Intimate Conversation Series set in the Hobby Center’s Founders Club
The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts reveals the 2026-27 Season of Breaking Bread, a live conversation series in partnership with James Beard Award–winning chef, entrepreneur and television personality Chris Shepherd. In its second season, the three-event series returns with Bravo’s Top Chef Judge, producer and author of the new book Guesting, Gail Simmons; Houston Ballet artistic director Julie Kent; and James Beard Award-winning author Toni Tipton-Martin.
Tickets are on sale now.
Hosted in the Hobby Center’s intimate Founders Club, Breaking Bread places the audience steps away from the conversation. Shepherd trades his chef’s jacket for a microphone, sitting down with creatives and leaders who have inspired him personally and influenced culture. Together, they share candid, unscripted exchanges about craft, risk, reinvention and the experiences that shaped them. Each evening pairs small-club energy with a menu curated by Shepherd, creating a setting where food and dialogue share the spotlight.
“Season One was such an amazing experience for me. I had the opportunity to speak with amazing individuals doing the things that they were born to do,” says Shepherd.
“With Season Two of Breaking Bread coming up on the horizon, we will continue this journey with friends new and old. I can’t wait to sit down with my good friend Gail Simmons and talk about her new book Guesting, Bravo’s Top Chef and just catch up. I am so very excited to be able to speak with Julie Kent of Houston Ballet. My wife Lindsey is very involved with Houston Ballet, and I have become friends with some of the dancers over the years. Now to be able to sit down with one of the world’s premier ballerinas is an absolute dream. For the last show, I’m going to talk with a woman I admire so much in this industry. Toni Tipton-Martin is a true culinary historian and storyteller that has shaped the way we read and understand foodways. This season is set up to be amazing! I will see you there!”
The series takes its name from a ritual associated with Shepherd’s former restaurants, where whole loaves of bread were set on tables to be torn and shared, sparking connection among strangers. Though he has stepped away from restaurant life, that belief in gathering people around a table remains central to his work.
“The best experiences stay with you long after the evening ends,” says Hobby Center vice president of programming and education Deborah Lugo.
“Breaking Bread creates those moments by inviting audiences into conversations that usually happen away from the spotlight—whether in the kitchen after service, the studio after rehearsal, or the candid dialog where artists and creators reflect on the decisions, challenges, and triumphs that shaped them.”
The return of the series reflects the Hobby Center’s commitment to expanding programming beyond the stage and creating space for stories that explore the spark of human creativity.
