Weekend Event Planner

These are the 10 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

It's another music-heavy weekend in Dallas, as seven out of the 10 events we're featuring having some kind of musical element. They include a cabaret festival, a day full of rock, the return of a long-lost star, a much-maligned band, a throwback to the '90s, and one of musical theater's biggest stars. What don't they include? Justin Bieber, who suddenly canceled his July 29 concert at AT&T Stadium.

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

Thursday, July 27

Denise Lee Onstage presents Dallas Cabaret Festival: Life Is a Cabaret
The Second Annual Dallas Cabaret Festival takes place over the course of three days at the Women's Building at Fair Park. The festival leads off on Thursday with a performance by Cynthia Scott, who is debuting her new show, All About Love. She'll be followed on Friday by Tarnecia Durham and Simone Gundy, and finally by a review show on Saturday featuring Samuel James, Denise Lee, Kevin Haliburton, Willie Welch, Calvin Roberts, and Stephanie Brehm.

Friday, July 28

2017 Vans Warped Tour
Rock fans are in full day of fun at Starplex Pavilion when the Vans Warped Tour comes to town. The tour includes performances from Sick Of It All, CKY, GWAR, The Adolescents, T.S.O.L, Hatebreed, Emmure, The Ataris, Andy Black, American Authors, Beartooth, Dance Gavin Dance, Jule Vera, I Prevail, Neck Deep, New Years Day, Memphis May Fire, War On Women, and more.

IMomSoHard — Mom's Night Out: Summer Break Tour
IMomSoHard is a popular web series on Facebook where two best friends talk the good, the bad, and the funny about motherhood. Now the two will leave the playroom and take the stage at Majestic Theatre for IMomSoHard LIVE with a performance that reflects the casual conversations about motherhood that have entertained so many.

Michelle Branch in concert
Michelle Branch had two big albums in the early 2000s with hits like "Everywhere," "All You Wanted," and "Are You Happy Now?" In the ensuing 14 years, her output has slowed to a crawl, both by choice and through record label issues. But she's finally released her fourth album, Hopeless Romantic, which she's playing in support of at The Kessler.

WaterTower Theatre presents Hit the Wall
Hit the Wall is a riveting story that brings the audience back to the very flashpoint of the infamous 1969 riot that erupted at Greenwich Village's Stonewall Inn, considered the first major battle of the modern gay-rights movement. A group of unlikely revolutionaries are thrust onto the frontline of history when a routine police raid on a gay bar becomes a full-scale riot that ignited one of the most influential social and political movements of the 20th century. WaterTower Theatre presents the play through August 20.

Saturday, July 29

Nickelback in concert with Daughtry and Shaman's Harvest
The term "Nickelback" has somehow become synonymous with "overrated," since the group's breakout in 2001. And yet each of the band's seven albums, including 2017's Feed the Machine, have reached the top 6 on the Billboard charts, so it's obvious they still have plenty of fans out there. They'll show why at this concert at Starplex Pavilion, which includes opening sets by Daughtry and Shaman's Harvest.

Reunion Tower presents Reunion Lawn Party
After the initial Reunion Lawn Party was canceled due to rain in June, July's event will serve as the kickoff for the 2017 series. The event features a performance by Special Edition Band; lawn games; food trucks such as Ruthie’s Rolling Café, Parrot Icce, Butcher’s Son, and What’s Da Scoop; a beer garden hosted by The Nodding Donkey; and a takeover by the Dallas Stars.

I Love the '90s Tour featuring TLC, Naughty by Nature, Mark McGrath, and more
Anyone who grew up or came of age in the 1990s will want to be at Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie on Saturday when it hosts The I Love the '90s — The Party Continues Tour. The festival-style concert will feature performances by TLC, Naughty By Nature, Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath, Tone Loc, C+C Music Factory featuring Freedom Williams, and SNAP.

Sunday, July 30

Big3: 3-on-3 Basketball League
Three-on-three basketball seems like it might be the next big thing, as it's been accepted into the Olympics and is currently touring the country as part of the new Big3 league created in part by Ice Cube. There will be four games at American Airlines Center featuring former NBA players both on and off the court, including Chauncey Billups, Brian Scalabrine, Allen Iverson, Corey Maggette, Mike Bibby, Jermaine O'Neal, and Rashard Lewis.

