Weekend Event Planner

These are the 11 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

It will be a very kid/family-friendly weekend around Dallas, with four events with very different themes aimed at that demographic. Other choices include the national tour of a Broadway musical, a symphony concert, a local theater production, a show for golf lovers, two dance productions, and an Irish-themed concert.

Below are the 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, March 16

Broadway Dallas presents Moulin Rouge! The Musical
Moulin Rouge! The Musical features a world of splendor and romance, of eye-popping excess, of glitz, grandeur, and glory, a world where Bohemians and aristocrats rub elbows and revel in electrifying enchantment. Baz Luhrmann’s revolutionary film comes to life onstage, remixed in a new musical mash-up extravaganza. The production will run through April 2 at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Brahms Symphony No. 3"
The latest concert from the Dallas Symphony Orchestra will feature Brahms' Third Symphony, one which he wrote at age 50 but which looked back on his younger days. The concert, conducted by Fabio Luisi, will also include Mahler's Selections of Twelve Songs from Des Knaben Wunderhorn. There will be three performances through Saturday at the Meyerson Symphony Center.

Disney on Ice: Road Trip Adventures
In Disney on Ice's Road Trip Adventures, exciting twists and turns await as Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, and guests of all ages embark on an interactive and memory-rich adventure to iconic Disney destinations, including the rooftops of London with Mary Poppins and Jack and his band of dancing lamplighters; sun-soaked Motunui to help Moana restore the heart of Te Fiti; Aladdin’s princely parade filled with spectacular stunts; magical moments with Genie, and a brand-new song from Jasmine; and more. There will be performances through Sunday at American Airlines Center.

Rover Dramawerks presents Spirit Level
When famous author Jack Cameron and his wife Susie drown in a boating accident, they are required to haunt the country cottage where they lived. Then Simon and Flic, an aspiring writer and his pregnant wife, rent the cottage. When Simon has writer’s block and Flic’s monster mother comes to visit, Jack and Susie call on a Guardian Angel for assistance, with some unexpectedly wacky results. The production will run through April 1 at Cox Playhouse in Plano.

Friday, March 17

11th Annual DFW Golf Show
The DFW Golf Show is a three-day event that will feature dozens of vendors, interactive games, golf fittings, and entertainment for the whole family. Visitors will be able to see World Long Drive Champion and former UNT golfer Kyle Berkshire, US Women’s Open champion and Dallas-Fort Worth local Brittany Lang, golf comedy group Country Club Adjacent, and more. The event takes place through Sunday at Esports Stadium Arlington.

Circus Vazquez
The family-owned Circus Vazquez will brings its all-new production to Riders Field in Frisco, featuring a cast of international circus superstars under the circus’ climate-controlled blue and white tent. Ringmaster Memo Vazquez presides over the festivities, featuring clowns, jugglers, a unicyclist master, trapeze artists, dance and acrobatic performers, and more. There will be performances daily through April 3.

TITAS / Dance Unbound presents Alan Lake Factori(e)
Alan Lake has created a work poised between fable and allegory. Le cri des méduses, a polymorphic choreographic work enriched with visual art and video reinforces Alan Lake’s status as a significant Canadian artist. Starting from Théodore Géricault’s painting The Raft of the Medusa, he proposes a vision of a humanity adrift. A physical dance like a pagan ritual, jostled by images of a powerful scenography, Le cri des méduses both promises and delivers a startling artistic shock. The dance company, making its U.S. debut, will have performances on both Friday and Saturday at Moody Performance Hall.

Saturday, March 18

The Big Bounce America
Featuring the only Guinness-certified world record holder of The World’s Largest Bounce House, The Big Bounce America is the biggest touring inflatable event in the world. It includes four massive inflatable attractions: a 16,000-square-foot World’s Largest Bounce House; the newly added Sport Slam featuring a customized sports arena; the 900+ foot-llong obstacle course named The Giant; and a unique, space-themed wonderland called airSPACE. The event will be open on weekends at Lone Star Park in Grand Prairie through April 2.

