​A star-crossed performance by F-M Symphony

By John Showalter

When you think of the great figures of English literature, it’s very possible that the first name that comes to your mind is William Shakespeare. Arguably no other writer has had a greater influence on subsequent English-speaking artistic culture than the Bard of Avon.

So far reaching has been his legacy, in fact, that even artists of other languages and other mediums have been inspired by him, from films by the Japanese director Akira Kurosawa, to operas by the Italian Giuseppe Verdi, and even ballets by the great Russian composers Pyotr Tchaikovsky and Sergei Prokofiev. Which brings us to the upcoming performance by the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra.

In celebration of Fargo’s Shakespearefest, the F-M Orchestra will be performing four musical interpretations of the timeless story of the star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet. There will be excerpts from the ballet composed by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, the famous 19th century Russian composer who is well-known for pieces like “Swan Lake,” “The Nutcracker Suite” and “The 1812 Overture.” There will also be excerpts from 20th century composer Sergei Prokofiev, known for “Peter and the Wolf” and for doing the score to Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story,” a 20th century retelling of “Romeo and Juliet” factoring in the ever poignant issue of racial prejudice.

Also, the performance will mark the world premiere of “Heart’s Ease,” a new piece written for strings by our very own Daniel Breedan of Concordia College. The piece takes its inspiration from the famous point in the play when Romeo discovers the seemingly lifeless body of his lover in a tomb and despairs of losing her. Breedan composed the piece exclusively for the upcoming performance, so that should be a treat for any of the spectators.

Linda Boyd, the executive director of the Fargo-Moorhead Symphony Orchestra, pointed out that these selections were largely chosen for their accessibility, as well as to show an “evolution of orchestral music” over the course of a century. Not only is the romantic tragedy of “Romeo and Juliet” a tale that most people at least have a cursory knowledge of, but the composers chosen were not esoteric and very much wrote music for the everyman. In fact, that’s exactly why Tchaikovsky drew criticism for his work from the elite, as well as the fact that they didn’t consider his version Russian enough. However, his music has stood the test of time for over a century, and it’s easy to see why when, as Boyd puts it, “The beauty of his music washes over you as soon as it starts playing.”

Sixty years later, Russia would bring us another great composer with Sergei Prokofiev. At first getting his start in ballets, like the “Romeo and Juliet” that the orchestra will be playing excerpts from, he would later go on to create scores in the films of visionary director Sergei Eisenstein. His nationalist epics “The Battleship Potemkin” and “Alexander Nevsky” would go on to inspire future generations of film directors. Even though the pieces being performed by Prokofiev are before his foray into motion pictures, Boyd states that they are very accessible and at times sound cinematic, like you’re watching a film.

Lastly, many of us are familiar with the Broadway musical “West Side Story,” a retelling of the classic story set in 1950s New York City, with the stand-ins for our Romeo and Juliet being a Caucasian man and a Puerto-Rican woman who, despite their ability to look past the color of their skin and love each other for the people they were inside, are torn apart by the racially-charged gang violence of their comrades. After the success of the musical, Bernstein isolated the score from the show sans the song numbers, and created a sort of “suite” of “West Side Story” to be performed solely by orchestra. Not to fear, the rollicking, industrious, big city feel of the music is in no way lost because of this.

For those who are interested, Linda Boyd points out that 45 minutes before all of F-M Orchestra’s performances, Chris Zimmerman, the music director, will have a discussion and question and answer segment before the show for anyone looking to be educated on the pieces they are about to listen to or their composers. Altogether with intermission, the performance should last about two hours.

If you’ve never visited our concert hall (with orchestra members largely from the area, mind you), or you’re just a lover of classical music, you should certainly take in this performance during the 85th year of our great orchestra. Feel free to bring your true love with you, too. I just hope that you have a better outlook than the titular characters of the show.

IF YOU GO

Romeo and Juliet

Saturday, Jan. 23, 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Jan. 24, 2 p.m.

NDSU Festival Concert Hall and Beckwith Recital Hall, 12th Avenue North and Bolley Drive.