WolftrapLewis08rev - Page: 1 of 1

Just returned from a couple of the Summer concerts and the Irish
Tenors still got it, as they say!!

I hadn't been to Wolftrap in about 25 years but had heard many times
how much this venue's patronage loves the Irish Tenors. So, I decided
to go despite my dislike of Summer venues only because they are
always inconvenient to get to, and from. Also I wanted to dry out
from Tropical Storm Fay !!

What I heard was true! The Wolftrap capacity audience not only loves
the IT but adores them! They know every nuance as if they were all
part of the original core group of fans! They joined in with the
rhythmic clapping, the singing along and finally the heady rush that
lifts you out of your seat in a show of complete enthrall with the
performance you had just witnessed by 3 very talented, and adorable,
men!

IMHO, Finbar, Anthony and Karl deserve adoration! They have a surplus
of talent!!! They are all gorgeous!!! And all three are nice guys!!!
What's not to adore!!!?

My seat at Wolftrap was nearly perfect, front row center. I
say "nearly perfect" only because I was face to "cheek" with
conductor Roth, Jr. and those aren't the dimples I came to see!!!

The guys looked spiffy as always in their white dinner jackets and
their red rose boutonnieres. Finbar's dinner jacket needs a bit of
tailoring here and there but that is of no consequence, other than to
my Obsessive Compulsive disorder! However, the utter euphoria in
watching and listening to these Irish men was surpassed only by the
exhilarating joy that came when the 3 hunky singers kicked up their
heels in "Go, Lassie, Go" and a flash of rebel red shown out from
beneath Finbar's trouser leg...he was wearing red socks!!!!!!!!!!!
For those of us who saw the stockings I honestly can't convey the
sheer glee we felt at such a deliberate act of playfulness ! Just
goes to show, you can't contain rebelliousness, you can only hope to
express it in a non-violent manner!

All three were exceptional in voice and emotion and used their arms
and hands artistically to express a song's sentiment.
They each scored with well-chosen solos and surely accumulated enough
points on the applause meter to equal their frequent flyer miles! I
was worried as four consecutive concerts without a break seemed to be
pushing it a bit but in concert number three there were no voice
issues, luckily.

The next day, on a last minute whim, I flew to Buffalo, via JFK, for
the final concert. I rented a car and drove the 15 miles to Niagara
Falls to check into my hotel. I ordered room service and got ready
for the concert at Artpark in Lewiston, approximately 6 miles away. I
went downstairs to the lobby and sat down to people-watch for awhile
before driving to the venue, just to pass a little time. A group of
Orientals (not sure from which country) came in and sat around me.
They had been shopping apparently and now it was time to discuss
their purchases. A lady looked at me and asked in a very heavy
accent," Have you seen the lost samoli". Not wishing to offend I, a
good Samaritan at heart, began looking around for a dropped salami
and asked, "where did you lose it". At that the lady looked confused
and said, "No, the lost samoli wit Tom Cluise" as she pulled from her
bag a DVD "The Last Samurai". As I attempted to contain my laughter I
said through gritted teeth, "Oh, that lost samoli - yes, it is good".
I got up, bowed slightly and left. Once in the car the laughter
exploded and I know anyone passing by would have thought I was looney!

Lewiston is a very quaint and well kept village. Very old-fashion in
appearance save for the CVS at the south end of town. Artpark is a
lovely indoor venue although they do have an outdoor stage for
smaller ensembles.

This time around, concert number 4, it seemed Karl's voice was a
little hoarse but he got through each song like a trooper. Finbar,
Anthony and even Karl were bringing out all the stops as they became
increasingly animated during the performance. At one point, in "The
Irish Rover", when Finbar sang "and fightin' Bill Tracey from Dover",
instead of his usual one fist punch he 'put up his dukes' to which
Anthony raised up both fists and looking pleadingly back at Karl as
if to say "you stay W-right behind me, dude"!

Of course, at the end, came that familiar rush of emotion from the
audience and all were standing applauding and woohoo-ing like there
was no tomorrow! Unfortunately tomorrow came and we all had to go our
separate ways! But what fond memories I have now to add to my
scrapbook! Thank you Finbar, Anthony and Karl !!!!

Sharyl Madeloni