Long before it conquered the big screen, *The Lord of the Rings* had already won over readers in São Paulo. In 1994, the publisher Martins Fontes released a complete edition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s work. Now, this connection gains a new chapter through music: Candlelight: *The Lord of the Rings* comes to São Paulo with a concert dedicated to the trilogy’s soundtracks.
19 December 2026 19:00 + more dates
Teatro Cultura Artística
Tolkien’s Journey Through São Paulo
In 1994, the São Paulo-based publisher Martins Fontes released a complete edition of J.R.R. Tolkien’s *The Lord of the Rings*, translated by Lenita Maria Rímoli Esteves and Almiro Pisetta. Years later, in 2019, HarperCollins Brasil released a new translation of the work, by Ronald Kyrmse, a Tolkien scholar who has lived in São Paulo since 1975.
Howard Shore’s themes, on four strings, come to the Teatro Cultura Artística
Lasting about an hour, the concert features music from Peter Jackson’s three films, performed live by a string quartet amid thousands of candles. The series is presented by Fever and Warner Bros. Discovery Global Experiences in celebration of the trilogy’s 25th anniversary.
There are 13 pieces from Howard Shore’s original score, and Shore himself approved the repertoire and the scores. The composer built the music around leitmotifs—themes associated with peoples, places, and objects—that intertwine throughout the concert: the Shire in “Concerning Hobbits”; Rohan in “The Riders of Rohan” and “The Ride of the Rohirrim”; and Gondor in “Minas Tirith.”
Although the original score was written for a symphony orchestra and choirs, in this performance two violins, a viola, and a cello bring the compositions to life, including songs from the soundtrack—“In Dreams,” “The Breaking of the Fellowship,” “Gollum’s Song,” and “Into the West”—in instrumental versions, without vocals. The concert begins with “Prologue: One Ring to Rule Them All” and ends with “The Grey Havens.”
A Modernist Stage Featuring a Mosaic by Di Cavalcanti
The concert will take place at the Teatro Cultura Artística, one of São Paulo’s most traditional cultural venues. Opened in 1950 and designed by architect Rino Levi, the building’s façade features one of its most recognizable landmarks: the large glass mosaic *Alegoria das Artes* (Allegory of the Arts), created by Di Cavalcanti. Measuring 48 meters in length, the work features figures inspired by the muses of Greek mythology and greets the audience even before they enter the auditorium.
Candlelight: The Lord of the Rings
19 December 2026 19:00 + more dates
Teatro Cultura Artística
