Weekend Event Planner

These are the 8 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

The first weekend of the new year is traditionally light on new events as organizers and eventgoers recover from the holiday onslaught. Still, there's always something going on, including the last gasp of holiday events, a symphony concert, a local theater production, visits from two comedians, an astronomy exhibition, monster trucks, and a concert with lasers.

Below are more best ways to spend your precious free time this weekend. Want more options? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.

Thursday, January 4

Final call for holiday events
Some holiday events wrapped up their runs last week, and this weekend will see every other big event in the Dallas area come to a close. If you want to wring every last drop of holiday joy out of the season, you can still go to Holiday at the Arboretum, The Trains at NorthPark, Snowday at Galleria Dallas, Peace Plaza Ice Rink in Grapevine, and The Colony Christmas Spectacular. The first two close on Friday, while the latter three close on Sunday.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Elgar Cello Concerto"
The Dallas Symphony Orchestra opens 2024 with "Elgar Cello Concerto," featuring conductor Marie Jacquot and cellist Maximilian Hornung. Selections include Schmidt's Intermezzo from Notre Dame, Elgar's Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, and Beethoven's Symphony No. 4. There will be four performances through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center.

Junior Players presents Legally Blonde The Musical
Elle Woods appears to have it all. Her life is turned upside down when her boyfriend Warner dumps her so he can attend Harvard Law. Determined to get him back, Elle ingeniously charms her way into the prestigious law school. While there, she struggles with peers, professors, and her ex. With the support of some new friends, though, Elle quickly realizes her potential and sets out to prove to herself and to the world that being yourself never goes out of style. Junior Players' production runs through Sunday at Moody Performance Hall.

Friday, January 5

Improv Arlington presents Jay Pharoah
Jay Pharoah is an actor and stand-up comedian who is best known for his wide array of uncanny celebrity impressions, including President Barack Obama, Will Smith, Denzel Washington, Stephen A. Smith, Kanye West, and Chris Tucker, all of which he showcased during his six-season stint on Saturday Night Live. He'll perform five times through Sunday at Improv Arlington.

Hyena's presents Daryl Felsberg
There is no mistaking when Daryl Felsberg is on stage, as the larger-than-life comic commands a room everywhere he goes. His storytelling approach, littered with jokes and heaps of laughs, always has a big payoff. His sarcasm is as rich and thick as his brisket-infused bloodstream. He'll perform four times through Saturday at Hyena's Comedy Nightclub at Mockingbird Station.

Saturday, January 6

SciArt Exchange presents Sensing Deep Space: Pandora's Cluster
Sensing Deep Space: Pandora’s Cluster is a multisensory experience that merges art and science while taking visitors on a tour through new discoveries in the Pandora’s Cluster region of space to help us truly grasp what’s out there. The James Webb Space Telescope revolutionized deep space exploration, offering humanity a portal into the inaccessible cosmos. It also allowed the creation of an installation that shatters the boundaries of earthly experience, enabling visitors to traverse the untraversable. The event takes place through February 4 at Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson.

Monster Truck Wars
Monster Truck Wars is a high-energy monster truck show where trucks compete in nonstop, head-to-head competition. The all-new Robot Battle is joining the action this year, where three-story-high transforming robots Galactron and Reptar battle on the arena floor. The event also includes kid’s power wheel races and a chance to take a ride in a real monster truck. There will be two performances on Saturday at Fair Park Coliseum.

Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular
The Pink Floyd Laser Spectacular is a multimedia show featuring the original music of Pink Floyd, carrying fans on a mind-expanding journey driven by cutting-edge laser, lighting, and video effects. The concert takes place at House of Blues Dallas.

Photo courtesy of Monster Truck Wars

Monster Truck Wars will be at Fair Park Coliseum on January 6.

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Movie Review

Rose Byrne fights for her life and car in new movie 'Tow'

Photo courtesy of Roadside Attractions

Rose Byrne in Tow.

Actor Rose Byrne had a banner year in 2025, getting her first Oscar nomination for her starring role in If I Had Legs, I’d Kick You. Although she came up short in that race, she’s getting another chance to prove her acting bona fides in the new film, Tow.

In the “inspired by a true story” movie, Byrne plays Amanda, a down-on-her-luck woman who lives in her car and can’t find a job. Living in Seattle, she tries to stay in touch with her daughter, Avery (Elsie Fisher), who lives with her dad in another city, but circumstances sometimes limit their communications, especially when her car is stolen.

The good news is that her car is found relatively quickly. The bad news is that the tow company is charging her to get her car back, money she can’t afford. Now truly homeless, she does everything in her power to right the wrong, even taking the company to court. Without much luck, she has to start staying in a women’s shelter run by Barbara (Octavia Spencer), where she makes friends with Nova (Demi Lovato) and Denise (Ariana DeBose), among others.

Directed by Stephanie Laing and written by Jonathan Keasey and Brent Boivin, the film has relatively low stakes going for it and never really tries to make the story feel deeper than it is. The situation Amanda finds herself in is clearly a tough one, and any empathetic person would feel for her and want her to overcome her plight. But the filmmakers keep things light and never try to up the drama in any significant way.

The issue Amanda is dealing with, being price gouged by a predatory towing company, is one with which many people can relate. But aside from helpfully underscoring Amanda’s frustration by showing the increasing number of days she is without a car, they never establish why they felt this particular story was one worth telling. Her personal issues, including a growing estrangement with her daughter, fail to conjure any big emotions.

The filmmakers are very loose with their storytelling, especially when it comes to side characters. The presence of the women she meets at the shelter, and Kevin (Dominic Sessa), the young lawyer who offers to help her, never makes full sense other than a need for her to have other people with whom to interact. A tighter focus on what Amanda was going through would’ve helped both her and people around her feel more important.

Byrne is a dynamic performer who’s shown great skill at both drama and comedy, but there’s nothing special about her performance here. Hampered a bit by a blonde wig and false teeth, she feels out of sorts for much of the film. The unusually high-powered supporting cast - both Spencer and DeBose are Oscar winners - makes things interesting on first blush, but none of them outside of Sessa is given much to do, so they’re mostly wasted.

Tow will be a disappointment for anyone hoping to see more great stuff from Byrne. While she remains a fine actor, her performance and the story as a whole are nowhere near the level shown in her previous film. The real life predicament shown in the film also never rises to the level of being of something worth showing to the masses.

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Tow is now showing in theaters.

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