(NEWARK, NJ) -- New Jersey Symphony is partnering with Kulture Kool for pre-concert outdoor activities at Prudential Hall, weather permitting. This will take place prior to the Symphony’s North American premiere of Baahubali: The Beginning Live in Concert at NJPAC in Newark on Saturday, July 27, 2024 at 7:30pm. Food trucks will be onsite. Vegetarian options will be available for patrons.

Schedule of events:

5:30pm: Food trucks ready to serve

6:00pm: Performance by South Indian folk hand drumming group ThiruParai Kuzhu and henna services by Konnect Global which are both free to the public

7:30pm: New Jersey Symphony concert

Experience India's biggest box-office smash-hit, Baahubali: The Beginning on a vast HD screen while the New Jersey Symphony performs M.M. Keeravani's epic score, live in-sync with the motion picture. The film tells the story of a young orphan, Shivudu (Prabhas), as he embarks on a journey of a lifetime.

Falling in love with the vision of a fearless warrior, Avantika (Tamannaah), he follows her on a mission to rescue her Queen from captivity in a neighboring kingdom. On this mission in Mahishmati, he encounters Kattappa (Satyaraj), a slave warrior and a confidante of the Mahishmati Royal Family. Through him Shivudu learns the truth of his family and the injustice imparted to them. He takes on the tyrannical ruler in a battle of mythical magnitude to restore to the kingdom their true King.

Tickets are available at njsymphony.org/baahubali.

Kulture Kool South Asian Cultural Center is a 501(c)(3) non-profit in New Jersey offering a variety of educational classes, workshops and events in South Asian performing arts, languages and cultural immersion. Kulture Kool also offers a wide variety of cultural appreciation assemblies and programming for schools, public libraries and local institutions all over the tristate. In 2023, the Kulture Kool partnered with the New Jersey Symphony to present Hooray for Bollywood, the first ever symphonic music concert featuring Indian folk, classical and Bollywood music.

The Emmy and GRAMMY Award-winning New Jersey Symphony is redefining what it means to be a nationally leading, relevant orchestra in the 21st century. The Symphony is renewing its deeply rooted commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion by championing new, and often local, artists; engaging audiences for whom the inspiring depth and breadth of classical music will be a new experience; and incorporating the broadest possible representation in all aspects of our organization-all to better reflect and serve our vibrant communities.

Internationally renowned Chinese American conductor Xian Zhang began her tenure as the New Jersey Symphony’s current music director in 2016. Since her arrival, Zhang has revitalized programming with an industry-leading commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in mainstage concerts. Since 2021, Zhang has worked together with composer, violinist, educator and social-justice advocate Daniel Bernard Roumain, the orchestra's Resident Artistic Catalyst, to offer programming that connects with diverse communities in Newark and throughout New Jersey. In 2024, Allison Loggins-Hull will succeed DBR as the orchestra’s next Resident Artistic Partner.

In the 2024–25 season, the New Jersey Symphony will present Voice of Nature: the Anthropocene with Renée Fleming, Billy Childs’ Diaspora, Daniel Freiberg’s Latin American Chronicles, Allison Loggins-Hull’s Can You See?, Qasim Naqvi’s God Docks at Death Harbor and Gabriela Ortiz’s Kauyumari. Classical favorites on the season include Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9, “Choral,” Gustav Holst’s The Planets—An HD Odyssey, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade and Igor Stravinsky’s Suite from The Firebird. Artistic partnerships include Paquito D’Rivera and his quintet, as part of the TD James Moody Jazz Festival; Nimbus Dance performing with The Firebird and God Docks at Death Harbor; Montclair State University Chorale performing on three programs; as well as Peking University Alumni Chorus and Starry Arts Children’s Chorus appearing on the Lunar New Year Celebration concert with Xian Zhang.