The Columbus Symphony Orchestra spiced things up Thursday night when it shed Mozart for Mario.

The orchestra hosted “Video Games Live” created by Tommy Tallarico and Jack Wall, who produced an exciting show for video game enthusiasts combining memorable musical moments from games spanning several decades.

To call the experience unique would be an understatement. Much of the audience wore his or her favorite video game T-shirt featuring “Mario,” “Zelda,” “Guild Wars” and “World of Warcraft. “Some fans even brought their Nintendo DS to play during intermission.

The show opened with a quick musical evolution of the beginning of video games from “Pong” to “Tetris.”

One of the most unique and entertaining parts of the production was the inclusion of a giant screen behind the orchestra playing clips from the featured games. The screen combined with colored lights and the showmanship of the charismatic Tallarico made the show as much fun to watch as it was to listen to.

After the quick introduction, the show began playing medleys from specific games starting with “Metal Gear Solid.”

The orchestra, led by Wall as the conductor for the evening, played almost flawlessly throughout the entire show. Also present at the show was the Otterbein Vocal Ensemble, who provided excellent vocals on songs such as the memorable, African-inspired “Civilization IV” theme.

Highlights of the show included the incredible video game pianist, Martin Leung. Playing solo arrangements from such games as “Mario,” “Tetris” and “Castlevania, “which was played on a three-story pipe organ, his performance garnered the first standing ovation of the night.

Other crowd favorites included a “Warcraft” medley featuring songs from many different “Warcraft” games.

Introduced by a video recording of game composer Koji Kondo, the “Mario” and “Zelda” arrangements were instant crowd-pleasers.

The show took a serious turn with the music of “Medal of Honor,” which resembled the soundtrack of a Steven Spielberg war movie. During the performance, the video screen featured clips from real World War II scenes ranging from cities in ruins to concentration camps. The effect of this was a solemn tribute enhanced by haunting female vocals and beautiful strings.

The night came to a close with music from Halo, which included a preview of “Halo 3.”

The running time of two and a half hours was longer than expected, but the excellent music and performances kept the listener entertained.

Elizabeth Mathis can be reached at [email protected].