True heroism is remarkable sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve others at whatever cost.
American Tennis Player Arthur Ashe
We Salute
Veterans Day is Monday, Nov. 11, with several local events schedule. The City of Wyoming will host its annual Veterans Day Breakfast at the Wyoming Senior Center and the Wyoming Kentwood Area Chamber of Commerce will be at Kentwood’s AMVETS Post 23. On Wednesday, Nov. 13, the Mr. Sid’s Afternoon Video Series will be hosting a program honoring local vets. For more information, click here.
Become Civic Minded
This Sunday, Nov. 10, City of Kentwood Commissioner Emily Bridson will host a Community Conversation on Homelessness from 2 – 4 p.m. at Broad Leaf Local Beer, 2885 Lake Eastbrook Blvd. SE. Keynote speaker will be Judge William G. Kelly, the chief judge for Kentwood’s 62B District Court. For more information, click here.
The Grand Rapids Symphony performs the music of “Home Alone” as the film is shown on Nov. 12.
Stay ‘Home Alone’ or hit some craft shows
The weekend will be full of craft shows such as the one at the Byron Center High School, 8500 Burlingame Ave. SW. The show runs form 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. Kentwood’s St. Mary Magdalen Catholic Church, 1253 52nd St. SE, also will be hosting its craft show from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. On Tuesday, Nov. 12, get into the holiday spirit as the Grand Rapids Symphony presents the movie classic “Home Alone.” The symphony will perform the John Williams’ score as the film is shown.
Fun Fact: I’m not heavy, I’m a bridge
The world’s largest and heaviest vertical-lift bridge is the Houghton Hancock Bridge, also called the Portage Lake Lift Bridge, located in Houghton, Michigan, the home of Michigan Technology University. About 35,000 tons of concrete and about 7,000 tons of steel was used in the bridge’s construction. The double-decker bridge is the major connection across Portage Lake which cuts across the Keweenaw Peninsula with a canal that links to Lake Superior. And for the beer fans, Houghton is also home to the Keweenaw Brewing Company.
Home Alone, a moderately budgeted film by a little-known director, was expected to be a minor hit for the Christmas season when it was released in November 1990. Instead, the film starring Macaulay Culkin became a holiday sensation, holding the No. 1 spot at the North American box office for 12 consecutive weekends, remaining in theaters until the following June, and spending 27 years at the top of the all-time, highest-grossing, live-action comedies in the United States.
Back by popular demand, the modern classic starring Macaulay Culkin returns to the Grand Rapids Popsstage for one night only at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 12, in DeVos Performance Hall.
Associate Conductor John Varineau will conduct the concert that’s part of the Gerber SymphonicBoomseries, which continues in December with the Old National Bank Cirque de Noelon Dec. 18-19. Gerber is the series sponsor for both programs.
For the second year in a row, the Grand Rapids Pops performs John Williams’ score with its hummable melodies that evoke a child’s view of family and Christmas in the Midwest.
Screenwriter John Hughes had the idea for Home Alone while writing and directing the 1989 film, Uncle Buck. Culkin, who had a starring role in the film, inspired Hughes to create the precocious protagonist, Kevin McCallister.
Lukas Kendall, founder and editor of Film Score Monthly, told NPR, “[John Williams] has a breadth and depth of talent and career that really started before there were The Beatles; [today he is] essentially the dean of American composers. His themes sound inevitable. They sound like they fell out of his sleeves; they sound like they’ve always existed.”
Williams sets Home Alone apart from other live-action, comedies meant for the entire family with music that’s imaginative and memorable, capturing both the rambunctious nature of the film and the essence of the holiday spirit.
Tickets
Tickets for Home Alone start at $18, available by calling the GRS ticket office at (616) 454-9451 ext. 4. Phone orders will be charged a $3 per ticket handling fee ($18 maximum per order). There are no fees for tickets purchased in person at the GRS ticket office at 300 Ottawa Ave. NW, Suite 100, (located across the street from Calder Plaza). Ticket office hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Tickets are available at the DeVos Place box office, weekdays 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. or on the day of the concert beginning two hours prior to the performance. Tickets may be purchased online at GRSymphony.org.
