In Case You're Not Doing the ACL Thing...

If you lost your ACL pass and – even after countless screaming matches with Front Gate Ticket employees and hours of scouring Craig’s List for scalpers – you’ve been left sans plans for the festival weekend (or maybe you’re just afraid of tourists/loathe sunshine/whatever), we’ve got an alternative suggestion. An air conditioned alternative suggestion.

Go see a play. That’s right, don’t be a pussy about it. It’s just theatre. You might even like it and there’s bound to be far fewer John Mayer fans and some readily available indoor toilets. Huzzah, holla, and bitchin’.

Our Austinist Pick of the Week – like it’s been before, is Steve Tomlinson’s American Fiesta. We know it’s not technically running this weekend, but it does run Sunday through Thursday (before the next TWIT will get posted), and this show has been a huge freakin’, oh-my-sweet-holy-crap-you-gotta-see-this success. So much so that some big shot NYC producers asked Steve to do it again so they could check it out (hence, next week’s re-mount). See it for yourself and rub elbows with real-live East Coast Money at the McCullough Theatre. Shows start at 8pm, buy your tickets here.

Speaking of UT, at the Texas Union Theatre on campus you can check out From Temple to Theatre A Premiere Bharata Natyam Performance tonight only at 8pm. According to the organizers, “Bharata Natyam is a classical dance form originating in the southern part of India called Tamil Nadu and is characterized by angular lines, geometric shapes, symmetry and groundedness, which contribute to its unique visual quality.” Now ya can’t say we don’t introduce ya to new things. So eat your Rocky Mountain Oysters and go here for more info.

Also in town this week are two different productions staged in houses. Bars, Bedrooms and Bukowski, is – not so shockingly – about the poet Charles Bukowski. Presented at the Rogue Performance Venue on 211 E Alpine, #300 (probably not too far from the non-Penn Field entrance of Ruta Maya, we think), with tickets available by calling 445-7213. The Muses: Memories of a House, is the latest from the Vestige Group – a relatively new group we’ve mentioned before. Check out this theatrical endeavor at 6400 Dry Cliff Cove, or get more info at the company’s website.

And don’t forget, the Vortex Reading Series continues with Catfish, and there’s plenty of shows still hanging around from last week. For all the info, check out last week’s TWIT.

*Photo of Melissa Rentrop and Amanda Butterfield in We Are Normal, Cha Cha Chaaa, taken by Dennis Fagan.