It’s OK if you’re having competitive sports withdrawal. We’ll ease you away from those five rings with these five things, starting with some local sporting and ending with drama far removed from any athletes’ village. In between there’s celebration for baked goods, good souls and feel-good felines. Let’s see which one wins the medal for curing boredom and cultivating new experiences.
2016 North Texas Fair and Rodeo
Monday, Aug. 22
North Texas Fair & Rodeo
2217 N. Carroll Blvd.
Gate admissions start at $15
Nine days of organizing a festival of human activities is a lot. Now let’s hand it to the organizers of the North Texas Fair & Rodeo for putting together, year after year, a successful nine-day event that features all manner of human events — from tractor pulls, to youth art contests, to carnivals, to live music from big-name acts like Randy Rogers Band and Charlie Daniels Band — as well as a complete livestock and rodeo showing. This year’s event runs Aug. 19 to 27 and just stop right there because, yes, there is even mutton bustin’. As if you had to ask. Now, we’re not super hip to the “bull blow out,” but we’re assured it’s a rodeo event and nothing from which to take cover. Also, Ticket P1 Challenge: See if you can spot Muser George Dunham’s band on the roster. Clearly, the schedule is jam-packed with events; and entry fees are listed for each competition if you’re a rodeo-doer, so check out ntfair.com for the complete run-down. Gate admissions ($15 to $20) include the fair, rodeo and concerts du jour, but 4-day passes are $60 and a season pass is $100. Really, that’s no bull.
Cake Boss Premiere Party
7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 23
Carlo’s Bakery Dallas
8319 Preston Road
Free
TLC’s Cake Boss has been on the air seven seasons, and is about to celebrate the premiere of its eighth. That’s some pretty good rise for televised baking. Sure, the show features familial and shop-related drama, but it’s no Real Housewives of Dallas, which probably accounts for its healthy viewing numbers. Maybe it’s not located in CharityWorld, but it does have a big Dallas connection now, with Carlo’s Bakery having opened earlier this year. The lines out the door have been a good indication the fan meet-and-greet and premiere viewing party with Joe Faugno and Chad Durkin Tuesday will be a sweet success. Also, a really good excuse to pick up some treats and see if you’re lucky enough to score one of the giveaways. Keep an eye on Facebook for details.
Walker Art Center’s Internet Cat Video Festival
7 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 24
Texas Theatre
231 W. Jefferson Blvd.
$15
There’s no official word if Smoosh, the TV screen-volleyball playing cat and recent viral sensation, will be featured in the Walker Art Center Internet Cat Video Festival, buffering its way into the Texas Theatre on Wednesday. And as much as we still love Keyboard Cat, it’s probably safe to say curator Will Braden has a fresh batch of feline features loaded onto the 100-ish video reel, painstakingly chosen for the fourth annual and, sadly, final, tour of the Internet Cat Video Festival. Public nominations helped Braden choose selections in categories from Comedy to Action to Drama, but perhaps familiar whiskers will make appearances thanks to the Vintage category. Proceeds from the $15 tickets benefit no-kill shelter Operation Kindness, and while it may be the last of the Walker’s tours, it’s donating the kitty collection to the Minnesota Historical Society. Don’t press “paws” on this one: Visit prekindle.com for tickets.
Sri Krishna Janmastami Festival
4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 25
Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji Mandir Hare Krishna Temple
5430 Gurley St.
Free
Krishna doesn’t have a traditional birthday. According to the Hare Krishna movement, Krishna (and those devoted) came into being and died on his own terms, or, rather, of his own will. Thus, “appearance” is the preferred term for “birth,” with “disappearance” being the obvious choice for the opposite. From 4 p.m. to midnight Thursday, the community is invited to celebrate at the Sri Krishna Janmastami Festival, a celebration of Krishna’s appearance day. The Sri Sri Radha Kalachandji Mandir Hare Krishna Temple, widely recognized for the long-standing and beloved adjoining restaurant, will offer meditation workshops and Kirtan performances, craft booths, activities for the youngsters, and, of course, vegetarian feasting. The ceremonial practice, however, is truly stunning. The altar and Deities are bathed in liquids of offering and dressed in flowers, prior to an enthusiastic welcome of midnight and the reveal of the celebrated and newly decorated Krishna. Janmastami is free, and as always, the temple states, “everyone is welcome.” Visit radhakalachandji.com or Facebook for more.
Dallas Theater Center’s Constellations
8 p.m. Friday, August 26
Studio Theatre
2400 Flora St.
Tickets start at $20
The average person knows less about quantum mechanics than they do about what-ifs. That is, to say, much, much less. But no matter, both are discussed and employed throughout Nick Payne’s relatable, sweet and heart-wrenching play Constellations. The Wyly’s Studio Theatre, 2400 Flora St., transforms into parallel universes within a gigantic multiverse (which contains every possibly outcome) through October 9. This two-person play has both London and Broadway smitten, and now Dallas can experience the raw intimacy, excitement and challenges of communication between a beekeeper and a physicist. Witness, as most of us have in our own brains, the replaying of events and the examination of “what would’ve happened if” over the course of several scenarios as two awkward souls connect, and disconnect, and connect. Tickets start at $20. Showtimes vary; visit attpac.org.