She was hot, hot, hot in Dallas theater in the early 1980's. Now Stephanie Dunnam is back for awhile- a commanding force of nature in recent roles at Stage West (including the current show "Good Times"). Stephanie Dunnam has an...
Twenty-one years ago, Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist H.G. "Buzz" Bissinger uprooted his family and moved to Odessa, Texas to spend a year writing a book about Texas high school football. All roads quickly led to the success of this endeavor, in...
Around the first week of September some of my facebook "friends" gave a status update - "I'm Back in Dillon, ya'll"--announcing that filming had begun in Austin for the fourth season of the critically acclaimed "Friday Night Lights" tv series,...
Someone just asked me if it is a coincidence that the City gets these big beautiful arts buildings at the same time that City budget cuts reduced arts funding. The Bath House Cultural Center budget was reduced by about 50%,...
I have my own version of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." It relates to theater productions and it goes "don't ask me if I liked the show I just saw if I haven't already waited for you in the lobby to...
Wingspan's production of "My Sister in this House" seems a perfect match for the season- October and the sudden change from steamy and bright weather to dark and spooky. The play's a psychological thriller based on a real murder, too....
Zachary Christie is a six year old first grader at Downes Elementary School in Newark, Delaware. He is a cub scout who today was on national news because he is a little cub scout facing reform school. He is also...
One of my favorite directors, Cynthia Hestand, took over the job of directing Contemporary Theatre's upcoming production of "Rabbit Hole" (opening October 16) from Rene Moreno, who had to drop out because he fell backwards and broke his leg. Last...
No doubt loving pet owners everywhere wonder how to get their animals into acting. Every pet owner has the greatest dog, the cutest dog, the smartest dog and the best-trained dog, but can your dog act on set? Is she...
"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," currently playing at Theatre Three, was directed by one of Dallas' treasures- Bruce Coleman, a man of MANY talents (directing, teaching, acting, producing, designing AND casting). "Bee" is an ensemble of Bruce's favorite...
The Dallas Theater Critics Forum Awards came out today. MANY KUDOS to MANY TALENTED PEOPLE. But then.....there's.... You know who you are. You're the actor who is cast over and over and over because you are the best actor in...
Yes, you can have fun at the Pocket Sandwich Theatre without pelting the actors with popcorn. The longtime Dallas institution has built its reputation on wacky melodramas in which audience participation is pretty much demanded, but some people may...
A recent blog entry on the surge in interest surrounding the Viet Nam era in our history brought to my attention the Dallas Premiere of the documentary film OPERATION BABYLIFT: THE LOST CHILDREN OF VIETNAM. The premiere is on Friday,...
In entertainment we might be going from bloodsucking to bloodshed as the "Vampire" craze may be cooling. It seems nostalgia for the year 1969 is fast becoming the new hot thing. The late sixties may have been a time of...
Tomorrow there will be an opportunity for artists and arts advocates to present their arguments before the City Council regarding the fate of the Office of Cultural Affairs. As an active participant and consumer of the arts in Dallas, I...
One of the most supportive and nicest local playwrights I know, Isabella Russell-Ides seldom misses the staged readings or productions of any of the other playwrights in town. She's always the one who is cheering loudly and telling you how...
Last night I met my pal Adriana Bate for a glass of wine (and a fantastic "summer" Wine Country Platter) at one of Dallas's hot wine bars, "Dali Wine Bar and Cellar" in One Arts Plaza. By all accounts the...
Though I've seen almost every single show ever produced at FIT (the Festival of Independent Theaters each summer at the Bath House Cultural Center) I have never actually only participated as an audience member. This year I will. This year...
There's a posh club in Beijing called CJW - Cigars, Jazz & Wine. To paraphrase the description on their website- The dimly-lit club has a wonderful atmosphere with every person holding a cigar, puffing a cigar - every patron enjoying...
I look forward to the opening of the Dallas Performing Arts Center and the Opera House et al. Even though I work next door to those buildings and park in a nearby garage, I don't dread increased downtown traffic at...