There is a lot going on around Dallas this weekend, with something to please pretty much everybody. There will be visits from three big-name comedians, the end of one film festival and the beginning of another, the first appearance by a classical music conductor, two new local theater productions, and two dynamic singers.
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.
Thursday, April 18
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden presents "Celebrate the Children"
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden will present "Celebrate the Children," an art exhibition designed and created by Gary Lee Price. Guests can interact with beautiful, hand-crafted bronze sculptures of children, which are displayed throughout the garden. The exhibition, on display through October 31, features more than 25 different, hand-produced, bronze sculptures, many of which are of Price's own children.
Dallas International Film Festival closing day
After eight action-packed days, the 2019 Dallas International Film Festival will come to a close on Thursday. There will be 11 final screenings, all taking place at Landmark Magnolia in the West Village, including Them That Follow, starring Olivia Colman and Walton Goggins; the documentary Jump Shot; and The Death of Dick Long.
SOLUNA Festival: Fabio Luisi Conducts the Dallas Symphony Orchestra
Fabio Luisi makes his first appearance on the podium following the announcement of his position as Music Director Designate. The concert, taking place on Thursday and Friday at Meyerson Symphony Center, will feature Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony and works by Frank Martin and William Grant Still. The DSO will present a free simulcast of the concert on Thursday at Annette Strauss Square and stream it online via Facebook Live.
Chelsea Handler: Life Will Be the Death of Me
Chelsea Handler is back with her first book in five years and her first memoir: Life Will Be the Death of Me. In support of the book, Handler will appear in person at Majestic Theatre as part of a nationwide tour titled, Life Will Be the Death of Me: Chelsea Handler's Sit-Down Comedy Tour. The event will feature Handler in conversation, discussing stories from the new book and more.
Friday, April 19
Dallas Holocaust Museum presents "One Day in the Holocaust: April 19, 1943"
In honor the last year of their permanent exhibition, "One Day in the Holocaust: April 19, 1943," Dallas Holocaust Museum will commemorate the date with free admission all day. The exhibition will be on display through July 2019. Shortly after the exhibit comes to an end, the museum will make its way to its new digs at 300 N. Houston Street. with the distinctive shiny copper roof, which will officially open in September.
EarthxFilm Festival
EarthxFilm, presented by EarthX, showcases films and emerging media that explore conservation, climate change, and the environment while honoring the heroes working to protect our planet. The 10-day environmentally-focused film festival, taking place at multiple venues around Dallas through April 28, will showcase films like Sea of Shadows, executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, and The River and the Wall, which explores the wildlife across the complex and diverse terrain of the U.S.-Mexico border, attempting to understand how it would be affected by the wall proposed by President Donald Trump.
The Music of Cream: 50th Anniversary World Tour
The band Cream, composed of Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce, and Eric Clapton, was a chemical explosion like no other, the blueprint for every supergroup to follow and the heavy blues precursor to Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and others. Fifty years after their debut album, Kofi Baker (son of Ginger) and Malcolm Bruce (son of Jack) unite with Will Johns (Eric's nephew by marriage to perform songs like "Spoonful," "Strange Brew," "Sunshine of Your Love," "White Room," "Crossroads," and "Badge." The concert will take place at House of Blues Dallas.
Seth Meyers in concert
Dallas audiences will get the rare opportunity to see late-night talk show host Seth Meyers get back to his roots of stand-up comedy at Majestic Theatre. The Emmy Award-winning writer has hosted Late Night with Seth Meyers since 2014 following his 13-year stint on Saturday Night Live, where he was head writer for much of that time. In addition to his talk show, Meyers currently executive produces the NBC comedy, A.P. Bio, and co-created IFC’s docu-parody series, Documentary Now!, with Fred Armisen and Bill Hader.
Trevor Noah: Loud & Clear Tour
Like other late night talk show hosts, Trevor Noah has made hay since Donald Trump was elected president. The Daily Show's inherent political bent has allowed him to go even further than other hosts, making his takeover for Jon Stewart all the more natural. Noah will take a break from his duties on Comedy Central to get back to his roots as a stand-up comic with two shows — one Friday and one Saturday — at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving.
Stagedoor presents Grounded
Grounded is a powerful one-woman show that will be the first Dallas-Fort Worth production by Stagedoor. It is the story of a female Air Force pilot who is grounded after becoming pregnant with her first child. When she returns to duty, she is reassigned from fighter jets to drones and must learn to navigate the intersection of wartime and home life as she hunts terrorists by day and returns to her family each night. The production will run at Margo Jones Theatre at Magnolia Lounge through Sunday.
Maren Morris in concert with Raelynn
Country singer Maren Morris, originally from Arlington, has transformed herself into a true crossover star. On the strength of the 2016 Grammy-winning song "My Church," she has rocketed up not only the country charts, where she's had two No. 1 albums, but the Billboard 200 as well, making the top 10 there. She'll play at the Bomb Factory in support of her new album, Girl, with Raelynn as opening act.
WaterTower Theatre presents Everything Is Wonderful
Following a tragic car accident that killed her two brothers, Miri, the excommunicated daughter of an Amish family, returns home to find that her parents have taken in the wayward driver of the car. Quickly learning that time has not healed old wounds, Miri struggles with the contradictions of the culture she left behind, while being forced to confront Abram, the young Amish man whose actions drove her away. Everything is Wonderful will play at WaterTower Theatre through May 12.
Saturday, April 20
SOLUNA Festival: Jennifer Hudson
For a singer who only came in seventh on her season of American Idol, Jennifer Hudson has gone on to become one of the most successful performers in the show's history. She has not only won two Grammy Awards, but also leveled up and won the Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her role in 2006's Dreamgirls. She'll perform songs from that movie and more in this special concert at Meyerson Symphony Center as part of the SOLUNA Festival.
Jennifer Hudson will sing at Meyerson Symphony Center on April 20 as part of the SOLUNA Festival.
