Pro Wrestling Chronicle

Match # 120: Dutch Mantell vs. Jeff Jarrett (Orchestra Match) (Late 1988)

Wrestling is performance art at its core. This takes that to another level as they perform thing match on a stage with a symphony orchestra in front of a crowd. The wrestling is decent to solid. Nothing to fancy. The fundamentals are there, as is the struggle, and these two know their stuff. A big disappointment for me was that while the setting has its limits, it also has a chance to be profound in this bizarre bubble. I mean, if the music had been worked out to fit the scripting of the match this would have had a heightened sense of drama. As it came out they probably kayfabed the conductor, and the music doesn’t match up. It’s as experimental as the match. As an artsy geek at heart, I have to give this a match better than average rating for how ballsy the experiment was. I just wish the experiment had had better results. 3 and 6.2/10.