Modern by Moonlight Otsukimi Festival set for September. Here’s when tickets go on sale
,The success of the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth’s inaugural Modern by Moonlight Otsukimi Festival — which sold out last year at 600 guests — has museum staff aiming to accommodate more guests this year.
“This festival was an idea that was born from the pandemic, honestly,” said Sonya Wierzowiecki, Senior Manager of Membership and Special Events. “We had time to reflect on our space and what it means to the community and we realized that we’ve never really engaged with the architecture of this space in the way that we have with the art.”
What started as a way to bring in crowds to celebrate the museum’s 20th year in the Cultural District turned into an annual event with tickets for its second year on sale soon.
The Otsukimi, or Tsukimi, Festival — which translates to “moon-viewing” — is an annual Japanese festival that happens in autumn in time for the Harvest Moon. This year’s Harvest Moon will be on Sept. 28 into the early hours of Sept. 29.
This year’s Modern by Moonlight Otsukimi Festival will happen Sept. 16, the same week as the birthday of Japanese architect Tadao Ando who designed the Modern.
Wierzowiecki said museum staff talked at length with the president of the Japan American Society of Dallas-Fort Worth to ensure the festival would promote local organizations while offering something different from other area celebrations.
“We were really intentional about ‘Is Otsukimi being celebrated already in Dallas-Fort Worth? Where can we fit in there?’,” Wierzowiecki said. “There are Otsukimi celebrations in Irving, Dallas, Plano, some other cities, but they are very family friendly. So for our event, it’s more driven by adults and people that want to come out and listen to great music, have a cocktail, enjoy Japanese food and just see the museum after dark.”
The festival is for ages 16 and older and will run from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Museum staff learned a lot from last year and made adjustments to the festival’s layout this year, Wierzowiecki said.
Here is what is included in a ticket for this year’s festival:
General admission tickets are $25 and $15 for some Modern member levels and community partners.
Modern members who contribute $20 a month — $240 a year — will receive two free tickets with an access link sent via email Aug. 3.
A pre-purchased drink package for $42 per person will give guests a wristband that will pay for all their drinks, including specialty cocktails, so they won’t have to wait in line to tab out.
Tickets will go on sale Aug. 4 and can be purchased in-person at Anime at the Modern, at the museum guest services desk during business hours or online.
