Art Fair Insider's Guide

An insider's guide to the best events surrounding Dallas Art Fair 2015

Anchored by the Dallas Art Fair (April 10-12 at Fashion Industry Gallery), Dallas Arts Week has risen to a level of prominence so high sites such as Artsy.com feel compelled to devote a thousand words to its influence. (Even if they do consider our fair city’s scene “disproportionate” in its impact — we beg to disagree.)

The truth of the matter is, the high-profile happenings surrounding the fair have trickled down into the indie arts scene, and there are more must-see shows both on and off the official roster than ever before. Beyond Thursday’s Preview Gala, Friday’s MTV RE:DEFINE and Saturday’s Art Ball — and, yes, the fair itself and the major museum exhibitions — here is an easy-to-follow guide of some of the best events.

Wednesday, April 8

Available to view with a Patron Pass, the Power Station’s Die Schmutzigen Puppen Von Pommern by Jos de Gruyter and Harald Thys features oversized puppets with a distinct outsider art edge, although they are technically the descendants of an executioner family in 12th century Pomerania, in case you were curious. These Belgian artists’ deadpan works will be on view through June 12 for those who can’t make it out to Wednesday’s 7 to 9 pm opening soiree.

If there weren’t enough reasons to visit the Dallas Contemporary for Wednesday’s opening (David Salle, Nate Lowman and ArtPrize winner Anila Quayyum Agha among them), the Los Angeles-based duo Friends With You is bringing their large-scale experiential symbol of light and connectivity to the museum through Sunday. Known for their super-sweet if slightly twee canvases, sculptures and installations, Friends With You’s Light Cave is sure to put a smile on every fairgoer’s face.

Thursday, April 9

As a prelude to the much-anticipated Soluna Festival, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra hosts the musical installation de-finition/method listening to painting / looking at music by French artist Claude Rutault, beginning at 2 pm at the Meyerson Symphony Center. Rutault’s highly conceptual pieces transform the wall into the artwork, and the unveiling of this ambitious marriage between sound and vision shouldn’t be missed.

Friday, April 10

Photographer Hunter Barnes, who splits his time between rural Oregon and New York City, gets by with a little help from his friends — namely supermodel Erin Wasson and V.O.D. owner Jackie Bolin. These two have convinced their pal to bring works from his “Redneck Roundup” series to Bolin’s fashion-forward Victory Park boutique for an opening from 5 to 7 pm.

Saturday, April 11

For those that didn’t score admission to the Art Ball (or the Wasson and Bolin-hosted after party DJed by Solange), there are a few consolation prizes. The spirit of New York’s Lower East Side is taking over the Cedars, with a host of young gallerists showing envelope-pushing work.

Patrons can kick off the evening with a 5:30 champagne toast for Chivas Clem at Erin Cluley’s space on the other side of the bridge. Next, New York’s Peter Makebish has teamed up with RE Gallery’s Wanda Dye for a satellite show from 6 to 9 pm at 1505 Gano St. Houston, Dallas and New York-based artists on view include Chris Bexar, Christopher Deeton, Alika Herreshoff, Geoff Hippenstiel, Chris Kysor, Max Snow and Benjamin Terry.

RE also will unveil a temporary installation by Houston artist Falon Land Studio across from its main space. Next door, Homeland Security hosts a collaborative show with the Milwaukee-based experimental space American Fantasy Classics.

Also from 6 to 9 pm is And Now’s one-man show with paintings and sculptures from the former “bad boy of New York art” Dan Colen, who has exhibited at the Whitney, PS1 Contemporary Art Center and the Brandt Foundation Art Study Center. His beauty-is-trash aesthetic is sure to be even more impactful in And Now’s intimate space.

Finally — for anyone who can stay out that late — the evening’s after-after party, with hosts Wasson, Samantha McCurdy and David Quadrini, is taking over artist McCurdy’s That That space in Deep Ellum into the wee hours.

Sunday, April 12

If you were lucky enough to score an invite to last year’s Eye Ball at The Joule, you know that artist Tony Tasset’s iconic sculpture surrounded by the best and brightest art world denizens made for some enchanted evening. This year’s event closes out the week and promises to draw an equally stellar list of boldfaced names to see Leon Bridges and Quaker City Night Hawks perform under the stars.

Friends With You's Light Cave is on display at the Dallas Contemporary April 8-12.

Photo by Alyssa Ringler

Friends With You's Light Cave is on display at the Dallas Contemporary April 8-12.

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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