Weekend event planner

These are the 13 best things to do in Fort Worth this weekend

This weekend across Fort Worth offers a little bit of everything, including some top-level tennis, four concerts from different genres, a documentary about a legendary country singer, four festivals with vastly different focuses, the first holiday lights of the season, a new art exhibit, and a new local theater production.

Below are the best ways to spend your precious free time this weekend. Want more options? Lucky for you, we have a much longer list of the city's best events.

Thursday, November 3

WTA Finals Fort Worth
Fort Worth is hosting the prestigious year-end finale for the WTA, featuring the top 8 singles players and doubles teams. Players who've taken the court this week include U.S. Open winner Iga Świątek, Jessica Pagula, Coco Gauff, Caroline Garcia, and more. The tournament will go on through Monday at Dickies Arena.

The Cliburn presents Jessie Montgomery
Jessie Montgomery is a decorated composer and violinist whose works are frequently performed around the world by leading musicians and ensembles. Her music interweaves classical music with elements of vernacular music, improvisation, poetry, and social consciousness. She'll perform at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

Friday, November 4

Magnolia at the Modern: The Return of Tanya Tucker - Featuring Brandi Carlile
The trailblazing, hell-raising country music legend Tanya Tucker defied the standards of how a woman in country music was supposed to behave. Decades after Tucker slipped from the spotlight, the rising Americana music star Brandi Carlile takes it upon herself to write an entire album for her hero based on Tucker’s extraordinary life, spurring the greatest comeback in country music history. This documentary follows Tucker’s richly creative, utterly captivating, bumpy ride back to the top as Carlile encourages her to push past her fears to create a new sound and reach a new audience. The film will screen six times through Sunday at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth.

Q BBQ Fest
The Q BBQ Fest gathers the finest pitmasters from across Texas and throughout the country to dish out award-winning smoked meats to BBQ lovers. The weekend-long celebration features tons of barbecue, local music, BBQ tutorials and demonstrations, and games and activities. The festival goes on through Sunday at AT&T Stadium.

The Light Park
Most holiday light shows wait until around Thanksgiving to open, but the new The Light Park is already raring to go. It features a mile-long, drive-thru spectacular where guests will witness millions of lights synchronized to a mix of music by DJ Polar Ice. Open daily through January 1 at Hurricane Harbor Arlington, the show claims it has the longest light tunnel in the world.

REO Speedwagon in concert
The legendary REO Speedwagon are now into their sixth decade as a recording group, as they released their first album in 1971. Their biggest days were in the early 1980s, when best-selling albums like Hi Infidelity, Good Trouble, and Wheels are Turnin' yielded hits like "Keep On Loving You," "Take It on the Run," and "Can't Fight This Feeling." They'll play at Billy Bob's Texas.

Foals in concert
English alt-rock band Foals has been big in their native UK since their debut 2008, as all seven of their albums, including the new Life is Yours, have made the top 10 over there. They've recently started to make inroads in the U.S. but still haven't come close to that popularity here. They'll look to change that with a two-night stint at Tannahill's Tavern & Music Hall, playing on both Friday and Saturday.

Saturday, November 5

Fort Worth Botanic Garden presents Japanese Fall Festival
At the Japanese Fall Festival, guests can enjoy traditional Japanese dance, music, martial arts, sword demonstrations, raku, tea ceremonies, and more. The festival, located inside the historic Japanese Garden inside the Fort Worth Botanic Garden, will take place on both Saturday and Sunday.

Studio Nano and Sleepi ZZZ presents Nishi Fest
Nishi Fest is a single-day celebration of anime and Asian pop culture in the west. Planned attractions and events include voice actor and industry guest panels, cosplay guests and cosplay contest, autograph sessions and photo ops, fighting game and TCG tournaments, exhibitors and Artists Alley vendors, a JDM/KDM car show and contest, Asian food truck style night market, and more. The festival will be at Arlington Convention Center.

Amon Carter Museum of American Art presents Charles Truett Williams: "The Art of the Scene"
Charles Truett Williams: "The Art of the Scene" examines the Fort Worth mid-century art scene through the presentation of more than 30 works by the Fort Worth artist and the artistic community drawn to his studio salon. Accompanying the works on paper and sculptures are ephemera from the recently acquired archives of Williams, enhancing the Carter’s strong holding of artist archives. The exhibition will be on display through May 7, 2023.

