Theater Critic Picks

Spooky thrills and clever comedy take over Dallas stages in October

Lyric Stage presents "The Rocky Horror Show."

Photo courtesy of Lyric Stage

October is here and it's spooky season onstage, with productions that include the cult classic Rocky Horror Show, The Addams Family, a piece inspired by Alfred Hitchcock, and a play about the trading of Luka Doncic away from the Mavericks — that's the scariest of all!

Here are 12 shows appearing in Dallas-Fort Worth theaters in September, listed in order of start date:

Latinidades Festival
Cara Mia Theatre, October 2-12
Dallas’s largest international Latino theatre festival is back for its sixth year with six mainstage productions and various second-stage performances spanning theater, dance, music, and poetry to highlight diverse Latin American voices. Also returning is the Arts Symposium: "How Our Arts Will Thrive in Times of Change." For a full schedule of events, go to the festival website.

cleaVage
MusicalWriters.com Productions & Lakeside Community Theatre, October 3-18
It's the world premiere of this a laugh-out-loud new musical comedy about the rise, fall, and rebound of silicone gel breast implants. Conceived by Dallas plastic surgeon Dr. Ron Friedman and co-written with Laura Goodenow, cleaVage has been described as “Hamilton with breasts” by Texas Monthly.

Noises Off
Dallas Theater Company, October 3-26
Michael Frayn’s uproarious classic British comedy is a play-within-a-play that plunges the audience into the chaotic world of Nothing’s On, a fictional touring production tormented by backstage romances and onstage blunders. From flubbed lines to slamming doors, witness the hilarious unraveling of a troupe of eccentric actors.

King Hedley II
Soul Rep Theatre Company & Bishop Arts Theatre Center, October 9-26
Set in 1985 Pittsburgh, August Wilson's King Hedley II follows an ex-convict's fight to rebuild his life and reclaim his future amid hardship, hope, and the weight of the past.

Mac Beth
Circle Theatre, October 9-November 1
After school‭, ‬seven teenage girls convene in an abandoned lot‭. ‬They drop their backpacks‭, ‬transform their uniforms‭, ‬and dive into a DIY retelling of Macbeth‭. As the girls conjure‭ ‬kings‭, ‬warriors‭, ‬and witches‭, ‬Shakespeare’s bloody tale seeps into their reality‭.

The Trade: A Tragedy in Four Quarters
Theatre Three, October 9-November 2
In this fast-paced, highly unauthorized, foam middle-fingered satire, the Dallas Mavericks are on the brink of greatness — so naturally, Nico slams the self-destruct button. With a Greek chorus narrating the tragic downfall, a Kiss Cam, “Luka Doncic,” “Mark Cuban,” and a cameo from “Anthony Davis’ Hernia,” The Trade skewers the madness behind the moves, the myth that millionaires and billionaires must know what they’re doing, and the heartbreak of loving something that doesn’t love you back. In Dallas, tragedy wears Nikes.

The Rocky Horror Show
Lyric Stage, October 10-26
In this cult classic, sweethearts Brad and Janet, stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named “Rocky.” Complete with sass from the audience, cascading toilet paper, and an array of other audience participation props, this deliberately kitschy rock ’n’ roll sci-fi gothic musical is more fun than ever.

Incarnate
Second Thought Theatre, October 15-November 1
Incarnate, by STT’s own Parker Davis Gray, is a horror/thriller that follows two artists over the course of a year in their seemingly pointless pursuit of creation while suffering under great grief. Trapped in her cell, Rosamund is hellbent on escaping her fate while the Man who kidnapped her struggles with the consequences of what grief can do, and how far he will go to escape it. Can they live with themselves? Or, more importantly, who else is living with them?

Ride the Cyclone
Stage West, October 16-November 2
In this critically acclaimed cult musical, a freak roller coaster accident derails the lives of the entire St. Cassian High School chamber choir. Now dead, trapped in carnival limbo, they’re greeted by a mechanical fortune teller who proposes a talent show. The prize? One lucky winner will return to life.

