Creativity Continues

The Dallas arts groups offering virtual access to opera, museums, and more

Avant Chamber Ballet is one of the arts groups participating.

Photo by Brian Guilliaux

Everything's canceled, but that doesn't mean you're limited in what you can enjoy from home right now. TACA recently released a list of Dallas-Fort Worth arts groups that are streaming concerts, opera, dance, and even museum tours for free during the coronavirus quarantine, and we're adding more as they come in.

Dallas Art Fair
From April 14-23, this new online platform allows collectors to digitally preview and purchase works from participating galleries before the fair’s upcoming twelfth edition, which has been rescheduled to October 1-4.

Main St. Fort Worth Arts Festival
Fort Worth's popular spring arts festival, originally scheduled for April 16-19, has been postponed until September. But organizers are still promoting the festival's artists, entertainers, vendors during a "Virtual Main St." event, April 13-19. The virtual festival will take place within a Facebook event on Main St.'s Facebook page, as well as on its Twitter and Instagram profiles. Throughout the week, the virtual event will feature 200 of this year’s artists, sharing exclusive artwork images, interactive art tutorials, behind-the-scenes studio tours, Facebook Live takeovers from entertainers, favorite restaurant recipes, and more.

Dallas Theater Center
A video was taken of the final dress rehearsal for American Mariachi, a new work by José Cruz Gonzalez about a young woman who forms the first all-female mariachi band in the 1970s, despite disapproving relatives and going against social norms. Patrons are encouraged to pay-what-you-can — starting at $15 — to receive a link and a password to access the recording within 24 hours. Purchasers will have up to two weeks to watch the video. Dallas Theater Center is allowed to sell the video up to the original close date of April 5, 2020; after that, it will be deleted. The number of videos for sale is the same as the number of seats available throughout the run, so patrons are encouraged to buy their "tickets" soon.

Erykah Badu
The singer is performing her Quarantine Concert Series: Live From My Bedroom on Instagram, with each concert only costing a dollar to watch.

The Dallas Opera
Livestream recital of American art songs and excepts from Don Carlo with baritone Lucas Meachem and Irina Meachem on piano. On March 18 at 1 pm, soprano Jocelyn Hansen will perform a 45 min recital of musical theater songs, accompanied by pianist Emily Baltzer.

Stage West
The third play of the theater's 41st season, The Children by Lucy Kirkwood, will be streaming through Vimeo On-Demand from April 9-22. There are a limited number of seats available for $40, and season ticket holders and previously-purchased single ticket holders will receive a unique promo code via email on April 9 at 12am to enter at check-out.

Ochre House Theatre
The pioneers of the suavant guarde are streaming their most recent production, Mrs. Haggardly, for free on their YouTube channel from April 3-24.

Perot Museum of Nature and Science
Following the closing of the Origins: Fossils from the Cradle of Humankind exhibition, you can now virtually explore real fossils that belonged to two very ancient relatives: Homo naledi (a.k.a. Neo) and Australopithecus sediba (a.k.a. Karabo). Plus follow the extraordinary journey of the scientists actively working on and researching these two new fascinating species. The 360-degree tour is available here.

Fort Worth Opera
The company will host free YouTube premieres and Facebook watch parties of the operas Frida Kahlo and the Bravest Girl in the World on April 16 and 18, and Feel the Tango on April 23 and 25.

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra
It has launched a virtual performance platform, the Music Lab, that will let the community enjoy their love of music, share music from multiple sources, access educational tools, and experience unique digital programs.

Lone Star Film Festival
Watch 30 days of short films for free on executive director Chad Mathews' vlog.

Avant Chamber Ballet
360-degree world premiere video of 19th Amendment recorded on February 15, 2020, at Moody Performance Hall, spotlighting choreographer Katie Puder and composer Quinn Mason.

American Baroque Opera Company
The full-length production of La Serva Padrona by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi.

Dallas Museum of Art
Browse more than 25,000 works of art from all cultures and time periods. The museum's new contemporary art exhibition “For a Dreamer of Houses” is making its public debut as a virtual experience. It includes large-scale, immersive installations, new acquisitions, works by artists with Texas ties, and treasures from the Museum’s permanent collection — all exploring themes of home.

