THE Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will be playing music from Skyrim, FF VII, WOW, Diablo III and more in a night of awesomeness, featuring Wil Wheaton and hosted by Scott Kurtz and Kris Straub of Penny Arcade TV. Also, find out how you can win a pair of tickets worth $99 each.
The theatre doors open. The audience, all dressed in their evening best and clustered loosely around the foyer, gracefully segue from their champagne glasses and affable banter over to their seats. The conductor then arrives on stage to polite and restrained applause. Baton in hand, he goes into a physical frenzy, energetically weaving complex, intricate patterns into the air. The visual insanity is spectacularly contrasted with stirring aural beauty unleashed by the orchestra, as they react to it. Melodies and counter-melodies from the violins, harmoniously entwine amidst complementary booming interjections from the trombones and tuba, as the conductor playfully teases out notes from flutes and clarinets, while commanding the clashes of cymbals, culminating in a rich and vivid soundscape.
And then a wild man appears on the screen. Decked out in nothing more than a fur pelt, scrapes of armour, and a horned helm, he then begins howling indiscernibly, tearing some unfortunate dragon a new one.
FUS RO DAH!
You’ve probably already figured out this isn’t an ordinary evening at the local theatre. It isn’t Andrea Bocelli and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. No. It’s more like awesomeness and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The Melbourne Symphony Orchestra will be performing Video Games Unplugged: Symphony of Legends on Thursday April 12 at Plenary Hall, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. They will be playing theme music from popular and award-winning video games, such as The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, Final Fantasy VII, BioShock 2, Assassin’s Creed II, World of Warcraft, Starcraft II, as well as the eagerly anticipated third instalment of Blizzard Entertainment’s Diablo franchise, Diablo III. Accompanying the music will be specially edited and timed visual packages from all the games, showcased on three massive screens surrounding the stage.
The show will be hosted by gaming funny men Scott Kurtz and Kris Straub of Penny Arcade TV’s Blaminations and The Scott and Kris Show. And Wil Wheaton of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Big Bang Theory fame will be joining them as a special guest.
Video games have indeed come a long way. From sporting pixelated visuals and lacklustre audio, and being perceived as a queer, obscure hobby, to having multi-million dollar development budgets that rival blockbuster movie titles, and gaining cultural acceptance as interactive stories to be experienced. And their music plays a defining role in accentuating the experience.
But whether you’ve enjoyed the country-inspired rock numbers that feature in Starcraft II, and would like to witness them reinterpreted live, or are simply aching to get a taste of the yet-to-be-released Diablo III, Video Games Unplugged: Symphony of Legends is an arresting assault on the senses not to be missed.
Grab your tickets before they’re sold out – prices range from AU $49.00 to AU $139.00.
Alternatively, we have a pair of A Reserve Seating tickets worth AU $99.00 each for the win! Just let us know who you’d like to experience this awesomeness with by tagging him/her in your comments on our Facebook page. The winner will be picked in a random draw and notified via Facebook. The contest is open to anyone currently in the state of Victoria, and the competition closes Saturday April 7.