One night in Austin and the world’s your oyster.
Mariam Parker and Ben Brown
It started at Max’s Wine Dive. The Houston-based eatery and drinkery has carved big-boned banquet rooms out of its basement on East Third Street. On Friday, one hall held the Austin Cellar Classic dinner.
Kevin Benz and Olga Campos
My companion for the evening, social connector Jacob Stetson, immediately introduced himself to everyone around our table. Gotta like a walker who is more social than the social columnist.
To my left were CultureMap Austin’s Kevin Benz and U.S. Money Reserve’s Olga Campos. We discussed the comparative merits of covering the U.S. Grand Prix in November from the track’s stands or waist deep in luxe downtown parties.
Carla and Gary Osborn
The only dish served before our departure was a delicate carpaccio with thinly curled pear slices. We made our apologies and raced across downtown for …
Andrea Stoery and Greg Vrentas
The opening night of Ballet Austin’s “The Taming of the Shrew” drew a moderately dressy mass of dance lovers. They giggled and guffawed at artistic director Stephen Mills’ elegantly devised physical humor inspired by the Shakespearean tale of gender friction.
Eric Prince and Charisse Brea
We always linger on the Long Center’s terrace, an almost accidental gift to the city. The ring of smooth columns are part of the old Palmer Auditorium’s structure. The fact that they frame the city’s growing, glowing skyline like a theatrical arc is just a bonus.
Laura Forster and Stephanie Forsythe
Inside the Dell Hall, we sat next to Cookie Ruiz, the ballet’s biz whiz, Meria Carstarphen, the school superintendent, and Brent Hasty, the arts education guru and Mills’ partner.
A patron perked up Ruiz’s first intermission with an unexpected kindness inside a plain envelope, which I’ll let her reveal — or not.
Garry Davis and Dax Dobbs
After the show, we swam through the humidity across downtown — through the pre-game crowds swarming in each entertainment district — to the Swan Dive on Red River Street.
There, we awaited the first-nighters for the Polari’s Fest’s centerpiece film, “Fourplay.” Quite the classy and contempo joint for the gay and lesbian fest’s 25th anniversary.
Elaine S. Holton and Jaelah Keuhmichel
A DJ eventually seduced fest-goers out on the dance floor. Meanwhile, we caught up with the festival’s board members, and the artistic team behind “Fourplay,” the series of four short stories directed by Kyle Henry, formerly of Austin.
Gary Chason and Carlos Treviño
After a dozen sharp chats, we steered back down East Sixth Street, where the human tides swept us to and fro. Fresh tourists — some from West Virginia for the Saturday game this night — always remake Sixth Street, much maligned by locals, but still the electric social center of Austin on any weekend night.
It follows the rule of any lively downtown, being the only place were all classes and ages meet on the same social plane.