Weather permitting, this weekend in and around Dallas will see a nice mixture of local and national events. On the local side will be classical music, several local theater productions, and an art closing and opening. On the national side will be a traveling immersive art exhibition, several well-known comedians, a concert featuring Disney princesses, and the return of professional tennis to the area.
Below are the best ways to spend your precious free time this weekend. As of press time, all are on. But with below-freezing temperatures and icy conditions expected on Thursday and possibly longer, check with event organizers about potential postponements/cancellations.
Thursday, February 3
Immersive Frida Kahlo
Immersive Frida Kahlo is a space where visitors can explore the world through the eyes of Frida Kahlo, a brilliant, uncompromising painter who created some of history’s most awe-inspiring artwork. Visitors will see the Mexico-born artist’s work come to life on a grand scale thanks to large-scale projections accompanied by a musical score. Guests will be able to discover the people, events, and obstacles that made Kahlo the extraordinary woman she was. The immersive exhibition will be on display at Lighthouse Dallas through at least April 17.
Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Welcome Back Maestro Litton" (UPDATE: The February 3 concert has been canceled.)
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra will welcome back conductor Andrew Litton with a concert also featuring pianist Stephen Hough. Selections for the concert, running through Saturday at Meyerson Symphony Center, will include Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 and Rachmaninoff's Symphony No. 2.
Friday, February 4
Art Centre Theatre productions
Art Centre Theatre in Plano will open two new productions this weekend. Breaking Up Is Hard to Do: The Musical (running through February 20) follows Gabe, who, lacking the self-confidence to perform his own music, is secretly the songwriting genius behind the music Del claims as his own. When Gabe meets Marge, he is compelled to take action to win her heart and, ultimately, to reveal himself as the true musician, performing his own songs in front of the whole resort. In The Vagina Monologues (running through February 19), Eve Ensler interviewed more than 200 women and chose some of the greatest stories about vaginas. The stories range from happy, to sad, to angry, to confused, but they are all spoken in an effort to empower women and celebrate the vagina.
Rodney Carrington: "Let Me In!"
A native of Longview, Texas, Rodney Carrington is a multi-talented comedian, actor, and writer who has recorded eight major record label comedy albums, selling over 3 million copies. His stand-up act typically includes a mixture of comedy and original songs, a smattering of which have reached the top 100 on the Billboard Country charts. He'll perform at Majestic Theatre.
Richardson Theatre Centre presents Drop Dead (UPDATE: The February 4 performance has been canceled; the production will now start on February 5.)
A cast of has-been actors plan to revive their careers in Drop Dead!, a potboiler murder mystery directed by "Wonder Child of the Broadway Stage" Victor Le Pewe (a psychotic eye-twitching megalomaniac). But when the murders and mysteries exceed those in the script, these thespians must save the show and their careers, as well as their lives. The production will run through February 20 at Richardson Theatre Centre.
Saturday, February 5
Nate Bargatze: "The Raincheck Tour"
Comedian Nate Bargatze comes to Dallas as part of his "The Raincheck Tour." The 42-year-old Bargatze has only gotten significant notice in the past eight years or so, releasing his first album in 2014. Since then he's released two stand-alone Netflix specials, including 2021's The Greatest Average American, and has his own podcast, Nateland. He'll perform at Texas Trust CU Theatre at Grand Prairie.
Patton Oswalt: "Who's Ready to Laugh?"
Patton Oswalt is a comedian whose size belies his impact on the entertainment world. He's had award-winning comedy specials, many memorable film roles, and guest appearances on TV shows like Parks and Recreation. He recently created M.O.D.O.K., the new Marvel stop-motion animated adult comedy series and released the Emmy and Grammy-nominated Netflix special, I Love Everything, in 2020. He'll perform a night of stand-up comedy at Majestic Theatre. (UPDATE: Patton Oswalt broke his foot on February 3, necessitating the postponement of this event. It will be rescheduled for a TBD date in the future.)
Disney Concerts presents Disney Princess: The Concert (UPDATE: This event has been rescheduled for October 22. All tickets will be honored on the new date.)
Disney Princess: The Concert features four Broadway actors who played Belle, Jasmine, Anastasia, and Nala, celebrating all the Disney Princesses in an evening of story, animation, and song. Tony nominee Susan Egan, two-time Tony nominee Laura Osnes, Grammy nominee Courtney Reed, and rising star Aisha Jackson join forces in this concert where they will sing Disney Princess songs and share their exclusive, hilarious, and heartfelt behind-the-scenes stories. The event will be at the Music Hall at Fair Park.
Theatre Three presents Maytag Virgin
Theatre Three will present the regional premiere of Audrey Cefaly’s Maytag Virgin, which follows Alabama school teacher Lizzy Nash and her new neighbor, Jack Key, over the year following the tragic death of Lizzy’s husband. The play explores the ideas of inertia and self-enlightenment, and the bridge between the two. The production will run at Bryant Hall on the Kalita Humphreys Theater complex through February 20.
Sunday, February 6
Dallas Museum of Art opening and closing
The Dallas Museum of Art will close "Van Gogh and the Olive Groves" on Sunday after almost four months. The first exhibition dedicated to Vincent van Gogh’s important olive grove series, it reunites for the first time the series of paintings devoted to the titular motif that the artist produced between June and December 1889. Opening will be "Octavio Medellín: Spirit and Form," the first-ever museum retrospective for Octavio Medellín, an influential Mexican American artist and teacher whose work helped shape the Texas art scene for six decades. Medellín was a noted sculptor who mastered a wide range of media, engaging with modernist trends in both his native Mexico and the United States.
ATP presents Dallas Open
Top-ranked tennis player John Isner didn't have a successful run at the Australian Open this year, but he'll headline the Dallas Open, the first time the ATP Tour has come to Dallas in over 30 years. The tournament, running through February 13 at the Styslinger/Altec Tennis Complex at Southern Methodist University, will feature other top players like Grigor Dimitrov, Reilly Opelka, Taylor Fritz, and more.
