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Cookoff weekend has arrived, so put on your hats, cowboy boots and wristbands! If you're new to Houston I would NOT recommend attending the cookoff unless you have wristbands or passes to a tent. If you're considering buying wristbands on Facebook I would exercise significant caution, there is a huge uptick in fake wristbands and passes this year.

If you want to go to a true public cookoff where you can try all the teams, the 11th Annual Houston Barbecue Festival is in April, just over a month away.

🤠 RODEO 🤠

THURSDAY – Dylan Wheeler/Trent Cowie @ WCBBQC Garden Stage @ 7PM

Go Texan Day @ Hermann Square Park @ 11AM A Go Texan Day proclamation will officially kick off the event, followed by free chopped barbecue sandwiches provided by the World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Committee. Enjoy live music, take your photo atop a Texas Longhorn steer and visit with Rodeo volunteers representing the more than 100 committees to learn more about this annual Houston tradition.

FRIDAY – William Beckmann/Silverada/Silverada @ WCBBQC Garden Stage @ 7PM

SATURDAY – Wade Bowen/The Great Divide @ WCBBQC Garden Stage @ 7:45PM

SATURDAY – Rodeo Festival @ Houston Farmers Market @ 12PM Houston’s oldest and largest farmers market is kicking off Rodeo season with live performances from local bands, a mechanical bull, petting zoo, face painting, a live photo opp, and more.

SATURDAY – Rodeo Parade @ Downtown Decorative floats intermingle with thousands of men and women on horseback to fill the streets with hoof beats and marching bands.

SUNDAY – RODEO UNCORKED! CHAMPION WINE AUCTION

All weekend – WORLD’S CHAMPIONSHIP BAR-B-QUE CONTEST @ NRG Park More than 250 teams, led by barbecue aficionados, compete in the World's Championship Bar-B-Que Contest in tents you absolutely will not be able to get into unless you got a wristband 2 months ago.

🧧 Lunar New Year 🧧

Ongoing – Radiant Nature @ Houston Botanic Gardens LAST CHANCE – More than 50 larger-than-life Chinese lantern installations come to life in stunning displays that showcase the beauty of nature and celebrate the promise of the Lunar New Year.

SATURDAY – Lunar New Year Festival @ Pearland Recreation Center Local youth and arts organizations, nonprofits, and small businesses offer traditional arts and crafts, merchandise, and food on site.

SATURDAY – Have A Nice Day: Lunar New Year @ The Ion The annual fest returns to the Ion, with an evening of local vendor shopping, lion dances, a red envelope giveaway, music and more.

SUNDAY – Lunar New Year Winter Festiva; @ MFAH Enjoy all the traditional art-making activities and performances to celebrate the Year of the Dragon at this special Winter Festival.

SUNDAY – Lunar New Year Celebration @ No Label Brewing Company The Katy brewery celebrates the Year of the Dragon with lion dances, a wide array of delicious food vendors, and exclusive merch.

THURSDAY – FEBRUARY 22nd

Chad Daniels Stand Up @ Houston Improv @ 7:30PM

The Formosa Quartet @ POST @ 7:30PM

Tornillo @ Warehouse Live @ 7PM

Donavon Frankenreiter @ The Heights Theater @ 8PM With Goodnight Texas

Smackola @ Scout Bar @ 8PM

FRIDAY – FEBRUARY 23rd

Rockets vs Suns @ Toyota Center @ 7PM

‘Fanny: The Other Mendelssohn’ Screening @ MFAH @ 7PM This fascinating documentary illuminates the life and talent of a remarkable composer—Fanny Mendelssohn, whose musical legacy is often overshadowed by that of her brother.

Jerry Seinfeld Live Show @ Smart Financial Centre @ 7PM

‘A Prairie Home Companion’ Live Show @ The Grand Opera House @ 8PM See America’s most celebrated radio show live together with its creative mastermind Garrison Keller as he brings his signature storytelling, humor, and entertainment.

Los Lonely Boys @ House of Blues @ 7PM With Lisa Morales

JOHN 5 @ White Oak Music Hall @ 7PM With Marty Friedman

Yo La Tengo @ The Heights Theater @ 8PM

Sickick @ Stereo Live @ 10PM

The Floozies @ Last Concert Cafe @ 8PM

DJ Habibeats @ Warehouse Live @ 10PM

SATURDAY – FEBRUARY 24th

Dynamo vs Sporting Kansas City @ Shell Energy Stadium @ 7:30PM

Winter Nights @ MFAH @ 6PM Enjoy a cocktail, hear from curators, listen to live music, and spend time up close with your favorite works of art.

Ongoing – Saturday Stargazing @ George Observatory in Needville

Houston Education Showcase @ Space Center @ 10AM Step into a world of wonder and exploration and learn about the fascinating education programs at the Space Center.

Excision @ 713 Music Hall @ 9PM

The Dead South @ House of Blues @ 7PM With The Hooten Hallers

Vini Vici @ Stereo Live @ 10PM

Thumpasaurus @ Last Concert Cafe @ 9PM

Caramelos De Cianuro @ Warehouse Live @ 7PM

Metalachi – Metal Mariachi Band @ Scout Bar @ 9:30PM

SUNDAY – FEBRUARY 25th

Rockets vs Thunder @ Toyota Center @ 6PM

David Nihill Stand Up @ Houston Improv @ 7:30PM

Gov’t Mule @ Bayou Music Center @ 8PM

Excision @ 713 Music Hall @ 9PM

Petey @ White Oak Music Hall @ 7PM With The Slaps

3 Click Riot @ Warehouse Live @ 2PM

All Weekend

FRIDAY & SATURDAY – Indian Film Festival of Houston @ Asia Society Texas Celebrate the cinematic voices of India and the Diaspora with a fresh lineup of feature films, documentaries, and shorts!

