Like so many Marvel fans, I’ll never forget sitting in a theater for both Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame. If you saw the two Marvel movies in order you doubtless had a similar experience to mine: Never have two movies felt more like an event in my lifetime than getting to behold how the many threads set up over the matter of a decade transformed into a satisfying and– somewhat Shakespearean – finale that had my jaw ajar. While I’ve always treasured those theatrical moments as a closing chapter to an incredible era of action cinema, when I witnessed Marvel Studios’ Infinity Saga Concert Experience at the Hollywood Bowl over the weekend, it brought my fandom to a whole new level.
CinemaBlend was invited to share in the high energy of seeing a retrospective of the Infinity Saga with 15,000+ fans, and it has just become a new core memory for me. The music experience performed by the Los Angeles Philharmonic across two nights is the first of its kind for the franchise. I gained an even deeper appreciation for the MCU’s legacy thus far, especially in terms of its collection of powerful movie themes, and I need to talk about the best moments from the music-filled evening.
The Night Began With The Marvel Studios Theme Being Performed Live, And I Was Nerding Out
The show started with Marvel boss Kevin Feige coming to the stage to present the event by offering the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s distinguished conductor Gustavo Dudamel a “vibranium” baton to wield across the two and a half hour live event. (And, I must also point out that the harp on stage was fabulously painted withIron Man colors!)
With that, the experience got underway with a live performance of the “Marvel Studios Theme,” that we’ve heard many times over at the start of MCU movies and TV shows. It set the tone for a beautiful night out by elevating the piece in brand new ways. The opening is seriously never going to be the same again with any upcoming Marvel movies I see from now on.
I Was Bursting With Nostalgia Over The Formation Of The Avengers
The show then proceeded to go from the first Iron Man and work its way to the historical first Avengers film where the original team collided to fight Loki. Now, that movie came out more than a decade ago. Sure, a decade might be nothing to some people, but as a 28-year-old, I realized during the show that I’ve been following these characters grace the big screen for over half of my life now.
Not only are they part of pop culture, but they are woven in the fabric of my (and so many fans in attendance) upbringing and lifetime. It was really special to see the first flight of Robert Downey Jr’s Iron Man with a live orchestra soundtracking it or even Chris Evan’s Cap having his first hero moments before the concert victoriously built up to “The Avengers Theme”. All while fans of literally all ages oohed and ahhed.
The Spider-Man Theme Got Me Super Emotional
Now, it should be noted that the concert experience didn’t go through every one of the 23 Marvel movies in the Infinity Saga. It completely skipped over the Iron Man, Thor and Captain America sequels along with Age of Ultron and gave heroes like Doctor Strange, Ant-Man and Captain Marvel short and sweet tributes. But, honestly that was alright with me given the gorgeous way my favorite MCU hero, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man was highlighted. I’ve always loved Michael Giacchino’s score for Homecoming and on, but after seeing the other themes prior live just before it, I could really hear why it’s so special.
It’s a softer piece of music than the others, implementing a lot more strings and that really encapsulates how unique and human Peter Parker is in relation to the other heroes. I had tears in my eyes as the orchestra played the Spidey segment, especially considering they showed his “Come On, Spider-Man!” moment from the end of Homecoming.
My Appreciation For Black Panther In The MCU Soared Into The Stars
During the show, I also made up my mind that Black Panther’s music is the studio’s greatest achievement in terms of this medium once this part of the concert was unveiled. The music is much different from everything we heard before that and brings new meaning to “epic superhero music” that I really felt the emotion of as scenes of the movie played on the screen.
Plus, a musician with the talking drum came out to round out the orchestra in a really stunning way. I still cannot believe Chadwick Boseman died four years ago, and I cannot imagine the role being recast – as the internet has been discussing lately.
I Was Very Happy To See Black Widow Be Given A Tribute By The Orchestra
While the first half of the concert focused on introducing all the heroes, the second half was about saying goodbye to the Infinity Saga, particularly through highlighting the best scenes from Infinity War and Endgame. More on that in a bit, but first, here’s something I wasn’t expecting from the concert: a Black Widow tribute section!
As Marvel fans know, Natasha Romanoff dies in Endgame while she and Hawkeye are on Vormir to retrieve the Soul Stone. I’ve never been able to pick out any sort of Black Widow piece of music if I’m being honest, but I loved how the Hollywood Bowl concert dedicated an entire piece of music to the character’s memory. It was seriously beautiful and moving as it showed scenes from throughout her time in the MCU.
Somehow, My Experience With The Infinity War And Endgame Battles Got Elevated
Something I’ve yet to talk about the experience was how interactive the whole thing felt. No, it wasn’t simply a movie screen and some instruments, there was a lot more going on than that! For one, the massive crowd was given these light up bracelets that would change colors depending on the scenes we were watching. Also, there was projections around the rim of the historic bowl and lights across the stage that would go along with the scenes being showcased as well.
This was very much effective during the entire show, but specifically when we got to the famed Infinity War and Endgame battles. While Thanos was collecting the stones, the rim of the bowl showed which stones he had acquired. It added a lot more emotion to the scene where Thanos takes the Mind Stone from Vision, leading half the universe to turn to dust. I never thought I would have a better experience than the first time I watched those movies, but the concert gave each scene a new weight that just hit harder!
Plus, Michael Giacchino Surprised The Audience With His Brilliant Fantastic Four Theme
The show ended with a beautiful fireworks display that paid tribute to each Avenger and brought me right back to seeing Endgame for the first time. But, in Marvel branding, there was also an “end credits” of sorts for the show right after that. Michael Giacchino himself unexpectedly came on stage to interrupt a group of fans starting to leave the venue and ask if they had just four more minutes to spare. And by four he meant that he had the orchestra play the theme for next summer’s Fantastic Four: First Steps. Sure, it previously debuted at D23, but seeing the orchestra play the piece live got me more excited one of 2025’s movies than I had expected to be.
The tune felt completely sci-fi, epic and bouncy. It made me feel like the movie is going to be really fun and otherworldly to the other MCU movies we’ve seen so far. While I felt mostly nostalgic during the concert, the finale made me feel more hopeful for what’s next in the Multiverse Saga!
Marvel has made so many quintessential themes from the franchise over the years, but have never been on center stage quite the same way as this. I hope these two nights are not the only times Marvel does the Infinity Saga Concert Experience, because it was one for the books!
Source Agencies
