“You can’t make this stuff up,” they say – but, as is so often the case among humans, they are idiots. People with imagination, what we call artists, have been making stuff up – fables, myths, legends, sitcoms, miniseries, religions – and much of it the wildest, wackiest, weirdest shit around – since language was invented. And here are five especially fantastic fabrications, now deeply embodied on (or in the very air above) Austin stages and walls for your viewing pleasure.
Sky Candy: The Goth Wars
In the epic battle between Eighties and Nineties goth and industrial music, which era will emerge victorious? The acclaimed Sky Candy aerialists will pit black lace against vinyl, Bauhaus against Skinny Puppy, and, turning and twisting in a widening gyre, do their acrobatic best to answer the question: Will love tear us apart again?
Sat., Oct. 15, 8pm. 1023 Springdale Ste. 8-A, 512/800-4998. $20 and up. skycandyaustin.com
Penfold Theater: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Here comes the 10th year of Penfold in the Park, as the indefatigable theatre company brings Shakespeare’s beloved comedy to life up there in Round Rock, with all 21 characters galvanized by just four performers in a whirlwind of love and lore-spawned lulz among the fae. Adapted and directed by Rosalind Faires, featuring the talents of Yunina Barbour-Payne, Kevin Percival, Taylor Flanagan, and Dane Parker.
Through Oct. 16. Thu.-Sun., 7:30pm. Round Rock Amphitheater, 301 W. Bagdad, 512/850-4849. Donations accepted. penfoldtheatre.org
Filigree Theatre: The Lady From the Sea
The Filigree Theatre begins their new season with this Henrik Ibsen fantasy about a woman who must choose between her married life and the thrill of the unknown lying in wait beyond the ocean deep. Directed by Elizabeth V. Newman, with live music and performances by Natalie Tafakori Crane, Shane Cullum, Derek DeAtley, James Lindsley, Molly McKee, Meredith O’Brien, Mike Ooi, and Maddie Scanlan.
Through Oct. 23. Thu.-Sun., 8pm. Neill-Cochran House, 2310 San Gabriel. $25-32. filigreetheatre.com
Salvage Vanguard Theatre: Casta
Salvage Vanguard Theatre presents Adrienne Dawes’ new play – an immersive show that features puppets by Julia Smith and original music by Graham Reynolds – as inspired by Mexican casta paintings that depict the mixing of races in colonial Latin America. Look: A wealthy patron commissions a series of casta paintings, but the portraits come to life and revolt. Performances (an excellent cast, directed by jk jk) will take place in the Rapaport Atrium of the Blanton Museum’s glorious venue.
Oct. 20, 22-23, 27, & 29-30, 2pm. The Blanton Museum of Art, 200 E. MLK, 512/471-5482. $5-12 (free on Thursdays). blantonmuseum.org
The Contemporary Austin: “In a Dream You Saw a Way to Survive and You Were Full of Joy”
Explore the works of eight female artists – Danielle Brathwaite-Shirley, Adriana Corral, Ellie Ga, Juliana Huxtable, Tala Madani, Danielle Mckinney, Wendy Red Star, and Clare Rojas – in this new exhibition that reveals how narrative and storytelling shape our senses of self, community, history, and identity. Fantasy, wrought from the complex facts of lived experience, now vivid on the walls of this mighty modern venue Downtown.
Through Feb. 12. Wed., noon-9pm; Thu.-Sun., noon-6pm. 700 Congress, 512/453-5312. $10. thecontemporaryaustin.org
Five Things: Fantasy Forward
A version of this article appeared in print on Oct 14, 2022 with the headline: Five Things: Fantasy Forward
This article appears in The Drinks Issue (2022).