The Arts District gets lit up like a Lite-Brite tonight.
Friday
If you wander anywhere from St. Paul Street to One Arts Plaza, you can’t miss Aurora, the public art project and light festival. Some 86 new, temporary pieces will pop up throughout the Arts District and Klyde Warren Park. Here’s an interactive map to guide you through the all the Aurora installations, and here is a complete list of artists and works. Don’t forget to look up—the projection on the facade of the Wyly Theatre should be something special.
In addition to the installations, the museums will all be open late. The Nasher’s ‘Til Midnight event offers musical performances by Somebody’s Darling and Alpha Rev in the Nasher’s garden. In addition to a lecture from visually impaired artist Stephen Lapthisophon, whose exhibit opens in a little more than a week, the Dallas Museum of Art hosts A.Dd+, the rap-hip hop duo at 10 p.m., and DJ Yeahdef in the galleries a1t 1 p.m. The Crow Collection has light-themed activities, such as lantern making and photos with the new Buddha sculpture on Flora Street. (Buddha means, of course, “enlightened one.”
A short hop away in Deep Ellum, the second incarnation of Index Festival kicks off two days of music across nine stages. Tonight’s headliner is Andrew Bird, and you can see a full schedule of what band (there are more than 60) is playing where right here. Tomorrow night is Girl Talk.
Saturday
Oh, you want MOAR FESTIVALS? Okay. The Lamar Street Festival engages in a little friendly Index competition with a big Cedars neighborhood celebration recognizing 100 years of the historic South Side on Lamar building. Erykah Badu, The Relatives and Home by Hovercraft, perform while some of the local establishments, such as Lee Harvey’s, Off the Bone, The Cedars Social, and Circle Tavern, will show off their wares. The one thing to note: tickets are only five bucks, but it’s all cash only. They’ll have ATMs, but I like knowing these things before I show up.
If you can tear yourself away from all this festing, you should go see Clybourne Park at the Dallas Theater Center Saturday night. (See A Raisin in the Sun, too, when you can.) Clybourne Park is the Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play that extrapolates events in 1959 that directly affect the black family in Raisin and imagines what happens 50 years later. You don’t necessarily need to know the plot of Lorraine Hansberry’s play, but it helps. Still, Clybourne is funny, tense, and tragic; an uncomfortable, yet not altogether unpleasant weight on your heart that lifts a little with every shocked spurt of laughter. It’s also very, very good, thanks to the direction of Associate Artistic Director Joel Ferrell and a sharp, strong cast made up almost entirely of the theater’s company members (with help from excellent alum Sally Nystuen-Vahle and Allison Pistorius).
Finally, singer-songwriter-turned-icon Boy George is spinning at It’ll Do. You will dance. Cover is $25, and you can buy a ticket online in advance.
P.S. If you missed the boat on actually attending TEDxSMU (the day-long symposium is sold out), you can catch the livestream.
Sunday
Sad vegetarian fairgoers, rejoice. The Texas State Vegggie Fair at Reverchon Park offers all things fried and fatty. Highlights include plenty of vegetarian and vegan cuisine (including corny dogs), a beer garden, a farmer’s market, live music, and fun activities for kids. Erykah Badu will give a keynote speech, plus DJ a set. Furry friends are welcome, too.
Finally, if you noticed that the city getting more artful over the past few months, it’s finally time to unveil all ten of the Nasher’s 10th anniversary commissions. Celebrate the museum’s citywide public art initiative, Nasher XChange, on Sunday with a full day of special programming at the Nasher. Activities include yoga, photobooths, free coffee, free Coolhaus ice cream sandwiches, and a panel discussion featuring our own arts editor Peter Simek. Admission is free.
For more to do tonight, go here.
