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- faith: from row W in the upper section, "Dolly" could have really been a lip-synching drag queen; there were no close-ups of her on the large screen which we could just see as we were almost parallel to the stage
- patience: in the 2 weeks before the concert, I received 2 e-mails and a recorded telephone message to inform us that "due to the artist's request photography was strictly forbidden" and that cameras would have been confiscated
- perseverance: everybody had to be frisked to be admitted
- gullibility: we bought 2 bottle of soft drinks at the bar but we were informed that we couldn't keep the tops at Dolly's request!!!!
- ability to roll your eyes in disbelief: the stewards were constantly on the look-out for photographers the whole time and kept flashing their torches during the show at people who took pictures with their mobile phones - mobiles were allowed in. (We were left undisturbed in our corner: we were so far away that we were probably on central European time).
Sarcasm about the venue apart, she did sing like an angel and warmed our hearts! You just cannot not love her!
Here's a mobile picture of her and indeed you can only see her burning-white aura!!
Last night we went to see Dolly Parton at Wembley Arena, her second (and last) London show on her (north?) European tour.
Well she delivered what we all expected: 1h 40 min (2 hours with the interval) of songs and talk and laughter.
The show was a mix of the old favourites together with some from more recent CDs.... I loved "Little Sparrow": it was the one song when everyone in the audience just stopped screaming and listened, enraptured by her voice.
And she was funny too, with anecdotes and amusing stories about her life and songs (customised for the audience: at least two references to Graham Norton):
- The woman that inspired Jolene didn't manage to steal her husband and she saw he recently and she is now really ugly
- "I keep pulling my hair but feel no pain... some woman in Korea must be screaming"
- and, when a very vocal lady shouted "We love you Dolly" just as she was about to start a song, she replied "Thank you very much, I love you but didn't I tell you to stay in the truck?"
At the very beginning she thanked the audience for buying the very expensive tickets (and boy, she wasn't lying: with the "service charge" and the "booking fee" we spent £162.75 for 2 tickets - it's about 325 US$ - and for that small fortune we had seats up in the gods!) by saying that she needed the money because "it costs a lot to look this cheap".
The show was fun, perhaps not long enough for what we were charged (they all say that she's a shrewd businesswoman!) but hey it's kind of once in a lifetime treat, and so, from the "no-regrets" point of view it was worth it.
And now back to 9 to 5: there are tickets to pay!
Well she delivered what we all expected: 1h 40 min (2 hours with the interval) of songs and talk and laughter.
The show was a mix of the old favourites together with some from more recent CDs.... I loved "Little Sparrow": it was the one song when everyone in the audience just stopped screaming and listened, enraptured by her voice.
And she was funny too, with anecdotes and amusing stories about her life and songs (customised for the audience: at least two references to Graham Norton):
- The woman that inspired Jolene didn't manage to steal her husband and she saw he recently and she is now really ugly
- "I keep pulling my hair but feel no pain... some woman in Korea must be screaming"
- and, when a very vocal lady shouted "We love you Dolly" just as she was about to start a song, she replied "Thank you very much, I love you but didn't I tell you to stay in the truck?"
At the very beginning she thanked the audience for buying the very expensive tickets (and boy, she wasn't lying: with the "service charge" and the "booking fee" we spent £162.75 for 2 tickets - it's about 325 US$ - and for that small fortune we had seats up in the gods!) by saying that she needed the money because "it costs a lot to look this cheap".
The show was fun, perhaps not long enough for what we were charged (they all say that she's a shrewd businesswoman!) but hey it's kind of once in a lifetime treat, and so, from the "no-regrets" point of view it was worth it.
And now back to 9 to 5: there are tickets to pay!
And talking of "5 to 9"...
Nov. 15th, 2006 03:05 pm... a few weeks ago, in a moment of (financial) folly , I booked tickets to go and see Dolly Parton at Wembley Arena.
I cannot wait! Just wish the concert wasn't SO expensive! But then I guess it isn't much more than a top price West End ticket (Royal Opera House apart).
I cannot wait! Just wish the concert wasn't SO expensive! But then I guess it isn't much more than a top price West End ticket (Royal Opera House apart).
