When opening day for the State Fair of Texas rolls around each year, as it does this weekend, it is usually the top event in our roundup. And while it's right there this year, it has lots of competition: a new Cirque du Soleil show, a national tour of Broadway musical, and a big concert. Other choices include early Christmas shopping, a trio of music events, four theater productions, Halloween events, two new art exhibitions, and a visit from a big comedian.

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

Thursday, September 26

Chi Omega Alumnae of Dallas presents Christmas Market
Yes, Christmas is three months away, but you can get a really early start on your holiday shopping at the 47th annual Chi Omega Christmas Market. The annual event features more than 200 handpicked merchants from around the country, helping to raise funds for numerous local nonprofit organizations and collegiate scholarships. The event takes place through Saturday at Dallas Market Hall.

Turtle Creek Chorale presents Bach To The ‘90s
Turtle Creek Chorale will open their 44th season with Bach to the '90s, a celebration of not just the 1990s, but also pieces from 1790, 1890, and more, featuring Johann Sebastian Bach, Alanis Morissette, and more. There will be performances on both Thursday and Friday at Moody Performance Hall.

Echo Theatre presents Raising Hell with Molly Ivins
Mary Tyler "Molly" Ivins was a journalist, political trailblazer, and all-around spitfire of a woman who was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize twice. She was especially known for her colorful, blunt, and humorous voice - "raising hell" doesn't even begin to cover the kind of trouble Ivins would stir up in the "boys club" culture of other 1970s journalists. This special one-weekend production, taking place through Sunday at Bath House Cultural Center, will be a fundraiser for Echo Theatre.

Cirque Du Soleil: Songblazers
Cirque Du Soleil's new show, Songblazers, pays tribute to the legendary and modern trailblazers of country music, charting the journey of two main characters as they forge their own path to country recognition. The production pays homage to the trailblazers of country music's past while embracing the talents of contemporary artists, all while acrobatics, aerial acts, and displays of strength are performed. It will run through October 20 at the Music Hall at Fair Park.

Broadway at the Center presents Company
It’s Bobbie’s 35th birthday party, and all her friends keep asking, “Why isn’t she married? Why can’t she find the right man and isn’t it time to settle down and start a family?” As Bobbie searches for answers, she discovers why being single, being married, and being alive in the 21st-century could drive a person crazy. This new production of Stephen Sondheim and George Furth’s musical comedy runs through Sunday at Winspear Opera House.

Theatre Three presents Venus in Fur
The opening production of their 24/25 season, Theatre Three's Venus in Fur is an exploration of desire, control, and the complexities of gender dynamics. Thomas, a playwright and director, is frustrated after a long day of casting for his adaptation of Leopold von Sacher-Masoch’s scandalous novella, Venus in Furs. When the enigmatic Vanda arrives, she not only embodies the character she seeks to play but also begins to challenge the very fabric of Thomas's beliefs about power, submission, and dominance. The production, which started last weekend, runs through October 20 in the Theatre Too space at Theatre Three.

Friday, September 27

State Fair of Texas
There is so much to do at the annual 24-day-long State Fair of Texas that it's almost impossible to fit it all in. Universal favorites include the Midway with the Texas Star Ferris Wheel, the new fried food options, and a steady supply of live music. This year performers include Jo Dee Messina, Shakey Graves, Jefferson Starship, Jon Wolfe, Spin Doctors, and The Commodores. The fair takes place at Fair Park in Dallas through October 20.

OutLoud Dallas presents See Me
See Me is a world premiere immersive theatrical experience inspired by the stories of young people from across North Texas, bringing their voices to life using cutting edge technology, projections and holograms. Exploring how existing in a hyper-connected world impacts the human condition, the show offers a poignant dialogue between technology and the arts. It runs through October 5 at Eisemann Center for Performing Arts in Richardson.

