The Hidden Agenda: Command Performance
This week brings a number of unique events, including an interdisciplinary performance at FotoFest, the latest edition of Grown Up Storytime at the Continental Club, the opening reception for a retrospective of Houston-based artist Hung Hsien at Asia Society Texas Center, and much more.
Monday, April 14
Lecture — Calling In: How to Start Making Change with Those You’d Rather Cancel – An Evening with Loretta Ross
Rice University
Start your week with an enlightening lecture from Loretta Ross presented by the Center for the Study of Women, Gender, and Sexuality at Rice University (6100 Main St.). Ross is a 2022 MacArthur Fellow and professor at Smith College in the Program for the Study of Women and Gender. She released her book, Calling In: How to Start Making Change with Those You'd Rather Cancel, in February. The event — which is free and open to the public but requires registration — runs from 5 to 8 p.m. and features a reception, book signing, and Ross’ lecture.
Reading — Inprint Brown Reading Series: Katie Kitamura & Karen Russell
Alley Theatre
As part of Inprint’s Margaret Root Brown Reading Series, writers Katie Kitamura and Karen Russell will read from their new novels, Audition and The Antidote, respectively, at the Alley Theatre (615 Texas Ave.) from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Following the readings, Kitamura and Russell will take part in an on-stage conversation with fiction writer Brenda Peynado, and the event concludes with a book sale and signing. Tickets to attend are $5.
Tuesday, April 15
Reading — Grown Up Storytime
The Continental Club
Head to the Continental Club (3714 Main St.) for the latest presentation from the writers and readers at Grown Up Storytime with this installment hosted by Abe Zapata. The long-running storytelling series is known for compelling tears, inciting laughter, and bringing authenticity with their readings. Doors open at 7 p.m. with the readings kicking off at 8 p.m. Advance tickets are $10 for the 21-and-up show.
Wednesday, April 16
Hung Hsien, Beach Rocks II, 1985. Ink and color on paper.
Collection of the artist. Image credit: Alex Barber
Opening Reception — Hung Hsien: Between Worlds
Asia Society Texas Center
As the first retrospective of Houston-based modern ink artist Hung Hsien, Between Worlds celebrates “the life and artistic legacy of one of the most important yet underrepresented contributors to the development of modern ink painting.” Presented at Asia Society Texas Center (1370 Southmore Blvd.), the exhibition surveys Hsien’s over 70-year career through more than 50 paintings, drawn primarily from personal collections or the artist’s personal archives. The event — which features a panel discussion at 6 p.m. followed by the opening reception from 6:30 to 8 p.m. — is free and open to the public but registration is requested.
Thursday, April 17
Opening Reception — Sivan Lavie: Ice cream on the tip of my tongue
Stinson House
DIY artspace Stinson House (2718 Ruth St.) hosts New York City-based artist Sivan Lavie’s newest series, Ice cream on the tip of my tongue, a viscerally-driven exhibition of “thick, clunky, funky, colorful, chaotic, soapy sculptural paintings on paper.” The opening reception runs from 6 to 9 p.m., with performances by Lavie, Jana Whatley, and Kate Stinson starting at 8 p.m. The exhibition will be on view by appointment through April 20.
Performance — Mythos & Memory: A Journey Through Music and Spoken Word
FotoFest
Presented at FotoFest (2000 Edwards St.) in collaboration with ALMAAHH and Ponce Project Music Foundation, Mythos & Memory: A Journey Through Music and Spoken Word is an interdisciplinary performance inspired by FotoFest’s current exhibition, Flor Garduño: Paths of Life. The performance combines visual elements with sound and spoken word and features L’acalet Dúo — known for highlighting the diverse lyrical repertoire of Mexican and Latin American music — and Jasminne Mendez — an award-winning Dominican-American poet and playwright. The event, which runs from 7 to 8:30 p.m., is free and open to the public but requires registration.
Saturday, April 19
Performance — New Art / New Music 2025
Moody Center for the Arts
Performing within the galleries of Breath(e): Toward Climate and Social Justice — the current exhibition at Rice University’s Moody Center for the Arts (6100 Main St.) — students from Shepherd School of Music will share compositions created as responses to the exhibition. The free event takes place from 3 to 5 p.m. with a reception following the performances.
