Bay Area promoter goes global for "Star Wars" tour

NASHVILLE (Billboard) - For Another Planet Touring, very good news it is.

The San Francisco-based promoter is producing the upcoming global tour of "Star Wars: In Concert," a conceptualized, multimedia event driven by live symphonic performances of music from all six of John Williams' "Star Wars" scores.

"It is the first time in 30 years that George Lucas, Lucasfilm and John Williams have authorized a show to go out," Another Planet chief Gregg Perloff says. "It's basically the 'greatest hits' of 'Star Wars,' with a rock 'n' roll production."

The tour opens October 1 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, and will travel the globe in a five-year production deal for Another Planet.

Founded in 2003 by former Bill Graham Presents president/CEO Perloff, Another Planet is co-producer of the Outside Lands and Treasure Island music festivals and the exclusive promoter of Bay Area venues like the Greek Theater in Berkeley, the Independent nightclub in San Francisco and the Fox Theater in Oakland.

So how did it end up with this tasty piece of international arena-level entertainment?

"We're just lucky," Perloff says modestly. "We live in the Bay Area, we're a locally owned and operated company, as is Lucasfilm."

Initially, "Star Wars: In Concert" will book "several hundred" dates worldwide, beginning with 50 in North America, then Europe. Another Planet is partnering with arenas and arena management companies in promoting the dates. As was the case with other nontraditional live tours like Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Walking With Dinosaurs, much of the promotion will be geared toward telling ticket buyers about what's being staged. To that end, the tour's Web site, StarWarsInConcert.com, features information about the show, a message from Williams, videoclips and links to buy tickets when they go on sale.

"We're trying to make the ticket price very accessible," Perloff says. "Most markets will have a $75 top ticket, a few markets will be $85, and then a VIP thing. But mostly it's $75, $55 and $35."

Narrated live by Anthony Daniels (the actor who portrayed C-3PO in all six films), the production features a full symphony orchestra and choir, accompanied by specially edited footage from the films displayed on a three-story-tall high-definition LED screen.

With the combination of clips from the movies and the spectacle of a live orchestra playing Williams' stirring scores, Perloff is hopeful that "Star Wars: In Concert" will find an enthusiastic audience.

"If we can bring a new audience for this show ... and then also attract what I would call a normal pop-sensibility audience that would say, 'Wow, I didn't have any idea what an orchestra sounded like live,' I would be just ecstatic," he says.

(Editing by SheriLinden at Reuters)