Curtain Going Up

A Houston spring arts preview

By Ryan B. Martinez

It's no secret that Houston’s arts, like so many communities, were hit by the pandemic, and venues had to pivot to connect. “What’s been really hard about the past two years is just planning for who knows, anything,” says Rob Melrose, artistic director of The Alley Theatre. “Having to be nimble and having to change plans on a dime has been really challenging. We learned how to be filmmakers last year: We did our entire season online.”

For many, the grit and innovation have paid off. Toying with formats, carving out safe physical spaces, and planning for better days just may have set up many local operators for a resurgence.

From Dawoud Bey’s vibrant street photography at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, to the striking designs of Turandot at the Houston Grand Opera, to the sheer fun of the Houston Art Car Parade, residents and visitors can enjoy a rich cornucopia this year.

The city stands apart because of its diversity and broad support base, Melrose says.

“Because there are people from all different kinds of cultures, there’s so much to draw from— from an artist’s perspective, but also from an audience perspective,” he says. “I think that’s what makes Houston unique.”

Here, a peek at the offerings.

Treat Tip:

Indulge in a pre-theater meal or a post-show cocktail at one of nearby GreenStreet's tony restaurants: The Palm, M&S Seafood|Steaks|Oysters, House of Blues Restaurant and Bar, and Guadalajara del Centro!

Alley Theatre

Downtown’s Alley Theatre has three very different shows in store. Dead Man’s Cell Phone (April 15–May 8), a comedy by Sarah Ruhl playing in the Hubbard Theatre, begins with a café patron answering the obnoxiously ringing phone of a lifeless table neighbor and escalates wildly from there. Born with Teeth (May 6–June 5), a period play by Liz Duffy Adams set to world premiere in the Neuhaus Theatre, catches William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe in a web of political intrigue. Another world premiere, Noir (June 2–July 3), brings the vibes of the Alley’s Summer Chills series to its regular season. The musical boasts creative firepower from writers Duncan Sheik (Spring Awakening) and Kyle Jarrow (SpongeBob SquarePants) and director Darko Tresnjak (A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder).

The Menil Collection

This year the sunlit Menil hosts exhibits of humanistic photography (Bruce Davidson, through May 29), Swiss Surrealism (Meret Oppenheim, March 25–Sept. 18), wild landscape drawings (Joseph E. Yoakum, April 22–Aug. 7), and geometric installations (Walter De Maria, Oct. 29, 2022–April 23, 2023). For a live musical experience, catch four dates of the Elias String Quartet’s DACAMERA series (March 28–29 and April 4–5), a six-show run of Beethoven’s complete quartets. (Remaining shows will be at the Hobby Center.)

Check schedules, programs, and fees directly with the arts institutions before heading out.

Houston Grand Opera

Ravishing set design, soaring music, and romantic strife mark the Houston Grand Opera’s run of Turandot (April 22, 24, 30; May 3, 6, 8). Director Robert Wilson and team deserve kudos for the sumptuous colors and stark shaping of their set design, which frames Puccini’s tale of a princess who blocks her suitors with riddles. Soprano Tamara Wilson plays the title character, and tenor Kristian Benedikt plays the one who makes it through. HGO will cap its season with Gounod’s adaptation of Romeo & Juliet (April 29, May 1, 7, 11).

Houston Art Car Parade

The Houston Art Car Parade reached its zenith in 2019, when an estimated 250,000 people flocked downtown to cheer on more than 250 outlandishly decked-out cars. The event, a beloved staple since 1986, had to go virtual in 2020, but bounced back last year, and 2022’s revels may approach new peaks. The four-day frolic (April 7–10) includes the parade, live music, and food and drink on the main day (April 9), but expect sneak peeks and other side events before and after. Will the Roachster or the porta-potty go-kart make a return? Only one way to find out—show up! Bowie. Originals (June 2–12), a showcase of spectacle and local talent, includes a returning original by Stanton Welch and the premiere of a one-act by principal dancer Melody Mennite. Welch’s acclaimed Madame Butterfly (June 16–26) sure-footedly wraps the season.

