Houston is a multicultural city with a thriving international community supported by the third largest concentration of consular offices in the United States, representing 86 nations. In addition to historical Southeast Texas culture, Houston became the fourth-most populous city in the United States. Officially, Houston is nicknamed the "Space City" as it is home to NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, where Mission Control Center is located. "Houston" was the first word spoken on the Moon. Many locals refer to Houston as "Bayou City." Other nicknames include "H-Town", "Clutch City", and "Magnolia City".
About 145 languages are regularly spoken in the Houston area.Houston Facts. City of Houston Some neighborhoods with high populations of Vietnamese and Chinese residents have Chinese and Vietnamese street signs in addition to English ones. Houston has two Chinatowns—the original located in East Downtown and the other along Bellaire Boulevard in the southwest area of the city. The city also has a Little Saigon in Midtown and Vietnamese businesses located in the southwest Houston Chinatown.
There are many popular events held in the city celebrating cultures of Houstonians. The largest is the annual Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo that is held over 20 days from late February through early March. The event begins with trail rides that originate from several points throughout the state, all of which convene at Reliant Park for a barbecue cook-off. The rodeo includes typical rodeo events, as well as concert performances from major artists and carnival rides. Other events held annually include the Houston Greek Festival and Houston International Festival.
Anna Rohleder of Forbes said "Among Houston's wealthy denizens, social life centers on charity events and the arts."Rohleder, Anna. "Finest Places Houston." Forbes. 2006. Retrieved on October 17, 2012.
Arts and theatre
Houston's Theater District is ranked second in the country (behind New York City) in the number of theatre seats in a concentrated downtown area with 12,948 seats for live performances and 1,480 movie seats.About Houston Theater District . Houston Theater District The Theater District is located in the heart of downtown and is home to nine of Houston's performing arts organizations and six performance halls. Houston is one of only five cities in the United States with permanent professional resident companies in all of the major performing arts disciplines: opera (Houston Grand Opera), ballet (Houston Ballet), music (Houston Symphony Orchestra), and theatre (Alley Theatre).Houston: Have a Blast . WorldWeb.com Travel Guide The city has visual and performing arts organizations, along with a dose of homegrown folk art such as Art Cars.Art Car Museum - Houston, TX, 77007 - Citysearch The city is a stop for touring companies from Broadway, concerts, shows, and exhibitions for a variety of interests, ranging from the nation's largest quilting show to auto, boat, home, and gun shows.
Houston's theatre scene is far larger than the Theatre District, with more than 30 professional, regional, and community theatre companies producing full seasons of theatrical productions. The most notable being the Alley Theatre, founded in 1947, the Alley is the only theatre in Texas to win the Tony Award for best Regional Theatre and is the third oldest professional theatre in America. The Alley produces a variety of classical and modern works annually. Throughout its history the Alley has produced numerous world premiers and productions that transferred to Broadway. Theatre Under the Stars, is Houston's premier musical theatre company, which performs in residence at The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts and produces an admission free musical every summer at Miller Outdoor Theatre. Other notable theaters include The Ensemble Theatre, which gives voice to the African-American community and Talento Bilingüe de Houston, which spotlights playwrights and actors who express the Latino experience in America. Other significant theatres include Main Street Theater, with its broad spectrum of classical and contemporary classics, the quirky Theatre Suburbia, which has developed a reputation in the Houston arts community for showcasing local playwrights emphasizing a peculiarly Texas perspective, Stages Repertory Theatre, which focuses on bringing original works and regional premiers to Houston, Catastrophic Theatre Company, a "pay what you can company" that produces experimental theatre, Stark Naked Theatre, a theatre company founded by actors to empower their own work, and Mildred's Umbrella Theatre, which showcases plays featuring strong females.
Adjacent to the Texas Medical Center is the Museum District, which is home to most of the city's major museums: the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston; the Cullen Sculpture Garden; the Houston Museum of Natural Science; the Holocaust Museum Houston; the Children's Museum of Houston; Lawndale Art Center; the Houston Zoo; the John P. McGovern Museum of Health & Medical Science; and The Menil Collection.
