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Grand Rapids Symphony brings Star Trek scores to DeVos Performance Hall

Grand Rapids Symphony brings Star Trek scores to DeVos Performance Hall

Money Moves Grand Rapids, MI local

Pops conductor Bob Bernhardt leads two nights of Star Trek scores; the run is a test of whether franchise film music can rebuild attendance still below pre-pandemic levels

October 3rd, 2026: Final night of the Star Trek run

Overview

Updated Oct 21

The Grand Rapids Symphony played The Music of Star Trek at DeVos Performance Hall on October 2-3, with principal pops conductor Bob Bernhardt leading and a costume contest part of the run. On one of those nights a symphony string ensemble was across downtown at Acrisure Amphitheater, backing an ArtPrize fashion show that drew more than 3,600 people and a Guinness world record.

Three weeks on, no ticket count for the Star Trek nights has been published; the venue does not release per-event sales. Local coverage of the run put the orchestra's attendance at 60-70% of pre-pandemic levels over the last two seasons, and reported that its administrators see holiday and movie programs drawing better than core classical bills.

Why it matters

Orchestras are staking ticket revenue on Star Trek and Star Wars scores to replace a decade-long slide in classical attendance.

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Key Indicators

2,543
Seats, venue's own count
DeVos Performance Hall's own page lists 2,543 seats; coverage of the October 2026 Star Trek concerts cited 2,404. The venue does not publish ticket sales.
60-70
Attendance vs. pre-pandemic
Grand Rapids Symphony attendance in the last two seasons, as a share of pre-pandemic levels, per local coverage of the Star Trek run.
2
Nights in run
The concert ran October 2-3, 2026, with the same start time each night.

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People Involved

Marcelo Lehninger
Marcelo Lehninger
Music Director, Grand Rapids Symphony
Music director of the symphony; not conducting the Star Trek program
 Bob Bernhardt
Bob Bernhardt
Principal Pops Conductor, Grand Rapids Symphony
Conducted The Music of Star Trek on October 2-3, 2026

Organizations Involved

Grand Rapids Symphony
Grand Rapids Symphony
Performing arts organization
Performed the two-night Star Trek program on October 2-3, 2026; announced 2026/2027 season on February 12, 2026

West Michigan's professional symphony, resident at DeVos Performance Hall.
DeVos Performance Hall
DeVos Performance Hall
Concert venue
Host venue; its own page lists 2,543 seats, coverage of the Star Trek shows cited 2,404

Downtown Grand Rapids auditorium that hosts the symphony, Broadway tours and film-with-orchestra shows.

Timeline

February 2026 October 2026

4 events Latest: October 3rd, 2026 · 4 weeks ago
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Final night of the Star Trek run

    Latest Performance

    Second and last performance; crowd size and reception become visible through local press coverage.

  2. Opening night of The Music of Star Trek

    Performance

    Grand Rapids Symphony plays Star Trek scores at DeVos Performance Hall, night one of two.

  3. Symphony strings back record-setting ArtPrize fashion show

    Performance

    A Grand Rapids Symphony string ensemble played an ArtPrize fashion show at Acrisure Amphitheater that drew more than 3,600 people and a Guinness world record for fashion show attendance, on the same night Bernhardt conducted the Star Trek program.

  4. Season announcement confirms Star Trek run and conductor

    Announcement

    The Grand Rapids Symphony announced its 2026/2027 season, listing The Music of Star Trek for October 2-3 with Bob Bernhardt conducting as part of the Fox Motors Pops Series.

Scenarios

1

Star Trek nights sell out DeVos Performance Hall

Deadline passed (Oct 15, 2026)

Discussed by: Grand Rapids Symphony marketing and local arts writers, who treat franchise programs as the clearest path to full houses

Both nights reach or approach the 2,404-seat capacity, the strongest signal that Star Trek branding draws audience beyond the orchestra's core subscribers. A sellout supports the case that franchise film scores are a reliable revenue fix for regional orchestras.

2

Franchise night fills half the hall

Deadline passed (Oct 15, 2026)

Discussed by: Orchestra administrators who expect healthy but not exceptional turnout for themed programming

Attendance lands roughly between 50% and 90% of capacity. The Star Trek brand helps but does not transform the books, matching the pattern at many regional orchestras where film scores lift but do not reset attendance.

3

Star Trek draw falls flat

Deadline passed (Oct 15, 2026)

Discussed by: Skeptics of the film-score pivot who argue novelty programming cannot reverse orchestral attendance decline

Attendance sits below roughly half of capacity, undercutting the claim that franchise scores rescue regional orchestras financially. A weak showing would push the Grand Rapids Symphony toward other programming strategies and weaken the broader film-score argument.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

2009-2011

Star Wars in Concert (2009-2011)

A George Lucas-backed production toured North America with a 77-piece orchestra playing John Williams' scores alongside film clips. It regularly filled arenas and theaters that standard classical programming could not.

Then

Demonstrated a mass audience for live orchestral film scores.

Now

Helped create the now-standard 'orchestra plays the score' touring format that Star Trek and other franchises use today.

Why this matters now

Showed the template the Grand Rapids Symphony's Star Trek program follows.

2005-present

Video Games Live (2005-present)

Tommy Tallarico's symphonic video game concert, launched with early Lucasfilm backing, paired live orchestras with game footage and electronic elements on stage.

Then

Became a durable touring brand through the late 2000s and 2010s.

Now

Pushed orchestras to treat game and fan-driven scores as legitimate box office.

Why this matters now

Ongoing evidence that pop-culture scoring fills orchestra seats when traditional classical bills struggle.

2002-2017

Classical attendance decline (2002-2017)

National Endowment for the Arts surveys put U.S. adult classical concert attendance at roughly 11.6% in 2002, falling to about 8.6% by 2017, the survey's final year.

Then

Orchestras added educational outreach, shorter programs, and pop-culture programming to hold revenue.

Now

The structural decline made franchise film scores a standard survival tool across the sector.

Why this matters now

This is the financial pressure behind the Grand Rapids Symphony's Star Trek booking.

Sources

(8)
+2
DeVos Performance Hall official listing Grand Rapids Symphony press release Grand Rapids Symphony GuideStar Consequence Live WGVU News LinkedIn (Sam Strater) Grand Rapids Symphony