Theater Critic Picks

These are the 10 can't-miss shows in Dallas-Fort Worth theater for September

The State Fair of Texas doesn't begin until September 29, so that leaves your September free to catch up on all the new shows opening in Dallas and Fort Worth. Fill your mind and soul with culture before it's time to fill your belly with Corny Dogs and Funnel Cake Bacon Queso Burgers.

Here are the 10 shows to see, in order by start date:

So Go the Ghost of Mexico, Part Two
Undermain Theatre, September 6-October 1
Matthew Paul Olmos' new work, the second play in a three-part trilogy, focuses on two warring gangs undergoing a power shift. But here's the twist: it's all women. Stephanie Cleghorn Jasso returns after starring in part one last year, though this story doesn't focus on her previous character, a 20-year-old criminology student who became police chief of a small town in Chihuahua.

Cedar Springs or Big Scary Animals
Theatre Three, September 7-October 1
Artistic director Jeffrey Schmidt promised that Theatre Three would devote more resources to nurturing new work from local artists this season, and first up is a new work from Matt Lyle. It centers on an older white couple from the country that unknowingly moves to "the gayborhood" to be closer to their granddaughter in Dallas.

Ruined
Echo Theatre, September 8-23
Dallas favorites Denise Lee and Tyrees Allen star in this Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Lynn Nottage, which follows bar owner Mama Nadi as she gives three young women refuge and an unsavory means of survival in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Casa Mañana, September 9-17
Dallas native Olivia Sharber, who later performed as a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader and danced in the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes, made her Casa debut in Joseph in 2010. Now she returns — along with DFW performers Alexandra Cassens, Emmie Kivell, Jacob Rivera-Sanchez, Michael Anthony Sylvester, and Seth Womack — in this dramatized parable of (you guessed it) Joseph and his dazzling coat of many colors.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Performing Arts Fort Worth, September 12-17
This bio-musical makes extensive use of Carole King's song catalog, telling the story of the songwriter and performer's early life in jukebox fashion. Chilina Kennedy plays the iconic King, who penned such hits as "One Fine Day," "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," and "(You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman."

Fun Home
AT&T Performing Arts Center Broadway Series, September 13-24
The Tony Award-winner for best musical in 2015 is based on Alison Bechdel’s bestselling graphic memoir, and explores her complicated family relationships and sexual self-discovery. Former Miss America Kate Shindle stars as Alison, and if you're lucky you might see former DFW performer Anthony Fortino, who's touring with the show as an understudy.

In the Tall Grass
TeCo Theatrical Productions, September 14-24
Incredibly timely and still terribly sad, Paul Kalburgi's play was written in response to the murder of Shade Schuler, a 22-year-old transgender woman whose decomposed body was found dumped in a field in the Medical District of Dallas in July 2015. It's told through verbatim first-hand testimonies of transgender women of color in Dallas. This replaces the PlayPride LGBT Competition, which will return in 2018.

Deferred Action
Cara Mía Theatre Co., September 14-29
Cara Mía's 2016 collaboration with Dallas Theater Center gets another life on tour, traveling first to Southern Methodist University (September 14-17), then University of North Texas in Denton (September 21-23), and then to Cara Mía's home at the Latino Cultural Center (September 27-29). The powerful play sheds light on the reception immigrants receive when entering and living in America, focusing here on one man's experience as he grows up undocumented.

Titus Andronicus
Shakespeare Dallas, September 20-October 15
Believed to be Shakespeare's first tragedy, this violent tale follows Titus (played by executive director Raphael Parry), a general in the Roman army who is engaged in a cycle of revenge with Tamora, Queen of the Goths. A warning: Don't bring a pie as part of your al fresco picnic at the Samuel Grand Amphitheatre.

Hair
Dallas Theater Center, September 22-October 22
Beanbags. Sandwiches. A slide in the Wyly Theatre. A bunch of nude hippies. Kevin Moriarty's immersive staging of this groundbreaking rock musical brings the Age of Aquarius into the 21st century, when the themes of peace, love, and freedom are more relevant than ever.

Shakespeare Dallas is staging Shakespeare's bloodiest play, Titus Andronicus.

Shakespeare Dallas presents Titus Adronicus

Photo by Jessica Helton

Shakespeare Dallas is staging Shakespeare's bloodiest play, Titus Andronicus.

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Dance Off

Texas ballet company turns Timothée Chalamet dig into genius promotion

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It was a shot fired from Austin that rang out around the art world: In a recent CNN/Variety Town Hall featuring actors Timothée Chalamet and Matthew McConaughey, Chalamet offered an assessment of ballet and opera that immediately went viral.

During the onstage conversation at the University of Texas at Austin, Chalamet said, "I don't want to be working in ballet or opera, or you know, things where it's like, 'hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this anymore.' All respect to the ballet and opera people out there. I just lost 14 cents in viewership."

Chalamet immediately seemed to experience a twinge of regret, awkwardly adding, "But um...damn, I just took shots for no reason." He also sang a note and hid his face behind the cards he was holding.

Stars of the art forms, from Andrea Bocelli to Misty Copeland, immediately began to leap (jeté, if you will) to the the defense of opera and ballet.

In a genius marketing move, Austin's hometown ballet company is taking the unique opportunity to turn a hot topic into a promotion for its next production: Ballet Austin is inviting anyone named Timothée, Timothee, or Timothy to claim a free ticket to its upcoming world premiere of Marie Antoinette: Vampire Queen of Versailles, running March 27-29 at the Long Center for the Performing Arts.

"Timothée… you were in Austin? We were literally down the street," a Ballet Austin post says. "Austin has brisket. Austin has music. Austin also has ballet."

All Timothées and folks with similar names will have to do to claim a ticket is send a message to Ballet Austin on social media and show identification. Everyone else who wants to see the supernatural show where "the line between victim and villain blurs" will have to purchase a ticket ($25-$125) at balletaustin.org.

Ballet Austin Marie Antoinette: Vampire Queen of Versailles Ballet Austin isn't afraid to add some edge to classic stories. Photo courtesy of Ballet Austin

Even if Chalamet's words were dismissive, he's obviously not wrong about the relative distribution of public interest between the classical arts and major films like Marty Supreme, the late 2025 film he stars in and is busy promoting. The film's commercially successful release set a record for A24, an already renowned studio.

Chalamet brought up ballet and opera in service of a larger point about pacing in movies. He said he exists in a middle ground as a consumer between wanting to be drawn in early and being more patient as a film progresses. Ultimately, he juxtaposed Barbie and Oppenheimer with the classical arts, pointing out that if the masses want to go see a film, they will "be loud and proud about it" organically, without needing performers to advocate for the seriousness of the art form.

Coincidentally, there couldn't be a better counterpoint to this argument than Marie Antoinette: Vampire Queen of Versailles.

As the title suggests, the story follows historical figure Marie Antoinette as she chooses to become a vampire, seeking "power, immortality, and vengeance," according to a press release. It takes a somewhat silly premise and gives it dramatic gravitas, with an original score by Austin composer Graham Reynolds, who is known outside of classical circles and sometimes composes for movie soundtracks.

"For Ballet Austin, the moment is an opportunity to remind audiences that ballet isn’t fading away," says a release about the new promotion. "It’s evolving, drawing new audiences and continuing to thrive in creative cities like Austin."

If Chalamet really does fall in the middle of instant and delayed artistic gratification, this sounds like the perfect production to draw him in.

And perhaps Ballet Austin should add people named Matthew to their promotion, since McConaughey threw the younger star a bone after his momentary walk-back, saying, "That's not a shot — I hear what you're saying."

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Stephanie Allmon Merry contributed to this story.

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