Weekend Event Planner

Comedians take top billing in the 12 best Dallas events this weekend

Plenty of big comedians make their way through the Dallas area, but this weekend will be a tad unusual, with five notable comedy events taking place over two days. Other choices include the start of more holiday events, a conversation with a brash pundit, a symphony concert, a new local theater production, a concert from a longtime producer, a dance production, and a huge outdoor art 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, November 14

Holiday events
Every weekend in November will bring more and more holiday events, with three more starting this weekend. They include Holiday at the Arboretum at the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden, featuring the the 10th anniversary of their 12 Days of Christmas display and more; The Trains at NorthPark at NorthPark Center, featuring model trains traveling through small versions of American landmarks; and Gaylord Texan ICE! featuring Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer in Grapevine, featuring two million pounds of ice sculptures and more. All events will be open through January 5. (And here is a long list of the best Christmas lights in Dallas this season.)

The Eisemann Center presents An Evening with Fran Lebowitz
In a sea of pundits and talking heads, Fran Lebowitz stands tall as one of the sharpest cultural observers. Her essays and interviews dissect current events with a razor-sharp wit, taking aim at everything from tourists to after-shave lotion. Purveyor of urban cool, Lebowitz is hailed as the heir to Dorothy Parker, her insights cutting through the noise with unmatched clarity. She'll appear for a conversation at Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Ravel’s Boléro"
Gershwin’s Concerto in F is a concert favorite that speaks in America’s musical vernacular - jazz - and is the perfect vehicle for the talents of pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet. Internationally renowned conductor Juanjo Mena returns to lead the Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s first-ever performance of Bartók’s The Wooden Prince. The concert will finish with Ravel's iconic Boléro. There will be three performances through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center.

Theatre Three presents Sleuth
A cunning mystery writer, Andrew Wyke, invites his wife's lover, Milo Tindle, to his secluded English manor, setting off a deadly game of manipulation and deceit. As the tension rises, surprising twists keep the audience guessing the dramatic end. Thie production will take place in the Theatre Too space at Theatre Three through December 15.

T Bone Burnett in concert
Musician T Bone Burnett is arguably best known for his producing work on albums for Elvis Costello, Brandi Carlile, and others, as well as his contributions to the soundtracks of O Brother, Where Art Thou?, Walk the Line, and Crazy Heart. But he has solo albums dating back to 1972, a career that is still ongoing with the release of his new album, The Other Side. He'll play at the Kessler Theater.

Friday, November 15

Rhett & Link: Good Mythical Tour
Comedy duo Rhett & Link and the Mythical Crew will present a night that will bring their show to life like never before. It features favorite segments, classic games, music, mayhem, Mythicality, and more, and audience members may even become part of the show. The performance takes place at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving.

Hyena's presents Christopher "Kid" Reid
Christopher "Kid" Reid is best known as one-half of the late 1980s and early 1990s hip-hop musical act Kid 'n Play. Reid, who was particularly notable for his extreme high-top fade hairstyle, now tours as a stand-up comedian. He'll perform twice on Friday at Hyena's Comedy Nightclub.

Bruce Wood Dance presents Touch
As part of its latest program, Touch, Bruce Wood Dance will perform Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen (Songs of A Wayfarer) by world–renowned choreographer and former artistic director of Nederlands Dans Theater, Jirí Kylián; Dvorák Serenade by legendary American choreographer Lar Lubovitch; and the return of Bruce Wood’s riveting audience favorite, RED. There will be three performances through Sunday at Moody Performance Hall.

Martin Lawrence: Y’all Know What It Is! Tour
Comedy legend Martin Lawrence comes to Dallas as part of his first comedy tour since 2016. After a 30-year acting career that saw him star in four Bad Boys movies and his own sitcom, Lawrence has gone back to his roots with an all-new stand-up show where he brings the real talk and finds the funny in everything from family to culture as only he can. He'll be joined by fellow comedians Deon Cole and Benji Brown at American Airlines Center.

Saturday, November 16

Matteo Lane: Can't Stop Talking
New York-based comedian Matteo Lane has been a part of Netflix’s The Comedy Lineup, and has self-released four specials in the past three years. He’s also appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Late Night with Seth Meyers, HBO's Crashing, and Will & Grace. He currently co-hosts the podcasts I Never Liked You with Nick Smith and Teach Me Daddy with Chris Distefano. He'll perform twice on Saturday at Majestic Theatre.

