Dallas music fans, rock on. According to a newly published study by ticket sales platform, SeatGeek, Dallas-Fort Worth is home to the seventh-most passionate live music fan base.
The platform named the cities where people are most interested in purchasing a concert ticket when an artist they like is coming to town. The site analyzed anonymous data up to March 2018 to see which live music artists and genres people are tracking. The top 50 cities in the U.S. are included and the study referenced the 100 most popular artists on SeatGeek. (SeatGeek users can track any artist, sports team, or event and be notified when they will be coming to town ahead of time so they won't miss out on tickets.)
Big D comes in behind Oklahoma City, which ranked No. 1. Salt Lake City ranked No. 2, Denver No. 3, Las Vegas No. 4, Houston No. 5, and Los Angeles No. 6. Oklahoma City music fans track 20.8 live music events per person, while Dallasites track 19.9.
Hip-hop takes the trophy for most loved genre in the city with 45 percent of users preferring the genre, with pop coming in second (22 percent), and country coming in at 12 percent.
All 10 of Dallas' favorite artists come from the country world, despite the genre tracking among only 12 percent of SeatGeek's users. Blake Shelton (No. 2), Brad Paisley (No. 3), Tim McGraw (No. 4), and Jason Aldean (No. 5) listed as the most popular.
Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton in The Invite.
Once upon a time, well before scandal embroiled him, Woody Allen made great comedies aimed at adults. That type of film - which is different from the raunchy, R-rated comedies of the 21st century - has fallen out of favor in Hollywood, but as the new film The Invite proves, when done well it can be as funny as anything else out there.
Joe (Seth Rogen) and Angela (Olivia Wilde) are an unhappily married couple living in San Francisco. As we meet them, Joe has arrived home to Angela preparing for a visit from their upstairs neighbors, Hawk (Edward Norton) and Piña (Penélope Cruz), who have moved in relatively recently. Their impending arrival starts a new round of arguing between Joe and Angela, something they can barely contain once the other couple comes to their door.
What proceeds is a getting-to-know-you process that is mostly awkward as Joe and Angela continue sniping at each other while Hawk and Piña put in their two cents in a much calmer manner. A sticking point between the two couples - the loud sex Hawk and Piña have on an almost nightly basis - turns the film on its head with an unexpected invitation.
Directed by Wilde and written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones, the film is a fast-paced chamber piece that takes place almost entirely in Joe and Angela’s apartment. Wilde, the writers, and the actors speed the story along not with action but through almost non-stop dialogue that often has the characters overlapping each other’s lines. The rapidity of the speech fuels the humor of the situation and establishes the differing personalities of each person.
Sex is very much top of mind for each of the characters for most of the film, but the filmmakers approach the topic in such a way that it never feels salacious. Each of the characters is a rational adult who can talk about sex in a mature manner while also acknowledging their unique feelings on the matter. And it’s the discoveries each of them makes along the way that brings about the most comedy.
But, like any comedy for adults, the film also has a dramatic tilt to it, and Wilde edges the story back-and-forth between the two tones extremely well. Joe and Angela fighting is played for laughs at times, but the sadness of their relationship comes through loud and clear. Hawk and Piña are much more intimate with each other, but the funniness of their openness is juxtaposed with a depth that arises through their conversations.
In the 2020s, Rogen has managed to make the transition from goofy stoner to stoner with real acting chops. In a stacked cast, he is the one who sells every moment the best. That’s not to say that Wilde, Norton, and Cruz don’t measure up, though; each of them inhabits their respective roles magnificently. The four actors play off each other as if they had been working together for years.
While The Invite will likely play better to those who have experience with long term relationships, its insights - and occasional bawdiness - make it a comedy that can be appreciated universally. With four actors at the top of their games and a razor-sharp script made even better by some well-done improv, it proves that you don’t need to go low to get great laughs.
