By Chip Chandler — Producer
Here's a quick take on your 10 best entertainment bets in the next 10 days.
1. Mamma Mia!
Gimme, gimme, gimme a ticket — any ticket! — to Amarillo Little Theatre's nearly sold-out run of this jukebox musical, now entering its second weekend. All regular performances are sold out, as is an additional 2:30 p.m. May 11 show. All hope is not lost, though: Limited tickets remain to a 2:30 p.m. May 18 matinee. Hurry: Your chances are slipping through your fingers.
2. Yellow City Comic Con
Celebrate comics, games and pop culture at the fifth annual YC3 con, running May 10 to 12 in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex, 401 S. Buchanan St. Look for appearances by celebrities Dante Basco (Hook), Nicholas Brendan (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) and Sam J. Jones (Flash Gordon).
3. Pokémon Detective Pikachu
Ryan Reynolds voices the adorable Pikachu in this live-action/CGI family film opening May 10. Also opening this weekend: con-artist comedy The Hustle, comedy Poms and biopic Tolkein. Coming the weekend of May 17: inspirational pet movie A Dog's Journey, action sequel John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum and teen romantic drama The Sun Is Also a Star. Special engagements include Christian comedian Chonda Pierce's Unashamed on May 9; The Met: Live in HD's screening of Dialogues des Carmélites on May 11 and 15; 1995's Batman Forever on May 12 and 1997's Batman & Robin on May 14 (part of a series of encore screenings in honor of the character's 80th anniversary); and 20th anniversary celebration What We Left Behind: Looking Back at Star Trek: Deep Space Nine on May 13.
4. Amarillo Arts Fest
Amarillo's wide swath of artistic pursuits will be celebrated at this new festival running May 10 to 12 at Arts in the Sunset. Look for a host of female artists to be featured in the Texas Women Artists exhibition, and the festival also will include film screenings, live music, kids' crafts, a Mother's Day brunch and more.
5. Museum Day
Get reduced or free admission, plus special offers, at this National Tourism Week event on May 11. Participating attractions include Amarillo Museum of Art, 2200 S. Van Buren St.; American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame & Museum, 2601 E. Interstate 40; Don Harrington Discovery Center, 1200 Streit Drive; Goodnight Historical Center, 4989 County Road 25 in Claude; Kwahadi Museum of the American Indian, 9151 E. Interstate 40; Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, 2503 Fourth Ave. in Canyon; and Texas Air & Space Museum, 10001 American Drive. Also happening May 11: National Train Day and open house at Amarillo Railroad Museum, 3160 I Avenue.
6. Canadian River Music Festival
Get your fill of Texas country, Americana and Red Dirt with this day-long May 11 fest in Canadian, featuring Robert Earl Keen, Marty Stuart, The Great Divide, Bonnie Bishop, JD McPherson, John Fullbright and Comanche Moon.
7. Amarillo Venom
The indoor football squad will back in action at 6 p.m. May 11 against Salina Liberty in the Amarillo Civic Center Complex Coliseum, 401 S. Buchanan St.
8. Musica Variada
Get your fiesta on: Amarillo Opera will celebrate Hispanic culture with a food festival and concert featuring Mariachi Los Matadores de Texas Tech and Rafael Moras on May 11 in the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts, 500 S. Buchanan St.
9. Satisfaction
Rock out with this popular Rolling Stones tribute band on May 17 at Starlight Ranch Event Center, 1415 Sunrise Drive. Other live music options you can't miss: Canyon country band The RagTown Chiefs on May 10 at Golden Light Cantina, 2908 S.W. Sixth Ave.; Amarillo rock band Strange Saints on May 10 at Whiskey River, 4001 S.W. 51st Ave.; Texas country band Shotgun Rider and friends on May 11 at Starlight Ranch Event Center; jazzy Chillhouse with hONEyhoUSe's Hillary Smith on May 11 at Esquire Jazz Club, 626 S. Polk St.; touring duo When Particles Collide and Amarillo singer Heath Seager at FireSongs at Fire Slice Pizzeria, 7301 S.W. 34th Ave.; and Led Zeppelin tribute band Swan Song at Starlight Ranch Event Center.
10. Hansford Heritage Days
Nothing says summertime fun like small-town festivals, including this one on May 18 in Spearman, including a parade, vendors, barbecue dinner and a street dance with '90s country favorites Little Texas.
Chip Chandler is a producer for Panhandle PBS and a member of GALECA. He can be contacted at Chip.Chandler@actx.edu, at @chipchandler1 on Twitter and on Facebook.