Full of clever antics and comical wit, Home Alone is sure to get everyone into the holiday spirit.
A modern holiday classic starring Macaulay Culkin, Home Alone is the story of an 8-year-old troublemaker, accidentally left behind by his family on Christmas vacation, who must protect his home from a pair of inept burglars.
See the full-length 1990 film with the Grand Rapids Pops performing John Williams’ score with its hummable melodies that evoke a child’s view of family, danger and Christmas in the Midwest.
Associate Conductor John Varineau will conduct this second concert of the Gerber SymphonicBoom series for one night only on Thursday November 29 at 7:30 p.m. in DeVos Performance Hall.
Screenwriter John Hughes had the idea for Home Alone while writing and directing the 1989 film, Uncle Buck. Macaulay Culkin played a starring role in the film, which inspired Hughes to create the precocious protagonist, Kevin McCallister.
Home Alone dominated the box office, making over $17 million in more than 1,200 theaters in its opening weekend and becoming the highest grossing film of 1990. For 27 years, the film held a Guinness World Record as the highest-grossing, live-action comedy in the United States.
Though the film is beloved for its hilarious catchphrases, stunts and mishaps, the comedic elements of Home Aloneare offset by a delightful magic that only John Williams can bring to a film score.
The Grand Rapids Symphony performs the musical score of the movie “Home Alone” while the film plays at a one-night only concert set for Thursday, Nov. 29.
Lukas Kendall, founder and editor of Film Score Monthly, told NPR, “[John Williams] has a breadth and depth of talent and career that really started before there were The Beatles; [today he is] essentially the dean of American composers. His themes sound inevitable. They sound like they fell out of his sleeves; they sound like they’ve always existed.”
John Williams sets Home Alone apart from other live-action, comedies meant for the entire family with music that’s imaginative and memorable, capturing both the rambunctious nature of the film and the essence of the holiday spirit.
Associate Conductor John Varineau, now in his fourth decade on the podium for the Grand Rapids Symphony, is our movie maestro who conducts most of the Grand Rapids Symphony’s concerts featuring film plus live music. Later this season, he’ll lead the Grand Rapids Pops in The Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl on March 8-10 in DeVos Performance Hall. Tickets are on sale beginning at $18 adults, $5 students.
John Williams is the second-most nominated person in the history of the Oscars and has received five Academy Awards and 51 Oscar nominations plus seven British Academy Awards, 23 Grammys, four Golden Globes, and five Emmys. In 2016 he received the 44th Life Achievement Award from the American Film Institute, the first time a composer was honored with this award.
He has composed the music for more than 100 films, including the themes used in the Harry Potter movies such as Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which the Grand Rapids Symphony will perform in February. Williams also has composed the scores for all eight Star Wars films and for the Indiana Jones series, as well as for Superman, Memoirs of a Geisha, and The Book Thief. His 45-year artistic partnership with director Steven Spielberg has resulted in many of Hollywood’s most acclaimed and successful films, including Schindler’s List, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, Jaws, Jurassic Park, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Saving Private Ryan, Lincoln, The BFG and The Post.
Williams served as music director of the Boston Pops Orchestra for 14 seasons and remains their Laureate Conductor. He also has composed numerous works for the concert stage including two symphonies, and concertos commissioned by many of America’s most prominent orchestras.
Williams has composed themes for four Olympic Games, and in 2003, he received the Olympic Order, the IOC’s highest honor, for his contributions to the Olympic movement.
In 2004, he received a Kennedy Center Honor, given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. In 2009 he received the National Medal of Arts, the highest award given by the U.S. Government to an artist.
Tickets
Tickets for Home Alone start at $32 and are available at the GRS ticket office, weekdays 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at 300 Ottawa Ave. NW, Suite 100, (located across from the Calder Plaza), or by calling 616.454.9451 x 4. (Phone orders will be charged a $2 per ticket service fee, with a $12 maximum.)
Tickets are available at the DeVos Place box office, weekdays 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. or on the day of the concert beginning two hours prior to the performance. Tickets also may be purchased online at GRSymphony.org.
