The Utopia Tour was the ninth concert tour by Icelandic musician Björk, centering on her 2017 studio album, Utopia. The tour kicked off with 2 special stage rehearsals on 9 and 12 April 2018 at the Háskólabío Theater in Iceland before touring Europe. Utopia's live presentation later evolved into Cornucopia, a theatrical stage concert with enhanced visual and sound presentations which opened at The Shed in New York City on 6 May 2019.
Background and concept
Björk announced her ninth studio album, Utopia, on 2 August 2017 to coincide with a Dazed magazine cover story which detailed the soundscape of the album as featuring flutes and birdsong. A release date was not initially revealed, but was later announced as 24 November 2017.
On 30 October 2017, Björk was announced as one of the headliners for the All Points East music festival in London on 27 May 2018. It was her first confirmed live gig during the Utopia era. On 2 November, another live date was announced, this time in Aarhus, Denmark as part of the Northside Festival, to be held on 7 June 2018. Björk first performed in Aarhus on 9 September 1993, the third night of her first concert tour as a solo artist. Other tour dates, most at major European festivals, were announced after Utopia's release, including stops in Paris, Rome, Sweden, Portugal and an additional stop in the United Kingdom.
On 27 November 2017, three days after the studio album's release, Björk revealed that a live version of Utopia was in the works, saying, "I want to take a little break and then maybe in spring (of 2018) arrive with an angle of the live album. I think there were a few things I didn’t completely explore, like more with soloists and virtuoso kind of flute playing. And I’m gonna be rehearsing with the flute players here in Iceland... I just want it to happen organically in early spring. We have some additional flute songs and some different kind of angles." In an interview published on The Creative Independent from 14 December 2017, she elaborated further on the evolution the Utopia Tour will take, revealing that there were two different versions of the studio album, one without birdsong and with each song separated by silence as in a traditional studio album and the final version as released with birdsong and many of the tracks cross-fading into each other. She said that the live version will "take the flutes further, into more sort of a virtuoso acoustic realm, and maybe then I will skip the birds." She also noted that throughout her career as a live performer, her fans have enjoyed the various reworkings of her back catalog, indicating that the same will happen on the Utopia Tour: "There isn’t necessarily a one correct version of each song. It’s an experiment that keeps going."
On 15 March 2018, Björk announced a special dress/stage rehearsal of the Utopia Tour at the Háskólabío Theater in her hometown of Reykjavik as well as the touring members of her band. Percussionist and Hang player Manu Delago once again traveled with the Icelandic singer, a tradition that began with the 2011 Biophilia Tour. He was replaced by Samuli Kosminen in Sweden and Finland. Bergur Þórisson performed on electronics. Katie Buckley played harp in all locations except Barcelona. Tara Lee Minton played harp in Barcelona. A seven-woman flute ensemble, composed of members Melkorka Ólafsdóttir, Áshildur Haraldsdóttir, Berglind María Tómasdóttir, Steinunn Vala Pálsdóttir, Björg Brjánsdóttir, Þuríður Jónsdóttir and Emilía Rós Sigfúsdóttir, rounded out the touring band; this is 5 fewer flutists than what appeared on the studio album, a decision Björk said would allow the listener to focus on the individual sounds each flutist is playing. "These girls are all very different,” she told The Reykjavik Grapevine. “Some of them are into modern music, some are more into French romanticism, others are doing more improv and experimental music, and they’re the best flautists in Iceland!" Arca, who co-produced the studio album and created the beats, electronics and synths, did not tour with her. The dress rehearsal was set for 12 April 2018, over a month ahead of the previously announced first date at All Points East in London. The tour was designed by Heimi Sverrisson and choreographed by Margrét Bjarnadóttir. A second rehearsal date was later added at the same Icelandic venue on 9 April due to the original date selling out, which moved up the premiere of the Utopia Tour by three days. While doing press for the opening night of the tour, the flute band's name was revealed: Viibra.