MOONLIGHT
Written and directed by Barry Jenkins
Original music by Nicholas Britell
Million Dollar Theatre, Los Angeles (307 S. Broadway)
Tuesday, January 10 (7pm doors, 8pm show)
Post-show conversation with director Barry Jenkins, composer Nicholas Britell, and cast members Mahershala Ali, Naomie Harris, and Trevante Rhodes
SOLD OUT
Wordless Music Orchestra
Ryan McAdams, conductor
Nicholas Britell, piano
Tim Fain, violin
Mellissa Hughes, soprano
A24, Afropunk, Wordless Music, and Spaceland present the world premiere live score of Barry Jenkins’ MOONLIGHT (2016) with accompaniment by the Wordless Music Orchestra, led by conductor Ryan McAdams and the original score’s composer, Nicholas Britell. This premiere event and screening will take place at the historic Million Dollar Theatre in downtown L.A., built in 1918, and projected onto a massive 40′ movie screen.
A timeless story of human connection and self-discovery, MOONLIGHT chronicles the life of a young black man from childhood to adulthood as he struggles to find his place while growing up in a rough neighborhood of Miami. At once a vital portrait of contemporary African American life and an intensely personal and poetic meditation on identity, family, friendship, and love, Moonlight is a groundbreaking piece of cinema that reverberates with deep compassion and universal truths. Anchored by extraordinary performances from a tremendous ensemble cast, Jenkins’s staggering, singular vision is profoundly moving in its portrayal of the moments, people, and unknowable forces that shape our lives and make us who we are. Directed by Barry Jenkins. Starring Naomie Harris, André Holland, Mahershala Ali, Janelle Monáe, Trevante Rhodes, Ashton Sanders, and Jharrel Jerome.
Nicholas Britell: “I am incredibly excited to be performing the MOONLIGHT score live with the Wordless Music Orchestra on January 10th in Los Angeles. Working with director Barry Jenkins on MOONLIGHT was a truly phenomenal experience for me. Within the score, we explored a very wide range of musical concepts and textures. At times, the score is quite intimate, attempting to convey what I felt was the poetry of the film. At other times, the music takes on a soaring orchestral ‘violin concerto’ scale. Our amazing violinist Tim Fain will be performing the virtuosic violin solos, and I will be performing the piano with the orchestra. ”
“In addition, the score for MOONLIGHT involves many complex soundscapes and audio textures which we will be re-creating live. Early on in our collaboration, Barry and I discussed the idea of applying ‘Chopped & Screwed’ techniques to the score. In Chopped & Screwed music, tracks are slowed down and the result is an enriched and deepened sonic texture. Within our live scoring in January with Wordless Music, we will be using a variety of techniques (including real-time pitch shifting) to re-create in real-time what we made in the studio. I am thrilled to get the opportunity to perform this music live with the film!”
This event was made possible by the generosity of Project Cobalt.