Hobby Center

The Hobby Center will host eclectic delights. Nineties era nostalgia awaits at Je’Caryous Johnson Presents: New Jack City (April 8–10), a night of storytelling and hip-hop based on the 1991 crime drama. Indian comic Kanan Gill (April 10), whose star was born on YouTube and has shone on Netflix and on tour, brings his stand-up to Zilkha Hall. Trixie and Katya (April 11), the drag queen duo who spun RuPaul’s Drag Race credits into cult-queer gold (their series, UNHhhh, is a spiritual heir to John Waters), will bedevil Sarofim Hall. Baroque musical ensemble Ars Lyrica Houston will present the English opera Dido and Aeneas (May 21–22).

Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

As if its formidable permanent collection weren’t enough, MFAH has some impactful temporary exhibitions. Dawoud Bey: An American Project (through May 30), spans almost fifty years of the New York photographer’s work, with a focus on African American and other underrepresented subjects. The Obama Portraits Tour (April 3–May 30) features the iconic portraits of Barack and Michelle by Kehinde Wiley and Amy Sherald, respectively. Exhibitions of work by M.C. Escher (March 13–Sept. 5) and Pakistani American artist Shahzia Sikander (March 20–June 5) promise visual feasts of their own.

Houston Ballet

The Houston Ballet will finish its season with flair. Choreographic delights await at Pretty Things (May 20–29), featuring ONE|end|ONE by Finland’s Jorma Elo; Hush by the UK’s Christopher Bruce; and Trey McIntyre’s title dance, during which the men of the Houston Ballet preen to David

Miller Outdoor Theatre

This scenic venue in Hermann Park stages an eight-month season of broad-ranging entertainment. While the 2022 lineup wasn’t available at press time, each year you can expect a spread of classical music, jazz, world music, Shakespeare, ballet, musical theater, movies, and more. All shows are free and family-friendly, and bookings are awarded via application, making the series a truly homegrown affair. Bring your lawn chairs or blankets— and be sure to space out. With seating for 1,705 patrons and a vast sloping lawn, there’s room to stretch your legs.

TIFF’S TREATS

Century Square & CITYCENTRE

Treat Yourself!

Who doesn’t love warm cookies? Tiff's Treats recently launched Blue Ribbon Club™, a monthly subscription package with the option of three, six, or twelve months of warm cookie deliveries featuring a surprise flavor-of-the-month. And look for It’s Not Just Cookies: Stories and Recipes from the Tiff’s Treats Kitchen, by company founders Tiffany and Leon Chen. It’s their story of building the business from $20 and a college apartment kitchen to a rapidly growing brand with millions of customers and $100 million in funding!

Mother-Son Duo Are Painting “Big” in H-Town

By Roger Munford

Muralists Sylvia Roman and her son, Alex Roman Jr., may be better known by their tags, Donkeemom and Donkeeboy. Together they’ve collaborated on more than thirty murals for clients, including sports giants like the Houston Astros, Houston Dynamo, and the UFC, as well as prominent companies like Bosch, Fender, Jameson, and Porsche. The pair were also featured on Kelly Clarkson’s daytime talk show in 2020, when they unveiled their George Floyd mural in Houston’s Third Ward.

Donkeemom and Donkeyboy have created several art projects for Midway, whose goal is to make its communities remarkable with impactful works of art. Donkeeboy’s out-of-this-world astronaut mural, created in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 lunar landing, can be viewed in the GreenStreet district in the heart of downtown. The pair also contributed to two art pop-ups Midway held at GreenStreet, one of which showcased an impactful immersive exhibition by Donkeeboy and the National Association of Mental Illness (NAMI) to bring awareness to mental illness in the community. They also contributed to the public art project “Art of Soccer,” designing and painting a three-foot fiberglass soccer ball, which toured Midway’s GreenStreet and CITYCENTRE, promoting the Houston 2026 World Cup. Last summer, the pair created a mural at GreenStreet called “Bike Through H-Town,” which encourages more people to join the city’s recent bike boom.