Meadows Museum
The museum on the SMU campus is offering digital content posted on its social media channels, including docent-led tours, explorations of the collection, and activities for families. "Color Our Collection" offers coloring book pages to download and color at home, and "Crafternoon" videos are art activities that teach a technique inspired by works at the museum.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Follow #keepthemusicgoing on Facebook to listen to DSO musicians as they play along with each other from the comfort of their own homes.

The Cliburn
The esteemed classical piano music organization has announced three new online initiatives: Cliburn Watch Party, to relive some of the best moments of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition; Cliburn Kids, music fun for little ones; and Cliburn Amateur Spotlight, performance videos submitted by the 72 amateur pianists who were accepted as competitors or festival participants. Weekly schedules will be announced each Sunday.

Lumedia Musicworks
In tandem with its live programming, Lumedia also produces music videos and short films that are presented both online and at select shows.

Thin Line Fest and Dallas VideoFest
The Denton-based multidisciplinary festival will be streaming its selection of documentaries online March 25-29, while Dallas VideoFest will host its Alternative Fiction festival April 3-5. Featuring a curated collection of over 50 documentary features and shorts, Thin Line Fest's film division will stream all screenings and Q&A sessions online. Attendees will be able to login at www.thinline.us and then choose which "theater" to stream live. The fest will still hold its Photography & Film Award Ceremony, which will be live-streamed on March 29.

Quarantined Cabaret
The Dallas-Fort Worth theater community has formed this public Facebook group, where actors, singers, and dancers can post videos of themselves performing (either previously filmed or created during the quarantine).

Union Coffee Shop Concerts
Denise Lee and Michael Bachman, owner of Cedar Springs coffee shop Union, are setting up a series of concerts to be livestreamed on StageIt.com. You set up an account, follow @DeniseLeeOnstage, and pay a small fee to watch ($10 is suggested). You can also can tip the performers.

Eastfield College
Watch the 2020 Faculty Dance Concert featuring work from program coordinator Danielle Georgiou and current faculty members Robert Alvarez, Kiera Amison, Melissa Sanderson, YeaJean Choi, and Christie Bondade. Performers include company members from the Danielle Georgiou Dance Group, Muscle Memory Dance Theatre, independent dancers from Dallas-Fort Worth and Seattle, and students from the Universidad de las Américas Puebla in Mexico.

The Classics Theatre Project
Originally planned as a livestreamed complete production of Molière's classic comedy The Imaginary Invalid, actor Van Quattro is now doing a one-man rendition on YouTube for anyone who buys a ticket. Show times are April 1-19; see website for start times.

Sammons Center for the Arts
Watch clips of the Sammons Jazz and Cabaret concerts on the center's YouTube channel.

QuaranTV
DJ Blake Ward is teaming up with the team at the Deep Ellum bar Double Wide to record concerts from local bands at the empty venue and release them as episodes. You will be able to tip through the performers' Venmo accounts. Concerts will likely begin filming on March 19; keep an eye out here for more information and lineup.

Plano Symphony Orchestra
The orchestra will broadcast several previously performed concerts starting March 28 at 8 pm and will continue every Saturday evening at 8 pm for the next five Saturdays. Patrons can tune in for free by visiting the Plano Symphony Orchestra website.

Four Day Weekend
On March 21 at 8 pm, the critically aimed comedy troupe will feature five performers in a social distance-friendly performance that will be streamed live on Facebook. All donations made here will benefit the troupe's service industry neighbors on Lowest Greenville and Sundance Square.

EarthX2020
The Earthx2020 conferences and film festival will be presented virtually from April 23-25 and into May. The 50th Earth Day Celebration will be livestreamed on April 22. The virtual experience will be layered with the EarthxFilm Festival programming, which will then be presented at the physical film festival in the fall, along with the EarthxGlobalGala.

Dallas Holocaust and Human Rights Museum
The education team has been developing digital content for families, students, and teachers that's available free of charge on the website. In addition, several upcoming speakers will be livestreamed and a virtual book club is being developed.

Irving Symphony Orchestra
Watch past performances on YouTube from your home, with the lineup changing each weekend.

