Weekend Event Planner

These are the 8 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

The list of new events in and around Dallas this weekend may be shorter than usual, but they pack a collective punch. Choices include a powerhouse classical music concert, four theater productions (including a Tony Award winner), the continuation of the stay of a great dance troupe, the final days of a notable art exhibit, and a Japanese new year tradition.

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, January 9

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Fabio Luisi Conducts Scheherazade
At this concert, audiences can travel to the world of the 1001 Arabian Nights in Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade. The concert will also feature the Dallas premiere of Fountain of Youth, a commissioned work by Julia Wolfe. Plus, Lise Lindstrom sings Barber’s rarely performed Andromache’s Farewell. The concert, conducted by Fabio Luisi, will have four performances through Sunday at the Meyerson Symphony Center.

AT&T Performing Arts Center Broadway Series presents The Color Purple
Two years after its first visit to Dallas, the Tony Award-winning The Color Purple returns for a brief stay at Winspear Opera House. The musical features a soul-raising, Grammy-winning score of jazz, gospel, ragtime, and blues, giving an exhilarating new spirit to this Pulitzer Prize-winning story. It is a reimagining of an epic story about a young woman’s journey to love and triumph in the American South. There will be six more performances through Sunday.

Imprint Theatreworks presents Puffs (The Play)
Puffs is a clever and inventive play that gives audience a new look at a familiar adventure from the perspective of three potential heroes just trying to make it through a magic school that proves to be very dangerous for children. Alongside them are the Puffs, a group of well-meaning, loyal outsiders with a thing for badgers. The play will run at Stomping Ground Comedy Theater through January 25.

Friday, January 10

Theatre Arlington presents Ripcord
A sunny room on an upper floor is prime real estate in the Bristol Place Senior Living Facility, so when the cantankerous Abby is forced to share her quarters with new arrival Marilyn, she has no choice but to get rid of the infuriatingly chipper woman by any means necessary. A seemingly harmless bet between the old women quickly escalates into a dangerous game of one-upmanship. The play will run at Theatre Arlington through January 26.

Shakespeare Dallas presents Pride and Prejudice
Shakespeare Dallas will present Pride and Prejudice for its second annual Winter Season performance. The play is a tale about Elizabeth Bennet, whose four sisters and overzealous match-making mother keep the topic of marriage alive and lively. When the independent-minded Elizabeth meets the handsome but enigmatic Mr. Darcy, she is determined not to let her feelings triumph over her own good sense. The production will run through January 19 at Moody Performance Hall.

Saturday, January 11

Shen Yun
After two weeks at Winspear Opera House, Shen Yun travels up Central Expressway to Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts in Richardson for three performances. The dance troupe lets audiences travel back to the magical world of ancient China, experience a lost culture through the breathtaking art of classical Chinese dance, and see legends come to life. There will be two performances on Saturday and one on Sunday.

Sunday, January 12

Dallas Museum of Art Presents Sheila Hicks: "Secret Structures, Looming Presence" closing day
The Dallas Museum of Art's first exhibition of works by pioneering fiber artist, designer, and weaver Sheila Hicks comes to an end on Sunday. The special display illuminates how the 84-year-old contemporary artist’s practice is inspired by the weaving traditions of indigenous artisans from Latin America. "Secret Structures, Looming Presence" pairs works from the museum’s collection of ancient Andean art with a selection of loom-woven, wrapped, twisted, and knotted fiberworks by the artist to offer a fresh examination of textile traditions through time.

Japan-America Society of DFW presents Mochitsuki New Year’s Celebration
Japan-America Society of DFW will celebrate the Year of the Rat with mochi (rice cakes), music and dance performances, and authentic cultural activities. At the event, taking place at Fujitsu Network Communications in Richardson, guests can learn about Japan’s rich New Year’s traditions, connect with the local Japanese community, and see a live demonstration on how mochi is made. It will include a special appearance by Consul General Hideo Fukushima.

The Color Purple will be at Winspear Opera House through January 12.

Photo by Jeremy Daniel

The Color Purple will be at Winspear Opera House through January 12.

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Movie Review

The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsical family lark that fails to take root

Photo courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

Andrew Garfield, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Claire Foy, Phoenix Laroche, and Billie Gadson in The Magic Faraway Tree.

With kids and families always on the hunt for entertainment, it’s typically a safe bet for a movie studio to offer up something new, even if it is a film based on an old property. The Magic Faraway Tree, based on a series of books that started in the 1930s, is a very old property, one that its filmmakers have tried to liven up with a few stars, a lot of whimsy, and a boatload of CGI.

The Thompson family, led by stay-at-home dad Tim (Andrew Garfield) and breadwinner mom Polly (Claire Foy), are forced to move to a rundown country home when Polly gets laid off. The kids - Joe (Phoenix Laroche), Fran (Billie Gadson), and Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) - are used to the perks of city life like wifi and electricity, and each of them rebels in their own way to their new lot in life.

Fran, enticed by a fairy named Silky (Nicola Coughlan), is the first to venture out of the house, making her way to a magic tree that transports her to a world full of strange characters like Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning), and more. Her adventures there not only broaden the world she thought she knew, but may be the key to helping her ailing family.

Directed by Ben Gregor and written by Simon Farnaby (Paddington 2, Wonka), the film is a pleasant enough lark, but it fails to fully capture the imagination. The five-member family has a lot going on, from an initially-mute Fran to a domestic situation that raises more questions than it answers. The film tries to incorporate an anti-technology message through Tim’s hatred of a smart refrigerator (voiced by Judi Dench!) and the kids' addictions to devices, but it’s quickly shed in favor of other options.

Once Fran makes it to the Magic Faraway Tree, there’s a nice shift in the storytelling, but it’s unclear what the ultimate goal is. It’s a good idea to have Fran, the youngest of the children, convince her older, more cynical siblings about the virtues of the magic world, but the conflict in the real world doesn’t seem to rise to the level needed for the escape the tree provides.

There also seems to be a missing link in the storytelling for viewers to understand the importance of the fantastical characters. The visuals of seeing Moonface and his crescent moon-shaped hair, a man with a suit full of banging pots, and more are fun for a while, but not enough to carry the whole film. A last-minute revelation feels like it was something that should have been disclosed much earlier to help strengthen the emotions of the story.

A two-time Oscar nominee, Garfield is making his first foray into family movies (if you don’t count playing Spider-Man), and while he does a good job, he doesn’t make the best fit for the semi-goofy role. The same goes for the Emmy-winning Foy, who isn’t given much of anything to do. The movie puts the story on the shoulders of the three child actors, and while each of them acquit themselves well, none of them are so outstanding as to be noteworthy.

With nearly 90-year-old source material, The Magic Faraway Tree needed to be something truly special to stand out in the 21st century movie world. Unfortunately, it features a mostly forgettable story that features some fun visuals, a couple of cute kids, and not much else.

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The Magic Faraway Tree is now playing in theaters.

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