'Joker' to screen at Dubai Opera with live orchestra

Hildur Gudnadottir's award-winning score will be brought to life

Joaquin Phoenix has wowed audiences for his role in 'Joker'. Nico Tavernise / Warner Bros

Young Penny, Meeting Bruce Wayne and Learning How to Act Normal will be given new life as Joker screens at Dubai Opera alongside a live full orchestra next month.

These are songs from the original soundtrack, from Icelandic musician Hildur Gudnadottir's Oscar-winning score for the 2019 film starring Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker.

This is the first time Todd Philips's award-winning film, an origin story about the Gotham City supervillain, will be experienced in this way.

"The fusion of looming industrial soundscapes with raw, emotive string-led melodies – led by a lone cello – creates a melancholic shroud pinpricked with moments of hope, which unfolds gradually to become a fever pitch of disquieting tension," reads a statement on Dubai Opera's website.

"Performed live, Gudnadottir’s inimitable score illuminates further the emotional weight, texture and atmosphere of Phoenix’s captivating portrayal."

Joker was nominated for 11 Oscars, winning two for Best Performance by an Actor in Leading Role and Best Original Score.

Gudnadottir, the first Icelander to win an Oscar, is also known for her work on HBO mini series Chernobyl (2019). She was the first woman to win an Academy Award for a dramatic composition, and only the third to win for an original score.

Joker follows troubled comedian Arthur Fleck, an outcast in society who goes on a crime spree, ultimately causing mayhem and sparking a revolution in Gotham City, forging his own alter-ego, the Joker, and becoming Batman's nemesis.

The Dubai Opera performance will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, August 10 and 11, and will only be open to ticketholders aged 15 and above. Strict Covid-19 safety measures will be in place, including limited capacity and mandatory mask wearing. No proof of vaccination is required.

There will be one showing on each night at 8pm. Tickets start from Dh250 and are available now on Dubai Opera's website.