More Halloween events
The gradual rollout of Halloween-related events in the Dallas area continues this weekend with two more haunted houses. J&F House of Terror is a haunted house maze torn down and built up every year, so it is never the same. Located at Firewheel Town Center in Garland, it will start on Friday and Saturday with Glow Stick Black Out dates, continuing with the regular event through November 2. Haunted Shadows Lake Trail in The Colony is a self-guided journey through the woods and weeds along the shore of Lake Lewisville where the snap of a twig from a footstep, the moon shining off the lake, and the shadows provide refuge for some unseen horror. It takes place at TOCA Soccer Center through November 2.

Saturday, September 28

Nasher Sculpture Center presents Samara Golden: "if earth is the brain then where is the body" opening day
For nearly 15 years, Los Angeles-based artist Samara Golden has been creating installations that deploy architecture and mirrors to create disquieting and disorienting environments, often populated by individuals, or traces of their presence, that have in the past spoken to experiences of violence and its aftermath, disparities of class, or illness and recovery. For this exhibition, Golden will create a new installation where visitors will encounter a seemingly infinite and fantastic space evoking cascading pools, ranging from the fetid to the paradisiacal, a place where memories, emotions, and possibilities converge. The exhibition will remain on display through January 12, 2025.

Dallas Children's Theater presents Grace for President
One day in class, Grace Campbell discovers there has never been a female president. Frustrated by the lack of female faces in the White House, Grace decides she wants to be president and inspires a school election. She seems the likely winner until the most popular boy runs against her. Through the musical throes of campaigning and pep rallies, service projects and posters, Grace and her classmates discover what it takes to be the best candidate and find the fun and hilarity in the wonderful world of 3rd grade politics. The production runs on most weekends through October 20.

Marco Antonio Solís in concert
For almost 30 years, Marco Antonio Solís has been at the top of the Latin music world. After coming in at No. 3 on the Billboard Latin chart with his first two albums, his subsequent eight albums all went all the way to No. 1, including his last official release, Gracias Por Estar Aquí in 2013. He'll play at American Airlines Center as part of his Eternamente Agradecido World Tour.

Majestic Theatre presents Corey Holcomb
Corey Holcomb’s comedy transcends class and racial divides. He offers plenty of advice on how men who have been the victim of a “hostile takeover” by the female in the relationship can take back control. No counselor on the planet offers the kind of relationship advice and remedies Holcomb dispenses from the stage. He'll perform for one-night-only at Majestic Theatre.

Dallas Symphony Orchestra presents Lang Lang in Concert
The 2024 Dallas Symphony Orchestra Gala will feature a cocktail reception, an elegant, seated dinner, and Gala Concert performed by the DSO and legendary pianist Lang Lang. Music Director Fabio Luisi leads the program featuring Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto and Rossini’s Overture to William Tell. After the concert, an after-party will conclude the evening. The fundraising event takes place at Meyerson Symphony Center

Sunday, September 29

Dallas Museum of Art presents Cecily Brown: "Themes and Variations" opening day
The Dallas Museum of Art will present a major mid-career retrospective of pioneering British-American painter Cecily Brown, the first exhibition to fully explore her work through the lens of its groundbreaking reconfiguration of cultural politics. Brown's exhibition brings together nearly 30 large-scale paintings and drawings from across almost 30 years of Brown’s career, including two new works on paper that will be shared with the public for the first time. The exhibition will remain on display through May 25, 2025.

Weezer in concert
The rock band Weezer is one of those groups that many people know without ever having become a huge success. Each of their 15 albums over the past 30 years has sold relatively well, although none have reached the coveted No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200. At this concert at American Airlines Center, they'll celebrate the 30th anniversary of their 1994 debut album, Weezer (Blue Album), which contained hits like "Buddy Holly" and "Say It Ain't So." They'll play the album in full along with other fan favorites, rarities, and more.

  

Photo courtesy of the State Fair of Texas

The State Fair of Texas starts its 24-day run at Fair Park on September 27.