La La Land in Concert

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https://www.hurwitzconcerts.com/la-la-land-in-concert

Date Reviewed: 08/06/2026

Ten years after its release, La La Land remains one of the most beloved movie musicals of the modern era. Damien Chazelle’s Academy Award-winning film captured audiences with its dazzling visuals, unforgettable music and bittersweet story of love, ambition and sacrifice. Now, La La Land in Concert offers audiences the opportunity to experience the film in an entirely new way, with Justin Hurwitz’s celebrated score performed live by a full orchestra and jazz ensemble alongside a screening of the movie.

For fans of the film, the experience is both nostalgic and revelatory.

From the opening notes of “Another Day of Sun”, the orchestra brings a fresh energy to the story. While the film itself remains unchanged, hearing the score performed live transforms the experience. Musical details that can sometimes be overlooked in a traditional cinema screening emerge with remarkable clarity, highlighting the sophistication and emotional depth of Hurwitz’s Oscar-winning composition.

The music in La La Land never simply sits behind the story; it is part of the story’s pulse. Hurwitz’s melodies have a way of returning to you with surprising force: a piano phrase, a sweep of strings or a burst of jazz can instantly recall the feeling of an entire scene. Songs such as “City of Stars”, “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” and the recurring “Mia and Sebastian’s Theme” are woven through the narrative as emotional signposts, charting the evolving relationship between the film’s two dreamers. With the orchestra positioned before the audience, these moments felt richer, warmer and more visceral, giving the score a physical presence that surrounded the audience and lifted the film’s most romantic, playful and intimate moments to a new emotional height.

This was especially thrilling when individual musicians rose to perform their solo moments, the spotlight turning to them as the audience’s attention shifted from the screen to the live artistry unfolding on stage. These moments added a wonderful theatrical charge to the concert. They reminded us that this was not simply a film screening with music attached, but a live performance in its own right, shaped by the skill, presence and energy of the musicians.

The smoothness of the live performance also deserves particular commendation. The orchestra was impressively in tune with what was happening on screen, moving with the film’s shifts in mood, rhythm and timing with remarkable precision. This placed an additional demand on George Ellis, who had to keep the orchestra together musically while also ensuring that the live score landed at exactly the right points in the film. That is no trivial task, and the apparent ease with which it was achieved was one of the quiet triumphs of the evening.

One element I would have loved to see brought further into focus was the piano. Given how central it is to La La Land,  particularly in carrying “Mia and Sebastian’s Theme” and shaping the emotional identity of the film, I found myself wishing it had been more visible and more clearly foregrounded on stage. It was clearly present somewhere within the performance, but for an instrument so integral to the film’s soul, I had hoped it would have a strong visual presence. There were also moments when the film’s vocals felt a little softened against the scale and impact of the live orchestral sound. This did not detract from the overall power of the performance, but in a concert format, where the balance between screen and orchestra is so important, it was noticeable at times.

As a celebration of the film’s tenth anniversary, La La Land in Concert succeeded beautifully. It honoured both the artistry of the original film and the extraordinary music that helped make it a cultural phenomenon. For long-time fans, it was an opportunity to revisit a modern classic with fresh emotional force. For newcomers, it offered a chance to discover why this story of dreamers, lovers, and life’s difficult choices continues to resonate with audiences around the world.

A decade after its release, La La Land still asks a question that remains universally relatable: what if? Hearing that question accompanied by a live orchestra made the answer feel more moving than ever.

Reviewed by Irena Begelfor