Saturday, April 19, 2014

Pet Shop Boys - Electric Tour

I have some time now to write about the concert on Tuesday night.

Todd has always been a fan of Pet Shop Boys.  We had been to their concerts before at the Bronco Bowl (remember the Bronco Bowl?) and the Nokia venue, now the Verizon Theatre.  He has a signed LP of their album Actually from a Sound Warehouse (remember Sound Warehouse?) appearance in Dallas in '88 or '89, and has all of their albums and almost all of the singles.

So, early in February when I saw they were touring for the Electric album, I ordered VIP tickets for the concert which included good seats and a meet and greet with PSB before the show.  The tickets would arrive in the mail, and about a week before the show I would receive an email with additional details and instructions for the meet and greet.

Of course, the tickets arrived later that month while I was on a last minute trip to CA for work, so the concert was not a surprise.  Oh well.  That's what he gets for opening my mail.  :)

At last, last Tuesday the big day came.  I left work a little early and met Todd downtown.  According to the email from the event organizer, we had to be outside the Majestic Theater at 5:30pm where we would receive our VIP laminated passes and early entry to the venue for the meet and greet (no photos allowed).

We walked the few blocks from his office, and stopped for a quick bite on the way.  We got to the theater right at 5:30, where there was maybe 75-100 people of all ages and orientations queuing up outside.
The majestic Majestic
Around 5:45 the handlers came around, checked our IDs against their list and handed out the laminates.  Then we entered the theater where we could check out the merchandise table, or queue up to meet the band.  Todd muscled his way to the front of the table and bought a tour program, then we got in line inside the lobby to meet the guys.

Inside the majestic Majestic
Lobby chandelier
I had never been to the Majestic Theater before.  To be honest, if you had asked me back in February I would have said "The what?'  Now that I've been there I want to go back.

The line inside led across the lobby, in front of the bar, and to the far right door leading into the theater.  All the doors in the lobby are paned with mirrors, so when we were standing on the threshold we couldn't see what was going on inside.

On the cusp (and blurry, I know)
When our turn came, we walked through the door and Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe were standing right there on the other side of the door at the back of the theater.  They welcomed us and said hello as they signed our laminates and the items we brought - the tour program for me, and the "Closer to Heaven" single for Todd (the French promo single - ooh la la!).

Front of my pass
Back of Todd's pass
Tour program 
Closer to Heaven single
Todd had a short conversation with them about the signing event at Sound Warehouse, and Neil said he thinks that was the first time they were in Dallas.  I had seen that they had just played the Coachella festival the weekend before and asked how that went.  Neil said it was good, but they had to play through a sandstorm.  He said they go back there this weekend.  After that they said they hoped we enjoyed the show and we headed back out into the lobby, grinning like idiots, I'm sure.

We had about an hour before the concert, so we hung out in the lobby and people-watched.  At 7pm the other concertgoers started arriving and they opened the doors to the theater at 7:30.  Before we went to our seats I went downstairs to use the facilities and saw this door next to the restroom.  It's in the corner, and it looked like it might be a broom closet or an electrical room, but I now know it's a small (not closet-sized) versatile theater space that can accommodate about a 100 people.  At the time I just thought it was funny and mysterious.

Is this where they perform Mother Courage and her Children: The Mop Bucket and Circuit Breaker Panel?
We went to our seats and waited for the concert to start.  It was scheduled for 8:00, but didn't get underway until 9pm.

The curtain
It was a strange but pleasant experience watching the high-technology show in the surroundings of the grand 93 year-old theater.  Plus you've got strike-a-pose woman up there as a bonus.
The concert was incredible.  The performance by PSB was excellent, and they had two amazing masked dancers backing them up for most of the show.  The staging, dancing, costumes, lighting and lasers definitely made you feel like your were tripping balls.  Todd managed to snap the following two pictures, but the rest of the time we just enjoyed the show.

Performing "Fugitive"
Background video projections of dancers as clocks as eyes - funny, I don't remember dropping acid
Here are some more photos of the show from around the web:

These green lasers kicked off the song "I'm Not Scared".  Neither Todd nor I wanted them to ever stop.  They were amazing.  Photo from nydailynews.com.
"Love Etc."  Frenetic dancing projected onto bedsheets for hilarious effect.  Photo from spin.com.
Cow skull dancers leaping during "Somewhere".  Yes, that "Somewhere" from West Side Story.  Photo from doorsixteen.com.
Finale.  Photo from ladygunn.com.
PSB played for almost 2 full hours.  We left the theater at 11pm and walked a few blocks back to Todd's parking garage.  Tired, hoarse from yelling and cheering, and incredibly satisfied.  To top of the night, we stopped to take a photo of the the Tony Tasset sculpture, "Eye".  It was a great an memorable evening.  Todd said it was an excellent early birthday present.

You can see the concert in its entirety on YouTube (there are several versions available).  Just search on Pet Shop Boys Electric, or Pet Shop Boys Coachella.

Eye by Tony Tasset



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