Rex Theater / Pittsburgh

Report by John Tramontanis

I went to the Blackmores Night show at the Rex Theater in Pittsburgh Friday night and thought I would share the experience with you all.

I arrived at the theater at 7:00, the time the doors were scheduled to open. I was hoping to get there earlier, but it was the best I could do flying in from Atlanta on a Friday afternoon. There was already a line around the corner when I approached. Fortunately, there was also a line on the other side of the theater for those dressed in Renaissance costume. This line was only twelve deep at the time. The doors did not open at the scheduled time. Since the temperature outside was about 86 degrees on an unseasonably hot day in Pittsburgh, the folks in line were getting anxious, I believe both about the heat and also in anticipation of the show. A fellow from the theater security came out and informed us that they were not opening the doors yet as there were problems with the air conditioning inside. My first thought was, no air conditioning on a hot day, would result in no show, or a late start would result in an abbreviated performance. Finally the doors opened just after 7:30.

I was fortunate to get a third row seat on the right side, perfect for a view of TMIB. It was balmy in the theater as the air conditioning was still not in order, and the warm up band (no pun intended), Empty Hats, were already on stage struggling with their sound check as there were problems with the sound system. It was not working. Things were not looking good. Empty Hats was scheduled to start at 8:00, but it was not happening. My concern was the sound would never get working and there would be no show, or again, the delay would shorten the show. Did I mention it was getting hotter?

Finally the crew got the sound system in order around 8:25 and Empty Hats gave an entertaining performance that ended just before 9:00. Blackmores Night took the stage about 9:15 opening with Cartouche. The audio systems were working well, and Candice sounded great.

It was very warm in the theater, and my guess was the air conditioning was either not functioning or intermittent at best. The crowd in the rear of the theater was standing room only which I'm sure did not help the issue with the temperature. The audience was very active and getting into the show and we were all working up a pretty good sweat. Candice commented once about the heat, but she and the band seemed to be working through it just fine. Candice truly has a great rapport with the audience, and provides additional enjoyment with her banter with Ritchie on stage. This is a show in itself and quite entertaining to witness someone throwing jabs at TMIB, and for him to take it all in good steed. My concerns about the heat impacting the length or quality of the show were proved to be unwarranted. As the show progressed it seemed both the audience and the band fed off each other and the heat, and no one cared anymore. It actually seemed to add to the party atmosphere. Ritchie was intent about delivering the goods this evening and everyone responded in kind.

During the performance of Minstrel Hall, a lady in the audience began to applaud prematurely during a pause in the song. Ritchie looked in her direction and with a finger to his lips requested silence. When the song concluded, looking in the same direction, he clapped his hands together, indicating it was now time to applaud.

Around mid show, during a break between songs, a lady, possibly the same one mentioned above, rushed the stage and screamed quite loudly and several times, requesting Lalena and Child In Time, and retreated to her seat. I thought this could be a potential mood breaker, as the band and the entire theater heard this and it seemed to create a brief pause in the merriment. I watched her return to her seat and had a thought about muzzling her (although I had to give her some credit for the Lalena request as it varied somewhat from the basic Smoke On The Water, Highway Star screams typically heard during these shows). I saw one of the band's crew go over to her and he seemed to be politely informing her to cease her outbursts. Before the band continued, Ritchie came to the edge of the stage, looked in her direction and inquired as to who initiated the disturbance. At this time I was hoping the show wouldn't take a turn for the worse, as the performance was awesome up to this point. The band then began to play a rousing rendition of Mond Tanz, one of my favorites, and when there was a pause in the song, Ritchie began to play the opening chords from Child In Time. I thought it would be just a tease, but he continued to play, and Candice then joined in and sang the entire song along with the audience, before returning to the conclusion of Mond Tanz. It was incredible.

This was the sixth time that I have seen Blackmores Night and I would say without question was the best show of them all. They played non stop, finishing up at 11:25, over two hours. There were many high points during the show. The main highlights that stood out for me were Minstrel Hall, Ritchie's solo during Fires At Midnight (a masterpiece), Candice singing Diamonds and Rust, the break into Child In Time during the middle of Mond Tanz, and the last segment of the show, consisting of the encores when Ritchie employed heavy use of the Stratocaster with amazing guitar work that only TMIB can deliver. Some of the solos during the encore were extended for several minutes as the band stepped back and Ritchie had full command of the stage and his Strat. As much as I enjoyed the show up to this point, this was the icing on the cake. The man has no peers in this realm, and as he built and progressed through each solo it was evidence of the work of an artist exercising the mastery of his craft. Simply put, this was a performance by the greatest guitarist on earth.

Showtime: over 2 hours

Setlist in no particular order:

Cartouche
Play Minstrel Play
Minstrel Hall
Soldier Of Fortune
Durch Den Wald Zum Bach Haus
Wind In The Willows
16th Century Greensleeves
Diamonds And Rust
Under A Violet Moon
Fires At Midnight
Renaissance Fair
Clock Ticks On
Mond Tanz
Child In Time
Home Again
Star Spangled Banner
All For One
Writing On The Wall
Burn
Village On The Sand