Affordable Art, Cine Las Americas, Adult Books, and More Weekend Events

Affordable Art Fair

Thursday 15 - Sunday 18, Palmer Events Center

Couldn’t fuel your private jet for Art Basel this year? Can’t afford even a painting of a private jet? That’s where you may be wrong, as the Affordable Art Fair may be the way to get an original work on your walls. The traveling international celebration of visual media always highlights local artists at each stop, so you have your chance to purchase paintings, prints, and more curated by Austin galleries and institutions like Art From the Streets and Canopy Collective alongside London’s Quantum Contemporary Art, Lumas from Berlin, and Paris’ Galerie Duret.   – Richard Whittaker

Margie Criner: “Sound & Vision”

Through June 14, Yard Dog Gallery

Hailing from Chicago, artist Margie Criner works in sculpture and miniatures. How so? Her unique sculptural works – themselves impressive patchworks of materials from wool to actual hornets’ nests – feature peepholes through which viewers may glance tiny tableaux. These miniature worlds all center music, such as her pinky-finger-sized record store, Needle on the Records, with vintage posters plastered across its small interior walls. “The music theme isn’t always literal,” explains Criner, “but background sounds within the space, specific to what I’m processing. Kind of like how there’s music playing at the grocery store, that music is everywhere.”   – James Scott

Ramy Youssef: Love Beam 7000

Thursday 15, Paramount Theatre

Ramy Youssef has been adding hyphens to his career description for years now. The writer-director-actor-producer best known for his namesake Hulu series returns to the stage for a mixture of storytelling and stand-up. His previous stand-up special was called More Feelings, and judging by the name of this new routine, he’s harnessed positive emotions to share with his crowds. Or he’s being facetious. And why 7,000? You’ll have to get a seat at the show to find out.   – James Renovitch

Bone Jewelry Class

Thursday 15, Monkeywrench Books

Interested in accessories more organic than the Hot Topic piece that’s turning your skin green? From taxidermy artist W.M. Halliburton – or Hallibugton, as his Instagram suggests – comes a lesson on bone jewelry. Here, you’ll learn from an expert how to clean and utilize the bones in handmade earrings and charms – as well as scoring a take-home zine that’ll prove a valuable resource should you choose to continue your calcareous collection. Sliding-scale donation-based door tickets start at $10, with profits split between Hallibugton and venue Monkeywrench. Now that’s a good deal: No bones about it.   – James Scott

Cine Las Americas International Film Festival

Thursday 15 - Sunday 18, AFS Cinema, Austin PBS, and City of Austin PDC Event Center

Newly in the news as one of many Austin arts organizations impacted by the National Endowment for the Arts’ slash-and-burn of arts funding, Cine Las Americas deserves our support now more than ever. But hey – we’re getting plenty in return: namely, a top-flight film festival celebrating Latine/x, Indigenous, and Latin American voices. But wait, there’s more! This year, Cine is launching its first-ever concurrent conference, with fireside chats, workshops, and more taking place May 16-17. See some terrific movies, learn from industry vets like Elizabeth Avellán and David Blue Garcia, and feel good about supporting a community thrown under the bus by the Trump administration. Them’s wins all around.   – Kimberley Jones

DiverseSpace Youth Dance and Violet Crown Players Present Confluence

Thursday 15 - Sunday 18, the Vortex

With Confluence, Violet Crown Players and DSYDT have crafted a piece exploring “human connection.” Led by local choreographer Toni Bravo, with guest choreography by Berlin’s Ortrun Stanzel and Amsterdam’s Michael Jahoda, Confluence shows the power of dance throughout every experience. DiverseSpace Dance seeks to provide dance opportunities for all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Their multigenerational cast will show the power of that access, set to live music by Victoria Schwarz. Watch the threads of connection, woven through physical and social movements.   – Cat McCarrey

“The Everyman”

