Houston

For season schedule & prices, go to dacamera.com.

For schedule & prices, go to houstondance.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to dwdt.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to thehobbycenter.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to houstonballet.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to houstongrandopera.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to houstonsymphony.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to mercurybaroque.org.

For schedule & prices, go to reliantpark.com.

For season schedule & prices, go to spahouston.org.

For schedule & prices, go to houstontoyotacenter.com.

For schedule & prices, go to verizonwirelesstheater.com.

For concert schedule & prices, go to warehouselive.com.

For season schedule & prices, go to alleytheatre.org.

For season schedule & prices, go to broadwayacrossamerica.com.

For season schedule & prices, go to milleroutdoortheatre.com.

For season schedule & prices, go to stagestheatre.com.

For season schedule & prices, go to tuts.com.

Open Tue–Sat 10–5. Free. class.uh.edu/blaffer

Indoor exhibits teach youngsters science and technology, health and human development, history and culture, and the arts. The outdoor exhibit EcoStation allows children to conduct experiments, play games, and participate in other activities that teach about the environment and the Texas ecosystem.

Open Tue–Sat 10–6, Sun noon–6. Gen adm $5, senior citizens $4, children 2 & under and museum members free (Thur 5–8 everybody free). cmhouston.org

Open Tue, Wed, Fri & Sat 10–5; Thur 10–9; Sun noon–5. Free. camh.org

Open Wed–Sat noon–6. Free.

Thru Jul 5: Dr. Seuss Wants You!—you can probably recite Green Eggs and Ham from memory. But less-known is the fact that Dr. Seuss—whose real name was Theodor Seuss Geisel—served as the chief political cartoonist for PM, a New York newspaper, from 1941 to 1943, during the height of Nazi power. Geisel created more than four hundred editorial cartoons addressing the political environment, inspiring people of all ages and backgrounds to consider the suffering of others. Thru Jul 26: A One-Man Army: The Art of Arthur Szyk—Eleanor Roosevelt described Szyk as a “one-man army” for using his art as a weapon to push the agenda of the social and political issues he subscribed to. This exhibit highlights Szyk as one of the twentieth century’s most important political propagandists and features his compelling, cartoonish depictions of Jewish people as heroic patriots.

Open Mon–Fri 9–5, Sat & Sun noon–5. Free. hmh.org

Open Tue–Sat 10–5, Sun noon–5. Free. crafthouston.org

Open Wed 11–5, Thur 11–9, Fri 11–5, Sat & Sun noon–6. Free. hcponline.org

Thru Sep 7: Genghis Khan (gen adm $20; senior citizens, children 3-11 & students with ID $17; members $12, 2 & under free).

Open Mon 9–5, Tue 9–8, Wed–Sat 9–5, Sun 11–5. Gen adm $15; senior citizens, students with ID & children 3–11 $10; 2 & under and museum members free (Tue 2–8 everybody free). hmns.org

Open Mon–Fri 10-5, Sat noon–5. Free. lawndaleartcenter.org

Open Wed–Sun 11–7. Free. menil.org

Open Tue & Wed 10–5, Thur 10–9, Fri & Sat 10–7, Sun 12:15–7. Gen adm $7; senior citizens, students & youths 6–18 $3.50; 5 & under free (Thur everybody free and Sat & Sun youths 18 & under free with public library card). The museum’s sculpture garden (across the street on Bissonnet) is open daily 9 a.m.–10 p.m., free. mfah.org

Open Thur–Sun noon–5. Free. newworldmuseum.org

This urban renewal and reclamation project in Houston’s historic Third Ward includes an educational program aimed at boosting children’s self-esteem through art, exhibits of work by African American artists installed in ten shotgun houses, and five houses dedicated as places for single mothers and their children to live.

Open Wed–Sun noon–5. Free. projectrowhouses.org

Open Tue & Wed 11–5, Thur 11–7, Fri & Sat 11–5, Sun noon–5. Free. ricegallery.org

Open Wed–Sun 11–6. Free. stationmuseum.com

The Health Museum encourages healthy lifestyles, fitness, and good physical, mental, and spiritual health through a series of fun and interactive exhibits.

Thru May 10: ZAP! Surgery: Beyond the Cutting Edge. Ongoing: YOU: The Exhibit—the museum’s newest permanent exhibit allows you to speed up time and see what your body will look like in thirty years and then adjust the image to see the impact certain lifestyle choices—like smoking or not exercising—will have on your body.

