Performania: A Spotlight on Texas Stages

Nancy Wozny·
AustinDallas/Ft WorthHoustonPerformaniaSan Antonio
·

HOUSTON

HOUSTON GRAND OPERA

Houston Grand Opera opens the season with Susannah, continuing the company’s centenary celebrations for opera icon Carlisle Floyd, presented in a new staging from director Patricia Racette. The production features performances by soprano Angel Blue, baritone Rod Gilfry, tenors Bille Bruley and Aaron Blake, with Maestro James Gaffigan conducting, Oct. 23-Nov. 8 at Wortham Center.

HOUSTON BALLET

Houston Ballet opens the season with a mixed rep titled Pecos Bill, which includes the company debut of Balanchine’s Symphonie Concertante and Lar Lubovitch’s Meadow. Stanton Welch’s colorful Pecos Bill rounds out the program, Sept. 11-20 at Wortham Center. Next up is Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s heartbreaking romance Manon, Sept. 24-Oct. 4 at Wortham Center.

PERFORMING ARTS HOUSTON

Performing Arts Houston presents a rare performance of The Complete Piano Etudes by Philip Glass performed by ten outstanding pianists: Timo Andres, Inon Barnatan, Anton Batagov, Vicky Chow, Aaron Diehl, Daniela Liebman, Jenny Lin, Jason Moran, Christian Sands, and Jiani Wu, and produced by Pomegranate Arts, Sept. 12 at Jones Hall.

DALLAS/FORT WORTH

BROADWAY DALLAS

Broadway Dallas presents Rodgers & Hammerstein’s classic The Sound of Music in the acclaimed North American tour, Sept. 8-20 at Music Hall at Fair Park. The show heads to Broadway at the Hobby, Sept. 29-Oct. 4 at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts.

FORT WORTH SYMPHONY OCHESTRA

The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra’s season opens on Sept 11-13 at Bass Performance Hall with a program that includes Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony and Egmont Overture, along with Aristo Sham performing Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23, the piece that won him the 2025 Van Cliburn Piano Competition gold medal.

TITAS/DANCE UNBOUND

The new season kicks off with Ballets Jazz Montréal’s Dance Me, a tribute to Leonard Cohen that blends jazz-infused ballet with deep, raw emotion,

Sept. 18-19 at Moody Performance Hall. “I saw this work at a festival in Vancouver right after it was finished, and I hadn’t seen any company use Cohen’s music and vibe so effectively,” says TITAS artistic and executive director Charles Santos.

SAN ANTONIO/AUSTIN/HOUSTON

BROADWAY IN SAN ANTONIO

Broadway in San Antonio presents Mrs. Doubtfire, based on a 90s hit movie about a divorced dad who disguises himself as a British nanny, which tours Texas with a first stop in San Antonio, Sept. 15-20 at the Majestic Theater, Sept. 22-26 at Bass Concert Hall through Broadway in Austin, and Oct. 13-25 at the Hobby Center in Houston, through Theater Under The Stars.

OPERA SAN ANTONIO

Opera San Antonio opens the season with Gioachino Rossini’s Cinderella, in a new production from Lyric Opera of Kansas City inspired by the style of Wes Anderson, which promises an evening of sheer delight, Oct 15 & 17 at the Tobin Center for the Performing Arts. This production is conducted by Opera SA Music Director Francesco Milioto and presented in collaboration with The Orchestra San Antonio.

—NANCY WOZNY

Nancy Wozny

Nancy Wozny is editor in chief at Arts and Culture Texas, a contributing editor at Dance Magazine and a frequent contributor to Pointe Magazine and Dance Teacher.