It doesn’t matter if you were born yesterday or if you could be classified as ancient – either way you know and/or love Belinda Carlisle. Lucky for us Townsville was presented with a very rare opportunity to see her live at The Venue.
Last night long-time fans filled The Venue’s Ballroom anxiously anticipating the moment when they could begin reliving the memories. Memories that could only be brought back by Carlisle’s endless number of hits.
After a stunning performance from support Simon Shapiro and the eagerness had caused the crowd to chant her name, Belinda Carlisle humbly took to the stage with an eruption of applause.
The first thing of note was that Carlisle looked incredible – she was quiet literally glowing. It very quickly became evident by her ecstatic enthusiasm that she is still young at heart.
Even though it has already been said before, after last night’s performance it definitely needs to be said again – the stage really is Carlisle’s element. Her performance came so naturally and it was unmistakable that she was at home on the stage. The 55 year old beauty bounced around (barefoot) with an unwavering presence and energy as she has done many times before. Her carefree and spontaneous attitude ensured that the audience felt as though they were part of the show. The more fun the crowd was having – the more fun Carlisle was having.
You’re probably aware that Carlisle has wowed crowds for many years with her impressive song list. This made it almost impossible to pick which song you wanted to hear the most, however each time the band began to play another track there came a recognition and the audience beamed with excitement. The set list was definitely comprised of her most desirable songs as there wasn’t a person in the audience who didn’t know every single lyric. We were treated to favourites including ‘La Luna’ and ‘Summer Rain’.
Other than hearing timeless pop numbers - perhaps the best thing about this show was discovering that Belinda Carlisle is as strong vocally as she has ever been. At one point she sounded so perfect that we could have been listening to a record.
Carlisle closed with ‘Heaven Is A Place On Earth’ and if you were at the show you would agree with me when I say; for a brief moment heaven really was a place on earth.
