the right stuff

New Kids on the Block, Paula Abdul, and DJ Jazzy Jeff step into Houston on new tour

NKOTB will perform at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion on July 13.

Photo by Austin Hargrave

Pop group New Kids on the Block will defy time again in 2024 with The Magic Summer Tour, which will include a stop at The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in The Woodlands on July 13.

They'll be joined on the tour by fellow '80s icons Paula Abdul (who joined them on the 2017 Total Package Tour) and DJ Jazzy Jeff.

The tour, a reimagining of the 1990 tour of the same name, will find the now over-50 "Kids" — Donnie Wahlberg, Joey McIntyre, Jordan Knight, Jonathan Knight, and Danny Wood — traveling to 46 cities in a little over two months.

Paula Abdul will join NKOTB on the tour.PaulaAbdul.com

In addition to The Woodlands, the band will perform in Austin on July 12 and Dallas on July 14.

With the tour, NKOTB promises to bring back their best moments and memories, performing their greatest hits, unexpected fan favorites, and surprises. The 1990 tour was notable for their collaboration with Harry Blackstone Jr. to stage magic and illusions within their performance.

New Kids on the Block has released seven albums in their career, with the most recent release being 2013's 10.

Tickets for the tour will be available starting with Fanclub and CITI presales beginning on Wednesday, November 1. Additional presales will run throughout the week ahead of the general on-sale beginning on Friday, November 3 at 10 am at LiveNation.com.

Citi cardmembers will have access to presale tickets beginning on Wednesday, November 1 at 12 pm until Thursday, November 2 at 10 pm through the Citi Entertainment program.

NKOTB The Magic Summer 2024 Tour

June 14 Cuyahoga Falls, OH Blossom Music Center
June 15 Tinley Park, IL Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
June 18 Clarkston, MI Pine Knob Music Theatre
June 19 Burgettstown, PA The Pavilion at Star Lake
June 21 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center
June 22 Maryland Heights, MO Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
June 23 Prior Lake, MN Mystic Amphitheater
June 25 Kansas City, MO Starlight Theatre
June 26 Rogers, AR Walmart AMP
June 28 Denver, CO Ball Arena
June 29 Salt Lake City, UT USANA Amphitheatre
July 1 Highland, CA Yaamava' Theater
July 2 Wheatland, CA Toyota Amphitheatre
July 3 Mountain View, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre
July 5 Inglewood, CA Kia Forum
July 6 Palm Desert, CA Acrisure Arena
July 7 Chula Vista, CA North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
July 9 Phoenix, AZ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
July 10 Albuquerque, NM Isleta Amphitheater
July 12 Austin, TX Germania Insurance Amphitheater
July 13 The Woodlands, TX Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion Presented by Huntsman
July 14 Dallas, TX Dos Equis Pavilion
July 16 Franklin, TN FirstBank Amphitheater
July 17 Franklin, TN FirstBank Amphitheater
July 19 Tampa, FL MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
July 20 West Palm Beach, FL iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
July 21 Jacksonville, FL Daily’s Place
July 25 Charleston, SC Credit One Stadium
July 26 Alpharetta, GA Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
July 27 Charlotte, NC PNC Music Pavilion
July 28 Raleigh, NC Coastal Credit Union Music Park
August 1 Virginia Beach, VA Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach
August 2 Hartford, CT XFINITY Theatre
August 3 Hershey, PA Hersheypark Stadium
August 4 Wantagh, NY Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
August 8 Holmdel, NJ PNC Bank Arts Center
August 9 Gilford, NH BankNH Pavilion
August 10 Mansfield, MA Xfinity Center
August 11 Saratoga Springs, NY Broadview Stage at SPAC
August 15 Philadelphia, PA TD Pavilion at the Mann
August 16 Columbia, MD Merriweather Post Pavilion
August 17 Toronto, ON Budweiser Stage
August 22 Darien Center, NY Darien Lake Amphitheater
August 23 Columbus, OH Nationwide Arena
August 24 Milwaukee, WI American Family Insurance Amphitheater
August 25 Noblesville, IN Ruoff Music Center

concerts music

Movie Review

Reminders of Him taps into grief, grace, and the power of moving on

Photo by Michelle Faye / Universal Pictures

Maika Monroe and Tyriq Withers in Reminders of HIm.

Texas author Colleen Hoover has gone from being a popular writer to a full-on celebrity in the 2020s. The new film Reminders of Him marks the third adaptation of her books in just 19 months (a fourth, Verity, is scheduled for release in October 2026). All of her books that have been adapted so far — most notably It Ends With Us — are female-led stories that feature elements of romance and trauma, catnip for studios looking to appeal to the underserved demographic of women.

Leading the way in this film is Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe), who returns to her hometown of Laramie, Wyoming after spending years in prison for killing her boyfriend, Scotty (Rudy Pankow), in a car accident. That relationship resulted in a daughter, Diem (Zoe Kosovic), whom Kenna gave birth to while imprisoned and is now being raised by her grandparents, Patrick (Bradley Whitford) and Grace (Lauren Graham).

Yearning to be a part of Diem’s life, Kenna tries to reconnect with Patrick and Grace, only to be rebuffed by Scotty’s best friend, Ledger (Tyriq Withers), a former NFL player who now owns a local bar. In running interference, Ledger starts to become closer to Kenna, discovering that her tragic mistake shouldn’t be the only thing that defines her.

Directed by Vanessa Caswill and written by Lauren Levine, the film features mostly surface level examinations of its themes and average performances, yet it winds up being effective thanks to a willingness not to rush through its storytelling beats. The filmmakers take the slow and steady approach toward the coupling of Kenna and Ledger, setting up their bond through a series of heart-to-heart conversations that makes any romance feel earned.

The majority of the focus is on Kenna reclaiming her place in the world, and on Ledger coming to terms with the fact that the person who killed his best friend is not inherently a bad person. The film definitely could have gone deeper in its explorations of grief and anger, but the sheer amount of time it takes in addressing the characters’ doubts and fears turns out to be sufficient for a film that’s not aiming to be considered a dramatic masterpiece.

It also helps that Caswill and Levine do a solid job of establishing the variety of characters that inhabit the film. Kenna and Ledger don’t always feel like fully-formed people, but they become so through their interactions with each other and the other townspeople. Lady Diana (Monika Myers), a girl with Down syndrome who lives in Kenna’s apartment complex, and Roman (Nicholas Duvernay), Ledger’s co-worker at his bar, help to broaden the appeal of the two leads.

Monroe has, to this point, been best known for starring roles in horror films like It Follows and Longlegs. While she does somewhat well in this role, her delivery is often more flat than you’d expect for a character going through what she does. Withers thankfully doesn’t remind viewers of his recent bomb Him, demonstrating a crossover appeal that should serve him well in the future. Whitford and Graham don’t get to do much, but their combined experience gives their roles exactly what is needed.

It may sound like damning with faint praise, but Reminders of Him is a competently made film that knows how to serve its core audience without insulting anyone who may not automatically be all-in for such a story. The filmmakers don’t try to force any of the key moments down the audience’s throat, and that stands out in a genre that’s not always known for its subtlety.

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Reminders of Him opens in theaters on March 13.

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