Events News

The latest event cancellations in Dallas-Fort Worth due to coronavirus concerns

Shakespeare in the Park presents A Midsummer Night's Dream

Shakespeare Dallas' Shakespeare in the Park, scheduled June 10-July 19, has been canceled.

Photo courtesy of Shakespeare Dallas

As concerns regarding the spread of the coronavirus and government restrictions on group gatherings continue, more event cancellations and postponements are being announced every day in Dallas-Fort Worth. In an effort to keep you as up-to-date as possible, we'll compile a list of different announcements every week.

Note: Given the pace at which things are happening during these times, cancellations are coming at a rapid clip. To be sure you're up to speed, you may want to check with the presenting organization or venue regarding the status of any particular event.

Dallas

Dallas Summer Musicals: The production of Jesus Christ Superstar, scheduled for April 28-May 10, has been postponed to an undetermined date.
Etsy Dallas Spring Bash: The maker event, scheduled for May 2 at Gilley's Dallas, has been canceled.
Shakespeare in the Park: The annual summer productions by Shakespeare Dallas, scheduled for June 10-July 19 at Samuell-Grand Amphitheater, have been canceled.
The HiFi Dallas: The new music venue in the Dallas Design District, scheduled to open on May 15 with a concert by Blue October, has postponed all events through at least May 30. As of now, the concert by Hayley Williams on June 5 will be its debut event.

Grand Prairie

98.7 KLUV presents Rewind featuring Blondie, Berlin, and more: This concert, scheduled for May 20 at The Theatre at Grand Prairie, has been canceled.
Elevation Nights with Elevation Worship and Pastor Steven Furtick: This concert, scheduled for May 28 at The Theatre at Grand Prairie, has been canceled.
Lonestar Landfest: The music festival scheduled for May 30 and 31 at The Theatre at Grand Prairie, which was to have featured Allison Krauss, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and more, has been postponed to an undetermined date.
The Monkees: This concert, originally April 16, has been rescheduled for July 25.

Fort Worth

Billy Bob's Texas: The music venue has rescheduled a number of postponed and forthcoming concerts, including Shane Smith & The Saints (now June 5), Easton Corbin (June 19), Robert Earl Keen (June 20), Roger Creager (July 17), Gary Allan (was May 23, now August 1), Drake White & The Big Fire (was May 22, now August 14), Tracy Byrd (was May 1, now August 21), Sammy Kershaw (September 11), Justin Moore (September 26), Lonestar (October 30), Josh Ward (November 13), Colter Wall (November 19), Stoney Larue (December 5), and Flatland Cavalry (December 26).
Carole Bufford - Come Together: When the '60s Meet the '70s: This cabaret production, scheduled for April 28-May 2 in the Reid Cabaret Theatre at Casa Mañana, has been rescheduled for October 6-10.
El Fuerte Taco Fest: The taco and music festival, scheduled for May 2 at Panther Island Pavilion, has been canceled.
Fort Worth Camera presents Foto Fest: This annual event celebrating photography and cameras, scheduled for May 1-8 at various venues in Fort Worth, has been rescheduled for October 9-18.
Fortress Festival: The annual music festival at Will Rogers Memorial Coliseum, which had previously postponed its event on April 25 and 26, has been rescheduled for April 24-25, 2021, with most of the announced artists still participating.
Stage West Theatre: The theater company has canceled its production of Church & State, scheduled for May 7-June 7.
Texas Motor Speedway: Changesto events through the end of May at the car racing venue include Pate Swap Meet (originally April 30-May 2, rescheduled for October 1-4), American Flat Track Texas Half-Mile (scheduled for May 2, now canceled), Ducks Unlimited Expo (scheduled for May 15-17, postponed until 2021), Lone Star Corvette Classic (scheduled May 22-24, now canceled), and the Classic Parts of America C10 Nationals (originally May 28-30, now August 14 and 15).

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Wicked News

Wizard of Oz ruby slippers bought by mystery bidder for $28 million

Heritage Auctions

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A pair of iconic ruby slippers that were worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz and stolen from a museum nearly two decades ago sold for a winning bid of $28 million at auction on December 7.

Dallas-based Heritage Auctions had estimated that they would fetch $3 million or more, but the fast-paced bidding far outpaced that amount within seconds and tripled it within minutes. A few bidders making offers by phone volleyed back and forth for 15 minutes as the price climbed to the final, eye-popping sum.

Including the auction house fee, the unknown buyer will ultimately pay $32.5 million.

Online bidding, which opened last month, had stood at $1.55 million before live bidding began late Saturday afternoon.

The sparkly red heels were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005 when Terry Jon Martin used a hammer to smash the glass of the museum’s door and display case. Their whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered them in 2018.

Martin, now 77, who lives near Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota, wasn’t publicly exposed as the thief until he was indicted in May 2023. He pleaded guilty in October 2023. He was in a wheelchair and on supplementary oxygen when he was sentenced last January to time served because of his poor health.

The shoes were returned in February to memorabilia collector Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum. They were one of several pairs that Garland wore during the filming, but only four pairs are known to have survived. In the movie, to return from Oz to Kansas, Dorothy had to click her heels three times and repeat, “There’s no place like home.”

As Rhys Thomas, author of The Ruby Slippers of Oz, put it, the sequined shoes from the beloved 1939 musical have seen “more twists and turns than the Yellow Brick Road.”

Over 800 people had been tracking the slippers, and the company’s webpage for the auction had hit nearly 43,000 page views by Thursday, said Robert Wilonsky, a vice president with the auction house.

Among those bidding to bring the slippers home was the Judy Garland Museum, which posted on Facebook shortly after that it did not place the winning bid. The museum had campaigned for donations to supplement money raised by the city of Grand Rapids at its annual Judy Garland festival and the $100,000 set aside this year by Minnesota lawmakers to help the museum purchase the slippers.

After the slippers sold, the auctioneer told bidders and spectators in the room and watching online that the previous record for a piece of entertainment memorabilia was $5.52 million, for the white dress Marilyn Monroe famously wore atop a windy subway grate.

The auction also included other memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz, such as a hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who played the original Wicked Witch of the West. That item went for $2.4 million, or a total final cost to the buyer of $2.93 million.

The Wizard of Oz story has gained new attention in recent weeks with the release of the movieWicked, an adaptation of the megahit Broadway musical, a prequel of sorts that reimagines the character of the Wicked Witch of the West.

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