The Birds
Amphibian Stage, October 17-November 9
Based on Daphne du Maurier’s story (the inspiration for Hitchcock’s famous film), The Birds brings a chilling and suspenseful look at human nature in the face of societal collapse. When killer birds start attacking, three strangers seek shelter in an isolated house. But as paranoia creeps in, they realize the biggest threat might not be coming from outside.

The Addams Family
Broadway at the Bass, October 24-26
Wednesday Addams, the ultimate princess of darkness, has grown up and fallen in love with a sweet, smart young man from a respectable family. A man her parents have never met. And if that weren’t upsetting enough, she confides in her father and begs him not to tell her mother. Now, Gomez Addams must do something he’s never done before: keep a secret from his beloved wife, Morticia. Everything will change for the whole family on the fateful night they host a dinner for Wednesday’s “normal” boyfriend and his parents.

A Beautiful Noise: The Neil Diamond Musical
Broadway at the Bass, October 28-November 2
This is the untold true story of a Brooklyn kid who became a chart-busting, show-stopping, award-winning American icon, created in collaboration with Neil Diamond himself.

musicals national tour plays rocky horror show noises off dallas theater center theatre three the addams family luka doncic theater

Arts News

Dallas Theater Center and AT&T PAC to join forces in proposed merger

Photo by Iwan Baan

undefined

Two of the most prominent arts groups in Dallas, AT&T Performing Arts Center and Dallas Theater Center, are exploring a merger that they say would expand theater programming, arts education, and support for local artists while keeping both institutions' artistic identities intact.

According to a July 28 release, the two organizations plan to combine under a single umbrella, pending approval from both boards and the completion of a due diligence process. If approved, the combined organization is expected to officially launch at the beginning of 2027.

At the core of uniting AT&T PAC and DTC, both say, is a desire to create more programming for more people, expanded education opportunities for more students, sustained support for local artists, and keep Dallas' status as a great performing arts city.

“By coming together, we are able to achieve much more than either of us could do on our own,” says Kevin Moriarty, Dallas Theater Center Executive Director, in the release. “Not only will this innovative model benefit our audiences, artists, students and our city, it also strengthens and expands our combined ability to meet the opportunities and challenges of the future.”

Under the proposal, AT&T Performing Arts Center president and CEO Warren Tranquada would lead the unified organization, while Dallas Theater Center would continue producing its own theatrical programming under Enloe/Rose Artistic Director Jaime Castañeda.

AT&T PAC will continue presenting their own performances, including touring Broadway and its Elevator Project.

Crucially, the organizations say, audiences will experience no interruption to performances, subscriptions, memberships, or programming during the transition.

Together, AT&T PAC and DTC will build on their programs, including student matinee performances and after-school/summer theater programs to backstage tech training, dance engagement, leadership training, and community workshops, their leaders say.

"The performing arts industry has been undergoing profound systemic change nationwide,” says Tranquada. “Stagnation is not an option. Two major Dallas institutions are coming together in a proactive way to write our future, creating a new artistic and business model that can set the stage for strength and sustainability in North Texas and beyond.”

The merger would combine administrative operations including finance, marketing, fundraising, human resources, and ticketing under the AT&T PAC umbrella.

They say that aligning resources and expertise will expand access to the performing arts, with a long-term goal of ensuring every student in North Texas experiences live theater as part of their education. The merger will bring more ticketing options, they say, such as personalized packages across multiple art forms, more flexible exchanges, and new membership opportunities.

The proposal is now entering a due diligence and fundraising phase that is expected to continue through the summer and fall before the boards vote on the combination, they say.

The announcement comes on the heels of the hiring of Ahava Silkey-Jones as new executive director of the Dallas Arts District.

Both Dallas Theater Center and AT&T Performing Arts Center had previously announced their 2026-2027 seasons, with DTC staging six new productions and AT&T PAC hosting seven Broadway shows, among many other programs.

The organizations have worked together since the AT&T Performing Arts Center opened in 2009, with Dallas Theater Center serving as one of its five resident companies and performing at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre. According to the release, DTC will continue operating the historic Kalita Humphreys Theater under its existing agreement with the City of Dallas.

mergers theater performing-arts