The Bard is back! This weekend only—Shakespeare shenanigans you won't want to miss. But first we're dropping a hint about a little show we've heard is fantastic. Shrewd Productions' Io: a myth about you runs through November 10, Th/Fr/Sa at the Vortex. This play with music features an all-star cast, including our current biggest crush Jude Hickey. Described as a "foray into heroic tales, vengeance, decadence, salvation, forgiveness, and rock & roll," it contains strong......

Low-income families in Central Texas hoping to replace their old cars may qualify for financial aid Put that pen down, sir: authorities are going after hot check writers across the state this month There's a Lady Bird Johnson tribute DVD out now, with proceeds going to the LBJ Wildflower Center Houston area man gets evicted, leaves behind hundreds of chickens Williamson County animal shelter accidentally euthanizes lost dog after only two days, owners show......

FRIDAY [25] party • The Onion's "Summer Fun Blast Blowout Extravaganza!" Party with Clap!Clap!, Crash Gallery, Devil in the Choir, DJ Rubix, Prince Klassen, and a chance to win a scooter from Scooter Revolution at Beauty Bar ($2, 9:30pm) theatre • Rubber Repertory presents A Thought in Three Parts at The Vortex (8pm) music • Emissions From the Monolith Fest at Emo's music • Voxtrot, Au Revoir Simone, The Black, Zykos at Emo's music......

FRIDAY [16] art • Artist's Reception: Joan Winter: From Marfa to Sudari at Flatbed Press and Gallery (6-8pm) art • Flatstock 12 Poster Convention at Austin Convention Center (11am-6pm) books • Jack Pendarvis preseents The Mysterious Secret of the Valuable Treasure at BookPeople (3:00pm) books • John Sellers presents Perfect From Now On at BookPeople (7:00pm) sxsw • SXSW Film Festival at Everywhere sxsw • SXSW Music Festival at Everywhere theatre • Austin Shakespeare......

As part of UT's weeklong celebration of Shakespeare's Hamlet, a panel of law professors and Shakespeare directors will be meeting together tomorrow evening to discuss the legal implications of Hamlet's behavior and speech in Shakespeare's play. Actors from UT's own Spirit of Shakespeare will perform the play-within-a-play portion (but doesn't that make it a play-within-a-play-within-a-panel?). Entitled "The Law's Delay" (after a portion of Hamlet's best-known soliliquy), the panel will be led by UT Law......

Because most performance companies create their budgets on a fall-to-spring season, September and October generally see hordes of productions by our local theatre-makers chompin’ at the bit after a summer of relative tranquility. With the B. Iden Payne nominations and Austinist’s own Best Theatre in Austin picks officially announced, it’s time to leave 05/06 behind us, and head charging off into new theatrical waters. (Or something.) This week’s Austinist Pick of the Week is......

FRIDAY 28 [music] Ghostland Observatory, Glass Family, Clap! Clap! and Crash Gallery at Emo's (info) [music] White Ghost Shivers (CD Release Ball) with The Small Stars at The Parish Room (info) [music] Texas Sapphires at Waterloo Records (Free, 5pm) (info) [music] Joe Satriani at The Paramount Theatre (8pm) (info) [music] Southern Culture on the Skids at Continental Club (Through Sunday!, 11:30pm) (info) [music] My Education and Cue at Blue Theatre ($6) (info) [music/food] ATX Fest,......

We are the Walrus. We are the Eggman. We are a shameless, self-promoting, self-interested no-goodnik with nothing but themselves at heart. We also have difficulty conjugating verbs while writing in the royal “we”. Why all the self-loathing? Because we've picked ourselves as the Austinist pick of the week! Even though Austin Lyric Opera is celebrating Mozart's 250th birthday by performing what is arguably the best opera ever written.... Even though Austin Shakespeare Festival, upon......

First, a little mea culpa for ya. (And a warning to all ye who intend to see this show, or Austin Shakespeare Festival's other production, Richard III) The show starts at 7:30, and not 8pm, as we discovered when we arrived, ehem, twenty minutes late. An egregious faux pas. Our bad. Anyway, on to matters that actually have to do with our experience at the Austin Playhouse, where we witnessed the funniest production we’ve......