Weekend Event Planner

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

The Fourth of July weekend has arrived, and with it comes a slew of fun holiday-related events in Dallas and the surrounding area. But there are also a variety of non-patriotic happenings, including a national tour of a classic musical, a new production seemingly ripped from the headlines, and more.

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, June 30

Dallas Arboretum Cool Thursdays Concert: The Dallas Wind Symphony
With temperatures hovering near 100 degrees, attending a Cool Thursdays concert at the Dallas Arboretum isn't so cool anymore. The Dallas Wind Symphony brings the spring/summer portion of the series to a close with a Fourth of July-themed concert, featuring patriotic favorites and more.

Dallas Summer Musicals presents 42nd Street
The 2015-2016 Dallas Summer Musicals season comes to an end with the classic Broadway musical 42nd Street. The production about a young girl looking to make it big on Broadway may seem like it has been around forever, but that's only because the musical, which debuted in 1980, is based on the 1933 movie. The national tour will stay at Music Hall at Fair Park through July 10.

Second Thought Theatre presents A Kid Like Jake
Second Thought Theatre brings its 2016 season to a close with the area premiere of A Kid Like Jake, a play about a young couple struggling to do what is best for their 4-year-old gender-fluid son, who happens to prefer Cinderella to G.I. Joe. The play follows the parents as they try to get a good education for him. The production will run at Bryant Hall through July 23.

Friday, July 1

Feeding Texas presents the 2nd Annual Lone Star Beer Texas Heritage Festival
The Lone Star Beer Texas Heritage Festival is a unique experience with an array of music, food, and fun curated by Lone Star Beer, the National Beer of Texas. The second annual event at the Bomb Factory features performances by Shovels & Rope, Okkervil River, Matthew Logan Vasquez, and Girl in a Coma. This event also includes an assortment of delicious food options, along with activities, arcade games, a photo booth, and more.

Dashboard Confessional in concert with Taking Back Sunday and the Early November
Emo band Dashboard Confessional, like most emo bands, hit their peak in the mid-aughts, thanks to a couple of hit albums. They haven't released new music of any kind since 2009, but true fans are sure to enjoy this concert at South Side Ballroom, which is part of the Rockstar Energy Drink Taste of Chaos tour. Taking Back Sunday and the Early November are also playing.

Saturday, July 2

Dallas Wings vs. Connecticut Sun
The WNBA's newest team, the Dallas Wings, has gotten off to a somewhat slow start at 7-9 through 16 games. But that's good enough for third place in the Western Conference, and with 18 games left to go, there's still plenty of time to get better. Catch Odyssey Sims, Skylar Diggins, and the rest of the Wings in action at College Park Center in Arlington as they take on the Connecticut Sun.

Sunday, July 3

Lone Star Park presents Lone Stars & Stripes Fireworks Celebration
The annual Lone Stars & Stripes Fireworks Celebration features two nights of spectacular fireworks at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie. Kids can enjoy the Family Fun Park featuring pony rides, a petting zoo, an obstacle course, a zip line, bounce houses, face painters, tattoo artists, and more. Music lovers can enjoy live music by Vegas Stars between the races. Following the last race each night on July 3 and 4 is a spectacular, 20-minute firework display choreographed to music.

Addison Kaboom Town!
Addison’s most explosive party of the year, Kaboom Town!, features fireworks choreographed to music, plus food, bands, spectacular historic warbird flyovers by Cavanaugh Flight Museum, and more. The celebration is city-wide, with a party in the 12-acre Addison Circle Park; watch parties at many of Addison’s 180-plus restaurants and 22 hotels; and the Addison Airport Air Show.

Levitt Pavilion presents Light Up Arlington
For a more low-key Fourth of July celebration on the day before the day, you can head to Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts in Arlington. Light Up Arlington is an evening of food, fun, fireworks, and free music. The event features Hannah Kirby and Brad Thompson in a back-to-back concert.

Dallas Summer Musicals presents 42nd Street at the Music Hall at Fair Park through July 10.

Photo by Chris Bennion

Dallas Summer Musicals presents 42nd Street at the Music Hall at Fair Park through July 10.

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Movie Review

The Invite delivers smart, sexy laughs with an all-star cast

Photo courtesy of A24

Olivia Wilde, Seth Rogen, Penelope Cruz, and Edward Norton in The Invite.

Once upon a time, well before scandal embroiled him, Woody Allen made great comedies aimed at adults. That type of film - which is different from the raunchy, R-rated comedies of the 21st century - has fallen out of favor in Hollywood, but as the new film The Invite proves, when done well it can be as funny as anything else out there.

Joe (Seth Rogen) and Angela (Olivia Wilde) are an unhappily married couple living in San Francisco. As we meet them, Joe has arrived home to Angela preparing for a visit from their upstairs neighbors, Hawk (Edward Norton) and Piña (Penélope Cruz), who have moved in relatively recently. Their impending arrival starts a new round of arguing between Joe and Angela, something they can barely contain once the other couple comes to their door.

What proceeds is a getting-to-know-you process that is mostly awkward as Joe and Angela continue sniping at each other while Hawk and Piña put in their two cents in a much calmer manner. A sticking point between the two couples - the loud sex Hawk and Piña have on an almost nightly basis - turns the film on its head with an unexpected invitation.

Directed by Wilde and written by Will McCormack and Rashida Jones, the film is a fast-paced chamber piece that takes place almost entirely in Joe and Angela’s apartment. Wilde, the writers, and the actors speed the story along not with action but through almost non-stop dialogue that often has the characters overlapping each other’s lines. The rapidity of the speech fuels the humor of the situation and establishes the differing personalities of each person.

Sex is very much top of mind for each of the characters for most of the film, but the filmmakers approach the topic in such a way that it never feels salacious. Each of the characters is a rational adult who can talk about sex in a mature manner while also acknowledging their unique feelings on the matter. And it’s the discoveries each of them makes along the way that brings about the most comedy.

But, like any comedy for adults, the film also has a dramatic tilt to it, and Wilde edges the story back-and-forth between the two tones extremely well. Joe and Angela fighting is played for laughs at times, but the sadness of their relationship comes through loud and clear. Hawk and Piña are much more intimate with each other, but the funniness of their openness is juxtaposed with a depth that arises through their conversations.

In the 2020s, Rogen has managed to make the transition from goofy stoner to stoner with real acting chops. In a stacked cast, he is the one who sells every moment the best. That’s not to say that Wilde, Norton, and Cruz don’t measure up, though; each of them inhabits their respective roles magnificently. The four actors play off each other as if they had been working together for years.

While The Invite will likely play better to those who have experience with long term relationships, its insights - and occasional bawdiness - make it a comedy that can be appreciated universally. With four actors at the top of their games and a razor-sharp script made even better by some well-done improv, it proves that you don’t need to go low to get great laughs.

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The Invite is now playing in theaters.

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