On Saturday, June 16, Los Angeles music aficionados rang in the 2018 season (and 97th year) of the Hollywood Bowl with an opening night concert featuring the legendary Diana Ross.

Following an alfresco VIP reception, opening night patrons kicked off the affair with dinner in their boxes, featuring a custom menu prepared by Hollywood Bowl Food + Wine’s Suzanne Goin and Caroline Styne.

As the sun set, Principal Conductor Thomas Wilkins and the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra (HBO) opened the evening with a lively performances of Bernstein’s “Slava!” and John William’s “Adventures on Earth” from the E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial soundtrack. The esteemed musicians also welcomed thirty members of the Youth Orchestra Los Angeles (YOLA) to the stage to join the HBO in a rendition of Arturo Márquez’ “Conga del fuego nuevo.”

For the second half of the program, headliner Ross took to a chandelier-bedecked stage with the orchestra to belt out chart-toppers from her career spanning six decades, including  “More Today than Yesterday” and “You Can’t Hurry Love,” not to mention a heart-tugging performance of “Amazing Grace.” Joined by a choir, the superstar rounded out the evening of nostalgia with a medley of “Do You Know” and “Ain’t No Mountain,” followed by a crowd-pleasing performance of “Reach Out and Touch (Somebody’s Hand)” as a spectacular firework display lit up the sky above the storied venue.

The evening raised more than $1.75 million for the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s education and community programs (including YOLA), serving more than 150,000 youth, families and teachers annually.

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