The Onyx Hotel Tour
The Onyx Hotel Tour was the fifth concert tour by American entertainer Britney Spears. It showcased her fourth studio album, In the Zone (2003), and visited North America and Europe. A tour to promote the album was announced in December 2003. Its original name was the In the Zone Tour, but Spears was sued for trademark infringement and banned from using the name. Spears felt inspired to create a show with a hotel theme which she later mixed with the concept of an onyx stone. The stage, inspired by Broadway musicals, was less elaborate than her previous tours. The setlist was composed mostly by songs from In the Zone as well as some of her past songs reworked with different elements of jazz, blues, and Latin percussion. Tour promoter Clear Channel Entertainment marketed the tour to a more adult audience than her previous shows, while sponsor MTV promoted the tour heavily on TV shows and the network's website.
Location
- Europe
- North America
March 2, 2004
June 6, 2004
2
54
616,887
U$35.3 million ($56.94 in 2023 dollars)[1]
The tour was divided into seven segments: Check-In, Mystic Lounge, Mystic Garden, The Onyx Zone, Security Cameras, Club, and the encore. Check-In displayed performances with dance and advanced in the hotel theme. Mystic Lounge featured an homage to Cabaret and other musicals, while remixing some of Spears's early hits. Mystic Garden displayed a jungle-inspired stage. The Onyx Zone displayed a ballad performance with acrobats. Security Cameras was the raciest part of the show, with Spears and her dancers emulating different sexual practices. Club displayed a performance with urban influences. The encore consisted of a system malfunction interlude and Spears performed wearing a red ensemble. The tour received generally favourable reviews from contemporary critics, who praised it for being an entertaining show while criticizing it for looking "more [like] a spectacle than an actual concert".
The Onyx Hotel Tour was commercially successful. According to Billboard, the 25 shows in North America grossed nearly $19 million with 300,460 tickets and $34 million with 601,040 tickets sold in 52 of 53 shows worldwide.[2][3] According to Pollstar, the Onyx Hotel Tour sold 641,428 tickets in 2004.[4] On June 6, 2004, Spears performed for 25,367 fans at RDS Arena in Dublin with $1,359,648 gross. The four nights at Wembley Arena in London grossed $2,179,820 with 41,823 tickets sold.[5] In March, Spears suffered a knee injury onstage which forced her to reschedule two shows. In June, Spears fell and hurt her knee again during a music video shoot. She underwent arthroscopic surgery and the remainder of the tour was canceled. In 2005, Spears sued her insurance companies for denying her a reimbursement for the cancellation. Showtime broadcast live the March 28, 2004 show at the American Airlines Arena, in a special titled Britney Spears Live from Miami. Backstage footage was included in the reality show Britney and Kevin: Chaotic.
Moline injury[edit]
On March 18, 2004, during the Moline, Illinois show at The MARK of the Quad Cities, Spears fell during the performance of "(I Got That) Boom Boom" and injured her knee. She left the stage and returned shortly after wearing a white robe, apologizing to the audience for not being able to deliver the encore performance.[32] A physician examined Spears and indicated that it was not related to a previous knee injury in 1999 during a dance rehearsal.[33][34] The Rosemont, Illinois show at Allstate Arena, scheduled for March 19, was cancelled. Spears's label Jive Records asked fans to hold on to their tickets until further notice.[34] The Flint Journal reported that the Auburn Hills, Michigan show at The Palace of Auburn Hills was also cancelled.[32] Both shows were rescheduled to the end of the leg in April.[32]
Broadcast and recordings[edit]
On January 12, 2004, it was announced that Showtime would broadcast live the Miami show at the American Airlines Arena on March 28, in a special titled Britney Spears Live from Miami. It was directed by Hamish Hamilton.[36] A concert promotional video and pictures were shot, in which Spears donned 1920s and 1930s hairstyles.[12] She also wore a long black Roberto Cavalli dress, which was auctioned on eBay; proceeds went to the Britney Spears Foundation.[37] On April 13, 2004, it was reported by MTV that Spears was planning a reality show titled "OnTourage" to document the backstage of the European leg, in a similar way to Madonna's Madonna: Truth or Dare.[38] However, the show was reworked into the reality show Britney and Kevin: Chaotic.[39] The concert for Rock in Rio Lisboa festival in Lisbon, Portugal, was broadcast live on June 5, 2004.[40]