UPDATE: Bastille Dallas and the Dallas Museum of Art invite the community to join in a moment of peace in remembrance tonight during Bastille Dallas at 7 p.m. on July 15. Come to the Yoko Ono piece "Imagine Peace Forever," located on the Dallas Museum of Art's Ross Avenue Plaza near the intersection of Harwood and Ross Avenue.
Bastille on Bishop is back, bigger and better than before. The French-themed festival celebrating the Storming of the Bastille has outgrown its home in the Bishop arts district, and festivities will commence in two locations this year: Bishop Arts July 14 and Dallas Arts July 15.
"[Bastille] started as a way to bring our neighbors together and to introduce people to oak cliff. We've introduced a ton of people there, so many that we are expanding to Dallas Arts," Event Organizer Amy Cowan said. She and Jason Roberts co-founded Go Oak Cliff, the host organization, and began Bastille seven years ago.
The second location not only provides more space, but also a greater selection of food and wine, street performances, a VIP section and more entertainment. Go Oak Cliff is also partnering with the Dallas Museum of Art for the first time. Featured inside the DMA, Cassie MacGregor will be retailing hats and highlighting French fashion, Danielle Georgiou will be can-can dancing, and there will aerial and acrobatic performances.
Both Bishop Arts and Dallas Arts will include a jazz ensemble -- inspired by an underground basement jazz club in the Latin quarter of Paris called Le Caveau de la Huchette -- and will round out the night with a bit of karaoke.
While there won't be food competitions, there will be the very popular Village Baking Company ham and butter sandwiches and plenty of crepes ("we continue working every year to find as many crepes as we can!" Cowan said).
Go Oak Cliff anticipates about 10,000 people at Dallas Arts, twice the amount that usually turn up in Bishop Arts.
"We've been averaging around 5,000 people the last couple years, but we just don't have anywhere to put them," Cowan said. "There's no parking, the shuttle filled up before they even made it through the first loop. We had to come up with a new plan, and we're excited that the Dallas Arts was ready to have us."
General admission is free, but a $25 fee will purchase a festival glass and two tokens for food or drink items. VIP tickets cost $50 and receive the glass and four tokens. Alcohol will only be sold to visitors with festival glasses, which will sell out ahead of time. Most food and drink items are in $6 range.
Bastille in Bishop Arts July 14 from 6 to 10 p.m. at 408 N. Bishop Ave., Dallas. Bastille in Dallas Arts July 15 from 6 p.m. to midnight at 750 North St. Paul St., Dallas.
