The Ultimate Guide to Your Weekend in Dallas, April 22-24

Do This!
Obsessed with the HGTV show Tiny House Hunters? You've got at least one good reason to join the free Earth Day Texas celebrations at Fair Park this weekend, which will educate visitors about the environment and how us rotten humans can co-exist more peacefully with it. During festival hours, 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Friday through Sunday, you can check out an entire village of minuscule abodes. If it seems like the lifestyle for you, stick around for the panel discussion with Beth Ann Norrgard at 11 a.m. Sunday. She can teach you all about "downsizing," which is the understatement of the century when you're talking about a 200-square-foot house.

Craving a bit of a trip out of town? Scarborough Renaissance Festival — which is only in Waxahachie, mind you — will you do you one better with a trip back in time. Watch jousting, birds-of-prey and glass-blowing demos, and do it all while you gnaw on a turkey's leg and drink cheap wine out of a goblet. The festival is open 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at 2511 FM 66. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for children. 

If gorging yourself in the sunshine sounds great, but your tastes slant a bit more modern, Kwestival at Klyde Warren Park is just the thing. The makers of the Kwest app have put together a scavenger hunt that from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday will let you explore 12 Dallas neighborhoods in one convenient location, with foods and goods representing the Design District, Deep Ellum, East Dallas, Oak Cliff and more available for purchase. Admission to the event itself, where there will also be live music and appearances by Dallas Zoo animals, is free.

For those who think that all involves too much walking and sun exposure, you can sit your butts in chairs Saturday for one of the funniest guys around. David Cross, of Arrested Development and Mr. Show fame, will bring his "Making America Great Again!" tour to the Majestic Theatre, 1925 Main St., at 8 p.m. Cross is less known for stand-up than acting and sketch comedy, but it's an arena he's equally skilled in. He'll be sharing his hilarious insight on national politics and what the hell is wrong with us, so make sure to hit the restrooms beforehand — this could take awhile. Tickets are $39 at etix.com.

Eat This!
Every weekend, you endure a 12-hour fast otherwise known as sleeping, and upon awakening you deserve to be rewarded for that noble feat of will with a proper breakfast. Right at the top of the list of proper breakfasts is a gift from God known as breakfast pizza. Sadly, there's been far too little of it in Dallas — until now. Americano at The Joule, 1530 Main St., recently began brunch service and this very weekend you can feast on their Neapolitan-style 'za doctored with sausage gravy, farm egg and potatoes.

April 20 may be behind us for another year, but 4:20 stills comes twice a day, does it not? It's never a bad day to puff, puff, pass — or to dine from our list of Dallas' best stoner foods, like the Dorito-Viche (that's cabbage salad on Nacho Cheese Doritos) at Dalat, 2537 N. Fitzhugh Ave. We won't judge if any of these become dietary staples, but in that case you might want to consider keeping some Pepcid AC handy.

Nick Rallo recently gave us a rundown of Dallas burgers from cheapest to most expensive. The Kobe beef burger at Local sounds delicious, but for $2.65 — the price of a McDonald's meal, nearly – how can you beat the cheeseburger at Keller's Drive In (6537 E. Northwest Highway)? Dressed only with yellow mustard, white onion and tomato, and served on a poppy-seed bun, this burger is timelessly delicious, and downright restrained compared to some of the burgers coming out of kitchens these days. 

Drink This!
Are chain restaurants cool again? We thought they were definitely, totally out, but then our Facebook feeds were practically overtaken by haikus about the new Waffle House on Ross Avenue. And here comes another much fancier restaurant to support the case that some chains are not at all deserving of scorn: Pappas Bros. Steakhouse (10477 Lombardy Lane). A visit to a Pappas restaurant is always a delight, and now they've got a new sherry and pear syrup cocktail, the Pear Cobbler, that will make your experience just that much more delightful. And if you still prefer a more farm-to-your-kitchen-table experience, you're in luck — Susie Oszustowicz even snagged us the recipe.

There is a boatload of beer events taking place this spring. Don't believe us? This weekend alone you can drink barrel-aged beers at Strangeways (2429 N. Fitzhugh Ave.); sample four different vintages of Peticolas' barley wine, The Duke, at the brewery (2026 Farrington St.); have a four-course dinner with beer pairings at Ron's Place (4145 Belt Line Road, Addison); drink beer and eat doughnuts at TUPPS Brewery in McKinney (721 Anderson St.); enjoy a beer brunch with AleSmith Brewing Co.'s head brewer at The Meddlesome Moth (1621 Oak Lawn Ave.); and attend Fort Worth's craft beer and music festival, Brewfest on Crockett. We already feel the hangover setting in.
Hear This!
Yesterday's news of Prince's passing underscores the importance of seeing the musical greats while you can. Get going on your new mission at 9 p.m. Friday when George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic's traveling party makes a pit stop at House of Blues, 2200 N. Lamar St. They've kept their blend of funk, gospel, R&B and rock fresh since their '70s heyday through collaborations with of-the-moment artists such as Kendrick Lamar and Soul Clap. And with as many as 40 people sharing the stage at any given time during their performances, it's impossible that you'll be bored. Tickets are $25-$50.

Thao Ngyuen's indie-pop band, Thao & the Get Down Stay Down, used to find inspiration in folk, but lately it appears that they've taken a page from George Clinton's book, introducing elements of funk and even hip-hop for a more bass and beat-driven sound. They're visiting Trees, 2709 Elm St., at 8:30 p.m. Sunday in support of their new tUnE-yArDs-produced album, A Man Alive. Tickets are $15.

See This!
Did you read our cover story about Show Boat this week? For its first Broadway production, the Dallas Opera took on a nearly hundred-year-old musical based on a book by Edna Ferber that — aside from a fairly fluffy plot thread about a riverboat gambler and a young girl with aspirations of stardom — takes on some weighty issues for its time, like interracial marriage. That means the Opera had tricky, racially charged language to contend with, and the result is a show that's both entertaining and provocative. See the next performance at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Winspear Opera House, 2403 Flora St. Tickets are $29-$209.

In 1964, Kitty Genovese was stabbed to death on a New York City street while 38 onlookers stood by, assuming someone else would bear the responsibility of making the call to police. The case spawned the term "bystander effect," and is now the basis of a documentary by James Solomon, The Witness, which follows Kitty's brother Bill 40 years later as he tries to make sense of the loss. The film will screen at the Angelika Film Center (5321 E. Mockingbird Lane) at 7 p.m. Friday as part of the ongoing USA Film Festival. Both the director and Bill Genovese will be in attendance for a Q&A after the screening. Tickets are $10 at the box office.

The Big Meal, a regional premiere that uses shared meals as a framing device to tell a story about a couple that ultimately spans five generations, is on stage at WaterTower Theatre (15650 Addison Road) through May 8. You can next catch this poignant play about the joys and burdens of a typical American family at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $27-$40.