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« on: December 02, 2012, 09:02PM » |
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Fellow Forumites:
Last Saturday, I had the inestimable pleasure of attending the first concert of the Celtic Woman’s 2012 Christmas Symphony Tour, at the MGM Grand Theater at the Foxwoods Resort, in CT. Like all of their concerts that I have attended over the years (including the final concert of last year’s Christmas Symphony Tour in Denver, which was made more moving, if a tad bittersweet, because it was Lisa Kelly’s last), this one was – in a word – SPECTACULAR. As a general rule, I don’t give blow-by-blow descriptions of concerts I attend because: 1) I don’t always remember the details like others do; and 2) more important, I think you should enjoy the fine points on your own. Instead, my reviews focus on my observations and reactions to various songs and/or episodes that occurred during the respective concerts. So, I hope you’ll bear with me as I continue to follow that approach for this concert.
Please note that some of the following are spoilers, so if you don’t want your future experience spoiled, stop reading.
One of the things that I really enjoy is that the Ladies’ on-stage banter and discussions have grown substantially over the last few years, as has their descriptions of the songs and audience discussions. I believe that these efforts have paid off greatly in helping the audiences feel more a part of the concerts, which helps to increase their enjoyment. Along those lines, I’m pleased that they have included an audience sing-a long. Specifically, Susan taught us the chorus of Green The Whole Year Round, then led us through it to great success.
I’m pleased that they include a few non-Christmas songs in these Concerts for several reasons. First, and I’m showing my purist side here, some of the songs (e.g., Danny Boy and YRMU) are CW standards, and in my view, should be in all of their concerts. Also, since there are few Christmas songs that were written for the solo Celtic fiddle, Mairead would have little more than support role (a near criminal misuse of an incredible talent in my opinion) if songs like Granuaile's Dance and The Butterfly were not included. Lastly, given the preponderance of Christmas songs in the concert, and the Ladies’ angelic delivery of same, including a few non-Christmas songs in no way detracts from the Christmas theme.
I’m not sure why, but I’ve never been fond of Auld Lang Syne. That all changed during the Christmas Concert in Denver last year when I heard Lisa Lambe’s haunting version. Hearing her sing it again was one of the things I was most looking forward to this year; I was not disappointed. (Needles to say, I’m ecstatic that it’s been included on the Home for the Holidays CD.) The only hitch to Lisa’s performance of the song this year was that they placed it immediately before Chloe’s stunning delivery of Ave Maria. (I wouldn’t be surprised if Lisa didn’t feel a bit like Lou Gehrig after hitting a triple only to be followed by Babe Ruth hitting a home run.) Even Mairead, in her introduction to YRMU, which followed Chloe’s Ave Maria, exclaimed - “How are we supposed to follow that?”
All in all, this was another in a long line of memorable Celtic Woman concerts that I’ve had the pleasure and privilege to attend. I’m looking forward to seeing them again in Atlanta in a few weeks.
In closing, I’d like to take this opportunity to wish you all a happy and safe Holiday Season, as well as a prosperous 2013.
Joy be to you all,
Bob
P.S. It was a little odd that the entrance to MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods is on the same floor, and a mere 20 feet, from the casino. Mind you, I’m not complaining because I won $250 playing video poker before the concert.
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