Weekend Event Planner

These are the 14 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

The quality of events in and around Dallas this weekend is off the charts, starting with the annual CultureMap Tastemaker Awards. Other choices include four theater productions (including two Broadway tours), four comedy events with a slew of big names, a symphony concert, the grand opening of a new park, and a trio of concerts featuring well-known acts.

Below are the best ways to spend your free time this weekend. If you want more options, check out our calendar for an even longer list of the city's best events.

Thursday, May 7

Broadway Dallas presents Wicked
Wicked looks at what happened in the Land of Oz ... but from a different angle. Long before Dorothy arrives, there is another young woman, born with emerald-green skin — smart, fiery, misunderstood, and possessing an extraordinary talent. When she meets a bubbly blonde who is exceptionally popular, their initial rivalry turns into the unlikeliest of friendships ... until the world decides to call one “good,” and the other one “wicked.” The musical runs through June 14 at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

Chelcie Lynn: Trailer Trash Tammy The Loose Lips Tour
Chelcie Lynn is an internet personality, actress, and stand-up comedian who began her career on the video sharing platform Vine as her character, Trailer Trash Tammy. She was seen in the Duplass Brothers feature film Tangerine and starred in the digital series Coach Von Pidgeon for Funny or Die & Facebook Watch. She'll perform at Majestic Theatre.

2026 CultureMap Dallas Tastemaker Awards
The CultureMap Tastemaker Awards return to celebrate Dallas' top restaurant and bar talent for 2026. Our mission is to shine a spotlight on the people and places that make Dallas a world-class culinary destination. Our signature tasting event and awards ceremony will celebrate all of the nominees and unveil this year’s winners, and guests will enjoy an evening full of chef-prepared bites and specialty drinks. The event takes place at Astoria Event Venue in Irving.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Beethoven, Bach, Haydn & Mozart"
Three soloists grace "Beethoven, Bach, Haydn & Mozart," which follows a thread of musical styles from Baroque to early Classical. Co-concertmaster Nathan Olson is front-and-center in Bach’s Violin Concerto. Principal trumpeter Stuart Stephenson does the honors in Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto in E-flat Major. And Mozart’s festive “Haffner” Symphony will feature a dramatic concert aria sung by soprano Kathryn Henry. The concert, conducted by Fabio Luisi, will have three performances through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center.

Improv Arlington presents Marlon Wayans
Marlon Wayans is an actor, producer, comedian, writer, and director. His first-ever comedy special, Woke-ish, premiered on Netflix in 2018, and he can also be seen in the Netflix movies Sextuplets and The Curse of Bridge Hollow. In 2026, he and his brother Shawn are returning to the Scary Movie franchise for the first time in 25 years. He'll perform six times through Saturday at Improv Arlington.

Friday, May 8

Brad Williams: The Tall Tales Tour
Comedian Brad Williams comes to Dallas as part of his The Tall Tales Tour. Williams was recently seen in the movie Spinal Tap II: The End Continues and just came out with his own hot sauce, Death By Dwarf. Williams’ most recent stand-up special, Brad Williams: Starfish, premiered in December 2023 on the streaming platform Veeps. He'll perform at Majestic Theatre.

We Them One's Comedy Tour
The comedy-heavy weekend gets a big boost with the the festival-style We Them One's Comedy Tour, featuring performances by Mike Epps, DC Young Fly, Karlous Miller, Chico Bean, Mojo Brookzz, Tony Roberts, Just Nesh, and Navv Greene. They'll perform at Texas Trust CU Theatre in Grand Prairie.

Dallas Theater Center presents Malcolm X & Redd Foxx Washing Dishes at Jimmy's Chicken Shack in Harlem
In the sweltering summer of 1943, two young men — Little & Foxy — forge an unlikely bond over leftover fried chicken and a dirty dishwasher. But as the world outside erupts in chaos, their friendship is tested by betrayal, ambition, and the call of history. Inspired by a true story, this world premiere, written by DTC’s resident playwright and Interim Artistic Director Jonathan Norton, imagines the moments that shape legends — and the friendships that define them. The play runs through June 7 at Wyly Theatre.

Art Centre Theatre presents The Monkey's Paw
A small family lives in the middle of nowhere, no money to their name; they only have each other. But when an old friend inquires about needing a place to stay, they stumble across a mummified monkey's paw. Drawn to the mystique of the hideous paw, as if possessed, they keep it, not heeding the warning of its cursed nature. The production, running through May 16 at Art Centre Theatre in Plano will be presented in Monochrome, creating a haunting live-action monochrome look that mirrors the 1940s cinematic era.

Broadway at the Center presents Stereophonic
The most Tony Award-nominated play of all time, Stereophonic mines the agony and the ecstasy of creation as it zooms in on a music studio in 1976. An up-and-coming rock band recording a new album finds itself suddenly on the cusp of superstardom. The ensuing pressures could spark their breakup — or their breakthrough. The production will have five performances through Sunday at Winspear Opera House.

