Wail like banshees, brothers & sisters,
rend your garments and gnash your teeth: Read More | Comment »

Somebody believes that the arts belong in Austin’s schools and is backing that conviction to the tune of $1 million. The anonymous gift, announced at a press conference on May 14 at Lamar Middle School, will establish a new resource for AISD teachers to enhance their coursework with creative learning projects and boost student access to the arts. Read More | Comment »

Do you know which current and aspiring city officials truly get what creativity means to Austin's future and which ones just pay it lip service with a few tossed-off references to Willie, Stevie Ray, and how they want to keep Austin weird, too? You can find out Monday, April 30, at a Mayoral and Council Candidate Forum for the Creative Sector. Read More | Comment »

Tokidoki! Crappy Cats! Plushy internal organs! Darwyn Cooke's Parker adaptations! Coffee table art books by Shepard Fairey and Gary Baseman! Issues of Juxtapoz! Skateboard art! Art art!! Art art by Austin artists!! As if you needed more ways for Austin Books & Comics to part you and your hard-earned cash … now comes Guzu!!! Read More | Comment »

Well, yes, and so it went –
faster than a speeding, shall we say, bullet. Read More | Comment »

For real, citizen.

Well, you'd be pretending, yes,
but it'd be pretending for real –
if you see what we mean.
Read More | Comment »

Playwright Kirk Lynn has just been named a 2011 USA Fellow by the national artists' advocacy organization United States Artists, an honor that comes with a $50,000 check. Read More | Comment »

Some people just cannot take a joke. Since Stephanie Miller launched her Sexy Liberal comedy tour, she has had venues cancel, and her tour website and Twitter account hacked. "We're just laughing," said Miller. Read More | Comment »

Sarah Silverman knows how to make a shocking statement. But when Gov. Rick Perry gets to throw Birtherism around and Texas politicians back Confederate flag license plates, that's truly shocking. What's even worse is that Perry could just walk away from real questions of character like the N-head scandal. Read More | 1 Comment »

To dress up for the cabaret, or dress down for the sawdust? On Saturday, an assemblage of tumblers, clowns, aerialists, puppeteers and balladeers will be under the big top for CircX 4 the People: On Sunday, many of the same performers will be taking a more bohemian swing for Who Said Vaudeville was Dead?. Decisions, decisions … Read More | Comment »

[From the Editor: Last week, aerialist Raven Hinojosa spoke with tight-rope aerial stuntman and seventh-generation performer Nik Wallenda – (yes, of those Wallendas) about his daredevil life and about his Stunt Spectacular show at Schlitterbahn… Read More | Comment »

Call them bunnies or panty wranglers or stage hands: The true heroines of last weekend's Texas Burlesque Festival were the brave assistants who cleared, collected and collated every last item of clothing dropped to the floor by the performers. Read More | Comment »

There comes a time when every widow must cast off the black weeds of mourning: Tonight the ladies of Black Widow Burlesque will be throwing off a whole lot more as they celebrate their second anniversary in the realm of tease-o-rama. Read More | Comment »

Lucie Arnaz comes this Sunday to entertain Austin as a part of Austin Cabaret's 10 year anniversary series of divalicious evenings from the American Songbook. She also happens to be one of my childhood sheroes. Read More | Comment »

Every Holiday needs its public face. Easter and the Easter Bunny. Christmas and Santa. And, in Austin, Halloween and Mr. Creep, the Best of Austin-winning ghoul with a grin. Now Creep and his closest associate, artist of the macabre Matt Garcia, have spread their black wings as the haunting season begins. Read More | Comment »

If you think you've been to the House of Torment before, think again. Austin's nationally recognized Halloween haunt has been torn down and rebuilt, fresh for the new scaring season. House vice-president Jon Love said, "Everybody that works here is never satisfied in January with what happened in October. So it's better, more, new, different." Read More | Comment »

Break out your leg warmers and "Frankie Says" shirts. As part of their regular residency, the Jigglewatts will be taking a trip through some Prince and Madonna for tonight's Totally! The 80s Show at the ND at 501 Studios. Read More | Comment »

The road show of “Fiddler on the Roof,” in Austin through Sunday, is a thoroughly enjoyable production of the classic play. Veteran actor Harvey Fierstein plays Tevye, reprising his lead role in the record-breaking Broadway revival. It’s a great play - if you go, mazel tov. Read More | Comment »

No one likes to bitch - But no one likes to pay $10 for parking, either. I've been going to see musicals with my fabulous mother since I was five years old. If it has toured the country, chances are we've seen it. So both of us were excited when it was revealed that the Bass Concert Hall would finally be reopening with a wonderful 2009 season: Legally Blonde, Spamalot, Rent, Avenue Q and Wicked. Hot Damn! It was with great anticipation that we drove on Sunday to see Legally Blonde together. The musical? It was cute, energetic, and fine. Camp and class. But it was difficult to concentrate on the show, see, because everything else about the UTPAC experience was difficult and depressing. Read More | 4 Comments »

If you're headed to a show at the newly refurbished Bass Concert Hall &ndash or the not-refurbished McCullough Theatre or Bates Recital Hall, for that matter &ndash be sure to pack an extra Hamilton for stashing your car. All that free parking that you used to be able to score in the large, typically empty lots by the LBJ Library and the School of Public Affairs are a thing of the past. The lots are now manned by attendants, and if you don't have a UT permit, you have to pay $10 to park there. $10. Thanks, UT. You really know how to show a little sympathy for the little guy when economic times are tough. Granted, folks who are shelling out $50, $60, $75 a ticket for premium concerts and Broadway touring shows at Bass can probably cough up an extra 10 bucks without choking (though not always). But what about the student or classical music lover of limited means just trying to get to a recital at Bates? They may end up paying as much or more to park as they do for the ticket, and that $10 may be a lot harder to spare. (A ten-spot can buy two weeks' worth of ramen.) Read More | Comment »