Six years ago, my father met Tom Wopat at DFW International Airport. Meeting a C-list celebrity was nothing new for him. He's hugged Tori Spelling and Dr. Ruth Westheimer. Informed Joe Pantoliano that he "really kicked it" on The Sopranos. Scared the holy bejeezus out of Sam Donaldson. He's a pro, usually, but when he came upon Wopat, the face was familiar, but the name escaped him. He kept flipping over cards in his mental Rolodex, but all he could come up with was this: "You...you...you're a Duke, aren't you?" Wopat, with a look of disgust on his face, curtly answered, "Yes, I've done some television," then stormed off. Being a Dukes of Hazzard fan when I was a kid--OK, I still am a fan of that show--I was apoplectic. "Luke Duke!" I screamed into the phone a few minutes later when he called me. You can understand why Wopat was upset. Though his biggest claim to fame is, yes, portraying one-half of the Duke boys and being regularly upstaged by a car with a Confederate flag on its roof and a cousin with short-shorts up her bum, Wopat has had a diverse showbiz career. He's released a handful of albums, had a second brush with small-screen fame on Cybill and been a Broadway star, applauded for his turn in the revival of Annie Get Your Gun. Wopat's latest trip to Dallas finds him in the star-making role of slick lawyer Billy Flynn in the touring company of Chicago. It's possibly the best marriage of kitsch TV star and award-winning musical since Barry "Greg Brady" Williams came to the Music Hall at Fair Park as The Music Man. Just don't mention that to Wopat. Chicago runs Tuesday through February 29 at the Music Hall at Fair Park. Tickets are $15 to $65. Call Ticketmaster at 214-373-8000. --Zac Crain
Queer Eye on History
2/24
Mel Brooks' History of the World: Part I proved that it's good to be king. Jade Esteban Estrada's history lesson might offer the same motto, but meaning a different kind of king...or queen. The worldview of Estrada, a Latin pop sensation and the "The Prince of Pageantry," unfolds in Icons: The Lesbian and Gay History of the World, Vol. 1 through the stories of Sappho, Michelangelo, Oscar Wilde, Gertrude Stein, Sylvia Rivera and Ellen DeGeneres. He plays all of these in a mélange from dark to whimsical, from stand-up to tragedy, from February 24 to February 29 at Teatro Dallas, 1331 Record Crossing Road. Shows are 8 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, 10:15 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday and 7 p.m. Sunday for $15. Call 214-689-6492. --Jim Schutze
Out of Africa
2/20
In our childhood, we were a little colorblind. We knew the greens from the reds, but racial lines drawn across black and white threw us off. We tried to wail like Ella Fitzgerald, run like Michael Johnson and swing our hips like Fresh Prince's honeys. We didn't understand when some people said skin color determined what we could do, wear and sound like. Despite the injustice, the sad truth is we still dance like a white girl. So we'll let the talented crew of Dallas Black Dance Theatre do the leaping and twirling during the Cultural Awareness Series performance of My Inspiration at the Majestic Theatre, 1925 Elm St. Purchase tickets at Ticketmaster for $15 and $30. Call 214-871-2390. --Desirée Henry
Mr. Night
Loggins is still Footloose and fancy-free
2/20
For pop music lovers, there's only one Kenny. Not the white-bearded gambler. Not the sax man. We're talking Loggins, my friends--the bearded, spiky-haired balladeer who puts the danger in "Danger Zone." Where would '80s movies be without him? Where would high school dances and wedding receptions and karaoke be without him? Where would Kevin Bacon be without him? Time to pay the Kenster his props. On February 20 and February 21, Kenny Loggins rocks the Meyerson with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. They'll back him on classics from the '80s as well as selections from his two children's albums and self-released adult contemporary album, It's About Time. So lose your blues. Take the highway to the danger zone (exit downtown). Meet me halfway, and don't nobody worry 'bout me. I'm free. But tickets cost $28 to $115. 214-692-0203. --Sarah Hepola
Life Live
Texas Bound is Lone Star proud
2/23
Just as the audio version of a book can enhance the original story, a literary work performed live can give audiences an entirely new view of an old favorite. The general idea behind Texas Bound, a component of Arts and Letters Live at Dallas Museum of Art, is that good storytellers make good stories great. And Texas is full of both. Texas Stories: Legends in Literature features Texas actors reading works by Texas authors. G.W. Bailey reads John Graves' "Blue" and Paul Rudnick's "Queer Eye for the Whole World," and John Flores and Christina Vela read Katherine Anne Porter's "Maria Concepcion" during the first of four Texas Bound performances. Legends in Literature readings take place at 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Monday in the DMA's Horchow Auditorium, 1717 N. Harwood St. Admission is $20 to $25. Call 214-922-1220. --Stephanie Durham
