Oh, what a night at the Metropolitan Opera House. Oh my, my, my, my, my.
At 85 years old, Tony Bennett made his debut at the Metropolitan Opera House this evening. The concert tickets sold out pretty quickly when the date was announced last summer. Haglund scored one of the last seats in the far-front side box of the dress circle. Little did he know how perfect that awful seat would be.
The stage floor of the opera house was extended over top of the orchestra pit, and Tony's four piece orchestra was set up in front of the red curtain. The sightline from the side box was such that not only could Haglund clearly see both hands of the pianist, but he could actually read the front of the teleprompter. A teleprompter? Why would Tony need a teleprompter? Is he forgetting lyrics these days? Hardly.
When Haglund opened the Playbill, he gasped in utter disbelief. How did they manage to keep this a secret?! Tony Bennett was bringing friends to the opera house to make their own debuts with him! Aretha Franklin. Unbelievable. Alejandro Sanz from Spain. Unbelievable. And S I R E L T O N J O H N !! Unbelievable10x10!
Haglund was losing it, right there in the Met. He was trying to text everyone he knew, but couldn't get a signal. All of a sudden, the house lights dimmed, and everyone calmed down waiting for the announcer to introduce Tony Bennett.
Announcer: Ladies and Gentlemen. Please welcome President Bill Clinton.
OMG! BILL CLINTON! Yes, THAT Bill Clinton walked right out onto the Metropolitan Opera House stage to do the warm-up for Tony Bennett. Well, it was actually a tribute – and a pretty nice one at that. He noted that as most singers age, their voices change and they sometimes have difficulty with pitch. He then spoke about all the great humanitarian contributions that Tony Bennett has made as well as his Frank Sinatra School of the Arts in Astoria and his internationally acclaimed paintings. Clinton concluded by saying that Tony Bennett had led "a life of perfect pitch." He then introduced Tony who nearly got knocked over by the crowd's roar when he came out on stage.
Clinton then left the stage and retreated to the Parterre where he sat for the whole concert with Hillary. Yes, HILLARY CLINTON WAS THERE TOO. Unbelievable10x10!
Tony Bennett sang and sang, and then Aretha Franklin came out for a song. They used the teleprompter to keep straight who would sing which lines. Tony sang some more after which the young Alejandro Sanz came out for a duet. Tony sang some more and then the Great Elton John came on stage dressed formally in black and nothing pink. He and Tony sang one duet, and then Tony solo-ed the concert home. He sang so many old favorites, and when he got to Shadow of Your Smile, he laid the microphone on the piano and came to the front of the stage to sing unamplified to the audience in the mammoth Metropolitan Opera House - just like all the great ones do. The audience had to be especially quiet at this point, but Tony got his voice to the top of the house.
Tony Bennett. Tony Bennett. Style. Substance. Staying power. Oh, and he did tonight's concert free as a donation to the Met. Style.
HH, it seems you lead a charmed life. Wish I'd been there.
Bill and Hill, The Qeen of Soul and Mr. Tony. Wow!
Posted by: Port City Lady | September 19, 2011 at 01:43 AM
Hi PCL! Thanks for stopping by HH. It was a grand night. Other Haglund'eelers were there, too. One just sent me a correction that it was "Fly Me to the Moon" that Tony sang without the microphone, not "Shadow of Your Smile."
I forgot to mention that there was an exhibit of Tony's paintings on the Grand Tier level. I got to the opera house too late to see them, but the exhibit seemed to be drawing a good sized crowd.
Posted by: Haglund | September 19, 2011 at 08:31 AM
Wow! What a night! And it's especially gratifying to see a huge star give back to the community with significant support for arts education, which we so desperately need everywhere.
Posted by: Julie | September 19, 2011 at 11:21 AM
Wow!! Thanks for telling us about the event. Sounds like a magical evening. Wish I had been there.
Posted by: B | September 19, 2011 at 12:49 PM
Amen, Julie. He's doing a lot more than his share.
B, you missed a great one!
Posted by: Haglund | September 19, 2011 at 12:49 PM
What a fantastic evening..a true star and ledgend. Thanks HH for shareing the song by song highlights.
Posted by: Cindy Ramadan | September 20, 2011 at 09:06 AM
You're very welcome. Perhaps you will stop by HH again when you are at the Mikhailovsky Ballet next month and tell us what you thought of the performance.
Posted by: Haglund | September 20, 2011 at 05:27 PM
Oh my God!I wish I´ve been there!!
Alejandro Sanz and Tony Bennett !!!I love seeing Alejandro succeed in the MET!As Angel Corella...my two loves.Spaniards should be proud of them...as am I;)Thank you Haglund!
Posted by: Rachel | September 23, 2011 at 06:21 PM
It was such a terrific, uplifting evening.
Posted by: Haglund | September 23, 2011 at 11:54 PM