TEXAS: The Musical
Rider starts the ascent to start TEXAS: The Musical at Palo Duro Canyon State Park
Experience Texas History Under the Stars
Destinations | Entertainment and Sports
Each summer, the walls of Palo Duro Canyon light up with TEXAS: The Musical, a high-energy outdoor show filled with music, dance, and fireworks. Performed in the Pioneer Amphitheater since 1966, it is part history lesson, part spectacle, and pure Texas tradition under the stars.
In late July 2023, I had just returned several weeks prior from my Mid-Atlantic and New England trip vowing to rest when I dusted off my bucket list and headed to Amarillo for a few days to check off two significant stops.
Before heading out to Palo Duro Canyon, I enjoyed a meal at bucket list item The Big Texan Steak Ranch, the legendary steakhouse and home of the 72-oz. Steak Challenge (a hard “no” for me, since I practice portion control as part of my health journey).
After enjoying some filet mignon, I headed out nourished and happy to Palo Duro Canyon State Park south of Amarillo. My nephew and I hiked the Lighthouse Rock Trail the previous year, so I was already well-acquainted with the canyon’s beauty. It’s also hot in the summer, so I was content to arrive in time for the performance.
The surrounding canyon provides a Texas-appropriate backdrop for this family-friendly show. The cast consists mostly of nearby West Texas A&M University theater students.
It begins with a lone horseman with a Texas flag riding the rim of the overlooking 600-foot cliff, then eases into a story about the struggles of life on the High Plains in 1800s Texas. The performances were polished, entertaining, and fun, and for someone who is easily bored like me, I stayed engaged the entire time. Photography is prohibited during the performance, so you’ll have to take my word for it and see it for yourself.
At the beginning of the second act, “West Texas Rain” pays tribute to five cast members who were killed in a 2013 car accident after an end-of-year cast party. During the first performance after the accident, heavy rain during the show gave way to clear skies and stars as the performance concluded, a sign of these “angels” looking down on the performance.
