Student Sterling Nasa Saves 2,500-Seat Sydney La La Land Concert After Keyboardist Falls Ill
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 1
Student Sterling Nasa Saves 2,500-Seat Sydney La La Land Concert After Keyboardist Falls Ill
4 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 1
A 21-year-old University of Sydney student stepped out of the audience mid-show and played keyboard for La La Land in Concert after the orchestra’s keyboardist suddenly fell ill.
A 40-minute interval exposed the emergency, and conductor Justin Hurwitz—facing backup players still 15 to 20 minutes away—asked the 2,500-strong crowd for a pianist with elite sight-reading skills.
Nasa, who had never rehearsed the score, took the seat and improvised through the technically demanding synth solo in “Start a Fire,” the passage Hurwitz said worried him most.
The gamble carried the performance to the end and drew a standing ovation, with Hurwitz calling Nasa’s on-the-fly solo remarkable.
The touring production is now scrambling to rehearse replacement keyboardists for upcoming Melbourne and Brisbane dates, while Nasa returns to university after a burst of media attention.
A student saved the show, but why did a global concert tour have no professional backup plan for a key performer?
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