The Dubliners in Vienna (Austria)
Vienna 2009 Revisited
From the visitor feedback last year we
know that our previous Vienna
2008 Revisited was very much accepted - not only because the fans
constantly crave for new material, but also because for many years, the
first week in Vienna sets the pattern for the rest of the year. So we
decided to look back at those past few days like we did a year ago...
After the utterly succesful gig at Vicar
Street in July, launching the new program "A time to remember"
to the world, the questions was as huge as simple: Can the Dubliners bring
the new show on the road?
The original program was a unique
combination of the their standard and trusted program, interwoven with
multimedia elements: Pictures were used to emphasize the songs, many of
them carefully selected to fit into the theme of a song or tune or the
introductory notes, mostly spoken by John. Then there was audio to
highlight unique performances of band members long gone, and even video
clips by Luke and Ronnie, accompanied by the line up on stage, creating
the illusion that those giants of folk were with us once again. And a
fairly big list of guest stars, both selected to underline the Dubliners'
undying appeal to the 21st century generation as well as to embrace
friends and relatives of those not with us anymore. Vicar Street was a
long show, literally, and the band faced various challenges coming to
Austria:
There would be no guest stars like Jimmy
Kelly or Phelim Drew which would alter the dramaturgy of the show
significantly. There also would be no solid ground of homebased Irish
audience which was an important aspect: As much as the continental fans
love their Dubs, only someone who grew up with them, saw them around on
the streets, met them casually in their favorite pubs where they were
sitting, sipping and reading the paper (the Lowe Deck comes to mind) -
only to someone like that the full message of the show would be
comprehendable, especially on that emotional level that surpasses simple
fandom knowledge.
The five days in Vienna gave the band the
opportunity to finetune the program and to polish their act. It was also a
test-flight for a different type of, in that case a smaller, stage and how
the presentations would come out. Actually the front rows, usually
benefifted with best sight, did realize that it wasn't so easy to see much
of the slideshow as the band stood in front of it. But that, all
considered and thought twice, was about the only drawback to be reported.
The slideshow, mostly carefully selected
to match the music on stage, demanded a different kind of discipline;
there was very little change in the musical program throughout the five
days. That said, there is quite a good assortment of, if not new, but
definitely rarely performed music, and, again, chosen to follow the times
remembered on the screen.
The Fermoy Lassies warmed up the audience
as it did since Donkey's years, usually followed with The Banks Of The
Roses. At that point, Barney took the stage, taking everyone on a journey
to the sea with Fiddler's Green or Three Score And Ten. Patsy brought us
back to terra firma and to the very point of origin, Dublin, with The
Ferryman. His short but descriptive remarks about the background of the
song added nice to the theme of the evening, remembering those times when
the original lineup prowled the city with song and music. You see the show
definitely holds familiar moments. Yet there was good deal of more or less
completely new performances to nowadays audiences as well:
Luke's recitation of the only poem he
ever wrote, For What Died The Sons Of Roisin, was the first every evening,
but there also was Preab San Ol, an English/Gaelic a capella duet by Luke
and Ciaran. The two songs on which the current lineup joined the old one
with their song on the screen proved to be a huge success with the fans -
when Luke sang Maids When You're Young Never Wed An Old Man and Ronnie
appeared in an old video singing McAlpines Fusiliers. It is touching, it
is fun and I can only recommend to watch John Sheahan as he brilliantly
plays the fiddle perfectly in tune with his own younger self. Strictly on
stage, there also was a good mix of old ones and new ones: Sean did Peggy
Lettermore as well as Fainne Geal An Lae, the original Gaelic version of
Raglan Road, of course having only the tune in common. Patsy did The
Parting Glass occasionally and also re-introduced what was the high point
of the evening for many fans, The Town I Loved So Well. Phil Coulter's
Derry-tale was greeted with lots of enthusiasm everytime, and Patsy
alternated it with Dublin In The Rare Auld Times. All of the evening was
bound together by the beautifully crafted poems by John. There has to be a
note added about Pat and Tom O'Brien, who take great care that the evening
is enriched with video and photographs but never overloaded to become a
senseless slideshow spectacle.
Winding up in our reflection of the first
tour of the season, the main question of course has been answered by now
and answered impressively:
Yes, The Dubliners bring their A Time To
Remember show very succesfully on tour. It is a nicely-paced, well-themed
and perfectly yet spontaneously executed great show. Thrilling from the
very first to the very last minute, it proves once more why The Dubliners
are the most popular folk act on the road.
Article & photographs Rare Auld
Times Entertainment & The Dubliners
All photographs taken 4-8 September 2009 at the Metropol, Vienna.
Many more fresh new photographs in
our gallery!
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