The first thing I have to mention is the venue.  It's an old theater that has been restored to (and possibly beyond) its original glory.  It is stunning, spectacular, amazing, awesome, and needs to be seen to be believed.  Quite a step up from Saturday's hockey arena!

This was the first concert on this tour where I was in what I've become accustomed to as a normal seat, second row orchestra, so compared to Saturday I could really see the girls.  I'll just note a few things that I couldn't see in Baltimore.

It is now very obvious that Lynn has fully acclimated to being a Celtic Woman.  She is always smiling, not looking to see where her next step is, and is making eye contact with the audience like a veteran.  Oh, and by the way, she is absolutely stunning, both vocally and visually!

Seeing Orlagh's new "do" up close I have to say it suits her perfectly.  It accents her face wonderfully and she is more beautiful than ever.  It never ceases to amaze me how she can play the harp and sing at the same time, half the time she's not even watching what she's doing!  Not to mention all the key changes during Scarborough Fair.

Chloë was, of course, just Chloë!  Giggling and prancing around like a kid.  Oh wait, she is still a teenager!  Her and Máiréad did quite a little "dance" during Sing Out, too.  And, of course, Nella Fantasia got me again.

Seeing Alex up close for the first time, and at the risk of being a little politically incorrect, I have to say she is a looker!  I sure hope she stays with the group and gets some new songs to call her own for the new DVD and the next tour.  I do believe that she may be taking her role as Lisa's stand-in a little too seriously, though.  At the beginning of At the Ceili, she almost pulled a "Lisa."  Those of you who have the ANJ DVD memorized should be able to guess what I'm talking about.  I'll leave it to others to further explain, if necessary.

My favorite little pixie was on fire, as usual.  I know that her Last Rose instrumental and Chloë's Nella Fantasia are back to back to give the other girls time for their costume change, but it's almost too much to take.  Máiréad puts so much emotion into every note of that song; it just blows me away.  And it's so much fun to watch her facial expressions when she's in the background during Spanish Lady.  She's a hoot!

There was a small forum representation.  I met Richard and future forum member Nancy.  (See I told you I'd try to guilt you into joining!)  The overall crowd seemed to be a little more senior (trying to be PC here) than other shows and it was reflected in a rather subdued audience, especially during the first half.  Only a smattering of the front rows gave the girls a standing ovation after Mo Ghile Mear, although the four people in front of me jumped on the first drum beat (including Nancy.)  After intermission, though, the audience got into it a little more and clapped along, although Ray had to insist at one point.  And there were plenty of well-deserved standing ovations at the end.

All in all, an excellent show (is there any other kind) in an outstanding venue.

Original review is here.

Here's my micro-review for Tuesday vs. Monday: Ditto, only better.

Better seat this time: second row pit, right in front of where Máiréad stands during Sailing and You Raise Me Up.  Less than 10 feet from heaven on earth.  When those lovely green eyes looked my way everything and everybody else disappeared.

Better audience, too.  While still not a "clap along with Máiréad" crowd (at least during the first half), there were plenty of hoots and hollers and standing ovations this time.

And I believe the performances were better, too.  Or maybe it was just being closer.  The girls did have a nice non-travel day to rest up and they were absolutely on top of their game.

Just one other comment.  The front row pit seats on my side were occupied by 3 generations of one family: grandparents, parents, and the cutest little girl, I would guess around 4 years old.  Chloë spotted her right away during SDS and the rest of the girls made sure to smile and sing especially for her, too.  Even Grandpa got a wink or two!

Just when I thought this trip couldn't get any better, it does.  It was raining this morning and I figured I'd make it an inside day so I went to a local shopping mall.  As I was wandering around, I see this petite blonde walking my way.  You guessed it, it was Máiréad!  My heart skipped a few beats and I stopped dead in my tracks.  She passed by within 2 feet of me, shopping bags in hand.  Not that I would have had the courage to say anything anyway, I respected her privacy and just watched her vanish into the crowd.  She had her hair straight, not curled, but was still a vision all in black.

After a while, the sun started to peek out so I wandered around outside for a bit.  There was an area on the sidewalk that was blocked and only one person could get by at a time.  A woman was coming the opposite direction so I naturally stopped to let her pass first.  I didn't realize it until she was almost past me that it was Orlagh!  She said the sweetest "Thank you" and went into the mall.  She had her hair tied back in a pony tail which is why I didn't recognize her immediately.

At this point I was wondering which girl I would see next.  I went back inside to head for the parking garage and there's Máiréad again heading for the nail salon.  Then on the way to the escalator I almost bump into Orlagh again.

Obviously today was shopping and pampering day for the girls; I hope they had fun.

I'm still floating above the ground.  What a day!  And there's still tonight yet...

If Monday's crowd was "senior," tonight's was positively geriatric!  No clapping along at all during the first half, no standing ovation after Mo Ghile Mear, no applause for Ray and Nick when they come out for Dulaman, no applause for Des after his Nella Fantasia solo, and only reluctant clapping along during the second half after being shamed into it by Ray.  It didn't affect the performance, but I felt a little sorry that the performers weren't getting the recognition they deserve.  By the end, though, the audience finally woke up (or their heart pills finally kicked in) and there were standing ovations for You Raise Me Up, for the reintroduction of the cast, and for Spanish Lady.

The best part for me, aside from this afternoon's surprise, was the interaction with the girls.  I don't know if Máiréad or Orlagh recognized me (highly unlikely, I'm not very memorable) or if I was the youngest person in a 10 seat radius (and I'm no spring chicken) but Orlagh was flashing smiles at me all night, Lynn seemed to be trying to have a staring contest, and during The Voice Máiréad gave me "The Look!"

Needless to say, I'm still on cloud nine!