UTA Planetarium Offers Immersive Concerts Under the Atmosphere of Space on a Budget

In 2025, immersion is the name of the game. By all accounts, the Sphere is one of, if not the best theatre in the world. As people flock to Las Vegas venues for the Backstreet Boys or a psychedelic screening of The Wizard Of Oz, more immersive venues are sprouting up in their hometowns. Streaming dome chain, Cosm, which opened a North Texas location last summer, is set to expand to Atlanta, Detroit and Cleveland, and we’d bet that more cities are on the way.

The University of Texas at Arlington’s on-campus planetarium is throwing its name into the dome game, finding itself in the midst of its second annual concert series. Launching last July, the series gravitated toward slow, ambient instrumental artists. In 2025, the series is upping the ante, inviting a number of songwriters while experimenting even further with the live visuals.

Planetariums hosting live events isn’t a novel idea, but the UTA’s planetarium features a surround sound system that allows artists to plug straight into. It’s a selling point that planetarium coordinator McKenna Dowd has used to her advantage. She’s been in the position for three years, and books out each year’s annual series as early as late winter. With the sound already in a good place, Dowd took it upon herself to design each show’s visuals by hand.

“I hand-code the visuals into our Digistar system,” she says. “They’re all based on astronomical data, so what you’re looking at is real maps of moons and planets. I think it is a really cool opportunity, not only supporting local artists, but also kind of blending a little bit of art and science in.”

But it’s not all mathematical, Dowd curates the visuals as a companion to each artist that performs inside the space. As such, each show is an entirely unique experience.

“I do listen to the playlist beforehand and try to match each song,” she says. “It’s super fun sitting in the dome listening to their music and coding as I go.”

Sci-fi dance music group Helium Queens is the latest act to take the planetarium stage. The trio, made up of Poppy Xander, a contributor to the Observer, Sharla Franklin and Chelsey Danielle, turns every venue they inhabit into an outer-dimensional portal to alien disco music and colorful glow-in-the-dark outfits. Within the band’s canon, all three members are aliens that hail from the dark side of the moon.

“It was a little too perfect,” Dowd says. “They're singing about the moon, and we're literally on the moon in the planetarium. It’s fantastic.”

“Every time we look up while playing, there are star maps, meteor showers, renderings of Andromeda and our home,” Xander says, perhaps in character as Piscea Xanderia. “We are working with McKenna to tell the story of the Queens, from the Quarries of Vesta to the dark side of the Moon, each show getting more comprehensive.”

Xander plays keys and is the primary vocalist in Helium Queens. She also plays keys for the Polyphonic Spree, who are no stranger to immersive dome experiences, with their animated Salvage Enterprise companion film, Resolution, screening at Fort Worth’s Omni Theater.

“I don't think North Texas realizes the potential of the UTA planetarium and others like it,” Xander says. “These sphere-like rooms that have visuals all around you are incredible to experience, they are rare and often ticket prices are high. But who knows, with the right kind of exposure, there could be a change, perhaps sponsorships or grants for such programs that allow more of these types of events.”

If you missed it, Helium Queens is set to return to the UTA Planetarium in late November. Until then, the dome’s upcoming shows look to change up the pace. On Friday, Sept. 12, ambient artist David Slowing will be a traditional ambient return to form for the planetarium. On Sept. 26, soundscape artist Diana Rojas will take the stage with original visuals made by Rojas herself, featuring glasswork designs of outer space. On Oct. 3, Isaac Sloane and the Sound Brigade throw a massive curveball into the programming mix, christening the venue with its first blues-rock show yet. Sloane’s show will feature “live reaction” visuals from artist Leeon Lean, which are said to change along with the music in real time.

“I reached out to the folks over at the UTA Planetarium back in January and just asked them if they thought we could pull something like this off,” Sloane says. “They were super pumped to try out a rock and roll band and so we got it booked.”

As someone who’s seen Isaac Sloane and the Sound Brigade, we’d be excited to see them again in any capacity. But also as someone who’s seen Isaac Sloane and the Sound Brigade, we’re curious how their sound and aesthetics will translate on such a big, otherworldly scale.

“If you’ve never been to a Brigade show before, this would be the perfect one to get introduced to us with,” Sloane says. “This event is gonna be way more than just a regular live show, it’s going to be a full body experience where you’ll literally see the music as much as hear and feel it.”

Tickets to all future UTA Planetarium concerts are $35 each, and they include a pre-show reception with appetizers and access to a cash bar.

“This is going to be as close to a Vegas Sphere show as Texas can get,” Sloane says.