Camille and Rich sit down with Dallas legend Liz Mikel to talk about her extraordinary career and her powerful new role as the lone performer in Where We Stand at the Dallas Theater Center.

A Texas native, Liz has been performing since childhood. Trained from age six by Ann Williams of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre and later mentored by Curtis King of The Black Academy of Arts and Letters, she has built a career that spans local, national, and international stages. Dallas audiences know her well. She has appeared in more than 20 productions at the Dallas Theater Center since 1990 and recently completed her 14th year in the annual production of A Christmas Carol. Over the years she has performed at Theatre Three, Dallas Children’s Theater, WaterTower Theatre, Casa Mañana, The Majestic Theatre, Jubilee Theatre and more. She has toured nationally, performed at The Cape Playhouse in Dennis, Massachusetts, and even taken productions to Geneva, Paris and New York.

Her accolades include the Dallas Theatre League’s Leon Rabin Award in 1998, the Dallas Theater Critics Forum Award in 2004, Best Actress by D Magazine in 2004, and recognition as Queen of the Arts, The Face of Black Theater in Dallas by The Dallas Weekly in March 2006.

Now, Liz takes center stage alone in Where We Stand, running February 25 through March 22, 2026 at Bryant Hall on the Kalita Humphreys Theater Campus. Written by Donnetta Lavinia Grays and directed by Akin Babatunde, this co production with Stage West Theatre is an intimate, interactive theatrical experience where the audience decides the outcome. Mercy or justice. Redemption or consequence. The choice belongs to you.

The 70 minute production has no intermission and is suitable for all ages, with audience members 12 and up most likely to fully appreciate the experience. Stay Late conversations after every performance will be led by Liz herself.

This is a conversation about art, discipline, legacy, and what it means to stand alone on stage and trust the audience to shape the story.

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What started with a couple Highland Park high school kids quietly putting boats in the water has grown into one of the most unique athletic communities in Dallas.

On this episode, Camille and Rich sit down with Austin Brooks, better known as AJ, Executive Director of Dallas United Crew. We talk about the surprising history of rowing in Dallas, how the sport found its home here, and why White Rock Lake became the backdrop for something much bigger than competition.

AJ’s story alone is wild. Undefeated collegiate career at the University of Washington, world record in the Varsity 8+, Team USA appearances, and a Henley Royal Regatta championship. Now he’s in Dallas building a program designed for everyone, not just elite athletes.

Dallas United Crew has grown from a single high school team into a full nonprofit urban water sports center serving athletes of all ages and backgrounds. The mission is simple but powerful. Build character, resilience, and community through movement on the water.

This conversation goes way beyond rowing. It is about access, opportunity, and how a city builds identity around something most people never expected to be part of Dallas culture.

You will never look at the lake the same way again.

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For Part 2 of our field trip to Bonton Farms, Camille and Rich sit down with Melissa Metoyer, the Senior Director of Health Equity and Community Impact, to talk about what it really looks like when a neighborhood takes care of each other.

This conversation goes deep into health and wellness, but not in the abstract. We talk about real systems. Real people. And real outcomes. From medical and dental care to behavioral health, nutrition, financial stability, and workforce development, Melissa walks us through how Bonton Farms has built an integrated model where everything works together under one roof.

What stood out most is how intentional it all is. This isn’t charity. It’s dignity. It’s accountability. It’s neighbors supporting neighbors in ways that actually change lives long term.

Bonton Farms already had a national reputation for community transformation, but Melissa shares how the work has evolved into something scalable, measurable, and deeply human. This episode is about health equity, but more than that, it’s about what happens when a community decides it deserves better and builds the systems to make it happen.

If you care about health, wellness, community, or just seeing what’s possible when people stop talking and start building, this one is worth your time.

Check them out!

https://www.bontonfarms.org

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