Weekend Event Planner

These are the 16 best things to do in Dallas this weekend

Thanks to local theater companies, it's another busy weekend in and around Dallas, with eight different groups premiering new productions. Music dominates the other half, featuring another theater company putting on a concert with Broadway songs, a visit from a well-known author, a symphony concert, three "regular" concerts featuring popular artists, a Mavericks fan celebration, and an anniversary screening of a certain romantic vampire movie with its score played live.

Photo courtesy of Dallas Mavericks

Dallas Mavericks present Fan Jam at American Airlines Center on October 10.

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, October 9

Theatre Three presents The Trade: A Tragedy in Four Quarters
In this fast-paced, highly unauthorized, foam middle-fingered satire, the Dallas Mavericks are on the brink of greatness - so, naturally, Nico slams the self-destruct button. With a Greek chorus narrating the tragic downfall, a Kiss Cam, “Luka Doncic,” “Mark Cuban,” and a cameo from “Anthony Davis’s Hernia,” The Trade skewers the madness behind the moves, the myth that millionaires and billionaires must know what they’re doing, and the heartbreak of loving something that doesn’t love you back. The production runs through November 2 at Theatre Three.

Soul Rep Theatre Company and Bishop Arts Theatre Center presents King Hedley II
Set in 1985 Pittsburgh, August Wilson's King Hedley II follows an ex-convict's fight to rebuild his life and reclaim his future amid hardship, hope, and the weight of the past. The drama, co-produced by Soul Rep Theatre Company and Bishop Arts Theatre Center, runs through October 26 at Bishop Arts Theatre Center.

WaterTower Theatre presents BWY x NTX
In this bold new concert, the voice becomes the storyteller, revealing how musical theatre’s beloved archetypes have transformed over time. From timeless ballads to show-stopping anthems, every song unlocks a different chapter. There will be four performances through Sunday at Courtyard Theater in Plano.

DMA Arts & Letters Live presents Good Things: An Evening with Samin Nosrat
Samin Nosrat comes to Dallas to discuss her new book, Good Things. Nosrat will share stories around the inspiration for the cookbook, her development and selection of the recipes, and the culinary rituals she shares with close friends. Nosrat, best known for the book Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, will be in conversation with Hrishikesh Hirway, singer/songwriter, podcast creator, and composer. The event takes place at Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents "Respighi’s Fountains of Rome"
The latest concert from the Dallas Symphony Orchestra will feature a double helping of Respighi: The Fountains of Rome, in which he focuses on four magnificent aquatic landmarks, and Church Windows, in which pays homage to a powerful figure in the history of church music. The concert also include Saint-Saëns’ Fifth Piano Concerto and the DSO premiere of What do flowers do at night? by Composer-in-Residence Sophia Jani. The concert, conducted by Fabio Luisi and featuring pianist Bruce Liu, will have three performances through Sunday at Meyerson Symphony Center.

Djo: Another Bite Tour
Many actors also dream of being musicians, and Djo (aka actor/musician Joe Keery of Stranger Things fame) is actually making it happen. He released two albums as part of the band Post Animal, and three more as a solo artist, most recently The Crux earlier this year. The indie rocker will stop at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving in between performing at the Austin City Limits Music Festival.

Friday, October 10

Dallas Mavericks present Fan Jam
At the Dallas Mavericks' annual Fan Jam, fans will get a first look at the 2025-26 Dallas Mavericks team - including No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg - at an open practice on the main court at American Airlines Center. The free event will also feature the Mavs entertainment teams, exclusive giveaways, merchandise discounts, and concession specials.

Repertory Company Theatre presents The Wedding Singer
The Wedding Singer takes audiences back to a time when hair was big, greed was good, collars were up, and a wedding singer might just be the coolest guy in the room. Based on the hit Adam Sandler movie, The Wedding Singer's score does for the '80s what Hairspray did for the '60s. The production runs through October 26 at Repertory Company Theatre in Richardson.

Lyric Stage presents The Rocky Horror Show
In this cult classic, sweethearts Brad and Janet, stuck with a flat tire during a storm, discover the eerie mansion of Dr. Frank-N-Furter. As their innocence is lost, Brad and Janet meet a houseful of wild characters, including a rocking biker and a creepy butler. Through elaborate dances and rock songs, Frank-N-Furter unveils his latest creation: a muscular man named “Rocky.” The production runs through October 26 at Lyric Stage in Dallas.

Garland Civic Theatre presents The Mousetrap
A timeless tale of “whodunnit,” Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap strands seven strangers at Monkswell Manor during a blizzard. A police sergeant unexpectedly arrives, but before he can investigate, one of the guests is killed, starting an investigation into the lives and histories of everyone there. One of them is the killer, and another one of them may be next. The production runs through October 26 at Granville Arts Center in Garland.

GEA Live presents Twilight in Concert: 15th Anniversary Celebration
Twilight in Concert offers a unique opportunity for fans to relive the story that started the phenomenon in a cinematic live experience. A 12-piece ensemble of rock and orchestral musicians will take the stage to perform the film score in synchronization with the original movie, presented in its entirety on a full-size cinema screen. The event takes place at Majestic Theatre.

