Local Legend Lost

Renowned Dallas choreographer Bruce Wood dies at 53

Renowned Dallas choreographer Bruce Wood has died of heart failure at age 53.

Bruce Wood Dance Project/Facebook

Bruce Wood, founder of the Dallas-based Bruce Wood Dance Project, has died at the age of 53. Wood passed away unexpectedly on Wednesday, May 28. He died of heart failure after developing complications from a bout with pneumonia.

Wood's passing comes just two weeks before the Bruce Wood Dance Project starts its fourth season with Touch at Dallas City Performance Hall. The performances, taking place on June 12 and 13, will go on as scheduled.

During his 16-year career as a choreographer, Wood created nearly 80 works for both the Bruce Wood Dance Company, which ended in 2007, and the Bruce Wood Dance Project. He had works commissioned by local institutions like Dallas Black Dance Theatre, Texas Ballet Theater, Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing & Visual Arts, and Southern Methodist University.

The Fort Worth native studied at the School of American Ballet under George Balanchine and went on to perform with New York City Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Les Ballet Jazz des Montreal and the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company.

Another major project Wood had on his docket at the time of his death was a collaboration with Dallas Theater Center for its upcoming Colossal during the 2014-2015 season. In a statement, Kevin Moriarty, artistic director for DTC, lamented the loss of Wood:

All of us at Dallas Theater Center are heartbroken by the news of Bruce Wood’s passing. Bruce was one of North Texas’ leading creative artists. The depth of emotion he brought to his choreographic work was matched by his immense technical skill and compositional brilliance. He was a great source of inspiration for audiences and artists alike and he elevated the artistic life of our community.

DTC audiences were greatly looking forward to Bruce’s debut at Dallas Theater Center next season, when he was scheduled to choreograph Colossal. Personally, I am devastated by this loss to our community and filled with deep sorrow that I will not be able to enter into a rehearsal room with Bruce to learn from him and be inspired by his intensity, passion, artistry and vision. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Bruce’s family and many friends in this time of mourning.

Wood is survived by his mother and two siblings. His family requests that anyone wishing to honor his memory donate money to the Bruce Wood Dance Project in lieu of flowers.

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Turning the Page

Indie bookstore to open in Grapevine with coffee and wine

Talking Animals

Talking Animals Books and cozy velvet chair.

A new independent bookstore is opening in Grapevine from a familiar name: Talking Animals Books, which which owners Valerie Walizadeh and Katy Lemieux opened in 2023 at 103 W. Worth St., is spinning off a second, bigger, more ambitious location this fall.

The offshoot will be at 909 S. Main St. in historic downtown Grapevine, in the “The 925” mixed-use development — taking over the space that was previously OG Cellars Winery on Main, which closed in June 2025.

The new location, which is about 2,800 square feet, will not only sell books but will also house a full-service coffee bar, wine tasting room, and event space. The original shop will remain open.

“We’ve grown alongside our readers,” Walizadeh says. “This new location is more than just a bookstore; it’s a place to gather, explore ideas, and now we can enjoy coffee and wine while surrounded by stories."

The coffee bar will serve espresso, teas, and pastries. The wine tasting offering will continue the legacy left by the previous tenant, Lemieux says.

"It'll include a mix of Texas wines, domestic cabernet, red blends, Oregon and Washington pinot noir, my favorite," Lemieux says. "Of course, a banger Prosecco and Pinot Grigio. I'm lucky that my brother-in-law is an elite wine distributor and can help us pull together a great mix of wines, by the glass and bottle, you may not find everywhere."

Lemieux says they will be serving wine, coffee, and other caffeinated drinks, like recharger iced energy drinks.

"Valerie went to the Texas Coffee School's 3 day seminar this weekend and got hardcore into the specifics of opening a coffee shop, so we are hitting the ground running," Lemieux says.

The larger space will allow for increased seating for author talks, book clubs, live music, and community gatherings. And there will be all the fiction, nonfiction, children’s books, and titles by local authors that TAB fans have been enjoying for the past two years.

The original TAB went from the page to real life thanks to a Kickstarter campaign in 2022, where more than 350 donors raised $54,000 in less than two months.

They're once again taking that same approach, shooting for $100,000 through another Kickstarter campaign.

"We’re inviting our community once again to help us write the next chapter," Walizadeh says. "We are growing thanks to them!”

They're hoping to do a soft opening in October, with owners hinting at a ticketed event and movie screening for the 20th anniversary of the 2008 film Twilight.

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