Tuesday, September 25, 2018

Music Concerts at the Levitt Pavilion Sept. 28-30, 2018



Three artists with their roots firmly planted in Tarrant County perform this weekend as the Levitt's 10th anniversary season begins to wind down.

Friday: The Levitt welcomes home singer/songwriter, Chris Hawkes, and his writing and singing partner, Miranda Dawn at 8 p.m. The Arlington artist met Miranda in 2012 during a chance meeting on an Austin dance floor. The first time they sang together, they found a sound Texas Monthly called "undeniably intimate." Their initial duo effort climbed to number 25 on Billboard's Folk chart and landed at number two in iTunes singer/songwriter albums. They went on to appear on season six of NBC's The Voice. Acoustic Guitar hailed the pair as having "impeccable vocal harmonies and instrumentation," and Huffington Post summarizes their music as "transcendent alternative/folk." The Dawn & Hawkes concert is presented by J. Gilligan's.

Saturday:
Grady Spencer and the Work describe themselves as "a blue collar band making blue collar music for a blue collar world." They bring their old-time blues meets classic country music to the Levitt at 8 p.m. Sept. 29, presented by RJ Construction. Grady formed his band, The Work, in Fort Worth, after he met and befriended guitarist, Trevor Powell, and drummer, Blake Sager, under the marble angels of Bass Hall. Along with their bass player, Steve Moore, they criss-cross the south in their trusty Econovan (Jean-Claude Van Dam).

Sunday: One of the turning points in Tatiana Mayfield's young life was a week at jazz camp at the University of Texas at Arlington. At the time, she was 13 and the camp's only female, only trombone player and only jazz vocalist. After graduating from Brewer High School in Fort Worth, she continued her musical education at Tarrant County College, then the University of North Texas. Now she's known as "LadyMay" and has performed with the Showtime at the Apollo tour, opened for artists like Kirk Whalum and Randy Brecker, and appears regularly at the Scatt Jazz Club in Sundance Square. LadyMay takes the stage at 8 p.m. with the UTA Jazz Orchestra for jazz on the lawn.

Click here for the remaining fall concert schedule.

Tuesday, September 18, 2018

University of Texas at Arlington’s Department of Theatre Arts presents FLIGHT 12 IMPROV

It’s the beginning of the another school year and that means... FLIGHT 12 IMPROV! Full of oh-no-you-didn't moments and steeped-in-fun, Maverick Theatre Company's FLIGHT 12 IMPROV has a style that's always outrageous and never stale! This 12-member troupe features students from University Texas Arlington and is directed by Associate Professor Joe Chapa. FLIGHT 12 IMPROV performances are September 21 & 22, 2018 at 8:00 pm at 502 South Cooper, Fine Arts Building North, Mainstage Theatre, Room 174. Tickets $10.


Photo Left to Right: Austin Hutchinson, Cody Jackson, Esther Rosenthal, Connor Stubbs, Samantha Shepherd, Zakk Shortes, Brian Hughes, Austin Bender

Into the Okavango - EarthxFilm 9-24-18

Tuesday, September 11, 2018

Mid September Concerts at the Levitt Pavillion in Downtown Arlington


This Week at the Levitt Pavilion - Sept. 14-16

Friday: The Levitt's third week of free fall concerts starts at 8 p.m. with the energetic blue-eyed soul of The Nightowls. This 10-piece band took Texas by storm in 2014 when their debut album landed in the Top 10 at Austin's annual music awards, and Austin Monthly named them a Band to Watch. Their sound is an energetic blend of classic soul and modern pop with influences running the gamut from James Brown to Michael Jackson. Their sophomore recording earned them serious national attention from The Atlantic and Southern Living. Their Levitt concert is presented by the University of Texas at Arlington.

Saturday: Honky-tonk hero and country music maverick, Dale Watson, returns to the Levitt at 8 p.m. presented by the Texas Commission on the Arts. A member of the Austin Music Hall of Fame, Watson took his "Texas outlaw" sound to Los Angeles and Nashville, but found that commercial country did not fit the fiercely independent songwriter, so he returned to Texas. In addition to music, Watson has appeared in films (
The Thing Called Love, On the Borderline), on television (Friday Night Lights), and most recently, on stage in Ghost Brothers of Darkland County, a southern gothic musical by Stephen King and John Mellencamp. His rumbling baritone also has been heard on commercials for Shell, Monster.com and On the Border restaurants. Earlier this year, Watson sat in with Jimmy Kimmel's house band as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live from SXSW.

Sunday: When you mention Texas music, the first thing that usually comes to mind is country music or honky-tonk, but country music is a staple in most southern states. Tejano music, on the other hand, was born in Texas (Tejano means "Texan" in Spanish) and remains home to Tejano music pioneers and living legends. Ramiro "Ram" Herrera is a smooth-voiced, award-winning Tejano singer and songwriter, who is not only a staple on the Texas music scene, but is considered one of its legends. He has been honored with a Tejano Music Award as Male Entertainer of the Year twice and Male Vocalist of the Year as well as a Lifetime Achievement Award from The Tejano Music Association. Ram and his band, The Outlaws, will make their Levitt Pavilion Arlington debut at 8 p.m. presented by the Dr Pepper/Snapple brands 7Up, Squirt and Clamato.

Monday, September 3, 2018

Celebrate 40 Years of Fall Gallery Night

Take in the visual arts and Tarrant County’s unique cultural richness during Fall Gallery Night, organized by FWADA, Saturday, September 8, 2018. Most participants are open from noon to nine. Come take a stroll through participating galleries, museums, retail businesses, and area restaurants, and enjoy the many artists featured during this community event. Gallery Night is free and open to the public.

817ArtsAlliance is helping BRIT (Botanical Research Institute of Texas) celebrate by providing a pop-up market in atrium II of BRIT. Also at BRIT, you will find an exhibit of metal wildflower sculptures and paintings by Ann Ekstrom as well as a pop-up exhibit by the Fort Worth Art Collective.