The Best Things To Do in Dallas, April 24–30

Wednesday, April 24

EarthX at the Hilton Anatole
This is the Congress of Conferences. If you’re interested in everything to do with the Earth and love conferences, EarthX is for you. Days and days of conferences on reef recovery, nearshoring efforts, restoring ecologies, e-capital and more. That said, there are also keynotes by folks like RFK Jr. (on Wednesday, the theme of which is Money, Power & Purpose), which could prove interesting for less sustainable reasons. The conference is already in full swing, so if you’re looking to go and support the researchers and National Geographic types, we suggest the no-meals option at $99 to save some cash. It’s at the Hilton Anatole (2201 N. Stemmons Freeway). The full agenda is online.

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain at the Eisemann Center
It’s not fair to think of the ukulele as a diminutive instrument. Sure, it’s physically small in hand, but it can leave a big footprint on a song. It’s got an unmistakable, iconic sound that evokes emotions from listeners almost instantly. So imagine the impact The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain makes on a room like the Eisemann’s Hill Performance Hall (2351 Performance Drive, Richardson). A whole gaggle of ukes! While being serious and skilled musicians, the UOoGB is also great fun. They perform classics as well as unexpected selections that tempt toes to tap. Even David Bowie was a fan, so put yourself in good company at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 24. Tickets are $47–$57, available online.

Thursday, April 25

Satchmo at the Waldorf at Addison Theatre Centre
One-man plays are such a loaded opportunity. Satchmo at the Waldorf seems especially so, as actor Sam Henderson is tasked with playing not only jazz trumpeter extraordinaire Louis Armstrong at the end of his career, but also his manager Joe Glaser and fellow icon Miles Davis. It’s a deep emotional dive with a tape recorder and an Empire Room dressing room. The WaterTower Theatre show runs Wednesday through Sunday at the Addison Theatre Centre (15650 Addison Road, Addison). Tickets are $49, available online.
NFL Draft watching at Draft Sports Bar & Lounge
There’s this little thing starting Thursday at 7 p.m. in the big sport of American hand-egg. It’s called a draft. If you don’t understand it, Kevin Costner and Jennifer Garner can explain it to you in 2014’s Draft Day. Watch that before you come out if you don’t want to troll your friends with questions at Draft Sports Bar & Lounge (400 Olive St., in the Sheraton Dallas). With the most TVs of all downtown sports bars (25, in case you’re wondering), it’s a pretty good place to post up for Round 1 (and the others). Also, it’s named Draft, which is really as good a reason as any to choose it. Check out the menus online.

Friday, April 26

Dallas International Film Festival at various locations
This week is stacked with film fest action. The Dallas International Film Festival (affectionately known as DIFF) opens this week and runs through May 2. Most of the screenings take place at Violet Crown Cinema in West Village, with a few events at the Majestic Theatre and Texas Theatre to round out the week. As always, the fest has a great blend of narrative features and shorts, but the big draws for us are always the documentaries — we’re vibing with some with a Dallas twist — including Shaking It Up: The Life and Times of Liz Carpenter (perfect for the JFK assassination and ERA-era historians in all of us), Bastards of Soul (the story of the beloved DFW band of the same name) and Dark Sanctuary: The Story of The Church (aged goth kids represent). There’s so much to take in. Get over to the schedule now to reserve tickets (or go for a pass!) and plan your screening scene.

+ERBA – A Forest in the City at the Eisemann Center
We’re back in Richardson at the Eisemann for this one because we can’t help it: It’s so freaking cool. And weird. And makes us wish we were 5 years old. Compagnia TPO presents +ERBA – A Forest in the City at 11 a.m. and 1 and 4 p.m., Friday and Saturday, an interactive show specifically created for kids 4 and older. Two dancers serve as “architect” and “parent earth” and design and redesign each other’s ideas to create a city with elements of nature. Then, children come to add color and interact with changes occurring to create an entirely new scene. This is easily the worst summary of an event ever because there’s no way to convey exactly how it all works without removing some of the magic. Technology these days, right? Tickets are $32, available online.

Saturday, April 27

Independent Bookstore Day – Various Events
This is a big day, y’all. There is no bad option here when you’re celebrating Independent Bookstore Day at actual indie bookstores. Over in the OC, there’s the 2nd annual Oak Cliff Book Crawl from noon to 7 p.m. Tickets are free, but RSVP on Eventbrite and then hit five very different bookstores with different vibes and offerings including Poets Bookshop (506 N. Bishop Ave.), The Wild Detectives (314 W. Eighth St.), and Pan-African Connection (4466 S. Marsalis Ave.). Interabang Books (5600 W. Lovers Lane) takes on middle Dallas (that’s a thing, right?) with exclusive giveaways and signings, and a Golden Ticket search for 12 free audiobooks from Libro.fm (because, say it with us, audiobooks are a valid form of reading!). And over in the Fort, The Dock Bookshop (6637 Meadowbrook Drive, Fort Worth) offers a spin-and-win, photo booth and oh, you know, just a book signing with the fabulous Omar Epps. (Must purchase Epps’ books from The Dock to enter.) RSVP on Eventbrite.

D’JAM Events: Screen and Stroll
It’s Dallas Jazz Appreciation Month (D’JAM), and it’s also the end of the USA Film Festival. These things go together, we promise. The two partnered this year and at 6:30 p.m., Friday, at the Angelika Dallas (5321 E. Mockingbird Lane), the USAFF closes with a salute to Billy Dee Wiliams and screening of 1972’s Lady Sings the Blues, co-starring Williams with Diana Ross as Billie Holiday. Then on Saturday, from noon to 7:15 p.m., Flora Street becomes a hotspot of sound for the Jazz Stroll. Various venues open their doors or come outside with artists playing the thrilling sounds the genre is known for. Find your rhythm — for free — courtesy of Jazz Dallas. Get a full schedule for participating groups and places online.