Brick Fest Live
Brick Fest Live features live interactive stage shows, life-size models, hands-on building activities, a chance to build a Guinness World Record mosaic, photo ops, exclusive merchandise, and more. The festival - which is not officially associated with LEGO - will take place on Saturday and Sunday at Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas.

B. Moore Dance presents The Encore
The Encore is a collection of choreographic works created by Bridget L. Moore. Rooted in African American and global dance aesthetics, the evening consists of an artistically diverse program from the company's repertoire, including Rose Gold, which conveys the greatest gift of expression to the world, Love; Southern Recollections-Romare Bearden, inspired by the eponymous Harlem Renaissance painter; and Uncharted Territory, inspired by Moore's travels across Asia. For this event at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, audiences will see performances by the company and aspiring artists of the next generation.

Sunday, March 19

Celtic Angels Ireland in concert
Fans of Irish music, dance, and culture can expect a joyous celebration of everything Irish with Celtic Angels Ireland, joined by Celtic Knight Dancers and The Trinity Band Ensemble of Dublin. The program for the concert features a variety of Irish favorites, including “Danny Boy,” “Road to Kildare,” and “Song for Ireland,” as well as Irish takes on American favorites like “Bridge Over Troubled Water,” “God Bless America,” and more. The concert will be at Eisemann Center for the Performing Arts in Richardson.

Photo courtesy of Feld Entertainment

Disney on Ice: Road Trip Adventures will be at American Airlines Center through March 19.

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Deep Ellum News

Mechanical bull is headed to Dallas' Deep Ellum at new Rodeo country bar

Rodeo Ranch

Here comes the mechanical bull, riding into Deep Ellum.

There's a mechanical bull coming to Dallas' Deep Ellum, courtesy of a new bar called Rodeo Dallas, opening in late spring.

Rodeo is a spinoff of a concept founded in Arizona, and it's opening at 2724 Elm St., in the space previously occupied by Wits End. Construction is already well underway and according to co-owner, it'll open in early summer.

The original is called Rodeo Ranch, and was founded in 2018 in Tempe as an "adult playground" with the aforementioned mechanical bull, bottle service, DJs, dancing, and light show.

The concept is from two veteran club impressarios with strong ties to Texas: Joseph "JD" Ybanez and Josh Reagan, who own Longshots in Dallas, plus two locations of Varsity Tavern, in Fort Worth and in Tempe.

Ybanez, 35, is a native of El Paso and graduate of A&M with a master's degree who's been in the bar and restaurant industry since 2007.

"I love the industry, I've been involved in it since I was 19," he says.

His first bar was Trophy Ranch, which he opened in the West 7th District seven years ago, now closed. It, too, had a mechanical bull.

"That's where I learned how popular it was," he says. "We liked the idea of bringing one to Deep Ellum. And obviously, the mechanical bull is going to be the focal point - but Rodeo will also just be a country-themed bar with great nightlife, food & drinks, state-of-the-art audio-visual, and plenty of entertainment."

Rodeo Ranch has been described as an upbeat bar with Texas-inspired elements such as cowhide benches, animal trophy heads, lighting over the bar made from a rustic trough and Edison light bulbs.

The Arizona location features arcade games such as Big Buck Hunter, boxing, and basketball games, numerous 70-inch TVs for sports viewing, electronic dance music DJs, VIP tables with bottle service, a high-end sound system and light show that includes a back-lit wall lined with liquor bottles, shot wheel, and dancing on the bar.

Part of the package includes women servers in lingerie, which has become increasingly common in high-energy bars.

"I think Bottled Blonde brought that to Dallas, but it's a trend you see across the country now," he says.

Ybanez also organized the Tacos & Tequilas festival that debuted in 2022 at Panther Island Pavilion in Fort Worth , where it will return on May 20, 2023.

Wits End was an old-school hangout that closed in June 2022. At the time it closed, a spokesperson said that the lease had come to an end and the landlord, Westdale Properties, would not renew. Westdale did not comment, but neighborhood regulars cited a desire to clean up the area and focus more on soft uses such as restaurants and retail.

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