The "Star Wars In Concert" Experience
Nov. 27th, 2009 07:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
krpalmerA while ago now, I was reading the arts section of the regional newspaper when I saw an ad that "Star Wars In Concert" would indeed be coming to my area. I was excited to see that, already interested in eyewitness reports (although also aware of those who weren't able to go), but uncertain at the same time, expecting to be put on to shift work any day then and not knowing what my schedule would be. Going to see the concert if the one day it was in town also happened to be a shift day would seem to mean taking at least one day off as a vacation, and I didn't have much vacation time left.
When I at last got my shift change notice, though, I realised that I had been given some days off to adjust for the extra time above a forty-hour week changing shifts would mean, and I was able to reschedule that time to take the second of two night shifts off. After getting some sleep in the morning, instead of heading off to work in the evening I was headed into the city, there to meet up with my brother and get to the concert.
There was a considerable crowd gathering at the arena, including lots of families with young children, some of them in costume, people in Star Wars T-shirts, and adult costumers as well. The crowd got pretty dense around the costume exhibits, and we didn't manage to see all of them (or even get very close in my case) before we were climbing up to our seats. Despite having got the cheapest tickets, though, we did have a tolerable view of the big screen; it turned out a smaller screen nearby also provided video for those not willing to look to the side, but I kept looking at the big one.
I suppose I had wondered beforehand just what the music would be like: I've indulged in a few "orchestral cover versions" of Star Wars music over the years, but keep thinking something about the original soundtracks is lacking in them. Having the orchestra go through a big sound system also seemed distancing in the very first moments... but I emphasize "very first" because the experience took over fast.
Familiar with the Ian McDiarmid-narrated "Star Wars: A Musical Journey" DVD included with the Revenge of the Sith soundtrack, I could see how it had been carried forward to provide in large part the structure of the concert. A segment devoted to Threepio and Artoo made excellent use of Anthony Daniels as narrator, though, and I was interested in how two "extended versions" of the music allowed for the footage of Revenge of the Sith to be added to the opening and closing segments, perhaps in small part because the "montage of Blockade Runner and End Title" and "repeated Throne Room" cues had often seemed not quite right to me before.
Even having heard that certain moments big deals are made of by the usual suspects about being "controversial" went by just fine with other audiences, I still worried a little about my own case... but again, each moment seemed to go by without affecting the crowd's applause. (For that matter, the "infamous Empire Strikes Back kiss" in Princess Leia's segment got just a little of what seemed amused laughter when it was past.) At the end, with the movie posters appearing in production order, I wondered for a moment... but while there might have been more cheering for the old movies, the applause continued for the new ones. Too, while I noticed that it was after the intermission when the audience started cheering Anthony Daniels's first mentions of the characters from the old movies, I somehow took note that there was plenty of cheering for Luke's name too.
So far as "controversial moments" go, mind you, for a moment at the very end I was struck by how Anthony Daniels was now sporting a customised "DANIELS 03" hockey sweater for the team whose home arena was being used for the concert, and about how the team isn't doing very well this season... but the crowd did seem to get a big kick out of it anyway. (I suppose I've wondered before how the team has someone named "Kessel" on it this season, and seeing his sweater on display in a window outside the gates made me wonder again how many others saw that as a Star Wars reference.) A little concerned about making my train back, we left in a hurry and missed whatever chance there might have been to see the rest of the costume exhibits, but I suppose I can deal with that. It made for a long day, but it was a good one.
When I at last got my shift change notice, though, I realised that I had been given some days off to adjust for the extra time above a forty-hour week changing shifts would mean, and I was able to reschedule that time to take the second of two night shifts off. After getting some sleep in the morning, instead of heading off to work in the evening I was headed into the city, there to meet up with my brother and get to the concert.
There was a considerable crowd gathering at the arena, including lots of families with young children, some of them in costume, people in Star Wars T-shirts, and adult costumers as well. The crowd got pretty dense around the costume exhibits, and we didn't manage to see all of them (or even get very close in my case) before we were climbing up to our seats. Despite having got the cheapest tickets, though, we did have a tolerable view of the big screen; it turned out a smaller screen nearby also provided video for those not willing to look to the side, but I kept looking at the big one.
I suppose I had wondered beforehand just what the music would be like: I've indulged in a few "orchestral cover versions" of Star Wars music over the years, but keep thinking something about the original soundtracks is lacking in them. Having the orchestra go through a big sound system also seemed distancing in the very first moments... but I emphasize "very first" because the experience took over fast.
Familiar with the Ian McDiarmid-narrated "Star Wars: A Musical Journey" DVD included with the Revenge of the Sith soundtrack, I could see how it had been carried forward to provide in large part the structure of the concert. A segment devoted to Threepio and Artoo made excellent use of Anthony Daniels as narrator, though, and I was interested in how two "extended versions" of the music allowed for the footage of Revenge of the Sith to be added to the opening and closing segments, perhaps in small part because the "montage of Blockade Runner and End Title" and "repeated Throne Room" cues had often seemed not quite right to me before.
Even having heard that certain moments big deals are made of by the usual suspects about being "controversial" went by just fine with other audiences, I still worried a little about my own case... but again, each moment seemed to go by without affecting the crowd's applause. (For that matter, the "infamous Empire Strikes Back kiss" in Princess Leia's segment got just a little of what seemed amused laughter when it was past.) At the end, with the movie posters appearing in production order, I wondered for a moment... but while there might have been more cheering for the old movies, the applause continued for the new ones. Too, while I noticed that it was after the intermission when the audience started cheering Anthony Daniels's first mentions of the characters from the old movies, I somehow took note that there was plenty of cheering for Luke's name too.
So far as "controversial moments" go, mind you, for a moment at the very end I was struck by how Anthony Daniels was now sporting a customised "DANIELS 03" hockey sweater for the team whose home arena was being used for the concert, and about how the team isn't doing very well this season... but the crowd did seem to get a big kick out of it anyway. (I suppose I've wondered before how the team has someone named "Kessel" on it this season, and seeing his sweater on display in a window outside the gates made me wonder again how many others saw that as a Star Wars reference.) A little concerned about making my train back, we left in a hurry and missed whatever chance there might have been to see the rest of the costume exhibits, but I suppose I can deal with that. It made for a long day, but it was a good one.