Sunday, January 13, 2008

best of both worlds part two: the recap

back from our trip to montana....

we had such a good time. even though it took us 40 minutes to get back to the attached parking garage due to the mob, and then once we did, we couldn't find the truck.

the girls were excited to attend their first concert, but could have benefitted from an early nap. by the intermission, both of them were ready to go home. they eventually got their second wind and lasted the whole show; however, they were both asleep by the time we left the parking garage.

showtime was 7pm. we ran just a little late and were taking care of the potty/souvenir needs when aly & aj started up. they played maybe 5 or 6 songs, only one of which i even recognized. by the time we found our seats, we heard one song and then the house lights came back up. we all tried to put in some earplugs to dampen the volume, but one by one we lost them until pooka was the only one whose hearing didn't sustain certain damage.

stage transition took about 20 minutes and then the screaming resumed. hannah descended to the stage in one of the many screened boxes suspended over the stage. the pyrotechnics had the girls awestruck. she ran a great first half, pausing between songs to drink some water. she made two costume changes, during which her two backup singers ran the segue.

when intermission hit, the girls asked to go home. becca and i were having a blast and encouraged them to hold out longer. (there was no way we were leaving early.)

after another 20 minute break, the lights went down and the music started again. this time, miley rose to the stage at the end of the walkway that extended into the audience. as she finished her first song, it sank into my head: both worlds.

miley's songs were more subdued and at the same time edgier. where hannah was pop, miley was rock/alternative even. i am not as familiar with miley's songs, but judging from the staging of them, they are a little more mature. i'm not sure i was totally comfortable with that, but i noticed some things about her moves that reassured me about her innocence. for one thing, under her short gauzy skirt, she was wearing black lycra shorts to preserve her modesty. also, she still at times had the awkwardness of a pubescent tomboy. she was simply a fun-loving kid learning to grow up.

many of the parents were indeed singing, and becca really got into it. i didn't feel out of place at all. there were even dads there! it was great to experience a concert for the first time again, through pooka's eyes. becca and i got a tremendous kick when aly and aj came back out and the three girls sang 'rock and roll all nite' by kiss. i'm sure the kids were oblivious to the history of that song.

when the second half ended, i was surprised at how many people actually started leaving. don't you people know there's always an encore? when the house lights don't come up, you know the show isn't over. miley finally returned to sit on a stool at the end of the walkway and played us one more song on her guitar. that was very sweet and a nice way to end the show.

i had planned on buying pooka a t-shirt, the quintessential concert souvenir, but they started at $30 and went up from there. what pooka really wanted was a glow stick ($10!) and i added a program ($20).

even though i subjected myself to the consumerism and the mob mentality that i despise about events like this, i thoroughly enjoyed myself and i wouldn't have traded the experience with my daughter for the world.