Open Mon–Wed 9–5, Thur 9–7, Fri & Sat 9–5, Sun noon–5. Gen adm $8, senior citizens & youths 3–17 $6, children 2 & under and museum members free (Thur 2–7 everybody free). thehealthmuseum.org

American Hockey League. For season schedule & prices, go to aeros.com.

Major League Baseball. For season schedule & prices, go to astros.mlb.com.

WNBA basketball. For season schedule & prices, go to nba.com/comets.

Major League Soccer. For season schedule & prices, go to houstondynamo.com.

National Basketball Association. For season schedule & prices, go to houstonrockets.com.

NFL football. For season schedule & prices, go to houstontexans.com.

For schedule & prices, go to aurorapictureshow.org.

This early-twentieth-century home and garden, built originally for Miss Ima Hogg and donated to the Museum of Fine Art, Houston in 1957, offers an expansive collection of Americana art, fascinating architecture, and beautiful gardens.

House open Tue–Thur 10–2:45, Fri & Sat 10–7, Sun 1–5. Gen adm $10, senior citizens & students with ID $8.50, youths 10–18 $5, 9 & under free. Gardens open Tue–Sat 10–5, Sun 1–5. Gen adm $3, children 9 & under free. mfah.org/bayoubend

In 1968 John Milkovisch, a retired upholsterer for the Southern Pacific Railroad, started to decorate his house with beer cans; this was convenient, as he drank quite a few beers, and with time, his house became completely overtaken by aluminum cans. Though Milkovisch died in 1988, his work of art has been preserved as a Houston landmark. Recently renovated, the house has been reopened to visitors.

Open Sat & Sun noon–5 & by appt. Free. beercanhouse.org

In the eighties, these thirteenth-century Byzantine wall paintings were stolen from a Turkish-occupied city, cut into pieces, smuggled to Cyprus, and later restored by the Menil Foundation. They now reside in the chapel museum on loan from the Church of Cyprus.

Open Wed–Sun 11–6. Free. menil.org

The $122-million, twelve-acre park, which sits across from the George R. Brown Convention Center, opened in April. This is one heckuva playground. Consider the expansive lawn for pickup football and picnics, the sizable pond with native wetland plants and an area for model boats, the jogging trail (hint, hint), the putting green, the boccie ball courts, the amphitheater, the two restaurants, and the varied schedule of events.

Open daily 6 a.m.–11 p.m. Free. For the full event calendar, go to discoverygreen.com.

The 55-acre site is home to more than five hundred species of animals, including endangered Indochinese tigers, Chinese alligators, and Bornean orangutans. In May 2008, the zoo proudly announced the birth of Hadiah, the first offspring of its rare and endangered Babirusa pig. Catch a glimpse of the hairless baby and read up on the on-site conservation efforts for endangered and threatened species. The zoo’s newest resident is Dino the California sea lion. Tipping the scales at six hundred pounds, Dino has quickly acclimated to his new home at the McGovern Mammal Marina, which he shares with Cali and Kamia, the zoo’s four-year-old female sea lions. Also worth a spin: the Wildlife Carousel, which features 64 hand-carved and painted animals ($2 a ride).

Open daily 9–6. Gen adm $10, senior citizens & children 2–11 $6, 1 & under free. houstonzoo.org

Ollie for joy! Houston recently opened this state-of-the-art, 30,000-square-foot public skate park, thought to contain the largest cradle in the world. Made possible by more than $2.3 million in private funds, it’s the first world-class, in-ground skate park in the region and will have areas for skaters of all levels, from seasoned pros to those who simply want to learn how to keep their balance.

Open Mon–Sat 8 a.m.–10:00 p.m., Sun 1–10. Free. houstontx.gov/parks/lee-joepark.html

Built of concrete, found objects, and welded steel by the late postman and self-taught artist Jeff McKissack, this place is an exuberant work of folk architecture and one man’s tribute to his favorite fruit. It is also home to a variety of performances, workshops, and community events.

Open Sat & Sun noon–5 (the Orange Show closes for the season Dec 14). Gen adm $1, children 12 & under free. orangeshow.org

The official visitors center of NASA’s Johnson Space Center offers exhibits that tell the story of space exploration, including the Kids’ Space Place, a special children’s attraction, and ISS Odyssey, high-tech virtual reality stations and a life-size replica of one section of the International Space Station. Also visit the IMAX theater (shows daily; call for times; free with adm).

Open Mon–Fri 10–5, Sat & Sun 10–6. Gen adm $18.95, senior citizens $17.95, children 4–11 $14.95, 3 & under free; parking $5. spacecenter.org