  Glee Live! In Concert!. (Dave Abel/QMI Agency) |
TORONTO - Young and popular TV actors singing abbreviated versions of cover songs? Doesn’t really grab you as a concert idea does it?
And yet when Glee Live! In Concert, came to the Toronto on Saturday night, during the second of four shows at the Air Canada Centre over the weekend - two in the afternoon and two in the evening both days - it managed to do just that.
The draw for the audience, I guess, was seeing the people who play the characters on the Fox TV show about a group of high school misfits in a Glee club, perform in person.
Let’s put it this way: Not many acts can sell out the ACC for four straight shows. It’s a phenomenon, like it or not.
The fast-paced, hour and 20 minute show - there was barely time to breathe between songs - featured some taped bits by Matthew Morrison and Jane Lynch, who plays Glee Club’s director Mr. Will Schuester, and his nemesis, gym teacher/cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester, respectively, but it was the actual singing that demanded your attention.
The red-shirt wearing 13-member ensemble - called New Directions on the TV series - opened with the clean-cut trio of Journey’s Don’t Stop Believin,’ Florence And The Machine’s Dog Days Are Over and My Chemical Romance’s Sing, on a large white stage backed by a five piece band.
The show got a bit more provocative (i.e. interesting) with Heather Morris (oversexed space cadet cheerleader Brittany) and her rendering of Britney Spears I’m A Slave 4 U as she was stripped down to the bare essentials aided by 10 dancers.
Then Mark Salling (bad boy Puck) on guitar and lead vocals appeared on a smaller stage at the back of the floor for Queen’s Fat Bottomed Girls and made his way through the crowd to the stage.
The audience also went nuts for Chris Colfer’s (gay student Kurt) ballad version of The Beatles’ I Want To Hold Your Hand.
When it came to real belters few could compare to Amber Riley (Mercedes) as she took on Aretha Franklin’s Ain’t No Way again on the smaller stage or Lea Michele (good girl Rachel) on Katy Perry’s Firework with, yes, fireworks for emphasis. Michele and Colfer also wowed with their version of the Judy Garland-Barbra Streisand classic, Happy Days Are Here Again/Get Happy, on the small stage.
For sheer fun value there was Kevin McHale (Artie), who remained in his character’s wheelchair, as he did Michael Jackson’s Pretty Young Thing, and later jumped out of it to bust some major dance moves on Canadian band Men Without Hat’s Safety Dance during the encore.
The fun factor was high too on Lady Gaga’s Born This Way, and Tina Turner’s River Deep Mountain High, the latter featuring Riley and Naya Rivera (mean cheerleader Santana) on lead vocals, Vancouverite Cory Monteith’s (footballer Finn) version of Rick Springfield’s Jessie’s Girl, Rivera’s take on Amy Winehouse’s Valerie with some fancy footwork by Morris and Harry Shum Jr. (footballer turned dancer Mike) along with the encore numbers of Rebecca Black’s Friday led by Salling and Chord Overstreet (new student Sam) and the ensemble’s take on Jay-Z’s Empire State of Mind and Queen’s Somebody To Love.
Also along for the ride were New Directions’ private boys school competition, The Warblers’ featuring Darren Criss (gay private school student Blaine), who again appeared on the small stage first to sing Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream - the best of their three numbers - before heading through the crowd to sing lesser songs, Wings’ Pretty Love Songs and Pink’s Raise Your Glass on the main stage.
Speaking of sappy, Dianna Agron (pregnant cheerleader Quinn) and Overstreet’s duet on Jason Mraz’s Lucky just didn’t cut the mustard.
SET LIST:
Don’t Stop Believin’
Dog Days Are Over
Sing
I’m a Slave 4 U
Fat Bottomed Girls
I Want to Hold Your Hand
Ain’t No Way
P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)
Born This Way
Firework
Teenage Dream
Silly Love Songs
Raise Your Glass
Happy Days Are Here Again/Get Happy
Lucky
River Deep, Mountain High
Jessie’s Girl
Valerie
Loser Like Me
ENCORE:
Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)
Friday
Safety Dance
Empire State of Mind
Somebody to Love
