Gish Picks: Week of September 26, 2007


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. I know many of you go to events based on GISH PICKS recommendations; PLEASE remember to tell the organization that you are there because of us. Word-of-mouth like yours helps our business to grow. In the same spirit, please also feel free to share GISH PICKS with friends and families. Do you have something you would like to advertise on Gish Picks? Advertisers can promote family-friendly events, products or services to Houstonians all over the city and the surrounding area who are active parents, involved citizens and great shoppers. We love doing this community service and want to keep it free for our readers but in order to justify the hours spent researching, writing and designing this newsletter, we need advertising support. If you'd like to learn more, please click below. Now, GO FIND FUN!

THE HIGH SCHOOL FOR THE PERFORMING AND VISUAL ARTS (HSPVA) IS PRESENTING AN ALL SCHOOL PRODUCTION OF "SEUSSICAL THE MUSICAL".

Starting today and running until Saturday, September 29, HSPVA is presenting the fun and lively "Seussical the Musical". This musical is based on the books of Dr. Seuss and debuted on Broadway in 2000. The story features characters and scenarios from many Seuss books, including the Butter Side Uppers/Downers from The Butter Battle Book, Gertrude McFuzz from Gertrude McFuzz, and some characters that never made an appearance in any of Dr. Seuss's books.

The overarching plot mirrors that of Horton Hears a Who!, centering on Horton the elephant's endeavors to protect the people of Who-ville, who live on a tiny speck of dust. The Cat in the Hat narrates and there are surprises around every corner (Diehard Seuss fans should rent “The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T.” to get into the mood. It’s the only feature film written by the good doctor and is a crazy celluloid fantasy about the evils of piano lessons).

Tickets are $15 and shows are being presented tonight as well as Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights at 7pm with a 2pm matinee on Saturday. HSPVA is located at 4001 Stanford Street.

For more information, call 713.942.1960 or log onto www.hspva.org.

IT’S TIME AGAIN FOR THE LATINO BOOK AND FAMILY FESTIVAL.

Edward James Olmos presents "The Houston Latino Book and Family Festival" again (he had originally signed up for a five year presenting commitment, but now is in it for life), which will be this Saturday, September 29 and Sunday, September 30 from 10am until 5pm at the George R. Brown Convention Center.

This free festival is amazing -- it will include five "villages" for guests to explore: "Book Village"; "Careers and Education Village"; "Culture and Travel Village"; "Health Village"; and "Mi Casita Village", as well as entertainment, food courts, a science discovery center, youth and adult art exhibitions, a kids' play area and more.

For more information, call 713.867.8943 or log onto www.lbff.us.

THE DANCE TROUPE DANCE FROM THE HEART PRESENTS "DANCE OF LIFE: ONE PATH, MANY STEPS".

Local Asian and Fusion dancers collaborate with guest artists Z-Helene and Rick Fink, Reetu Jain (Pangea Beat), La Tempestad, The Bere'Sheet Ballet Company and Kuumba House Dance Theatre to present this one-time performance. Through the use of vignettes, the production displays human emotions, reactions and struggles through one's stages of life. The show is directed by Anne Caruthers, President of Dance From the Heart and Artistic Director/Choreographer for the Qantara Dance Company.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the Alzheimer's Association and Lighthouse of Houston. As part of the weekend's events there will be a Middle Eastern dance and finger cymbals workshop for $60 by Z-Helene on Sunday, September 30 from 10am until 2pm at Zahirah Noor's Bellydance studio. Tickets for the "Dance of Life" are $20 and the performance will take place this Saturday, September 30 at 7:30pm at the Kaplan Theater of the Jewish Community Center at 5601 S. Braeswood.

For more information, log onto www.dfth.org/houston.htm.

“THE CELEBRATION OF THE CENTURY” MARKS THE 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE MONTESSORI MOVEMENT.

The Ibn Sina Foundation presents this Houston celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Montessori Movement with two events on Saturday, October 6:

A “Montessori Global Village and Children’s Festival” from 10am until 3pm at UH’s Lynn Eusan Park; free and open to the public. The Park will be transformed into a village, made up of “huts” prepared by local Montessori schools which will depict a multitude of attributes from various cultures, reflecting the pluralistic vision of Dr. Montessori. There will be interactive activities for attendees such as arts and crafts, a Montessori classroom display and educational information, moonwalks, rides, and carnival activities as well as food and beverages. For even more fun, there will be children’s entertainment and passports given to each visitor.

A “Celebrating Peace and Culture Show” at 7pm at UH’s Cullen Performance Hall; tickets start at $25 and can be purchased at www.ticketweb.com,
keyword: “Montessori”. This culture variety show will feature ethnic performances by professional dancers, musicians and a multimedia presentation.

All proceeds from this centenary celebration will fund the building and operation of the Ibn Sina Foundation Montessori School, a new non-profit school to be located at 11226 S. Wilcrest Drive. This event and other worldwide Centenary efforts throughout 2007 champion the cause of Dr. Montessori and her commitment to “the secret of childhood”.

For more information, call 832.391.4283 or log onto www.100yearsmontessori.com.

GRAB SOME PIZZA, SEE A MOVIE, HELP A CHARITY AND SAVE A LANDMARK.

Pizza with a higher purpose will be available on "CPK Charity Day" at the new California Pizza Kitchen location in River Oaks Shopping Center next Monday, October 1 when 100% of dine-in pizza sales will be donated to Operation School Bell.

The new restaurant, which debuted on September 24, will be open from 11am until 9pm with each sale of its 32 innovative pizzas helping the Assistance League of Houston to provide school uniforms for disadvantaged students. While there, go to the River Oaks Theatre and see a movie -- supporting that business will help keep it from being torn down (see www.saveourlandmarks.org for more details).

For more information on "CPK Charity Day", call 713.622.4747.

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GISH PICKS, which is online (www.thesummerbook.com/gishpicks_archive.html) and in print through the Houston Community Newspaper group (www.hcnonline.com);

THE SUMMER BOOK®: A GUIDE TO HOUSTON DAY CAMPS AND CLASSES FOR KIDS AND TEENS (www.thesummerbook.com) which comes out annually on March 1 and is sold at bookstores all over Houston, including Barnes and Noble and Borders; and

Speaking engagements, interactive workshops, private consultations, and art programs that cover topics such as parenting (www.freewebs.com/glowfished), marketing, historic preservation, activism, and passion-finding. All of these services can be tailored for any audience and budget.

The purpose of GISH PICKS is to help parents become aware of all the fun things they can do with their children in Houston and the surrounding area, so HAPPY TRAVELS! Please do give me feedback and ideas, as you are out there in the trenches also looking for interesting things for your family and I want to hear what you find. If you are having trouble getting to a website listed here, try hitting the “Ctrl” button and left-clicking on the web address, which should make it “live”.


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 © 2007 Sarah Gish Designed by West of the World