There are some weekends in and around Dallas where it's nearly impossible to omit events from our weekly list, and this is one those. The jam-packed lineup includes a wine festival, seven theater productions (including one heading to Broadway), a Texas film festival, four concerts with a variety of big names, a dance production, a classical music concert, a new art exhibition, a celebrity tennis fundraier, and a wacky event that almost defies explanation.
Red Bull Flugtag takes place at Levy Event Plaza on Lake Carolyn in Irving on September 13.
Below are the best ways to spend your free time this weekend. If you want more options, check out the calendar for an even longer list of the city's best events.
Thursday, September 11
39th Annual GrapeFest: A Texas Wine Experience
GrapeFest, the largest wine festival in the Southwest, will feature the theme of The Grape Gatsby, celebrating the Roaring Twenties and the centennial of the novel, The Great Gatsby. Visitors can enjoy the People’s Choice Wine Tasting Classic, International Wine Experience, Champagne Terrace, GrapeStomp, live music, artisan vendors, and more. The event takes place through Sunday in Historic Downtown Grapevine.
Broadway Dallas presents The Wiz
This all-new production of the Tony Award-winning musical The Wiz returns “home” to stages in an all-new Pre-Broadway tour, the first one in 40 years. The groundbreaking twist on The Wizard of Oz features a score packed with soul, gospel, rock, and finger-snapping '70s funk as Dorothy goes on a journey to find her place in a contemporary world. The musical will run through September 21 at the Music Hall at Fair Park.
Rover Dramawerks presents Double Cut
Diamond heiress Olivia Prescott is disturbed by an enigmatic stranger arriving at her villa, claiming to be her supposedly dead brother. He seems to know every trivial detail of their past family life, his papers verify his identity, but Olivia insists with mounting hysteria that he is an imposter despite his convincing everyone around them. Is Olivia going mad ... or is she concealing something? The production runs through September 27 at Cox Playhouse in Plano.
Friday, September 12
It Came from Texas Film Festival
The third annual It Came from Texas Film Festival showcases films made within the Lone Star State, with a theme of True Texas Tales. Selections will include Bonnie & Clyde (1967), Richard Linklater's Bernie; a double feature of The Great Debaters starring Denzel Washington and the documentary The Real Great Debaters; and John Wayne's The Alamo. The festival takes place through Sunday at Plaza Theater in Garland.
Luke Bryan in concert
After an illness postponed his scheduled June concert, country singer Luke Bryan has returned. Bryan has been one of the top artists in the genre since his debut in 2007, scoring nine No. 1 hits on the Billboard Country charts, success that has allowed him to up his profile by appearing on The Voice and, since 2018, serving as a judge on American Idol. He'll play at Dos Equis Pavilion in support of 2024 album, Mind of a Country Boy.
Pegasus Theatre presents MacMurder!
MacMurder! is a world premiere production of an original comedy-murder mystery that captures the look and feel of an old Hollywood movie from the 1930s and 1940s. Harry Hunsacker (an inept but endearing private detective), Nigel Grouse (Harry’s paid-by-the-hour assistant), and Lt. Foster of the real police encounter a host of eccentric characters and are soon faced with a “whodunnit.” The production, part of AT&T Performing Arts Center's Elevator Project, runs through September 21 at Wyly Theatre.
TITAS/Dance Unbound presents Ronald K. Brown: Evidence
Ronald K Brown's Evidence is special, profound, and absolutely moving, a performance experience to be felt rather than merely watched. The work explores the importance of community in African American culture, offering a deeply soulful evening of dance. The one-night-only event takes place at Winspear Opera House.
Theatre Denton presents Carrie the Musical
In this production based on Stephen King's classic book, teenager Carrie is bullied at school and dominated by her cruel mother at home. When she discovers that she has a special power, she does not hesitate to use it when pushed too far. The musical runs through September 28 at Theatre Denton, aka Campus Theatre, in Denton.
Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Emanuel Ax Plays Beethoven
At this special concert, pianist Emanuel Ax will performs Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto, showcasing his prodigious virtuosity. The program will also include Harmonielehre, one of John Adams’ most popular works, and the piece that sparked Barber’s career, The School for Scandal. There will be three performances through Sunday at the Meyerson Symphony Center.
Echo Theatre presents El Rey del Pollo
In this family-friendly spin on Shakespeare’s King Lear, the Esteemed Reymundo Lear is retiring from running his fried chicken empire and plans to pass on his three restaurants to daughters, Gisela, Raquel, and Cordelia ... until Cordelia falls out of favor. What will happen next? What of Rey's old friend Gilberto and his feuding sons Edwardo and Edmundo? Will Rey ever be served his lunch? The production, which uses Elizabethan verse, Spanglish, and today’s vernacular, runs through September 27 at Bath House Cultural Center.
Theatre Arlington presents You Can’t Take It With You
The Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy You Can’t Take It With You tells the story of the wacky Sycamores and the straight-laced Kirbys, two families - so unlike in manner, politics, and finances - trying to set aside their differences and find unity. The production runs through September 28 at Theatre Arlington.
City of Lewisville and Lewisville Playhouse present Old Town Neighbors
When a young girl and her father living in Old Town Lewisville decide to move from the house where her deceased mother grew up, ghosts from the house’s past emerge, chronicling the city’s past 100 years and beyond. Old Town Neighbors, an original play written by Zachary Cantrell, is presented by the City of Lewisville and Lewisville Playhouse as part of Lewisville’s Centennial Celebration in 2025. The production through September 21 at Lewisville Grand Theater.
The Swell Season in concert
The duo The Swell Season, comprised of Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová, came to fame after the two singers starred together in the 2007 film Once, which featured the Oscar-winning song "Falling Slowly." After releasing a sophomore album in 2009, Hansard and Irglová only played together sporadically until they officially reunited in 2025 for a new album, Forward. They'll play at Majestic Theatre.
Saturday, September 13
Nasher Sculpture Center presents Antony Gormley: "Survey" opening day
The Nasher Sculpture Center will present the first major museum survey of Antony Gormley’s work in the United States. The exhibition spans the breadth of Gormley’s career from experimental work of the early 1980s to the present. In addition to the work shown at the museum, the artist will debut a project installed on the rooftops of skyscrapers in and around Downtown Dallas. The exhibition will remain on display through January 4, 2026.
Dirk Nowitzki Foundation presents 7th Annual Tennis Classic
The Dirk Nowitzki Foundation's 7th Annual Tennis Classic is an exhibition-style tournament that brings together celebrities and athletes for a day of fun, philanthropy, and friendly competition. Participants will include Steve Nash, Cooper Flagg, Elvis Andrus, Devin Harris, Joakim Noah, CoCo Vandeweghe, Boris Kodjoe, and Coby Cotton of Dude Perfect. The event takes place at Banner House at T Bar M in Dallas.
Red Bull Flugtag
Flugtag challenges wacky engineers and fearless pilots to fulfill their dream of flying. First they construct their flying machine. Then they take a leap of faith. Or, as is more often the case, plunge into the waters below. Teams of fearless flyers will hurl their handmade, human-powered aircrafts off a 22-foot-high ramp and into Lake Carolyn. The wacky event takes place at Levy Event Plaza in Irving.
AT&T Performing Arts Center presents Jeff Goldblum & The Mildred Snitzer Orchestra
Actor Jeff Goldblum, who's currently co-starring as The Wizard of Oz in Wicked and the upcoming Wicked: For Good, plays a little jazz, too. The charismatic entertainer and his band will present an evening of music, a little trivia, and a whole lot of fun. They'll play at Winspear Opera House.
Sunday, September 14
AT&T Performing Arts Center presents Lea Salonga
Musical theatre royalty and official Disney legend Lea Salonga will come to Dallas as part of her tour, Stage, Screen & Everything In Between. Fans will experience stage and screen classics from Salonga’s best known roles in Miss Saigon, Les Misérables, Aladdin, and Mulan, newfound favorites from the West End hit Old Friends, and more from her celebrated career and beyond. The concert takes place at Winspear Opera House.
