regina spektor!

this is the first chance i've had to write about seeing regina spektor in concert. and i have an assortment of grainy, blurry photos to share, too!

i actually had pretty good seats. my camera takes pretty bad photos though. i had orchestra seating, on stage left (or the audience's right). this was nice because then regina was facing my side of the audience! then the people sitting next to me appeared to know someone in the opening band (jupiter one or something?) and they all ended up leaving pretty soon after the opening band finished. thank god, because they were annoying. and that way i was able to move all the way over and be a little bit more center stage.

her voice was truly beautiful- just as good as she sounds on her albums. she was dressed in a simple black dress with some kind of sparkly brooch, not too much make up, but definitely bright red lipstick! she came out singing "the calculation," off of her newest album, "far." she's so beautiful! and she seemed so shy and gracious. she had a quartet and a guy playing the drums accompanying her for some of the songs, too.

getting to see your favorite singer in concert is awesome. it just meant so much to me. it was a pretty emotional experience, because i feel such a strong connection with so many of her songs. going by myself wasn't too bad, but i did wish i could've shared the experience with my dad, who's also a big fan. hearing songs like "laughing with" and "samson" especially made me wish that. this really was a wonderful gift from him and my grandparents. i am so thankful.

she said thank you after each song, and nearer to the end of the concert she just seemed so grateful. "it's like a dream," she said, about getting to have a show at radio city music hall. she said all her family and friends were there- they must be so proud of her! imagine being from new york city and ending up getting to have a show at radio city! i'm legitimately proud of her, haha.
above is a photo of her singing a song i'd never heard before a cappella. one of the lines was, "brown eyes are the truest eyes of them all." ;) i have brown eyes. it was a funny song though, at the end of the song it went, "what am i even talking about, don't believe any of this song, my eyes are blue," etc. below is her accompanying herself on a beautifully colored electric guitar. i was pretty psyched when she played "that time."

she ended the show kind of early, i felt... at least, at first. she said i'll play one more song, and i was kind of bummed because she hadn't played a few of my other favorite (older) songs. she left the stage and everybody stood up calling for an encore- and she came out with her quartet and played five more songs! and she started the encore with "samson" and "us." two of my FAVORITE songs. i teared up, i'm not gonna lie. i was so happy she played those songs, you have no idea. the encore was obviously planned, but it was still wonderful. the first couple songs this huge disco ball came out of the floor and flashed lights all around the concert hall.

idk. it meant so much to me that i didn't miss this.