'Stranger Things' star, singer Maya Hawke to open for Bright Eyes in Columbia

Stranger things have happened than a "Stranger Things" star playing pop music in Columbia, Missouri.

But that's exactly what will happen next month now that Maya Hawke has been announced as support for indie-folk standard-bearers Bright Eyes when they play Rose Park.

The 24-year-old Hawke first crossed many radars in 2019 when she joined the wildly popular Netflix show in its third season, playing Robin Buckley, a perfect foil for Hawkins, Indiana's Steve Harrington and a key part of the town's outsize supernatural adventure.

But Hawke has much more up her creative sleeves. Her onscreen life started in earnest with a 2017 BBC production of "Little Women" and has seen her appear in a number of indie films. Later this year, she'll join a serious ensemble cast for Wes Anderson's latest, "Asteroid City."

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But back to the reason Hawke will visit Columbia: the singer-songwriter has released two well-received albums, 2020's "Blush" and last year's "Moss."

"She narrates each song in a white-smoke soprano, viewing herself and others through eyes both critical and kindly," Pitchfork's Jane Bua wrote of "Moss."

Bua's review praised the nuanced ways Hawke considers her growing celebrity, both of her own making and as the child of Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman.

"Throughout Moss, Hawke’s earnest, sincere lyricism interlocks the public and private, overlapping reality and fiction to reflect how she has had to negotiate both spaces in life," Bua wrote.

Album tracks such as "Thérèse," "Luna Moth" and "Sweet Tooth" weave together folk and pop musical language, purposefully interrupting organic arrangements with squalls of sound, adorning others with a lilting touch. Hawke's voice is ever-present, ever-charismatic, never ceasing in its work beckoning listeners to take the edges of their seats and really hang on each of her words.

The Bright Eyes/Maya Hawke date at Rose Park is May 13 and concludes a four-day run together that first takes the pairing through Milwaukee, Minneapolis and Chicago. Tickets are $35-$40. Visit https://rosemusichall.com/events/ for more information.

Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731. Find him on Twitter @aarikdanielsen.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: "Stranger Things" star, pop singer Maya Hawke coming to Columbia