Best Things To Do in Dallas This Weekend

Friday

The largest horror convention in the Southwest breezes through town next weekend for its 13th year. It's like Comic Con but with more ax wounds. Texas Frightmare Weekend will mark the premieres of lighthearted feature-length films Death Box and Zombie 4: After Death, so go ahead, take a load off. Horror master Clive Barker will make a rare appearance, and for $75, you can take a photo with him. Ron Perlman will be there (autographing cleavage?), and Mischa Barton will be there to remind you she's still here. It happens Friday through Sunday at Hyatt Regency DFW Airport, 2334 N. International Parkway. Tickets cost $30-$229. Rachel Williams

As we grow older, we tend to focus on our younger charges (if we have them) and on our plans and journeys. It shouldn’t be a surprise that our parents will eventually need our help, but we tend to deny it. It’s hard to see the larger-than-life people who shaped our worlds as vulnerable or dependent. It’s an experience that’s complex beyond our imaginations, and actor Marcia Gay Harden describes it beautifully as part of the narrative in The Seasons of My Mother: A Memoir of Love, Family and Flowers. The book delves into the lives she and her mother have lived — one an accomplished film and television actor, the other a military wife who took joy in her children and in the Japanese art of ikebana — from Harden’s childhood through to her mother’s present struggle with Alzheimer’s. Harden will discuss her journey from daughter and friend to something of a memory “gatekeeper” for her mother during an appearance at 7:30 p.m. Friday at the Dallas Museum of Art, 1717 N. Harwood St., as part of the museum’s Arts and Letters Live series. Tickets, $28-$125, are available at dma.org/programs/event/marcia-gay-harden. Jennifer Davis-Lamm

Gather up any leftovers from 4/20 or get some more — Air Play could knock Pink Floyd laser shows out of the running for the best stoner theater. It's also grand for kids, but don't mix the two. A blend of sculpture, circus-like performance and street theater, the creation of husband-and-wife team Seth Bloom and Christina Gelsone will bring the air itself alive at the Wyly Theater, 2400 Flora St. Flying umbrellas, humongous balloons, giant kites and other aerial magic create a surreal vision that's sure to raise an "oh, like, wow" or maybe a childish expression of delight, if there's a difference. Tickets are $10 for 10:30 a.m. school performances Thursday and Friday and $20 for Friday's 7:30 p.m. show. Find them at attpac.org/on-sale/2018/airplay. Patrick Williams

May the Fourth be with you as you make the trek to the Journey to Space exhibit at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, 2201 N. Field St., open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Friday and Saturday event will provide an opportunity to create hologram messages, examine cloning and ask what alien life forms might look like. You can even build your own ($3) glowing 3D-printed mini saber to take home as you explore work from the Biological Actuation Sensing Transport Lab at SMU and see nano robots in action. Admission is free for members and $13-$20 for nonmembers. For tickets and more information, call 214-428-5555 or visit perotmuseum.org. Reba Liner

Saturday

When did it become a rule that in order to be a successful comedian, you had to have a TV show and a movie career that starts with one really good movie and fizzles out with each subsequent one? Isn’t being funny onstage enough? Kathleen Madigan is funny. Damn funny. Like she actually makes you laugh whether you want to or not kind of funny. She’s been a touring comedian for almost 30 years on stages all over the world, and she knows how to read crowds and find new ways to talk about just about anything. She made 25 appearances on The Tonight Show and released five comedy specials, including the recent Bothering Jesus on Netflix. And she does it because she just wants to tell jokes and entertain audiences. See Madigan live at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Majestic, 1925 Elm St. in Dallas. Tickets are $32.50 and can be purchased at ticketmaster.com. Danny Gallagher

Cinco de Mayo. There’s a reason for it, we’re sure. The Mexican Army defeated French invaders. It was all led by a Texas-born general. We celebrate. We drink margaritas and eat queso because that’s what we consider Mexican, and we celebrate until we can’t see straight anymore. And Dallas as a city loves celebrating. There’s always a big Cinco de Mayo parade on Jefferson Boulevard, where festive floats drive by and marching bands play. DJs will be on every block. There will be vendors and food trucks. Tailgating. This is Cinco de Mayo, baby. It happens from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday from the 200 block of West Jefferson Boulevard to 600 S. Polk St. It's free. For more information, visit oakcliffart.org. Paige Skinner

Because you need multiple flower pots that say, "Don't stop beleafing," Etsy has gathered more than 80 artists under one roof for this juried show. Wow your Instagram followers (or your cat) with the eclectic haul of handmade art, fancy soaps, leather (not that kind) and pillows with hashtags you'll bring home. The Etsy Dallas Spring Bash is from 10:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at Gilley's Dallas, 1135 S. Lamar St. Admission is free. For more information, visit etsydallas.com. Rachel Williams

Sunday

Make your high school drama teacher proud by seeing Rita Moreno at 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Winspear Opera House, 2403 Flora St. She’s won an Oscar, a Tony, an Emmy and a Grammy, and now the actress, dancer and singer, whose robust career has spanned six decades, can say she’s spoken in a production with a hashtag for a title. Hear the octogenarian tell stories of her award-winning life in show business. Tickets start at $39 at attpac.org. Rachel Williams