Family Music Theatre presents Into the Woods
In Into the Woods, James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim take everyone's favorite storybook characters and bring them together for a timeless, yet relevant piece. The story follows a Baker and his wife, who wish to have child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King's festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk. When the Baker and his wife learn they cannot have a child because of a Witch's curse, the two set off on a journey to break the curse. The production runs through October 25 at New Vida Church of God.

Richardson Theatre Centre presents Let's Murder Marsha
A happy housewife named Marsha, hopelessly addicted to reading murder mysteries, overhears her loving husband discussing her upcoming birthday surprise. To her ears, though, it sounds like they are planning to murder her. With the assistance of her next-door neighbor, she tries to turn the tables on them. The production runs through November 2 at Richardson Theatre Centre.

Theatre Coppell presents Rumors
Playwright Neil Simon's Rumors brings four couples together in one townhouse to celebrate the 10th wedding anniversary of the Deputy Mayor of New York City. But the party never begins because the host has shot himself and his wife is missing. His lawyer's cover-up gets progressively more difficult to sustain as the other guests arrive and nobody can remember who has been told what about whom. The production runs through October 26 at Coppell Arts Center.

Megan Moroney in concert
Country singer Megan Moroney has quickly caught the attention of fans of the genre. She released her debut album, Lucky, in 2023, which went to No. 10 on the Billboard 200 thanks to hits like "Tennessee Orange" and "I'm Not Pretty." She quickly followed that up in 2024 with Am I Okay?, which went even higher, finishing at No. 3. She'll play on three straight nights through Sunday at Texas Trust CU Theatre in Grand Prairie.

Saturday, October 11

Trey Songz & Friends in concert
R&B singer Trey Songz and a few of his friends will put on a special concert, including K. Michelle, Calvin Richardson, and Ball Greezy. Songz has released eight albums in his career, most recently Back Home in 2020. The concert takes place at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory in Irving.

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Movie Review

Michelle Pfeiffer is an unappreciated mom in Oh. What. Fun.

Photo courtesy of Amazon MGM Studios

Michelle Pfeiffer in Oh. What. Fun.

Of all the formulaic movie genres, Christmas/holiday movies are among the most predictable. No matter what the problem is that arises between family members, friends, or potential romantic partners, the stories in holiday movies are designed to give viewers a feel-good ending even if the majority of the movie makes you feel pretty bad.

That’s certainly the case in Oh. What. Fun., in which Michelle Pfeiffer plays Claire, an underappreciated mom living in Houston with her inattentive husband, Nick (Denis Leary). As the film begins, her three children are arriving back home for Christmas: The high-strung Channing (Felicity Jones) is married to the milquetoast Doug (Jason Schwartzman); the aloof Taylor (Chloë Grace Moretz) brings home yet another new girlfriend; and the perpetual child Sammy (Dominic Sessa) has just broken up with his girlfriend.

Each of the family members seems to be oblivious to everything Claire does for them, especially when it comes to what she really wants: For them to nominate her to win a trip to see a talk show in L.A. hosted by Zazzy Tims (Eva Longoria). When she accidentally gets left behind on a planned outing to see a show, Claire reaches her breaking point and — in a kind of Home Alone in reverse — she decides to drive across the country to get to the show herself.

Written and directed by Michael Showalter (The Idea of You), and co-written by Chandler Baker (who wrote the short story on which the film is based), the movie never establishes any kind of enjoyable rhythm. Each of the characters, including competitive neighbor Jeanne (Joan Chen), is assigned a character trait that becomes their entire personality, with none of them allowed to evolve into something deeper.

The filmmakers lean hard into the idea that Claire is a person who always puts her family first and receives very little in return, but the evidence presented in the story is sketchy at best. Every situation shown in the film is so superficial that tension barely exists, and the (over)reactions by Claire give her family members few opportunities to make up for their failings.

The most interesting part of the movie comes when Claire actually makes it to the Zazzy Sims show. Even though what happens there is just as unbelievable as anything else presented in the story, Showalter and Baker concoct a scene that allows Claire and others to fully express the central theme of the film, and for a few minutes the movie actually lives up to its title.

Pfeiffer, given her first leading role since 2020’s French Exit, is a somewhat manic presence, and her thick Texas accent and unnecessary voiceover don’t do her any favors. It seems weird to have such a strong supporting cast with almost nothing of substance to do, but almost all of them are wasted, including Danielle Brooks in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo. The lone exception is Longoria, who is a blast in the few scenes she gets.

Oh. What. Fun. is far from the first movie to try and fail at becoming a new holiday classic, but the pedigree of Showalter and the cast make this dismal viewing experience extra disappointing. Ironically, overworked and underappreciated moms deserve a much better story than the one this movie delivers.

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Oh. What. Fun. is now streaming on Prime Video.

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