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Sponsored Listing
Affordable Art Fair Austin
Affordable Art Fair Austin will launch in May 2024, showcasing original contemporary artworks ranging between $100 to $10,000. Welcoming a whole host of local, national and international exhibitors, their spectacular first edition is set to be unmissable!May 16-19Palmer Events Center -
Sponsored Listing
Laundry & Bourbon with Lonestar
Laundry and Bourbon with Lonestar, two companion one act plays set in backyards of a small Texas town. Three ladies come together to talk about their life's ups and downs. Lonestar follows the life of three small town boys and the events that have shaped them. Both shows give us highs & lows with humor spread around, for good measure.Apr. 19-May 5Navasota Theatre Alliance
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Community
Events
Record Store Day
Though these days it comes twice a year thanks to shopping bonanza Black Friday, the OG celebration of the independent record store has long taken place in April. Launched in 2007, Record Store Day riles up audiophiles with a slew of limited edition releases. This year, participating locals include Willie Nelson, who reissues Phases and Stages for its 50th anniversary and presses “Long Story Short,” his star-studded 90th birthday concert from last year, into a live album. From New Jersey, the Roches’ 1979 debut receives its first US reissue in 40 years. Zooming out, Record Store Day ambassadors Paramore tap David Byrne for a split single in which the artists cover each other’s biggest hits. – Carys AndersonSat., April 20Independent Record Stores -
Community
Events
Preservation Austin Historic Homes Tour
You know how everyone’s always saying Austin was so much cooler 10 years before you got here? Now you can visit the magical before-times that only exist in legend by touring over a century’s worth of Austin’s architecture, history, and culture via Preservation Austin’s 31st annual homes tour. This fundraiser for the nonprofit will feature five cool homes each day from 10am to 5pm, spanning styles from the humble log cabin to the charming midcentury marvel. A peep at the preview photos reveals they’ve got some real stunners on display this year. – Kat McNevinsSat. & Sun., April 20-21Multiple locations -
Qmmunity
Nightlife & Parties
Sensational SaturGAY: 420 Show
Maxine LaQueene hosts this pot-ragous brunch featuring Eileen Dover, Arianna Venti, Cupcake, Amy Graves (Dallas), and Mari Jane (HTX). Plus: a Club 420 pop-up smoke shop.Sat., April 20 -
Arts
Offscreen
Alamo Dankhouse Feasts
Celebrate the highest of holidays with a selection of stoner classics at Drafthouses around Austin. Pick from Friday, Half Baked, Inherent Vice, Mallrats, or Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, all accompanied by a special 4/20 feast of Kool Ranch Popcorn Munchie Crunch, Midnight Snack Mac & Cheese, and Puff Puff Parfait. Even if you miss the whole day, you’ll get a chance Tuesday to satiate those 4:20pm munchies with Super Troopers. – Richard WhittakerSat., April 20Alamo Drafthouses -
Arts
Visual Arts
Austin Fashion Week
Discover new designers at the 16th annual Austin Fashion Week at the Domain Simon Center. More of a weekend, the show kicks off Thursday with Emerge, a runway show featuring up-and-coming artists. Austin Area Urban League presents the Black Designer Showcase Friday, highlighting Black designers from across the globe. Austin Fashion Week also promotes young artists: The Discover and Incubate runways celebrate student designers from Round Rock ISD, University of Texas, and Austin Community College. Finish out the weekend at Ode to the OGs, which focuses on longtime Austin Fashion Week designers. Don’t feel like buying a ticket? Drop by pop-up shops to peruse runway looks and vendors. – Madeline DuncanApril 18-20 -
Music
Austin Reggae Festival Day 2 w/ Lila Iké, Alborosie, F.Y.A.H., Los Skarnales, Dre Z Melodi & Dub Gideon, Roots From the Clay [main stage]; Jallanzo, Bomb City, Soul Rebel, Dre Z, Dolomike, Dr. Dubbist, Jah Karma [Charlie's Dub Corner]
