When Jessica Zeller went to a show at Pocket Sandwich Theatre for the first time three years ago, she thought she was settling in for a night of serious theater. Then the popcorn started flying. “The first show I saw was a melodramatic comedic reimagining of Jekyll and Hyde for Halloween,”…
Every list you’ve read this year likely reminded you just how bad 2020 was for all of us. According to several retrospective features from news outlets (including this one), 2020 was “volatile,” “disruptive,” “frustrating,” “disorienting,” “surreal,” “chaotic,” “the worst,” “a horror story,” “an American nightmare,” “a dumpster fire,” “a radioactive…
One of the perks of working for the Dallas Observer is getting to meet interesting people, and pretty much every encounter gives us a nugget of wisdom that has the potential to change the course of our beliefs. 2020 has been a dark year, and we’ve all been waiting for…
Live entertainment has taken one of the hardest hits from the coronavirus outbreak. A survey conducted by the National Independent Venue Association last June revealed that 90 percent of the nation’s entertainment venue owners said they may have to close without more federal funding to replace their disappearing revenue. It’s…
The pandemic has given actor and Dallas native Stephen Tobolowsky a lot of time to think. Mostly, at first, his thoughts were that he might have the COVID-19 virus. “I was wanting to kill myself every day,” Tobolowsky says from his home in Los Angeles. “I was convinced I had…
The film industry has faced an endless stream of unprecedented challenges because of the coronavirus: Movie theaters have had to reduce public showings and private rentals, temporarily closing down to keep people from spreading COVID-19. Film studios have had to push back their biggest blockbusters or settle for releasing them…
Dallas County is under a red level warning risk, restaurants have been required to reduce capacity and bars were closed after more than 15% of local hospital beds were filled with COVID-19 patients for more than seven straight days. None of that stopped Anime Dallas from holding its annual convention…
The opportunities for bands have been severely limited this past year because … do we really have to explain why at this point? It’s 2020. It’s what would happen if sadness broke the laws of quantum mechanics to become a measurable space in time. One annual showcase that hasn’t been…
Believe it or not, there was a time in television’s history when stupidity was entertaining and funny instead of a daily, soul-crushing hope killer. Here’s an encouraging sign that we may be returning to that time once again. Comedy Central announced that the animated duo Beavis and Butt-head will make their…
Thanks to a military coup and a brutal dictatorship with 60 years of oppressive experience, Egyptian comedian Bassem Youssef had to move with his family to America because he dared to openly mock governmental authority. Not long afteward, Youssef found himself standing on the floor of the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse…
Comedy clubs are in uncharted territory thanks to the coronavirus pandemic. Places that once attracted sold-out crowds are having to cut their audience limits in half or close altogether. The Backdoor Comedy Club is a little more familiar with the struggle to stay open. It has opened and closed 12…
If it looks like being a game show host may be the easiest job in Earth, it’s because Canadian-born broadcaster and Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek made it seem so. Unlike the flashy, plaid sportscoat-sporting emcees of the ’70s who tried to be the center of attention, Trebek, who died at…
Four women accused actor and stand-up comedian Bryan Callen of sexual misconduct as far back as 1999 in a Los Angeles Times story published in July. This news came on top of revelations that Callen and his partner Brendan Schaub on their former podcast Fighter and the Kid tested positive for COVID-19 following…
The city of Dallas is full of ghosts; it’s hard to know where to look or how to find them, because, well, they’re ghosts. You can’t see them. Duh. This Halloween season, though, some of them will materialize every night at Reunion Tower to tell a series of spooky tales…
Comedians may be fearless enough to get on stage and perform, but steel nerves and supernatural bravery don’t help when facing a particular kind of audience. We’re not talking about talent scouts from major cable networks who sum up entire careers based on two minutes of material nor about mobs…
On Oct. 6, a woman was visiting the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden and witnessed maskless visitors sticking their hands in the koi pond. As she captured video through her phone, the individuals attempted to catch fish with their bare hands. “I was just horrified and wanted to post it,”…
There’s no question that the coronavirus pandemic shutdowns of clubs and venues have been a hard hit on comedy communities, from open mic performers in coffee shop corners to headlining acts who are unable to pack theaters. Comedian Steve Hofstetter used to spend most of his year on the road…
This is the 33rd year that Bart Weiss, the founder and artistic director of Dallas VideoFest, has brought his team together to put on the annual documentary festival DocuFest. Putting one event together every year since 1987 is challenging enough. “Every year there are new challenges,” Weiss says. “We’ve always taken…
Who knows when we’ll be able to go back to the movies again? Even if the worst case scenario happens and movie theaters become a distant memory like rotary phones and bunny ear TV antennas, there might be another way for you to get your RoboCop kick. Ed Neumeier, the…
2020 has to be one of the worst years for live comedy. The coronavirus is, among other things, preventing live audiences from feeding a comedian’s innate need to be the center of attention. Some annual showcases, such as the Dallas and Fort Worth Comedy Festivals, had to postpone or outright…
Things seemed to be slowly turning around for Free Play Arcade, the North Texas video game arcade chain. The company reopened all of its four locations across Dallas-Fort Worth with new safety guidelines such as mask requirements and occupancy limits, and were able hire back some of the staff that…
It’s been six months since I’ve seen a hit. My addiction runs deep. It goes back to the earliest days of my childhood when my parents would take me out to get my fix. The movie theaters have been closed for just over six months and … wait, did you…
