Weekend Event Planner

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

The list of events happening this weekend around Dallas is music-heavy, but it also includes enough non-music activities to keep almost anyone happy. Among the events are a charity shopping extravaganza, a Trekkie convention, an eye-popping home tour, and concerts featuring four famous people, not all of whom are known as musicians.

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

Thursday, April 7

Dwell with Dignity presents Thrift Studio
Thrift Studio is 30-day pop-up shop featuring vignettes by leading designers which showcases furniture, housewares, accessories, and high-end designer finds, all for sale. Proceeds support Dwell with Dignity and its mission to help families escape poverty and homelessness. The event kicks off on Thursday with a preview party, and then continues Tuesdays through Saturdays through May 7.

Behind the Lens with Pattie Boyd and Henry Diltz
You might not know the names Pattie Boyd or Henry Diltz, but their impact on music history is comparable to that of many famous musicians. Diltz is a photographer who has over 400,000 images in his archive and over 400 album covers to his name. Boyd is a photographer and former model, and the inspiration for songs like "Layla" and "Wonderful Tonight." They'll talk about their careers in this special event at The Kessler.

Off Broadway on Flora Series: Ghost Quartet
Ghost Quartet is a haunting song cycle about love, death, and whiskey from Dave Malloy, an OBIE Award-winning composer. Blurring the line between theater and contemporary music performance, the show is a theatrical presentation of an album, staged in the round, with the musicians seated among the audience. It will play at Life in Deep Ellum through Saturday.

Friday, April 8

Creation Entertainment presents The 50 Year Mission Tour
After the relatively unsuccessful three-year run Star Trek had in the late 1960s, few could have imagined that the property would still be impacting pop culture the way it is 50 years later. This convention at the Hyatt Regency DFW Airport, taking place through Sunday, celebrates Star Trek's 50th anniversary with appearances by actors you know and love, including William Shatner, Gates McFadden, Jonathan Frakes, and Michael Dorn, among others.

Cameron Esposito in concert with Rhea Butcher
Cameron Esposito is a comedian known as much for her unique hairstyle and LGBT topics as she is for her razor-sharp wit and animated delivery. Following her debut on The Late Late Show, none other than Jay Leno called her the "future of comedy." She'll aim to live up to that praise in this stand-up set at Granada Theater, with support from fellow comedian and her wife, Rhea Butcher.

Rita Wilson in concert
Depending on how big a movie/TV fan you are, you may know Rita Wilson as an actress from things like Sleepless in Seattle or HBO's Girls, or as the wife of Tom Hanks. What you probably don't know her as is a singer, a profession she's been pursuing for the last five years or so. She'll play at The Kessler in support of her second, self-titled album.

Saturday, April 9

Park Cities Historic and Preservation Society presents The 2016 Historic Home Tour
Park Cities Historic and Preservation Society's Annual Historic Home Tour showcases architecturally and historically significant homes of the Park Cities and illustrates how these homes have been restored or remodeled and updated to serve the lifestyle needs of families today. Proceeds will fund scholarships for Highland Park High School seniors who plan to study architecture, history, or preservation.

Bryan Adams in concert
Canadian rocker Bryan Adams has been making records for over 35 years, and he's rarely slowed down. Best known for songs like "Cuts Like a Knife," "Summer of '69," and "(Everything I Do) I Do It For You," Adams will play at Verizon Theatre in Grand Prairie in support of his 13th album, Get Up.

2016 Lone Star Music Series: Dwight Yoakam
The thoroughbred racing series at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie gets started this weekend, and with it comes the Lone Star Music Series. Following a performance by Randy Rogers Band on opening night, country legend Dwight Yoakam will take the stage on Saturday in support of his 2015 album, Second Hand Heart.

Sunday, April 10

Oak Cliff Earth Day 2016
The actual Earth Day is not for a couple more weeks, but the folks in Oak Cliff will celebrate early with an outdoor festival where you can buy locally grown plants, handicrafts, art, and food. There will also be host of nonprofit organization booths, food trucks, and live entertainment at the afternoon event.

