If you haven't heard, the City of Dallas is considering major changes with its budget for the arts, namely merging the Office of Cultural Affairs with the Library Department. This makes no sense considering the big things on the horizon, such as the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts opening in October.

Town Hall meetings will begin on August 10, when the final draft of the budget is presented to the City Council. In the meantime, the revitalized Dallas Area Cultural Advocacy Coalition has been preparing folks for the discussions to oppose this move.  

And on the DACAC's Website, you can find PDF and Microsoft Word downloads about the changes and what they would mean, and the talking points for opposing the merge. Here are some of them:

• The savings realized are not enough to justify the problems this would cause. Staff cuts and other reductions would save just as much.
• This October we will be opening the new facilities in the largest, most spectacular arts district in the country and we need the roll out to be the best it can be, and a credit to our City. The whole world will be watching.  It is imperative that we have a strong, independent Office of Cultural Affairs to help with this effort.
• The City Council just voted to use $50 million in tax payer funds to build a convention center hotel.  If we are to be competitive with Chicago, New York, Atlanta, Houston, Miami, Las Vegas and Los Angeles, we need the arts to attract the tourists, conventions and conferences that will make that investment successful.  Dallas does not have beaches, mountains, natural wonders or casinos.  All we have to offer is a vibrant, diverse arts community.  We must have an independent Office of Cultural Affairs to work with the Convention and Visitors Bureau to sell this City.
• Dallas would be the only one of the top ten cities in the United States without an independent Office of Cultural Affairs or independent Arts Council.

Be prepared for a fight.

TheaterJones has beaucoup tickets to give away for upcoming arts events, so join our fan page on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter, to learn more about the contests.

On the Facebook page, we're currently giving away tickets for Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlan, presented by TITAS, at AT&T Performing Arts Center's Winspear Opera House, at 8 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 7.

Here are the other giveaways coming up:

• Ten pairs of tickets for "The Blues" in the Jazz Roots Series, featuring Shemekia Copeland and the James Cotton Superharp Blues Band, at AT&T Performing Arts Center's Winspear Opera House, for 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, Sept. 8. Ticket giveaway: Friday, Sept. 3.
• Five pairs of tickets for MOMIX, presented by TITAS, at AT&T Performing Arts Center, Winspear Opera House, for 8 p.m., Friday, Sept. 10.  Ticket giveaway: Tuesday, Sept. 7.
• Five pairs of tickets for genius record producer T-Bone Burnett, in the Brinker International Forum, at AT&T Performing Arts Center's Winspear Opera House, for 5:30 p.m., Sunday, Sept. 12. Ticket giveaway: Wednesday, Sept. 8.
• Three pairs of tickets for Blue Man Group, in the Broadway Lexus Series, at AT&T Performing Arts Center's Winspear Opera House, for 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 14 or Wednesday, Sept. 15. Ticket giveaway: Thursday, Sept. 9.
• Two pairs of tickets to The Sound of Music at Casa Mañana Theatre in Fort Worth, for the 7:30 p.m. performance on Wednesday, Sept. 15. Ticket giveaway: Friday, Sept. 10.

The email address you'll want to have handy is tickets@theaterjones.com. We'll post the winners after each giveaway.

Uptown Players held its 2011 season announcement party on Tuesday, at its new home at the Kalita Humphreys Theater. The season has six slots, five of which will be productions at the Kalita (with one using multiple venues in the Kalita). The first show of the year, a parody of The Golden Girls, will be held in the Rose Room at the nightclub S4 on Cedar Springs (the Dallas Theater Center will be back in the KHT during February, with its revival of Arsenic and Old Lace).

The Uptown roster is most notable for a new event, the Dallas Pride Performing Arts Festival, in September, which will bring together plays, cabaret and other performances. The headlining show will be the world premiere of the musical Crazy Just Like Me. And, as was previously announced, Uptown will also participate in the area-wide Horton Foote Festival, with the area premiere of Foote's Pultizer Prize-winning play The Young Man From Atlanta.

Uptown will also bring back its popular fundraiser, Broadway Our Way, except it will happen in May, as opposed to the usual January slot. The production after BOW is the regional premiere of a Tony Award-winning musical, but the title can't be announced until February 2011. We have some pretty good guesses, though.

