Professor Popinjay's Compendium of Perspicacity

A Non-review by Professor Popinjay

What better way to celebrate this year’s May the 4th (Star Wars Day) than with a trip to the Eugene Hult Center to see Return of the Jedi (1983) accompanied by the amazing Eugene Symphony Orchestra providing John Williams’ musical score!

Tickets had been afforded by The Hope Project (a Lane County based non-profit organization committed to helping people in all ways) to orchestra students with a possible second in tow depending on ticket availability. As my oldest offspring is one such student proficient with the cello, this qualified her despite her not being the biggest Star Wars fan.

My wife and I both felt this would be a memorable experience for her, regardless of her misguided interests (She doesn’t like Star Wars? Where did I go wrong?). I can’t deny my personal excitement for the event, and I’m sure I failed at containing said excitement when we’re finally handed the tickets.

Tickets were indeed scarce as predicted, most students bringing with them another student who thus took precedence over myself, understandably so. While my daughter expressed discomfort at the thought of attending the event without me, I tried to encourage her to attend even if no passage was granted to me and I would happily wait.

Sadly some students who had laid claim to tickets were not able to make it but that meant good fortune for my daughter and I. Many thanks to orchestra teacher Mr. Bridges not only for eventually enabling us to witness this event, but for also dutifully waiting until the last possible moment to ensure every student had a sporting chance to attend. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

The Eugene Hult Center is a marvel to behold. It hosts several ornate mezzanines and balconies which appear to overlap like shelves of coral in a reef. The ceiling of the main concert hall is like no other, with interwoven elements giving the illusion of being contained within a giant basket. The sheer immensity of the place is mesmerizing.

Indeed I have been there a handful of times. Several times to see The Eugene Ballet’s performance of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite, once to see Fiddler on the Roof, another time to see a Celtic dance company, and even one time to hear several movie themes performed which included the Star Wars Main Theme and Duel of the Fates from The Phantom Menace.

My friends and I deeply offended some elderly ladies at that particular performance as we were in the habit of humorously feigning a snobbish disdain for Composer John Williams. Naturally we loved John Williams’ music, but these ladies couldn’t detect our multi-layered reversed sarcasm. Their sincere outrage still amuses us to this day.

As when my family and I saw Elf (2003) at the Elsinore Theater in Salem, seeing a film with a group (more like a legion in this case) of fans who have already seen the film was exhilarating… but more so because this was Star Wars.

Back when the films were re-released to theaters with new scenes and added special effects, I was only able to see A New Hope. It was in a small $1.50 theater. Even with a packed house, it was a very small theater, so the group dynamic wasn’t… well, it just wasn’t very dynamic. Waiting to see it in the tiny $1.50 might have been a mistake but that was my budget at the time.

This was totally different though. This was an event! Most people attending paid a hefty sum to be there and they were determined to enjoy themselves. Costumes were prevalent! Photo ops rapidly developed long queues. These people were jazzed!

We sat near the other students in the upper upper UPPER balcony. The air was thin up there and goats kept trying to eat my program but that didn’t matter. We could see the whole screen at once but not the horn section, obscured as they were by the screen. That didn’t stop us from hearing the horn section though! And isn’t that the most important thing?

It surprised me how the group reacted to things I’d seen in this film 1000 times. Things I never detected as humorous while watching by myself were uproariously funny with this legion of fans.

Like when Luke asks Obi-Wan incredulously “A certain point of view!?!”

That line killed! Or when Luke asks Yoda if Darth Vader really is… oh sorry no spoilers.

But Yoda just shrugs it off and turns over to go to sleep. People were rolling in the aisles… which is dangerous in the upper balconies.

Everyone cheered when Luke defeated the rancor but audibly sympathized with the distraught Rancor keeper. I found that terribly funny. I mean I found the audience’s reaction funny, not that the keeper lost his charge. That WAS sad.

Since the sound effects track was essentially muted so the focus could be on the music, there were also certain unintentionally humorous moments. Like when C-3P0 taps quickly and quietly on the large metal door to Jabba’s palace but, because no sound effects, we don’t hear any tapping at all! It was like C-3PO just pretended to tap and then said “I don’t think they’re going to let us in.” Oh well, we tried. Han is doomed. CHEESE IT!

The music was so spot on it was easy to get lost in the emotion of it all and forget that there is a real orchestra just below the screen. I found myself purposefully focusing on the movement of violin bows that I might take in this amazing score only slightly disconnected from the film. Very often I will notice varying differences of timing and tempo from one orchestra to the next when hearing familiar music. Not so here. The Eugene Symphony was immaculate, impeccable, and so exact I would swear it was the original recording. Obviously it wasn’t of course! But they were just that good!

The music during Luke’s Rancor battle was exceptionally performed in my opinion. That particular track is a stellar (no pun intended) piece of music, exciting and powerful, and really taking advantage of the full orchestra. Play that track in your car and just try not to drive aggressively… okay, there’s better times and places to appreciate music. Don’t drive while under the influence of John Williams. For that I recommend AC/DC or Men at Work.

The ovation lasted throughout the credits and beyond. Truly this was an experience of a lifetime and I am so very grateful for the opportunity to witness this with at least one of my musically inclined children.

And don’t worry, there’s a lot of Star Wars out there these days. Surely we’ll win the kiddo over to the light side of the fandom eventually. She may have feigned a lack of interest when surrounded by peers and teachers, but our conversation in the privacy of our car ride home was riveted with other examples of movie music that excited the both of us.

Also, we stopped at VooDoo Doughnuts. This was a grand day.

May the force be with you on this May the fourth!