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for Sun., May 30
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  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Blue Genie Art Bazaar: New May Market

    The creators of the Blue Genie Art Bazaar present a new spring arts event called May Market, a free, family-friendly experience showcasing the work of regional artisans and craftspeople under one roof with centralized checkout. "This is the ideal place to shop for locally made, one-of-a-kind gifts for Father’s Day, graduations, anniversaries, weddings, and more." That's what the press release says, anyway, trying to entice us in; thing is, that's even a bit too humble: We know what sort of market the Blue Genie gathers, and it's sure to be a lively splendorama of well-made goods coveted by anyone with a taste for the original, off-beat, and brilliantly homegrown.
    Through May 31. Fri.-Sun., 10am-8pm
  • Arts

    Theatre

    The Mysterious Affair at Styles

    Austin Playhouse's own Lara Toner Haddock has gone and adapted Agatha Christie's first published novel? Yes – and this debut opus features none other than the sharply mustachio'd Hercule Poirot. Featuring a sockdolager cast – Ben Wolfe (as Poirot himself), Scott Shipman, Toby Minor, Lara Toner, Sarah Chong Harmer, Sarah Fleming Walker, Ben Bazaěn, Robert Deike, Joseph Garlock, Babs George, Claire Grasso, Huck Huckaby, Marc Pouhé, Ken Webster, and Cyndi Williams – directed by that same Haddock, this murder mystery may be just what you need to transition out of the pandemic and into a semblance of former normalcy. Note: "Employing a hybrid method of theatrical filming, actors will be captured using both cinematic and traditional live performance approaches. To enhance the experience, early purchasers will electronically receive exclusive clues designed for the virtual whodunnit." Available for online viewing with live Q&As after each performance, and – regardez-vous! – here's a video trailer for the show.
    Through June 5. Thu.-Sun., 7:30pm. $15-18.  
  • Arts

    Theatre

    The Rivals

    Austin Shakespeare presents Richard Sheridan's hilarious comedy of manners for one livestreamed performance only. This witty romance mixes class, money, jealousy and love in a rip-roaring farce, as portrayed by Marc Pouhé, Babs George, Jill Blackwood, John Austin, Amani Dorn, J. Benjamin Wolfe, Graham Emmons, Lucas Matteson, Manali Sunkara, Michelle Jackson, Levi Gore, and Nicholas Ortiz. Directed by Ann Ciccolella.
    Sun., May 30, 5pm. $15.  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    West Chelsea Contemporary: Icons & Vandals

    It's the swanky venue's "most monumental" show yet, featuring works by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Ai WeiWei, Roy Lichtenstein, and a slew of other creative provocateurs who have subverted the contemporary art world throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Bonus: The closing reception features an artist talk with "The First lady of Graffiti," Lady Pink.
    Closing reception: Sun., July 11, 3-5pm
All Events
  • Arts

    Theatre

    A Portrait of My Mother

    An artist remembers their mother, spinning a modern Mexican Cinderella tale as we follow the trials and tribulations of one woman's journey into motherhood – from her humble beginnings in the town of Laredo, Texas, to her journey to Chicago, and everything between. Written and performed by Carlo Lorenzo Garcia, directed by David R. Jarrott. Note: Now available for viewing on Vimeo.
    Through July 31. $5.  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Art for the People Gallery: Such Miracles Among Us

    Kate Fitzpatrick's work enlivens this gallery's first solo show of 2021, the artist's painted depictions of wildlife a colorful delight for the eyes.
    Through June 6  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    ChingonX Fire: Group Exhibit

    Inspired by the Mexican American Cultural Center's annual La Mujer celebration – and by the first feminist of the New World, Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz – this online group exhibit is curated by April Garcia and features womxn-identifying and nongender-specific artists whose artwork is tied to activism, feminism, cultural. and gender identity storytelling, environmental protection, and socioeconomic parity.
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Cloud Tree Studios: Connection – Series I

    Okay, you want a deeply wonderful, life-enriching experience in this town right now? Go here. See this show. See this exhibition of Prentiss Douthit's oil-on-linen portraits of random strangers, portraits that are paired with the pictured ones' answers to questions posed by the artist. Note: Bring your earbuds, so you can hear the recordings of those questions and answers while you drink in the well-rendered draughts of humanity Douthit has so carefully provided.
    Through May 30
  • Arts

    Classical Music

    Conspirare: (un)Hidden Music

    Here's a curated program of heart-opening music, featuring a solo performance by Conspirare’s own Craig Hella Johnson, giving you the lowdown on the acclaimed company's musical mission.
    Streaming through July 15. Donations accepted.  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Dimension Gallery: IGBERIKO – CURBSIDE

