It’s not the moving audience sections – the ones that twirl around slowly onstage – that give the Dallas Theater Center-Dallas Black Dance production of ‘The Wiz’ its sense of fun. It’s a whip-cracking witch, a couple of showgirl Poppies and some butt-bopping crows.

A president is losing his re-election bid and sets out to raise the necessary campaign funds any way he can — including canceling Thanksgiving and marrying lesbians on TV. Stage West presents the Texas premiere of David Mamet’s political satire ‘November.’

Miroslav Penkov teaches creative writing at UNT, and his debut story collection, ‘East of the West,’ has been getting excited reviews. He’s a long way from reading under-the-counter American novels in Bulgaria — and trying to imitate Stephen King.

A lovely terra cotta bust – once attributed to Leonard da Vinci – was bought by the Kimbell in 2004. But two years ago, a photo was found showing it at the salt mine where the Nazis stashed their loot. What happened? Gaile Robinson has the story.

Tyress Allen and Cedric Neal are popping up — on Broadway and in Hollywood.

When it comes to transforming a city’s visual arts landscape, North Texas doesn’t have a residency program quite on the scale of CORE – part of the Museum of Fine Arts Houston. Now the MAC has launched a three-year collaboration with CORE, bringing its annual show to town, the first time it’s ever left Houston. Plus, a film documenting it.

A Philip Glass-Allen Ginsberg collaboration from 1990, ‘Hydrogen Jukebox’ is another smart bit of counter-programming by the Fort Worth Opera. The chamber opera about Ginsberg’s America, circa 1950s thru ’90s, can be potent, even ravishing — when it isn’t tiresome.

In Fort Worth Opera’s production of Handel’s ‘Julius Caesar,’ there are three roles originally written for castrati — including Caesar himself. When Handel’s Italian operas became popular again in the 20th century, that presented an awkward problem. Welcome back – the countertenor.

For the occasion, we offer this rare footage of the late, great Gregory Hines in action — fluid, joyful and seemingly effortless.

Andres Franco, the Fort Worth Symphony’s associate conductor, is one of 10 finalists in an event next week that hopes to become the Van Cliburn of conducting competitions.