Weekend Event Planner

These are the 13 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

It's the weekend leading into Thanksgiving week, so that means holiday events are kicking into high gear. But even though there are six big holiday events on the list, they're far from the only headliners. Other options include the return of a huge musical, a new local theater production, two big country concerts, a dance production, and two classical music concerts.

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

Thursday, November 18

Chi Omega Christmas Market
The Chi Omega Christmas Market will return for an in-person experience for the 2021 holiday season. Taking place in the Automobile Building at Fair Park through Saturday, it will feature around 200 merchants offering holiday décor, women’s clothing/accessories, home accents, children’s clothing/toys, food items, and more. All proceeds from ticket sales will be donated to local beneficiaries.

The Elf On the Shelf Magical Holiday Journey
At the Elf on the Shelf Magical Holiday Journey, audiences will discover the magic of The Elf on the Shelf through a new walk-through experience. Santa’s Christmas Compass has gone haywire, and Tiny Tinkerman and the other Scout Elves need human help to get Christmas back on course. Audiences will journey into the concourse at Choctaw Stadium, shrink down to elf size, and explore enchanting, Texas-sized scenery showcasing a company of 50 cheer-building performers. The event takes place at Choctaw Stadium in Arlington through January 2.

Radiance! featuring Frozen in Frisco
Radiance! featuring Frozen in Frisco is a two-part experience covered by one ticket. Taking place at Riders Field in Frisco through January 1, Radiance! becomes a theme park-style ride in a vehicle that guides guests through a mile-long light trail of over 3 million lights, animated to favorite holiday tunes. Frozen in Frisco will feature a two-story outdoor ice tubing hill, ice skating under the stars, bumper cars on ice, snowball toss with real snow, a 108-foot Ferris wheel, Christmas carousel, buckin’ reindeer rides, a Christmas Story escape room, s’mores fire pits, a holiday market, and more.

Second Thought Theatre presents Sweetpea
Second Thought Theatre will present their full production of Sweetpea, the theatre’s first in-person production since the start of the pandemic. After separating, a couple reconnects and decide to move back in together, introducing their pet birds to each other in the process. As the human relationship unravels, an avian romance burgeons. At once light and dark, familiar and strange, and shaded with juxtapositions between the ego and the id, Sweetpea is Janielle Kastner’s unsettling reflection on the concept of intimacy and the “absurdity” of sharing space. The production will run through December 11.

Dallas Summer Musicals presents Hamilton
The world has changed a lot since Hamilton last came to Dallas in 2019, but the one thing that hasn't changed is the power of the Tony Award-winning musical. The story of the rise and fall of founding father Alexander Hamilton is brought to ecstatic life by the music and lyrics of Lin-Manuel Miranda, delivering a show for the ages. It will run at the Music Hall at Fair Park through December 5.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Bartók & Beethoven
The latest concert from the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Gemma New, will feature violinist Nathan Olson. Selections for the concert, playing three times through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center, will include Debussy's "Printemps," Bartók's "Violin Concerto No. 1," and Beethoven's "Symphony No. 6, Pastoral."

Luke Combs in concert
Country star Luke Combs has played concerts in the Dallas area since 2018, but this will the first time as a headliner. And he's really taking advantage of the opportunity, as well, as he will play shows on back-to-back nights on Thursday and Friday at American Airlines Center. Combs' two albums — 2017's This One's for You and 2019's What You See Is What You Get — have both gone multi-platinum.

Friday, November 19

Galleria Dallas presents Snowday and Santaland
Snowday, taking place at Galleria Dallas through January 17, takes guests on an explorable adventure through more than 20 imaginative rooms and hundreds of surprises for all ages over the course of about an hour. Next to Snowday is Santaland, where visitors will arrive in a magical moonlit forest and journey through an enchanted path filled with starry lights, polar bears, and endless photo ops leading to Santa’s cabin hideaway.

Dallas Zoo Lights
The Dallas Zoo will give visitors a chance to cruise the mile-long route during Dallas Zoo Lights. The spectacle features one million twinkling lights, elaborate displays, dazzling 3-D lighted sculptures, larger-than-life animal lanterns, and more. After driving through, guests can park and enjoy the Reliant Holiday village to take photos with Santa and sing along to musical performances. The event takes place through January 2.

