Art Dinner
Thursday 11 – Saturday 13, the Future Front House
In a recent post to her Substack Sicc Palette, chef Deepa Shridhar described the metaphor-rich process of soaking saffron for hyderabadi biryani: “You just gotta let it soak, give it the time it deserves to be a force to be reckoned with, saffron will permeate and collaborate with facile joy at every layer.” Similar description could be applied to our local creative crew at Future Front, who have over the years permeated and collaborated with myriad layers of Austin artists to make for a flavorful, well, future. Shridhar helps FFTX secure that future by serving as curator to their Art Dinner, a multi-course meal influenced by South Indian & Texan flavors. You’ve got three chances to snag a plate of Gulf shrimp sukka, Texas root masala & grilled cheese kolaches, chili citrus & Texas sesame quail, or pecan pie with burnt jaggery gelato – plus natural wine pairings, a tour of FFTX’s gallery, and a satisfied sense you’ve helped a cool org stay alive. – James Scott
Child of Aphrodite
Thursday 11 – Sunday 14, The VORTEX
Aphrodite, the goddess of love, is a picture both alluring and tragic. Her beauty lures you in, but can be deadly. The VORTEX presents her acolytes in artistic burlesque, movement set to Homeric and Orphic hymns praising Aphrodite and her son Eros. Blaise Ricin, resident artist and artistic director for occult burlesque Malum Malus, creates a lush world of dangerous romance. He’s taking cues from the gilded, murky dreamscape of 1971 arthouse film Pink Narcissus, a queer landmark marrying the pure and the profane. Here, Ricin has created a rich fantasy world with an edge. – Cat McCarrey
Roaring With Moll Cutpurse
Friday 12 – Sunday 14, Sterling Stage
Thief, accused assassin, gambler, carouser, and star of the stage. Mary Frith – better known to her adoring fans and infuriated sheriffs as Moll Cutpurse – was the toast of Elizabethan London. There was not a taboo she would not bust, and her raucous ways made her a celebrity whose exploits were so scandalous that she had not one but two contemporary plays written about her. Now Archive Theater Company brings her story to Austin’s newest stage with a staged and costumed reading of the new work by Kathleen Fletcher, directed by Trace Turner. – Richard Whittaker
Spirited Away
Friday 12 – Wednesday 17, AFS Cinema
The movie that turned anime master – and notorious curmudgeon and martinet – Hayao Miyazaki from a revered artist in Japan to the most famous animator globally since Walt Disney. His story of a young girl who must enter a fantastical world after her parents are turned into pigs has spawned a thousand collectibles but never lost its narrative and thematic power. Come for the cute, weird creatures. Stay for a vicious dissection of runaway Western style consumerism’s impact on Japanese culture. – Richard Whittaker
Zero Waste Block Leader Webinar
Friday 12, Online
Mid-July is prime time for webinars. No need to leave the house or be sweatily productive – but why not formulate future plans and educate yourself? For this webinar, we will be learning how to be one of the “engaged residents who are passionate about sustainability and zero waste. They offer their time and knowledge to their friends, families and neighbors. They share information about recycling, composting, repurposing and repairing.” Sounds like a great way to get involved in the community without leaving the house! Then with all that knowledge, you can go out in the world and help make it a cleaner, more sustainable place. – Kat McNevins
Goth Surf
Saturday 13, Double Trouble
Hang 10 among fellow freaks and geeks of the fearsome variety: Host Owie invites all the girls, guys, and ghouls to this summerween drag showcase. Riding the sunny specter wave is a primo lineup featuring Jack Rabid, Yvonna F. Mei, Bohemia, Sinful Purchase, and DJ Lavender Thug. But don’t think the audience is missing out on the gothy fun. Attendees can enter the costume contest in their freak-out finery for a fabulous prize. So throw on your best Elvira-in-100-degree-weather outfit and get down to Dub Trub. The water – and the summer cocktail menu – is fine… – James Scott
Boner Bizarre: Bonerstock ’99
