PHOTO STORY

Keith Urban's "Get Closer" Tour at Verizon Center

Photo Credit:Alfredo Flores, Special to Metromix

You can easily tell that Keith Urban is a good ol’ country boy. Extremely affable, kind, and engaging with his fans, Urban went out of his way to make sure that everyone in the audience got a chance to get an up an close and personal experience at Verizon Center. While many arena shows feature a brief acoustic song or two for the audience in the back of the venue, Urban spent nearly a third of his two-hour-plus show from a special rotating stage in the back of the arena much to the delight of the fans in that section. That stage also rose up so that even those in the nosebleeds got a solid view of the Nashville crooner and hubby to actress Nicole Kidman. Urban made the intimate evening even more special for a select few in the audience who were lucky enough to perform “Kiss A Girl” with the multi-Grammy award winner on center stage.

PHOTO STORY

Maná "Drama Y Luz" World Tour 2011 at the Patriot Center

Photo Credit:Alfredo Flores, Special to Metromix

While many in the District were celebrating Bastille Day, there was a different kind of rocking party altogether in Fairfax as the three-time Grammy winning Mana brought their record setting arena tour to the sold-out Patriot Center. Widely regarded as the most sought after ticket in all of Latin music, and recently coming off of four-straight sold out shows at Los Angeles’ Staples Center, the concert lived up to its billing as one of the must-see shows of 2011, regardless of language. The show was in support of Maná’s new album “Drama y Luz” (Drama & Light)—and the band thrilled the crowd with its powerful ballads and beautifully backlit stage. The stunning stage set the mood for each of their performances such as their current No. 1 hit “Lluvia al Corazón” (images of hearts beating and rain falling as the colors in the backdrop changed after each stanza). A truly epic performance that left the crowd enthralled well after the 2.5 hour set.

PHOTO STORY

A Night of Tennis with Serena Williams featuring Michelle Obama

Photo Credit:Alfredo Flores, Special to Metromix

At the brand new Kastles Stadium at the Wharf on the waterfront, guests got to see the first lady of tennis, superstar Serena Williams, as well as First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama as Williams played her first match back in the U.S. since 2009. A capacity crowd of 2,600 were in attendance with some of the proceeds going to Fashion for Paws benefiting the Washington Humane Society (WHS). The WHS cares for nearly 30,000 animals a year in DC through its broad range of programs and services, taking in an average of 33 animals a day in need of help. Fashion for Paws is a high caliber marketing and fundraising program of the WHS that infuses the nation’s capital with cutting-edge high fashion and luxury lifestyle brand events, drawing an extraordinary crowd of VIP’s, fashion and animal lovers alike.