When Josh Groban spoke to us last week about preparing for his tour opener, he noted the challenge of finding ways to fill an arena space with energy.<\/p>\n
Mission accomplished.<\/p>\n
Thursday night, Groban and tour mate Idina Menzel launched their monthlong jaunt from Infinite Energy Arena in Duluth (which prompted a witty aside from Groban about Duluth Trading Company underwear \u2013 and yes, he knows they\u2019re based in Minnesota) and a dazzling three hours of vocal prowess was born.<\/p>\n
Yes, there were a few misfires, as is expected on the first night of a major outing. Menzel missed her cue to join Groban for a couple of duets \u2013 she was in the bathroom, she explained with her trademark tart wit when she dashed out a few minutes later \u2013 and the lighting during Menzel\u2019s opening set was a frustrating dark wash of purple and shadows.<\/p>\n
But their voices \u2013 separately and together \u2013 provided a flawless sonic experience.<\/p>\n
Groban, shaggy-haired and bespectacled, arrived on stage at 9:30 p.m. backed by a 14-piece orchestra and five-member band and dove into \u201cBigger Than Us,\u201d from his current album, \u201cBridges.\u201d<\/p>\n
His catalog has expanded to the point of surely leaving out someone\u2019s favorite, but he wisely sandwiched his new opener and another fresh track, \u201cSymphony,\u201d with his 2008 hit, \u201cYou Are Loved (Don\u2019t Give Up).\u201d<\/p>\n
Though his stage is vast, it appealed with elegant simplicity. A backdrop superimposed close-ups of the singer-songwriter-actor against sheet music and other designs, while color-changing illuminations that looked like lightsabers see-sawed from the ceiling following Groban\u2019s warm take on a gorgeously soaring \u201cPure Imagination.\u201d<\/p>\n
A few songs into the set, Groban popped up on a secondary stage at the back of the arena, showcasing his piano chops in an instrumental that dovetailed into his rendition of Billy Joel\u2019s incisive \u201cShe\u2019s Always a Woman.\u201d<\/p>\n
Menzel \u2013 post bathroom run \u2013 joined him on the small stage for a stunning duet of \u201cFalling Slowly\u201d from the movie\/musical \u201cOnce,\u201d their voices like interlocking puzzle pieces. Groban remained for another Broadway staple, \u201cBring Him Home,\u201d the potent ballad from \u201cLes Miserables\u201d that benefitted from the chameleonic ability of Groban\u2019s voice.<\/p>\n
His band played a sublime percussion interlude as Groban jogged back to the main stage for the flamenco guitar-heavy \u201cMusica Del Corazon,\u201d proving that in any language, he\u2019s a magnificent singer. <\/p>\n
Groban has always engaged effortlessly with his audiences, and age hasn\u2019t quelled his tendencies. He spoke about the importance of arts education in schools; explained his and Menzel\u2019s contribution (\u201cLullaby\u201d) to fellow Broadway star Laura Benanti\u2019s upcoming charity album to benefit organizations helping to reunite and support families separated at the border (\u201cNo matter your politics, there are certain things we shouldn\u2019t do to children or families,\u201d Groban said); and dedicated the touching new \u201cRiver\u201d to \u201canybody who struggles silently.\u201d<\/p>\n
His sensitivity is appreciated and his commitment to spotlighting others\u2019 talents \u2013 the Georgia Boy Choir joined him for \u201cYou Raise Me Up\u201d and \u201cBridge Over Troubled Water\u201d \u2013 is commendable. Seventeen years into his career, Groban\u2019s buttery voice and winning presence continue to impress.<\/p>\n
Menzel\u2019s opening hourlong set was equally captivating from a musical standpoint \u2013 if only, as previously mentioned, she could have been seen a bit better.<\/p>\n
Adroitly mixing her Broadway bonafides \u2013 \u201cThe Wizard and I\u201d (\u201cWicked\u201d), \u201cDon\u2019t Rain on My Parade\u201d (\u201cGypsy\u201d) \u2013 with her movie credentials ( \u201cDo You Want to Build a Snowman\u201d from \u201cFrozen\u201d) and her underappreciated original solo efforts (\u201cQueen of Swords\u201d), Menzel was a bundle of majestic vocal swoops throughout.<\/p>\n
Though some of the audience appeared to be unfamiliar with \u2013 or apathetic about \u2013 her music and her efforts to promote engagement, Menzel and her band clearly had a blast.<\/p>\n
She dropped in a slinky recast of Modern English\u2019s 1982 hit, \u201cI Melt With You,\u201d noting that it used to remind her of her junior high boyfriend, but now \u201cmake me think of my husband\u201d and, following a thundering drum introduction, unleashed the still-enjoyable \u201cLet It Go.\u201d<\/p>\n
She endeared herself to the \u201cRent\u201d-heads in the crowd with a funky run through \u201cOver the Moon,\u201d a gut-busting \u201cTake Me or Leave Me\u201d \u2013 which featured a vocal battle royale between Menzel and her backup singer \u2013 and the warm embrace of \u201cNo Day But Today.\u201d<\/p>\n
While fans of Menzel\u2019s bottomless vocal power no doubt adored her set-closing \u201cDefying Gravity,\u201d it was actually the penultimate performance \u2013 an a capella read of the most tender song from the \u201cWicked\u2019 canon, \u201cFor Good,\u201d that inspired chills.<\/p>\n
Menzel, obviously, can belt. But unlike many of her peers, she\u2019s possesses the skill to understand when less is so much more powerful.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
When Josh Groban spoke to us last week about preparing for his tour opener, he noted the challenge of finding ways to fill an arena space with energy. Mission accomplished. Thursday night, Groban and tour mate Idina Menzel launched their monthlong jaunt from Infinite Energy Arena in Duluth […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[10],"tags":[46,50],"class_list":["post-776","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews","tag-46","tag-bridges-tour"],"acf":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6Srnq-cw","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/776","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=776"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/776\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":778,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/776\/revisions\/778"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=776"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=776"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.idina-here.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=776"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}