The packed pavilion was ready for their Queen of Country Music as evidenced by the throngs of pink cowgirl hats with tassels, white cowgirl boots and leopard print everything. They came to see Shania Twain perform an over-the-top concert and they got their wish. Shania, a beautiful and talented woman of 57, has found a new lease on her career and her fans adored every aspect of it.
The moment the venue went dark, cameras came out to record or photograph every second of the performance. Handlers brought her out in a big, black box and wheeled her around parts of the arena while she sang "Waking Up Dreaming," from her latest album, Queen Of Me. Dressed in 80s rockstar garb, she made quite the impression and the glitz and glamor only got better. She next appeared on the top riser of the stage wearing short shorts and a lace top under a sign that read, TEXAS, and she held the crowd in the palm of her hand.
The five-time Grammy Award winner engaged the crowd at every chance and made sure she said, Dallas, at every opportunity to thunderous applause. That same applause started with the first notes of "Still The One" and continued with "Any Man Of Mine," her first #1 hit, and kept going throughout "Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under." Twain then read a letter from a mother, whom the star invited up to the stage for pictures and hugs, always part of her ongoing moments with loyal fans.
The Queen of Country Pop continued her hit parade of Top 20 songs, as she can fill an entire setlist with chart-topping music with many songs not getting played because of the time limit for shows. Twain then acknowledged her fans again as she invited the VIP ticket buyers onto the stage to get up close for a song and to take pictures with their favorite singer who has sold over 100 million albums. As Shania walked from group to group, she was told one couple had just announced a marriage proposal. The sentimentalists in the audience were on pins and needles to hear her answer. She said, "Yes," and the three celebrated with pictures and hugs.
When the Original Crossover Queen asked the audience to light up their phones after she sand a four-song medley of snippets of songs, it looked like the Lights on Broadway, and she accompanied it with "Forever And For Always," another of her many hit songs with then-producer-and-husband, Mutt Lange. For the final song of the set, she asked, "Dallas, are you ready to rock?" The screams indicated it was a resounding, "Yes," and the Hollywood Walk of Fame artist belted out "Rock This Country!" Shania, the band and the dancers had fun with it and led the crowd to dance, sing and just feel good about the experience.
After the break, Ms. Twain came out for the encore in the outfit she wore for the video of "Man, I Feel Like A Woman!" It still fit perfectly and the fans let her know it. She launched into "That Don't Impress Me Much" as the crowd sang as loud as the star. Shania picked another perfect encore song in "If You're Not In It For Love," another singalong and dance-along song of hers. The show had to end and it did with a bang. The original video played on the overhead screen as The Queen shimmied and shook to "Man, I Feel Like A Woman!" to finish the two-hour concert.
This was a complete new look for Shania Twain from her pure Country Music days. She was celebrating living life to its fullest by shedding her vulnerability and throwing it all "out there" for everyone to see. After overcoming an extremely poor upbringing, singing in bars at age 8 to help pay bills, Lyme Disease that affected her voice and a 2018 laryngoplasty to have stabilizers implanted in her throat, she earned the right to have a Queen Of Me Tour. Every fan was ecstatic before, during and after the show and let her know it by screams, pictures, videos and the way they dressed. Everyone was completely spent afterward, but they will have memories for years to come.
Special thanks to Rebecca Kaplan of Live Nation and the staff of Dos Equis for all their help.