Through June 7, Bolm Arts

I’ve been having a lot of “girl who’s going to be okay” moments as I reconnect with my earnest, optimistic side, so I’m excited for “The Everyman,” a group show curated by visual artist and musician Lisa Alley that celebrates the beauty in the small things – from commonplace occurrences to the working-class heroes that give this exhibit its name. Alley – who plays in local acts the Well, Mugger, and TV’s Daniel – shows her paintings alongside a slew of familiar names, including Parquet Courts’ A. Savage, Never’s Emily No Good, and photographer Pooneh Ghana. Everyone has the ability to create something exceptional, this Bolm Arts project assures us.   – Carys Anderson

“Roots Unveiled: Exploring the Chinese Experience”

Through August 31, Central Library

Among the many anti-civil rights bills creeping their way through the Texas Legislature is Senate Bill 17, which would bar Chinese and many other Asian citizens from buying land here. Denounced by detractors as racist and reminiscent of 19th-century laws targeting Asian immigrants, its 2023 origins, along with growing anti-Asian sentiment after the pandemic, inspired Houston artist Jane Xu to found the multi-city Asian American Art & Culture Initiative and initiate this multidisciplinary exhibit. Curated by renowned international independent curator Sylvia XuHua Zhan, it brings in-depth research and archives along with work from a wide range of artists to offer a look at the rich history of Chinese Americans in Texas. Opening reception is Sunday, May 18, noon.   – Kat McNevins

Anklets in the Boardroom

Friday 16 - Sunday 18, Austin PBS Community Room

Ever wished you could just redo that awkward situation? Take that snappy comeback you dreamed up in the shower hours later and test it out in real life? It’s possible with forum theatre. Forum theatre isn’t just a fancy term for non-bedroom role-playing. It’s more like applied academia, performances intentionally inviting the audience to participate in examining issues and testing out solutions. That’s exactly how Leela Theatre presents Anklets in the Boardroom, a series of scenarios based on real-life workplace bias experienced by Asian women. It’s an intensely individualized experience, expanding scope depending on you – yes you, the audience – to set the course of exploration. How could things be better? What should have happened? How can we fix the future?   – Cat McCarrey

Ricky Sim: Coming Out to Dead People

Friday 16 - Saturday 17, ColdTowne Theater

After performing his autobio comedy show to sold-out crowds in NYC, London, and “a secretive queer-safe space” in Kuala Lumpur, Ricky Sim swans down south to ATX. The show, written by Sim, digs into his experiences as an immigrant alongside his Chinese-Malaysian mother and what it meant to be gay, closeted, and Asian American in the Aughts. Hilarious and heartfelt, recipient of the PIT/Saturday Night Live Scholarship Sim performs his tale of grief, intersectional identity, and Sean Paul for two nights at ColdTowne, with direction by the Emmy-award winning Ryan Cunningham.   – James Scott

Black Auteur Film Festival Presents We Real Cool

Friday 16, We Luv Video

Platformers of Black cinema and its creators, BAFF take over North Loop’s movie rental haus for a short film featurette. For a mere five buckaroos, attendees may marvel at works by directors Fitzgerald Junior, Funmi Ogunro, Ashley Robinson, Benji Unanaowo, and Fatima Wardy screened in WLV’s beautiful backroom – with a promised post-movie Q&A. This roundup precedes BAFF’s upcoming June 21 festival, which’ll feature Black Texan-made short films on the big AFS Cinema screen as well as networking mixers and a raffle worth its weight in filmmaking classes, fest badges, and movie tix. Drop blackauteurfilmfestival.com into your url box for more details.   – James Scott

Dan Savage’s Hump!: Part 1

Friday 16 - Saturday 17, Hyperreal Film Club

Art is nothing without eroticism, despite what our conservative Lege members argue. Such is the basis of long-running film fest Hump!, which hits 20 years of platforming sexy short film this very spring. Part one of the dual-season screening series touches down on Chicon this Friday and Saturday promising a brand-new 23-film lineup. Subjects explored in these adult features include dirty Dungeons & Dragons; erotic eco-paradises; sultry summer camps; and much more – all limited to a five-minutes-or-less runtime. Two screenings per day means you’ve got double the chances to catch this year’s spring selections – and prepare yourself for further hot films come fall.   – James Scott

