Tickets are still available for two events on Saturday, February 4 that target youthful supporters of the arts. The Young Professionals of the Dallas Opera are having beers and rapping about Wagner and the Dallas Contemporary has international DJ/Artist/Cool Dude Shepard Fairey spinning a giant bash over in the design district. Space is running out for each. So are you going to party with Wagner, Fairey, or both?
Dallas' street art scene is like somebody with full-body tattoos. Many pictures are thoughtful and bring a life's narrative to its canvas, revealing something interesting, funny or contemplative about the soul underneath. Some are like backpieces that were chosen while drunk. (Case in point: That Deep Ellum mural of the planet split open, revealing a baby inside that also has a plane crashing into it.)
Well, we've got plenty of skin left to tat, so Shepard Fairey is coming for a play date. He's going to pimp our walls. Expect Twitter, cell phone reception and the internets to crumble mid-to-late week when Fairey arrives and EVERYONE YOU KNOW searches for him. (Is there an app for that yet? Come on Dallas, let's make one!) He's known for using various mediums from stencils to wheat paste, so while all works will be distinctly Fairey in design, expect versatility in the city-wide mural project.
When the walls are complete on February 4, Fairey arrives back at the Dallas Contemporary to DJ a mega-glow-bash. Neon blacklight dance party is the theme, but should you need to escape the psychedelic shaking, just dart outside -- to the safety and comfort of the food trucks. This party is going to be crazy, so if you're even thinking about going you should buy a ticket now. They'll cost $45 for members and $50 for everyone else. Get them here.
If black light street art dance party isn't your scene, that's okay. There's always Wagner, the anti-neon.
(In all fairness, this is an extra Wagnery song, even for Wagner. And it's from Gotterdammerung, a real beast of an opera. This lecture is regarding his love story, Tristan & Isolde.)
There are strange places to meet your future husband, and then there are really strange ones. "Oh, you met him at Oktoberfest? Weird, but fun!" Or, "Oh, you met him at a Wagner lecture? Weird, and that sounds stern." On February 4th the young professionals of the Dallas Opera are having what is billed as "an informative, but fun and casual, lecture about Wagner's Tristan & Isolde." For those uninitiated with Wagner, I promise you this: that is the first time anyone has ever used the words "fun" or "casual" in the same sentence as "Wagner." In fact, whenever I say his name my voice drops three octaves.
The lecture is being held at the brewery of Franconia Brewing Company, which is a lovely Texas microbrew that incorporates its strong German heritage in its hop-filled offerings. I know what you're thinking: "Well, surely there are snacks." You are correct. According to Dallas Opera's announcement, those attending will "nibble on sausage and wurst from Kuby's Sausage House." Also, the color will be bleached from the sky and you will all exist in only a pallet of Germanic greyscale, in which the remaining flecks of light will be the glistening sausage juice dripping down the face of the young professional seated to your left. And who knows? Maybe you'll meet somebody? Somebody who likes sausages and Wagner. Tickets cost $15. Get your tickets here.