FRIDAY & SATURDAY – Chingo Bling Stand Up @ Houston Improv

FRIDAY & SATURDAY – Kid Friendly: ‘Manial Cinema: Leonardo’ Show @ Jones Hall ‘Leonardo! A Wonderful Show About a Terrible Monster’ uses hundreds of illustrated paper puppets, book pages, two-dimensional props, furry monster puppets, and songs to bring Mo Willems’ books to life.

SATURDAY & SUNDAY – Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8 in Concert @ Jones Hall World-renowned Eschenbach conducts Bruckner’s monumental Symphony No. 8 – an epic concerto of soaring majesty and sonic power.

All weekend – 2024 Oscar-Nominated Short Films Screenings @ MFAH MFAH presents its annual selection of Oscar-nominated live-action, animated, and documentary shorts you always wish you’d seen come Oscar night.

All weekend – ‘Cinderella’ Ballet @ Brown Theater Set to Prokofiev’s classic score with spectacular set and costume design, Stanton Welch’s unique production brings the story into modern times, with a twist to suit the 21st century.

All weekend – ‘Stranger Sings! The Parody’ Musical @ Art Factory NEW – Art Factory introduces a side-splitting rendition of the hit Netflix series, bringing its comically 'upside-down' perspective center stage and embracing the nostalgic glory of the 1980s!

All weekend – ‘West Side Story’ Musical @ Crighton Theatre LAST CHANCE – Inspired by the timeless story of Romeo and Juliet, the musical takes Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers, and places them in the vibrant battleground of New York City’s West Side in the 1950s.

All weekend – ‘The Revolutionists’ Play @ Stageworks Theatre LAST CHANCE – This grand comedy is about violence and legacy, art and activism, feminism and terrorism, compatriots and chosen sisters, and how we actually go about changing the world.

All weekend – ‘The Nerd’ Play @ Alley Theatre NEW – From a time before cell phones, this side-splitting comedy by Larry Shue (‘The Foreigner’) is one of the funniest plays ever written.

All weekend – ‘It Is Magic’ Play @ MATCH Chaos, mystery, and magic ensue in this latest The Catastrophic Theatre production.

All weekend – ‘Laughs in Spanish’ Play @ Stages Repertory Theatre Stylish and vibrant, this play offers a light-hearted look at the struggles many Latinas go through to gain entry into cultural and artistic spaces that have historically excluded them.

All weekend – ‘Sister’s Irish Catechism’ Comedy Play @ Stages Repertory Theatre Everyone’s favorite sassy nun Denise Fennell leads a brand new catechism class as audience members become her students in this highly improvised, hilarious show.

All weekend – ‘The Piano Lesson’ Play @ The Ensemble Theatre LAST CHANCE – In his second Pulitzer Prize-winner, ‘The Piano Lesson,’ writer August Wilson fashioned perhaps his most haunting and dramatic work about the black experience in 20th century America.

Ongoing Special Events and Museum Exhibitions

Ongoing – The Rink: Rolling @ Discovery Green This spring, Discovery Green visitors can enjoy roller-skating fun at Houston’s only outdoor roller rink.

Ongoing – Sloomoo Exhibition @ Marq E Entertainment Center Immerse yourself in the joy of sensory play with Sloomoo Institute’s colorful world of never-ending, hand-crafted slime, yummy scents, and soothing ASMR delights.

Ongoing – Winter Colorland @ Houston Color Factory Enjoy Color Factory's glimmering winter wonderland as they have decked out its immersive exhibition rooms for the winter season.

Ongoing – ‘Crowning the North: Silver Treasures from Bergen, Norway’ Exhibition @ MFAH Featuring over 200 objects, this exhibition provides an exceptional look at Nordic history and aesthetics across centuries as Bergen stood at the intersection of global trade, taste, and fashion.

Ongoing – ‘Six Scenes From Our Future’ Exhibition @ CAMHThis exhibition challenges the traditional ways of presenting art by offering unexpected pairings and debating the entrenched hierarchies between the fine arts and design.

Ongoing – ‘This Way: A Houston Group Show’ Exhibition @ CAMH The exhibition showcases new work from Black artists who are invited to examine innovative ways of storytelling of their legacy and heritage of Houston Freedmen’s Town.

Ongoing – ‘Janet Sobel: All-Over’ Exhibition @ Menil NEW – See the pioneering work of Janet Sobel and her ‘All-Over’ abstract expressionist painting technique which inspired generations of artists, including Jackson Pollock.

Ongoing – ‘Chryssa & New York’ Exhibition @ Menil Greek-born artist Chryssa’s pioneering works combined industrial processes and traditional sculpture-making to create monumental art pieces that respond to our urban, everyday environments.

Ongoing – ‘Hayv Kahraman: The Foreign Us’ Exhibition @ Moody Center for the Arts Kahraman’s first solo exhibition features works informed by the artist’s Iraqi-Kurdish heritage and experience as a refugee while highlighting her research-driven practice.