Weekend Event Planner

These are the 10 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

After last year, the date of July 7 has new meaning in Dallas. Three separate events look back on the 2016 police shootings that took place that day, and pay tribute to the fallen. Among your other choices this weekend are a chance to dress up like Frida Kahlo, a visit from a notable author, a birthday celebration with a local star singer, and the return of wrestling to our fair city.

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

Thursday, July 6

Dallas Museum of Art presents Frida Fest
The Dallas Museum of Art and the Latino Center for Leadership Development are partnering to set the Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of people dressed as Frida Kahlo in one location on what would have been Frida Kahlo’s 110th birthday. Break out your unibrows, flower dresses, and red shawls for this special event, which also includes discounted tickets for "México 1900–1950: Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, and the Avant-Garde."

Bare Bones Shakespeare presents Richard III
Bare Bones Shakespeare presents a hard but entertaining look at the modern political climate through the lens of the Shakespearean history of King Richard III. To some, Richard of Gloucester is the one honest politician left. To others, he’s a sociopath and a morally bankrupt, social media-obsessed tyrant willing to lie, betray, and slaughter children, all to get what he truly wants. Bare Bones puts on the production at Rover Dramawerks in Plano through July 15.

Friday, July 7

2017 Dallas CASA Parade of Playhouses
The 22nd annual Parade of Playhouses, benefiting Dallas CASA, features 16 amazing children’s playhouses, including an Australian Outback airplane, a space capsule, a Rubik’s Cube, and an adorable little cottage. The playhouses are on view for free at NorthPark Center through July 23. For a chance to win one of the playhouses, visitors can purchase a raffle ticket for $5 each or five for $20.

Black Police Association presents Tribute 7/7
One year ago, a gunman shot and killed five Dallas area police officers following a protest march in downtown Dallas. The city of Dallas unites through Tribute 7/7, an event created to commemorate the one-year anniversary of the 2016 shootings that killed four Dallas Police Officers and one DART Officer, honor the resilience of the community, and to pay tribute to those who lost their lives. The event takes place at Dallas City Hall.

AT&T Performing Arts Center presents #hearhere: Neil Gaiman
As part of the 2017 speaker series #hearhere, the AT&T Performing Arts Center presents author Neil Gaiman, who's had a recent resurgence due to the TV adaptation of one of his best works, American Gods. #hearhere (formerly known as #thinkspeak) features dynamic discussions from leaders in radio, TV, journalism, art, and filmmaking. The series removes the barrier between audiences and some of the most interesting minds of our time. The event takes place at Winspear Opera House.

Majestic Theatre presents E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Thirty-five years ago, one of director Steven Spielberg's best and most-enduring films was released. No matter what age you might be, the magic and emotion of E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial still shines through. Now you can see it the way it was meant to be seen — on the big screen — at this special event taking place at the Majestic Theatre.

Cry Havoc Theater Company and Kitchen Dog Theater presents Shots Fired
Shots Fired, the acclaimed documentary theater production about the July 2016 Dallas police shootings, returns for a second run to mark the one-year anniversary. In the fall of 2016, a group of teenagers interviewed police officers, protesters, and community members about that night and the ensuing aftermath. Their stories and the company’s reflections on them offer a snapshot of race relations in Dallas and the community’s hope for the future. The production plays at Trinity River Arts Center through July 15.

Leon Bridges Birthday Bash
Fort Worth soul singer Leon Bridges received much acclaim, including a Grammy nomination, for his 2015 debut album, Coming Home. He celebrates his 28th birthday with a concert featuring DJ Sober and other special guests at It'll Do Club in Deep Ellum. A portion of proceeds will be donated to KEEN Group, which delivers innovative environmental education, health education, and arts programs to youth in Tarrant County.

Saturday, July 8

The Dallas Five Memorial Event
The Dallas Five Memorial Event is a day of music and activities at CrossFit Heat in memory of the five officers killed on July 7, 2016. It includes live music by Justin Myers and Scott Whitaker, CrossFit workouts, kid activities, a silent auction, and more. The event raises money for the Halo Fund, a tax-exempt fund that provides financial aid and support to the families of Dallas Police Officers who have been killed in the line of duty.

Sunday, July 9

WWE: Great Balls of Fire
WWE Pay Per View returns to Dallas for the only time in 2017 with Great Balls of Fire at American Airlines Center. Brock Lesnar is back to defend the Universal Championship for the first time since WrestleMania 33, facing off against Samoa Joe. There are four other matches featuring Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, Alexa Bliss, and Neville.

Leon Bridges celebrates his birthday with a special concert at It'll Do Club on July 7.

Austin City Limits Festival ACL 2015 Weekend Two Leon Bridges

Photo by Shelley Neuman

Leon Bridges celebrates his birthday with a special concert at It'll Do Club on July 7.

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Wicked News

Wizard of Oz ruby slippers bought by mystery bidder for $28 million

Heritage Auctions

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A pair of iconic ruby slippers that were worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz and stolen from a museum nearly two decades ago sold for a winning bid of $28 million at auction on December 7.

Dallas-based Heritage Auctions had estimated that they would fetch $3 million or more, but the fast-paced bidding far outpaced that amount within seconds and tripled it within minutes. A few bidders making offers by phone volleyed back and forth for 15 minutes as the price climbed to the final, eye-popping sum.

Including the auction house fee, the unknown buyer will ultimately pay $32.5 million.

Online bidding, which opened last month, had stood at $1.55 million before live bidding began late Saturday afternoon.

The sparkly red heels were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005 when Terry Jon Martin used a hammer to smash the glass of the museum’s door and display case. Their whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered them in 2018.

Martin, now 77, who lives near Grand Rapids in northern Minnesota, wasn’t publicly exposed as the thief until he was indicted in May 2023. He pleaded guilty in October 2023. He was in a wheelchair and on supplementary oxygen when he was sentenced last January to time served because of his poor health.

The shoes were returned in February to memorabilia collector Michael Shaw, who had loaned them to the museum. They were one of several pairs that Garland wore during the filming, but only four pairs are known to have survived. In the movie, to return from Oz to Kansas, Dorothy had to click her heels three times and repeat, “There’s no place like home.”

As Rhys Thomas, author of The Ruby Slippers of Oz, put it, the sequined shoes from the beloved 1939 musical have seen “more twists and turns than the Yellow Brick Road.”

Over 800 people had been tracking the slippers, and the company’s webpage for the auction had hit nearly 43,000 page views by Thursday, said Robert Wilonsky, a vice president with the auction house.

Among those bidding to bring the slippers home was the Judy Garland Museum, which posted on Facebook shortly after that it did not place the winning bid. The museum had campaigned for donations to supplement money raised by the city of Grand Rapids at its annual Judy Garland festival and the $100,000 set aside this year by Minnesota lawmakers to help the museum purchase the slippers.

After the slippers sold, the auctioneer told bidders and spectators in the room and watching online that the previous record for a piece of entertainment memorabilia was $5.52 million, for the white dress Marilyn Monroe famously wore atop a windy subway grate.

The auction also included other memorabilia from The Wizard of Oz, such as a hat worn by Margaret Hamilton, who played the original Wicked Witch of the West. That item went for $2.4 million, or a total final cost to the buyer of $2.93 million.

The Wizard of Oz story has gained new attention in recent weeks with the release of the movieWicked, an adaptation of the megahit Broadway musical, a prequel of sorts that reimagines the character of the Wicked Witch of the West.

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