This Week, June 6-10: Venture Through the Looking Glass and Celebrate Prince's Birthday

Here’s what we’re excited about, Dallas: putting our rain boots in storage; getting a respite from school speed zones for a couple of months; picnic blankets; excuses to eat watermelon; lots of music; and a summer arts calendar that makes us sweat in the best possible way. All of those things are possible this week, too — we’ve listed just a few reasons to get pumped about the week ahead.

Summerfest
5 p.m. Monday, June 6
Gaylord Texan
1501 Gaylord Trail, Grapevine
$12-$15

Give that special kid in your life a summer kickoff she won’t forget with this Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland-themed indoor park. Step into an alternate reality where hotel atriums and indoor gardens have been transformed into a fairytale paradise. Think 3-D glasses, vortex tunnels, colorful lights, artwork and much more in this maze of activities and visual delights. Visit marriott.com for more.

Prince: A Tribute Night by Sober and Schwa
10 p.m. Tuesday, June 7
RBC
2617 Commerce St.
Tickets TBA
It still smarts. It probably always will. Prince’s genius was that he appealed to just about everyone — he was talented, eccentric, beautiful and totally accessible. DJ Sober and Tony Schwa pay tribute to the Purple One on his birthday, with live performances from Sudie, Picnictyme, Rat Rios, Ronnie Heart and Sam Lao, plus a Prince set that gets all kinds of crazy and a Prince look-a-like contest that promises enough purple velvet to mend your heart — at least for the evening. Visit RBC's website for more.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical 
8 p.m. Wednesday, June 8
AT&T Performing Arts Center
2403 Flora St.
$30-$170
If you grew up in the '70s and '80s, chances are that your momma kept Carole King’s Tapestry album on standby. That album cover, featuring King sitting by a windowsill with a cat, was muted and still, belying the powerhouse songs etched onto the record inside it. It was a soundtrack for a generation of women, written by the complicated and creative musician who grew up in Brooklyn as Carol Klein. Beautiful: The Carole King Musical introduces us to Klein, and punctuates her genesis into blockbuster pop star with the hit songs she penned. Abby Mueller sings her heart out as the titular artist, and you’ll find yourself hard-pressed not to sing along during this touring production.

Heart Strings
7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 9
Dallas City Performance Hall
2520 Flora St.
$37-$55
We’ve seen the world’s biggest music snob crank up Taylor Swift’s “This Love” and let some tears flow, so we’re not gonna deny the power of the love song. It’s real, it’s powerful and dammit if it’s not totally stuck in our heads now, too. The Turtle Creek Chorale loves a good paean to love, too, and they’re gonna roll out a bunch of them during this program. From romantic Beethoven compositions to bittersweet pop numbers, the Turtle Creek Chorale gives torch songs and power ballads their signature treatment, and if that’s not enough to break through to your heart then perhaps the wedding ceremonies we hear will be conducted mid-show will be. Sniff sniff.

#ashstudios Opening Reception
6 p.m. Friday, June 10
H. Paxton Moore Fine Art Gallery at El Centro College
Main Street at Lamar Street
Free
Local artists, activists and advocates Darryl Ratcliff and Fred Villanueva curate a selection of work that’s been featured at their own Ash Studios in the Fair Park area of Dallas for this exhibit, open through July 1. Part social laboratory, part gallery, part venue, part studio, Ash Studios has been responsible for some of the most stimulating arts conversations to come out of Dallas in the past few years. Tonight’s opening will also feature an artist’s reception.