Beauty Live on Ice featuring Johnny Weir
The annual Beauty Live event will take over Galleria Dallas on Saturday and Sunday, with showcases for the top trends in beauty, health, and wellness. To cap off the weekend, champion figure skater Johnny Weir will put on a special show at the Galleria's ice rink, with help from a slew of other local and national figure skaters.

Justin Bieber in concert
There was a time when it seemed that Justin Bieber was only going to be known for being a teen idol and troublemaker instead of a musician. But he took a quantum leap forward in 2015, collaborating with other respected musicians for his well-received album, Purpose. He'll play at American Airlines Center with support from Post Malone and Moxie Raia.

Justin Bieber will perform at American Airlines Center on April 10.

Houston, Justin Bieber, November 2015, Purpose album

Justin Bieber/Facebook

Justin Bieber will perform at American Airlines Center on April 10.

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Movie Review

Matt Damon and Ben Affleck team up for Netflix crime thriller The Rip

Photo by Claire Folger/Netflix

Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in The Rip.

For as closely tied together as Matt Damon and Ben Affleck are, it might come as a surprise how few times they’ve led a movie together. They’ve appeared alongside each other in Good Will Hunting, The Last Duel, and Air, but the only time they were on equal footing in a story was Kevin Smith’s Dogma. So the fact that they are the two true stars of the new Netflix movie The Rip makes it a rare opportunity for the longtime friends to square off against each other.

Damon and Affleck play Lt. Dane Dumars and Detective Sgt. J.D Byrne, respectively, the two highest ranking members of a Miami police department squad that specializes in drug and drug money raids. A tragedy to begin the film already has the team - which includes Detectives Mike Ro (Steven Yeun), Numa Baptiste (Teyana Taylor), and Lolo Salazar (Catalina Sandina Moreno) - on edge, with the FBI and DEA breathing down their neck.

Going off a tip, Dumars gathers the team to raid a house in nearby Hialeah that is supposed to have a stash of a relatively small amount of money. But when they get to the house occupied only by Desiree Molina (Sasha Calle), they soon discover that there’s close to $20 million there instead. The team, required by law to count the money on site, must not only fight the urge to skim a little off the top for themselves, but also worry about the Cartel and other agencies that might want a slice of the pie.

Written and directed by Joe Carnahan, the film is a surprisingly effective crime thriller made even better by its high-quality cast, which also includes Kyle Chandler as a DEA agent. The story is designed for the audience to not know who’s trustworthy until the last possible second, and the various twists and turns it takes are well done, with barely a hint of narrative cheating.

Taking place entirely at night, the mood is set right from the start, with the only surprise being that Carnahan didn’t add in rain for extra effect. He keeps things tense with a number of subtle elements, including having the house located in a seemingly deserted cul-de-sac. This allows for the characters to remain on high alert at all times, with anything out of the ordinary - an unexpected noise, a flashing light, etc. - adding to the stress of the situation.

The only element that could have used a bit more of a punch-up is the characterization. The story is set up to cast suspicion on almost everybody, making it tougher to understand exactly what type of person each of them is. As the two leads, more time is spent with Dumars and Byrne, leaving everyone else with slightly underwhelming arcs. It’s to the credit of the actors that everyone else below Damon and Affleck is still compelling.

Damon and Affleck play their sometimes friendly, sometimes adversarial roles well, showing an ease together that’s a result of their friendship and the acting skills they’ve honed over 30+ years. Taylor, an Oscar hopeful for One Battle After Another, and Oscar nominee/Emmy winner Yeun have a pedigree that elevates their supporting roles. Chandler, Moreno, and Calle each get just enough to demonstrate why they were cast in their respective roles.

Damon and Affleck have had their individual ups and downs throughout their careers, but when they choose to work together, the results are usually good-to-great, as they are in The Rip. It’s a different take on a crime thriller that features a story that will keep viewers guessing until the very end.

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The Rip is now streaming on Netflix.

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