Lite + Brite: 15 Vivid Austin Events 1/10
Hello, what’s up, and welcome to the Lite + Brite newsletter.
Although this is a relatively quiet week for events, it comes with more Shakespearian performances than you might expect, of both the improvised and the immersive varieties. Reality TV dating shows are not technically Shakespeare, but having watched a number of Billy’s comedies over the years, I think it’s safe to surmise that he would approve of the genre. Speaking of theater, this week the 30th annual Frontera Fest kicks off a month of unpredictable and often uncategorizable fringe theater. Or you can go enjoy clowns performing drag, middle schoolers telling stories, or cyclists dressed as snacks. Whatever activity you get up to, don’t forget that you can soundtrack it with these playlists of our favorite songs released in 2024!
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Let’s do fun stuff!
—Leila + Brian
liteandbriteatx.com
OUR STUFF
Last week we held out first No Lights No Lycra of 2025 and we marked the occasion by dancing to a bunch of songs from our 2024 favorites playlists. You can listen to a recording of Brian’s DJ mix here, or scroll down for a tracklist. We’ll be back at 3rd Eye Meditation Lounge soon and you can get tickets here.
No Humans Allowed ALSO returned this week for its first edition of 2025 and ALSO was a retrospective of some of 2024’s best offerings in nu italo, electro, + other synthy genres. Included were a bunch of Austin-based artists, including Holy Wire + Assorted Potions, both of who did interviews for NHA in 2024. Listen to It Was the Year 2024 in the Kpiss archives.
EVENTS WE’RE EYEING
Friday 1/10
- Shock Therapy at Elysium
Clown-themed drag show that’s “honkers only” - Improvised Shakespeare Company at Bass Concert Hall
Touring improvisers concoct a Shakespeare play on the fly - Hamlet at Sterling Stage
An immersive, modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Saturday 1/11
- Prick Up Your Ears at Elysium
DJs spinning early 00s dancepunk, indie, + electroclash sleaze - Hyde Park Storytelling at Batch Craft Beer
Adult + middle school-aged storytellers ply their trade w/ASL interpreter - Vivid Parlor at Mesmerize
Art + prompted activities to spark interaction at interactive artspace - Team Snacks Winter Ball at Dogspeed Cycles
Fundraiser w/snack-themed costume contest, raffle, + snacks (of course) - Drag Me to the Tavern at Tiny Minotaur
Fantasy-themed drag kings + queens say “come as you AREN’T” - Improvised Shakespeare Company at Bass Concert Hall
Touring improvisers concoct a Shakespeare play on the fly - Hamlet at Sterling Stage
An immersive, modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet - (weekly thru 3/1) The Rose at Coldtowne
Annual improv show parodying reality romance TV
Sunday 1/12
- Hamlet at Sterling Stage
An immersive, modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Monday 1/13
- ATX Short Film Showcase at Spider House Ballroom
The films are short, the filmmakers are Texan + of varying heights - Under a Disco Moon at Sterling Stage
Bellydancing performers set to disco, w/closing drum jam
Tuesday 1/14
- Frontera Fest Opening Night at Hyde Park Theatre
“Alternative, offbeat, new, and just plain off-the-wall fringe theatre” - Hamlet at Sterling Stage
An immersive, modern retelling of Shakespeare’s Hamlet
Thursday 1/16
- Knife Carving Workshop at Buzzmill Coffee
Carve out some time in your calendar for this useful event - Drinking With the Saints at 3219 Duval St.
Themed storytelling salon held at a private residence - We Go On at For the City Center
“Live music, film, and conversation” designed to help process grief
No Humans Allowed 218
It Was the Year 2024
The year 2024 is now in our rearview mirror, so this week we take a look back at some of our favorite tunes of the year
Tracklist
Mermaid Chunky – Chaperone
Cumgirl8 – Hysteria!
Urban Heat – Sanitizer
Hello Meteor – Moving Between Hilltops
Holy Wire – Lost
Goblet Grotto – Trickster Eternal
Robotussin – Sunfalls
The Smile – Foreign Spies
Desire – Darkside
Caribou – Do without You
Love Command0 – Night Creep
Nuovo Testamento – In My Dreams (Powerhouse Mix)
Luxxury – Strangely Familiar
Assorted Potions – Remembering Old Spells (to Reminisce)
Donny Benét – Wait Until it Rains Tomorrow
Discovery Zone – Ur Eyes
Bed Music: 1000 Eyes – Demon Graphics
No Humans Allowed is Brian Blackout’s award-winning, dodgy European news coverage receiving, weekly robots-themed radio show on internet station KPISS.fm. Machine vibes 4 machines. Songs for robots, androids, mandroids, cyborgs, AIs, cylons, skinjobs, roombas, wifi routers, smart devices, anything colored Bondi blue, and virtual assistants. Humans not required. Broadcasts live every Wednesday at 6pm CT on kpiss.fm, with over 200 episodes now streamable in the archives on topics like and Beach Simulations, Roomba dance parties, undersea adventures + Cyber Texas.
