Weekend Event Planner

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

This weekend offers events both big and small. On the larger side are an Oktoberfest celebration, a fandom convention, several big concerts, and a well-known comedian. You can go more intimate with several local theater productions, a symphony performance, and a dance production. Also, fall will be on full display at one of the area's best nature venues.

Below are the best ways to spend your precious free time this weekend.

Thursday, September 16

Addison Oktoberfest
Addison Oktoberfest features four days of family-oriented entertainment, including German entertainers in authentic costumes performing traditional Bavarian folk dances, schuhplatten, oompah music, sing-a-longs, yodels and more. A special “Oktoberfest” Paulaner Bier is served along with several types of German sausage, sauerkraut, strudel, giant pretzels and more. There are carnival rides, midway games, and children’s entertainment. The event takes place through Sunday at Addison Circle Park. (For more local Oktoberfests, go here.)

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Copland & Brahms"
Featuring resident organist Bradley Hunter Welch under the direction of Fabio Luisi, this concert will feature selections including Frederick Converse's The Mystic Trumpeter, Aaron Copland's Organ Symphony, and Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 1. The concert will take place at the Meyerson Symphony Center through Sunday.

Undermain Theatre presents Stronger Than Arms
Undermain Theatre will present the newest work by the Danielle Georgiou Dance Group, Stronger Than Arms, a new adaptation of the classic Greek play Seven Against Thebes by Danielle Georgiou and Justin Locklear. The production will dive into the spiritual and political burdens placed on the chorus of Theban citizens, and the story points to the power of humanity’s worst enemy, unconquerable fear, and reveals that there could be something stronger — the willingness to change. Following the live performances of the show, running through October 2, the production will be available to stream at any time, October 3-17.

Flexible Grey Theatre Company presents Bridges: Sisters of Salem
Bridges: Sisters of Salem is the third iteration of Flexible Grey’s interview play series, Bridges. Sisters of Salem will focus on women in power and how opinions could sometimes lead to being burned at the stake, sharing stories from modern day women in power and comparing their stories to past women who were persecuted for using their own voice. This production, part of AT&T Performing Arts Center's Elevator Project, will run through Saturday at Sammons Park.

Friday, September 17

Fan Expo Dallas
The largest comic, sci-fi, horror, anime and gaming event in Texas continues their tradition of bringing some of Hollywood’s biggest names to the Lone Star State at the 19th Annual Fan Expo Dallas. Celebrity guests will include Zachary Quinto, Zachary Levi, William Shatner, George Takei, Walter Koenig, Carl Weathers, Ray Fisher, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Mario Lopez, Ron Perlman, and more. The convention takes place through Sunday at Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.

Counting Crows in concert
Some bands take time to build up their fan base, and some get shot out of a cannon. Counting Crows belongs in the latter category, blasting off with their first two albums in 1993 and 1996, which featured such hits as "Mr. Jones," "Round Here," and "A Long December." It's been seven years since they've released new music, but they'll play at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving in support of their new EP, Butter Miracle, Suite One.

Kings of Leon in concert with Cold War Kids
Tennessee rockers Kings of Leon are the opposite of Counting Crows, barely making a dent with their first three albums before shooting up to No. 4 on the Billboard 200 charts with 2008's Only by the Night. Strangely, despite their popularity, it took them another three albums to reach No. 1 with 2016's Walls. They'll play at Dos Equis Pavilion in support of their new album, When You See Yourself, joined by opening act Cold War Kids.

Echo Theatre presents It's My Party!
Based on real historical figures, It's My Party! delves into the turbulent backstory of the fight to pass the 19th Amendment. Facing an uphill battle in Washington, young suffragists employed increasingly radical tactics to make their voices heard, leading to bitter rivalries and a generational split that threatened to tear the suffragists’ movement apart from the inside. The production runs through October 9 at Bath House Cultural Center.

TITAS/Dance Unbound presents Momix: Alice
In timely fashion, TITAS/Dance Unbound will start their season walking through the Looking Glass. MOMIX, celebrating their 40th Anniversary, brings their fantastical Alice to Dallas. MOMIX director Moses Pendleton’s latest work takes the audience on a fun adventure with Lewis Carroll’s most beloved character, Alice. The production will play on Friday and Saturday at Winspear Opera House.

