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    Count Your Blessings

    Why we should give thanks for the Dallas-Fort Worth theater scene

    Lindsey Wilson
    Nov 28, 2013 | 12:00 am

    It's not the same as posting daily on Facebook or saying what you're thankful for around the dinner table, but it's no less important that we give thanks this year for DFW's vibrant theater scene.

    Seriously, whenever November/December rolls around and it's time to start making year-end, best-of lists, it's astonishing to realize how much visceral, challenging and beautiful theater this city produces. Let us bow our heads and give thanks for these nine reasons why our theater scene rocks.

    1. We have troupes that delight in taking risks.
    Dead White Zombies performs original plays in former stash houses and abandoned warehouses. Ochre House produces truly unique shows — utilizing everything from flamenco to puppets — that spring from the inimitable mind of Matthew Posey. Second Thought Theatre challenges its audiences with intimate, often dark and controversial works.

    You can only appreciate the lightness of Neil Simon and Rodgers and Hammerstein when you have something to balance them against, and companies like these are doing an excellent job of pushing their audiences to explore and question.

    2. We believe in nourishing the next generation's love of the arts
    Michelle Obama recently presented Dallas Theater Center with the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award for its youth theater program, Project Discovery. Since 1986, Project Discovery has helped more than 265,000 students and teachers study and experience live theater (more than half for the first time in their lives).

    Kitchen Dog Theater, as part of the New Works Festival, partners every year with the local youth organization Junior Players to produce PUP Fest, a playwriting workshop and afternoon of staged readings written and performed by DFW high-schoolers.

    We've talked a lot about Fun House Theatre and Film before, and with good reason. By treating its young actors (and designers) like adult professionals, the company emerges with productions that are impressively high-quality. Adorable, of course, but also thought-provoking and resonant.

    WaterTower Theatre's upcoming The Adventures of Tom Sawyer will lead a double life as the Tom Sawyer Project. DISD high-schoolers auditioned for WaterTower's production, and now they will produce their own version of the show while the professional cast and crew act as mentors.

    In addition, organizations like Dallas Children's Theater, Theatre Britain and Pocket Sandwich Theatre all stage performances designed to engage and encourage kids to love live theater. And let’s be honest, throwing popcorn and hissing at the villain is just as much fun for adults as it is for the little ones.

    3. We have a lot of critics.
    Trust us, this is a good thing. With a profession that's shrinking by the minute, Dallas has somehow managed to maintain a healthy number of professional theater critics. This is great for so many reasons, chief among them that educated, experienced opinions are harder and harder to come by in today's Yelp culture.

    We may not all be full-time in pay, but we are full-time in spirit and commitment. To have this many varied voices, all passionate about the vast amount of theater Dallas is producing, is a valuable thing.

    4. We have the largest arts district in America.
    Not only is it big, but it's also gorgeous. Nestled in among world-class museums, the AT&T Performing Art Center is an architectural gem. The visually interesting façade and endlessly moveable interior of the Wyly Theatre encourage artists to have some fun, while the ruby-red prow of the Winspear Opera House juts toward the highway, beckoning passersby to enter and experience something amazing.

    5. We're a big tour stop.
    Between Dallas Summer Musicals, Lexus Broadway Series and Performing Arts Fort Worth at Bass Hall, we get just about every big musical and play that crisscrosses the country. You can't ever say that we're left out of the conversation.

    6. We are finally starting to get national cred.
    Not only are we in the conversation, sometimes we are the conversation. Earlier in the year, Dallas hosted the Theatre Communications Group's national conference. This was a big deal not only to the hardcore arts community, but it was a chance to show big-name companies from across the country the awesome work our own organizations have been doing.

    In addition, shows that have premiered or been workshopped in Dallas have gone on to play in New York (Broadway included!).

    7. We love our festivals.
    Festivals are great not only for allowing smaller, newer works to be seen, but also because they also bring with them a sense of camaraderie. From Uptown Players Pride Festival to WaterTower Theatre's Out of the Loop Fringe Festival to the Festival of Independent Theatres, there's plenty to choose from.

    8. We have a lot of big companies. We also have a lot of small and mid-sized companies.
    There seems to be room for everyone in Dallas. From established, long-running theaters like Theatre Three (founded in 1961) and Dallas Theater Center (going since 1959) to newer, more compact troupes like Dallas Actors Lab (behind the intense ensemble play Jailbait) and Upstart Productions (its production of The Aliens was pitch-perfect), everyone is allowed to flourish.

    9. We have some incredible talent.
    Onstage and off, Dallas is home to a wildly talented bunch of actors, directors, designers and producers. In 2014, we can't wait to see what you guys will come up with next.

    Lynley Glicker in Daffodil Girls at Fun House Theatre and Film.

    Lynley Glicker as Dana in "Daffodil Girls" at Fun House Theatre and Film
      
    Photo by Chuck Marcelo
    Lynley Glicker in Daffodil Girls at Fun House Theatre and Film.
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    Ballet news

    Texas Ballet Theater executive director leaving for new gig in Northeast

    Stephanie Allmon Merry
    May 19, 2025 | 2:38 pm
    Vanessa Logan, Texas Ballet Theater
    Photo courtesy of Texas Ballet Theater
    Vanessa Logan joined Texas Ballet Theater in 2016.

    Vanessa Logan, who has served as Texas Ballet Theater executive director since 2016, is leaving TBT for a new role in the Northeast, the company says. Her final day with TBT will be June 30, 2025.

    The move will allow Logan to be closer to her family, the organization says. Her new position has not yet been announced.

    "While we will greatly miss Vanessa and her leadership at TBT, we support her decision to do what is best for her and her family and wish her well in her new pursuit," says TBT board of governors chair Anne T. Bass in a May 19 release. "Throughout her tenure at TBT, Vanessa has demonstrated the highest level of professionalism. It has been a delight to have worked closely with Vanessa over the last nine years, and I am most grateful for her unstinting efforts that have advanced TBT in so many respects."

    Logan joined North Texas' largest ballet company before the 2016-17 season; she previously had worked at the American Repertory Ballet in New Jersey and Boston Ballet.

    "Being part of TBT has been an immensely enriching and transformative experience. Partnering with Artistic Director Tim O’Keefe, working alongside such talented artists, and collaborating with a dedicated administrative and school staff has been a true privilege," Logan says in the release. "I am also deeply grateful for the unwavering support of our committed Board Chair and the Board of Governors, whose vision and leadership have been instrumental. Contributing to productions that bring beauty and artistry to our audiences and nurturing ballet education for countless children in Dallas-Fort Worth has been incredibly rewarding."

    During her tenure with TBT, Logan helped the company navigate through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020 followed by a catastrophic winter storm of 2021; she helped smooth the transition of artistic director from Ben Stevenson to Tim O'Keefe in 2023; and she oversaw new school facilities in Richardson and Dallas. TBT has also begun a 65,000-square-foot renovation of its Fort Worth facility to support future growth.

    "Vanessa’s support and partnership during the transition was phenomenal. I cannot imagine another leader better equipped to guide TBT seamlessly through such a transformational change," O’Keefe says. "Her steadfastness instilled confidence and built trust with staff, students and subscribers as she ensured that we held true to TBT’s mission of honoring classical ballet while embracing a new chapter of artistic evolution."

    TBT’s Board of Governors will immediately start searching for Logan’s successor and will quickly name an interim executive director to oversee operations until a permanent leader is in place, they say.

    Texas Ballet Theater, which is a resident company of both Winspear Opera House in Dallas and Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, just closed its 2024-25 season with O'Keefe's all-new staging of the beloved ballet Giselle.

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