This year marks the event’s 30th anniversary (initially called the Bob Marley Reggae Festival) benefiting the Central Texas Food Bank. The lineup celebrates the music’s glorious past and its vibrant present and future. Friday’s headliner, the award-winning Ghanaian Afropop superstar Stonebwoy, has been called the king of dancehall in Africa. Saturday looks to the future with Jamaican singer-songwriter Lila Iké topping the bill that also includes Italian reggae ambassador Alborosie. Old-school roots royalty reigns Sunday night with the Legendary Wailers featuring Marley guitarist Junior Marvin and one of reggae’s greatest bands ever, the original Soul Syndicate, who will pay tribute to Peter Tosh. From the early Seventies, when they were reggae’s premier studio band, and well into the Eighties, Soul Syndicate backed virtually every Jamaican artist of note. As always, the irreplaceable Jah Ray will emcee. And don’t forget to check out Charlie’s Dub Corner. – Jay TrachtenbergSat., April 20, noon -
Arts
Visual Arts
“Ode to the Book”
In a gear-up for Independent Bookstore Day on April 27, Bolm Arts offers up a new exhibit, “Ode to the Book.” Musicians Jade Parx, Jac Carson, Amir Neubach, Liz Emme, and Nico Little will play as visitors peruse a diverse collection of illustrations, letterpress prints, book shrine sculptures, art books, and art made from books. “Elevating them beyond their functional purpose, artists Stephen Dubov, Sandra C. Fernandez, Emily Mitchell, Kyle Schlesinger, Jennie Tudor Gray and Beckette Rivera have created their own unique tribute to books,” writes the gallery. For more bookworm content, check out a talk by author Eric Heisner, a Western-loving screenwriter, actor, and filmmaker who will speak on the Austin Book Trail April 27. – Lina FisherOpening reception: Thu., April 18. Open gallery hours: Sat. & Sun., 12-4pm, until May 4 -
Arts
Visual Arts
Beneath the Persimmon Tree: Poetry and Process
Austin, where even the suburbs keep it weird and artsy. That’s definitely true of the Georgetown Art Center and their carefully curated local exhibits. Take a trip up north and enjoy the latest from multimedia artist Kelly Wagner Steinke. Her strikingly textural works find beauty in chaos, rejoicing in the boundaries of materials like wax, pigments, and birch panels. Oddly hypnotic and comforting, they’ll definitely spark some thought. Check it out and ponder the art’s meaning while walking through the “most beautiful town square in Texas.” – Cat McCarreyThrough April 28 -
Qmmunity
Arts & Culture
Coming Out: Blazin’
Moe Christine hosts a queer standup showcase with LGBTQ comics telling their best gay stoner stories. Come this week for the pot material; come next month, and every third Saturday after that, for a consistent queer qomedy hit.Sat., April 20 -
Arts
Visual Arts
Creating Encuentros: Changarrito 2012–2024
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 BingamonThrough August 25 -
Music
Cumbiadélica Fest w/ El Combo Oscuro, Money Chicha, Volcan, Plan Sonidero, Los Hermanos Flores, Luna Tropical, the Cumbia Movement, Grupo Bambinoz, Grupoo Fuego, Manolo Black, more
Mark your calendars for the 1st Annual Cumbiadelica Festival, Saturday, April 20 from 4:00pm-2:00am! Complete event info here.Sat., April 20, 4pm -
Music
Doomy Folks 420 Smokeout w/ BONDBREAKR, Mark Deutrom, Rocking Chair Reality Room, Now It's Dark, the Medicine Theory, Subpar Snatch, Randall Conrad Olinger, This Fucking Sucks, Fuzz Wahh, Perro Amargo
Spark up and tune in to Doomy Folks’ 4/20 celebration featuring sludge metal trio Perro Amargo, indie rock quartet Rocking Chair Reality Room, and hardcore foursome BÖNDBREAKR. The stacked lineup also counts in Kansas City noise rockers (The) Medicine Theory, former Melvins bassist Mark Deutrom, Americana multi-instrumentalist Randall Conrad Olinger, and more. Don’t miss a blazin’ activation from green-thumbed Play to the Plants. Music starts at 4:20 sharp. Tickets are on sale for $14.20. And don’t forget your eyedrops and earplugs! – Miranda GarzaSat., April 20, 4pm. $10 cover or $17.18 advance (21+). -
Arts
Theatre
Drug Stories, Live!
