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You thought SXSW was the only days-long party in town promising loud music and smelly animals? Then this must be your first rodeo! OK, this one’s slightly more wholesome: Activities include a stock show, pro rodeo, petting zoo, pig races, carnival rides, and your favorite fareground vittles, plus a fresh headliner every day, including Lukas Nelson, Los Huracanes del Norte, Wynonna Judd, and Flatland Cavalry. Too wholesome? Pull on your finest shitkickers and hit the dance hall; there’s a full bar and, Rodeo Austin teases, a “chance to dance with a real cowboy.” Runs through March 23. – Kimberley Jones

Changing venues, delayed set times, notoriously erratic Texas weather: Almost nothing about South by Southwest is predictable. Right as rain, however, comes Hair of the 3-Legged Dog, the Chronicle’s annual March day party. Now in its ninth year, the festivities return to Hotel Vegas from noon to 4pm. As always, entry is free and open to the (21 and up) public with RSVP at austinchronicle.com/day-party. This year’s show promises performances from standout Austin acts Cactus Lee, Nemegata, Font, and Grace Sorensen. Alongside live music, Eldorado Cafe will be slinging free tacos, MOOD Aura Nomad will be snapping aura portraits, and, of course, Chron office dog Hank the Tripaw may be hanging around for cuddles. Even better, proceeds from the event support Austin Pets Alive! – Carys Anderson

The freshly paved streets of Austin still echo with Kathy McCarty’s soulful warbling of “Christine” from her days as frontwoman for Glass Eye, but now she – and her husband, the artist David Thornberry – have reached their pictorial “Apotheosis” in this two-person exhibition of paintings at Lydia Street Gallery on East 11th, McCarty’s visuals bringing evocations of life in our storied metrop, Thornberry’s capturing “shapes, shadows, and light.” Sonic bonus: The lady will perform songs from her upcoming album, also called Apotheosis, at tonight’s reception. Time hasn’t stolen this creative couple from anyone. – Wayne Alan Brenner

If you’re Austin’s Hyperreal Film Club and you’re teaming up with Letterboxd to present Derek Jarman’s Caravaggio, a fictionalized portrait of the subversive artist (that, oooh, features Tilda Swinton’s first film performance), you’ll want to do it somewhere appropriate, somewhere redolent of subversion and the old-school creative life, right? Well – holy chiaroscuro, Artman! This nighttime screening takes place on the grounds of the Elisabet Ney Museum in Hyde Park, and includes free drinks (tyvm, Fairweather Cider), themed snacks, a photo booth, and live music.: – Wayne Alan Brenner

If you caught the 2018 doc McQueen, about the late fashion designer Alexander McQueen, then you’re already familiar with the talents of his nephew and protégé Gary James McQueen, who was responsible for the stunning, under-the-skin skull sculptures featured in the opening credits. Those skulls, as represented via 3D lenticular artworks, form the basis of the Gary James McQueen exhibit – his first stateside – now running at West Chelsea Contemporary through March 24. – Kimberley Jones

Woah, woah! Wait… This isn’t South by Southwest? This is actually a collection of Austin area queer bands and artists stretching genres from punk to lounge, rock to country, all located within a North Austin hangout? Well. Yeah. Basically. Part of the Windsor Park Spring Music Series, this no-cover concert features sets by Pipes and the Lounge Punks, Akem Olaj, Digger of Dirt, the Grotesques, Maddie and the Deadnames, B0085, and many more. Hope that clears up any confusion! – James Scott

A whole week without school? What is a curious and unoccupied mind to do? Get those kiddos down to the Bullock Texas State History Museum to stave off boredom and give them something to chat about when school’s back in session the next Monday. Each day’s unique spring break activity is included with museum admission and coincides with the current shark exhibit, meaning kids will learn fun facts about the ocean through interactive activities and get up close and personal with some very cool shark stuff such as megalodon teeth. – Kat McNevins

For generations of children, Arnold Lobel’s stories of amphibian best buds Frog and Toad have been a charming guide to the complexities and joys of friendship. Now the pair take to the stage for this delightful Tony-nominated musical. It’s truly a family affair, adapted by Lobel’s son-in-law Mark Linn-Baker with music by Robert Reale and book & lyrics by his brother, Willie. This new production, directed by Best of Austin winner Sara Burke, features Jillian Sainz and Victoria Brown donning the signature jackets and trousers of Frog and Toad, respectively. – Richard Whittaker

When a fellow is named Tim McCool, you’ve got to hope he lives up to the moniker. We reckon that, as co-founder (with his dauntless spouse, Kira) of the right-there-in-the-garage Good Luck Have Fun Gallery off Enfield, this particular art-scene mover and shaker is as McCool as it gets. Evidence: The gallery’s newest show brings together the colorful and provocative work of four women artists – Aubree Dale, Aria Brownell, Wendy Rhode, and Barbara Miñarro – “who explore the relationships between individual identity and the collective, the process of making art and of making one’s self.” – Wayne Alan Brenner