Quad City Symphony Orchestra: “'Jurassic Park' in Concert" at the Adler Theatre -- October 25.
Saturday, October 25, 7:30 p.m.
Adler Theatre, 136 East Third Street, Davenport IA
Combining a hugely popular scary movie with a frighteningly fierce collection of musicians, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra's latest QCSO at the Movies event, Jurassic Park in Concert, enjoys an October 25 performance at Davenport's Adler Theatre, with John Williams' iconic score performed live during an HD screening of the Steven Spielberg blockbuster.
Directed by Spielberg and starring Sam Neill, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum, and Richard Attenborough, Jurassic Park is set on the fictional island of Isla Nublar near Costa Rica, where wealthy businessman John Hammond and a team of genetic scientists have created a wildlife park of de-extinct dinosaurs. When, however, industrial sabotage leads to a catastrophic shutdown of the park's power facilities and security precautions, a small group of visitors struggle to survive and escape the now perilous island.
Released min June of 1993, Jurassic Park was a blockbuster hit that went on to gross more than $914 million worldwide in its original theatrical run, surpassing Spielberg's own E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial to become the highest-grossing film of all time until the release of 1997's Titanic. The film received critical acclaim and won three Academy Awards for technical achievements in visual effects, sound design, and sound editing. Following its 20th anniversary re-release in 2013, it became the oldest film in history to surpass $1 billion in global ticket sales and the 17th overall.
Since its release, many film critics and industry professionals have regarded Jurassic Park as one of the greatest summer blockbusters ever made. Its groundbreaking use of computer-generated imagery is widely seen as a turning point that shaped the visual effects techniques used in modern cinema, and in 2018, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” The film spawned a multimedia franchise that includes six sequels, video games, theme park attractions, comic books, and various merchandise.
Conducting composer John Williams' unforgettable score for the movie's QCSO at the Movies presentation is Hisham Bravo Groover, Assistant Conductor of the Quad City Symphony Orchestra and Music Director of the Quad City Symphony Youth Ensembles. He also serves as Director of Orchestral Studies and Violin instructor at Augustana College Before moving to the Quad Cities, Groover lived in Minnesota, where he served as Artistic Director and Principal Conductor of the St. Cloud Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonic Conductor of the Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies (GTCYS), Music Director and Conductor of the Buffalo Community Orchestra, and Assistant Conductor of the University of Minnesota Symphony Orchestra and Opera Theatre. Additional experiences include roles as Associate Conductor of the Denver Philharmonic Orchestra (CO), Assistant Conductor of the Arapahoe Philharmonic (CO), Assistant Conductor of the Lamont Symphony Orchestra and Opera Theatre (CO), and Conductor of the University of Iowa Chamber Orchestra (IA).
Groover displays impressive versatility in his concerts, equally at ease with pops and educational programs as he is with masterworks. He has also conducted and assisted in numerous opera productions, including Britten’s The Turn of the Screw, Mozart’s Don Giovanni, and Strauss Jr.’s Die Fledermaus. As a violinist, he studied with several pedagogues, including Michel Boris Zaitzeff, Ching-Yi Lin, and Mark Rush, while as a conductor, he has had the privilege to study with Leonid Grin, Kevin Noe, William LaRue Jones, and his principal mentor, the Quad City Symphony Orchestra's Maestro Mark Russell Smith.
Jurassic Park in Concert will be performed in Davenport on October 25, admission to the 7:30 p.m. event is $25-77, tickets are available by calling (800)745-3000 and visiting DavenportLive.com/the-adler-theatre, and more information is available by calling (563)322-7276 and visiting QCSO.org.
