Audience to be amazed by JD Miller’s LIVE Painting Performance

Celebrity host Linda Gray

This year’s Girls Party fundraising event is right around the corner! Event Co-Chairs Maggie Kipp and Tara Lewis have been hard at work securing exciting raffle items, entertainment, and chic decorations. The party, scheduled for Thursday, April 3rd and starting at 7 pm will be hosted by longtime board member and major donor Nancy Carlson. Her beautiful Park Cities home will be the perfect setting for a glamorous evening. On the heels of announcing that TNT’s Dallas star Linda Gray (aka “Sue Ellen”) is going to be the honorary celebrity chair for the event, Tara, Maggie, and Nancy are thrilled to announce Reflectionist Artist JD Miller’s magnificent contribution to the festivities.

Reflectionist Artist JD Miller

Thanks to Samuel Lynne Galleries, Artist JD Miller will be providing an exciting and engaging Live Painting Performance. In this one-of-a-kind intimate encounter, attendees will witness Miller transform a blank canvas into a masterpiece. Miller’s technique is based on a system of his artistic thought that abstractly emphasizes the mirroring of energy and human life in the universe. Through the development of this technique, Miller formed the school of thought that has come to be known as Reflectionism. This burgeoning school of artistic thought attempts to express and physically manifest these positive – and otherwise abstract or intangible – forces, which Miller refers to as the “three dimensional envelope of life” through his 3D oil paintings. Miller’s production of organic forms and natural tendency toward the capturing of light is the hallmark of this sculptural oil technique.

JD Miller during a Live Painting session

Partygoers will have the opportunity to bid live on JD Miller’s painting at the end of the evening with a portion of the proceeds going directly to Dallas Children’s Theater. Another one of Miller’s paintings is being raffled off along with many other spectacular prizes! Some great items that have been secured to date include a fabulous private event catered by star chef Mico Rodriguez, a relaxing Santa Fe getaway, and a shopping spree at Highland Park Village. For more information about raffle, go to dct.org/girlsparty/raffle! Raffle tickets are $25 each, 5 for $100 or 20 for $200.

Funds raised will help DCT continue to provide over 250,000 children and families annually with Broadway-like shows based on children’s literature and beloved stories; free and reduced tickets for students to attend shows as part of a field trip; summer acting camps and so much more. Ladies: do something good for yourself and for the community! Share an evening of fun with the girls and help DCT continue to train the arts patrons and professionals of tomorrow. Tickets start at $150. Go to dct.org/girlsparty for more information!

This new and exciting bilingual musical explores how one girl challenges her identity in a modern society while embracing her rich heritage. Young Carmencita dreams of singing alongside her father as a proud mariachi, but her father insists that mariachi should only include men. When Cita becomes inspired by a book about a famous female mariachi, it expands her world and ideas of what is possible.

Director, Robyn Flatt, wants people to get excited about the story and see how the family overcomes their challenges. “Bursting with live, vibrant and original music, MARIACHI GIRL rings with rhythms and songs performed by live mariachi. It is not only the story of a young girl following her dreams, it is the story of a family struggling between allegiance to their own cultural traditions and the pressure to assimilate,” she said.

Cita’s conflict is both personal as well as uniquely universal. Young people around the globe often experience conflict between generations.  Young girls often observe their brothers favored by opportunity while they can only dream.

Roxanne Schroeder-Arce, the playwright for the production, has received a lot of positive feedback about how people of all cultures are finding connections with this story. Roxanne is also hopeful that Latino families in Dallas in particular will get to experience this story. “I couldn’t ask for a more supportive artistic community. The cast is fantastic. The musicians are great. The designs are beautiful and the director’s vision is lovely. I can’t wait to experience this play in Dallas!”

David Lozano, co-founder and artistic director of Cara Mía Theatre of Dallas and the consulting director for MARIACHI GIRL, has been impressed with Robyn’s commitment to this musical throughout the last three years. “She knew that this story of a young Mexican girl with a dream to become a Mariachi is important for our entire community to see and she’s bringing a powerful story to the Latino community,” he said.

Robyn has spent a lot of time involving the community in the process of this musical. “Thanks to Robyn’s commitment to the development of this work,” David said, “I believe that MARIACHI GIRL can become a classic in the Chicano / US Latino canon of theater for young audiences.”

 March 22 – 3 pm to 6 pm.

 

 

 

 

DCT is delighted that The Honorable Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Mónica R. Alonzo is serving as our host for the day and invites everyone to join her in seeing the play and enjoying the Fiesta!  Don’t miss the opportunity to see for yourself what Cita loves most about being a mariachi girl!

Before the show, the fabulous Anita Martinez Ballet Folklorico will entertain the audiences with their usual array of great performances and our friends from FC Dallas Soccer Tour will delight families with fun games and great giveaways.

First Sensory Friendly Production is well received.

For many children with autism, sensory integration challenges, or developmental differences, going to the theater is overwhelming. The bright lights and loud music that excite typically developing children can be unbearable to their peers with special needs. Over the past few months, DCT has been working with families and healthcare providers to produce a performance that gives these kids the chance to comfortably experience live theater, and on March 1^st, we proudly staged our very first sensory- friendly performance. Small adaptations to our production of “Go, Dog. Go!” made a big difference to the families in the audience.

With input from parents,  experts who work with a range of special needs children, and partners from Orlando Repertory and Nashville Children’s Theater, we implemented small (but effective) changes to the performance. We reduced sound levels, removed loud effects, and kept the house lights on at a higher level than normal. A “quiet room” was provided for children who needed to take a break, and a social story posted on our website helped familiarize kids with DCT and prepare them for their outing. The show itself remained largely unchanged, giving patrons the same critically-acclaimed performance that other audiences enjoyed.

Perhaps most significantly, the sensory-friendly show was a judgment-free zone. Parent Jill Rowlett remarked that, “for those with disabilities and their parents, this is a dream. A place to take our children where they will fit in or at least be understood and accepted is rare… Parents can actually share family time out of their homes, without constant tension and worrying how their child will react…or how the public will react.” If a child vocalized or had a meltdown, parents knew that the other audience members understood. Michelle Rice Dooley, another mother who attended the March 1^st performance of “Go, Dog. Go!,” noted that “parents were relaxed, because no matter what, we were amongst a people with compassion and understanding. It truly allows the parents to relax and feel free to enjoy with their child. Thanks- we can’t wait for the next one!!!”

We can’t wait for the next sensory-friendly show, either! March 1^st was an exciting and informative day for Dallas Children’s Theater, and we were touched by the positive reactions from the families who came to see the show. Many thanks to the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the Theater Communications Group, Autism Speaks, UNT, and UT Southwestern, and all of our community partners for making our first sensory-friendly show such a success.

Mark Your Calendars! Our next sensory friendly performance will be…

Stuart Little

July 12 at 4:30pm

Tickets are $5 per person. Call the Box Office at (214) 740-0051 to get yours today