    Olaniyi R. Akindiya (aka Akirash), installation artist par excellence, occupies this fierce bastion of sculpture with his vibrant works that recount "what 2020 looked like in my mind as I sat in the corner of my studio, listening to news around the world, reflecting on myself, my present, my past, putting my affairs in order and writing my biography."
    Through June 20. Sat.-Sun., 1-6pm
  • Arts

    Theatre

    Greater Tuna

    Yes, this show is presented live, onstage, just a little ways north of town! The Georgetown Palace Theatre presents the classic Lone Star-studded comedy about "the third smallest town in Texas," where "citizens parade across the stage in all their outrageous and irreverent glory, commenting on life, politics, and what makes them (and sometimes us) tick." Note: There is some adult language not appropriate for kids.
    Through June 27. Fri.-Sat., 7:30pm; Sun., 2pm. $32-34.  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Laguna Gloria

    This local treasure of a venue, run by those Contemporary Austin folks who also bring us the Jones Center shows Downtown, is all about the outdoors – which is perfect for these trickily navigated times of ours, n'est-ce pas? Recommended: Stop by and breathe in the air, enjoy the lawns and gardens and the many examples of world-class sculpture arrayed across the property, and (as Frankie used to say) r-e-l-a-x.
    Thu.-Fri., 9am-noon; Sat.-Sun., 9am-3pm
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Landmarks: Self-Guided Walking Tour

    Use your smartphone to access self-guided tours of the outdoor public art sited by UT's award-winning Landmarks program any time you feel like it. BONUS: There's also a free, docent-led tour starting at Marc Quinn's "Spiral of the Galaxy" (1501 Red River) on Sun., Jan. 8, 11am.
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Prizer Arts & Letters: A Cartography of Solitude

    Stephen Pruitt, a mensch in so many creative industries – whether behind the scenes, designing the lights and sets of the better theatrical experiences in this town, or on the stage itself, performing explications of science as if he were some fearless combo of Laurie Anderson and Andy Kaufman – this Pruitt's revealing a show of stark and atmospheric photography at the Prizer gallery on East Cesar Chavez. Listen: "For years, I’ve taken long adventures with just my camera and journal for company, and in those travels, I’ve experienced some stunning places that seem to revel in their remoteness, in their quiet, in their inhospitality, unless you’re willing to accept their terms – no easy meals, no water, no roads – and stay only as long as you can be self-sufficient. This installation is both an exploration of those places – places that emphasize how small and ephemeral we are, how big the world is – and the many different ways that we experience solitude internally.” Suggestion: Avail yourself of this opportunity, citizen. Bonus: The photographs will be illuminated every night (8-11pm) and can be seen from viewing platforms outside the gallery.
    Through June 19
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    Recspec Gallery: Quarantine Drawings

    New drawings created during pandemic quarantine by that maestro of color and balance, Adrian Landon Brooks.
    Through May 31  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    The Blanton: From the Collection of Jack Shear

    In 1999, the photographer and art collector Jack Shear co-organized an exhibition at New York’s Drawing Center: "Drawn from Artist’s Collections." This new show at the Blanton is curated by Shear "in an exploratory, free-flowing manner in which the forms, compositions and colors on the sheets respond to one another in a playful, non-traditional hang."
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    The Blanton: Sedrick Huckaby

    Texas-based artist Sedrick Huckaby explores psychology, community, and the human condition in his powerful portraits painted from life. The catalog notes say: "Through his virtuoso facility with oil paint, Huckaby utilizes texture, dimensionality, and intensely saturated colors to extraordinary expressive effect." Says the artist himself: "The African-American family and its heritage has been the content of my work for several years. In large-scale portraits of family and friends I try to aggrandize ordinary people by painting them on a monumental scale."
    Through Dec. 5  
  • Arts

    Visual Arts

    The Contemporary Austin: "I'm" and "Bible Eye"

    Austin-born and internationally acclaimed, Deborah Roberts critiques notions of beauty, the body, race, and identity in contemporary society through the lens of Black children. (Her first solo museum presentation in Texas, "I'm," is part of The Contemporary Austin's participation in the Feminist Art Coalition – a nationwide initiative of art institutions to generate awareness of feminist thought, experience, and action through exhibitions and events.) Norway's Torbjørn Rødland works with analog technology and readymade spaces to create photographs that render the everyday uncanny. His images blend the cool, seductive aestheticism of commercial and fashion photography with the layered complexity of a conceptual practice, resulting in ambivalent perspectives that both attract and repulse.
    Through Aug. 15  

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