Ok, the bad news first. There were some spotlight issues during the show (during one of the songs it took like 10 seconds for the operator to find Alex). Oh, and the couple in the seats in front of me sometimes whispered to eachother, which was distracting when they did that.

Other than that... everything else went right, in perfect storm fashion. This was, by far, the best Celtic Woman show I have ever seen. And, all together, the best all-around CW experience I have ever had.

It all really began Monday (two days before) when Tony and Glenn flew in to join me for the roadtrip to Wilkes-Barre. I hadn't seen Tony since last year in February and had never met Glenn before. I treated them to a fine steak dinner (I seem to have had too much steak this week!! LOL). We sat in their hotel room talking until 1:30 in the morning. Naturally we planned to leave early the next morning, and we did... with very little sleep.

We drove the 6 hours to northern Pennsylvania, after a few escapades in New York City along the way. Upon arriving we met some of the Forum people who had already arrived... Moscapoet, Capt Davey, mpdallen, Jim M, Dwight, and others. We had a delicious dinner, I went to take a look at the venue (more on that shortly), and we all sat up late talking until about 3am or so. Again, I didn't get a whole lot of sleep.

Finally... the day of the show. More people began to arrive for MaireadFest, including Mike (Mr.Peabody) who reported on how things had gone at the Providence show the night before. Also arriving was John (MeavMan) who I hadn't seen since my Bridgeport show in 2007 and who I had hoped to see again. Kimberly (KAJ) and her family arrived also, along with Ralph and Edtom. Many of us sat and talked again... there seemed to be no end to the stories that everyone has of their own CW experiences. When Edtom told me that this was to be his first CW show ever, I told him that he would be in for a real treat. I had no idea how much.

We collected our things and headed down to the venue. The Wachovia Arena is basically a cookie-cutter arena, much like the Verizon and Mohegan Sun arenas that I have grown used to. This night the show was to be a half-house, which I had never seen before. I was assured that the place had excellent acoustics, which I have found to be suprisingly true of arenas such as the Verizon in Manchester.

Getting inside, I found that Wickie had arrived. I hadn't seen her since we had met for the "Skate For the Heart" event in late 2007. We got ourselves seated. I was 2nd row, very close to dead-center... IMO, excellent seats, maybe the best available, since the big amplifier-boxes that CW uses for the arena shows would have been in the way if I had first row. My heart was racing faster; the girls would be getting plenty of standing ovations from us, a group that was a blend of first-timers (like Edtom and Wickie's friend Tori) to old, close fans who had returned to the fold after years of being away (like Tony). For quite a few of our group, this was the first they had seen of the IOH Tour.

WOW... David Downes walks over to the piano. This is my 13th show, and he has NEVER played the piano at any of my shows. I might have held the record for the most David-less shows until this one. Now I KNEW this was going to be good.

So it began, as it always does... Mairead stepped out, and the narration began. I am liking the narration more and more with each show... but I still think it either should be shortened, or placed before the actual performance begins... it distracts from Mairead's excellent opening solo.... but tonight, nothing could detract from the performance we would get. "The Sky And the Dawn And the Sun" came roaring into my life once again, placing another layer of itself upon my heart. I never get tired of hearing the ladies perform it.

The acoustics were everything that I was led to believe they'd be... perhaps all the arenas should go to half-houses, if the sound would be half what it was for this show. But far more important was the entire atmosphere of the show... half of the first two rows in the center were giving rousing standing ovations on a regular basis, letting the girls know how much we care. Also, the entire crowd, if not giving standing ovations, was clapping along enthusiastically and whooping it up with loud applause.

As the show went on, it was clear that there were some subtle things happening. The girls were getting into it in some ways I hadn't ever seen them do before. I am almost certain it's because they knew that so many of their die-hard fans were there. I hadn't seen Ray hopping on one leg during "The Contradiction" before... or Lisa winking directly at one of her long time fans (you know who you are)... or David adding a rich strings sound to the seemingly ever-changing "Orinoco Flow"... or what I swear looked like "80's hair band" explosions on the first drum boom of "Mo Ghile Mear"... or Lisa and Chloe holding hands at the end of "You Raise Me Up" like they always do, but also looking at eachother and visibily sighing with relief as we gave them the greatest ovation I have ever seen, knowing that they had done it perfectly on the biggest of all nights.

I know I've been saying this with each review, but I LOVE "The Coast Of Galicia". Mairead's performance of it tonight was not just inspired... it was a force of nature. This song absolutely MUST be recorded for their next DVD.

Two other songs truly stand out to me: the harmonies on "Danny Boy" cannot even be described by the words dazzling, enthralling, or poignant. They can only be described as sheer magic. In my seat, at 2nd-row center, I didn't even need their mic-pickup to hear them sing it. They have been doing a fantastic job with this song in each of my shows, but this one defies description. I may never hear a harmony so perfect in my life again. And (as some of you already know) I don't even LIKE "Danny Boy"!!

The other standout song was "Oh America!" This tune is something you feel as much as hear, but tonight it was more so than before. During the booming climax of the song, I thought the speakers were going to burst. The standing ovation began a full 20 seconds before the song was over.

As the show ended, I found Edtom and told him "You have no idea how lucky you were to get this as your first show!" I told one of the other Forum people (I think it was John): "If I could trade our upcoming M&G for this same concert a second time, I would make that trade right now." But it was out of our hands as we were led to the function room for our M&G.

