Weekend Event Planner

These are the 9 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

You can get a little bit of everything with the slate of events in and around Dallas this weekend. You can get a little mystery from a new theater production and a master magician. You can get a little culture with an outdoors classical music concert and a ballet production. You can enjoy music from yesteryear at three different concerts. Or you can learn how to volunteer at a special event.

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, May 31

Dallas Theater Center presents White Rabbit Red Rabbit
White Rabbit Red Rabbit is a lively, global sensation that no one is allowed to talk about. The actor who will perform this play has never seen it. In fact, there is a new actor every performance, and they’ve only been told what is absolutely necessary. Slyly humorous and audaciously pointed, this theater entertainment meets social experiment is unlike anything, and will make you question everything. The production will run at Wyly Theatre through July 1.

David Blaine Live
Death-defying magician David Blaine, known for his exceptional fusion of magic and stunt work that is unlike any other modern-day performer, will bring his mind-blowing tour to the Music Hall at Fair Park. While other magicians astound with their sleight-of-hand, Blaine's trickery is more about him being willing to do physical things that others would never attempt.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents 2018 Parks Concerts
As part of their annual Parks Concert series, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra will perform an outdoor concert at Timberglen Park. Led by Assistant Conductor Ruth Reinhardt, the DSO will put on a program featuring light classics, patriotic tunes, and other popular fare. Make sure to bring your blankets and chairs and settle in for an evening of music under the stars.

Friday, June 1

Texas Ballet Theater presents Swan Lake
Texas Ballet Theater will close its 2017-2018 season with Swan Lake, featuring orchestral accompaniment. This classic tale of a mischievous sorcerer, Von Rothbart, and his spell on Princess Odette is one performed by companies around the world, but Stevenson’s Swan Lake is condensed into two acts instead of four. The production will have five performances through Sunday at Winspear Opera House.

Paul Simon in concert
For over 50 years, Paul Simon has been entertaining the masses, first as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel and then as a solo artist. Now 76, Simon is bringing his touring days to an end with his Homeward Bound — The Farewell Tour, which is making a stop at American Airlines Center. You can expect to hear many of his hits, including "The Sound of Silence," "Mrs. Robinson," and "You Can Call Me Al," among others.

Kitchen Dog Theater presents New Works Festival
Kitchen Dog Theater will present its 20th annual New Works Festival, offering an expanded series of nine staged readings over three weekends. Showcasing some of the newest and most exciting voices and visions in contemporary theater, the winning plays are selected from almost 850 annual submissions from around the globe. The festival will take place at Trinity River Arts Center through June 17.

Saturday, June 2

VolunteerNow presents Voly in the Park
Voly in the Park is a volunteerism festival featuring hands-on volunteer projects, live entertainment, and 75 nonprofits in need of volunteers. Presented by VolunteerNow at Klyde Warren Park, it includes onsite activities like creating pet enrichment toys with the SPCA of Texas, creating “junk art” with Keep Dallas Beautiful, hanging out with a mini horse from Equest, building homeless kits with OurCalling, and more.

The Polyphonic Spree in concert with Medicine Man Revival
Shows by The Polyphonic Spree are not as plentiful as they used to be, so it's always great when you have another opportunity to see them live. And it's even better when you get to see them for free, which is what will happen with this concert in the Box Garden at Legacy Hall in Plano. They'll be joined by another hometown band, Dallas' Medicine Man Revival.

Poison and Cheap Trick in concert
It'll be a night of throwback music at the Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving when Poison and Cheap Trick co-headline this concert. Poison, which will have its original lineup intact, has released seven albums in its career, with the latest being 2007's Poison'd! Cheap Trick is still giving its fans new music, releasing both a regular album and Christmas album in 2017.

Dallas Theater Center presents White Rabbit Red Rabbit at Wyly Theatre through July 1.

Photo by Karen Almond

Dallas Theater Center presents White Rabbit Red Rabbit at Wyly Theatre through July 1.

event-planner

The Joke Has Landed

New comedy club at Toyota Music Factory in Irving gets set for laughs

Photo by Anna Dolmany

This is the fifth Punch Line location.

It's almost time for Punch Line Irving to open its doors, and Dave Chappelle is at the ready. The famous comedian will christen the new comedy club with four sold-out shows on December 17 and 18, but there's plenty more funny business in store for 2026.

First announced in November, this is Punch Line's fifth location — and second in Texas, the first opened in Houston in 2024 — and it's taking up residence at the Toyota Music Factory. The 240-seat club plans to host more than 350 shows and private events annually, featuring a blend of high-wattage celebrity and homegrown talent.

Its decor nods to the brand's belief that comedy is a sport, with feature wall showcasing punching bags and boxing bells signed by "heavy hitter" performers.

The menu also echoes the theme, with such cocktails as the Bellringer (bourbon, lemonade, and Liquid Death half-and-half iced tea), Ringside Ranch Water (blanco tequila, hibiscus, lime, and soda), and the Espresso All-Star, their take on the espresso martini. Food includes Punch Line favorites like the Mic Drop Burger, Punch Line Nachos, and Homemade Punch Pop Tarts in bourbon apple or strawberry cream.

There is also a second, more flexible space outside the main showroom called The Callback Bar that's designed to host smaller performances, as well as a furnished patio.

Punch Line Irving The Callback Bar.Photo by Anna Dolmany

Photo by Anna Dolmany

This is the fifth Punch Line location.

The talent gets treated as well as the audience, with a private comics lounge in place of a traditional dressing room. Designed as a shared gathering space, it sports a custom media wall showing the live-show feed, a dressing table, a private ensuite restroom, and a hospitality station.

Punch Line makes it a point to support the local comedy scene, and its Irving location will be no exception. Twenty-five cents from each ticket at participating shows benefits Comedy Gives Back, a nonprofit organization providing financial grants and resources to stand-up comedians in need. The club also hosted its first open mic on December 9 to welcome the community, with participating comics donating nonperishable items to the North Texas Food Bank.

Don't fret if you didn't snag tickets to Dave Chappelle — big names like Leslie Jones, Tone Bell, Pete Holmes, and Christina P. all have shows scheduled in the first few months of 2026 and tickets are on sale now.

openings dave chappelle punch line irving comedy club stand-up comedy comedians toyota music factory comedy