Over the years, moviegoers who double as sports fans have had ample opportunity to pick and choose their favorite miracle–Shoeless Joe Jackson emerging from the tall corn, Rudy suiting up for Notre Dame, Rocky going the distance with Apollo Creed, the U.S. hockey team taking down the Russkies. As if…
Over the centuries, the legend of Tristram and Iseult has fueled the derring-do of King Arthur, aroused Richard Wagner’s operatic thunder, driven poets as diverse as Shakespeare, Tennyson and Edwin Arlington Robinson to the heights of passion, and helped stock the back streets of Manhattan with companies of leaping Jets…
When a movie promises that a character played by Queen Latifah may well die during the course of the action, one might hope that the movie in question is Hostel, so that she could be beaten a few times and then dismembered, ideally by someone who sat through The Cookout,…
What started four years ago as a one-night-only fundraiser for the upstart Uptown Players has evolved into such a sell-out event that they now stretch Broadway Our Way over two weekends. This year’s edition, subtitled Divas Unleashed, is a ferociously fun celebration of the theater’s previous season that invites cast…
Forget Christmas-American children should focus on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, as their societal values will shape racial relations for the next generation. See a proper celebration of the holiday at the 14th Annual MLK Oratory Competition, where children vie for a savings bond prize in the final round of…
Really, all dating is speed dating. Some dates you have to take speed to stay awake for, some you have to speed away from the next morning. Some you speed to until you realize that “cuisine transportation consultant” means “pizza delivery guy.” Speed’s got a bad connotation. But hurry, well,…
Guys that are sculptors must get a lot of action. The creativity, the powerful hands, the clay-stained face and chest…how could anyone resist? If Patrick Swayze could get laid in Ghost for making a measly clay pot, Auguste Rodin must have gotten triple-dog laid for “The Thinker,” and the unknown…
Word on the street is that Taos, New Mexico, is coming to Dallas. Folks, this is not good. If you thought thousands of New Orleans evacuees descending upon the big D was awkward, wait until thousands of Taosians lug their mountains, snow and frat-boy ski clubs into our fair city…
Remember Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus (the ridiculous relationship book that sold a bajillion copies and was written by a “Dr.” who bought his degree from a diploma mill)? The book: not funny. The people that bought it seriously thinking it would help them understand the opposite…
If they weren’t so terrifying, fatal diseases would be fascinating. Maybe they are anyway. The way an otherwise healthy body can be taken down by an unseen group of cells, how something so small can destroy so much—it’s perplexing. Just look to ABC if you don’t believe us. On Grey’s…
You know it. You love it. You own every special edition DVD, action figure and promo poster ever released. And, for a brief while, you pissed off every McDonald’s employee you saw with your new-fangled ordering style. Before John Travolta bought a bunch of jets in the name of Scientology…
Need to leave your menfolk at home? You know, for a true girl’s night out? Then check out this all-girl show on the stage. The Contemporary Theatre of Dallas will be presenting Clare Booth Luce’s The Women (you may well remember the movie starring Norma Shearer as Mary Haines, the…
In the world of cinema, the word “classic” is thrown around so easily. A movie that came out last week can be easily touted as an instant classic. Brokeback Mountain, anyone? Year-old movies can be destined for such distinction through the apparent wisdom handed to us by critics and Oscars…
“The older the fiddle, the sweeter the tune.” That Irish proverb is definitely proven true by the indefatigable Chieftains, who return this week for their seventh annual concert at Bass Hall. Co-founded by Paddy Maloney, the Chieftains have been touring internationally for almost 50 years. They’ve played with everyone from…
One could say the UK’s chief export to the United States is offbeat comedy. From Monty Python’s Flying Circus to The Office, our wit has been often whetted when we borrow from the Brits. With that in mind, consider a trip to the Dallas Theater Center’s presentation of Joe Egg—a…
Every little girl goes through a bride phase—wearing lace tablecloths and plucking handfuls of flowers from the neighbor’s flower bed. It’s not until later in life (when she’s faced with planning the actual wedding) that her dream becomes a nightmare. Whether it’s the cold-feet or impossible-feat scenario, the task becomes…
Audubon Dallas and the Fort Worth Audubon Society will go head to head (or is it beak to beak?) in the Big Day Challenge to see which organization can identify the most bird species in Dallas County over a 21-hour period. Participants will form four-person teams. Contact Connie Sandlin at…
A couple of years ago I was treated to a dance recital at a local institution of higher education. Maybe it was my closed-minded nature (or the soloist who danced for the entirety of “Purple Rain”), but I didn’t enjoy it very much, and I swore to myself that I…
Let’s face it–the main attraction of the film Groundhog Day isn’t Bill Murray. Sure, his trademark phlegmatic delivery, patronizing and pathetic at the same time, is a perfect fit, but the real lure is the concept of the do-over. Murray’s character lives a scenario we all dream about: to redo…
Save the obligatory homage paid to the contributions of black Americans during the month of February, Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is about the only time you’re going to get your chance to let loose and celebrate one of the brothas that helped make this country a better place for…
Japan is a hot commodity this winter. Or rather, Japanese-themed products, the ones that commoditize the culture and sell it to Americans hungry for sake bath washes and kimono-style blouses, are hot this winter. Marketing execs at Sony Pictures Entertainment are penning Memoirs of a Geisha tie-in licensing agreements faster…
The Three Little Pigs has to be one of the most terrifying tales a child can hear. Think about it: Despite the fact that you live amongst family, you have little to no protection against this evil creature that wants to eat you. If you build a quick house, the…