Dallas Cowboys present Christmas at the Star
At the fifth annual Christmas at The Star, fans and the local community can enjoy family-friendly experiential events throughout the holiday season. This includes the Cowboys Christmas Extravaganza, a 20-minute show featuring the lighting of The Star’s 67-foot Christmas tree by a Dallas Cowboys alumni and a variety of performances; and Santa at The Star. The event takes place weekly on Fridays and Saturdays through December 18.

Bruce Wood Dance presents ReNEW
Bruce Wood Dance will present ReNEW, headlined by the Dallas premiere of Elemental Brubeck by world-renowned 20th century choreographer and educator Lar Lubovitch, set to the popular jazz music of Dave Brubeck. The performance, taking place at Moody Performance Hall through Sunday, will also feature begin again by New York City choreographer Yin Yue and Bruce Wood’s riveting classic, Liturgy.

Saturday, November 20

Plano Symphony Orchestra presents Disney In Concert: Magical Music From The Movies
Plano Symphony Orchestra will highlight many of Walt Disney’s stories and characters through memorable melodies. Musical highlights at the concert, taking place at Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts in Richardson, include selections from Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Mary Poppins, Aladdin, The Lion King, and more.

Sunday, November 21

Dan + Shay in concert
Country duo Dan + Shay have been one of the more popular acts since their debut album, appropriately titled Where It All Began, in 2014. They've released four albums in their career, including their new album, Good Things, all of which have gone to either No. 1 or No. 2 on the Billboard Country charts, as well as the top 10 on the Billboard 200. They'll play at American Airlines Center.

Luke Combs will play at American Airlines Center on November 18 and 19.

Luke Combs/Facebook

Luke Combs will play at American Airlines Center on November 18 and 19.

concerts event-planner holidays

Racket sports

Trendy Austin padel club Padel39 lobs first DFW location into Carrollton

Photo by Juan J Valdes

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A popular padel club from Austin is serving up its first location in Dallas-Fort Worth: Padel39 has purchased and taken over the existing Dallas Padel Club, at 3000 Belmeade Dr.

According to a release, multimillion-dollar renovations are underway and are expected to be complete by summer 2026. The revamp includes:

Seven new outdoor courts are being added to the current three indoor courts (with completion expected by March 2026).
Full food and beverage capabilities for a premium sports bar that is open to the public.
A fitness area for members that is affiliated with HYROX, recovery areas, wellness facilities (sauna, cold plunge, etc.), upscale locker rooms.
Upscale lounging and coworking space.

For those not up on their racket sports, padel is a cousin of pickleball, tennis, and racquetball. The sport has been wildly popular in Spain and Latin America for decades and is one of the fastest-growing sports in the U.S. Like pickleball, it's a doubles game played on a small court, and players hit off glass walls.

Padel was invented in Acapulco, Mexico, by Enrique Corcuera; Padel39 bears the first two numbers of all Acapulco ZIP Codes.

Padel39 co-founders Will and Naomi Boyce.Photo by Juan J Valdes

The company was founded in 2024 by husband-and-wife William Boyce and Naomi Boyce; William played tennis for the University of Texas at Austin.

Padel39 currently has two locations in Austin, with a third opening in March. They say they aim to open 12 to 15 Padel39 clubs in Austin, Dallas, and Houston by 2028. After Carrollton, a location will open in central Dallas in late 2026/early 2027, they say.

“We currently introduce 200+ new players to the sport each month, while maintaining a core group of repeat clients who return for the fitness, competition and vibrant community,” William Boyce says in the release. “Each new location fulfills our vision to put Padel39 and Texas at the epicenter of the padel community.”

In addition to offering courts to play on, Padel39 features on-court programming, tournaments, social events, and physical wellness opportunities such as courtside Pilates and morning yoga.

Padel39 Padel39 courts and lounge areas at a location in Austin. Photo by Josh Graziadei

While Padel39 offers memberships, all guests are welcome to play, they say. According to the website, each club is priced differently. At the flagship location in Austin, Padel39 memberships start at $89 per month or $890 per year, but players can also rent courts as needed for 90 minutes at $30.

“We set out to create a modern take on a country club; a place where members and guests could ‘play and stay,’” Boyce says. “We’ve built that and more. We work to improve the experience for our guests each day.”

Outdoor construction on the Carrollton club is expected to be completed by March. Indoor food and beverage, fitness and lounging renovations will be finished by summer, they say. The club will remain open during renovations.

padel pickleball sports