Bat City Cinema, purveyor of 16mm and 35mm “classics and oddities,” presents what they term “a hallucinogenic head trip into a world of punks, drunks, jokers, tokers, pill-poppers and flip-floppers. A lysergic lesson in the do’s and don’ts of drugs.” The screening is a collaboration with the American Genre Film Archive and Something Weird Video, a distribution company based in Seattle that specializes in “the very best in exploitation cinema from the 1930s to 1970s.” It’ll be hosted by the “World’s Biggest Joint,” whatever that means. Why not find out! – Lina FisherSat., April 20 -
Food
Food Events
Field Guide Festival
Plenty of food festivals will throw James Beard honorees and Top Chef alums at you, and Saturday’s Field Guide Festival is no exception; see: Edgar Rico (Nixta Taqueria), Tracy Malechek-Ezekiel (Birdie’s), Jo Chan (Bureau de Poste), and Amanda Turner (Olamaie), among others. But the guiding light of this three-year festival – to celebrate local farmers – is what elevates it from merely delicious to genuinely nourishing. Expect bites from more than 50 chef-farmer collabs, live music, live-fire demos, a vegetable omakase experience, and symposium conversations on sustainability and seasonality. – Kimberley JonesSat., April 20 -
Arts
Visual Arts
Gabriele Galimberti: The Ameriguns & Toy Stories
They say Texas is the gun capital of America; no arguments here. And many gun collectors treat them almost like toys, taking pride in amassing safeloads of the things and procuring the latest gadgets. Internationally acclaimed Italian photographer Gabriele Galimberti set out to capture images of American gun owners among their massive collections of weapons for “Ameriguns,” resulting in some stunning imagery. This series is juxtaposed with children showcasing their toy collections for “Toy Stories,” for which Galimberti also made observations about socioeconomic and other factors influencing the subjects’ relationship to their possessions, making for a thoughtful and provocative exhibition. – Kat McNevinsThrough May 12 -
Arts
Visual Arts
Greater Austin Clay Studio Tour
Oh my love, my darling, why not have your own Patrick Swayze/Demi Moore moment with the Clay Studio Tour? Try your hand at the wheel through pottery demos and workshops. Or just support those magical mud-makers and buy some art. So sorry, but you can’t use location as an excuse not to go – these tours are happening throughout the Austin area, from Pflugerville to Manchaca and everywhere in between. Get messy and make financial mistakes while witnessing some truly staggering claywork. – Cat McCarreySat. & Sun., April 20-21Multiple locations -
Arts
Visual Arts
Holly Roberts Opening Reception
Across the 40 years of her artistic career, there’s been a softening in the work of New Mexico artist Holly Roberts. Her 1980s output came with a menacing shadow, a threat of violence at the edges. In the past decade, her post-millennial experiments with collage and hybrid photography/painting have given way to a new era of portraiture and equine studies that plays with the wildness of naive art with utter control. Catch the latest stage of her evolution with new prints in a joint show with Jon Langford, Lisa Brawn, Bruce Lee, and Kerry Smith. – Richard WhittakerSat., April 20 -
Community
Events
Indie Meme Film Festival
Austin film buffs are fortunate to be situated in a town that hosts more than its fair share of film festivals, Indie Meme being one of them. The ninth annual iteration of this diverse fest brings over 30 of the best South Asian films from over a dozen countries to the U.S. Among the selections are international premieres, award-winning features, and even a local shorts showcase featuring Austin-based filmmakers Neha Aziz and Sarthwik Bollu. Badges run from $70 to $200, and individual tix can be snagged for only $15 a pop. A virtual badge grants access to all the films May 3-5. – Kat McNevinsWed.-Sun., April 17-21 -
