Hennepin Arts presented Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert for one evening this week, a two and a half hour performance of songs from the animated series soundtrack by composer Jeremy Zuckerman, with visuals projected on a full-size cinema screen behind conductor and music director Emily Marshall. The original dialogue and sound effects were preserved, while the recorded score was replaced with an excellent, approximately 20-person, live touring orchestra.

This year marks the 20-year anniversary of the debut of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" Nickelodeon cartoon, an anime-inspired television show that ran for three seasons from February 2005 to July 2008, receiving a Peabody Award and a Primetime Emmy, plus multiple Annie Awards and Genesis Awards, during that run. In addition to the spinoff series "The Legend of Korra" and several bestselling book series, fans are currently anticipating a new series, "Avatar: Seven Havens" and an upcoming theatrical film. The series follows the adventures of the main protagonist Aang and his friends, who must defeat Fire Lord Ozai and end the Hundred Year War to restore balance to the Four Nations.

The Hennepin performance marked the return of Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert, as it also visited Minneapolis as part of a 100-city tour last year. The program notes assured the audience that this returning concert is a "reimagined, recharged experience" with some "never-before-seen visual moments, created just for this tour." The visuals in the concert were produced in creative collaboration with original series editor Jeff Adams, highlighting the core moments and characters of the series.

I saw some episodes of "Avatar: The Last Airbender" intermittently around the time it originally aired, and absolutely adored it when I binge watched the whole series sometime during the COVID pandemic. Aang's journey is magical yet achingly real, the animation is clever and fun, and the voice actor performances are charming and vibrant. Zuckerman's music is diverse, playful and integral to so much of the action in the series that it naturally lends itself to an Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert live experience. Unfortunately, the Orpheum Theatre stage did not feel like the ideal setting for such a performance; the cinema screen was forced to hang a little low, which blocked the view of the three percussionists for much of the audience.

The audience had the energy of a comic con panel. Depending on the images projected on screen, they applauded or reacted verbally mid-song, and individual audience members yelled out catch phrases from the series throughout, to raucous laughter and applause. As a fan who is familiar with and admires the music and the series, I was a little annoyed, but could still follow the arc of the performance. Were I not familiar with the property, I would have been totally lost.

In the press release, President and CEO of International Markets, Global Consumer Products & Experiences, Paramount Pam Kaufman says, "Avatar: The Last Airbender In Concert marks the 20th anniversary of this franchise in a way that joyfully celebrates the connection fans have with the original series." While I understand how unique it is for a group of people to view portions of their favorite television series together in a crowded theater, I found the boisterous, irreverent attitude of many of the audience members less joyful and more off-putting. Some family members of mine sat in the balcony and noted that, not only could they see the orchestra members a little better, the crowd was also a little tamer up there.

Avatar: The Last Airbender in Concert played on Wednesday, October 15, 2025, at the Orpheum Theatre, 910 Hennepin Ave., Minneapolis MN. For information for upcoming performances, please visit HennepinArts.org or call (612) 339-7007.