No Lights No Lycra ATX 176
w/Brian Blackout
Recorded live in the dark at 3rd Eye Meditation Lounge on January 8, 2025
Listen to NLNL ATX 177 on Mixcloud
Tracklist
Airbird + Napolian – In the Zone
Ruf Dug + Private Joy – Don’t Give in
The Knife – Heartbeats
Fontaines D.C. – Starburster
Stereo MC’s – Connected
The Jackson Sisters – I Believe in MIracles (Choci Glickmix)
Greg Wilson – Two Sides of Sympathy
Heavy D & the Boys – Sister SIster
Flamingosis – Feel Yourself ft. Marc Rebillet
Ariana Grande – Yes, and?
Sally C – All Love
Confidence Man – Real Move Touch w/Sweetie Irie
Deee-Lite – Groove Is in the Heart
Sophie Ellis Bextor – Murder on the Dancefloor
Justice + Tame Impala – Neverender
Boney M – NIghtflight to Venus (the Flying Squad Re-edit)
Olivia Newton-John – Physical
Yard Act – Dream Job
The Dare – Perfume
Charli xcx + Billie Eilish – Guess
Nuovo Testamento – It’s My Dreams (Powerhouse Mix)
Luxxury – Strangely Familiar
Whitney Houston – So Emotional
David Bowie – Modern Love
Home – All at Once
Discovery Zone – Ur Eyes
What is No Lights No Lycra?
Austin’s twice-monthly, judgment-free, substance-free, high-impact dance thing in the dark. It’s a DJ night that’s not at the club, a workout that’s not at the gym, a personal meditation that’s anything but silent. It’s produced by us, your kindly L+B overlords, and usually one or the other of us is on the hook for DJ duties. Read more about it in the Austin Chronicle. You can listen to the kind of music we play over on Brian’s Mixcloud.
PATREON THANKS
A huge thank-you to our Patreon subscribers Michael Sales, Zach, Gino Scaramuzza, Erica Speegle, Jarrett Holtz, Thomas Refferson, Dale Markowitz, Jason & Luciana, Bones Malones, Amy Hayes, Katie Green, Christina Jue, Colleen MB, Lilly Ettinger, Lena Long, Amalia Litsa, Alexander Freed, Kristen Backor, Timon A., Kate Murray, and Amy Wilde. We’re deeply grateful for your support, which allows us to do things like “pay our Mailchimp fee” and “spend hours researching Austin events when technically we should be working.”
If you’d like to support us on Patreon and get access to exclusive member-only benefits, you may do so here.
SOCIALS
Recent weeks found us enjoying 1-800-CLOWN-TOWN at Kick Butt Coffee, exploring Mesmerize, and experiencing the 37th Street Lights. Follow Lite + Brite on Instagram to keep up with our adventures. And come chat with us and the rest of the L+B community on our Discord server!
ABOUT US
How do we choose which events to feature?
Honestly, it’s pretty random. We might include anything in Austin that we, personally, would conceivably want to go to, generally excluding normal concerts, comedy shows, and movie showtimes because there are many other good resources for finding those. (We especially recommend Showlist for live music, The Darker Side of Austin for goth and metal stuff, Concept Animals’ ATX Art for You for gallery openings + artist talks, and the 60+ Weirdest Things in Austin for exactly what it sounds like). This list is by no means exhaustive; it’s just stuff that caught our eye this week. If you have an event that you want us to consider including, send it over.
Who are we?
We are Leila + Brian. We make this newsletter. We do our own events, most often No Lights No Lycra, + also BYOT, a party where we share very good YouTubes (here’s a playlist from the last one). We go very hard seeing bands at SxSW (here are playlists of our favorites from 2024). We once got called “local Austin couple” by KXAN. We do some other stuff here and there. We love going out to creative events in Austin, and we want you to join us. Visit us at liteandbriteatx.com, and support us on Patreon if you like what we do.