AURORA Biennial: FuturePresentPast
The AURORA Biennial, taking place at Dallas City Hall and surrounding areas, is a free public one-night-only exhibition curated by New York City-based Kendal Henry and Mexico City-based Leslie Moody Castro. Under the title FuturePresentPast, Henry and Moody Castro look into the shared experiences of North Texas, reflecting on the past to consider and shape our future through the present. Artwork themes will include bridging disconnected communities, health advocacy, environmental sustainability, and urban transformation due to displacement and migration.

Chelsea Handler: Little Big Bitch Tour
Comedian Chelsea Handler has had the bulk of her success in the 21st century, hosting The Chelsea Handler Show in 2006 and 2007, and then Chelsea Lately from 2007 to 2014. She has also written six New York Times best-selling books, hosts the advice podcast, Dear Chelsea, and released her latest special, Revolution, on Netflix in 2022. On the Little Big Bitch tour, she will give fans a retrospective look at what made her the person and comedian she is today. She'll perform at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

Photo courtesy of Chelsea Handler

Chelsea Handler will bring her Little Big Bitch Tour to the Music Hall at Fair Park on November 16.

holidays kids families music symphony theater comedy dance exhibitions-visual-arts event-planner

Listen up

Underground hi-fi 'listening bar' Shyboy opens in downtown Dallas

Photo courtesy of Shyboy

Shyboy lounge is new on Main Street in downtown Dallas.

A new lounge is turning up the volume beneath the streets of downtown Dallas: Shyboy, billed as Dallas' first "hi fi bar," will debut at 1313 Main St., in the subterranean level of The Drakestone building.

According to a release, opening weekend events will take place March 4-7.

The new nightlife concept comes from The Headington Companies, the folks behind the Joule hotel and other Main Street developments.

"Inspired by hi-fi listening bars around the world, with roots in Tokyo’s post-WWII 'jazz kissas,' Shyboy offers a social and listening experience unlike any other nightlife space, with progressive, genre-bending programming, signature hi-balls and cocktails, and two state-of-the-art OJAS sound systems, designed by Devon Turnbull," says the release. (Turnbull's speakers have been used in projects with Mark Ronson, Public Records in Brooklyn, and more.)

Jazz kissas are cafes that specialize in the playing of and listening to recorded jazz music; here, jazz is played for active listening rather than as background serenade.

Piggybacking on that idea, Shyboy will offer "an immersive environment where design, lighting, and atmosphere are treated as essential elements of the performance, inviting guests into a unique experience that blurs the line between listener and participant," they say.

The 3,000-square-foot underground space, once a bank vault in the historic Davis Building (renovated and rebranded as The Drakestone residential building in 2017), will house one of the most advanced sound systems in the city within its historic concrete "bones." Interiors were designed by acclaimed Dallas-based 5G Studio Collaborative.

The venue includes two distinct spaces. The main room functions as a social listening environment, where towering speakers double as sculptural focal points beneath curved underground ceilings.

A second chamber, called The Vault, is designed as a more intimate lounge for private events, sound classes, performances, and art exhibitions. The Vault’s entrance features an installation from artist Lachlan Turczan’s Optical Resonance series, which uses water and light to visibly respond to sound waves, the release says. The room also includes a newly commissioned reflective sculpture by Florentine artist Duccio Maria Gambi.

Shyboy’s inaugural month will include a lineup spanning house, deep grooves, soul, and global dance sounds. Opening weekend, March 4-7, will welcome talent like JT Donaldson (Shyboy music director), Dallas legend Red Eye, Sound Advice Vol. 1, Skeme Richards, Patrice Scott + Brandon Epocha, and Wamono Nights.

The calendar later in the year will feature appearances by celebrated DJs and producers such as Theo Parrish, Derrick Carter, Eli Escobar, Kai Alcé, and the Los Angeles-based listening collective In Sheep’s Clothing.

Shyboy’s cocktail menu starts at $13, and the bar will serve soft-serve ice cream.

Throughout March, there will be no cover charge for entry; for more information, visit the venue's website.

downtown dallas headington music bars