Sounds like our forum here was well-represented at the Denver Christmas show! Please all of you post some of your experiences and impressions for us here!
Yup, there were probably a lot of forum people (I should have worn a "Fiddler Crossing" patch on my coat). I saw several first-row audience members with Santa hats and cards for Lisa K. One major problem that raised uncertainty in the hours before the performance was a rapidly developing major winter storm which probably scared a lot of people away. I had driven in from Nebraska under clear skies for almost the entire 8-hour 480 mile drive only to be greeted as I approached Denver by the low clouds which I recognized as the precursors to a lot of snow. I had a late lunch and checked into my hotel room (Hampton Inn & Suites Downtown) in the afternoon. I quickly got on-line and checked the weather service and the local TV stations. The news wasn't good, as the National Weather Service had issued a Winter Storm Warning. They were predicting a major snowfall event (six to 12 inches) with wind for the night and into the following day, so it definitely had an affect on attendance (the seat next to me was vacant during the performance despite the show being sold out). After a short nap, I left the hotel and walked the 0.9 miles to the performance hall (a very easy walk for me, as for exercise, I usually walk four miles per day five days a week to get to work). It was a very pleasant walk through a few crowds of Christmas shoppers under light snow (kind of reminded me of the lyrics to the song "Silver Bells"), so it didn't look that bad to me. Denver at night is very pretty, and the snow just added to the Christmas feeling. I too got to the performance hall well ahead of time, so I picked up a big chocolate chip cookie from the vendors and a copy of the Symphony Tour program and settled down to wait for the ushers to open the doors to the interior of the Boettcher Concert Hall.
I had waited until the last minute to get my ticket, so I was seated way up in the towering "Ring-4" high above the stage (almost at the ceiling of the hall). All I can say is that the uppermost ring is *not* a great place to hear a concert, although it isn't exactly awful either. There were times when I couldn't catch quite all of Chloe's or Lisa's (both) words when they were speaking to the audience, so the acoustics of the hall up-high aren't the best (I probably have gotten a little spoiled by the wonderful acoustics of the Great Hall at Washington Pavilion in Sioux Falls where I have heard Celtic Woman perform twice). The girls all used hand mics and Lisa Kelly generated a little howl of feedback when she exited the stage past David Downes' piano and its live mic (take THAT you lip-syncing claim makers!). Sometimes I think the girls didn't talk into the mics all that loudly because they were afraid that they might get a little overloaded by the audio. We couldn't stand up much for the standing ovations, as right in front of us was probably at least a 60 foot drop to the floor of the hall! I had picked up a small pair of binoculars for the concert and I used them quite a bit to get a close up look at the performer's faces. The binoculars did come in handy, as they revealed that David was wearing a pair of brown horn-rim glasses (didn't know he wore glasses at all). Next time (if they come back to Boettcher Hall), I will definitely make sure to get a seat that is lower down.
Overall, the concert was great. The girls were fantastic as always. I just about jumped out of my seat when Lisa K. started "The Christmas Song", as that was the one piece I really hoped they would do. Lisa absolutely nailed it! Lisa L's wonderful rendition of "Away in a Manger" was definitely different from the older Celtic Woman treatment, and she continues to put her own unique style into songs. Mairead's starting "Shenandoah" was a bit unexpected, as it wasn't listed in the program, but when she stomped on the stage floor twice as she just about finished it, I knew that she would soon enter her "reel" mode. Sure enough, here came our hand-held drum player marching out on-stage and the crowd immediately got into it as Mairead just about sawed "her baby" in half with what sounded like at least a part of "The Contradiction". When she did "Granuaile's Dance", she didn't fly across the stage as much as at other venues, but she did her usual nine "spins" while playing (wonder if she just explodes if she does more than nine?
). Hearing Chloe do "Ave Maria" was stunning, and again, I had to stand and applaud hard despite the risk of falling overboard.
They did do "You Raise Me Up" at the end, perhaps for the last time to let Lisa do her usual "Thank You very much, you've been a wonderful audience". That one got the loudest ovation, other than for the encore of "Let It Snow". And YES, this time, Mairead did whisper "let it snow" at the end! The one little problem I had with the concert (other than the weather) was the Colorado Symphony Orchestra itself. Most of the time, they were fine, but occasionally they just didn't seem to quite be together for some reason. I don't know if they didn't get in any practice time for the Celtic Woman arrangements, but sometimes things just didn't seem to go quite right. This was most apparent during "Let It Snow", as the trumpet player missed the highest notes twice, almost ruining that part of the song. Still, it was nice to hear Celtic Woman with the full backing of an orchestra, as it definitely gave a different feel to many of the songs.
I got back to my hotel with the snow picking up a bit, but woke the next morning to EIGHT INCHES of the stuff. The Denver Airport remained open, but things were delayed, so I don't know if any of the CW company got stuck in the city for an extra day. I managed to get home, but it took me over an hour of white-knuckle driving just to get out of Denver in the snow and ice and back onto the Interstate. Still, Denver does a good job in their snow clearing, as at home, eight inches would bring my little town to a complete standstill. Hopefully if Celtic Woman visits Denver again, it will be under better weather conditions.