The Aurora Borealis illuminated the chilly night sky in Aurora Friday, lighting up the awestruck faces of a dancing audience with blues, greens and reds.

While the natural Aurora Borealis has illuminated Colorado skies in recent months, Friday’s Aurora was the result of an LED light display meant to recreate the natural light phenomena.

Visit Aurora’s Aurora Borealis Festival, which kicked off Friday night, will run through Nov. 3, dazzling visitors with visual and auditory immersive art at the Aurora Highlands Winged Melody Park, on East 38th Place.

Rick Crandall, Visit Aurora’s board chair, told a crowd of festivalgoers Friday that the festival began with a vision from the board to “position Aurora as a vibrant cultural and tourism hub.”

“It’s not just a celebration, it’s a catalyst for community pride and economic growth,” Crandall said. “You guys are proud to live in Aurora right?”

His question to the crowd was met with loud cheers.

Crandall explained the Aurora Borealis effect to the audience, telling them to look to the sky above them as misters came on.

“You can see things are starting to light up around you,” he said. “You’ll want to be out here under this mist, because the Borealis will be above you.”

Sure enough, as the misters came on, lights began to flicker above the crowd, drawing “oohs” and “ahhs” as a live band took the stage.

Away from the Aurora Borealis effect area, festival visitors wandered through a variety of other immersive art displays.

On the far end of the festival sits Daedalum, an interactive art display that from the outside looks like a grey balloon structure and, on the inside, walks viewers through tunnels of color and sound.

“The idea is to relax inside the tunnels,” a guide told the group entering the display. “Take your time. Sit down in the caverns if you feel like it. Don’t rush through.”

On the other side of the park, a sound dome lets festival attendees alter a sound board and listen to its effects all around them.

Next door, children dip in and out of colorful light domes, and across from the domes, a tent changes color as dancers take part in Aurora Pride’s silent disco.

While the celebration honors the magic of the northern lights, it is also a celebration of the city of Aurora and “everything that makes Aurora special,” according to Visit Aurora’s website.

Local food trucks and a tent full of vendors show off Aurora’s diverse arts and cuisine scene.

Marissa Herman and her family traveled an hour and a half from Wellington to attend the event.

“I saw a Facebook group post about this and it just looked so unique and cool and pretty,” she said. “I really wish we could actually see the northern lights at home, but this is an amazing effect.”

Her two children, Cooper Herman, 8, and Quinn Herman, 6, laughed and played on a swing lit up by the lights.

“I liked the art place with all of the different tunnels,” Cooper Herman said, referring to Daedalum with a huge grin on his face.

The festival is free, but Visit Aurora encourages guests to reserve timeslots for entry. VIP packages start at $75 and include parking and special access to festival attractions.