“I learned it all by watching my mom,” says Alex of his inspiration. “When I got a little older, in my teens and early 20s, I started trying to have art shows. My brother bought me an airbrush and I’d paint friend’s rooms at their houses, just for practice—that’s how I got the bug. It was fun, painting big.”

Mom and son created their first mural at Sylvia’s house in 2005, but they never finished it. “She sold the house and that was that,” Alex says. “And then my brother passed, and that brought my mom and me together even more—that’s when we both decided to do something with this art thing.”

When they started painting murals together, it was 100 percent what the client wanted, notes Alex. “Now we meet somewhere in the middle as they trust us with their brand and then we can explore,” he explains. “And then we have also created work that’s not paid—we’ll just find a wall and paint whatever we want.”

How do they collaborate?

“Sometimes my mom has a project that’s just hers, and I help her out, and vice versa,” Alex adds. “And sometimes the client just says ‘You guys do whatever you want,’ and that’s when my mom gets the last word. But you know what, the majority of the time she’s right.”

After a friendly nudge from his mother, her son laughs, “Actually she’s right all of the time.”

Using a mix of Montana 94 spray paint and Behr house paint, the family muralists expect their street art to be good for five-to-seven years. And they both like the permanence of that, how it becomes part of the neighborhood.

“There are so many ways murals can inspire somebody,” Alex says. “I think the world is so much better when it’s full of color.”

An early photo of mother and son. The dynamic duo. Alex's mural at GreenStreet.

DELIVERING A COLORFUL MESSAGE

With bright colors, graphic outlines, and vibrant elements from his Mexican-American heritage, multidisciplinary artist David Maldonado’s work merges street art and fine art at East River

By Karen Krajcer

Whether the image lives on a T-shirt or the side of a building, organic elements such as flowers, animals, and sky mingle with bold shapes and cubist elements in muralist David Maldonado’s work. At this convergence, the stories of diverse communities begin to sing.

But before the Instagram “eye candy,” before the design partnership with The Houston Astros and Adidas, and before the commission from NASA, Maldonado hosted community open mic nights with piecemeal, borrowed equipment.

These “Creative Nights,” Maldonado explains, were an “attempt to build a bridge” through art, music, and community. A microphone from one friend, a speaker from a neighbor, a coloring-bookstyle canvas by Maldonado, waiting for anyone and everyone to paint—these inclusive events brought people together.

“Public art should serve as a reminder of humanity and empathy,” he says. Before Covid-19 pushed pause on these monthly gatherings, the Pasadena musician and visual artist bore regular witness to the impact that art can have on an audience, watching even the most “rugged and structured” people “just melt a little bit.” He explains: “Our systems have made us accustomed to seeking perfection, but art breaks that and reminds you that it’s okay to make mistakes.”

Art gives people permission to be transparent and to connect with others.

Today, the desire for connection and community continues to guide Maldonado’s art, including his largest work to date: A 60x20-foot spray-painted mural that welcomes visitors to Houston’s new East River development. Stretching across six shipping containers, Houston-centric symbols, such as bluebonnets and an astronaut, share space with images representing local communities: mosaic tiles, the bayou itself, and the bridges that connect people to each other, their past, and their future. A cargo ship features prominently—the artist’s nod to the historic East End’s shipping industry and to the people who sustain it. Maldonado comes from a multi-generational family of longshoremen, and his mural honors this community in both subject and materials.

Public art tells a story, and over the two-week period when Maldonado painted the East River mural, passers-by shared their stories as well. Community members hope the visitors to the new development will “keep in mind the people, keep in mind the reverence and respect to the people who were here,” he says. Maldonado believes that his mural illustrates this message of hope and that “we will continue to better this city.”

Maldonado cherishes watching his work bring people together. “Public art is supposed to be a statement,” he says. “Not only should the art speak, but our actions should speak. It doesn’t stop with the painting. It doesn’t stop with the sticker. It stops when we stop. It’s our actions that speak.”

The artist's 60x20-foot mural stretches across six shipping containers and welcomes visitors to Midway's new East River development.