Weekend Event Planner

The Marvel Experience at Fair Park headlines best weekend events in Dallas

For the next three weeks, the world of Marvel Comics takes over Dallas-Fort Worth with two massive events. But if superheroes aren't your thing, there are still plenty of other options on the docket, including a Disney musical, the continuation of Dallas Medianale and a celebration of Martin Luther King Jr.

Below are the best options for your precious free time Thursday through Sunday. Don't like what you see? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.

Thursday, January 15

The Marvel Experience: The World's First Hyper-Reality Tour
If you thought seeing Iron Man, Captain America or The Avengers was a spectacle, just wait until you get to virtually experience the world yourself. This unique event features multiple activities in seven domes, a life-size Avengers Quinjet, a 4-D motion ride and more, all located at Fair Park through January 31.

Disney's Beauty and the Beast
When national theater productions come to the area, Dallas and Fort Worth generally get them back-to-back. But it took a solid nine months for Disney's Beauty and the Beast to make its way from Winspear Opera House in Dallas to Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth. The tale is worth the wait, and it runs through Sunday.

Friday, January 16

Rhythm in Fusion Festival
The Rhythm in Fusion Festival is a chance for lovers of tap dance to immerse themselves in the art form. Over four days, top national dancers, choreographers and industry professionals take part in classes and workshops at the Majestic Theatre to teach locals the ins and outs of tap. The festival culminates with a showcase on Sunday night.

Dennis DeYoung: The Music of Styx (POSTPONED UNTIL APRIL 23)
Singer Dennis DeYoung, one of the founding members of the rock group Styx, hasn't been an official member of the group since a split in 1999. But the man responsible for such classic songs as "Lady," "Come Sail Away" and "Mr. Roboto" hasn't let that stop him, and he carries on the group's legacy with this concert at Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts in Richardson.

Saturday, January 17

Video Association of Dallas presents Dallas Medianale
The Video Association of Dallas is presenting this experimental film festival at McKinney Avenue Contemporary through February 28. As part of that event, they open an exhibition titled "Call and Response" on Saturday, featuring works by artists like Bruce Nauman, Joe Sola, Francis Alys, Gary Hill and Owen Kydd.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Cameron Carpenter
You don't usually picture energy and showmanship when it comes to classical music, but that's exactly what organist Cameron Carpenter brings to the table. He shows off his considerable skills on the Meyerson Symphony Center's Fisk Opus 100 organ at this special, one-night-only concert.

2015 Artopia
The annual Artopia, put on by the Dallas Observer at Centennial Hall at Fair Park, blends culture, fashion, art, music and food for an unforgettable night. Not only is it an opportunity to see some of the best of the Dallas-Fort Worth arts world, it's a way to help the arts flourish, as proceeds go toward grants for local artists.

Sunday, January 18

Travis Tritt in concert
Travis Tritt is one of those country singers who can live forever on his best work. Despite not having any hit songs since the early 2000s, Tritt and his fans can still bring themselves back to his heyday thanks to songs like "I'm Gonna Be Somebody," "Here's a Quarter (Call Someone Who Cares)" and "Foolish Pride." He regales the crowd at Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts with songs new and old.

Anjelah Johnson in concert
You may not immediately recognize the name of comedian Anjelah Johnson, but chances are that you know her face. She was a featured performer on MADtv and she's starred in commercials for Taco Cabana since 2011. Johnson gets back to her stand-up roots with this show at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

The 32nd Annual Black Music & Civil Rights Movement Concert and Tribute to Martin Luther King Jr.
This year's Martin Luther King Jr. Day, which falls on Monday, January 19, is more high-profile than usual with the release of the Oscar-worthy film Selma. This event at Meyerson Symphony Center features a variety of presentations honoring the civil rights leader's legacy, including film, music, narration and dance features.

Disney's Beauty and the Beast plays at Bass Performance Hall through January 18.

Broadway at the Hobby Center January 2015 jillian_butterfield_as_belle_and_ryan_everett_wood_as_beast_in_disneys_beauty_and_the_beast

Photo by © Matthew Murphy

Disney's Beauty and the Beast plays at Bass Performance Hall through January 18.

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Movie Review

Andrew Garfield leads peasant rebellion in medieval film The Uprising

Photo by Betina La Plante/Focus Features

Andrew Garfield in The Uprising.

Writer/director Paul Greengrass made his name with a cinéma vérité style of filmmaking that brought immediacy and depth to three Jason Bourne films, United 93, Captain Phillips, and more. In The Uprising, he uses those skills to tell the story of the so-called Peasants’ Revolt in 14th century England.

Greengrass wastes no time starting the main plot as Ploughman (Andrew Garfield) and his fellow villagers object to onerous taxes put on them by the country’s nobility, led by the young King Richard II (Woody Norman), to fund an ongoing war. Ploughman initiates a violent response over the tone-deaf — and unseemly — way the king’s guard go about their business, and the rebellion soon starts to spread across the countryside, with the citizens looking for a degree of autonomy.

The ever-expanding group makes their way toward London to try to make their case to the king himself. Meanwhile, the king’s top advisors, including Archbishop Sudbury (Stephen Dillane) and Treasurer Hales (Tom Hollander), try to usurp power from the inexperienced monarch even as the king’s mother (Katherine Waterston) tries to get him to be more assertive.

The history of the English monarchy is long and lurid, as Shakespeare detailed in multiple plays, including Richard II. Though the events in the film took place almost 650 years ago, it’s easy to see parallels between what the peasants were fighting for and modern-day politics. Greengrass’ storytelling intent is solid, and the righteous anger the citizens feel is initially relatable and palpable.

But the populism theme of the story soon gets bogged down in drudgery and minutiae that is difficult to understand, especially when the details are lost in the thick regional English accents. The leaders of the rebels — including John Ball (Jamie Bell), Wat Tyler (Cosmo Jarvis), and Alyce (Thomasin McKenzie) — are shown doing a lot of planning, but the strong feelings they have about their quest don’t come across well, leaving the audience as passive observers.

When there is action, Greengrass and his team employ a frenetic style that is not great for comprehension. While the gist of what is happening and what side is winning is legible, individual moments go by so quickly so as to be nearly meaningless. Save for Ploughman, any connection that has been made with various characters proves futile, as Greengrass doesn’t seem to have any time for emotion. Scenes that should feel thrilling or heartbreaking instead come off as empty.

Garfield is a two-time Oscar nominee who has done great work across multiple genres. He’s fine in this role, but whether it’s the story, the filmmaking, or something else, he’s not as captivating as usual. The same goes for other strong actors like Bell, McKenzie, Dillane, Hollander, and Waterston, who each seem to be giving their all to their performances but are somehow muted in the process.

Done right, The Uprising could have been a rip-roaring account of people standing up against their oppressors. What Greengrass has made, though, is a film that can’t translate its medieval story for a modern audience and concentrates too much on unexciting elements and too little on thrilling ones.

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The Uprising is now playing in theaters.

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