Border Town Live

OPENING Weekend 🎭 ON SALE NOW

April 9 (7pm, $65) Prima Italia Dinner & Show 🥘 https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/western-district-dinner-show-at-prima-italia-4-9-2026

April 11 (5pm, $15) Digs FS Performance 🤠https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/western-district-at-digs-3-22-2026

April 12 (6pm, $15) Pridgin Family Brewery Beer Release & Show 🍺 https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/the-western-district-at-pridgin-family-brewery-4-12-2026

🍻 WESTERN DISTRICT 1872: (5% ABV) Belgian style wheat beer, smooth, refreshing, and light. The beer has a cloudy appearance, a pale straw color, and subtle notes of citrus and spice.

Experience The Western District One Act Play (Approx. 1 hour)

Written and produced by Dr. Brandon Chase Goldsmith, THE WESTERN DISTRICT brings to life a missing chapter of Fort Smith history. On May 8, 1871, the Western District Court of Arkansas was relocated from Van Buren to a notorious saloon known as Fort Smith’s “Hole in the Wall,” the site today occupied by 21 West End. In just fourteen months and twenty days, it became the most corrupt courthouse in the United States.

Congressional investigations uncovered illegal schemes including criminal charges dropped for cash, a U.S. Marshal founding a National Bank to conceal the equivalent of $1 million, the Secret Service being chased out of town under threat of assassination, and a Grand Jury manipulated to avoid prosecution.

📰 https://www.swtimes.com/story/news/2026/04/02/the-western-district-opens-with-fort-smith-history-focus/89435621007/

THANKS Southwest Times Record

OPENING Weekend 🎭 ON SALE NOW

April 9 (7pm, $65) Prima Italia Dinner & Show 🥘 https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/western-district-dinner-show-at-prima-italia-4-9-2026

April 11 (5pm, $15) Digs FS Performance 🤠https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/western-district-at-digs-3-22-2026

April 12 (6pm, $15) Pridgin Family Brewery Beer Release & Show 🍺 https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/the-western-district-at-pridgin-family-brewery-4-12-2026

🍻 WESTERN DISTRICT 1872: (5% ABV) Belgian style wheat beer, smooth, refreshing, and light. The beer has a cloudy appearance, a pale straw color, and subtle notes of citrus and spice.

Experience The Western District One Act Play (Approx. 1 hour)

Written and produced by Dr. Brandon Chase Goldsmith, THE WESTERN DISTRICT brings to life a missing chapter of Fort Smith history. On May 8, 1871, the Western District Court of Arkansas was relocated from Van Buren to a notorious saloon known as Fort Smith’s “Hole in the Wall,” the site today occupied by 21 West End. In just fourteen months and twenty days, it became the most corrupt courthouse in the United States.

Congressional investigations uncovered illegal schemes including criminal charges dropped for cash, a U.S. Marshal founding a National Bank to conceal the equivalent of $1 million, the Secret Service being chased out of town under threat of assassination, and a Grand Jury manipulated to avoid prosecution.

NOW Available at 10th Street Bookery 📚 Read the HISTORY before you see the PLAY 🎭
🤠 The Western District Book 📕 Tell Leah we sent ya!

One Act Play COMING April 2026

The Production Team 🎭 The Western District
Director: Michael Richardson
Stage Manager: Alyxandria Banning
Writer / Producer: Dr. Brandon Chase Goldsmith

For Brandon’s BDAY, donate to his newest version of The Western District Play. Help us bring this show back to River Valley, for the longest Performance run (April - July) in recent memory.

Donate Now | Western District Play by Support Year-Long Programing & 2026 Film Festival Support a powerful, historically rooted theatrical production while gaining meaningful community visibility. Sponsorships for The Western District are marketing and cu...

🗣️ AUDITIONS 🎭 Paid Opportunity 💃🏽 Mon (6pm) February 16 at Wyndham Belle Starr Room (Call Backs Feb 18) The Western District

Rehearsals 2/21 - 3/31

Friday & Saturday Performances (April - July) at over 10 locations including Marshals Museum, Miss Laura’s, Wyndham, and History Museum.

