Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Presents Star Wars: A New Hope, Film Live With Orchestra

On May 4 at 10am, The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) opens ticket sales to the general public for Star Wars: A New Hope, Film Live With Orchestra. This Special Concert takes place Wednesday, January 3, 2024, at 7:30 p.m. at Rochester's Auditorium Theatre (885 E. Main St.). Tickets start at $34 and will be available by phone at (585) 222-5000 or online at www.ticketmaster.com.

"So far, tickets for Star Wars have only been available to RPO subscribers," says RPO VP of Marketing & Communications Herb Griffith. "But there's such huge anticipation for this concert that we decided to open sales to the public earlier than the rest of the Centennial season, which will go on sale August 7th."

As for the "May the Fourth" sales date?

"We just couldn't resist," Griffith admits. "It allows the RPO to have a little fun, with a nod to Star Wars fans."

Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope is the first of the series' films to be released in 1977, titled simply Star Wars at the time. (The film would ultimately serve as the fourth of nine "Skywalker Saga" chapters.) Set a "long time ago" in a fictional universe where the galaxy is ruled by the tyrannical Galactic Empire, the story focuses on a group of freedom fighters known as the Rebel Alliance, whose aim it is to destroy the Empire's newest weapon, the Death Star. A young Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill) becomes caught up in the conflict while learning the ways of a metaphysical force known as "the Force" from Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi (Alec Guinness). The cast also includes Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), James Earl Jones (Darth Vader), Peter Cushing (Grand Moff Wilhuff Tarkin), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Kenneth Baker (R2-D2) and Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca).

While the complete film plays in HD on a giant screen above the orchestra onstage, the RPO will perform legendary composer John Williams' Academy Award-winning musical score live. In 2005, the American Film Institute selected it as the greatest American film score of all time, and the soundtrack was preserved by the Library of Congress in the National Recording Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."

Eastman School of Music's Director of the Beal Institute for Film Music and Contemporary Media, Mark Watters, will conduct the concert. The six-time Emmy Award-winner - who also heads Eastman's Contemporary Media and Film Scoring graduate program - has conducted three tours of Star Wars in Concert, including with the Tokyo Philharmonic.

The Star Wars: Film Concert Series is produced under license by Disney Concerts in association with 20th Century Fox and Warner/Chappell Music. STAR WARS and related properties are trademarks and/or copyrights, in the United States and other countries, of Lucasfilm Ltd. and/or its affiliates. © & TM

The RPO thanks Season Sponsor M&T Bank, Pops Series Sponsors Canandaigua National Bank & Wegmans, and Special Series Sponsor Pittsford Federal Credit Union. RPO performances are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature. The RPO is supported in part by an American Rescue Plan Act grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support general operating expenses in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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