Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Pockets Full of Sunshine and Showers

Last Thursday my mom, my friend Lauren, and I did our annual summer ritual: go to Rye Playland, get a number one at Nathan's, and watch a free concert. This year one of our favorite singers, Natasha Bedingfield, came to perform. I was in shock when I found out she'd be in my neck of the woods and I think I still am.



We knew we had to get there early for good seats. My friend and I wanted to be closer to the stage than we were when we saw Teddy Geiger last year. We got to the park around 4:15 and so did a thunderstorm. We huddled together surrounded by camp children and two girls from the stage crew for almost a half hour. When the storm ended we rushed to get seats and luckily found some in the seventh row. Mom watched the seats while Lauren and I fetched food.

Natasha came onstage at 8PM decked out in a black dress, a purple belt, and cool heels. She, her backup singers, and the band were amazing. When they put on a show, they put on a show! She sang with all her might, as did the backup singers and the band played with passion.

Natasha worked the stage as she moved from one side to another, which made it hard at times to get good photos of her, but I liked the challenge. One of my favorite parts of the show was when she read a sign that said "Natasha, can I sing with you?" and she replied, "You just did. You sounded good."

Natasha got the crowd to stand up, wave their hands, and sing along as she sang a slew of songs from her new album mixed with old favorites and a cover of Madonna's Ray of Light. The last song in the set was Unwritten. As she started singing, the rain started falling, but I kept on filming. I was literally "feeling the rain on [my] skin" and "reaching ... in the distance" to get a good video as the people in front of me started putting up their umbrellas.

Seeing Natasha Bedingfield live was definitely a dream come true and the highlight of my summer. Now one can only wonder how Playland will top this next year. Justin Timberlake anyone?



Here's my vid of Natasha singing Unwritten. Sorry the audio's so sketchy, but you can totally see those people putting up their umbrellas in the front rows.


Natasha Bedingfield - Unwritten Live

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