Girl on Fire

Alicia Keys brings 360-degree concert to Austin, her only Texas stop on summer tour

Alicia Keys is coming to Austin this summer.

Photo by Michelle Watson CatchLight Group

A global force is coming to Austin: Alicia Keys announced today that she will be launching a North American summer concert tour which starts June 28 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. She comes to the Moody Center on July 24, and Austin is the only Texas city on the tour.

Produced by Live Nation, the "Keys to the Summer" tourfollows her sold-out and critically acclaimed "Alicia + Keys" world tour which brought Keys across Europe, North America, and will soon head to Latin America.

The exciting new tour will bring the Grammy Award-winning global superstar back to North America for 23 arena dates and an all new, completely reimagined and redesigned concert experience and set list. The tour will feature Keys, for the first time ever, in a 360-degree production setup which will allow fans to experience her live performance in an entirely new and exhilarating way.

The super star is known for incorporating innovative and engaging production design into her live performances. For this new tour, she worked with director Diane Martel (who directed “If I Ain’t Got You” and “Like You’ll Never See Me Again” – two of Keys’ most powerful videos) and designer Chiara Stephenson to design the concept and staging of the "Keys to the Summer" tour.

Commenting in a release on the first-time, “in the round” production staging, Keys says, “The 'Keys to the Summer' tour is going to be completely unforgettable and unmissable! I describe it as a celebration of freedom and self-liberation! It’s going to be colorful, magical and will light up your body, soul and all of your senses! This is my first time creating a 360 experience and we’ve made sure it’s like nothing you’ve ever seen! I’m so excited to see y’all this summer!”

According to the release, the tour will also offer a variety of VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level. Packages vary and will range from inclusion of premium tickets to the chance to join Keys in an exclusive, intimate and inspirational “Soulcare Session” before the show. For more information, visit vipnation.com.

Critically acclaimed for her stunning live concert performances, Keys’ last North American tour earned rave reviews from press with the Tampa Bay Times calling it an “outstanding live performance that cemented her as one of the greatest musicians and singers of all time.”VIBE dubbed the show “beautiful to witness” and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said Keys set Atlanta “on fire.”

The general on sale for the Keys to the Summer Tour will begin Friday, April 21 at 9 am local time. Pre-sales will run from Tuesday, April 18 through Thursday, April 20. Alicia Keys Fan Club and Keys Soulcare Pre-Sales will launch Tuesday, April 18 at 1pm ET. Spotify, Live Nation, Ticketmaster and Venue Pre-sales will launch Thursday, April 20, at 10 am local time. For more ticketing information visit LiveNation.com.

KEYS TO THE SUMMER TOUR DATES:

June 28: Ft. Lauderdale, FL — FLA Live Arena
June 30: Tampa, FL — Amalie Arena
July 2: Charlotte, NC — Spectrum Center
July 3: Atlanta, GA — State Farm Arena
July 5: Memphis, TN — FedExForum
July 7: Washington, DC — Capital One Arena
July 9: Boston, MA — TD Garden
July 10: Philadelphia, PA — Wells Fargo Center
July 12: Brooklyn, NY — Barclays Center
July 14: Toronto, ON — Scotiabank Arena
July 15: Cleveland, OH — Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse
July 17: Detroit, MI — Little Caesars Arena
July 18: Chicago, IL — United Center
July 20: Louisville, KY — KFC Yum! Center
July 21: St. Louis, MO — Enterprise Center
July 23: New Orleans, LA — Smoothie King Arena
July 24: Austin, TX — Moody Center
July 27: Denver, CO — Ball Arena
July 28: Salt Lake City, UT — Maverik Center
July 30: Seattle, WA — Climate Pledge Arena
August 1: Oakland, CA — Oakland Arena
August 2: Los Angeles, CA — The KIA Forum

moody center alicia keys

A New Light

Wildflower Center's Luminations light show debuts new features in 2024

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Luminations

Photo by Theresa DiMenno

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is bringing back Luminations with some new elements.

A South Austin holiday tradition is sprouting a little differently this year at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Luminations, an immersive light installation, is bringing new art and adding access to a separate installation to keep things growing fresh year after year.

The 2024 show runs from November 22, 2024, to January 5, 2025. The family-friendly exhibition will show off work by local designers alongside food truck vendors and three full-service bars.

Austinites who haven't been to Luminations may still recognize it from social media photos. The glowing O-shaped swings are hands-down the most popular exhibit to photograph since they are interactive, but other popular ones include an array of color-changing discs to step on and a herd of rainbow, origami-like deer.

A few elements are new this year.

A new location
No sane event organizer would leave the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center; actually, the installation is now even closer, taking place in the main gardens. According to a release, this was to make the path more walkable, which in turn allows guests to feel more immersed. It already was a walking exhibit last year, but it was spread out across nearly two miles. Neither the website nor the release offer an updated distance estimate, but the website does show a map.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Luminations map Here's where Luminations is held now.wildflower.org

New art
The release promises "interactive opportunities and never-before-seen light installations." Of course, it doesn't give it all away before people get to see it. But potential visitors can get an idea by of what's in store by checking out other work by the six designers who contributed this year: APM Designs, ASA Designs, Cicada Designs, Dada Labs, Holiday Lighting Designs and Ion Art Designs.

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Luminations These swings are always a big hit, and they appear to be on the map again this year.Photo by Ann Alva Wieding

“We work closely with local Austin designers to make our light show special, and there’s something surprising and different every year,” said the Wildflower Center's director of hospitality, Erika Tucker, in the release.

A trip to Fortlandia
Another one of the Wildflower Center's interactive projects, Fortlandia, is now right next to Luminations. For Fortlandia, local designers — including one that crosses over with Luminations, Ion Art — designed children's playscapes that push traditional playground boundaries. These modern forts aren't just beautiful to look at, but extra fun to play in thanks to the novelty.

This fun fort is part of Fortlandia.Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center/Instagram

Since it will be dark out during the light show, Fortlandia will also have its own lighting. Additionally, keeping kids entertained at Fortlandia might give parents a bit more time to appreciate the art in Luminations.

The goal is the same
Although some aspects of Luminations are new this year, it fills the darker days of winter, gets people to visit the Wildflower Center in the off-season, and it benefits the center's conservation work.

Throughout the year, the center conducts research on protecting native ecosystems, cultivates rare plants, maintains a seed bank, educates Texans on how to foster native plant life, and even helps plan eco-friendly projects for outside clients using its own findings.

Last month, the center announced planned updates to its 284 acres of gardens.

Tickets to Luminations ( $28 for adults, $18 for youth) are required for entry. Reserved parking is available at an additional cost. The entrance to the exhibit is located at 4801 LaCrosse Ave.

nature immersive visual art kids families

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Alicia Keys brings 360-degree concert to Austin, her only Texas stop on summer tour

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A New Light

Wildflower Center's Luminations light show debuts new features in 2024