OTTAWA -- The early bird catches the Avril.

And that's pretty damn early.

Napanee's favourite pop-punk princess Avril Lavigne gave 3,300 fans, most chaperoned by their parents for their first live concert experience, the thrill of a lifetime with an acoustic set at Place d'Orleans yesterday afternoon.

Accompanied by her songwriting partner Evan Taubenfield on a 21-city North American tour to promote her second album Under My Skin, the 19-year-old Lavigne did a half-hour set in the old Bay, which is currently being renovated to become RCMP offices this August.

Giving her semi-rabid fans a taste of the new album was what this promotional pit stop was all about.

So, with little introduction and amid deafening shrieks, Lavigne got down to business, opening with He Wasn't before delving into her first album, Let Go, for familiar renditions of My Happy Ending and Sk8er Boy, which had parents singing to the little ones.

Her new singles, including two bouncy ballads, Don't Tell Me and Take Me Away, as well as her closing number, Complicated, had the kids clamouring to crawl up on daddy's shoulders for a better view.

She could have played for many more. Mall organizers were predicting a crowd of at least 5,000. Some estimates had the total number in line at close to 10,000.

But fire marshals cut the long queues short almost an hour before Lavigne's scheduled 4:30 p.m. start, leaving another 3,000 young fans and harried parents fuming.

Those lucky enough to get in might have wished they hadn't.

With crowds crushed up to the south end of the cold concrete temporary venue, sightlines and acoustics were terrible.

But these were only minor inconveniences for claustrophobic fans trapped inside the impenetrable crowd.

Two people fainted after a 30-minute delay, which only exacerbated the bare-bones venue's no bathrooms and no leaving policy.

The biggest fans began camping out in the Orleans mall parking lot as early as Thursday night.

A long stretch of fans was already lined up at the mall's front doors by 6:30 a.m. yesterday morning.

"We've been here since 3 p.m.," said 10-year old Matthew Michaud, who was there with his younger sisters Melanie, 8, and Alexandra, 4.

"This is my first concert ever. She's worth waiting for."

But other fans weren't as quick to overlook the gig's uncomfortable environment.

"I've been here all day and now I can't see a thing," said diminutive nine-year-old Samantha Memedoska, referring to the line of 50 security agents and 10 police hired to supplement the mall's own security.

Still, the event was a proud moment for Place d'Orleans staff.

"It gives the mall a cool image," said marketing manager Caroline Joanisse.

"It puts us on the map with malls like the Rideau Centre, a fun place to be."

Lavigne's album Under My Skin hits stores on May 25.