march 19
Locally based documentary filmmaker Cynthia Salzman Mondell has done a Mike Wallace on one of the most exclusive and secretive realms of public life--the Amazonian domain of the ladies' restroom. The Ladies' Room is her new seriocomic documentary about the conflicts and confidences that occur when female strangers and friends converge behind closed doors at the call of nature. The film premieres at 7:30 p.m. at the Lakewood Theater, 1825 Abrams Parkway. Tickets are $15-$18 for an event that includes live performances from The Women's Chorus of Dallas and The Ladies of Lone Star Comedy. Call (214) 826-3863.
friday
march 20
It's hard for cover bands to shake the reputation of being the cyberporn of live music: a poor substitute for the real thing. But it all depends on whom the band is covering, and whether you've ever imagined yourself on stage with said rock star's voice coming out of your throat. We don't listen much to the original Grateful Dead or the Beatles, so we opt not to spend our time enjoying a musical Xerox of those bands. But we must confess to a sordid little thrill at the prospect of inhabiting Mick Jagger's body for one Rolling Stones concert circa 1973. The Strolling Clones are a local tribute band who love The Glimmer Twins so much, they dedicate their weekend nights to churning out the likes of "Under My Thumb," "Tumbling Dice," and other Stones classics. The Clones take the stage after 8 p.m. at the Velvet Elvis, 1906 McKinney at St. Paul. Call (214) 969-5568.
You don't have to be a tree-spirit-channeling, goddess-worshipping pagan to have fun at the second annual Celebration of Spring, but it wouldn't hurt. Recognizing and honoring the weather cycles that parallel the seasons of our lives is a tradition that predates most organized religions, but it's a practice that fits in comfortably with the rites of most faiths, even Southern Baptists (they just aren't allowed to soak in the new spring rays at Disney World). On the dockets for the second annul Celebration of Spring is Japanese taiko drumming, the Inuit dance of the skeleton woman, a ritual honoring the egg, a communal drum and dance jam, and talks by local drum lady Amy Martin about the astronomical and astrological aspects of spring. The evening happens 8-11 p.m. at the Dreyfuss Club at White Rock Lake, E. Lake Highlands off N. Buckner Blvd. Call (972) 498-8783.
saturday
march 21
Not to be confused with Cynthia Salzman Mondell's movie, The Ladies Room is another work with the same title--also by a local artist--that's getting its world premiere too. Dallas-based playwright Angela Wilson is inaugurating the first season of Theatre Quorum, a newly formed troupe with talented local actor Carl Savering as artistic director, with her full-length dark comedy The Ladies Room. Last year Wilson cooked up a consistently witty double-bill of original one-acts for 11th Street Theatre Project, and the premise of her new show--an innocent woman dragged into one man's personal hell during their first date--would appear to continue the playwright's penchant for perverse personalities. Performances happen 8 p.m., Thursday-Saturday, through April 4 in the Black Box of the Mesquite Arts Center, 1527 N. Galloway in Mesquite. Call (972) 216-8131.
Although the exact nature of the relationship between former Fort Worth Dallas Ballet artistic director Paul Mejia and that troupe is uncertain (rumors fly faster than pointe shoes in performing circles), things are obviously not so strained that the group won't continue to perform his choreography. The Fort Worth Dallas Ballet premieres Mejia's new piece, Sleeping Beauty, Act III, that riffs on the Petipa-Tchaikovsky ballet of 108 years ago. Also included in the show are Balanchine's Bugaku and Mejia's Moonlight Serenade. Performances happen March 20 and 21, 8 p.m., and March 22, 2 p.m., at the Music Hall in Fair Park. Tickets are $6-$48. Call (214) 369-5200.
sunday
march 22
Sin Fronteras, the 10 p.m. Sunday-night excursion into all sounds contemporary Latino on KNON-FM 89.3, hosts a night of red hot chili peppers grown right here in our own back yard--two Dallas "rock en Espanol" groups called Vida and Ravia. Sin Fronteras co-host Jesus Chaires teams up with DJ Juan Madrigal and others from KNON to offer Dallas audiences a night of new, alternative local bands with a Hispanic accent--Real Rock en Espanol for Real Rockeros. Chaires and friends will be broadcasting live from The Galaxy Club, spinning pre-recorded tunes and offering CD and ticket giveaways. The event happens at 9 p.m. at The Galaxy Club, 2820 Main at Malcolm X Blvd. Tickets are $5-$7. Call (214) 826-8869.
monday
march 23
Many here at the Dallas Observer can't say we mourn the departure of former writer John Bloom turned TV personality Joe Bob Briggs, but having the barbed, well-researched, clear-eyed columns of Pulitzer finalist Molly Ivins yanked from us was a tragedy we still get misty-eyed over. As long as somebody's giving the gal a forum, the world will know that liberal compassion and common sense are not mutually exclusive concepts. She has a new collection of essays and articles titled You Got To Dance With Them What Brung You: The Clinton Years. Nobody is more agile than Ivins at navigating the ethical minefield that is our current presidential administration, nobody more articulate at explaining how one man can be a lousy husband and a decent president at the same time. Ivins chats and signs her book at 7:30 p.m. at Barnes & Noble, 14999 Preston Road.
The phrase "For Adults Only" is a gilded invitation to barge right in and grab an eyeful. Usually, though, you get more of a tease than a satisfying taste; a good libertarian can summon a stirring defense of legalized, regulated pornography even though they know the stuff is boring as hell. High-brow meets crotch-level at Arts & Letters Live's latest Texas Bound presentation "For Adults Only," where G.W. Bailey offers a randy roundelay from Robert Flynn, Ramona Austin delivers a salacious story from Katherine Anne Porter, and former Dallasite Octavio Solis interprets the naughty noodlings of Dagoberto Gilb. Although both the 6:30 and 8:30 p.m. performances are officially sold out, released tickets may be available 45 minutes before the show. All readings happen at the Dallas Museum of Art, 1717 N. Harwood. Call (214) 922-1219.
tuesday
march 24
When not channeling the Dead White Males that make up the program list of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, concertmaster Emmanuel Borok snaps architectural photos. His frequent trips to Europe provide special inspiration, and during his last jaunt across that continent, Borok found himself drawn to both the appearance and the symbolism of doors and windows in centuries-old European villages. The 32 full-color results have been collected as a show called Openings on display at Photographic Archives Gallery. The show opens with a reception March 20, 6-9 p.m., and runs daily through April 25 at Photographic Archives Gallery, 5117 W. Lovers Lane. Call (214) 352-3167.
wednesday
march 25
Former Dallas Observer contributor Rick Koster is as laid-back and engaging in person as he is in print. But he's serious about his music criticism; you'd have to be to attempt what Koster has in Texas Music, an ambitious overview of the collision of styles that marks popular and ethnic sounds in the Lone Star State during the 20th century. But Koster takes it one step further, attempting to trace almost every major American musical form back to our state. Koster chats and signs his book at 7:30 p.m. at Borders Books, 5500 Greenville Ave. Accompanying his appearance will be a mini-set by songwriter Tom Faulkner, who makes an appearance in Texas Music. Call (214) 739-1166.
