Cheers cast reunites in Austin, plus more highlights from the ATX TV Festival

Members of the Cheers cast reunite at ATX TV Festival.

Photo by Jack Plunkett.

30 years after turning the lights off on the bar, the cast of Cheers reunited in Austin this month. While there were a few cast members missing, including Texan Woody Harrelson, three of the main men of the classic '80s series were on hand for the ATX TV Festival. But that's not all that happened at the fest.

Photo by Jack Plunkett.

Members of the Cheers cast reunite at ATX TV Festival.

The four day celebration of television kicked things off on Thursday, June 1, with an Outlander panel. It just so happened to be World Outlander Day and Catriona Balfe was in attendance. She joined a discussion about what it's like to work both in front of the camera and behind. She even gave the electrified audience a tease of some things that are to come in Season 7 of the groundbreaking series, premiering June 16 on Starz.

Later that afternoon, audiences got a sneak peek of an episode of Manifest, which returned for its final season on Netflix the following day. Following the screening, cast members of Manifest, Justified, and a handful of other projects featured at the fest walked the opening night red carpet.

Highlights from Friday, June 2, included presentations of Primo, Minx, Accused, and Cruel Summer, and a Shark Tank discussion that included Austinite Kendra Scott.

But the biggest highlight of the night was the Cheers reunion: Ted Danson, John Ratzenberger, and George Wendt walked onto the stage at ACL Live amidst raucous applause. The trio, along with co-creator James Burrows, enjoyed a drink earlier in the day at Dumont's Down Low while shooting a segment for The Today Show.

Sadly, there were no female cast members present for the event and though we were hoping for a surprise appearance from Woody Harrelson, one never came. The evening was a success regardless. The gentlemen are just as entertaining as ever, making the sold out audience clap, laugh, and cheer for more.

Danson stuck around for a chat with wife Mary Steenburgen which started out Saturday's programming. Jury Duty packed 800 Congress, as did Mayans BC, while a panel on the WGA strike educated festival goers on the demands of the entertainment union.

Saturday night's main event was a screening and Q&A with the cast and creators of Righteous Gemstones. All main cast members were is attendance. That means Danny McBride, John Goodman, Adam Devine, and Edi Patterson were all there. Like the Cheers reunion, the event took place at ACL Live and was open to non-festival goers who could buy standalone tickets.

The addition of the ACL venue was one of this year's biggest success stories. Addressing the crowd post screening, Devine said that the viewing experience was pretty insane: "You don't get a chance to watch the show with, I'm gonna say, 25,000 people," he joked.

The final day gave fans a look at the upcoming Prime Video docuseries The Ride, which follows a group of bull riders throughout the PBR Team Series — including the Austin Gamblers.

Austin resident Christy Carlson Romano and co-founder of PodCo hosted a podcasting panel with fellow podcasters who previously starred on hit TV shows in the '90s and early 2000s. Stars of The Wizards of Waverly Place and Ned's Declassified took part, as well as the Lawrence brothers: Joey, Matthew, and Andy Lawrence.

Finally, yours truly hosted a panel with The Women of the Good Doctor where we discussed the series' most impactful storylines, what it's like to be a woman in the entertainment business, and what to expect in season 7 of the ABC series.

The ATX Television Festival launched in Austin in 2012. This was the 12th season for the homegrown TV extravaganza.

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