Remember a couple weeks ago when you pledged to get out and experience more arts and culture in 2024? Well, a three-day weekend is just ahead for many of us, so now's your chance to make good on that resolution.
To help you get started on the road to a 2024 filled with art, visit the Go See DFW calendar. It's chocked full arts-related events going on all over North Texas. You can also take a peek at our list of MLK Jr. Day events for inspiration on how to celebrate the day.
Here are a few art-centric picks to help you make the most of extra time you might have.
OUTDOORS
ZIP LINE DAY AT THE HEARD MUSEUM
Where: Heard Museum – 1 Nature Place, McKinney
When: Sunday, Jan. 14, 1– 4 p.m.
Cost: $12 per zip line ride
Take an exhilarating ride through a beautiful hardwood forest on a 487-foot zip line. Purchase one ticket for each time you would like to travel down the zip line. Participants must at least 10-years-old to ride.
FlORIGAMI IN THE GARDEN
Where: Fort Worth Botanic Garden – 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd., Fort Worth
When: Through Feb. 14
Cost: Free-$12
The Fort Worth Botanic Garden presents a twist on the art of paper folding with the exhibition Florigami in the Garden. More than a dozen large, origami-inspired sculptures of birds, butterflies, flowers and deer are on view throughout the Garden.
FESTIVALS
2024 FORT WORTH STOCKSHOW & RODEO
Where: Will Rogers Memorial Center – 3401 W. Lancaster Ave, Fort Worth
When: Jan. 12- Feb. 3
Cost: $6-$12 (Rodeo tickets start at $30 and include day-of fairgrounds access)
The 126th Stock Show & Rodeo returns to Cowtown. Enjoy carnival and midway fun, shopping, concerts by top acts including Sammy Kershaw, Pam Tillis, Little Texas, Tanya Tucker and Smokey Robinson, and of course, a daily rodeo at Dickie's Arena.
JAPAN AMERICA SOCIETY OF DALLAS/FORT WORTH MOCHITSUKI NEW YEAR'S CELEBRATION
Where: 500 N. Central Expressway, Plano
When: Sun., Jan.14, 2– 5 p.m.
Cost: $10
Celebrate the New Year and the Year of the Dragon with Japanese music, food, and fun at the annual Mochitsuki Celebration. Enjoy a mochitsuki demonstration, sample mochi, learn calligraphy, origami, and play traditional Japanese New Year's games. Other highlights include Japanese drumming from the Taiko drummers and folk dancing from Okinawan Dance Group.
MUSICAL PERFORMANCES
41ST BLACK MUSIC & CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT CONCERT
Where: Meyerson Symphony Center – 2301 Flora St.
When: Jan. 14 at 7:30 p.m.
Cost: $15--$40
The life and works of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the 1960s Civil Rights Movement are celebrated with an evening filled with narration, music and dance. The concert features singer and songwriter Avery Sunshine and The Black Academy of Arts and Letter's 100-voice concert choir.
MLK ADVANCING THE DREAM - POETRY MEETS JAZZ
Where: E.H. Hereford University Center at UTA – 300 West First St., Arlington
When: Jan. 13 at 7 p.m.
Cost: $20
Enjoy an evening of inspiration, joy and insight at an event that blends the expressions of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. with jazz.
THEATER
SOUL REP THEATRE PRESENTS ELM THICKET
Where: Wyly Theatre – 2400 Flora St.
When: Through Jan. 20
Cost: $29.50--$265.50
Soul Rep Theatre co-founder and Dallas playwright Anyika McMillan-Herod's newest play Elm Thicket is set in 2020 in Dallas’ Elm Thicket community where McMillan-Herod grew up. The serious-comedy centers two middle-aged neighbors attempting to explore love and friendship while facing a complicated history, world pandemic, social unrest, and neighborhood gentrification.
LYRIC STAGE PRESENTS THE PRODUCERS
Where: Moody Performance Hall – 2520 Flora St., Dallas
When: Jan.11-20
Cost: $35--$65
Lyric Stage's newest musical comedy, The Producers, is about a failing Broadway producer and his accountant who hatch a scheme to produce the biggest flop in history, thereby bilking their little old lady backers out of millions of dollars. Their plan goes awry when the show inexplicably turns out to be a hit.
MUSEUMS
DMA FREE COMMUNITY DAY: AFRO-ATLANTIC HISTORIES
Where: Dallas Museum of Art – 1717 North Harwood St.
When: Jan. 14, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Cost: $0-$15
Composed of around 100 works of art and documents produced in Africa, the Americas, the Caribbean, and Europe from the 17th century to today, this exhibition explores the diverse visual cultures that retell the many stories of the Afro-Atlantic. See it for free on Sunday at the DMA's Free Community Day.
SEEING A WORLD THAT BLIND LEMON JEFFERSON NEVER SAW
Where: African American Museum of Dallas – 3536 Grand Ave., Dallas
When: Through May 24.
Cost: Free
An exhibition by photographer Alan Govenar explores rural East Texas and little-known places that 1920s blues legend Blind Lemon Jefferson visited or alluded to in his songs. The collection of 34 large images is one of five shows that celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Deep Ellum area of Dallas.
Visit Go See DFW to find even more events.
The Go See DFW calendar is a partnership between KERA and The Dallas Morning News.
Got a tip? Email Therese Powell at tpowell@kera.org.
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