May 6-14, 2008: A Trip to Fort Lauderdale
	April 4, 2008: The "Wizard of Oz" at the Dallas Symphony
	Return to Index for 2008

On Saturday, May 3, our friends, Mario and Steve, got two extra tickets for a concert that Mario was to review- Liza Minelli in concert at Bass Hall in Fort Worth. This is the third or fourth concert or performance that they have taken us to- being a reviewer for the Dallas Morning News has its perks, I guess.

We left from their house to head over to Fort Worth in time to stop at the Don Pablo's Restaurant in North Richland Hills. It is one of their favorite Mexican place, but, unfortunately, most of the ones in Dallas have closed. So we took this opportunity to stop there.

We reached the parking garage across from Bass Hall in plenty of time for Mario to get inside and meet his contact to pick up our tickets for the performance. In fact, we had about twenty minutes to wait, so we went outside to stand in the warm early evening sunshine. There was an advertising poster for the performance outside, and I couldn't resist getting everyone's picture with it. Click on the four thumbnails below to see each of us:

Steve			Fred
Mario			Myself

The concert itself was really quite good, given the age of the icon performing. I enjoyed her performance, although I had in my mind's eye the way she appeared twenty years ago, at the height of her popularity. She, like all of us, has aged, and I found myself comparing her to Mareen McGovern, whom we saw earlier this year in Irving. Both stars have a devoted following (although Liza's is much bigger), and to that following each star will always be what she was at her best. So I thought that almost all the attendees came to simply see 'Liza,' not necessarily to be bowled over by a singing sensation.

Certainly her voice and her stamina are not what they used to be, as you may judge for yourself from a short movie that I took of part of Liza's performance of the theme from "Cabaret."

Even allowing for the distance from the stage and the not-so-great sound quality of little digital cameras, I think you will agree that she has changed her performance of this, one of her signature songs, a great deal to accommodate the changes in her voice. But that didn't matter. In my mind during this and her other iconic song, "New York, New York," I still saw her as she was. In Mario's review, he said essentially the same thing.

But what did not come across so well was a tribute that Liza made to a family friend, someone who had helped her through her mother's illnesses and final passing. I daresay that very few people in the audience knew who Kate Thompson was; certainly I did not, and I thought the talky tribute to her went on far too long. Again, in Mario's review, this came out as well.

Nevertheless, the concert was enjoyable, and I thought that Minelli deserved the applause she got. But I am realistic enough to understand that a great part of the applause was for her just being her.

When the concert ended, Mario went up to the administrative office to use a computer to write and file his review. While I was waiting around for him to do his thing, I conversed about the concert with the Bass Hall Publicity Chief (whose office Mario was temporarily using) about the concert. I also went out of the offices and down the hall to get a look at the now empty performance hall; we were on the 4th floor, so I thought I would get a good view. As it turned out, there was a party going on for major donors to the Hall on the occasion of its 20th anniversary.

I did film what I think is an excellent movie of the inside of the Hall.

When Mario was finished, we left the Hall and returned to the parking structure. From the third level we could get a good view of Bass Hall and the light show that was playing on the facade, tied into the anniversary. A picture would not have turned out well, but I think my movie of the light show did.

It was a great evening, and our thanks once again to Mario and Steve.

You can use the links below to continue to another photo album page.

	May 6-14, 2008: A Trip to Fort Lauderdale
	April 4, 2008: The "Wizard of Oz" at the Dallas Symphony
	Return to Index for 2008