Arts
Theatre
Into the Woods
Who’s ready for a bedtime story? Because there’s nothing like Stephen Sondheim’s grand unification theory of the Brothers Grimm’s collection of German fairy tales. All your childhood folklore favorites become tangled up in the search for the cow as white as milk, the cape as red as blood, the hair as yellow as corn, and the slipper as pure as gold. Underneath the toe-tappers and cunning one-liners, there’s a fable about the perils of getting what you wished for and not paying attention to what you have, a moral reiterated by a witch who’s not good, not nice; just right. – Richard WhittakerThrough April 21 -
Qmmunity
Nightlife & Parties
Jockstrap Prom Party
Ditch the taffeta gown for something a little more ... breathable. Iron Bear hosts this jockstrap prom featuring DJ Scam Likely and Airos playing Aughts and current hits. Plus: photo booth; Grav Labs freebies; and a twerk contest.Sat., April 20 -
Arts
Visual Arts
Karn Knutson: Inside the Moments
How do we experience each singular second of our lives? An enormous question for an event listing, sure, but that’s exactly what artist Karn Knutson tackles in her current exhibition. “Knutson attempts to show us ourselves in moments of reflection,” the show description reads, “contemplating the transitions through life, processing the struggles, finding ways forward with knowledge, sometimes hard lessons from our past, and learning from our choices good and bad. She aims to represent the things we all feel but can’t always express until we see something that lets us talk about it outside ourselves.” Maybe the something that unlocks your inner feelings is waiting just inside Link & Pin, ready to unleash all those singular seconds. – James ScottThursdays-Sundays. Through May 12 -
Community
Events
Keep Austin Beautiful Day
Is Austin beautiful? The near-million of us who call it home certainly think so. Let’s keep it that way! Keep Austin Beautiful, with a vision “for Austin to be the cleanest, most beautiful community,” focuses its efforts on reducing waste and keeping green spaces and waterways clear and clean. So every year during Earth Month, KAB mobilizes thousands of volunteers to remove litter from dozens of shared spaces spanning every City Council district. It couldn’t be easier to sign up for a shift – just hop on the web and find a place or project near and dear to your heart, then join like-minded neighbors for a morning of service to Mother Earth. – Kat McNevinsSat., April 20Multiple locations -
Arts
Visual Arts
Molly Sydnor’s “After the Rain Part I”
A piece of Dallas artist Molly Sydnor lives in Austin this spring thanks to “After the Rain Part I,” a Big Medium pop-up exhibition of bright textiles. Like a touchable rainbow, the multicolor weavings run ceiling-to-floor in a tiny room of the arts organization’s South Congress Avenue gallery space. The claustrophobic container may “evoke anxiety,” the artist notes, but for Sydnor, the act of weaving is a meditative process. Catch the display from 7 to 9pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, or weekends from 11am to 4pm. – Carys AndersonThrough May 12 -
Music
Outlaw Pride Fest SMTX: Pearlsnap Music Gorup showcase w/ Emily Herring & the FM Band, Julie Nolen, Ruby Dice
Y’all, it’s about to get real country in Central Texas. Okay, more country than it already was, which was fairly country. Rustled up once more by the indomitable Julie Nolen, this year’s lineup for the LGBTQ-centric country music festival features artists like Emily Herring & the FM Band, Ruby Dice, Montana Sands, Rock Bottom String Band, Julie Bouchard, and Kairos. But wait! There’s more: the Bizarre Bazaar with karaoke, a vendor market, and silent auction; a scholarship fundraiser featuring Los Gatos 512; and not one, but TWO drag events. Malibu Imported puts on a show after Kairos’ set, and Sunday morning rings in a drag brunch featuring Eileen Dover, Amy H. Graves, Scarlet Sagamore, and Serena Blake. Why, it’s enough to make you shout, “What in tarnation!” – James ScottSat., April 20, 9pm -
