid water – but maybe much more.  The record of Earth’s past shows long-term stability, punctuated by moving continents, periods of rising and falling oceans and ice ages followed by global warming.  What combination of environmental variation and stability is required for life to begin and to become intelligent?  Based on the genetic diversity in human DNA around the globe, all modern humans can be traced to an ancestral source population in East Africa.  The East Africa Rift Valley is a unique environment for the discovery of ancient hominid remains.  Here, moving faults have exposed sediments of ancient lakes and rivers and the precious fossils they conceal.  Lucy lived here 3.2 million years ago at a time of changing climate with more seasonal variation and of savannahs replacing rainforests.  The embodiment of early hominids, Lucy was about the height and weight of a modern ten year old girl and was full bipedal.  By standing upright, she could look over the grassland, cover longer distances, spot predators and regulate her body temperature more efficiently.  Following Lucy came hominids with more human behaviors; stone tool making, scavenging, meat eating, hunting and mastering fire.  The larger brains needed for these tasks resulted in an extended childhood, which required more complex social groups and the development of language.  Lucy’s Cradle, the Birth of Wonder chronicles these developments along the East African Rift Valley and then follows the spread of humans around the globe.  From the obelisk of Axum to mountaintop observatories, humans have searched for a relationship with the heavens.  Modern astronomers are continuing a magnificent journey of human vision that began over 3 million years ago when a young female hominid peered over the grassland of East Africa and saw the distant horizon beyond her fingertips.

Starry Night Express - Audiences can practice finding constellations, planets, the moon, meteor showers and the Milky Way band.  Then the show will drop into a star party led by Laurence Fishburne.  From his country setting, the show takes audiences through the solar system and into the Universe.  Breathtaking images from the Hubble Space Telescope hover and combine to show the life cycle of stars.  Audiences experience the eventual collision of our Milky Way Galaxy with the neighboring Andromeda Galaxy as visualized by the Space Telescope Science Institute.  Then visitors plunge down and sweep through the gigantic Valles Marineris canyon, simulated by the Centre for Astrophysics and Supercomputing at Swinburne University of Technology, using the latest data from the Mars Global Surveyor. 

Black Holes - The attraction of Black Holes is more than just gravitational.  these mysterious graveyards of dead stars have fascinated generations.  The Planetarium's new feature explores the history, physics and mystery of black holes.  Narrated by actor John de Lancie, this space adventure features rich, expansive panoramas and incorporates several of the latest scientific theories about how black holes are formed and where they are hiding now.  Witness the bending of light, the skewing of perception, and the dizzying descent into a black hole.  This show incorporates some of the most visually stunning three dimensional effects ever created for the planetarium.  Add to that a sound effects track and 5.1 surround sound mix by George Lucas' Skywalker Sound Studios and you have an incredible sensory experience.