Weekend Event Planner

These are the 12 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

Valentine's Day weekend around Dallas will be full of events centered on romance, black history, and big names. They include two different odes to star-crossed lovers, two theater productions focused on African American characters, a visit from a popular presidential candidate, insight from a big-name actor, and a day of wellness with a woman so famous she only goes by one name.

Below are the best ways to spend your free time this weekend. Want more options? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events. Still looking for Valentine's Day dinner plans? We have a list for that, too.

Thursday, February 13

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Tchaikovsky's Romeo & Juliet
Just in time for Valentine's weekend, Dallas Symphony Orchestra will present one of Tchaikovsky’s most beautiful scores. The timeless story of Romeo and Juliet is told through the interlaced threads of the feuding Montagues and Capulets, the heavenly harp arpeggios of Friar Laurence’s chorale, and the impassioned theme of the star-crossed lovers. The concert, which will also include Martinu’s Fourth Symphony and the world premiere of Chickasaw composer Jerod Tate’s new concerto, will play four times through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center.

Kitchen Dog Theater presents Alabaster
Alabaster is about Alice, a noted photographer who sets out to explore the topography of “scars.” Her subject is June, an artist who lost her entire family in an Alabama tornado who is now covered from head to toe with scars, and suffers from agoraphobia and crippling PTSD. But Alice is carrying scars of her own and is desperately trying to outrun her own pain. Kitchen Dog Theater will present the play at Trinity River Arts Center through March 8.

Friday, February 14

Sesame Street Live: Make Your Magic
In Sesame Street Live: Make Your Magic, Elmo discovers that magic can be found anywhere when you believe in yourself. The audience will join the furry friends on a journey filled with surprising and spectacular illusions. The family-friendly show will play six times through Sunday at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco.

Lyric Stage presents Abyssinia
Lyric Stage celebrates Black History Month with the rarely-produced Abyssinia. Based on the novel Marked by Fire by Joyce Carol Thomas, the musical centers on Abyssinia "Abby" Jackson, who is blessed with the gift of song and a voice that thrills and delights the entire community. Like Job, Abby is fated to undergo a series of trials, and she must learn to heal herself before she can help others. The production will have four performances through Sunday at Majestic Theatre.

Avant Chamber Ballet presents Romeo and Juliet
Paul Mejia’s romantic and tragic Romeo & Juliet features live music which brings the famous Tchaikovsky score and the timeless story to life. Also featured during the performance will be George Balanchine’s Raymonda Variations, a world premiere collaboration between ACB director Katie Cooper and local composer Quinn Mason, and a guest company appearance by Ballet Frontier from Fort Worth. There will be two performances — one Friday and one Saturday — at Moody Performance Hall.

Dallas Black Dance Theatre presents Cultural Awareness
Dallas Black Dance Theatre's annual Cultural Awareness program will navigate culture and an eye-opening window into the human spirit through music and dance. Celebrating 20 years with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater as a dancer and choreographer, featured choreographer Hop Boykin combines her words with her movements to describe and display a heart's longing. There will be three performances through Sunday at Wyly Theatre.

Rally in Dallas with Bernie Sanders
In what will likely be the first of a number of public appearances in the Dallas area by candidates hoping to secure the Democratic nomination for president, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders will hold a free rally at Mesquite Arena. The local rally will cap a busy day for the politician, as he will hold two rallies earlier in the day in North Carolina.

Theatre Arlington presents A Raisin in the Sun
A Raisin in the Sun portrays a few weeks in the life of the Youngers, an African American family living on the South Side of Chicago in the 1950s. When the play opens, the Youngers are about to receive an insurance check, and each of the adult members of the family has an idea as to what he or she would like to do with the money. This landmark play was the first play on Broadway written by an African American female, Lorraine Hansberry. The production will run at Theatre Arlington through March 8.

Saturday, February 15

Oprah’s 2020 Vision: Your Life in Focus
This special event at American Airlines Center will feature Oprah Winfrey and high-profile guests bringing a full-day wellness event to Dallas. Attendees will spend the day with Oprah as she shares the personal ups and downs of her wellness journey and guides them to develop their own 2020 action plan through motivating conversations, the latest in wellness research, and insightful interactive workbook exercises. Oprah will also sit down for an intimate one-on-one conversation with actress Tracee Ellis Ross.