🎬 SELF-TAPE MASTERY WORKSHOP 🎬
📅 February 28 | 1:00 PM

Join award-winning actress & creative producer Silvia “Punkin” Mathis for a hands-on workshop that shows you how to Create great Self-Tapes from Anywhere - Even when the Conditions aren’t Perfect!

Whether you’re taping in a studio, a spare bedroom, or next to a lamp with the shade pulled off, Silvia brings a rare dual perspective: she’s booked network TV from self-tapes and cast hundreds of auditions on the producing side. She knows exactly what grabs attention and what gets skipped.

✨ What you’ll learn:
• Framing & eyelines that read professional
• Lighting and sound basics
• Reader dynamics, slating, and self-direction
• Performance choices that cut through the noise
• What producers actually say behind closed casting doors
• How to turn a “good tape” into a bookable tape

Perfect for actors, readers, coaches, filmmakers, and anyone supporting self-taped auditions. You’ll leave with practical tools, insider insight, and renewed confidence no matter where you’re based.

🎟 Register now:
👉 https://www.ozarkstix.com/events/self-tape-mastery-how-to-book-the-room-from-anywhere-even-with-imperfect-lighting-2-28-2026

SUBMISSIONS OPEN 🎥 Over the past five years, the Fort Smith International Film Festival has built a global network of more than 570 alumni filmmakers, receiving 2,355 submissions from nearly 100 countries, nations and tribes.

🎞️ Submit at FortSmithFilm.com or https://filmfreeway.com/FortSmithInternationalFilmFestival

https://www.rivervalleydemocratgazette.com/news/2026/jan/29/film-submissions-open-jan-30-for-6th-annual-fort/

Film submissions open Jan. 30 for 6th annual Fort Smith International Film Festival and MidAmerica Film Market | River Valley Democrat-Gazette FORT SMITH -- Film submissions for the 6th Annual Fort Smith International Film Festival and the MidAmerica Film Market open Friday.

“The River Valley Film Society contributes to the local and regional creative economy by generating cultural tourism, supporting small businesses, and attracting filmmakers, guests, and audiences to our area,” says Brandon Chase Goldsmith. “The 2025 Fort Smith International Film Festival and the MidAmerica Film Market created measurable economic activity generating $260,000 and nearly 700 room nights, helping position the River Valley as a destination for arts and culture.”

Submit Here: https://filmfreeway.com/FortSmithInternationalFilmFestival or go to FortSmithFilm.com

https://www.discoverfortsmith.com/articles/post/filmfestival2026/

Film Submissions Open January 30 for 6th Annual Fort Smith International Film Festival and MidAmerica Film Market Film submissions for the 6th Annual Fort Smith International Film Festival (FSIFF) and the MidAmerica Film Market (MFM) open Friday, January 30, continuing the festival’s growth as a regional, national, and international platform for independent film.

Leaning into our international status, we are currently in talks with the Singapore Film Commission to bring in actors, movies, and TV series to the 2026 Fort Smith International Film Festival and MidAmerica Film Market. Our goal is to celebrate the Republic of Singapore's Air Force coming to Ebbing Air National Base. We are also looking to honor all the other countries visiting the River Valley as part of the Foreign Military Sales Mission. We believe film is the best way to introduce locals to the various cultures coming to Fort Smith and to tell the Singaporean story.

It takes a few months for the data to settle in, but the wait was worth it. The 2025 Fort Smith International Film Festival (FSIFF) reached an astounding 330 million people globally, according to Meltwater’s annual media tracking report. That brings the festival’s five-year total media reach to over 2.2 billion, yes, with a B.

Discover Fort Smith

Fort Smith International Film Festival Five-Year Total Surpasses 2.2 Billion The 2025 Fort Smith International Film Festival (FSIFF) reached an astounding 330 million people globally, according to Meltwater’s annual media tracking report. That brings the festival’s five-year total media reach to over 2.2 billion, yes, with a B.