Arts
Theatre
Overheard on a Train
All aboard for a theatrical adventure with the latest innovative journey from the experimental geniuses of Cheerful Secrets. This time, the audience is the cast: As you board the train, you’ll be handed your script, and you and three friends will be playing the parts of either the band or the bachelorette party. Intermission is at Black Star Co-op at Crestview before you board the train and return Downtown for the second act. Read more online. – Richard WhittakerSaturdays through May 25Red Line Downtown Station -
Music
Pop Punk's Not Dead Fest w/ the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, the Ataris, Van Full of Nuns, the Spill Canvas, Mest, Amber Pacific, Don't Panic, Neutral Snap, Offended by Everything, As the City Sleeps, Forever Starts Today, All There Is, School of Rock
Hey there Texas pop punkers! Pop Punk’s Not Dead Fest 2024 is back, presented by Van Full of Nuns! Going down Saturday, April 20th, at Buck’s Backyard in Buda, TX. Headliners: The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus and The Ataris, with Mest, The Spill Canvas, Amber Pacific, and more! 15 acres of fun, two stages, food trucks, games, and epic prizes! Don't miss the DJ afterparty! Buy your tickets here!Sat., April 20, 1pm -
Music
Texas Community Music Festival Day 9 w/ Suburban Beat, Bubba Coltrane & the Train Wrecks, Eric Hanke & the Resistance, Inside Out Steelband, the Skylarks, Austin Jazz Workshop, Hill Country Community Band of Marble Falls, Band of the Hills
More than a simple weekend fest, this smorgasbord of live ensembles lays out your April calendar with 10 days of free, family-friendly music at one beloved Austin patio: outside the Central Market on North Lamar. Presented by the Austin Civic Wind Ensemble since 2006, this event’s ethos is all in the no-stone-unturned names: Try Armadillo Swing Band, ACC Jazz Ensemble I, Girl Scout Harp Ensemble, Austin Banjo Club, Kat’s Porch Jam, the Skylarks, or Blowcomotion. Friday kicks off the 17th edition with a night of Austin blues under singer-songwriter Woot Talley’s band and the horn-fueled Rhythm Congress. – Rachel RascoeSat., April 20, 10:15am. Free. -
Community
Events
The Amazing Acro-Cats
Fantastic feline alert! Gear up cats and kittens, for a show unlike any you’ve seen before. The amazing Acro-Cats, incredibly trained kitties, are taking their feline feats of derring-do to the Long Center starting April 24. Watch in awe as they show off their acrobatic skills, accompanied by the all-cat band Tuna and the Rock Cats/Jazz Cats. I’m sure it won’t end in cat-astrophe. In fact, it’s guaranteed to be a fully paw-some time. – Cat McCarreyFridays-Sundays. Through May 5 -
Qmmunity
Nightlife & Parties
The Highest of All
Kingdom cast members Brigitte Bandit and Kino Kino throw a drag competition themed to her highness Mary Jane. Performers will pit their pot prestige against each other while “weeded out” by judges Basura, Bubu, Embry Officially, Casady Milan, and Sir Maxim. All proceeds benefit the Last Prisoner Project, a criminal justice reform nonprofit.Sat., April 20Greenhouse ATX, 906 Koerner Ln. -
Arts
Theatre
The Prom
OMG, it’s prom season, y’all! And what could make it better than four Broadway stars making it all about themselves? Zach presents the catchy tale of desperate thespians trying to gain relevance by “helping” a small town prom be less bigoted. Set to toe-tapping tunes, this musical entertains and educates. There will be laughs, love, and you know, someone might just learn something along the way. – Cat McCarreyThrough May 12
