With the amount of teary eyes in the audience, the orchestra seemed to possess water-bending abilities when playing the music of “Avatar: The Last Airbender” at Bass Concert Hall on Sunday. Fans relived the toughest battles, most heartbreaking losses and sweetest triumphs of their favorite childhood show in heightened musical intensity during the immersive orchestral experience.
“I hope that (audiences are) transported back to exactly the same spot when they discovered the joy that this particular show brings them,” conductor Heidi Joosten said.
“Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert” celebrates Nickelodeon’s hit television series about a young boy setting out to restore balance among four elemental nations, as it approaches 20 years since its release. An integral part of the show’s storytelling, the soundtrack, composed by Jeremy Zuckerman, allows the show’s glory to live on through a performance from a live orchestra. Joosten said film-based orchestras have become a popular way to draw modern audiences and tastes back to traditional ways of appreciating music.
“There’s (something about) that human connection of being able to experience something with a group of people, live, that has stood the test of time,” Joosten said. “I hope that that’s what continues beyond.”
The concert includes a live orchestra playing in sync with visuals on the screen, which tell the “Avatar” story through highlight reels of the show’s most loved characters and moments. Psychology junior Stephanie Tran said the masterful fusion of comedy, romance and drama, in addition to its relatability, is what led to the show garnering so many dedicated fans.
“It’s probably one of the greatest pieces of media ever created,” Tran said. “The story can be catered to everyone because it deals with a lot of real-life situations.”
Exercise science senior Micallie Miller said “Avatar” was a big part of her childhood. She said the shared childhood experience between fans created an intimate environment at the concert.
“If you know the show, you love the show,” Miller said. “Everyone that was (at the concert) was connected in some way. … It meant something special to everyone.”
Before the concert began, co-creator of the original series Bryan Konietzko encouraged the audience to cheer, laugh and cry during the performance. Miller said the crowd’s excitement and emotional openness, paired with the beauty and nostalgia evoked from the music, made the show different from any other orchestra performance she’s ever experienced.
“I just wanted to cry throughout the whole thing because it felt so (beautiful),” Miller said.
“Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert” reveals how cravings for live music and fine arts remain intact, Joosten said. She hopes the experience inspires people to continue to seek out and support live performances.
“The music is just as iconic as it was 20 years ago, but now it’s being brought to life by real human beings,” Joosten said. “My hope is that people fall in love with that sort of a film and orchestra pairing so that they continue to be patrons of it in their own communities.”
