Huntington Beach High School’s MMET (Music, Media, Entertainment, Technology) Program, just wrapped up three back-to-back Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) performances. With the help of the APA (Academy of the Performing Arts) Orchestra, at the First Christian Church of Huntington Beach to raise funds for the program, as well as funding the music classes offered by the school APA’s MMET was able to put on this show. The first performance was on Friday, February 2, and the other two were on Saturday, February 3.
“The most exciting part about doing this show was getting all of the pieces to come together. From the bands to the orchestra to the choir, there were a lot of pieces of this show that had to come together just right to work. It was a very exciting process.” says Nicole Kubis, a music teacher at HBHS and a director of the show.
“The players aren’t used to playing with a loud rock band, having to wear headphones to hear the metronome that’s keeping us in sync with our media content. It’s all new to everyone and complicated. So these were challenges, which could have been better, but also the final result when it works is very exciting and there were a number of songs that got pretty transcendent. I did find myself tearing up several times. That’s the real payoff for the months and months of work.” says Michael Simmons, an instructor for MMET.
The stage was decorated with colorful lights and had multiple screens displaying atmospheric videos. The screen in the center of the stage played ELO concert videos, and two screens on the left and right showed a documentary (narrated by Michael Simmons) of Jeff Lynne, the creator of ELO, and several different camera angles showing both the band and the orchestra. There were also screens playing videos of students giving ASL translations of the song lyrics to any deaf or hard-of-hearing audience members. The band played on the main stage, while the orchestra played in front of the stage. This combination of both classical and rock music done by the students succeeded in emulating the essence of an actual Electric Light Orchestra concert.
The players performed several songs from the wide discography of Lynne, one of the founders of the Electric Light Orchestra, from his time in not only ELO but also songs from The Idle Race, The Move, and The Traveling Willburys. Throughout several points in the show, the performers would also switch between different outfits and cosmetics, a nod to how Lynne would wear different masks and wigs during his earlier shows.
The show was divided into two acts, the first being centered around Lynne’s more orchestral ELO tracks. During act two, the string players stop and the band plays some of the various disco-style tracks. In between some songs, the documentary would play explaining the history of Lynne and his different albums, as well as the reception each release received from both fans and critics. The documentary also covered the critically panned 1980 film “Xanadu,” of which ELO composed the soundtrack, and explained how they earned the title of “guilty pleasure band” from it. The songs that played in the second act showed Lynne’s musical style change that occurred around the time of the film’s release, and how the orchestral aspect of the band was left in the past.
In the end, the Lynne and The Electric Light Orchestra Story show came together with teamwork between the orchestra and the band and works as a great way to introduce newcomers to ELO and Lynne’s work.
