Now that the holidays are finally over, most of us are slogging back into our regular routines as we throttle into 2015. Out with the holidays also go festive performances and shows. Now that the Dickens costumes and Santa suits have all been packed away, it's back to business for Dallas' theatres and venues.
The weather is going to be chilly this week, but that doesn't mean that you should hole up indoors and drink alone. You've probably already broken your New Year's resolutions, so make seeing one of these excellent theater and dance performances a top priority in 2015. Easy enough, right?
The Book Club Play Dallas Theater Center January 1-February 1, 2015 Kalita Humphreys Theatre $18-$90 As its title would suggest, The Book Club Play is about a book club with six distinct and quirky characters. Main character Ana finds herself (and her club) as the subject of a documentary film about the club's dynamics, which results in a lot of "reading between the lines," pun intended. The Book Club Play has been described as a "comedy of manners," so expect plenty of highbrow discussions about life, culture, and, of course, relationships.
The Flick Undermain Theatre January 7-31, 2015 $15-30 This Pulitzer, OBIE, and New York Critic's Circle award-winning play is making its debut in Dallas at Undermain Theatre, something that bodes well for the theaters 2015 season. The Flick follows three employees of a run-down theatre as they "mop the floors and attend to the last 35-mm projector" in Massachussetts. New York Magazine described the show as "funny, heartbreaking, sly, and unblinking," all descriptors that generally result in an excellent performance.
Theatre Three Presents Tru January 8-February 8, 2015 Norma Young Arena Stage $12.50-$25 Since his death in 1984, the mystique of Truman Capote has only grown. In Jay Presson Allen's Tru, a one-man show about the writer's enduring loneliness, Jaston Williams plays Capote as he "muses about his checkered career," while soothing his wounds with vodka, pills, and, of course, chocolate truffles. Williams is a beloved figure in the Dallas theatre scene, and his performance in Tru will likely receive the same critical acclaim as his preceding works.
Shen Yun 2015 January 9-11, 2015 Winspear Opera House $66-165 This global touring company brings one of the most impressive dance shows that you'll see all year to both Dallas and Fort Worth in 2015. In the first set of performances at the Winspear Opera House, the extravagantly produced troupe of dancers covering over 5,000 years of Chinese dance history in just a few hours. As Shen Yun has traveled the world, it has received heaps of praise for its beautiful sets, impeccable dance, and interesting journey through Chinese traditional dance.
Junior Players of Dallas with Theatre Three Presents In The Heights January 8-11, 2015 Dallas City Performance Hall $10-15
Dallas is brimming with young talent with lots of potential, many of which make their home at Junior Players, a non-profit theatre education organization. The story follows three generations of musical culture in Washington Heights, New York City, a "community on the brink of change." In The Heights won the 2008 Tony Award for Best Musical, so you can both see a good show and support Junior Players' efforts to bring theatre education to kids across Dallas.