Live Chat with Parkside’s Shawn Cirkiel on the state of Austin nightlife & SXSW ...

Back in the 1980s, South By Southwest occupied a long weekend. By 1994, with film and interactive added to music, it grew into a split week, always spring break, then 10 linked days. During the 21st Century, the whole month of March is usually saturated with SXSW socializing, first online, then in person, then online again. Tim Matheson and Richard Linklater Since I must cover two solid weeks of charity galas before the advent of SXSW, the Texas Film Hall of Fame Pre-Party is my first festival-oriented live event. Many of the celebrities who grace this annual affair double up walking ...

A List voters are hungry. And they want fun. Plus some local color. That’s the conclusion one could draw from their votes for Best Locally Owned Business. They ignored publicly-traded powerhouses like Dell, Inc., Whole Foods Market, Inc. or Temple-Inland, or cutting-edge capitalists like Austin Ventures. Instead, they went with the adorable sweetness of Amy’s Ice Cream, which mixed up 28 percent of the vote. Homeslice, the New York-style pizza joint that just expanded on South Congress Avenue in time for SXSW, sliced up 15 percent. Waterloo, the iconic record shop, also a prime SXSW stop, came in third with 12 percent. ...

I suppose I could have abstained from reporting the results of this week’s A List readers poll for Best Statesman Columnist. Conflict and interest, and all. But heck, who wouldn’t vote John Kelso for the honor? He’s been a Statesman columnist since the 1970s. That’s almost 40 years of funny. He still teased out 43 percent of the vote. (What many people don’t know, he’s one of the kindest, most thoughtful reporters in the newsroom, too. Funny in person.) The newspaper’s first certified digital star, Addie Broyles, who leads Austin’s food blogging mob into the future, pulled in 13 percent. Longtime sports ...

I’ve labeled the headlines about this week’s A List winners “Not SXSW.” That’s not exactly accurate. Any visitor for the massive three-part festival and conference could use the information contained herein. Where to score a last-minute gift? The need arises all the time in our busy lives. Especially during a marathon fest. Thirty percent of the A List readers recommended Breed & Co., the Austin veteran that is demurely called a “hardware store.” Don’t be fooled. Some of the cleverest gifts in kitchenware, plants, novelties and other household needs can be purchased there. Waterloo Records, never far from any A List poll, ...

Texans and our steaks. We can’t get enough of them. Some Austin steakhouses dude up (Perry’s); others offer no frills (Hoffbrau). All attract carnivores like bees to honey drawn. The top six finalists for Best Steakhouse in the A List readers poll were so closely matched, they could have tied. Austin Land and Cattle clearly won, though, with 19 percent of the vote. III Forks, one of the upscale downtown spots, came in second with with just over 15 percent, while laid-back Hoffbrau carved up just under 15 percent. Ruth’s Chris — each one is separately owned and operated, so not really ...

The Rise Across Texas crew, raising money for the Rise Schools of Texas, is halfway across the state. Led by investor and philanthropist Steve Hicks, the cyclists hope for the highest take for a nonprofit in Austin fundraising history. They could just make that goal, when all is said and done. Steve Hicks and daughter Kristen Hanson Today, there’s a ceremonial ride from the Rise School of Austin’s southwestern campus to Wimberley. (Prepping for SXSW from dawn till midnight, we’re sending a photographer only. At one point, we agreed to ride. No.) Andrea McWilliams and Anita Perry Last night, however, ...

Oscar’s back. And AGLIFF’s got him. Girard Roche and Scott Landry Once an essential cultural event, the Austin Gay and Lesbian International Film Festival drifted bit during the past 10 years. Mainstream festivals programmed more gay material. Austin gay and lesbian social events multiplied. On the fundraising scene, a gay presence was spread across the city, not just at specialized events. Jorge Rubalcava, Heath Riddles and Emmanuel Winston So what to do? AGLIFF’s leaders, led by Scot Tulk, returned to an old gala idea: An Oscar party. Four rooms were decked out on the Driskill Hotel mezzanine, two for more ...

Bless Allen Beuershausen and Colleen Cole. Tasked with hosting the 2010 Heart Ball for the American Heart Association, they chose the Long Center stage and its ever-evolving hospitality staff. They even scored the inspirational speaking services of Cliff Redd, the Long Center director, still recovering from a traumatic heart episode. Allen Beuershausen and Loriana Hernandez I didn’t make it to the center in time for his speech, but I’ve heard the story before, and it is harrowing. We all pray that Cliff has slowed down his hectic schedule, because the Long Center — and Austin — can’t do without him. Justin ...

Moving the President’s Masked Ball, the signature fundraiser for Huston-Tillotson University, to the Sheraton Austin at the Capitol made a lot of sense. The pink-clad hotel on Waller Creek is much closer to the university’s campus on East 12th Street than the Renaissance Austin out at the Arboretum. Brenda Benson-Grundy and TreeAndrea Grundy Its size and decor fit the ball like Cinderella’s slipper. I’m surprised the Sheraton is not booked more often with galas like this one. (On a personal note, it helped my attend four social events on foot that Saturday.) Cheryl and Jim George I arrived after power broker ...

