Arts & Culture

Last night the Dallas Symphony Orchestra presented a showcase performance to a packed house at the Meyerson Symphony Center. The room was bursting with out-of-towners, the overflow due mainly to the League of American Orchestras’ annual conference, which is currently going on in Dallas. Maestro van Zweden and the DSO…

The League of American Orchestras is holding its 67th national conference in Dallas this week. The schedule is pretty run of the mill conferencey stuff – sessions on budgeting, fundraising, marketing, etc. However, in addition to these planning sessions, the Fort Worth Symphony will perform a showcase concert (open to…

Terms like “wunderkind” and “prodigy” are perhaps thrown about too casually, but when you see an emerging artist like Esme O’Brien, few other words seem to suffice. O’Brien recently graduated from Booker T. Washington and will be leaving us for the University of Pennsylvania where she’ll undertake a BFA, in…

Bringing shame to your family is easy, but if you want to permanently sever those trust bonds, use reality television. Let them watch uncomfortably as you aggressively fondle a stranger in a hot tub — on prime time. Congratulations! No more annoying holiday newsletters. You are officially excommunicated. (Another upside?…

Air fists! Sweatband! Air fists! Neckerchief! Air fists! Now, …exhale. Alright you cubicle captives, let’s break these 9 to 5 chains and get destructive. We’ve got comedians we grew up loving and still adore (Bill Cosby); comedians we grew up loving and now feel uncomfortable around (Dennis Miller); Derby Girls…

Most people don’t consider Cole Porter much of a badass. He came from privilege, went Ivy League all the way and spent much of his life partying in Paris like a gay Gatsby. But underneath all the frivolity and fun, Porter lived with excruciating pain. An equestrian accident left him…

There’s smart stand-up comedy. And there’s smart-aleck commentary done while standing up. With his six years behind the desk of Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update, Dennis Miller made it clear that he could easily garner belly laughs and still cut to the heart of a political or cultural matter. With…

We always knew the “X” stood for something other than the address when it comes to the long-established, artist-run cooperative gallery on 500 Exposition Ave., and this summer 500X wants to push it good to the max. Their annual unjuried show, Hot-n-Sweaty, kicks off on with an opening reception from…

He’s given us Fat Albert, Pudding Pops and, unfortunately, Raven Symone. But let’s not hold that last one against, OK? After all, WACKY SWEATERS. I am, of course, talking about the man, the myth, the legend with the things and the stories and the words — Mr. Bill Cosby. He’ll…

Your dog is boring. His “big trick” involves chewing through your: shoes, shirts, pants pockets, records (jazz, specifically), books, bedding, trash can, leather couch and kitchen supplies. Man, you really loved that frying pan. Fortunately, he’s handsome, so his creature comforts remain secure. The stars of Stunt Dog Experience earn…

Last month, for the sixth consecutive year, Americans lost the Indianapolis 500, and to a Scotsman no less. Racing has become more international, and we may no longer have the competitive edge in such endeavors as international high-performance racing, but that’s no reason to nix all racing events, is it?…

Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet is currently performing its first full-length ballet at various locations around town, and this weekend you can catch it at the beautiful Trammell and Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art, 2010 Flora St. The story selected is one of displacement, titled after its ultra-feminine protagonist, Kaguya-Hime. Based…

When you think “magician,” you probably think of Criss Angel … and then you instantly mutter, “What a douche.” But hopefully after you spend an evening with As We Lie Still, a contemporary musical about — you guessed it — a magician, you’ll think neither of those things. And maybe…

The paper-thin disguise is one of the most trotted-out tropes in all of story-telling. You know the routine: Somebody throws on a wig or a pair of glasses and close family members and friends no longer recognize them. Hilarity ensues. Take, for example, Mrs. Doubtfire, wherein a working mom fails…

Many subscribe to the “base tan” method of summering. This is when you foolishly lay out or participate in an outdoor shirtless sport sans sunscreen in order to get burned that first time and provide a “base” for future “tans.” This is a really dumb idea. What is not a…

Every so often, we employ here at the Dallas Observer reporters who are not what you might call “of a Texas persuasion.” East and West Coast natives. Yankees. Also, every so often, one of these bright, young people — from parts of the world where the Second Amendment is not…

The Texas Rangers of 2012 have proven how long a 162-game baseball season can truly feel, even when the lengthiest season in sports (at least for the sports we care about) is less than half-complete. After getting off to the best start of any team, things have leveled off. One…

The Lone Star Circus is offering kids an opportunity to run away and join the circus. They come right back, though, so don’t get your hopes … er, we mean worry. Yeah, don’t worry. The circus is hosting a week-long day camp in which kiddies and teens ages 7 to…