Weekend Event Planner
These are the 10 best things to do in Fort Worth this weekend
The competition to determine the finest up-and-coming pianist in the world continues this weekend in Fort Worth, and that event will be joined by a new science exhibition, three theater productions, screenings of a new film, two country concerts, a screening of a London theater production, and a jazz festival.
Below are the best ways to spend your free time this weekend. If you want more options, check out the calendar for an even longer list of the city's best events.
Thursday, May 29
Fort Worth Museum of Science and History presents “Becoming Jane: The Evolution of Dr. Jane Goodall”
"Becoming Jane: The Evolution of Dr. Jane Goodall" is an exhibition that chronicles the journey of Goodall, known for her pioneering research of chimpanzees in the wild. Through immersive multimedia experiences, visitors explore her adventurous childhood in England to her groundbreaking research in Tanzania. The exhibition also features a life-size hologram, a replica of her research tent, and highlights her current roles in community-centered conservation and youth empowerment. It will remain on display at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History through September 1.
The Seventeenth Van Cliburn International Piano Competition
The Van Cliburn International Piano Competition has now entered the semifinal round. The remaining 12 pianists - who hail from the United States, China, Russia, Poland, Germany, Italy, Canada, Hong Kong, and Israel - will take turns performing both solo recitals and concertos. The six performers deemed worthy will move on to the final round, coming up June 3-7. The semifinals take place through Sunday at Bass Performance Hall.
White’s Chapel presents My Fair Lady
Eliza Doolittle, a Cockney flower girl takes speech lessons from Professor Henry Higgins, a phonetician, so that she may pass as a lady. Despite his cynical nature and difficulty understanding women, Higgins grows attached to her. Featuring music by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, the production will have performances on Thursday and Friday at White's Chapel Methodist Church in Southlake.
Friday, May 30
Magnolia at the Modern: The President's Wife
Long the woman-behind-the-man, Bernadette Chirac (Catherine Deneuve) arrives at the presidential Elysée Palace in 1995 frustrated and all but cast off by her newly elected husband, Jacques (Michel Vuillermoz). In Léa Domenach's whip-smart feature film debut based on true events, Madame Chirac's rise from invisible political spouse to major media figure - as calculated as it was inevitable - is chronicled with equal parts reverence and wit. The film will screen seven times through Sunday at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.
Theatre Denton presents The Marriage of Bette and Boo
The Marriage of Bette and Boo is a fast-paced comedy that finds the irony and humor in life’s most unhappy events as it chronicles one couple, Bette and Boo, through three decades of married life. The production runs through June 8 at the Campus Theatre in Denton.
Jon Wolfe in concert
There are a lot of big-time stars who grace the stage at Billy Bob's Texas, but just as often they showcase talented and hard-working musicians with smaller but loyal fanbases. Jon Wolfe has seven albums to his credit, most recently 2021's Dos Corazones, and only one of them — 2015's Natural Man — made any kind of impact on the Billboard Country charts. But you can expect the venue to be packed once again for him, as he's a regular in Fort Worth.
Saturday, May 31
National Theatre Live: Kinky Boots
With songs by Grammy and Tony winning pop icon Cyndi Lauper and book by Broadway legend Harvey Fierstein, this award-winning musical celebrates a joyous story of Brit grit to high-heeled hit as it takes the audience from the factory floor of Northampton to the glamorous catwalks of Milan. This event at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, presented by Amphibian Stage, is a screening of a previously recorded live production; it is not a live performance.
Casa Mañana presents Cats
Casa Mañana's production of Cats will have magic, mystery, and a Texas twist on the Broadway classic. This production of Cats maintains the original script and score while reimagining the setting in the Fort Worth Stockyards. Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Tony Award-winning musical is one of the longest-running Broadway musicals of all time. As a tribe of cats called the Jellicles gather for the annual Jellicle Ball, find out who will be chosen to be reborn into a new Jellicle life. The production runs through June 8.
Jazz on the Trinity
The 2025 edition of Jazz on the Trinity will be headlined by Grammy Award-winning legend Lalah Hathaway. Other performers will include The Latin Express, Kevin Ross, Richmond Punch, Lindsay Webster, and Rick Braun. Aside from the musical entertainment, influencer group the SilverFox Squad will conduct a meet and greet as well as a panel Q&A session, and attendees can also indulge in a cigar lounge. The event takes place at Panther Island Pavilion.
Shenandoah in concert
Shenandoah became well known for delivering such hits as “Two Dozen Roses,” “Church on Cumberland Road,” and “Next to You, Next to Me,” as well as classics like “I Want to be Loved Like That” and the Grammy-winning “Somewhere in the Vicinity of the Heart” duet with Alison Krauss. They'll play at Billy Bob's Texas.