Here's the complete lineup for 2011. Unless noted, all shows are at the Kalita Humphreys Theater:

• Thank You For Being a Friend, a parody of The Golden Girls, by Nick Brennan, music and lyrics by Luke Jones and Jeff Thompson. It'll be in the vein of Uptown's previous Rose Room camp-fests, The Facts of Life: The Lost Episode and Mommie Queerest. In case you're unclear, the golden gals won't be played by real women. And in this scenario, their lives are turned upside down when Lance Bass moves in next door. Can we get Betty White to come in for this, considering she's hot again? (Not to mention the only Golden Girl who's still alive?) — Feb. 4-27 (at the Rose Room Theater at S4)
• The regional premiere of Horton Foote's The Young Man From Atlanta, about a middle-aged couple whose American dream takes a detour when the husband finds out about the mysterious character of the play's title. — April 1-17
• Broadway Our Way, the popular revue in which the men sing showtunes written for women, and vice-versa. — May 6-15
• Musical, to be announced. According to the news release, it's "so exciting that we can't tell you the name of it until February 1." That means it's probably still on tour, and that tour will end by February 1. It's a regional premiere, and a Tony-winner. Our two best guesses: Xanadu or Spring Awakening. Both have toured here (the latter will have a two-day stop at Bass Hall in November), but neither has been locally produced yet. — June 10-July 2
• The musical Victor/Victoria, based on the 1982 movie about a cross-dressing soprano and a struggling gay impresario. — July 29-Aug. 2
• Dallas Pride Performing Arts Festival. The complete lineup for this event won't be announced until February 1, but the big show is a new musical called Crazy Just Like Me, by Louis Sacco and Drew Gasparini. There will be other plays, musicals, cabaret acts and more, happening in various spaces in the Kalita Humphreys Theater. — Sept. 9-17
• The Temperamentals, a play by Jon Marans that premiered off-Broadway in March 2010, about two men in the early 1950s—a communist and a Viennese refugee—who fall in love. The off-Broadway production starred Michael Urie, the Plano native who is best known as Marc in the ABC series Ugly Betty. — Oct. 7-23

Tickets for all shows, except Broadway Our Way and the Dallas Pride Performing Arts Festival, are $25-$40. For subscription prices and more info, call 214-219-2718 or visit www.uptownplayers.org.

Local actor Gary Moody was found dead on Sunday in his home in Granbury. He was 63. He was found by Drenda Lewis, a local costume designer who also lives in Granbury. The cause of death has not been announced, but Moody had been having fainting spells recently, according to sources.

Moody performed at the Granbury Opera House for years, and also appeared at Lyric Stage, Circle Theatre, Dallas Theater Center and WaterTower Theatre, among others. His adaptation A Lone Star Christmas Carol premiered at Circle Theatre in 2009.

"He was the most professional actor I ever knew," said Marty Van Kleeck, former artistic director at the Granbury Opera House and, until recently, manager of the Bath House Cultural Center. "He never expected a role. He always came prepared to auditions having read the script and studied the role. He had no sense of entitlement, even having performed for years at the Opera House. I could depend on him in whatever role he was cast to do his best."

Actress and friend Pam Dougherty notes that he was the first area liaison for Actors' Equity Association in Dallas, and worked on the original committee for National Representation for actors outside the cities in which there is an AEA office.

"There was a day," she said, "when it was truly 'taxation without representation' for professional actors living outside the [AEA] office cities, and Gary was a big part of the changes. He also remained a lifelong member and activist for SAG and AFTRA."

A memorial service for Moody will be held at 2 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 21, at the Dupree Theater at the Irving Arts Center, 3333 N. MacArthur Blvd., Irving.

Send your memories of Gary Moody to marklowry@theaterjones.com, and we'll include them on this file.

►From Donald Jordan, Founding Artistic Director of Oklahoma City Repertory Theatre:

"Gary was my friend from the day we met at the Dallas Theater Center in 1982, where we were in a production of The Three Penny Opera together. Always jovial and warm, and always an artist and a craftsman, I admired him personally and professionally. Our volunteer work together  for Actor's Equity Association on behalf of our theatrical community was a big part of our friendship as well. His tireless efforts for the performing artists of North Texas leave behind a  unique and significant legacy in addition to his admirable artistic body of work. He will be missed."

►From T.J. Walsh, associate professor of theater at Texas Christian University and artistic director of Trinity Shakespeare Festival:

"I worked with Gary in The Retreat from Moscow at Circle Theatre. His performance in that very British drama opposite Elizabeth Rothan was subtle, brimming with an inner life and just simply brilliant. I think FW Weekly selected his performance in the play as best of the year.  While he is known for his larger than life musical and comedy performances, working with him on that play just filled me with admiration at his depth as a performer and a human being."

