No Strings Attached: Lindsey Stirling Defies Gravity at The Astro

By Marisa Dawson

A female violinist with long hair and a stylish outfit performs energetically on stage, while a male guitarist plays beside her. They are illuminated by vibrant stage lights with stained glass windows in the background.

The violin has rarely looked, or sounded, quite like it did Tuesday night at The Astro.

Lindsey Stirling brought her Duality Untamed tour to La Vista on August 11, delivering an energetic, visually stunning performance that blended violin, electronic music, dance, acrobatics and storytelling into a production that kept the audience’s attention from beginning to end.

The evening opened with PVRIS, the Massachusetts-based band led by vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Lynn Gunn. Known for blending rock with electronic and synth-pop elements, PVRIS has released four studio albums, including 2023’s Evergreen.

A female musician performing live on stage, playing an electric guitar and singing into a microphone, wearing sunglasses and a black tank top, with tattoos visible on her arms.

A drummer performing on stage, playing a drum set with a microphone nearby. The drummer is wearing a sleeveless shirt and focused on the music.

A musician playing a white bass guitar on stage, wearing a camouflage cap and a black t-shirt.

A woman wearing sunglasses and a black tank top plays an electric guitar on stage, with a microphone stand in the foreground and blurred audience members in the background.

A band performing live on stage with the name 'PYRIS' displayed in large letters behind them. The group consists of three musicians: a female vocalist playing guitar, a drummer, and a male musician on keyboard and bass guitar.

The band’s cohesive set quickly had the crowd engaged and served as an effective introduction to the night’s main performance.

Then the lights dimmed, and Stirling took the stage, violin in hand and ready to turn the entire space into a moving story.

Throughout the performance, Stirling moved effortlessly between playing violin and singing while executing elaborate choreography. At times, she and her dancers took to the air, incorporating aerial and acrobatic elements that made the performance feel more like a theatrical production than a traditional concert.

A performer on stage playing the violin while dancing, with an acrobatic figure suspended above them. The background features colorful lights and a gothic-inspired set. Another performer in a cloak can be seen in the shadows.

Costume changes, props and lighting transformed the stage from one song to the next, creating dramatically different moods throughout the evening. Stirling also changed violins to complement the atmosphere of various songs.

The result was a performance in which there was almost always something new to discover. Whether Stirling was dancing across the stage, suspended in the air while playing violin or appearing in silhouette against the lights, it was difficult to keep one’s eyes in one place.

Among the night’s highlights were longtime fan favorites, including Stirling’s energetic rendition of “Carol of the Bells.”

But beneath the elaborate production was a more personal story.

A musician playing the violin on stage, wearing a unique costume with metallic elements, against a colorful background.

Stirling framed the show around the idea of the hero’s journey, using storytelling as a way to explore growth, grief, fear and perseverance. She spoke fondly about her late father, describing him as an exceptional storyteller and explaining how much his stories influenced her.

“I’m so grateful for my dad and his stories; he inspired me so much,” Stirling told the audience.

She also reflected on the less glamorous portions of a journey, the periods when success seems to stop and a person is forced to wait.

A female musician performing on stage, playing the violin and posing dynamically while a male guitarist stands behind her. The background features colorful stage lights and an illuminated backdrop.

“It’s really easy to focus on the big successes, the achievements,” she said, before turning her attention to the importance of those pauses.

“The pause is when we truly grow.”

That message carried particular weight when Stirling discussed loss. Her song “Lose You Now,” a collaboration with Mako, was written in memory of both her father and her longtime friend and former bandmate Jason “Gavi” Gaviati. The song was released in 2021 as a vocal reimagining of her earlier instrumental “Guardian.”

A spirited female musician playing a violin, dressed in an elaborate costume featuring armor-like elements, performing on stage with lights in the background.

Stirling also opened up about her own struggles with anxiety and the work she has done to move through fear. She described learning to focus on her breathing and listen to herself, asking a simple but difficult question: “What are you so afraid of?”

Her answer was ultimately one of trust.

“We have the answers within us,” she told the crowd.

That combination of introspection and spectacle was perhaps what made the performance so memorable. Stirling can fill a stage with lights, dancers, elaborate costumes and seemingly impossible movement, but she repeatedly brought the focus back to something much more human: the stories we carry, the people who shape us and what we learn while waiting for the next chapter.

A female musician performing on stage, playing the violin. She is wearing a stylish black outfit with intricate details, knee-high socks, and sneakers. Colorful stained glass windows are visible in the background, illuminated by stage lights.

By the end of the night, Stirling had demonstrated once again why her performances are difficult to categorize. She wasn’t simply playing the violin, and she wasn’t simply singing and dancing.

She was doing all three, sometimes while flying through the air, and turning the combination into a story.

Stirling’s Duality Untamed tour continues across the United States this summer, with PVRIS joining her on tour.