NARUTO THE SYMPHONIC EXPERIENCE Comes To The Jacksonville Center For The Performing Arts This May

Naruto The Symphonic Experience, fresh off its successful European tour seen by more than 60,000 fans, will visit more than 60 cities on its first North American tour including a stop at the Jacksonville Center for the Performing Arts for one show only on May 4, 2025 at 7:00 p.m.

For the first time ever, audiences will get their chance to see an original, unforgettable two-hour feature film (shown with subtitles) meticulously created by Julien Vallespi and Quentin Benayoun from the first 220 original episodes of the beloved Naruto animated series that is currently celebrating the 20th anniversary of its original TV anime adaptation. The orchestra will perform the most iconic songs and themes from the series, live-to-picture, as scenes are projected on a full-size, HD cinema screen. 

Tickets go on sale Friday, December 6, at 10 am. Tickets can be purchased at fscjartistseries.org or by calling (904) 632-5000. A VIP Experience will be available  and includes VIP laminate and lanyard, Exclusive VIP merchandise bundle, and VIP Priority Line Access to Merchandise Stands. To access the VIP Package each attendee must pre-purchase a VIP ticket/ voucher that can be combined with any ticket in any seating category. 

"We invite Naruto fans to celebrate Naruto with this unique, live-to-picture experience. We created a two-hour film enhanced with a live, symphonic orchestra because the soundtrack plays such a huge role in the anime's success and is praised by the legions of fans time and time again,” says producer Julien Vallespi. “The original score, composed by Toshio Masuda is a perfect blend between pop and rock arrangements as well as traditional Japanese instruments like the Shakuhachi and Shamisen.” 

With worldwide popularity and more than 250 million copies sold, Naruto, by Masashi Kishimoto, is a shonen manga that started in Weekly Shonen Jump in 1999 and concluded in 2014 after 700 chapters. The story revolves around Naruto Uzumaki, a ninja who overcomes his past and battles countless rivals to eventually become the Hokage, the leader of the Village Hidden in the Leaves. 

The anime began airing on the TV Tokyo network in 2002, followed by Naruto Shippuden (2007–2017). The 20th anniversary of the TV broadcast was commemorated in October 2022. Being distributed worldwide immediately after broadcast in Japan has made Naruto an internationally celebrated series beloved by people all over the world. Eleven animated feature films have also been released, as well as apps, games, and merchandise, art exhibitions, 2.5D musicals, music festivals, and Kabuki performances. 

Vallespi spent months selecting the best and most iconic moments from more than 70 hours of the first 220 episodes, identifying and choosing appropriate narrative arcs, and combining the best dialogue, scenes, and musical sequences. Significant synchronization work had to be done to match the score to the film, and to make everything as smooth as possible for the conductor and the musicians. “This symphonic-rock show is a tribute to Kishimoto's anime, and Masuda's music,” says Vallespi. 

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