The concept sounds like it was engineered to produce argument: 14 classical musicians, a candlelit stage dressed to evoke a cathedral, and a conductor presiding in a skull mask and top hat while the ensemble works through Metallica, AC/DC, Rage Against the Machine, and Guns N’ Roses at full rock-concert volume. Call it a gimmick if you need to. The more than 700,000 attendees who have taken in this production internationally suggest the gimmick has legs, and the 2026–2027 USA tour brings it to the Landmark Theatre on Tuesday, March 23.
About the Show
The Rock Orchestra By Candlelight is a rotating collective of 14 classical musicians performing orchestral arrangements of rock and metal anthems — or, in the production’s own framing, “the unexpected union of Classical music and Metal.” The programming lands squarely in rock’s most canonized territory: Metallica, AC/DC, the Rolling Stones, Rage Against the Machine, My Chemical Romance, Linkin Park, System of a Down, Guns N’ Roses, Evanescence, Aerosmith, The Cranberries, and additional acts. The 90-minute show runs in two 45-minute halves with a 15-minute intermission, and what the production promises is something the setlist only hints at on paper: “effortlessly enchanting melodies alongside powerful walls of distortion” — classical bravado that does not sand off the original songs’ edges so much as reframe them. The conductor leads in a tuxedo, skull mask, and top hat, in candlelit cathedral-style settings; strobe lighting, smoke, and haze complete the staging. Audience reviews from comparable tour dates describe the result as “entertaining from the first song to the last” and “the perfect blend of classical bravado and hard rock.” The ensemble also released a debut album that charted. The 2026–2027 USA tour follows international runs through Europe and the UK, presented by Mega Events USA; a stop at Hershey Theatre on March 16, 2027 places the production one week out from the Syracuse date. The show is recommended for ages 14 and up; those sensitive to flashing lights should plan accordingly.
Venue & Logistics
The Landmark Theatre in downtown Syracuse is a 2,908-seat theater — large enough to hold a touring production that has been playing major performing arts centers across the country, and a room whose scale suits a show built on theatrical atmosphere. For central New York concertgoers, it is one of the region’s more substantial indoor stages. Show time is 7:30 p.m.
Tickets
No ticket price was available from sources at the time of publication. Tickets go on sale August 27, 2026. Buy tickets