Idina Menzel in concert
From Rent to Wicked to Frozen, Idina Menzel has been part of some of the most iconic musical moments over the last 20 years. At this concert at Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie, Menzel will lead audiences through a special journey of songs from her new album, idina., as well as other classic pop hits, musical theater favorites. and her own personal catalogue.

Idina Menzel performs at Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie on July 30.

Photo by Natasha Desai

Idina Menzel performs at Verizon Theatre at Grand Prairie on July 30.

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Movies for Kids

Kid-themed film festival at Angelika Dallas will be free to all

Photo courtesy of Viva Kids

The 42nd annual KidFilm will feature screenings of The Pout-Pout Fish and other new animated films.

A family-friendly kid-themed festival is coming to Dallas that'll be free for all: The 42nd Annual KidFilm Family Festival, the oldest and largest children-themed film festival in the U.S., will take place on January 17 and 18, 2026 at the Angelika Film Center Dallas with film debuts, animated films, and an appearance by a renowned children's author.

KidFilm is an annual outreach program of the USA Film Festival/Dallas, a 56-year-old nonprofit dedicated to film and the arts.

The big highlight of this year's KidFilm is a salute to children’s book author Deborah Diesen, who will appear in conjunction with a screening of Viva Kids’ new animated feature film, The Pout-Pout Fish — based on Diesen's 2008 book, which started a series that has now reached 20 entries.

The film — about Mr. Fish, a pouty introvert, and Pip, an energetic sea dragon, who embark on a daunting quest to find a legendary fish to grant their wish to save their homes — features a star-studded voice cast with familiar names like Nick Offerman, Miranda Otto, Jordin Sparks, and Amy Sedaris.

Free copies of the new book, The Pout-Pout Fish Movie Storybook, will be distributed to families (while supplies last), and Diesen will sign books for the kids.

The festival will also include screenings of other new animated feature films:

Leon Joosen's The Land of Sometimes, a musical which follows twins Alfie and Elise who get more than they bargained for as they are whisked away to a magical world after summoning a mysterious Wish Collector.
Mark Risley’s Flower of the Dawn, a fairy tale that follows a princess who has been turned into a nightingale by a vain sorceress whose only hope is to attain an elusive, magical flower.
Reza Memari’s The Last Whale Singer, an adventure which features a self-doubting teenage humpback whale who must face his fears and embark on a perilous journey with his friends in order to discover his own song and save the ocean from a monstrous creature.
Caroline Origer’s Spiked, which follows a young, orphaned hedgehog and overextended rabbit father who experience the adventure of a lifetime.
Vincent Bal & Wip Vernooij's Miss Moxy, a comedy which features a domestic cat who gets lost during a vacation and must find her way back home through the South of Europe with the help of the most despicable creatures a cat can imagine: a comical dog and an old, wise bird.

Additionally, the festival will include several new live-action feature films:

Gregory Alan Williams’ Paw Paw & Dayja, which follows the adventures of a Bigfoot obsessed 10-year-old who, with the help of her grandfather, learns that each of us see the world a little differently but everyone’s view has value.
Neven Hitrec’s The Second Diary of Paulina P., which follows a fifth grader who uses her charm and imagination to navigate a strict teacher, her first bully, and the new dynamic with her grandmother who is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.
Tord Danielsson’s The Crown Prince and the Return of the Tyrant, a fantasy film that follows a young Crown Prince who will soon become king, just as he has always dreamed, when his suspicious grandmother returns to the kingdom.

Finally, there will be 22 short film presentations featuring animated and live-action short films from around the world, including works from Belgium, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Hungary, Japan, Poland, Republic of Korea, Russian Federation, Serbia, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, and U.S. (including two films made by Texans).

The event is free thanks to support from the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, the Texas Commission on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and from the Festival’s Season Sponsors which include the Carol and Alan J. Bernon Family Charitable Foundation, Dallas Tourism Public Improvement District, The Eugene McDermott Foundation, Sidley Austin LLP, Headington Companies, Dave Perry-Miller Real Estate, Gaedeke Group, Mary Fox & Laura Fox, Moody Fund for the Arts, Dallas Film Commission, Angelika Film Center Dallas, Wildworks PR, DFW Child, and Spracklen Film and Video. The USA Film Festival is supported, in part, by the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

The full schedule of KidFilm programs can be found at usafilmfestival.com. Tickets for all shows are free for both children and adults, but tickets are required for admission.

Advance tickets for most programs is available online through January 14 at eventbrite.com. Any unreserved tickets will be made available at the Angelika Theater box office on the day of show only.

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