Welcome to this week's "Gish Picks", where I highlight family-oriented cultural events, products or services. Please note that I "highlight" these events, but I don't know if they are appropriate for your particular children, so choose wisely based on age, maturity and interests.

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Now, GO FIND FUN!

HAVE FUN ALL OVER AGAIN WITH "HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2"!

High school was never as fun as the Disney® show “High School Musical 2”, which is being presented by Houston’s Center Stage Theater in conjunction with Lone Star College/CyFair and the Center for the Arts. This production of “HSM2” was directed by Daria James. In case you’ve been living under a rock, this is the second installment of the Disney® franchise about a group of singin’ and dancin’ high school students. We pick up the story as the main character, Troy Bolton, is stressing over getting a summer job so he can start saving for college and trying to arrange it so that he can be near his girlfriend Gabriella. However, rich girl Sharpay has designs on Troy and arranges it so that he works at her country club…ah the folly of young love!

Houston's Center Stage believes that culture greatly influences families and youth so it is their mission to make an impact culturally through affordable, value-positive and excellent education in the arts, family-centered arts enrichment programs, and wholesome family entertainment. Starting September 7, they are offering a twelve week course of classes that will offer intensive training and develop student skills in several aspects of drama, including voice, acting and dance skills.

“High School Musical 2” is being performed at the Lone Star College/CyFair Center for the Arts Main Stage Theatre at 9191 Barker Cypress Road in northwest Houston. There will be seven shows the weekends of July 17 and July 24. Tickets are $16/adults, $14/seniors, and $12/students.

GET COOL WITH ART IN THE SUMMER.

Looking at art is a great activity to pursue with kids when the temperatures are rising and if you bring a sketchpad and colored pencils you can make it an interactive experience. Here are some exhibitions currently on view; please note that I have not seen all of them, so call the venue first if you have concerns.

• Houston Center for Contemporary Craft has two very cool shows for kids – with items like chairs that look like they collided with porcupines (in “Challenge VII: dysFUNctional”) and broccolis wearing sweaters (in “Unknitting: Challenging Textile Traditions”). Both shows open this weekend and are on view through September 13. Be sure to visit the Center on the first Saturday of every month for “Hands On Houston,” which features special craft activities just for kids.
  
  
• The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston is celebrating the results of “Youth Art Month” with the exhibition, “Start with Art, Learn for Life: The MFAH and TAEA Celebrate Youth Art Month” on view through Sunday, August 2. March is National Youth Art Month and the state of Texas has been a leader in it since 1961, thanks to the Texas Art Education Association (TAEA).
  
  
• “The Big Show” is an annual open-call, juried exhibition at the Lawndale Art Center and is on view through August 8. This is a great way to see emerging and under-represented Houston area artists.
  
  
• The Houston Museum of Natural Science is one of four venues to showcase “Terra Cotta Warriors: Guardians of China's First Emperor” on its national tour. The show will be on view through October 18 and is a presentation of thousands of terra cotta figures and artifacts from the tomb complex of China's First Emperor, Shi Huangdi. Learn all about the ancient art of Kung Fu in "The Qi of Kung Fu" family event this Saturday, July 18 from 10am-2pm.
  
  
• The Contemporary Arts Museum has a great exhibition called “No Zoning: Artists Engage Houston” on view through October 4. It is the first museum exhibition to shine the spotlight on Houston artists and features an interactive “Fundred Dollar Bill Project.” On Saturday, July 18 from 10am-2pm the museum is hosting an all ages “Yacht Shop Workshop” to help artists Benjy Mason and Zach Moser construct a sailboat for their project “Yacht Shop”. Space is limited so sign up by emailing zachmoser@gmail.com.
  
  
• “Existed: Leonardo Drew” is on view through August 1 at the Blaffer Gallery and is a exhibition of sculptures and works on paper created over the last twenty years by New York- and San Antonio-based artist Leonardo Drew. Included in the show are works made out of shoes, animal hides, and feathers.

THIS WEEK'S ATTRACTION...WAUGH STREET BRIDGE. For more attractions, go to www.gishcreative.com/attractions.htm.

Get up close and personal with about 250,000 bats that quietly reside within the crevices of Waugh Drive Bridge by visiting the bridge at sunset. “The Waugh Bridge Bat Colony” consists of Mexican free-tailed bats that emerge nightly to stretch their wings and feed on area insects, espcailly blood-sucking mosquitos. Thankfully the Houston Parks and Recreation Department installed a bat observation deck a few years back, which greatly assists in bat-viewing (but watch out for the guano!).

HPARD has partnered with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Buffalo Bayou Partnership, and enthusiastic area volunteers to count and record the activities of the bat colony. And both TPW and BBP offer easy ways to view the bats – TPW hosts family nights on the third Friday of every month and BBP hosts “Waugh Bridge Bat Colony Pontoon Boat Tours” on the second Friday of the month, March-November (the next available tour is August 14). And lucky for us, unlike other Texas bat colonies that opt for warmer climates by migrating southward during winter months, the Waugh Bridge Bat Colony remains in Houston throughout the year.

The City of Houston website has great information on the Waugh Bridge Drive so check it out for information and suggestions. My final tip comes from Examiner Editor Charlotte Aguilar: wear a bandana sprayed with a pleasant scent before heading out – if you don’t know why you’ll need that, I’m not telling you!

ENJOY ART AND FAMILY FUN WITH YOUR KIDS AT BODY MIND & SOUL THIS WEEKEND. Join me this Saturday, July 18 from 2-4pm at Body Mind & Soul for my “follow your HeART” parent/child art workshop. This is a great opportunity to connect with your child (or children) in a unique way: by learning what makes them sing and by creating a work of art together that you will take home. We’ll come together for a quiet two hours to learn how to help your children find their bliss using concrete suggestions I’ll give you. This discussion will be followed by a family art activity specifically designed to reveal each person’s creativity and joy. Children will be encouraged to speak up about what makes their hearts sing! Sign up early, as class size will be limited.

$35 per parent/child pair (children 6-10 years old, please); if you have more than one child you will be bringing, please add $5/child. Each attendee will receive a $25 gift certificate from Hollywood Frame Gallery.

Sarah Gish
Gish Creative
1940-A Fountainview, PMB 116
Houston, Texas 77057
phone/fax: 713.532.1173

email: sarah@gishcreative.com
web: www.gishcreative.com
and: www.thesummerbook.com
and: www.saveourlandmarks.org

© 2009 Sarah Gish

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