The yearly celebration of Dallas’ vibrant arts and culture scene is in full swing. During Dallas Arts Month there are hundreds of events to enjoy including festivals, exhibitions and performances.
To help you make the most of the month, be sure to check out the Dallas Arts Month website for a complete list of events going on around town.
Here are a few picks to get you started.
FESTIVALS
DALLAS REGGAE FESTIVAL
Where: Site of the old Valley View Mall – 13331 Preston Rd., Dallas
When: April 12-15
Cost: $40-$350
This 3-day family-friendly festival features art and jewelry vendors, Caribbean-inspired food and various artists and local reggae bands celebrating cultural equity through reggae music.
CHANGING PERSPECTIVES BLOCK PARTY
Where: Sammons Park – 2403 Flora St., Dallas
When: Saturday, April 13, 3 – 8 p.m.
Cost: Free
The Dallas Arts District hosts its annual Changing Perspectives Block Party on Saturday at Sammons Park. The free event features the vertical dance company Bandaloop, who use climbing technology to perform on the sides of buildings. The event also includes Tejano musician, Monica Saldivar, singer/songwriter Dezi 5, gourmet food trucks and a community mural.
DALLAS FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS
Where: Kidd Springs Park – 711 W. Canty St., Dallas
When: April 13 & 14, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cost: Free
This two-day fine art outdoor festival features approximately 100 painters, photographers, sculptors, metalwork, glass artists, jewelers, and, more. Visitors can also enjoy artist demonstrations, live acoustic music, festival foods, and, beverages.
DALLAS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Where: Violet Crown Cinema – 3699 McKinney Ave, Dallas
When: April 26-May 2
Cost: $10-$15 for individual films, $100-$500 for all-access passes
Cinephiles won’t want to miss the 18th annual Dallas International Film Festival. The 8-day festival features premiere screenings, documentaries, short films, filmmaker panels, and nightly red carpets. There are also events, activations and hubs where filmmakers, film professionals, celebrities and audiences can gather to enjoy and discuss film.
FESTIVAL OF JOY
Where: Klyde Warren Park – 1909 Woodall Rodgers Fwy., Dallas
When: April 27 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Cost: Free
Join the East Dallas restaurant Kalachandji’s for this annual celebration of South Asian spiritual heritage and culture, also known as Ratha Yatra or Festival of the Chariots. The event begins with a parade procession leaving at 11:30 am. Participants will pull a large, colorful chariot along Flora Street, accompanied by the singing of ancient Sanskrit mantras and the sounds of traditional musical instruments. After the procession returns to the park at 1:30 p.m., the main stage will feature music and dance performances and there will also be a variety of cultural and educational exhibits and a multi-course vegetarian feast provided by Kalachandji’s.
MUSIC
RECKLESS KELLY
Where: Longhorn Ballroom – 216 Corinth St., Dallas
When: April 12 & 13 at 8 p.m.
Cost: $42-$98
Country rock band Reckless Kelly makes a stop at Dallas this weekend for two performances at the iconic Longhorn Ballroom. This might be one of your last chances to catch the group in our area. Co-founders and brothers Willy and Cody Braun told Rolling Stone in late 2022 that the band will pare its touring schedule back to roughly 35 shows a year from 2023-35 before retiring from the road altogether.
STEWART COPELAND PERFORMS POLICE DERANGED FOR ORCHESTRA
Where: Meyerson Symphony Center – 2301 Flora St., Dallas
When: April 16 at 7:30 p.m.
Cost: tickets starting at $50
The founder and drummer of the band, The Police leads his Grammy Award-nominated show, “Police Deranged for Orchestra,” with the Meadows Symphony Orchestra. This 31st annual benefit concert supports the Meadows Impact Scholarship Fund, which provides vital financial assistance to promising Meadows undergraduate and graduate students.
D’JAM JAZZ STROLL
Where: Dallas Arts District, 2403 Flora St.
When: Saturday, April 27, 1 – 10 p.m.
