Experience Fantasia

New Year’s Eve Pops

Experience Fantasia

Ring in the New Year with a dazzling celebration of music made famous on the big screen in Fantasia and Fantasia 2000. Experience the magic of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Paul Dukas, the thrilling drama of Night on Bald Mountain by Modest Mussorgsky, and the timeless elegance of Waltz of the Flowers by Tchaikovsky. With beloved classics and cinematic favorites brought to life on stage, this festive concert is the perfect way to welcome the year with wonder, nostalgia, and exhilarating sound.

The concert begins at 7:30 PM, and we will countdown to the New Year with the East Coast Ball drop at 9 PM.

Thursday, December 31, 2026, 7:30pm

San Luis Obispo Performing Arts Center

Tickets on sale July 20th

Sponsored by: Joan G. Sargen

Program Details

From The Sorcerer’s Apprentice to Night on Bald Mountain, hear the sounds of Fantasia come to life!

Bach/Stokowski Toccata and Fugue in D minor

  • Featured as the opening to Disney’s 1940 animated feature Fantasia, paired with dramatic live-action silhouettes and abstract visuals.
  • Its famous opening chromatic motif became Pop Culture’s universal musical shorthand for horror and villainy after appearing in early horror films like 1931’s Dracula and 1925’s The Phantom of the Opera.

Amilcare Ponchielli Finale from Dance of the Hours

  • Dance of the Hours is a ballet sequence from Ponchielli’s opera La Gioconda.
  • The music represents different times of day through dance.
  • The finale is famous for its fast tempo and brilliant orchestral energy.
  • Depicted as a grand ballet of ostriches, hippos, elephants, and alligators in Fantasia.

Paul Dukas The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

  • It tells the story of an apprentice who loses control of a magic spell.
  • The work is based on a poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Ludwig van Beethoven Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, “Pastoral”

  • Beethoven said the symphony expresses feelings about nature rather than painting a scene.
  • It is nicknamed the “Pastoral” Symphony.
  • The first movement depicts a joyful arrival in the countryside.
  • Depicted in Fantasia as the Mount Olympus countryside.

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Waltz of the Flowers

  • It appears near the end of Act II of The Nutcracker.
  • The dance celebrates the arrival of the Flower Queen and her court.
  • Tchaikovsky included it in the Nutcracker Suite, helping make it a concert-hall favorite.
  • Depicted as fairies changing the seasons in the 1940’s Fantasia.

Mussorgsky Night on Bald Mountain

  • Originating in 19th-century Russia, the piece was inspired by Slavic folklore, supernatural legends, and Nikolai Gogol’s gothic short stories.
  • The tone poem depicts St. John’s Eve (Witches’ Sabbath), where witches, demons, and evil spirits gather on Triglaf Mountain near Kiev to worship the dark god Chernabog until dawn church bells scatter them.

Stravinsky Firebird Suite

  • Stravinsky utilized radical, shimmering orchestral techniques—such as string harmonics played at high speed—to musically mimic the supernatural glow and fluttering wings of the mythical bird.
  • Written for the Ballet Russe’s 1910 Paris premiere, the piece catapulted a 27-year-old Stravinsky to overnight international fame as one of the world’s premier modern composers.
  • Featured in Fantasia 2000, depicting the Spring Sprite.

Doors will open at 6:15 PM

  • Arrive early to walk the red carpet!

What You’ll Hear

2026 Concert Playlist coming soon!

Tickets