The weekend before Christmas in and around Fort Worth will bring handful of new holiday-themed events, including three concerts and a family-friendly opera. Other choices include screenings of an acclaimed new animated film, three comedians, and two other concerts.

  

Photo by Max Bronner

A cappella group Pentatonix will bring their Christmas tour to Dickies Arena on December 21.

Below are the best ways to spend your free time this weekend. Want more options? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events. For lists of Fort Worth's best Christmas lights, go here and here.

Thursday, December 19

Cody Jinks in concert
Country singer Cody Jinks is a local boy made good, going from growing up in Haltom City to releasing a string of high ranking albums on the Billboard Country chart, including his 2024 album, Change the Game. This concert at Billy Bob's Texas will be a special solo acoustic Christmas show.

Friday, December 20

Fort Worth Opera presents Amahl and the Night Visitors
Amahl and the Night Visitors is a one-act opera that tells the heartwarming story of a young boy named Amahl and his mother who are visited by three kings - Kaspar, Melchior, and Balthazar - on their way to see the newborn baby Jesus. Through their kindness and humility, they ultimately provide the kings with the greatest gift of all: the realization of the true meaning of generosity and love. The production will have four performances through Saturday at Fort Worth Botanic Garden.

Magnolia at the Modern: Flow
A wondrous journey through realms natural and mystical, the animated film Flow follows a courageous cat after his home is devastated by a great flood. Teaming up with a capybara, a lemur, a bird, and a dog aboard a boat in search of dry land, Cat and his companions must rely on trust, courage, and wits to survive the perils of a newly aquatic planet. The film will screen seven times through Sunday at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

Orpheus Chamber Singers presents Christmas with Orpheus
The Orpheus Chamber Singers, who are in the middle of their 30th anniversary season, will present their annual holiday concert, Christmas with Orpheus, featuring traditional carols from England, Norway, and Germany. The concert takes place at Arborlawn United Methodist Church.

Big Laugh Comedy Club presents Steve Byrne
Comedian Steve Byrne has established himself as a reliable and versatile stand-up over the course of his 20-plus year career. He has recorded a half hour special for Comedy Central and taped four hour specials: Happy Hour, The Byrne Identity, Champion, and Tell the Damn Joke for Comedy Central, Showtime, and Netflix. His fifth hour special, The Neon Disease, came out in 2022. He'll perform four times through Saturday at Big Laugh Comedy Club.

Improv Arlington presents Don "D.C." Curry
Don "DC" Curry is probably most widely recognized for his role as the zany "Uncle Elroy" in Next Friday and Friday After Next. He’s also the host of the podcast, DC Curry’s Dis-race. He was also the host of BET Comic View, and star of his own Comedy Central Special and his own BET Comedy Special. He'll perform five times through Sunday at Improv Arlington.

Hyena's presents Mike Baldwin
Comedian Mike Baldwin was the 2010 winner of the Trial By Laughter Comedy Competition, was a semi-finalist in the Laughing Skull Comedy Competition in 2010, and got third in the San Francisco Comedy Competition in 2007. His debut album, Bees Can Taste With Their Feet, reached No. 8 on the iTunes comedy charts. He'll perform four times through Saturday at Hyena's Comedy Nightclub.

Kevin Fowler in concert
Texas country music singer Kevin Fowler has been trying to make his way in the industry for over 20 years, releasing nine albums since 2000. He's slowly but surely made his way up the charts, including with his well-received 2019 album, Barstool Stories. He'll play at Billy Bob's Texas.

Saturday, December 21

Pentatonix in concert
Arlington's own Pentatonix got their big break when they won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off in 2011. Since then, the a cappella group has gone on to release five regular albums and six Christmas albums, including Holidays Around the World in 2022. You can expect the full spectrum of those Christmas albums during this concert at Dickies Arena, which is part of their biggest Christmas tour yet, Pentatonix: Hallelujah! It's A Christmas Tour.

Eli Young Band in concert
The Eli Young Band is a prime example of how some college bands can actually make it big in the music world. After forming at the University of North Texas, they quickly gained notoriety, opening for the likes of Miranda Lambert. Six albums later, three of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard Country charts, the band remains one of the bigger success stories to come out of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. They'll play at Billy Bob's Texas, nearing their 20th anniversary at the venue, having first played there in 2005.