“Halloween Spooktacular” by South Shore Symphony at the Madison Theatre at Molloy

South Shore Symphony Presents Its First Halloween Spooktacular at the Madison Theater

Long Island’s renowned South Shore Symphony invites ghosts and goblins of all ages to its first ever Halloween Spooktacular on Saturday November 1, 2025 at 7:30pm in the Madison Theater (on the campus of Molloy University) in Rockville Centre, NY.

“Halloween concerts have become one of the most popular ways to celebrate the holiday around the country, and for good reason,” says Adam Glaser, South Shore Symphony Music Director and Conductor. “After all, classical music has a rich history of repertoire evoking ghosts, spirits and the macabre. The breadth of colors that a symphony orchestra provides makes it the perfect palette with which to tell the spookiest of stories.”
Glaser will lead the orchestra musicians – all decked out in costumes – in an evening of orchestral favorites. The audience is strongly encouraged to join in the fun by wearing costumes (but are also welcome to “come as you are”).

“This is a wonderful opportunity for adults and young people to enjoy an evening of accessible music in a fun, light-hearted environment,” says Wayne Lipton, President of the South Shore Symphony. “This event will really capture the energy of the holiday, and it’s a great way to cap off the Halloween season.”

The South Shore Symphony’s 2025 Halloween Spooktacular will feature six of the most popular and accessible works in the repertoire. In fact, nearly all of them will be familiar to audiences given their well-known usage in beloved movies, television shows and cartoons. For instance, many listeners will instantly recognize the concert’s opening work, “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice: by the French composer Paul Dukas. This piece was the “soundtrack” for the beloved segment in Disney’s Fantasia during which Mickey Mouse plays the role of the apprentice who begins practicing his boss’ magic tricks before understanding how to control
them.

The second piece, “Funeral March of a Marionette,” also originated from the pen of a French composer, Charles Gounod, but ultimately found its way to Hollywood as the famous theme to the TV show, Alfred Hitchcock Presents. While Belgian composer César Franck’s tone poem, The Accursed Huntsman, is a little less well known to American audiences, it is perhaps one of the most vivid depictions of a horror story
ever composed. This wickedly colorful music is inspired by German poet Gottfried August Bürger’s 18th-century Romantic ballad, “The Wild Hunter,” which tells of a Count who defiantly goes on a hunting expedition on the Sabbath, his violation ultimately earning condemnation by demons. The piece has four distinct sections, played without pause: “The Peaceful Sunday Morning,” “The Hunt,” “The Curse” and “The Demons’ Chase.”

Of course, German composer Richard Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries may be among the most recognizable themes of all time, given its role as Elmer Fudd’s “Kill the Wabbit” mantra in the Bugs Bunny cartoons. The piece itself, excerpted from Act III his Wagner’s opera, Die Walküre, is an incredible thrill-ride that highlights the orchestral brass in fantastic fashion. Spanish composer Manuel de Falla’s “Ritual Fire Dance” is excerpted from his 1915 ballet, El amor brujo (The Bewitched Lover). With an ingenious use of trilling strings to evoke the flames, along with sudden dynamic bursts and clever harmonies, this short piece describes a gypsy girl’s
attempt to exorcise the spirit of her dead jealous lover.

The concert closes with John Williams’ beloved music from the 1982 film, E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial. This 10-minute concert work, “Adventures on Earth,” includes music from the famous flying bicycle theme, and brilliantly captures the excitement, drama and youthful wonder of this emotionally rich “alien invasion” story.

Here is the concert program:

Dukas: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
Falla: Ritual Fire Dance, from the ballet El Amor Brujo
Franck: The Accursed Huntsman
Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries, from the opera Die Walküre
Gounod: Funeral March of a Marionette
Williams: Adventures on Earth, from the film E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial

Ticket prices are as follows: Adults: $35; Seniors: $30; Students: $10; Children under 12: Free! Tickets are available by visiting the Madison Theatre website, www.madisontheatreny.org, or calling or visiting the Madison Theatre Box OPice at 516-323-4444. 1000 Hempstead Avenue, Rockville Centre, NY.

To learn more about the South Shore Symphony, visit www.sssymphony.org.

Contacts:

Wayne Lipton, President. wlipton@ccpmd.com. (516) 984-4620
Adam Glaser, Music Director/Conductor. adamglaser70@optonline.net. (203) 253-1962