Events News

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

The annual Dallas Art Fair, which had been rescheduled to October 1-4, has been canceled. It will return in 2021.

Photo by Mei-Chun Jau

As concerns regarding the spread of the coronavirus and government restrictions on group gatherings continue, more event cancellations, postponements, and reschedulings 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.

New in-person and virtual events are on the uptick, so we may be able to occasionally present the regular weekly events roundup. Still, 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 Art Fair: The annual large-scale art show, which had been postponed from April 16-18 to October 1-4, has now been canceled. It will return April 15-18, 2021.
Dallas Symphony Orchestra: The orchestra announced a reduced 2020-2021 season, postponing, cancelling, or rescheduling multiple concerts. There are now only 15 scheduled concerts in fall 2020, with the spring 2021 schedule to be determined at a later date.
Girls Gotta Eat: This live performance of the popular podcast, scheduled for September 10 at Majestic Theatre, has been postponed to an undetermined date.
The Kessler: The concert venue has rescheduled a number of concerts, including Bob Schneider (was August 7, now May 14, 2021), James McMurtry (was August 13, now June 4, 2021), and The Polyphonic Spree: Jukebox Jamboree (was August 21-22, now February 27-28). They have also postponed Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (August 15) to an undetermined date.
The Last Podcast on the Left: This live performance of the popular podcast, scheduled for August 24 at Majestic Theatre, has been rescheduled for June 4, 2021.
The Read Live: This live performance of the popular podcast, scheduled for September 5 at Majestic Theatre, has been canceled.
Undermain Theatre: The theater company has canceled all live performances through the end of 2020, which includes Athena (September 9-October 4) and Hedda Gabler (November 11-29). At this time, it has not been announced if those productions will be rescheduled. In lieu of live performances, Undermain will present multiple streaming series, including In Concert Undermain (featuring music performances), Archives Undermain (revisiting previous live productions, starting with the 2014 production of We Are Proud to Present a Presentation... by Jackie Sibblies Drury), and Virtual Undermain (new streaming-only productions).

Fort Worth

Billy Bob's Texas: While the music venue has postponed two more concerts, including Gretchen Wilson (August 7) and Drake White & The Big Fire (August 14), they have plans to open up under restaurant guidelines starting August 14 with a concert by The Bellamy Brothers (who moved up their scheduled December 4 date). Upcoming concerts will be limited to 1,200 tickets, although that could change given the circumstances.
Chamber Music Society of Fort Worth: The classical music group has canceled the first three concerts of its 2020-2021 season, scheduled for September 12, October 10, and November 21 at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. The five concerts in 2021 are still scheduled, and the group is finalizing plans for three live-streamed concert performances by local artists.
Fort Worth Opera: The arts group has officially canceled its annual McCammon Voice Competition, originally scheduled for April 3 and 4. In lieu of the prizes the competitors could have won, each of the 30 semi-finalists will be given a grant of $300 to provide some financial relief during these challenging times.
Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra: The symphony has postponed a number of events in its 2020-2021 season, including Wild Wild West (September 12), Legends: The Paul Simon Songbook (September 25-27), Audra McDonald (November 6), The Music of John Williams (November 13-15), The Snowman (November 21), Handel's Messiah (December 4-6), and America's Wonders (January 2, 2021). Other programs throughout the season have been adjusted for content, performers, dates, and times.
Hip Pocket Theatre: After cancelling most of its season in June, the theater company has now postponed its final production, The Slam Bang Story of Icky Twerp (scheduled September 11-27), to September 10-26, 2021. Each of the other productions planned for 2020 will now take place in 2021, as well.
The Killers: This concert, scheduled for September 11 at Dickies Arena, has been postponed to an undetermined date.
Water Lantern Festival: This event, which had been postponed from April 4 to November 7, has been canceled. The event will return for its annual visit sometime in 2021.

Grand Prairie

Iliza Shlesinger: The Forever Tour: The appearance by the comedian, scheduled for August 21 at The Theatre at Grand Prairie, has been rescheduled for September 18, 2021.

Lewisville

Kelly Willis and Jamie Lin Wilson Song Swap: This concert, scheduled for August 9 at MCL Grand Theater, has been postponed to an undetermined date in spring 2021.

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Movie Review

Great acting and directing drive The Christophers to artistic heights

Photo by Claudette Barius

Michaela Coel and Ian McKellen in The Christophers.

Director Steven Soderbergh is one of those filmmakers who — aside from the Ocean’s series — never seems to make the same kind of movie twice. He is somehow able to adapt his abilities to all sorts of different stories, making each of them as compelling as any other. His latest masterclass is in the London-set film, The Christophers.

Lori Butler (Michaela Coel), who restores art for a living, is approached by brother and sister Sallie and Barnaby Sklar (Jessica Gunning and James Corden) with a scheme. They want her to become the new assistant for their aging father, Julian (Ian McKellen), a famous artist known for a series called “The Christophers,” in order to gain access to unfinished paintings from the series and complete them herself.

Lori accepts the deal despite having some uneasy feelings about Julian, with whom she had a bad interaction years ago. Julian is just as wary, both because he knows of his children’s interest in the unfinished works, and because he would prefer to be left in peace. Although the trepidation on both sides continues for the bulk of the story, a grudging respect arises between two artists who know skill when they see it.

Directed by Soderbergh and written by Ed Solomon, who last collaborated on No Sudden Move, the film is astonishing in its ability to be compelling with such a small story. Much of the film is spent inside Julian’s multi-story home as Julian and Lori have low-level confrontations about a variety of things, including the meaning of his art, her abilities, the fate of the remaining “Christophers,” and more. Each conversation brings out more detail about their worldviews and their thoughts about their lot in life.

Much of the success of the film lies in the performances of McKellen and Coel. The 86-year-old McKellen has not lost his ability to astonish with the spoken word, and the monologues he delivers are engrossing even when they’re about mundane things. Coel, best known for the 2020 HBO show I May Destroy You, is a great foil for McKellen, never backing down from his challenges and giving her own unique takes on her lines.

While the film can be enjoyable for non-art lovers, those who appreciate the vagaries of the art world will have a lot to chew on. Soderbergh and Solomon debate a lot of aspects of art, including whether it’s possible to separate the art from the person making it, why some art is valued more than others, the ethics of forgery, and more. Because the film is about a fictional artist, it gives the filmmakers a bit more freedom in their criticisms.

Aside from McKellen and Coel, Gunning (Baby Reindeer) and Corden are the only other two people who get significant screen time in the film. Both of them are, let’s say, acquired tastes, and each gives an elevated performance that matches the energy of their respective characters. Tilly Botsford makes a nice impression in a small role as Julian’s masseuse.

Soderbergh’s last three films — Presence, Black Bag, and now The Christophers — have nothing in common other than the expert filmmaker helming all of them. When you can make a ghost story, a spy film, and a small film about artists equally interesting, you know you’re doing something right.

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The Christophers is now playing in theaters.

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