Is it really over? Weren't we just in London? The answer is no, it's not really over. In fact, it is just beginning.
When Star Wars: In Concert was in production in London back in April, the cast, crew and production team was understandably nervous. Was this going to work? Would the sets be built in time? Can we move an exhibit of priceless items day in and day out without breaking them? Will the orchestra be rehearsed? Will we hit all of our lighting cues? Will Anthony Daniels be alright without Artoo by his side? Was all of this tremendous effort worth it? Would the fans show up? And more importantly, would they enjoy it?
The answer to all of those questions was a resounding YES! And so a show was born, not just a show but a tour. All summer fans were dying to know when Star Wars: In Concert was coming to their city. Finally dates began to leak out and tickets went on sale.
The next thing we knew, we were living on buses, showering in hockey arenas and wondering what day it was. Touring is hard work and touring something as big as Star Wars: In Concert is really hard work. Luckily the crew was ready for the challenge. With nearly 1,000 years of combined road experience among them, the crew began to move this massive spectacle in and out of arenas day after day. What started off as a herculean challenge soon became a daily routine for this talented bunch.
An average day started around 4:00 a.m. and ended at midnight. During those hours, the production crew would set up a traveling office, the trucks would be unloaded, the exhibit would be set up, a stage would be built and a sound check would be performed. Those are just a few of the thousands of tasks being performed. The incredible Catering crew would start cooking at the crack of dawn and restock the buses late at night. They could not be thanked enough. Before the show, the house ushers would be debriefed and Chewbacca's hair would be brushed all before the first guest arrived.
When the first audience arrived in Anaheim, there were a lot of puzzled looks backstage. Most of the crew had a rock and roll background but they slowly became accustomed to seeing fans of all ages in costumes wandering the concourse viewing the exhibit and taking their seats in the arena bowl.
Soon the crew buses were being renamed (Our favorite: The Aluminum Falcon) and road cases were covered in Star Wars stickers and 501st garrison patches. Even the orchestra got in the spirit as they donned stormtrooper helmets and posed for photos with their respective instruments.Before each show, fans packed the concourse to get a look at priceless artifacts from the Lucasfilm Archives at Skywalker Ranch. Where else can you see a Star Wars exhibit, watch the films and hear the music all for the price of one ticket? After each show, the audience leapt to their feet and showered Anthony Daniels and the orchestra with applause, so much so that we had to develop an encore to keep the audience from storming the stage.
It was soon clear that this was just the first leg of what would soon become a world tour. A few days ago we packed everything on the trucks and said goodbye to each other knowing that it wouldn't be long until we were doing it all over again in a different country.
The European leg starts in March 2010 in the wonderful city of Dublin, Ireland and we couldn't be more excited. Star Wars: In Concert will continue to entertain Star Wars fans around the world in numerous countries and maybe even return to places where fans couldn't get enough.
The second leg is lined up and we are pretty sure there will be many more. So if you are one of those fans eager to see the show, be patient, chances are, we will be in your city soon enough!!
Star Wars: In Concert By The Numbers
- The production of the show was over three years from concept to stage.
- The tour lasted 76 days.
- There were 54 performances in 46 cities, two countries and 32 states/providences.
- The traveling sound system is 150,000 watts.
- The entire set is loaded onto 14 tractor trailers while the crew travels on 11 separate buses.
- The entire show when loaded on the trucks weighs over 300,000 lbs.
- They traveled over 16,000 miles.
- The Wardrobe Dept. steamed over 1,600 tuxedos.
- Makeup gave Anthony Daniels 22 haircuts.
- There were 84 rigging points to hang the steel.
- The set contained over 160 lighting fixtures.
- The screen consists of 1,620 tiles for a total of 1,485,000 pixels.
- Catering brewed over 3,120 gallons of coffee over the course of the tour and fed almost 200 people four meals a day.
- Over 1,272 pizzas were ordered just for the choir.
- Over 1,000 members of the 501st trooped at the shows.
- The audience gave 54 standing ovations.
- It took the exhibit crew 14 hours to load-in the show on the first day.
- By the end of that week they could do it in under 4 hours and have it loaded-out in two hours.
- Anthony Daniels sent out over 594 Tweets.
- There were 62 members on the crew.
- Two different conductors oversaw the orchestra (Dirk Brosse and Mark Watters)
- There are 60 members in the choir.
- The orchestra had its own music librarian traveling with the show.
- The crew transported 26 violins, ten violas, eight cellos, six basses, three flutes, three oboes, four clarinets, three bassoons, five horns, four trumpets, four trombones, one tuba, one harp, one timpani, five sets of percussion instruments and a grand piano.
- And in the end all of this added up to an infinite number of happy fans.
