HAMLET – Even if just for one night, local residents got to experience the magic and excitement of the wizarding world of Harry Potter.
On Tuesday evening, patrons of the Cole Auditorium on Richmond Community College’s campus, were enchanted and entertained by the Charlotte Symphony under the direction of Christopher James Lee as they presented, “The Musical World of Harry Potter.”
The performance is part of the DeWitt Performing Arts Series, which dates back to 1999, and has been offering a wide variety of high-quality performances to the community.
Christopher James Lee, who is in his second season with the symphony, stated that the show began as a Lollipop series, family-friendly entertainment, back in September of last year. This series was received as a huge success and the symphony was then contacted by The Cole Foundation to bring this production to the community members of Richmond County.
The symphony presented music from the first three Harry Potter movies written by the famous composer, John Williams.
“John Williams has basically written his melodies into all of our childhoods,” Lee stated. “Whether or not you were born in the 1970s and you knew Jaws, Star Wars or Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Or you were born in the 21st century and you know his music from Memoirs of a Geisha or the various Harry Potter films his writing is part of our culture and part of our shared history if we have ever been to the movies.”
The musical selections ranged from lighthearted and whimsical to dark and ominous. From the first movie, “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” the symphony brought the audience into the spellbinding wizarding world with such selections as, Hedwig’s Theme and Nimbus 2000, which strongly featured the woodwind sections.
From “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” the audience was captivated by selections such as Faux about a Sphinx and Dobby the House Elf, featuring the string section. Finally, from “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” the symphony charmed with Witches, Wands and Wizards.
The final selection was entitled, Harry’s Wondrous World, which brought the audience to their feet to praise the symphony for taking them on a journey filled with thrills and wonderment.
For more information on the Dewitt Performance Series, please visit www.http://richmondcc.edu/dewitt-series.