Saturday, September 18

Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden presents Autumn at the Arboretum
The 16th annual Autumn at the Arboretum returns with more than 90,000 pumpkins, gourds, and squash throughout the garden. New this year is the location of the nationally acclaimed Pumpkin Village, behind the Jonsson Color Garden, transformed into the theme "Bugtopia." The signature display comes alive with larger-than-life insect topiaries, bugged-out pumpkin houses, and a maze for younger visitors. The event will take place through October 31.

Whiskey Myers in concert
Texas band Whiskey Myers is five albums deep into their career and just starting to hit their stride. Each of their successive albums has made it higher on Billboard Country charts than the last, culminating with 2019's self-titled album, which went all the way to No. 1. The southern rock/country band will play at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving, with support from Bones Owens and Kolby Cooper.

Iliza Shlesinger: The Back in Action Tour
Iliza Shlesinger, a Dallas-raised comedian, is the only female and youngest person to hold the title of NBC’s Last Comic Standing. Shlesinger has five Netflix specials to her credit, including 2019's Unveiled. In recent years she's been in demand as an actress, starring in such films as Instant Family, Pieces of a Woman, and Good on Paper. She'll perform at Texas Trust CU Theatre at Grand Prairie.

Addison Oktoberfest takes place at Addison Circle Park through September 19.

Photo courtesy of Addison Oktoberfest

Addison Oktoberfest takes place at Addison Circle Park through September 19.

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Movie Review

Korean film No Other Choice uses dark comedy to tell deeper story

Photo courtesy of Neon

Lee Byung-hun in No Other Choice.

When Parasite won the Oscar for Best Picture in 2020, it signaled a shift in how international feature films were viewed not only by Academy voters, but also American filmgoers, who made it the fifth-highest grossing non-English language film of all time. Extra attention has been paid to other international films in the intervening years, including the new South Korean film, No Other Choice.

Starring Lee Byung-hun of Squid Game fame, the dark comedy chronicles the increasingly desperate actions of Man-su, a middle manager at a paper factory who is laid off due to automation. After months of trying to find a job at another paper company, he finally finds a good prospect only to learn that several other men may be better candidates. Man-su decides that the only solution is to eliminate the competition.

The only problem is Man-su is a bit of a coward; an early plan at standing up to his company in the face of the lay-offs meets an anticlimactic end. His wishy-washy ways seem to permeate his life, from putting off treatment on a painful tooth to not communicating with his more willful wife to actually going through with his vengeful ideas. He bumbles his way through every aspect of his life, virtually daring anyone to call him out on his poor decision-making.

Written and directed by Park Chan-wook, and co-written by Lee Kyoung-mi, Don McKellar, and Jahye Lee, the film initially seems to be another approach toward telling the class division story that’s at the center of Parasite and Squid Game. And it is that to a degree, as those in charge of the paper companies and the hiring committees are either indifferent or unsympathetic to the plight of those who have been forced out of work.

But the more we see of Man-su, the more it becomes clear that his is a story all its own, one where a man claims there is “no other choice” when in fact there are plenty of other options. The men in the film in general don’t come across well, with many of them reacting to stress by turning into whiners who believe the world is out to get them. Some situations turn violent as the film goes along, events that most of the time could have been avoided if the people involved actually took the time to think things through.

The film features a somewhat confusing story made even more puzzling if you don’t speak Korean. On first viewing, it’s initially unclear why Man-su is doing what he’s doing, or why he’s going after certain people in particular. The plot becomes more understandable as the film progresses, but Chan-wook includes several side plots that muddle things further even as they broaden certain characters. There are also a couple of visual text jokes that can easily be missed if you don’t know where to look.

Byung-hun is great as a man who can’t seem to get out of his own way. The role is almost in direct contrast to the one he played on Squid Game, making it easy to see how well he can adapt to different stories. Son Ye-jin as Man-su’s wife Miri and Lee Sung-min as Bummo, one of Man-su’s intended victims, are also highly engaging.

Like any film not in English, No Other Choice requires viewers to pay strict attention to the screen to get full enjoyment of the actors and their dialogue. While it doesn’t hit as hard as a comedy because of this factor, it’s still a greatly entertaining film whose underlying message makes it become a little deeper.

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No Other Choice is now playing in theaters.

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