Best in Show Backyard Dog Show

Friday 16, Hotel Vegas

Of all the jobs, dog show judge has to be one of the best. You just look at, meet, and pet dogs all day? The only drawback is having to rank them and break hearts. For this dog show, an esteemed panel of lucky judges will rate and rank dogs of small, medium, and large varieties on personality and cuteness, with tricks earning extra points. (Yay!) Best of those three will go on to compete in Best in Show for a $100 prize. If you’ve got a contestant, register online; spectators just show up ready to be backseat judges and enjoy hot dogs from Zee’s Wiener System, jams from Dr. Loco Boy, and a pup-friendly market curated by Vibe City Markets. Benefits Happy Hearts Dog Rescue.   – Kat McNevins

Cooley High

Friday 16 - Tuesday 20, Alamo Village, South Lamar, Lakeline & Mueller

Selected in 2021 to be in the National Film Registry, this 1975 classic inspired the likes of Spike Lee and was a major box-office hit upon its release. Contrary to the ubiquitous Blaxploitation of its era, it’s a coming-of-age story following two ambitious best friends in 1964 Chicago: aspiring poet Preach Jackson and basketball star Cochise Morris, who run into trouble during a day of cutting class. What starts as a series of parties, joyrides, and flirting is sadly twisted by the dangers of being Black in America. A heart-wrenching drama through and through, it’s nonetheless joyous and funny, soundtracked by well-loved Motown hits. John Singleton’s 1991 classic Boyz n the Hood is a direct homage to Cooley High, as is Boyz II Men’s 1991 debut album Cooleyhighharmony.   – Lina Fisher

Dog Day Afternoon

Friday 16 - Wednesday 21, all Austin Alamo Drafthouses

In 1973, director Sidney Lumet tapped Al Pacino to play an NYPD detective in Serpico. Two years later he cast Pacino on the other end of the law in Dog Day Afternoon. Groundbreaking in its time – how many Hollywood stars were playing a real-life guy who knocked over a bank in order to pay for his lover’s gender-affirming surgery? – Dog Day is a quintessential zeitgeist movie, expertly capturing the working-class agitation and angst of the 1970s. It’s also funny, thrilling, so very sweaty, and totally tragic. It paired Pacino with John Cazale again – Michael and Fredo reunited, a year after The Godfather Part II forcibly separated them – in Cazale’s next to last film role. They’re both dynamite in one of Lumet’s best.   – Kimberley Jones

Make & Take: Marker Monoprints

Saturday 17, Austin Creative Reuse

To make or take: That is the question. The answer? Do both! Artist and teacher CJ – of CJ Sketches – delivers a lesson on monoprinting where participants utilize recycled materials to make unique prints and take them home to display or gift to a friend. According to ACR’s class description, monoprinting helps mental health by its celebration of “happy accidents” and its mindful meditative process. “This workshop is about process over perfection,” they write, “nurturing self-expression and curiosity.” Costing zero dollars and zero cents with all supplies provided, can you afford to skip this creative cohort?   – James Scott

Aisha Imdad: “The Allegorical Gardens”

Through July 3, Women & Their Work

Gardens loom large in legend. Think the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Shalimar Gardens, the Garden of Eden: each bursting with symbolic beauty, dripping with promises of life and growth. Artist Aisha Imdad explores the lush intricacies of this verdant imagery. Her watercolor works delve into literary and mythological gardens, inspired by Indian, Mughal, and Persian frescos. Each invites closer introspection, a desire to immerse in the vibrant world of her works. Each intricate blossom speck, or gilded turn of a bird wing, vibrates with idealized life. Imdad’s art portrays the possibilities of paradise.   – Cat McCarrey

