It’s been two years since COVID-19 was discovered. In March 2020, the Dallas arts community shut down completely and while many museums and galleries have reopened, the performing arts have gone through 18 months of openings, closures, and postponements. However, with the rise in vaccinations, these vibrant institutions are ready to part the red curtains and usher patrons into their seats.
AT&T Performing Arts Center:
Bridges: Sisters of Salem is the third iteration of Flexible Grey’s popular interview play series, Bridges. Sisters of Salem will focus on women in power and how opinions could sometimes lead to being burned at the stake. Bridges: Sisters of Salem shares stories from modern-day women in power and compares their stories to past women who were persecuted for using their own voices. Throughout history, people were hung for often baseless offenses, and real witchcraft was severely misunderstood. Anyone who was deviant from the expected norm of society was at risk of being accused, often disproportionately poor women and women of color, who still stand to suffer the most today. The image of the witch has persisted both in fear of magic and fear of women themselves; women in leadership positions are still painted this way. This play will be based largely around local women, conducting interviews with female leaders in the Dallas area about their experiences, and how they relate to our society and city. September 16–18.
In Fort-Worth, DBDT will present Dancing Beyond Borders. The dancers will appear to levitate across the stage as they perform Opaque, a mysterious and majestic work choreographed by Nycole Ray. In Nineteenth, another Ray showpiece, the dancers pay homage to women who engage in a tug-of-war for power as they pursue the right to vote and gain equality. September 25.
The Dallas Opera will host Opera’s Greatest Hits! October 22–30, and will include selections from The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute, Don Giovanni Aida, Rigoletto, Macbeth, Un ballo in Maschera, Otello Mefistofele, Der Rosenkavalier, Agrippina, Rodelinda, Peter Grimes, Andrea Chénier, and Turandot.
Dallas Summer Musicals:
Dallas Summer Musicals will present, Penn & Teller to the Music Hall at Fair Park. Edgy, provocative, and hilarious, Penn & Teller have been captivating live audiences since 1975 when their show originally opened. This show will be a culmination of years of on-stage experience mixed with innovative and creative twists to be enjoyed by long-time patrons and new fans alike. Penn & Teller take the stage on October 29. The next Broadway production will be the smash hit, Hamilton, November 16–December 5.
The DSO has a full line-up through the rest of the month. Copland & Brahms, conducted by Fabio Luisi and inspired by the poems of Walt Whitman, is Sep. 16–19. Luisi will also conduct Aus Italien Sep. 23 and 26. On Sep. 25, the DSO Gala returns with Fabio Luisi conducting Richard Strauss’ Don Juan alongside guest violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter, who will perform new work composed for her by John Williams.
Dallas Theatre Center:
Tiny Beautiful Things, based on the book Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed, continues through Oct. 16. Cake Ladies, open through Oct. 17, follows the Scott County Community Playhouse, which is the pride of Cedar Oak, Texas, a city recovering from the second-largest drug-fueled HIV outbreak ever to hit small-town America. With the launch of their first-ever “AidsFest!” it seems the town is finally turning a corner for the better. Cake Ladies is written specifically to welcome audience members back into the theater.
Dallas Wind Symphony:
Texas Country Reporter is celebrating its 50th season on the air, making TCR the longest-running independently produced television show in American history and a Texas treasure. Co-hosts Bob & Kelli Phillips join Dallas Winds for the kick-off concert of their state-wide anniversary tour. The show will include all the Lone Star favorites, plus narrated tales of Texas history, culture, and 50 years on the road. See A Texas Tribute on October 1.
Undermain Theatre:
Beginning today, Undermain Theatre presents the newest work by the Danielle Georgiou Dance Group, Stronger Than Arms, a new adaptation of the classic Greek play Seven Against Thebes by Danielle Georgiou and Justin Locklear. With Stronger Than Arms, writer/director/choreographer Danielle Georgiou and writer Justin Locklear will dive into the spiritual and political burdens placed on the chorus of Theban citizens. As the generational conflicts of territory and birthright ravage the cities around them, the chorus is divided, revealing their individual conflicts and motivations. The title stemming from the line, “Fear is stronger than arms,” the story points to the power of humanity’s worst enemy, unconquerable fear, and reveals that there could be something stronger—the willingness to change. Told through poetic verse, dance, and multi-media, Stronger Than Arms examines the universal themes of myth, status, aggression, and fate. The production will be live through October 2.
MOMIX, celebrating their 40th Anniversary, brings their fantastical ALICE to Dallas. Having only toured internationally, ALICE was to make its first U.S. tour in the fall of 2020, then came the lockdown. TITAS states they are “thrilled and honored to present this extraordinary work and company as we return to live performances.” “I don’t intend to retell the story, but to use it as a taking-off point for invention,” says famed MOMIX director Moses Pendleton. One of America’s most wildly creative companies, MOMIX is recognized worldwide as a maverick of creativity and invention. See it September 17–18.