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Best Shiny Happy People

The Dallas Family Band

The collective known as the Dallas Family Band seemed to rise out of nowhere last summer, with at least one of its member acts—a formidable list that includes Jacob Metcalf, The Beaten Sea, The Fox and the Bird, Wheeler Sparks, Spooky Folk and Lalagray—popping up on nearly every folk-tinged bill in town. It's their guerilla supergroup performances as the Dallas Family Band that generate the most attention—you can find them busking at the occasional street festival or outdoor concert—but it's the group's irrepressible spirit and fervent commitment to songcraft (See the Beaten Sea's excellent debut album for further evidence) that really make them worth listening to. Sure, at times the Family Band sounds a little like a church camp sing-along that's about to bust into a spirited rendition of "Kumbaya" or "One Tin Soldier," but in our culture, a bit of positivism is a breath of fresh air.

READERS' PICK BEST RADIO TALK SHOW

The Hardline, The Ticket 1310

The Hardline, The Ticket 1310

READERS' PICK BEST LOCAL ACTRESS

Danielle Pickard

Danielle Pickard

Best Film Festival

Dallas International Film Festival

2010 marked the first year that Dallas' pride and joy of celluloid and big screens left the AFI umbrella and adopted its own moniker: The Dallas International Film Festival. And it was a banner year thanks to the delicious programming talents of artistic director James Faust, senior programmer Sarah Harris and chairman of the board Michael Cain. There were roughly 30 films ranging from big budget to local indie, spread from morning to night over the festival's 10 days (and we didn't miss a one).That there were gems that still replay on our brain-screen some six months later says much about the quality of the selections: in particular, the lush, dramatic Italian-set I Am Love; the captivating, adventurous Korean spaghetti Western The Good, The Bad, The Weird; the comedic yet troubling doc The Red Chapel; the sinister yet sympathetic Lovers of Hate; and the absolutely uplifting Thunder Soul. DIFF2010 was safely some of the most gratifying (albeit emotionally exhausting) time we've spent in a theater seat.

Best Urban Explorer

Justin Terveen

From Reunion Tower to One Arts Plaza, there are plenty of landmarks on the Dallas skyline to catch your eye—and Justin Terveen shoots them all with monkish dedication. What makes his work stand out, though, is the way an abandoned high-rise tower, a run-down shack on Deep Ellum's fringes or a homeless guy in a doorway all get treated with equal reverence. "The importance of preservation, and what we've lost—that's been a big part of what's fueled me," Terveen says. It shows in his repeat trips for fresh angles on 100-year-old landmarks that are staring down the wrecking ball. In the six years since the 31-year-old shooter moved downtown, Terveen says his focus has always been the same: "grit, streets and old stuff"—three things Dallas does best.

Best Local Actress

Sally Nystuen Vahle

A member of Dallas Theater Center's Brierley Resident Acting Company, Vahle has been acting professionally for 25 years. Known for her versatility and strength in a variety of roles (she once played the title role in Macbeth), Vahle's had a great run of star turns recently. She was lovely as royalty in DTC's pop-art A Midsummer Night's Dream, then turned in what was arguably the best performance of the 2010 season as Linda Loman in that theater's intense staging of Death of a Salesman. Opposite New York actor Jeffrey DeMunn as Willy, Vahle gave a breathtaking performance as a woman determined to hold her family together as her husband slowly lost his grip on reality. Those who saw that Salesman and heard Vahle reinvent the "attention must be paid" speech will never forget her in that role. The SMU grad (from the MFA program) is also an assistant professor of acting and voice at University of North Texas. (Pay attention, kids.)

Best Fancy Dresser

Aaron Patrick Turner

Costume designer Aaron Patrick Turner makes the metaphorical silk purse out of sows' ears for many a local theatrical production. Working on lavish budgets or on the "Can you get it free?" plan, Turner has earned a reputation as a meticulous creator of beautiful period costumes. Among his best are the clothes he made for Trinity Shakespeare Festival's Twelfth Night, Amphibian Stage's Icarus, Contemporary Theatre of Dallas' Oldest Living Graduate, Rabbit Hole and The Cemetery Club, and this summer's elegant 1930s wardrobe for the comedy The 39 Steps at Stage West. As local stage costumers go, Turner's got the title of "best" all sewn up.

Best Local CD Release

Suburban Nature by Sarah Jaffe

Regular readers of the Observer music section won't find this nod as much of a surprise. The best local release of 2010? That's easy: It's Sarah Jaffe's Suburban Nature, a collection of heartbreaking, vulnerable tunes penned by the prodigious 24-year-old Dallas native, who for the past year has toured the country supporting the likes of fellow DFW products Midlake and Norah Jones while making quite a name for herself along the way. The praise she's earned has been plentiful, coming even from national outlets like Paste magazine and USA Today. Jaffe's blend of indie rock, folk and pop is intoxicating, relatable and, most of all, pleasant. And it's tough to find just one reason why. Her wavering vocals, her close-to-the-vest lyrics, her tasteful guitar picking and strumming, and her impeccable backing players' performances all add up to a powerhouse record.

READERS' PICK BEST CITY COUNCIL MEMBER

Angela Hunt, District 14

Angela Hunt, District 14

READERS' PICK BEST PUBLIC SCULPTURE

Traveling Man, Deep Ellum

Traveling Man, Deep Ellum

Best Of Dallas®

Best Of

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