By Marisa Dawson, Production Photos by Tim Norris
The classic film will screen at The Astro Theater this Friday as a live band performs its soundtrack alongside David Bowie’s original vocals.
Nearly 40 years after Labyrinth first introduced audiences to the Goblin King, Sarah and a fantastical world of puppets and creatures, fans will have the opportunity to experience the cult classic in a new way this Friday night.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: In Concert arrives at The Astro Theater in La Vista on Oct. 9, bringing the 1986 film to a large HD screen while a live band performs the soundtrack in sync with David Bowie’s original vocals.
The show is part of a North American tour celebrating the film’s 40th anniversary. Doors open at 7 p.m., with the performance beginning at 8 p.m. The event is open to all ages. Tickets are available here: https://theastrotheater.com/event/labyrinth-in-concert/
For John Kinsner (pictured below), CEO and founder of Black Ink Presents, the company producing the tour, the experience is about more than watching a familiar movie with live music. It is an opportunity for fans to celebrate a film that has remained meaningful across generations.
“First of all, we like to think of this as a really fan-forward experience,” Kinsner said.
From the moment audiences enter the theater, he said, they are surrounded by people who share their enthusiasm, whether they have loved the film for decades or are introducing it to their children and grandchildren. Costumes are a major part of the experience. Many fans arrive dressed as their favorite characters, and the production gathers some of the best costumes for a contest onstage before the film begins.
Kinsner said the idea grew from his own experiences attending comic and anime conventions, where he regularly encountered fans dressed as Jareth, played by Bowie, or Sarah, played by Jennifer Connelly.
“I just knew that there was a really robust undercurrent of a large fan base that largely wasn’t being serviced,” he said.
He wanted to build an event around the screening that would celebrate the film, its characters and the creative talent behind it, including Jim Henson, Brian Henson and creature designer Brian Froud.
A fan of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Kinsner also wanted to incorporate some of the interactive energy associated with that experience, including costumes and dancing in the aisles. The result is a production designed to bring fans together rather than simply recreate a moviegoing experience.
“More so than other film concerts that we work on, this is really a fan-forward experience built by fans, for fans,” Kinsner said.
Released June 27, 1986, Labyrinth follows Sarah as she navigates a fantastical maze in an attempt to rescue her baby brother from the Goblin King. The film combines fantasy, music, elaborate puppetry and practical effects with themes of growing up and navigating difficult emotions.
Kinsner sees several reasons the movie has maintained its devoted following. The story draws on familiar traditions of fantasy storytelling, while Bowie’s performance as Jareth gives audiences a striking character to revisit. The film also captures a distinctive moment in filmmaking, showcasing Henson’s practical effects and physical creature design alongside early computer-generated imagery.
“Of course, everybody loves puppets,” Kinsner said.
The film’s creative connections also helped establish its lasting appeal. Henson directed the movie, Brian Henson worked on it and voiced and puppeteered Hoggle, and George Lucas served as a producer.
Its popularity continued to grow as audiences discovered it through VHS tapes and cable television in the 1990s, allowing new generations to encounter the film at home. The anniversary has brought renewed attention to the movie, including a theatrical re-release earlier this year and special merchandise releases. But Kinsner said the tour’s approach has not fundamentally changed.
“I don’t think it has changed our approach because we’ve always been so gung-ho and so proud and loving of the show and bringing it around to people,” he said.
Instead, the milestone has helped put the film back into the spotlight and given longtime fans another reason to celebrate it.
The concert centers on one of the film’s most recognizable elements: its music. Bowie’s songs, including “Magic Dance,” “Underground” and “As the World Falls Down,” are performed by a live band, accompanied by his original vocals from the film. The performance also features the orchestral score by composer Trevor Jones.
Kinsner said Jones’ music takes on a new dimension when performed live, particularly during the climactic battle at Goblin City, which he described as a challenging piece for musicians because of its changing time signatures. For Kinsner, hearing the songs performed live also fulfills a childhood wish.
“When I was a kid, I always fantasized about David Bowie singing these songs live, which, of course, he would never do,” he said.
The concert makes that experience possible in a different way, preserving Bowie’s vocals while musicians perform the music live in sync with the film. Making that happen required substantial work behind the scenes. Kinsner said the production team had access to Trevor Jones’ score but could not find sheet music documenting how Bowie’s songs had been constructed for the film. The team had to transcribe and recreate the songs note by note, matching the versions heard onscreen.
Fans may notice that the songs in the film differ in tempo and cadence from the versions released on the soundtrack.
“We had the support of the Bowie estate, but they had nothing to give us in terms of artifacts from those sessions when these songs were written,” Kinsner said.
Recreating the music to match the film precisely was a significant undertaking, but it is central to delivering the experience audiences expect.
Although nostalgia draws many people to the show, Kinsner said the production has also become a family-friendly way to introduce younger audiences to the film. Children who arrive in costume receive special consideration during the costume contest.
“We kind of have a rule with the costume contest that if any kids come in costume, in character, they automatically win the costume contest,” he said.
The audience response has sometimes been more enthusiastic than the production anticipated.
Kinsner recalled that during the “Magic Dance” sequence at early performances, audience members began throwing babies dressed as Toby, the film’s baby character, into the air. The team eventually added a reminder at the beginning of the show asking people not to do so.
Among his favorite costumes was a pair of fans who attended one performance dressed as the Worm and Mrs. Worm. The latter carried a tea set, recreating the film’s brief but memorable reference to the Worm’s wife. Kinsner said the creativity reflects the affection audiences have for even the smallest characters in the film.
He also described the fan community as welcoming to newcomers, making the concert an opportunity for families to share something they love while experiencing it alongside other fans.
The tour has already visited nearly 100 cities globally and is returning to North America for more than 60 dates this fall. Omaha is a returning stop, and Kinsner said the city’s fan community has made an impression.
“This is our second time through Omaha, and Omaha has been incredible to us,” he said. “There’s an incredible Labyrinth fan community there.”
Ultimately, Kinsner hopes audiences leave feeling that the production has honored the movie they came to celebrate.
“More than anything, I hope that fans leave saying that was worth the price of admission,” he said. “I had a great time. This was truly a genuine Labyrinth experience, and they feel good about the time that they spent with us.”
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth: In Concert takes place Friday, Oct. 9, at The Astro Theater, 8302 City Centre Drive in La Vista. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show begins at 8 p.m.
Tickets and additional information are available at the Astro Theater’s event page.