Social House Entertainment presents The Tacos & Tequila Festival
The Tacos & Tequila Festival may have food and drink in the name, but it's equally about the music, as it will feature performances by T.I., Lil Jon, Chingy, Baby Bash, Mike Jones, Petey Pablo, Twista, and DJ Ashton Martin. Attendees can enjoy chef-inspired tacos, tequila and margarita tastings, authentic Lucha Libre wrestling, an exotic car showcase, and a Chihuahua beauty pageant in addition to the music. The festival is at Panther Island Pavilion.

Casa Mañana presents Here You Come Again: How Dolly Saved My Live in 12 Easy Songs
Here You Come Again: How Dolly Saved My Live in 12 Easy Songs is a rollicking and touching new musical about a has-been-who-never-was comedian and his unusual relationship with his longtime idol, Dolly Parton. The show is a celebration of Dolly’s music and of the profound and funny things she has to say to us all about life, love and how to pull yourself up by your bootstraps during the toughest of times - even if your bootstraps don’t have rhinestones. The production runs through November 13 at Casa Mañana Theatre.

Joe Nichols in concert
Country star Joe Nichols has been crafting hits since his breakout in 2002 with his sophomore album, Man with a Memory. Thanks to songs like "Brokenheartsville," "Tequila Makes Her Clothes Fall Off," and "Gimmie That Girl," he's remained at the top of the genre for the past 20 years. He'll play at Billy Bob's Texas in support of his new album, Good Day for Living.

Getty Images

Coco Gauff and Caroline Garcia play an early match at the WTA Finals in Dickies Arena.

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Movie Review

Disney serves up pretty sequel of Moana 2 for Thanksgiving weekend

Photo courtesy of Disney

Moana (Auli'i Cravalho) in Moana 2.

When Moanacame out in 2016, Walt Disney Animation Studios (the non-Pixar side of the studio) was in the midst of a creative boom, having released Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, Big Hero 6, and Zootopia over the previous four years. In the eight years since, though, the studio has - outside of the stellar Encanto - been in a rut, with studio mergers, a reliance on sequels, and the pandemic all combining for subpar products.

Unfortunately for Disney and fans of the first film, Moana 2 does not break that streak. Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) has become the go-to wayfinder for her tribe on the fictional Polynesian island of Motunui, traveling long distances on her own thanks to her special connection with the ocean. As the film opens, she’s continuing her mission of exploring other islands in the region in hopes of finding other people besides her own tribe.

A message from her ancestors gives Moana fresh hope, and she recruits tribemates Loto (Rose Matafeo), Moni (Hualalai Chang), and Kele (David Fang) to join her on a voyage to an island that may or may not exist. Naturally, along the way they meet up with the demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson), who’s run into his own issue, being held captive by the bat-obsessed enchantress Matangi (Awhimai Fraser).

On the positive side of the ledger, the animation is as beautiful as ever, with the water and other scenery especially impressive. And the returning actors, including Cravalho, Johnson, Temuera Morrison, Nicole Scherzinger, and Rachel House, all bring nice touches to their performances. The songs, while not as dynamic as those from the original film, provide nice showcases for Cravalho, Johnson, and others.

But the film, which started off as a streaming series for Disney+ before being reworked into a movie, has almost none of the same feeling as the first film. The main plot is not very interesting, mostly because the obstacles thrown in Moana’s way are odd. The filmmakers’ choice to bring in three crewmates for Moana is also strange, as each of the characters acts more like a comic relief figure than an integral part of the story.

Moana and Maui remain the best parts of the film, but because they have to compete with other characters for attention, their collective impact is lessened. Matangi seems like she’s supposed to be the villain of the film, but her presence winds up being confusing. The filmmakers try to force some emotion into the film by giving Moana a clingy younger sister, Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), but like most of the other new elements, she too falls flat.

With any sequel, the hope is that it will recreate the magic that made the first film so beloved. Moana 2, while not as egregiously bad as some other Disney follow-ups, does not offer nearly enough to be compared favorably to its Oscar-nominated predecessor.

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Moana 2 is now playing in theaters.

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