Adult Book Fair

Saturday 17, Austin Beerworks Sprinkle Valley

No, not *that* kind of adult: The promo materials reassure this is a family-friendly event for all ages. But Austin Beerworks’ Adult Book Fair is definitely tugging at your kid-at-heart heartstrings by invoking Scholastic Book Fair, aka Christmas for book nerds. ABW’s version runs noon to 4pm at the Springdale Road location and features local bookstores and art vendors, including Alienated Majesty Books, Austin Creative Reuse, Austin Public Library, Birdhouse Books and Gifts, BookWoman, Emily Seidel, Flutter, Host Publications, Kody Karnei, Little Gay Shop Book Club, Paper Place Austin, Reverie Books, and the Book Burrow.   – Kimberley Jones

Black Pearl Books Presents Kennedy Ryan in Conversation

Saturday 17, ACC Highland Campus Recital Hall

Black girls know the drill: Though books, film, and television are rife with romance stories, very few of the ladies who get swept off their feet ever look like us. The works of Kennedy Ryan present a breath of fresh air. The first Black winner of the RITA Award for romantic fiction, Ryan promotes sisters from sassy side chicks to main characters – ones worthy of the same all-encompassing love we've usually only seen experienced by others. The author talks and signs her latest offering, Can’t Get Enough, courtesy of Black Pearl Books, Austin's only Black-owned bookstore.   – Carys Anderson

Austin International Film Festival

Saturday 17, Galaxy Highland

New name, same love of movies. Formerly Screen ATX, this fest is back and still has an emphasis on the kind of under-the-radar projects that find supporters in Austin’s ever-welcoming film community. It may only be one day, but with 14 hours of flicks leading to an award ceremony and late, late, late afterparty, it’s a long weekend’s worth of movies. And though international it may be, there’s a serious local flavor – including Bloody & Bruised: The Untold Story of the Back Room, recounting the history and mayhem of Austin’s legendary metal club.   – Richard Whittaker

Austin Youth River Watch 2025 Open House

Saturday 17, 10611 Platt Ln.

Created in the early Nineties as an environmental stewardship program for high schoolers, the Austin Youth River Watch continues into our current year more determined than ever to protect our city’s waterways. Thus, the AYRW’s EcoHouse opens its doors this Saturday and invites community engagement with their mission. Attendees to this free-but-RSVP event will enjoy hands-on displays and demonstrations; guided hiking tours; alfresco yoga; and a raffle with prizes including outdoor gear and ’sclusie River Watch merch.   – James Scott

Slipper Summit

Saturday 17, Central Library

Ahead of their big film fest – which you can read more about in our sinfully stuffed Summer Events Calendar, here – Austin Asian American Film Festival invites one and all to engage with storytelling at their free creative confluence. Open to the public, offerings include literary readings, panels on “Art as Resistance” and “playfulness for your creative process,” a community zine-making workshop, and to-be-announced film screenings.   – James Scott

Austin Used Book Collective Sale

Saturday 17, Community Garden

Pick up a paperback or seven on this sunny (??? I haven’t checked Saturday’s weather forecast, so I’m soothsaying) secondhand lit shindig. Booths from all the AUBC usuals will exhibit, including Idle Hands Books, Josiah Simon, Sleeper Books, Rand Renfrow, and Time Being Books, with their curated coterie of vintage tomes available. Plus, venue choice Community Garden offers its trendy interior and exterior for sipping a coffee or wine and digging into your purchased paperback.   – James Scott

Cats Are Sluts Goth Book Release Party

Saturday 17, Birdhouse Books & Gifts

They really are, aren’t they? We once had a cat that nonchalantly came home with a collar on, making us realize she had another home and a whole other family who called her something only they knew. But that would be no excuse for the horrors Edgar Allan Poe visited on his tormented kitty Pluto in “The Black Cat,” which is retold in Nori Rose Hubert’s new book. Gothic attire is encouraged at this book release that will feature light snacks, bevvies, and hopefully a more feline-friendly end this time.   – Kat McNevins

