The Dallas Running Club summer relay

The Dallas Running Club summer relay

1. Run in the sun with friends Saturday morning at the 3X2 DRC Cross Country Relay. Get a team together for the “run back to school”-themed relay race hosted by Dallas Running Club. At the 8 a.m. starting gun, three-man teams race 2-mile legs at Norbuck Park, along the official route used by our region’s high school cross country teams. Prizes awarded for speed as well as best costumes — think cheerleaders, jocks, coaches, nerds or teachers. Volunteers are needed too. Register online by the end of today (Wednesday) or between 6:30-7:30 a.m. race morning. Norbuck Park, 200 North Buckner, dallasrunningclub.com, free for members, $10

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2. Through Saturday Aug. 1, see “Irrational City” — Last chance to see this Dwayne Carter-curated exhibit of paintings, digital art, video, interactivity, installations and performance art that “focuses on constructions of identity amid an imagined post-apocalyptic cultural landscape.” See it at the Bath House Cultural Center, 521 E. Lawther. For more: dallasculture.org/bathhouseculturecenter, 214.670.8749. Entry is free.

3. Also Saturday, is the official reading club party to celebrate the end of the Mayor’s Summer Reading Club at the Forest Green Library, featuring a pizza party and clowns, starting at 2 p.m. Forest Green Library, 9015 Forest, 214.670.1335, dallaslibrary.org, free

4. On Friday, Holy Smokers convene — they meet up weekly on the patio, by the pool at the home of Alan K. Hunt in north Lake Highlands. Gatherings feature “fellowship, free-wheeling discussion, free good beer, food, cigars, scotch, fresh air, great music and more … if you’re interested, you’re welcome.” Festivities begin at 6:30 p.m. at “Holy Smokers Pub,” 9715 Trevor.

5. Saturday also is the last day to see “Shoe Confessions,” the new play from Sole Sisters. Sole Sisters was created by award-winning, White Rock area-based filmmaker Cynthia Salzman Mondell after witnessing how a pair of red heels brought her mother relief from pancreatic cancer. Mondell is obsessed with discovering the bond between a woman and her shoes, so she has set out in search of shoe stories that capture memories and dreams. Then Mondell sculpted her collected stories into a one act play. “Shoe Confessions“ is one of the six plays chosen to be featured during the 2015 Festival of Independent Theatres taking place this month. It’s directed by Susan Sargeant and presented by WingSpan Theatre Co. All six of performances will take place at The Bath House Cultural Center. Go to the website for more.

6. Running until July 26 is the 20th anniversary celebration of Parade of Playhouses at NorthPark Center to benefit Dallas CASA, which is based in the White Rock area. It features specially designed and constructed children’s playhouses, built and donated by corporations and sponsors. It is free to view the playhouse, and you can also enter for a chance to win one by purchasing a raffle ticket for $5 each or five for $20. Tickets are available now at dallascasa.org or NorthPark Center. The drawing to announce the playhouse winners takes place during the closing ceremony at NorthPark Center on the final day of the event. Winners do not need to be present to win.

7. Summer at the Arboretum features fairy tale flower houses with a Texas twist, a replica of the Rio Grande, a covered chuck wagon, two topiary longhorn cattle and a hay-bale. Especially for the wee ones are face painters, a petting zoo and kiddie music. All weekend long, enjoy it at the Dallas Arboretum, 8525 Garland. Contact: 214.515.6615, dallasarboretum.org, $10-$15