10/4
Henry Rollins is the quintessential badass. Few people can simply walk into a room and make an observer think, "Damn, he's funny, intelligent, talented and hopefully not planning to kick my ass." It's impressive that one person can command a room in so many facets. Rollins' career is one of many facets as well. His releases (including performances with Black Flag and Rollins Band, on musical collaborations and in the spoken word genre) number well over 40 since 1981, his books in the teens and his film and television roles we just stopped counting. The overachieving machine of angst even owns his own publishing company, 2.13.61, and has put out not only his own work, but also that of Nick Cave, Mara Leveritt (Devil's Knot: The True Story of the West Memphis Three) and others. Like a kid who couldn't figure out what he wanted to be, he just tried it all. Thing is, he's good at it. All of it. Maybe the scariest (and greatest) part of Henry Rollins live isn't that notorious glare, but that after listening to this human explosive, you'll have internalized some of what makes him seem so jaded, angry and fucking fired-up. Just as he has in his career(s), Mr. Search & Destroy will take on a slew of targets during his spoken word performance at the Lakewood Theater, 1825 Abrams Parkway, Tuesday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $24 ($25 at the door) for general admission. With a name like Rollins on the bill, the forecast may call for standing room only. But it's worth a stand in line and a standing room to let your brain get floored in a row with the Henry Rollins. Call 214-373-8000. --Merritt Martin
Drum 'N' Bass
9/29
If you're like me, you've been anxiously awaiting the Drumline--Live! tour ever since the release of that modern cinematic classic in 2002. Sure, there are always football half-time shows, but real drum junkies need a fix that lasts longer than 15 minutes. Luckily, Broadway heard our call and has sent the cast and crew of Blast! out on the road to bring the rhythm to the people. The show takes everything usually associated with the outdoor pageantry of half-time shows--percussion, brass and visuals--and fits it all onstage where the choreography, costumes and lighting of a Broadway show are added to create an extravaganza of sight and sound. It's almost enough to make up for Bass Hall's appalling lack of stadium nachos. Blast! will be performed at 8 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday at Bass Hall, 525 Commerce St. in Fort Worth. Call 1-877-212-4280. --Noah W. Bailey
One-Night Stand
10/5
Great stand-up comedy feels so good when the gut laughter wells up within your stomach and you release a hearty chuckle from the depths of your funny bone. Of course, for the more sadistic funny bone, bad stand-up comedy can be just as satisfying. What's better than knowing that some poor fool is not only less funny than you, but willing to demonstrate this fact in public? All the better if we get to watch the sink-or-swim spectacle in a conveniently located downtown venue such as the West End Comedy Theater, 603 Munger Ave. in the West End Marketplace, which, if we attend the Dallas' Funniest Person amateur stand-up competition, we will surely get to do. Every Wednesday night for the next five weeks, Dallas' comedy amateurs compete for a performance slot at the 2006 Dallas Comedy Festival and a fabulous cash prize. Doors at 8 p.m.; tickets are $10. Visit ww.westendcomedy.com. --Andrea Grimes
The Night is Young
10/5
Given a time machine, Will would have dropped his plume, grabbed a pint and shown up for this one himself. We bet Shakespeare would love to see the 16th-century pubs, codpieces and mandolins of his Twelfth Night transformed into the nightclubs, cell phones and electric guitars for a contemporary version. His plays have run continuously since the 1600s for good reason: He's an Elizabethan, tragicomic, Matt Groening-type genius. This production of Twelfth Night, adapted by Valerie Hauss-Smith and directed by Marco Salinas for Shakespeare Dallas' first Shakespeare in the Park fall production, "cross-addresses" issues such as the madness of love and what to wear in a pinch. It runs at Samuell-Grand Park, 1500 Tenison Parkway, from October 5 through October 8 and at Addison's Arts & Events District, 4970 Addison Circle Drive, from October 12 through October 16. Tickets are $7 for adults, $4 for seniors and free for children 12 and under. Call 214-559-2778 or visit www.shakespearedallas.org. --Danna Berger
Ben Stein's All Right
10/5
When most people hear the name Richard Nixon, they think of Watergate. Of course, others think about his monumental work in expanding America's foreign policy. And then there's us: When we hear "Nixon," we think of Ben Stein. The pop culture icon might be famous for deadpan delivery and trivia knowledge, but we respect him most for his liberal-friendly approach to conservative politics, which he exhibited as Nixon's presidential speechwriter and continued to deliver as recently as 1999 on his own talk show, Turn Ben Stein On. See what we mean when Stein speaks his mind at TCU's Ed Landreth Auditorium, 2800 S. University Drive, Fort Worth, on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Tickets are free with a reservation. Call 817-257-6488. --Sam Machkovech