A burnished bunch gathered at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center on Saturday for the Austin Under 40 Awards, which rewards social leadership among the twenty- and thirtysomething set. Charismatic Clayton Christopher, founder and CEO of Sweet Leaf Tea Company, won in the Business & Entrepreneurship category, as well as the evening’s highest honor, 2010 Austinite of the Year. Merav and Daniel Sternthal Also laureled in various categories were Laura Donnelly, founder and CEO of Latinitas; James Dyess, CEO and president of Horizon Bank; Melanie Ridings, program officer for the Topfer Family Foundation; Amy Holloway, president and CEO of Avalanche ...

Peeling back the layers of Austin’s social scene, one finds the unexpected. Honestly, I’d never heard any details about the Helping Hand Home’s Gala, called the Crystal Ball. Yet the charity, which helps displaced and abused children, goes back 117 years and the first ball was staged in 1939. This is no small group, either. One leader put the attendance at the midday luncheon, fashion show and presentation preview at 1,500, with 1,700 expected for the formal debutante function later Saturday evening at the Palmer Events Center. Jeanne Little and Ted Keyser The luncheon portion itself is an epic enterprise. Start ...

My expectations were low. I had agreed to judge costumes and dancing at the New Wave Ball, a modest-sized fundraiser for Austin Children’s Shelter at the Hyatt Regency Austin. I’d attended so many ’80s-themed parties lately, it seemed like a stale idea. Still, the cause is good and the night was open. Chi Dinh and Ed Roman (Winners: Best Couple) Turns out I had a delightful time. My fellow judges were media types, some, like Taylor Perkins, duded out for the event. We spent time posing for the good-souled Annie Ray. Then we wandered around with tiny clipboards noting memorable costumes ...

Established fact: There is an audience for cabaret in Austin. At the highest level. Austin Cabaret Theatre has proven that over the course of its first nine seasons. Almost every national marquee act has graced Stuart Moulton’s stage, now urbanely situated in the Kodosky Lounge with its panoramic skyline view. Jackson Iffinger and Riley Britton The crowd trends older, with inevitable sprinklings of musical queens (and I embrace that term enthusiastically for myself as well). The tables at Kodosky are a bit too large by cabaret standards, complicating any movement or conversation. Yet I wouldn’t trade it for any other Austin ...

It’s no secret that I’m a skeptic regarding groups like Theatre Action Project, which promotes creative arts and eduction for social change. All the testimonials in the world can’t convince me that something as culturally complex as theater can significantly alter social behavior in a predictable manner. There are too many variables. Niyanta Spelman and Arlen Johnson That doesn’t stop me from admiring the people who attempt it. And TAP is as thorough-going as a mixed arts/social service nonprofit can be. I’ve been impressed by their seriousness — and the seriousness of the fun they generate as a byproduct. Southern Longoria, ...

On Thursday, the new Tribeza hit the stands. Yes, despite the public and acrimonious split among the owners, the pioneering Austin lifestyle magazine launched its 103rd issue. Please don’t ask us to take sides. We like all the principals. Graydon Parrish, Eddie Safady and Skeeter Miller The launch party was held at Gibson Bar, the buzzy new bar across South Lamar Boulevard from Alamo Drafthouse and Highball. Master designer Joel Mozersky’s inspiration was the movie “There Will Be Blood,” and there’s a dark, leathery, California mining country feel to the unobtrusive space. Joel Mozersky and Ben Brown Making the rounds, I’m ...

The Bob Bullock Texas History Museum is not like any other institution in town. And the Bob Bullock Texas History Museum Foundation is a charity unlike any other. So, no wonder the foundation’s Texas Independence Day Dinner is an event unto itself. Formal, in a nervous way, and earnest, in a winning way. This year, the honorees were former President George W. Bush and Laura Bush. They were named History Making Texans, a rather awkward title, but not undeserved. Attending the ceremony on Tuesday in numbers were state’s Republican establishment, along with various bigwigs, ambassadors and other dignitaries. This was the ...

So I’m running Nora the Explorer Lab this morning, circumnavigating the perimeter of the Texas School for the Deaf in South Austin. As I near the bus stop on the school’s South Congress Avenue border, I catch, out of the corner of my eye, an unusual sight: A parked black SUV with deeply tinted windows. Security? No lettering on the SUV. So, serious security? Behind the SUV waits an elegant, white limo. And behind that, lumbers up a black, stretch Hummer. Now this is odd. As I slow, the driver’s window slides down. “Michael!” “Uh, yeah,” I sputter, leaning over to see the driver. “I read ...

Did jazz trumpeter Jeff Lofton really immigrate to Austin just three years ago? It seems like he and his publicist wife, Dean Lofton, along with collaborating artists, have permeated local jazz for ages. Without the benefit of multiple jazz clubs — the Elephant Room remains Austin’s mainstay — or dedicated radio stations — KAZI, KOOP and KUT do their parts — the Loftons make it seem like there’s an actual jazz scene out here. Not just to diehards. The trumpeter, whose dreadlocks look like they could furnish enough yarn for a toasty sweater, appears in steak houses, bistros, bars, hotel lobbies ...

Before it closes on Sunday, I should say a few words about the touring version of “Fiddler on the Roof” starring Harvey Fierstein at Bass Concert Hall. The question for every classic work from “Oedipus” to “Oklahoma!” is how much to alter. That effort is complicated when one interpretive/creative artist, such as director Jerome Robbins, brands all subsequent productions with his vision. Road show director Sammy Dallas Bayes clearly respects the essentials from the 1964 Broadway production, but in hundreds of small ways, he departs from holy writ. This is healthy and refreshing. To be clear, there’s nothing radical in his ...