There’s a lot of new things going on at Dallas’ Tony Award-winning theater company.
For more than a year, the theater has been undergoing a management reorganization. In 2023, Kevin Moriarty, the theater’s former Enloe/Rose Artistic Director, became the theater’s Executive Director following the retirement of managing director Jeffrey Woodward. Since that promotion, Moriarty has been sharing artistic responsibilities with Sarahbeth Grossman, the theater’s Artistic Producer for six years, and Jonathan Norton, the theater’s Resident Playwright since 2019.
With Grossman’s recent departure, Norton has been named Interim Artistic Director.
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“Jonathan has been one of the most impactful artists at DTC through much of the past decade,” Moriarty said. “His work as a writer has received critical acclaim in Dallas and contributed to the impact Dallas artists are making on the national theater community. As DTC’s Resident Playwright/Literary Manager, Jonathan has been a leader in our season planning process, working alongside DTC’s artistic producer, Sarahbeth Grossman, to identify plays and artists that engage Dallas audiences, and collaborating with DTC’s Diane and Hal Brierley Resident Acting Company to produce productions that are entertaining and relevant. I am immensely grateful to Jonathan for stepping forward during this transitional time to provide consistent artistic leadership and to ensure that our artistry remains exemplary.”
“I saw my first play at DTC,” Norton said. “It was Adrian Hall’s production of A Christmas Carol. At the time, sixth grade me could not have imagined that decades later DTC would become a cherished artistic home. In my time here I’ve grown so much as an artist and administrator, and I am eager to pay that forward. This is a critical time for both DTC and the American theater, and I do not take this new responsibility lightly. I am excited to collaborate with so many wonderful folks I deeply admire, to make theater as big and bold as the city of Dallas.”
The theater’s Board of Directors will launch a national search for a new Enloe/Rose Artistic Director in the fall, with an appointment expected in late 2025.
The Scene
Dallas Theater Center is adding Esteban Vilchez to the roster of its Brierley Resident Acting Company.
“With our new season, DTC will be expanding our Diane and Hal Brierley Resident Acting Company,” explained Moriarty. “We are thrilled that Esteban Vilchez is joining our company. Audiences have seen Esteban in previous productions at DTC, including A Christmas Carol, Native Gardens and Into the Woods, and in leading roles at many theaters throughout North Texas. His acting and singing skills, as well as his creativity and collaboration, will enrich DTC’s artistry for years to come.”
Vilchez will appear in several shows during the recently announced 2024-2025 season.
“Our 2024-2025 season will surprise and delight North Texas audiences all season long,” Moriarty said. “Filled with musicals, comedies and heart-warming dramas, this is a season with something for everyone. In our increasingly isolated world, theater provides a rare opportunity for people of all backgrounds and experiences to come together in person to experience the variety and depth of the human experience, often surprising us with how much we have in common as fellow travelers through the journey of life. I’m eager to welcome everyone in Dallas to join us throughout the season to be surprised and moved by the many shared emotions that live theater can inspire.”
Written by Gordon Greenberg and Steve Rosen, Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors is a fang-tastic comedy filled with anything-goes pop culture references. When you take Bram Stoker’s legendary story and put it in a blender with Mel Brooks, Monty Python and The 39 Steps you’ll get a contemporary, fast-paced and irreverent production that will have audiences of all ages (and blood types) screaming with laughter.
Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors will be Oct. 11 - Nov. 3 at the Kalita Humphreys Theater.
One of the greatest Westerns of all time finds new life on the stage in Shane, based on the classic novel by Jack Schaefer. Acclaimed playwright Karen Zacarías brings an exciting, fresh perspective to an extraordinary American genre that follows Shane, a mysterious ex-gunfighter and a man with a dangerous past. Yet, the Starrett family finds kinship with him and Shane helps protect their Wyoming farm. Their story sheds new light on the allure, mythos and values of the Wild West — a chapter in history that still has many tales to tell.
Shane will run Jan. 31 - Feb. 23 in Bryant Hall at the Kalita Humphreys Theater.
The Dallas premiere of Primary Trust, in association with Stage West, is a touching story of new beginnings, old friends and finding the courage to see the world for the first time. The award-winning drama has been hailed by New York theater critics as one of the best plays of the year and follows the story of Kenneth, who lives in a small town in upstate New York. For 15 years his life has been the same: by day, he works at a bookstore, in the evening, he drinks mai tais with his friend Bert. When the bookstore shuts down, Kenneth is forced out of his comfort zone to face a world he has long avoided — with transformative and heart-warming results.
Primary Trust will run from Feb. 27 - March 16 in the Potter Rose Performance Hall at the Wyly Theatre.
Serving satisfaction, one slice at a time is Waitress, produced in collaboration with Lyric Theatre in Oklahoma City, and featuring music and lyrics by Grammy Award winner Sara Bareilles. In the beloved musical, Jenna, a waitress and expert pie maker, is stuck in a small town and a loveless marriage. Faced with an unexpected pregnancy, Jenna fears she may have to abandon the dream of opening her own pie shop…until a baking contest in a nearby county and the town's handsome new doctor offer her a tempting recipe for happiness. Waitress is an uplifting and inspiring musical celebrating friendship, motherhood and the magic of a well-made pie.
Waitress will run March 29 - April 27 and in the Potter Rose Performance Hall at the Wyly Theatre.
In Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, audiences will delight in a reimagined Biblical story for all ages. The classic Broadway musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, based on the Bible’s Book of Genesis, tells the journey of Joseph, son of Jacob, his twelve brothers and his coat of many colors. Filled with catchy songs and dances, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is one of the most enduring shows of all time.
Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will run June 13 - July 20 in the Potter Rose Performance Hall at the Wyly Theatre.
As a holiday add-on, A Christmas Carol returns to the Wyly Theatre in a delightfully reimagined take of Charles Dickens’ enduring classic. Written by Dickens and adapted by Moriarty, three spirits have come to visit the miserly Ebenezer Scrooge and take him on a fantastic journey through Christmases past, present and future that annually delights audiences across North Texas. Brimming with joyful songs, magical spirits and holiday cheer, Dallas Theater Center’s A Christmas Carol is a family favorite that embodies the spirit of Christmas.
A Christmas Carol runs Nov. 29 - Dec. 28, 2024 at the Wyly Theatre in the Dallas Arts District.
Learn more: Dallas Theater Center