Saturday 13, Come and Take It Live
The team behind Boner Bizarre has long drawn on pop culture for their “guerrilla-style” erotic variety shows; past events have channeled David Cronenberg, American Horror Story, and Stanley Kubrick. Naturally, the logical choice for the program’s next freaky, irreverent theme is Woodstock ’99: the disastrous display of nü metal that quickly devolved into an even more disastrous display of toxic masculinity. Fortunately, unlike that infamous music festival, all of the pole dancing, contortion, fire breathing, and fetish play you’ll witness at Bonerstock is consensual, so you can shout along to “Break Stuff” in peace. – Carys Anderson
Second Saturday: Swing Edition
Saturday 13, the Blanton
It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing, and in this case the “it” is “art.” Boogie-woogie up to the Blanton for a Second Saturday Swing-stravaganza. With live music from the Golden Hour Heptet – honestly, the sax doesn’t get better than them – and swing lessons for the uninitiated, it’s boppin’ music and moves against the Blanton’s exciting exhibits. Lindy Hop your way to the slick fashions of the “De Moda” regalia show, or West Coast Slide to West Coast artist Marie Watt’s jingle dress-inspired installations. At least enjoy the “Let’s Dance” pop-up exhibit. Inspiration and toe-tapping? Ideal. – Cat McCarrey
Saturday Night Fever
Saturday 13 – Thursday 18, AFS Cinema
So you think it’s just John Travolta in that white suit throwing wild shapes on the dance floor? Think again. Misguided double bills with Grease only lead to confused audiences, because this is as perfect a slice of New York sleaze as anything Abel Ferrara pulled out of the sewer. Adapting Nik Cohn’s 1976 New Yorker article “Tribal Rites of the New Saturday Night,” director John Badham took a dive into the testosterone-fueled lives of twentysomethings in late-Seventies Brooklyn – all desperate to get laid, get in a fight, get noticed, get out. The Grammy-winning soundtrack may have made the Bee Gees the biggest band in the world, but Tony Manero (a deservedly Oscar-nominated Travolta) is more like a Bruce Springsteen antihero. – Richard Whittaker
Joe Jiménez: Hot Boy Summer
Saturday 13, BookPeople
San Antonio boy Joe Jiménez sets the page alight with his new young adult novel, which hits a lighter tone than his Hamlet-esque debut, Bloodline. In Hot Boy Summer, freshly out Texan teen Mac struggles to find his place and let go of shame while making new gay friends who both help and complicate his journey. Author Sandra Cisneros (The House on Mango Street) showers effusive praise on the coming-of-gayge book, calling it “[hotter] than a Jalapeño Whataburger with spicy ketchup and Cholula.” Celebrate the release of what’s sure to be a queer summertime classic with the author at BookPeople, where you can get a signed copy. – James Scott
South Congress Books 13th Anniversary
Saturday 13, South Congress Books
Over 13 years slinging first editions, signed copies, and more from their literary haven on SoCo – now shifted to the equally iconic Kerbey Lane – and South Congress Books remains That Girl for the serious bibliophile. Most of the bookstore’s staff have been with ’em since the start, soaking up mondo knowledge about all the tomes tucked within. Stop in to celebrate later in the evening as there’ll be drinks and music from 6-8pm – but the real ones will be cruising SCB’s shelves all day to score primo print for a whopping 13% off. That’s one percent off for every lovely year they’ve been around. – James Scott
Bending Light Opening Reception
Saturday 13, Women & Their Work
Taylor Davis might have the coolest job description I’ve ever heard. She’s an independent curator (dream) and a landscape designer. So basically, she finds beauty in everything she touches. For “Bending Light,” Davis has accumulated work by four BIPOC artists, multidisciplinary masters “illuminating the nuanced experiences and collective memories of queerness and femininity in Black cultural production,” to quote the exhibit description. A weighty task, but one the artists – Kaima Marie Akarue, Ciara Elle Bryant, Catherine Martinez, and Chandrika Metivier – pull off with fascinating aplomb. Through mediums including but not limited to sculpture, video, collage, and photos, the viewer glimpses unique experiences. It’s a fresh reflection of this world. – Cat McCarrey