►From Mike Skipper, actor and producer:

"I first met Gary in the late seventies when Debbie Brown and I were touring in South Pacific. Gary had friends in the show and welcomed us with open arms when we returned. We've seen each other over the years and in my opinion, Dallas/ Fort Worth has lost one of its really great character actors."

►From Rose Pearson, Executive Director, Circle Theatre:

"I don't remember when I first met Gary...maybe it was in our Joy Wyse Talent Agency Days, who knows? He always seemed like a permanent fixture in the Dallas-Fort Worth talent scene. Like T.J. [Walsh, above], I was especially pleased to see his depth as an actor so beautifully showcased in Circle's production of The Retreat from Moscow. I enjoyed watching him patiently mentor the young actors featured in the Circle/TCU co-production of Bus Stop. And, finally, it was Circle Theatre's honor to work with him and his long time friend, Gary Taylor, on their musical adaptation, A Lone Star Christmas Carol. It was during this production we began to see hints of Gary's failing health and I worried about him. The doctors all said he was in reasonably good health, but that glorious twinkle never quite reappeared in his eyes. I keep wondering if things might have been different if he made it to the doctor's today, as planned. It doesn't seem fair, but the good thing is that he was here in our theatre community for the time he was given on earth. Break-a-leg in the after life, Gary!"

►From Mark Oristano, actor, sportcaster and photographer:

"I had the great pleasure of doing two shows with Gary: Fiorello! for Lyric Stage and Parade for WaterTower. He was the pro's pro. Always on the money. Always a delight to be around. For somebody like me, who constantly shows off his rough edges, Gary gave me something to aim for. I'll miss him."

►From Ric Spiegel:

"Like everyone, I am deeply saddened by the news of Gary Moody's passing. Friends and colleagues for many years, we shared the same profession, the same agent and many of the same jobs. Gary was the true thespian, working in more plays and musicals than one can count. Although stage was his his first love, Gary had certainly done his share of radio, TV and film. His credits are impressive. Just last week I was listening to radio spots we did together, some dating back to the early '80s, and on through 2008.

Gary was also a true professional; honoring his word was as important to him as knowing his lines, and he was well-known for both. Sometimes the quiet curmudgeon, more often the boisterous raconteur and always a good actor, Gary Moody will be missed by many casts, crews and friends."

►From Gary Taylor:

"I first met Gary in 1979 at Country Dinner Playhouse. He was playing Doolittle in My Fair Lady and I was in the Heymakers, the pre-show group. I was working on a recording project and needed a narrator. I asked Gary to do the job. The result was incredible. Nobody, I mean, nobody, could have done a better job. The years passed and we fell out of touch. Then I decided to look him up and I found him in Granbury.  his time he had a project started and asked me to write music for it. The project was A Lone Star Christmas Carol. Working with Gary on that project was pure joy. This past Christmas we had the great fortune of seeing the show produced at Circle Theatre in Fort Worth, and Gary and I both performed in the show. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life, and I am now so thankful that Gary got a chance to see “our baby” (as he sometimes referred to it) take its first step. As Rose said, we could see hints of his failing health during the run of the show, but each night he turned in a wonderful, moving performance. Thanks to everyone at Circle Theatre and to all of the beautiful people in our production. But mostly, thanks to Gary, himself, for letting me be a part of his dream. I’ll miss him."

►From Mary Collins, agent:

I have been proud to be Gary’s broadcast/film agent for over 26 years, and in fact, he was one of the very first clients who signed with me when I opened in March 1984. There never was a more professional, ethical actor—thespian, character actor, voice actor—Gary could do it all. His passing has left a hole in our collective hearts.

►From John Rainone, actor:

Very few people outside of the ones who were there know this, but Gary Moody was the officiating parson when my first wife and I were married. We had gotten officially married a month before, at City Hall with a justice of the peace. However, our families wanted the church wedding.

So my bride and I went to Norcostco and rented a wedding gown, bride's maid dresses, gray tux with tails for me and the groomsmen, and a country preacher's outfit for Gary Moody. We looked like a bus-and-truck production of Mame!

We booked the church at Old City Park and I watched old movies on TV to write the script for Gary. He did the ceremony, read the vows and pronounced us “man and wife” to a full house―most of whom never knew he was an actor!