Tourism and recreation
Space Center Houston is the official visitors’ center of NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center. Space Center Houston includes many interactive exhibits—including Moon rocks and a Space Shuttle simulator—in addition to special presentations that tell the story of NASA's crewed space flight program.
The Theater District, a 17-block area in the heart of downtown Houston, is home to Bayou Place Entertainment Complex, restaurants, movies, plazas, and parks. Bayou Place is a large multilevel building that is home to restaurants, bars, live music, billiards, theatres, and art house films. The Houston Verizon Wireless Theatre stages a variety of live concerts and the Angelika Theatre presents the latest in art, foreign, and independent films.
Houston is home to many parks including Hermann Park, which houses the Houston Zoo and the Houston Museum of Natural Science, and Memorial Park. What was once the Houston Civic Center was replaced by the George R. Brown Convention Center, one of the nation's largest; and the Jesse H. Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, home of the Houston Symphony Orchestra. The Sam Houston Coliseum and Music Hall have been replaced by the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.
Other tourist attractions include the Galleria, Texas' largest shopping mall located in the Uptown District; Old Market Square; Tranquility Park; and Sam Houston Historical Park, which contains restored homes (built between 1823 and 1905) and reconstructed buildings. The San Jacinto Battlefield is in the nearby city of Deer Park.
Sports
Houston is home to professional franchises for four major team sports: the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB), the Houston Rockets in the National Basketball Association (NBA), the Houston Texans in the National Football League (NFL), and Houston Dynamo FC in Major League Soccer (MLS). Houston is also host to the Houston Dash of the National Women's Soccer League. Additionally, several of Houston's universities participate in collegiate sports.
The Houston Astros currently compete in the West Division of the MLB's American League. The Astros were established in 1962 as the Houston Colt .45s and entered the National League as an expansion team. The current name was adopted three years later, when the team moved into the Astrodome, nicknamed by fans as the "Eighth Wonder of the World". In 2000, the Astros moved into Daikin Park, where they have played ever since. In 2005 the Astros made their first World Series appearance, where they were swept in four games by the Chicago White Sox. In 2011, businessman Jim Crane purchased the team and moved the Astros to the American League, where they first competed in 2013. Since the mid 2010s, the Astros have become one of the MLB's most successful clubs, winning over 100 games in four seasons, appearing in six consecutive American League Champion Series, and winning four American League Penants. The Astros won their first World Series in 2017 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. They appeared in the 2019 World Series against the Washington Nationals and in 2021 against the Atlanta Braves. In 2022, the Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies to claim their second World Series title. The Astros are the only team to win a postseason series in six straight seasons.
The Houston Texans currently play in the NFL's American Football Conference (AFC) Southern division. They currently play home games at NRG Stadium The Texans were founded in 1999 and first played in 2002 as an expansion team. Houston previously hosted an NFL franchise, the Houston Oilers, from 1960 to 1969 until they moved to Nashville and became the Tennessee Titans. The Texans are the youngest franchise currently competing in the NFL. The Texans won first division championship in 2011, and won the AFC South Division Championship in 2012, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019. They are one of four franchises that have never appeared in a Super Bowl.
The Houston Rockets are a member of the NBA's Western Conference Southern Division, playing home games at the Toyota Center. Established in 1967 as the San Diego Rockets, the team relocated to Houston in 1971. The Rockets have won two NBA championships: one in 1994 against the New York Knicks, and again in 1995 against the Orlando Magic. They have also won four Western Conference titles. The Houston Comets of the Women's National Basketball League were active from 1997 until their dissolution in 2008. The team was considered the league's first dynasty, winning the most championships of any WNBA franchise along with the Minnesota Lynx. Several of the team's members, such as Cynthia Cooper, Sheryl Swoopes and Tina Thompson are considered among the greatest WNBA players of all time. The team was disbanded by the league during the Great Recession after new ownership could not be found.
Professional soccer came to Houston in 2005 with the establishment of Houston Dynamo FC, which competes in the Western Conference of the MLS. Previously, the club competed as the San Jose Earthquakes before moving to Houston. The club currently plays at PNC Stadium in East Downtown Houston. In 2013, the Dynamo announced that the club had secured an expansion franchise with the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). The team, named the Houston Dash, began competing in the NWSL's 2014 season.