A 10-minute intermission stretched into a 40-minute crisis — and a 21-year-old University of Sydney student sitting in the audience saved the night.
Sterling Nasa was among 2,500 fans packed into ICC’s Darling Harbour theatre in Sydney, Australia, for a La La Land in Concert performance — a live orchestral presentation of the film’s score played beneath the movie on screen. When the keyboardist fell ill at intermission and no replacement could be reached in time, Oscar-winning composer and conductor Justin Hurwitz made a desperate plea over the microphone: was there a pianist in the house who could sight-read a highly complex score on the fly?
Nasa, a politics and international studies student who also tutors bagpipe students, initially hesitated. His friend Scarlett made the decision for him — she raised his hand. Moments later, Nasa stepped out of the crowd and onto the stage.
The toughest moment came during ‘Start a Fire,’ the John Legend piece from the film featuring a technically demanding, jazz-infused synthesizer solo. Rather than attempt a cold sight-read of the complex sequence, Nasa improvised — crafting an on-the-fly solo that landed in the correct key, the correct scale, and, crucially, the spirit of the film.
The gamble paid off completely. Hurwitz was stunned. Speaking afterward to The Guardian, the composer said: ‘To be able to play a really cool solo… with no rehearsal — it was remarkable.’ The 2,500-person audience erupted.
Following the concert, the tour’s production team began sourcing permanent replacements for the remaining stops on the run. Nasa, for his part, returned to university lectures.
Why This Matters
Sterling Nasa didn’t audition, didn’t rehearse, and didn’t volunteer himself — but when the spotlight found him, he delivered. In front of 2,500 people and one very relieved Oscar-winning composer, a 21-year-old student proved that preparation, nerve, and a friend willing to raise your hand can turn a crisis into a standing ovation.
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