His greatest role! And it went unsung until now!

God let you rest in peace my old friend. Think about our parts in Shrew, you as Baptista and me as Old Gremio, and how it was my main motivation in our scene to crack you up! And how when you started to lose it, I’d start to lose it! The Tim Conway/Harvey Korman school of acting! And what fun we had on the tour bus! Coming off stage and heading straight for the beer! And how we all damn-near got thrown in jail for cavorting around the parking lot of that cheap motel in Uvalde, Texas.

Ah....those were the days.

►From Lisa Fairchild, actress:

I've known Gary my whole adult life. He was one of the first actors I met when I moved to Dallas after college and he was welcoming and encouraging to a very naive and wide-eyed 22-year-old actor. The following year we went on tour with the Texas Shakespeare Theatre and he played my dad (Baptista) to my Bianca in Taming of the Shrew. Tours are a unique acting experience and togetherness can breed some grouchy folks, but Gary was never one of them. He greeted each day with a smile and that wonderful deep chuckle and told me, "Lisa, every day you can say you are a working actor is a great day." When Gary said it, it didn't sound like a cliché. He taught me how to play poker on that tour. He taught me really well. But, he never forgave me in 30 years for the royal flush hand I beat him with during my third poker game. “#%**#?in' beginner's luck, Miss Fairchild!" was how he greeted me every time, with a bear hug, all these years. I am sad and I will miss him. He was truly one of the good guys.

►From Doug Jackson, actor:

May I add my memories of the Shrew tour to John Rainone's. Sadly, that cast is being re-assembled on another plane. Lynn Mathis preceded Gary there. In the Dallas paper, the show was referred to as "cultural Philistine-ism" and Gary, Matt Posey and others reveled in the description, getting T-shirts made for the cast to wear from town to town. We were the Cultural Philistines, and we loved it.

I got to know Gary on that tour and my career as an actor owes him more than I can say. Working alongside him in Shrew, and as he played Doolittle at Casa Mañana (among many other times I had the honor) taught me much more about comedic acting than any class I ever took: undergrad, grad, workshop—you name it (meaning no slight to those teachers; as long as there have been players, players have learned from the playing of the more experienced onstage).

And that is only the beginning. His wisdom and calmness made serving on the Equity Liaison Committee a joy. His was among the recommendations of me to Mary Collins that got me professional representation. His knowledge and ability to cope with the "irregularities" of film work during our time on Mississippi Burning helped me immensely as I got my start in that business. Working with him onstage was a constant reminder of how to do it right—I wish I could have followed his example more closely. Finian's Rainbow and Fiorello! at Lyric Stage were my last two shows with him, and I wish there could have been a hundred more. My Doolittle at T3 was to me a pale shadow of the performance he gave in the role.

And I will never forget the day he won the contest to see who could insert a selected word into iambic pentameter, on that fated tour of Shrew for Texas Shakespeare: "We shall want no bev-naps at the feast!!" His like will not be seen again. I miss you, old pal.

School has already started for collegiate types, and that means for the drama department kids, auditions and rehearsals will soon be mixed in with the studying and fraternizing.

For the non-student, seeing theater at the area universities and colleges has multiple rewards. For one, it's cheaper than the local professional groups, by a big margin. And for that cheap price, you typically get bigger, better sets and costumes, constructed by organizations with the luxury of all that student labor. It's also a chance to see shows—classics and newer works—that you might not find on the seasons at the professional theaters, which have to think about their bottom line a bit more. (Miller, O'Neill and Chekhov are hot this season, but then again, they always are in educational theater.)

Here's a look at the major universities in North Texas, and what's on their 2010-'11 theater seasons.

Southern Methodist University, Dalllas

• Thornton Wilder's Our Town , which is happening at the same time as WaterTower Theatre's revival of the same show — Sept. 29-Oct. 3
• Three Repertory Shows: Sarah Ruhl's Melancholy Play, Stephen Adly Guirgis' In Arabia, We'd All Be Kings, and The Secretaries by Five Lesbian Brothers — Oct. 19-31
• Chekhov's Uncle Vanya — Nov. 16-21
• Shaw's You Never Can Tell — Feb. 23-27
• New Visions, New Voices (student plays) — March 2-6
• New Play, to be announced, directed by Stan Wojewodski, Jr. — April 6-17
• Lorca's Yerma — April 27-May 1