Opera Ball Returns with Vivid Moroccan Theme, a $1.25 Million Haul and Even a Camel!

Jeff Gremillion

SOMETIMES CALLED THE mother of all galas, the always spectacular Houston Grand Opera Ball returned to the Wortham Center foyer with a roar, with a haul of $1.25 million and a rousing party. It was the event’s first time in the theater center since Hurricane Harvey and then the Covid pandemic displaced it from its longtime home. And, for many, the splendor of its colorful “Le Voyage à Marrakech” theme was worth the long wait.

Mum's the Word! Inside ‘Barrier-Free’ Summer Camp’s Million-Dollar High School Heyday

Evan W. Black

THE JOYS OF summer camp are the makings of childhood memories, and contribute to a sense of self-worth and confidence — a fact that is doubly true for those who attend Camp For All, a Houston nonprofit that runs a “barrier-free” camp for children and adults with special needs in the Hill Country town of Burton.

Travel: Art Fest Lights Up Florida’s Emerald Coast for the Perfect Weekend

Robin Barr Sussman

ART, ARCHITECTURE AND beach lovers will collide for a dose of sun, sand and play at the Digital Graffiti Festival at Alys Beach May 13-14 – and if you’ve never been to this luxury vacation getaway (just a two-hour flight from Houston) – you’re in for a treat. With its white stucco buildings, cobblestone streets and Moorish-inflected architecture, the serene town feels worlds away from the Florida Panhandle.

Jerod and Madison Durst, Bailey Bell, Hayden Layne

PER THE FABULOUS annual tradition, Cotton Holdings and its founder, Pete Bell, opened Rodeo season in lavish style with its VIP bash at the 50th Annual World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest, also known simply as “Cook-Off.” The food-and-drink-savvy festival-within-a-festival, which kicks off the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, draws cowboys and cowgirls in designer duds — think denim and diamonds and perfectly fitted Stetsons — for raucously good fun.

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Stephanie Chou, Mandy Kao, Brigitte Kalai, Pitsami Norm, Mable Tang, Alice Mao Brams, Cindy Cheng, and Sippi Khurana

ALWAYS A STUNNING evening, Asia Society Texas' Tiger Ball celebrated the beauty and diversity of Asian culture. Gold-flecked tablescapes, plants and gowns ensured that the glam, tented affair was absolutely glimmering — just like Tiger Ball chairs Chinhui and Eddie Allen and Heidi and David Gerger, as the event raised an impressive $1.5 million for AST's efforts to build a more inclusive community in Houston.

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