Cost: Free
Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month, also known as D’JAM, shines a spotlight on all things jazz during the month of April. To commemorate its 11-year anniversary of celebrating North Texas jazz, D’JAM presents its second annual Jazz Stroll through the Dallas Arts District. The “Day of Jazz” will transform Flora Street into a Jazz Alley with participating venues.
DANCE
WORDS FOR A RESONANT SPACE
Where: Kalita Humphreys Theater – 2403 Flora St.
When: April 12 & 13 at 8 p.m.
Cost: $15-$52
Pegasus Contemporary Ballet teams up with the Writer’s Garret to present a one-of-a-kind evening of dance and poetry that speaks directly to the human experience. Featuring Dallas-based poet Lisa Huffaker with the women of Pegasus Contemporary Ballet, the production highlights the parallel power of words and movement, artfully crafted into moving, refreshing, and witty vignettes.
RISING EXCELLENCE
Where: Moody Performance Hall – 2520 Flora St.
When: April 21 & 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Cost: $45
Dallas Black Dance Theatre takes a glimpse into the future of dance with its Encore company. The show called “Rising Excellence” features innovative choreography and performances by some of the most talented emerging artists in dance.
THEATER
DIOSA
Where: Latino Cultural Center – 2600 Live Oak Blvd., Dallas
When: Through April 21
Cost: $12–$25
Cara Mía Theatre teams up with the international theatre company, Manifesto Poetico to present the play “Diosa.” The experimental physical production explores the sacred and absurd aspects of humanity, pitting corporate greed against Mother Earth and the Cosmos.
GIRL FROM THE NORTH COUNTRY
Where: The Music Hall at Fair Park – 909 1st Ave., Dallas
When: Through April 21
Cost: $7–$135
This Tony Award-winning musical reimagines 20 legendary songs by Bob Dylan including “Forever Young,” “All Along the Watchtower,” “Hurricane,” “Slow Train Coming,” and “Like A Rolling Stone.” It’s set in Duluth, Minnesota in the middle of the Great Depression and follows a group of travelers whose lives intersect in a guesthouse filled with music, life, and hope.
MURROW
Where: Hamon Hall inside the Winspear Opera House – 2403 Flora St., Dallas
When: April 11 – 21
Cost: $19–$29
The multimedia, one-man show explores the life and work of news broadcaster Edward R. Murrow. The show is both a lens to examine where we are now as a nation of media consumers, and a mirror providing reflections of much needed lessons from our modern history.
MUSEUM & GALLERY EVENTS
ART214 BIENNIAL JURIED EXHIBITION
Where: City of Dallas Cultural Centers
When: Through April 27
Cost: Free
The cornerstone of Dallas Arts Month is the ART214 Biennial showcase. The juried exhibition is a collaboration between the City of Dallas’ five cultural venues–the Latino Cultural Center, the Bath House Cultural Center, the Oak Cliff Cultural Center, Moody Performance Hall, and the South Dallas Cultural Center. Each participating venue brings its unique patrons and perspectives and highlights the talent within its community and provides artists a place to showcase their work.
WHEN YOU SEE ME: VISIBILITY IN CONTEMPORARY ART/HISTORY
Where: Dallas Museum of Art – 1717 N. Harwood, Dallas
When: Through April 12
Cost: Free
You only have until Saturday, April 12 to catch this exhibition that explores the complexities of visibility by those who have been traditionally excluded or erased. It features 60 works by a diverse, intergenerational group of artists whose works explore invisibility, hypervisibility, the desire to be seen, and the right to be private.
SARAH SZE
Where: Nasher Sculpture Center – 2001 Flora St., Dallas
When: Through Aug. 18
Cost: Free with museum admission – Adults: $5-$10, Children under 12 free
Artist Sarah Sze’s collection of new, site-specific works spans across three gallery spaces at the Nasher. Her installations integrate painting, sculpture, images, sound, and video with the surrounding architecture.
Visit Go See DFW to find more Dallas Arts Month events.
The Go See DFW calendar is a partnership between KERA and The Dallas Morning News.
Got a tip? Email Therese Powell at [email protected].
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