Concert tour of "Star Wars" to kick off in October

George Lucas, the executive producer of the new animated film ''Star Wars: The Clone Wars'', poses a Storm Trooper character at the film's U.S. premiere in Hollywood, California August 10, 2008.

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A concert version of "Star Wars", featuring a live symphony orchestra, huge screens, film clips and a traveling exhibit, will kick off a North American tour in October with plans to go global in 2010, organizers said on Thursday.

"Star Wars: In Concert" is described as a multi-media event that features music from all six of the movie scores written by John Williams and teams them with footage from the movies in a venture backed by "Star Wars" creator George Lucas.

"We've taken the key themes from the music and cut together all the images that fit with each theme, so you can really get a sense of how the music played into the images," Lucas said in a statement.

"The whole soundtrack is a testament to John Williams' creativity and his extraordinary ability to enhance the emotional aspects of the films," he said.

Anthony Daniels, the actor who portrayed robot C-3PO in the movies, will narrate the event live. The 2 to 2-1/2 hour show will include some original film montages created by editors at Lucasfilm, and an exhibit accompanying the concert will include the full costumes for Jedi masters Kit Fisto and Plo Koon as well as new and old props from the six movies.

The tour will start in Anaheim, California on Oct 1 and play about 40 dates in the United States and Canada before the end of 2009.

A spokeswoman for producers Another Planet Touring said they hoped to take the show on the road to Europe and other parts of the world in 2010. Tickets for the U.S. leg go on sale on August 1.

More than four years in the making, the show had its first outing in London in April under the title "Star Wars: A Musical Journey."

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)