Saturday, May 9

Halperin Park Grand Opening Weekend
Halperin Park, a five-acre bridge park spanning Interstate 35E between Ewing and Marsalis Avenues, will officially open to the public on Saturday. Located directly adjacent to the Dallas Zoo, the park is a landmark achievement in urban renewal, physically re-connecting neighborhoods that were severed in the 1950s by highway construction. The official opening ceremony will take place at the park’s 12th Street Promenade, kicking off a weekend-long celebration featuring live performances, special Mother’s Day activities, and more.

Micky Dolenz: 60 Years of The Monkees
One of pop music’s most beloved legacies, Micky Dolenz, the legendary voice and drummer of The Monkees, comes to Dallas to presents his new show, 60 Years of The Monkees. The Monkees' first four albums all reached No. 1 and launched three No. 1 singles: "Last Train to Clarksville," "I'm a Believer," and "Daydream Believer." Dolenz will perform at Majestic Theatre.

Dave Matthews Band in concert
If it's May, that means it's time for the annual visit from Dave Matthews Band. The group has consistently played the same venue, Dos Equis Pavilion, at the same time of year almost every year since at least 2013. Though their days of delivering hits like "What Would You Say," "Crash Into Me," and "The Space Between" are behind them, they still sell albums as well as anyone, most recently Walk Around The Moon in 2023, which made it to No. 5 on the Billboard 200.

Sunday, May 10

Sting in concert
Singer Sting first came to fame as the frontman/bassist and principal songwriter for The Police from 1978 to 1983, which released classic songs like "Every Breath You Take," "Roxanne," "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic," and more. The Sting 3.0 tour pulls from a career that includes Sting's 15 solo albums, most recently The Bridge in 2021. He'll play at The Pavilion At Toyota Music Factory in Irving.

Jessie Davidson and Zoe Jensen in the National Tour of Wicked

Photo by Joan Marcus

Broadway Dallas presents Wicked at the Music Hall at Fair Park through June 14.

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Movie Review

The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsical family lark that fails to take root

Photo courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

Andrew Garfield, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Claire Foy, Phoenix Laroche, and Billie Gadson in The Magic Faraway Tree.

With kids and families always on the hunt for entertainment, it’s typically a safe bet for a movie studio to offer up something new, even if it is a film based on an old property. The Magic Faraway Tree, based on a series of books that started in the 1930s, is a very old property, one that its filmmakers have tried to liven up with a few stars, a lot of whimsy, and a boatload of CGI.

The Thompson family, led by stay-at-home dad Tim (Andrew Garfield) and breadwinner mom Polly (Claire Foy), are forced to move to a rundown country home when Polly gets laid off. The kids - Joe (Phoenix Laroche), Fran (Billie Gadson), and Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) - are used to the perks of city life like wifi and electricity, and each of them rebels in their own way to their new lot in life.

Fran, enticed by a fairy named Silky (Nicola Coughlan), is the first to venture out of the house, making her way to a magic tree that transports her to a world full of strange characters like Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning), and more. Her adventures there not only broaden the world she thought she knew, but may be the key to helping her ailing family.

Directed by Ben Gregor and written by Simon Farnaby (Paddington 2, Wonka), the film is a pleasant enough lark, but it fails to fully capture the imagination. The five-member family has a lot going on, from an initially-mute Fran to a domestic situation that raises more questions than it answers. The film tries to incorporate an anti-technology message through Tim’s hatred of a smart refrigerator (voiced by Judi Dench!) and the kids' addictions to devices, but it’s quickly shed in favor of other options.

Once Fran makes it to the Magic Faraway Tree, there’s a nice shift in the storytelling, but it’s unclear what the ultimate goal is. It’s a good idea to have Fran, the youngest of the children, convince her older, more cynical siblings about the virtues of the magic world, but the conflict in the real world doesn’t seem to rise to the level needed for the escape the tree provides.

There also seems to be a missing link in the storytelling for viewers to understand the importance of the fantastical characters. The visuals of seeing Moonface and his crescent moon-shaped hair, a man with a suit full of banging pots, and more are fun for a while, but not enough to carry the whole film. A last-minute revelation feels like it was something that should have been disclosed much earlier to help strengthen the emotions of the story.

A two-time Oscar nominee, Garfield is making his first foray into family movies (if you don’t count playing Spider-Man), and while he does a good job, he doesn’t make the best fit for the semi-goofy role. The same goes for the Emmy-winning Foy, who isn’t given much of anything to do. The movie puts the story on the shoulders of the three child actors, and while each of them acquit themselves well, none of them are so outstanding as to be noteworthy.

With nearly 90-year-old source material, The Magic Faraway Tree needed to be something truly special to stand out in the 21st century movie world. Unfortunately, it features a mostly forgettable story that features some fun visuals, a couple of cute kids, and not much else.

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The Magic Faraway Tree is now playing in theaters.

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