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Authentic representation for queer subcultures isn’t easy, especially within the confines of popular entertainment outlets. That’s why the team behind Where the Bears Are decided to produce the webseries on their own terms. Between 2012 and 2018 there were 142 episodes, and now a documentary about the production is coming to town and bringing its creators with it. Queer film fest aGLIFF invites you to celebrate all body types, stick around for a Q&A with the show’s writers and stars, and then head to the Iron Bear (naturally) for a full-bodied afterparty. – James Renovitch

Everybody’s grateful to be on the other side of the WGA and SAG strikes, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a lot still to chew over – summed up perfectly in the title of one upcoming ATX TV Festival panel, “How the Strikes Affected … Everything.” At this long-running homegrown fest, TV fans and industry folk alike will find plenty of illuminating conversations about the state of television today, plus starry retrospectives (Suits, Halt & Catch Fire), new and returning show spotlights (Interview With the Vampire, The Big Cigar, Orphan Black: Echoes), and a special tribute to the late, great Norman Lear featuring script readings from Maude and Good Times. – Kimberley Jones

Hot on the heels of a production I called “rare and wonderful,” the all-ASL Deaf Austin Theatre stomps through stereotypes with their newest production. Playwright and star Ashlea Brittney Hayes pens the story of Ghari, a mid-30s deaf, blind, Black woman. She’s facing an utterly new world in the wake of a move, a new job, and a breakup. Join Ghari as she adjusts to massive changes and traverses the most dangerous scene of all – dating. If you can’t catch it live, snap up a ticket for the streaming broadcast June 1. – Cat McCarrey

The hype is very real, Reader: Austin’s very own cinema-for-the-people Hyperreal Film Club has secured brick-and-mortar status. Help ’em make the new locale as tricked out as possible by attending the kickoff event for their new Kickstarter campaign. Of course, Reader, you’ll be rewarded for your charity with an awesome experience that includes live music from Loteria, Sentimental Family Band, and a DJ set by Veronica Ortuño; two-step lessons; cowboy karaoke; and a mechanical bull. Tickets run 15-20 bucks, depending on your budget, so grab ’em while they’re hot and start planning your Western wear. You’ll be wanting to dress to impress, ain’t that right? – James Scott

Queer, country, and based on a novel: Desert Hearts has it all. Led by Helen Shaver (Nancy’s mom in 1996’s The Craft) as the closeted but curious Vivian Bell, the Donna Deitch-directed film follows a romance between Shaver’s soon-to-be divorced professor and free-spirited sculptor Cay (Patricia Charbonneau). Now you can enjoy the Eighties sapphic energy among fellow gays, hosted by everybody’s favorite monthly ho-down Neon Rainbows. Plus: free popcorn and a post-movie boogie hosted by Country Fried Dance.: – James Scott

Rob Garza, half of electronic duo Thievery Corporation, married heady downtempo and trip-hop influences with bossa nova, reggae, and Middle Eastern music in the early Aughts. As a DJ, he spotlights lounge-making, housey daytime disco. He’ll go back to back with fellow shapeshifter Matthew Dear, who glides between worlds of techno and indie and is beloved as a dark, accelerative dance floor commander during his live sets, broad-ranging DJ, flexible producer, and respected label leader. Dear last played Kingdom as a secret weapon headliner for the club’s resurrection in August 2022, in a set abridged by authorities around 2am. Ian Orth and James Jones join the bill. – Christina Garcia

The annual celebration of the art of the ecdysiast – that’s stripping to you and me – gets the crowd warmed up with an opening show at Kick Butt Coffee before two nights of dropped, tossed, and discarded apparel at the Long Center. Proving its commitment to the history of the hurly-burly, the festival spotlights two true legends of the art of the tease: the Godfather of Neo-Boylesque, TIGGER!, and the inimitable Lovey Goldmine, an icon who worked with Scatman Crothers and Merv Griffin, on stages from Paris’ Crazy Horse Saloon to Las Vegas’ Cabaret Burlesque Palace. – Richard Whittaker

Theatre by any other name would be as sweet, but … there’s just something about the name “Shakespeare” that screams all the world’s a stage and we’re just living in it. And nothing screams Shakespeare more than Romeo and Juliet. Submerge yourself in a true Shakespearean experience with his famous star-crossed lovers. Tickets are free, but make sure to snap up a reservation before you head out. Feel the romance, the tension, the sorrow, in person. Besides, the Curtain Theatre’s outdoor setting is the perfect place to bask in the bard. Shakespeare and starlight?: A winning combo. – Cat McCarrey

Thanks to Seventies funk band War, the word “lowrider” often calls to mind the unforgettable sax riff of the band’s 1975 No. 1 single. But lowrider can mean a snazzy customized car with hydraulics or a person who works on such a vehicle, and the culture around these cars has strengthened Mexican American communities in the Southwest since the Forties. Learn more about them at this exhibit featuring an interactive touchscreen mural, cars and bikes on display, and stories about the people who make lowriding a community. A member reception takes place May 18. – Kat McNevins

The impeccably named MuthaGoose is the collective brainchild of artists Jill Garcia and Kim Phu. They are two of the baddest muthas around, debuting their collaborative creativity with the sly, wry, “Luster Woo” exhibit at the Butridge Gallery in the Dougherty Arts Center. Both are well-versed in playing around with mediums, crafting sculptures and paintings created from all manner of found or upcycled items. For “Luster Woo,” MuthaGoose present their nostalgic-but-modern takes on women’s issues. On Wednesday, Jill Garcia will be present for the artist reception, answering questions about the duo’s process. Check out these indelible visuals highlighting how the more things change, the more things stay the same. – Cat McCarrey

I’ll admit it: I don’t believe in Peter Pan, Frankenstein, or Superman. All I wanna do is bicycle! Bike Month ATX promises two-wheeler fun for the whole month of May. Break out the 10-speed, the recumbent, the cruiser, and join your fellow cyclists in the last nice weather days in Austin. There’s bike polo on May 5, or an all-level ride around Walnut Creek on the 19th. Help with meal delivery on the 22nd or pedal under a full moon on the 24th. Find pretty much every kind of bike fun under the sun (and moon!) at bikemonthatx.com, because those bicycle races? They’re coming your way. – James Scott

Past, present, and … Futurx, the latest and final installment of ProyectoTEATRO’s cabaret trilogy covering 500 years of Latin American history. In this part, the multi-talented cast brings to life “the political-toxic relationship between the United States and Mexico, the American Dream, the druglord underworld of Latin America, and the mysterious mermaids of the gulf of Mexico,” as the event copy states. How do they do it? Why, through theatre, music, sketch & improv comedy, and dance: elements which blend together and create an out-of-this-world spectacle inspired by very of-this-world history. – James Scott

That's right: Cap City Comedy Club, the longtime cornerstone of Austin's comedy scene for nearly four decades is at a new venue in the Domain. And here's Valerie Lopez with a closer look at what's in store for the scene via the venue. Click for details!

Traveling in Mexico, you frequently encounter changarritos – portable food carts or tienditas run by hardworking entrepreneurs. The carts usually operate outside of any formal regulation and, in that way, mirror the resilience and creativity of Mexican culture. In 2005, artist Máximo González appropriated the concept of the changarrito as a way for artists to take their work directly to the people. The idea came to Austin’s venerable Mexic-Arte Museum in 2012, with dozens of artists displaying art and interacting with the public outside the Downtown gallery. The concept is back and will run through August. – Brant Bingamon