Houston Symphony Screens Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi With Orchestra Performing John Williams’ Iconic Score Live

The Houston Symphony brings audiences along on a journey to a galaxy far, far away with the final chapter of the original Star Wars trilogy, Star Wars: Episode VI —Return of the Jedi, screening as part of the Bank of America POPS series at Jones Hall March 4-7, 2022.  Audiences can experience this iconic sci-fi film on the big screen as the Houston Symphony, led by conductor Brett Mitchell, performs John Williams’ award-winning score live. In-person tickets for all shows are now available at  houstonsymphony.org/jedi.

Return of the Jedi marks the latest in the Houston Symphony’s series of film screenings with live orchestra, featuring high-definition films on a 40-foot screen accompanied by the full complement of a major symphony orchestra. Renowned for his film work, Williams wrote and conducted the soundtrack for Star Wars, which many consider one of the greatest in film history.

The battle between good and evil rages on in Return of the Jedi. Rejoin Luke, Leia, Han, and the whole Rebel Alliance as they seek to destroy the Death Star and face a final showdown with Darth Vader and the Emperor. Audiences will experience the full splendor and force of the film’s incredible score—from 20th Century Fox fanfare to closing credits—as the Houston Symphony accompanies the movie, live.

Audiences are encouraged to come dressed as their favorite character, even as Han, Luke, Leia, and company roam the lobby for photo opportunities, and adults in the audience can enjoy special Star Wars-themed cocktails.

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi in Concert takes place at Jones Hall for the Performing Arts, 615 Louisiana Street, in Houston’s Theater District. Everyone in the audience is required to wear a mask while in Jones Hall. For a comprehensive schedule of safety measures, visit houstonsymphony.org/safety. For tickets and more information, please call 713.224.7575 or visit houstonsymphony.org. Socially distanced seats are available in some portions of the auditorium. All programs and artists are subject to change.

STAR WARS: RETURN OF THE JEDI IN CONCERT 

Friday, March 4, 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 5, 2:30 p.m.

Saturday, March 5, 8 p.m.

Sunday, March 6, 2:30 p.m.

Brett Mitchell, conductor

About Brett Mitchell

Brett Mitchell returns to Houston after serving as Assistant Conductor of this orchestra from 2007 to 2011. In that role, he conducted more than 100 performances. Hailed for delivering compelling performances of innovative, eclectic programs, he was named the fourth music director of the Colorado Symphony in 2016. He served as the orchestra’s music director designate during the 2016-17 season and concluded his four-year appointment in June 2021.

Brett served as associate conductor of The Cleveland Orchestra until 2017. He joined the orchestra as assistant conductor in 2013. When he was promoted to associate in 2015, he became the orchestra’s first associate conductor in more than three decades and the fifth in its 98-year history. He also served as music director of the Cleveland Orchestra Youth Orchestra (COYO), which he led on a four-city tour of China, marking the ensemble’s second international tour and its first to Asia. In 2019, he returned to the Cleveland Orchestra to lead subscription performances of the movie An American in Paris and in 2021 to conduct the orchestra in two concerts at the Blossom Music Festival.

As well as his work in Cleveland and Denver, Brett is in consistent demand as a guest conductor from America to New Zealand.

In addition to Houston, Brett has held assistant conductor posts with the Orchestre National de France and at the Castleton Festival. In 2015, he completed a highly successful five-year tenure as music director of the Saginaw Bay Symphony Orchestra. As an opera conductor, he has conducted nearly a dozen productions, principally during his tenure as music director of the University of Houston’s Moores Opera Center.

Born in Seattle in 1979, Brett holds degrees in conducting from the University of Texas in Austin and composition from Western Washington University, which selected him as its 2014 Young Alumnus of the Year. He studied at the National Conducting Institute and was selected by Kurt Masur as a recipient of the inaugural American Friends of the Mendelssohn Foundation Scholarship. He was also one of five recipients of the League of American Orchestras’ American Conducting Fellowship Program from 2007 to 2010.