There were two girls that we most wanted to have for this M&G: Mairead and Chloe. This was MaireadFest, so of course we wanted to talk to her! And we wanted Chloe because Kimberly was with us and it would be an opportunity for her to meet Chloe for the first time. I felt soooo spoiled... Chloe was my favorite, and I had met her a mere 6 months after first falling in love with her music. KAJ had been waiting 3 long years for this, and I knew that as an impressionable teenager it would mean so much more to her, than my own M&G with Chloe had ever meant to me.

When the girls came out, it was indeed Chloe and Mairead... my two favorites in the current lineup, and the two that I had met the most. This was my fourth time meeting with Chloe and my fifth with Mairead. We were pleased that Pennsylvania PBS was permitting candid photography for this M&G. I did not envy Rachel's job on this night... it would have given me the granddaddy of all headaches to make all of this work as smoothly as she did.

Anyway, I presented my Mairead calendar made by Moscapoet to Mairead for her to sign for me... this was special to me because the pictures in the calendar were truly a part of me, some of the greatest things I have ever created. She flattered me by telling me that I had made her look better than she does in real life (which is simply impossible hehe). Hearing Mairead tell me "You are soooo creative!" almost made me cry like a baby. I didn't know it at the time, but someone, I think it was Davey, took a picture of me greeting Mairead. That, and the calendar, will always be there to remind me of that special moment.

Seeing Chloe again was also special. The girl whose voice had first borne me onto this journey in what seems like another lifetime altogether, who had led me to places far from home that I had never been to before, was now the woman who "came and sat awhile with me." Chloe, I don't know if I will ever speak to you again, but if this is really my last M&G with you, let me say thank you a thousand times over for what you have done for me.

For the first time at any of my M&Gs, the girls didn't ask me how I liked the show. They didn't have to. They already knew.

But this M&G wasn't about me or even the girls... it was about a sweet young lady who finally got the chance to meet her idol and give her a wonderful hug. I made sure to stand in the perfect spot to see it. Kimberly was one of the first people who had ever answered my posts, and it was very satisfying to see her get her long-time wish. Chloe, I think you realize what a wonderful thing you did. Let it never be said that there are no great teen role models in our era... Chloe truly is one.

We were permitted a group picture, which Rachel assisted with. Wickie got to stand beside Mairead for the picture and Kimberly got to stand with Chloe. Afterwards, Mairead thanked us all so much for coming, and it was clear she was moved almost to tears by the people who love her so much. I don't think I walked out of the arena... I floated out.

We went back to the hotel, and sat and talked. No one could sleep. There weren't enough seats to go around, so I sat on the floor. I got a chance to catch up with John... we meant to meet up during Meav's solo tour and at Detroit on this tour. The camaraderie with Forum people is something I long for as much as the shows themselves, and there was plenty to go around this time. I know one thing: I want to go to another show with Ralph, and have some more time to talk with him. Meav's 2010 show at Carnagie Hall will give us our chance.

I was up talking until past 5am. We had to be on the road early, so I only got 3 hours sleep. I didn't care. I didn't want the night to end.

As we made our way back to our homes, I had plenty of time to reflect on the last couple of days. I'd have to say that the money I paid for this little adventure in the Pocono Mountains was one of the best investments I'd ever made. The memories I have will grow richer with the telling. For me, Wilkes-Barre 2009 will always be THE show.

It was a night never to be forgotten. So this is the view from the mountain-top....

No question about this at all. She really is.

Thank you for a wonderful account of the event, Scott. I've read your reviews for a while now, but this is probably your best write-up yet -- fittingly so, as it was your favourite show.

I feel so happy for KAJ that she finally got to meet Chloe. I had no idea that she'd never gotten to meet her before -- but with the M&G "lottery," I can easily see how this can happen. (I still wish the M&Gs announced in advance which of the girls were set to participate.)

I've read elsewhere that there wasn't a dry eye in the house when Chloe met Kimberly, and I believe it. It must have been a magical moment.

It truly was magical. I think moments like that are what the girls live for... a chance to make a positive impact on someone in our world, and not just with music. I'm sure Kimberly felt like she was "touched by an angel."

This is what the message of Celtic Woman is all about.

Scott,
I was so happy to have met you in Wilkes-Barre, and we had a great time there; but it was like you said, that event was all about Kim meeting her idle Chloe. There are some beautiful pictures on the Mairead forum of that meeting if you would like to see them.

This meeting of Chloe and Kim really took a lot of time and planning, and a lot of corporation from Kim`s parents and from Celtic Woman Ltd. to insure this happened. We wish to thank Celtic Woman Ltd., and especially Rachel Davis in seeing that we had Chloe and Mairead at that Meet and Greet, and Moscapoet, Capn Davey, and Scott-n3sjh, Administrators on the Mairead forum who were instrumental in seeing that event became a reality.

Great job guys.

Jim

Great review, Scott! It truly was THE show, and, of course, the M&G was the best I've seen. Kimberly was so happy to meet Chloe and Chloe later told me that she was very happy to meet Kimberly. I received a very nice Thank You card from Kimberly telling me that meeting Chloe was the greatest thing that ever happened to her. Kimberly, I am glad that I could help make your dream come true. You are probably Chloe's biggest fan and your enthusiasm and joy on that special night made it so special for the rest of us. I know that Mairead and Rachel were having a great time, too. Just look at the photos!

I think I was the first to call her name.