Wrapping up the final leg of this portion of the tour, THE BATMAN IN CONCERT arrived in Chicago over the weekend, playing at The Auditorium Theatre near the city’s downtown. An energetic crowd filed into the establishment, and the show kicked off right on time.
The movie was split into two parts, with a brief intermission coming between Batman capturing The Penguin and Gordon and Batman interrogating him. Thunderous applause for the orchestra at the beginning, middle, end, and throughout. They were very good. At times, you became engrossed by the experience that you forgot there was a live orchestra accompanying the screen. Other times, you’d look to see which member was playing a specific instrument.
The entire experience was energetic, and a great way to experience the film (my 11th time overall).
A few standouts:
- The orchestra excelled at the string-heavy moments. This included any time Selina’s score was playing.
- They simply nailed “The Batman Theme.”
- “I’m Vengeance”, “The Batmobile Chase”, “Gotham Square Garden Batman Entry” were also standouts where the orchestra whaled.
- The crowd was very receptive to the movie.
- Cheering came at “I’m Vengeance”, the Batmobile revving up, and Batman beating Falcone’s thugs in the hallway.
- The crowd was also very receptive to the more funny moments, including the thumb drive scene, Penguin throughout, and the Riddler’s home video to his followers.
After the movie — as Steve Cooke mentioned in the latest BOF Podcast –there was a long line to have posters signed by the orchestra’s conductor. I myself skipped on the poster but did get myself a magnet.
Also, shoutout to BOF’er Andrew Meixner, who found me in the lobby and had a nice conversation.
Overall, this was a great and energetic new way to see THE BATMAN. The live orchestra gave it a shot of adrenaline and mixed really well with the movie playing overhead.
This leg of the tour has wrapped, but keep your eyes (and ears) open. I believe there’s more to come! – Ryan Lower
