Culture / Entertainment

Houston’s Underrated Shakespeare Festival, Smart Summer Movies and $15 Concert Steals: Your Weekend Events Guide From the Guru

BY // 07.27.18

Editor’s Note: Houston’s weekends are packed full of events, but how many of them are truly worthy of your time? PaperCity’s own Weekend Guru Matthew Ramirez cuts through the clutter to give you the best options in this weekly series.

Quan in the East End

In 2014, when Atlanta rappers Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan joined forces as a duo called Rich Gang, they released one of the best hip-hop albums of the decade with Tha Tour. They called themselves the new Outkast, which made a philosophical sense – Thug as Andre 3000, a pure innovator; Quan as Big Boi, the emotional anchor.

Then something happened: the titular Tour never really happened, outside of a few dates. There were rumors about tension between the two rappers, and between the two of them and Birdman, who had signed them to his YMCMB label. Then, in 2015, Quan released “Flex” and Thug released “Best Friend,” and the two diverged.

Thug was on a path to stardom – you can probably hear him on the radio right now, singing with Camila Cabello – and Quan went back underground.

A few years of so-so releases gave way to 2017’s Back to the Basics, and especially this year’s Rich as in Spirit, which were emotionally textured and infectious in the ways Quan’s best work always has been. I love Thug as an artist, but I relate to Quan.

He’ll be at the East End’s Satellite Bar Friday, July 27, with doors opening at 9 pm and tickets $15.

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Fat Tony’s Back

Though he’s been in Los Angeles for two years now, Fat Tony remains Houston’s favorite son. He, along with noise-rapper B L A C K I E, has long been the best performer in Houston, a dizzying mix of punk-pit energy and hip-hop swagger.

Any time he’s back performing in his city, it’s a homecoming for one of the best rappers of his generation. He’ll be performing at House of Blues as part of its Local Brews, Local Grooves event this Saturday, July 28, which invites more than 20 local breweries and 10 performers (see Rose Ette and DJ Baby Roo if you can) to be a part of the all-day festival.

Doors open at 3 pm; tickets start at $15; show at 7 pm.

Shakespeare in the Park

It’s a Houston summer tradition easily taken for granted, but in my own life I’ve looked back and realized the amount of fun I’ve had at Miller Outdoor Theater‘s annual Houston Shakespeare Festival. Whether I planned specifically to see a show, or hit the park with a “maybe we can hit the show later, put this wine in your purse,” carefree summer attitude, the Houston Shakespeare Festival is an underrated tradition.

This year, they’re performing Hamlet and Comedy of Errors, starting tonight (Friday, July 27), and running through August 5. For a complete list of showtimes, click here.

Sunday Suppers at The Grove

The Grove at Discovery Green remains a great, if underrated restaurant, and a fantastic venue (I’ve been to two weddings there). However, the underrated New American hotspot with the city’s best mac and cheese continues to host intriguing events.

As PaperCity first reported, the Grove will host its new Sunday Supper series this weekend. Limited to 40 seats, these family-style, curated four-course meals come complete with wines to complement the meal (the wine pairing is an additional charge), the chance to interact with the chefs, and the opportunity to shuck your own oysters.

Tickets are just $50, which includes a welcome cocktail, valet, and gratuity. There will be a cash bar, too. The menu includes shrimp from the Gulf, pan roasted potato gnocchi, grilled lamb racks and strawberry goat cheesecake. For more info, including the full menu, click here.

Truly Worthy Summer Movies — No Superheroes!

Finally, this weekend will see a slew of intriguing movie options: the 22nd edition of the LGBTQ Qfest Film Festival hits different venues around this weekend, from the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (showing The Heiresses and They), to Asia Society Texas Center‘s Texas premiere of the Korean Call Me Sis, perhaps the most anticipated of all the films. For a full schedule of films and showtimes (including a few films that will be available to see for free), click here.

And two wide-release movies are worth checking out too, above the fray of an endless supply of superhero movies. Comedian Bo Burnham‘s Eighth Grade, a tender coming-of-age tale about middle school in this age of social media, debuts at the the Edwards Greenway theater.

And then there’s Blindspotting, directed by Carlos Lopez Estrada, and starring Tony Award-winner Daveed Diggs, a sensitive, funny, smart film about a man trying to make it through the last days of his probation in Oakland. Between Black Panther, the sleeper hit Sorry to Bother You, and now Estrada’s film, Oakland is having a moment.

However, Blindspotting is the best film of the three, so make it a priority to catch it in theaters while you can. It’s in wide release.

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