Co-Lab’s Super Sweet 16
Saturday 13, Co-Lab Projects
One of Austin’s best programming spaces with over 400 exhibitions & performances under their belt hits the ripe ol’ age of 16 – finally old enough for their driver’s license! Join their birthday bash and help them hit their fundraising goals through snapping up a sliding-scale ticket. Party excitements include a look at their summer-group exhibition “Inter Being,” tunes from p1nkstar and Tropicana Joe, a karaoke stage, water balloons, Clay Pigeon cuisine, and many sippables provided by Austin Beerworks, LALO Tequila, and Richard’s Rainwater. But, uh, no actual 16-year-olds at the bar, okay? Just the ones who are actually local organizations. – James Scott
Jane Austin Improv
Sunday 14, Fallout Theater
“For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbors and laugh at them in our turn?” Expect much sport at this Jane Austen-themed comedy show presented in full Regency dress. If the idea of improv in the style of dear Jane has you “yes, and”-ing, you’re not alone: Jane Austin (get it?) Improv won the B. Iden Payne’s Ethel Hinkley Award for Outstanding New Troupe in 2023. – Kimberley Jones
Eve’s Bayou
Sunday 14, Paramount Theatre
No one can say that Eve’s Bayou was a failure when it was released – after all, it was the most successful independent film of 1997 – but as the decades go on it’s only become clearer how astounding writer/director Kasi Lemmons’ debut feature is. Her autobiographically influenced story of hideous family secrets, Hoodoo, and unreliable memories simmers and seethes in the sweltering Louisiana summer, as Eve (voiced by Tamara Tunie) looks back at her 11-year-old self (Jurnee Smollett) and the summer that led to the death of her philandering father, Louis – searingly portrayed in all his swaggering arrogance by Samuel L. Jackson. – Richard Whittaker
Drag Your Ass to Brunch: Chappell Roan vs. Sabrina Carpenter
Sunday 14, Copperhead Club
Riverside’s best bet for sizzling sips and pounding beats plays venue to host Eileen Dover’s drag brunch du jour – a fun time featuring beats by TJ the DJ and performers like Sinful Purchase, Maxine LaQueene, and Rhea Moonlight. This month they tribute summer 2024’s white-girl obsessions aka Chappell “Pink Pony Club” Roan and Sabrina “Please Please Please” Carpenter. Both are long-toiling talents whose big breaks sent them stratospheric this summer, causing Johnny & Janey Come-Latelies to cry “industry plant” on these hardworkin’ women. But just like the drag queens brightening your Sunday brunch, the Mses. Roan and Carpenter are real-deal entertainers serving fierce and filling fun. – James Scott
Queer Futures Short Film Festival
Sunday 14, AFS Cinema
Accessibility is the name of the game when it comes to widening our cinematic consciousness. So when traveling short film compendium Queer Futures brings award-winning watches straight to our local film society’s screen, it’s like no-duh you should be snatching up a ticket. From fat queer liberation photographer Shoog McDaniel’s aquatic atmosphere piece “How to Carry Water” to trans health care talking-head doc “The Script,” nonbinary sister act exploration of ballroom “MnM” to romantic time-traveling tale-spinner “The Callers” – all these short flicks feature queer stories onscreen that’ll have you rooted to your seat. – James Scott
Bullock Birthday Bash
Sunday 14, Bullock Museum
We are pretty fortunate to have the Bullock Texas State History Museum, with its educational programming for all ages, its appreciation and recognition of artists, musicians, and innovators, its tireless efforts to keep Austinites smart and happy. Celebrate the fella who made this all possible, former Lt. Gov. Bob Bullock, with a fête featuring party favors and crafts, a kid-friendly concert by Mr. Will, and a storytime featuring Bullock’s favorite childhood book, The Little Red Hen. Don’t leave without getting a free cup of vanilla ice cream (Bob’s fave) as a b-day treat. – Kat McNevins
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.
This article appears in July 12 • 2024.