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If you have a virtual concert or artwork that can be enjoyed from home during this time, email lindseyw@culturemap.com and we'll add you to the ever-growing list.

concerts symphony health comedy music dance theater video museums opera

Theater News

Dallas' Kitchen Dog Theater unveils powerful 2026-2027 season lineup

Photo by Cameron Cobb

Kitchen Dog Theater in Dallas will put on three mainstage productions for their 2026-2027 season.

Kitchen Dog Theater in Dallas has revealed the lineup for the 2026-2027 season, featuring a slate of plays that boasts power players like kings, prime ministers, space force commanders, and would-be presidents.

According to a release, the theater company's 36th season — their "most powerful yet" — will consist of three mainstage productions at its new permanent home in the Design District, as well as the annual New Works Festival, featuring a readings series and the 26th annual D-PAC PUP (Playwrights Under Progress) Fest.

The season will start with The Absentee by Julia Doolittle, running September 10-October 4, 2026. The play was the winner of the 2019-2020 Woodward/Newman Drama Award.

Far out in the Milky Way, “Beacons” serve as lighthouses for warping spaceships around the galaxy. When a U.S. Space Force ship explodes in the galaxy, the Operator finds herself alone in deep space, with only her ship’s AI for companionship. That is, until a persistent canvasser calls, desperate to convince her to vote absentee in the 2088 election.

As the Operator waits for the clean up to be over, she finds she has to come to terms with her isolation, grief, and her political voice.

The season's second production comes four months later, with Equivocation by Bill Cain, running February 4-28, 2027. In 1605 England, a terrorist plots to assassinate King James I and blow Parliament to kingdom come. Shagspeare (after a contemporary spelling of the Bard's name) is commissioned by the prime minister, to write the “true historie” of the plot. And it must have witches — the king wants witches.

But as Shag and the acting company of the Globe investigate the plot, they discover that the king's version of the story might, in fact, be a coverup. Shag and his actors are confronted with the ultimate moral and artistic dilemma. Speak truth to power and perhaps lose their heads? Or take the money and lie? Is there a third option? Equivocation?

A high-stakes political thriller with contemporary resonances, Equivocation gallops from the great Globe to the Tower of London to the halls of Parliament to the heart of Judith, Shag's younger daughter, who finds herself unexpectedly at the very heart of the political, dramatic and — ultimately — human mystery.

The final mainstage production of the season comes at the 2027 New Works Festival with Black Republican by KDT Artistic Company Member Jamal Gibran Sterling, running June 3-27, 2027.

Originally featured as a Staged Reading in the 2026 New Works Festival, the ambitious first play by Sterling centers on a Black Republican candidate on the national stage who finds his campaign threatened by an activist who challenges everything he claims to stand for. Their battle exposes uncomfortable truths about race, politics, and the stories we tell ourselves.

In addition to Black Republican, the 2027 New Works Festival will showcase four staged readings of some of the newest and most exciting Texas-based playwrights. Each reading will feature accomplished Dallas-Fort Worth actors and directors to highlight the breadth of talent in the area.

The final part of the festival is D-PAC PUP (Playwrights Under Progress) Fest, featuring six staged readings of jury-selected plays written by Dallas-Fort Worth high school students and featuring student actors directed by area professionals. PUP Fest is the culmination of Dallas Playwriting Arts Collective (D-PAC), a partnership with Dallas ISD and Junior Players.

Kitchen Dog Theater offers two season subscription packages for their inaugural season in their new facility. The Kitchen Dog package includes a ticket to all three mainstage productions for any performance date for $90+ $8 fees for adults and $75 +$8 fees for students and seniors (ages 65+). The Saver Dog package includes a ticket to all three mainstage productions for Thursdays, Fridays, and Sundays only. It is $60 + $8 fees for adults and $45 + $8 fees for students and seniors.

Both packages grant full access to the Staged Reading Series and PUP Fest. Subscribers also receive premium reserved seating for in-person performances, as well as subscriber-only discounts on additional single tickets, 2026 special events, and KDT merchandise.

Subscription packages are on sale now, and single tickets for each show will go on sale on Monday, August 24, at kitchendogtheater.org.

design district kitchen dog theater new works festival performing-arts plays theater