Paul Simon in Concert at the 02, Dublin

Last night (Thursday 12^th July) I had the good fortune of being treated to see and hear Paul Simon in Concert at the 0². The concert featured the Graceland suite including the Ladysmith Black Mambazo, whose vocals, with their distinctive rhythm and cadence are only astonishing. The main feature was of course Paul Simon himself, who performed to the delight of his audience with great panache, energy and completeness. A live performance by an artist of the calibre of Paul Simon and his team could only be mesmerizing as this concert was and his performance was further enhanced by emotionally charged moments that bonded audience and performers in momentary unified entity.

From a Scenographer’s (Set Designer) the stage presentation was visually and logistically well thought out. Bearing in mind that this is a touring show, it was a visually appealing apparently simple and smart presentation. The stage surface had a light tonal finish which worked well with the coloured lighting and projected imagery.

Hanging over the back of the stage was a composition of three large panels onto which images appeared to be projected. They could have been large Plasma or LED screens with a queued programme of images fed to them interspersed with a feed from the onstage cameras. In all the presentation (despite some very jerky and abrupt lighting changes) worked well and supported the atmosphere and ambiance of the concert more than it hindered it.

Patrick Molloy for www.stagebrace.com