5th annual Festival of Joy at Klyde Warren Park
This is easily one of the happiest events of every year. It’s called a Festival of Joy, so not sure why we’re surprised, but if anyone is looking for a lifting of the spirits, this is the place to go. East Dallas’s pride and joy, Kalachandji’s, presents a festival of Indian culture, from vegetarian food to dance to music, complete with vibrant colors and stunning flowers. It’s a family-friendly event offering staged performances as well as interactive attractions like face painting and yoga in the park. The festival begins at 11 a.m. in Klyde Warren Park with a parade through the Dallas Arts District at 11:30 a.m. that will end back in the park. The day culminates with a Guara Vani performance at 7 p.m. (some events close at 5 p.m.). Get a complete schedule online.

Sunday, April 28

Thin Line Fest in Denton at various locations
Your third and final film fest (this week) comes in the form of Thin Line Fest in the Little d. Actually, it’s probably too limiting to call Thin Line Fest a film festival, although the part of it that is focuses on documentary films, and that would be reason enough to make the trek to attend. But TLF, from Wednesday through Sunday, is also a music festival and a photography festival. And while it’s not part of the actual “about us,” TLF is also very much a storytelling event and people-first event. All programming is free (VIP passes are available for purchase, get priority admission and support the fest, so they are a win). It’s also all-volunteer. To be honest, we could make suggestions for viewing, but for some reason it feels wrong when it’s all free to attend. OK, fine: Blind baseball and Lizz Winstead. Those aren’t the titles, but you’ll find them on the schedule. Have fun driving back and forth from DIFF to TLF!

Monday, April 29

International Dance Day at Dallas City Hall
We have a lot of unnecessary holidays that generally are just excuses to eat a food. And we’re absolutely not complaining about the eating of foods. But we love this particular day because, unlike Brandon Walsh from TV’s Beverly Hills, 90210, we think everyone has a place on the dance floor. Weird throwback reference? Maybe. But we couldn’t think of a more committed anti-dancer in recent pop culture. (And don’t come at us on “recent,” because it’s streaming. Definitely worth a re/watch if for nothing else than some '90s dance moves.) Anyway, get off the sectional and head to Dallas City Hall (1500 Marilla St.) from noon to 2 p.m. on Monday for a long lunch hour filled with dance classes for even the most beginner of beginners, performances and food so you can… uh… spin two birds with one move? It’s free and fun, so RSVP on Facebook.

Kentucky Derby Hat Making Event at Swizzle
You don’t have to be into the Kentucky Derby to want a fantastic hat. In fact, you could design a decidedly not-derby hat if you wanted to. The fun of this hat making event from 5 to 8 p.m., Monday, April 29, at Swizzle (1802 Greenville Ave.) is that it’s all about creativity among friends. Bring a hat or headband to jazz up with beads, tulle, ribbon, feathers, flowers and more. Hatless? East Dallas Vintage will be on hand with hats to purchase. Tickets are $20 for general admission, and crafting stations are first-come, but be mindful of others waiting to fancify their chapeaus.

Continuing Events

Diving Deeper at PDNB Gallery, through May 4  
PDNB Gallery (150 Manufacturing St.) is opening drawers, checking the corners and sorting files once again. And we have to say, this always pays off for the gallery’s visitors. Avid gallerygoers may remember Deep Dive; this is the next level. Diving Deeper runs through May 4, displaying works from portfolios, nooks and crannies that haven’t been exhibited in recent years. Artists include Jan van Leeuwen, Neal Slavin, Edward S. Curtis and others. The gallery is open 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays. Find out more online.

Hassell, Tucker, Monahan at Conduit Gallery
Make it a beautiful lunch break this Thursday (or this weekend) and take in three incredibly varied but equally compelling exhibitions at Conduit Gallery (1626 C Hi Line Drive) on view through May 18. The gallery offers Billy Hassell’s Path, a bright, breathing love letter to Texas landscapes and animals; W. Tucker’s “compassion” said the rabbit, an exploration of struggle and balance in bold strokes; and Carson Monahan’s Liminal Spaces, paintings that are human, haunting and nostalgic but also strikingly contemporary and relevant. Find out more on the Conduit website.

Sarah Sze at Nasher Sculpture Center, through Aug. 18
She transformed the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, and now she’s staging an artful takeover of the Nasher Sculpture Center (2001 Flora St.). Revered American artist Sarah Sze builds customized installations of painting, video, sound, sculpture and other media across the museum’s three galleries. Her work is known for blurring boundaries between an object’s value and meaning and how it’s made, as well as the division of time and space. Sarah Sze runs through August 18. Find out more online.

The Impressionist Revolution from Monet to Matisse at the DMA, through Nov. 3
The DMA describes the origins of Impressionism as “rebellious,” and we have to admit, that period of art is so seemingly tranquil that we wouldn’t normally associate it with rebellion. But for artists to shun disciplines, guardrails and techniques long associated with what was considered “good art” for new subjects and ways to express themselves seems pretty damn daring. The Impressionist Revolution from Monet to Matisse includes many of the DMA’s own pieces and presents other beloved artists such as Edgar Degas and Pierre-Auguste Renoir. It hangs through Nov. 3. Go online to plan your visit.