Strut! Austin: Sasha Colby Live

Saturday 17, Cheer Up Charlies

If you haven’t heard tell about this show by now, we’ve got drastically different Instagram algorithms. But since I’m nice – and you’re a faithful Chronicle print-edition reader – I’ll fill ya in on this NYC-born but touring party, self-described as “a queer rodeo of maximalist joy, high-femme chaos, and drag that kicks harder than a mule in July.” That mule-kicking drag comes courtesy of local stars like Alexander the Great, Brigitte Bandit, Diamond Dior Davenport, and Jenna Talia, among many others, led by heart-stopping headliner Sasha Colby (Drag Race season 15). There’ll also be queer-owned pop-up shops, local legends behind the DJ booth, and a silent auction benefiting LGBTQ+ advocacy org Equality Texas.   – James Scott

PowerPints

Saturday 17, the Highball

Barring the odd late-night whiskey-soaked college essay-writing binge, learning and drinking have rarely been so near and dear as they are in this comedy show that’s got the same exam-cram energy. Eight presenters enter the stage, each with a presentation on a subject of their choice. The time limit? Five minutes. The consequences for going over said time limit? A spicy pickle shot. The price for becoming more informed about hypnotism, Sonic the Hedgehog, and the Boston Molasses Flood while also slurping suds? Only $5, with all proceeds profiting your presenters.   – James Scott

Trash Free Gulf Cleanup

Saturday 17, 6213 Levander Loop

On my last trip to Padre Island, it was disappointing to walk along the shore and see construction debris littering the sand. The culprit? A new development a couple miles upshore. Everything that lands in the water travels somewhere. So H-E-B’s Our Texas, Our Future presents the Trash Free Gulf Campaign to bring together cleanup partners across the state to raise awareness and clean up watersheds. Join in for the Clean Up the Colorado day with All Water Guides, which will launch from the Texas River School. Bring a canoe, boat, stand-up paddleboard, or raft if you have one, but no boat is no problem; they can be borrowed, and all are welcome, even if you want to stay on land.   – Kat McNevins

Shinjuku Boys

Sunday 18, We Luv Video

WLV’s monthly queer movie meetup SunGays celebrates AANHPI Heritage Month with this Japanese doc about three trans-masculine hosts at Tokyo’s New Marilyn Club. Released in the mid-Nineties to posi reception – including an Outstanding Documentary win from the San Francisco Gay and Lesbian Film Festival – the film focuses on the self-referenced “onabe” and their experience with romantic and familial relationships and gender presentation. A good watch for the Ouran High School Host Club fan who wants to understand real queered host club dynamics – or anyone who enjoys hot trans guys. Guilty!   – James Scott

Mermaids

Sunday 18 - Monday 19 & Wednesday 21, Alamo Mueller, South Lamar & Lakeline

Cher’s Eighties-Nineties film catalog is unmatched, with Moonstruck, The Witches of Eastwick, and, of course, Mermaids. Her brilliance as a free-spirited young mom is grounded by Winona Ryder as her plucky daughter, a Catholicism-obsessed little freak who’s fed up with her mother’s manic pixie philandering ways that land them in a new tiny East Coast town every time she breaks up with someone. Christina Ricci makes her film debut as the youngest daughter, a foil to Ryder’s coming-of-age misadventures who clashes with her family. It’s as heartwarming and zany as other cozy classics of the era like Practical Magic, but comparatively and criminally underseen. With its neurotically sex-obsessed camp, and of course, Cher, it’s ripe for some queer theorizing. [Editor’s Note: This screening’s a Queer Film Theory 101 presentation – but not THAT one. The other one.]   – Lina Fisher

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Want to see all of our listings broken down by day? Go to austinchronicle.com/calendar and see what's happening now or in the coming week.