Every production at Matthew Posey’s Ochre House theater goes to a dark place in some way. His latest, the musical The Butcher, sounds intriguingly perverse. Written and directed by Posey, who also stars, the show is described by its creator as “Kurt Weill meets Irish folklore.” Set in Ireland during…
If you were alive in the ’80s, you know all about 9 to 5. And Jams, mesh shirts and White Rain, too, but that’s a whole other story. This particular story is about three working gals, their jerk alert boss and a file folder’s worth of revenge. It was like…
Betty Friedan opened the proverbial can of worms when she introduced the phrase “feminine mystique” into the vernacular. Friedan’s diagnosis for bored, unsatisfied housewives–“the problem that has no name”–led to an ongoing recovery both spiritual and economic. But the question “What does it mean to be a woman?” persists. Paint…
Three intriguing trends emerged during a week of seeing new plays at small playhouses: the simple but stunning effect of actors’ faces lit with tiny handheld flashlights; plots about murders in dark environs; and animals as pivotal characters (a monkey in one show, a pig in another). Some strange and…
Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque blew a lot of minds when they began to transition their styles in the early part of the 1900s. They both began to bring more abstract elements into their work; first, the wildly saturated color seen in Cezanne’s work, and then an obsession with geometry,…
Look closer. Don’t be afraid. Look closer. Have you ever taken a second look at a piece of art and discovered its true meaning? Do the lines and colors evoke emotion? Is there a symbol hidden beneath the stroke of the paint brush or curve of the pencil? Take a…
If you’ve ever wondered how to dance across the floor like Travolta in Saturday Night Fever, look no further than Dancing by the Creek. This year’s monthly dance lessons will teach aspiring dancers everything from salsa to two-step. Each lesson will be taught by instructors from the Arthur Murray Dance…
Tibetan society is so defined by Buddhism and spirituality, that Western standards of art often don’t apply at all. In fact, the Western definition of “art” doesn’t exist in Tibet at all. Instead, artists are judged based on their ability to adhere to certain prescribed traditional forms. The Crow Collection…
Choreographer Kelly Devine is all too aware what happens when you Google her. “I have to tell everyone at the first rehearsal of a show that I am NOT the porn star,” she says. Same name, way different career paths. These days the non-porn Kelly Devine is in big demand,…
Stop whatever you’re doing and go take a Zumba class now. I don’t care if you’re recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery, on an airplane or at the office. Oh, poor you. You have to “work” and “earn money” so you can “eat” and “not perish.” LIES. You need nothing more…
It doesn’t matter how much it costs. It really doesn’t matter. Running down the checklist of the requirements for perfect art — flaming car (check), enormous moon (check), wizard (with rock horns) check — it’s immediately clear that this glossy print might be the best in the history of humankind.In…
Galaxies will collide when a pair of science fiction icons, Star Trek’s Leonard Nimoy and Star Wars’ Carrie Fisher, enter the same orbit at Dallas Comic Con at Irving Convention Center this weekend. If that isn’t enough to incite a fanboy riot, the place might blow when headliner Stan Lee,…
I’m not ashamed — I’ve totally watched Celebrity Apprentice this season. And while I found myself irritated by the scheming of TV personality, author and lawyer Star Jones, I gotta say, she knew how to play the game when she wasn’t the project manager. Delegate, work below the radar, call…
On the other side is the trailer for Crispin Glover’s What Is It?, Part One of his so-called “It” trilogy and an altogether unpleasant experience — and one entirely unsafe for the workplace. Which I mention only because the Texas Theatre has just announced that on July 15, the man…
It’s time for The Weekly Tease, wherein every Tuesday (or as known to us, “press day”), The Mixmaster brings you a little taste of the upcoming cover art for the issue about to hit the streets and stands around town. We hope that this week’s cover (and cover story) will…
The cover of Volume 31, Issue 19 of the Dallas Observer was graced with the talent of local creative outfit Bee Things. Surely, many may have already seen some of their work out and about, at places like We Are 1976 and many an Etsy-Dallas event (as can be spied…
On the occasional occasions when I watch The Biggest Loser, I’m in it for the weigh-in: the glory of success, the tragedy of defeat, the big people in little clothes, the gradual emergence of muscles, the transformations. I love a good makeover. The other stuff — the sweating, the grunting,…
Sneaker enthusiasts and collectors, grab your calendars now and save the date for Kixpo 2011. The sneaker and streetwear expo is back for its fifth year, and it’s moving on up to Cowboys Stadium on July 2. Last year’s event was held at Lofty Spaces near South Side on Lamar,…
Birmingham, Alabama native Diana Nicole DeGarmo (23), went from Idol to playing one of her idols. At the age of 16, DeGarmo not only won a spot on American Idol, but also made it into the final two. She didn’t win the competition — Fantasia Barrino was the winner that…
There’s no reason for the Dallas Museum of Art to be in mourning today, not when it’s the proud recipient of the Outstanding Small Exhibition award from the Association of Art Museum Curators (AAMC). DMA announced today that it received the honor for The Mourners: Medieval Tomb Sculptures from the…
Word came down today, from the folks at non-profit Art Conspiracy, that the organization is seeking submissions for a 2011 beneficiary. To be more specific, that beneficiary should be a 501c3 organization dedicated to arts and music programming ready to reap the benefits, both monetarily (the events have raised more…
It has to feel good to Debbie Reynolds that she’s outlived Elizabeth Taylor. Now a pert and pretty 79, Reynolds was the star of Singin’ in the Rain and The Unsinkable Molly Brown and more recently is known not just as the real-life “mother of Princess Leia” (Carrie Fisher) but…
