A string quartet is scheduled to perform spine-chilling movie scores this week in the Crystal Ballroom at Detroit's Masonic Temple, one of the city's most imposing landmarks.
The event, called “Candlelight: A Haunted Evening of Halloween Classics,” is part of a national concert series produced by the live-entertainment company Fever, which lists the show among its Detroit offerings, according to feverup.com. The program is also listed as taking place at the Detroit Masonic Temple, which Fever describes as a historic landmark in the city's Cass Park area, sitting at 500 Temple Street. As MLive reports, the performances are scheduled for Oct. 29, with shows at 6:30 p.m. and 8:45 p.m.
A Gothic Setting Built for Ghost Stories
The Masonic Temple's Chapel features vaulted ceilings, stained-glass windows and rich architectural detail, while the concert takes place in the Crystal Ballroom. The venue itself is billed as the world's largest Masonic Temple, with 16 floors and 1,037 rooms, according to the same feverup.com listing. Detroit Theater describes the evening as a hair-raising showcase of music drawn from an array of spine-chilling movies, performed by a string quartet in a flickering candlelit setting, per detroittheater.org.
A Multipurpose Temple in Cass Park
Construction of the Detroit Masonic Temple began in 1920 and was completed in 1926, according to the Masonic Temple’s history. Architect George Mason’s design encompassed theaters, a Chapel, eight lodge rooms, two ballrooms and other facilities, reflecting a complex built for more than one kind of gathering. A City of Detroit Historic Designation Advisory Board report places the proposed Cass Park Local Historic District just north of downtown in the South Cass Corridor. The cited venue history describes the Temple’s original design, while the city report identifies the district as proposed; these sources do not trace later changes in the building’s use or establish a historic designation for the Temple itself.
Fever’s Candlelight concerts began in 2019 and have since expanded to cities around the world.
Thousands of LED Candles, One Night of Classical Film Music
For its Candlelight shows, the series typically uses 6,000 to 10,000 LED candles, and performances run for roughly 60 minutes, according to MLive. Fever’s Detroit listings show the range of programs on offer locally, from classical repertoire to tributes to contemporary artists.
Fever's Detroit listings reflect that same variety, with Candlelight programs in the city dedicated to acts including Queen and the Beatles, Juan Luis Guerra, Coldplay and Imagine Dragons, Christmas carols, and Vivaldi's Four Seasons, according to feverup.com.
The Producer Behind Michigan's Candlelight Shows
Ashley Abdenour serves as the producer behind Michigan’s Candlelight concerts and works as an Event Producer with Fever, where she oversees large-scale live entertainment experiences across multiple markets, according to an interview with Voyage Michigan. In comments to MLive, she described the series’ aim as broadening the appeal of classical music for today’s audiences.
Abdenour began with Fever in 2020 as a freelance Production Assistant and has since moved through roles including Event Manager, Junior Producer, Producer and now Senior Producer, per the Voyage Michigan interview. At peak volume, she has managed more than 100 events per month, and her responsibilities span venue sourcing, budgeting, staffing, logistics, operations and guest experience, the outlet reports. Along the way, she said she helped scale Candlelight Concerts across the United States, calling it a concept that has introduced live classical music to entirely new audiences. Fever says its Candlelight series now operates in more than 100 cities worldwide and has drawn more than 3 million attendees.