WinStar World Casino and Resort PBR Global Cup
The Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo ended last weekend, but the rodeo action continues this weekend with the fourth edition of the PBR Global Cup, the only nation vs. nation bull riding competition. Taking place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on both Saturday and Sunday, the event will feature six teams representing five competing nations: Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

William Shatner Live on Stage with Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan screening
Capt. James T. Kirk himself, William Shatner, will be on hand at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving to participate in a conversation and Q&A following a screening of the classic movie, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Shatner will be sharing stories from his career spanning over 50 years as an award-winning actor, producer, director, and writer. Fans will have a chance to ask questions during the Q&A.

Sunday, February 16

Dallas Museum of Art presents "Flores Mexicanas: Women in Modern Mexican Art" opening day
"Flores Mexicanas: Women in Modern Mexican Art" will survey representations of women in Mexican Modernism, featuring works by Alfredo Ramos Martínez, Frida Kahlo, María Izquierdo, Diego Rivera, and Francisco Dosamantes, among others. The highlight of the presentation will be the monumental painting Flores Mexicanas by Martínez, being shown for only the second time in nearly a century. The exhibition will be on display at the Dallas Museum of Art through September 20.

Oprah Winfrey will present Oprah’s 2020 Vision: Your Life in Focus at American Airlines Center on February 15.

Photo by George Burns/Harpo Productions Inc.

Oprah Winfrey will present Oprah’s 2020 Vision: Your Life in Focus at American Airlines Center on February 15.

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Movie Review

Long-awaited Wicked movie adaptation lives up to the hype

Photo courtesy of Universal Pictures

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-Butera in Wicked.

The musical Wicked is indisputably the biggest Broadway smash of the 21st century, having grossed more $1.6 billion in New York alone and achieving the rare feat of running for over 20 years. All of which is to say that the long-awaited movie adaptation of The Wizard of Oz prequel will most likely be a massive success whether it lives up to what longtime fans envisioned or not.

Part one — yes, this 2 hour and 40 minute film is merely the first act of the musical; part two arrives a year from now — introduces Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo), the green-skinned witch who goes on to become Dorothy’s nemesis, and G(a)linda (Ariana Grande-Butera), the pink-garbed “good” witch, as they meet at Shiz University in Oz. Glinda is the ultra-popular one with sycophantic hangers-on, while Elphaba is shunned by almost everyone, sometimes including her disabled sister Nessarose (Marissa Bode), who’s desperate to make her own space away from Elphaba.

Her mistreatment by others leads Elphaba to get angry, which manifests itself in uncontrollable magic. Madame Morrible (Michelle Yeoh) notices this and takes a personal interest in her, giving her one-on-one instruction in hopes of harnessing her power. In the meantime, Elphaba and Glinda attempt to go from forced roommates to actual friends, although Glinda’s entitled personality is more of an obstacle than anything else they encounter.

Directed by Jon M. Chu and written by original book writer Winnie Holzman and Dana Fox, the film does a great job of distinguishing itself from the stage version while still remaining true to what made it so beloved. As Chu showed in his last film, In the Heights, he has an innate feel for how to tap into the essence of the source material while expanding it into something befitting the scope of a blockbuster movie.

In this case, he finds a way to give even greater emphasis to the bigotry that Elphaba faces simply because of her green skin; the fact that she is being played by a Black woman drives home the point even more. The story remains light and fluffy for the most part, but the ostracization/otherness that Elphaba feels is delivered in a powerful way, as is her empathy for talking animals like Dr. Dillamond (voiced by Peter Dinklage), who are facing their own persecution.

Of course, the highlight of the film is Stephen Schwartz’s music, and while not all of the songs are equal in impact, they still make for a cohesive whole. The number of songs and order they appear in the first act is identical to the stage musical, with the standouts remaining “The Wizard and I,” “Popular,” and “Defying Gravity.” While there is some superfluous action and cutaways added to certain numbers, it’s not enough to distract from what makes the songs effective.

Oddly, the progression of the friendship between Elphaba and Glinda works better on stage when the timeline is accelerated, but Erivo and Grande-Butera make up for this slight lack with their fantastic performances. The emotion each brings to their characters fits them almost perfectly, and there’s simply no denying the strength of each of their voices. Bode, Jonathan Bailey as Fiyero, Ethan Slater as Boq, and more make for a solid supporting cast.

The well-known ending of the first act of Wicked is a huge high point that is so good that it almost makes up for the fact that audiences won’t see the second film for a long time. But if part one is any indication, part two should turn out to be another great musical theater adaptation in a decade that has already seen its fair share.

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Wicked opens in theaters on November 22.

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