Don't Throw Away Your Shot

Dallas Summer Musicals blows us all away with Hamilton and other Broadway hits

Dallas Summer Musicals has announced its 2017-18 season, along with two shows from the 2018-19 season, and it's a major turnaround from years past.

Broadway hits such as Waitress, School of Rock, The Color Purple, Les Miserables, and Disney's The Lion King populate the list, but the real coup is that the blockbuster musical Hamilton is slated to play the Music Hall at Fair Park the season after, along with Disney's Aladdin.

This lineup couldn't be more different from the current one, which was the final to be programmed by longtime DSM president Michael Jenkins before he was suddenly terminated last spring. Interim managing director David Hyslop was named, and soon inked a deal with booking partner Broadway Across America. That could explain why the Music Hall will soon be hosting a bevy of Tony winners and nominees, along with the hottest show in the world.

There is also, curiously, no mention of DSM partnering with Performing Arts Fort Worth, as it has in previous seasons. Broadway at the Bass has yet to announce its 2017-18 season. (UPDATE: The season was just announced, and DSM will co-present three shows with PAFW.)

The new era of Dallas Summer Musicals officially kicks off December 5-10, 2017, with a seasonal add-on: the return of Irving Berlin's White Christmas. The holiday show played the Music Hall in 2013, but Hyslop and crew probably figured it couldn't hurt to bring it (and its snow machines) back for another round.

The regular season lineup begins January 23-February 4, 2018, with the 2016 Tony Award winner for best revival, The Color Purple. Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize-winning book provides the basis for this stirring musical, which mixes jazz, gospel, ragtime, and blues.

Next up is On Your Feet!, a "Behind the Music"-esque show about how Emilio and Gloria Estefan triumphed over adversity and tragedy to reach the top of the pop world. Yes, you're probably going to sing along. It runs February 27-March 11, 2018.

Speaking of pop stars, Grammy winner Sara Bareilles made her Broadway debut by penning the score for Waitress, based on Adrienne Shelley's cult film. An all-female creative team brought the show to Broadway, and it's a showcase for the lucky actress portraying the aspiring baker looking a way out of her small town and loveless marriage. Performance dates are March 28-April 8.

The new production of Les Miserables that recently closed on Broadway is now heading out on tour, with new staging and re-imagined scenery inspired by the paintings of Victor Hugo. But all your favorite songs are still there, from "I Dreamed a Dream" to "One Day More" to "On My Own." See it April 24-May 6, 2018.

Another musical stalwart, Disney's The Lion King, is also on tap. Its larger-than-life puppets and lush score by Elton John and Tim Rice have filled the Music Hall before, but not since 2013. See Julie Taymor's stunning and imaginative staging June 13-July 8, 2018.

Did you know The Phantom of the Opera has a sequel? Love Never Dies, Andrew Lloyd Webber's follow-up to his smash musical hit, premiered in London in 2010 but then mostly faded into obscurity (except for a 2012 DVD recording of the West End production). But now it's going on tour! So check in with the Phantom and Christine, who are now in Coney Island 10 years after the big showdown at the Paris Opera House. Performances are July 24-August 5, 2018.

Another Lloyd Webber show is up next: School of Rock, based on the Jack Black film about a substitute teacher who molds his private-school pupils into an awesome rock band. Yes, those kids are playing those instruments live, and no, you will never be that talented. The show closes out the season August 15-26.

Both Hamilton and Disney's Aladdin are awaiting official performance dates, but those eager to score tickets should sign up to become DSM subscribers now. According to the press release, "Only season-ticket holders who renew for the 2018-19 season will be able to guarantee their tickets for the engagements of both shows before tickets become available to the general public."

Dallas Summer Musicals’ seven-show season tickets start at $150 and are on sale now at www.DallasSummerMusicals.org or by phone at 1-866-276-4884. Season tickets can also be purchased in person at the box office at 5959 Royal Ln., Suite 542, and at the Music Hall at Fair Park box office.

Currently, An American in Paris is playing the Music Hall January 31 through February 12.

The Gloria Estefan musical On Your Feet! will run February 27-March 11, 2018.

$Ana Villafa\u00f1e as Gloria Estefan in On Your Feet$

Photo © Matthew Murphy

The Gloria Estefan musical On Your Feet! will run February 27-March 11, 2018.

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Museum News

2 Dallas museums partner on landmark Roy Lichtenstein acquisition

Courtesy

Roy Lichtenstein

The Dallas Museum of Art (DMA) and the Nasher Sculpture Center will present works from the joint acquisition of more than 50 artworks generously gifted by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation in 2024, showing prints, drawings, and sculptures by the groundbreaking American artist at the two neighboring institutions in the Dallas Arts District.

According to a release, the installations will be on view from January 31 to August 16, 2026 at the Nasher and from January 1 to July 5, 2026 at the DMA.

The joint gift made by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation to the DMA and the Nasher in Celebration of the Centennial of Roy Lichtenstein is comprised of a selection of prints, drawings, maquettes, and sculptures by Roy Lichtenstein (1923–1997), a leading figure in twentieth-century American art and a pioneer of the Pop Art movement.

The works were specifically selected by the curatorial staff of both institutions and relate to objects already in their respective collections including sculptures, works on paper, and maquettes, along with tools and study objects.

Organized by the Nasher Sculpture Center’s Senior Curator Dr. Catherine Craft, The Nancy and Tim Hanley Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art at the DMA Ade Omotosho, and The Allen and Kelli Questrom Assistant Curator of Prints and Drawings at the DMA Dr. Emily Friedman, the presentation is divided according to each institution’s strengths and will be shown in combination with objects by Lichtenstein already in their respective permanent collections.

At the Nasher, works relating to three sculptures from the Raymond and Patsy Nasher Collection—Head with Blue Shadow, Peace through Chemistry, and Double Glass—will be accompanied by a selection from the Foundation's gift of more than two dozen drawings and maquettes associated with Lichtenstein’s Brushstroke sculptures.

At the Dallas Museum of Art, the presentation features a set of Brushstroke sculptures carved from wood alongside various prints and studies that reveal the artist’s eclectic imagery.

Events
In addition to the exhibition, the DMA and the Nasher will co-host a Study Day focused on the artist on March 28, 2026, sponsored by the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation. This scholarly event will bring together a variety of curators, academics, and conservators to discuss Lichtenstein’s studio practice and the fabrication and conservation of his sculptures.

Concluding the Study Day will be a public conversation held at the DMA between Nasher Director Carlos Basualdo and artist Alex Da Corte, regarding Da Corte’s work on the forthcoming Lichtenstein retrospective at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

“In bestowing this generous gift, the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation established Dallas as a center for the study and display of Lichtenstein’s work,” Basualdo says in a statement. “This collaborative presentation of the gift and the corresponding programming is an important step in the direction of pursuing that goal, deepening the understanding of an artist who remains immensely influential to contemporary art and its relationship with mass media and today’s culture.”

Roy Lichtenstein is made possible by support from the Roy Lichtenstein Foundation and the Dallas Tourism Public Improvement District (DTPID).

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