Review By Maria Papadontas
Photo by Maria PapadontasSweet Dreams by Annie Lennox plays in the background, and the crowd, at The Plenary, Melbourne Convention Centre, is waiting with anticipation. As the lights dim, you can feel the electricity and excitement building, for one of Melbourne’s music icons,Tina Arena. I then hear a young voice behind me “love you mama” (her son sitting behind me with Tina’s family) and at the exact moment, Tina steps on to the stage in a ray of light wearing all white, a creation by Sonia Cappellazzo Couture, a modern day Diva, and the Innocent to Understanding Tour 2017 commences with a trip down memory lane, a medley of Tina’s younger years. Celebrating a career spanning 40 years, it’s a celebration of old and new.
Photo by Maria PapadontasTina kicks off with one of her new songs, Destination Unknown. She is formative on stage, and holds the space with an ease and grace that we have come accustomed to. She is a consummate performer, professional and technical in all her poise. The crowd adore her and she knows how to enchant them with that girl next door Aussie humour. She is a ‘Melbournite’ at heart, acknowledging her roots and showing Melbourne her gratitude. One of the qualities that makes Tina such a beautiful being, her warmth, her sincerity, her honesty and her love not only for Melbourne but her family. Something she openly and fully expresses with love.
With the celebration of her continuing 40-year career, hit after hit ensued with the crowd enjoying every minute and celebrating with her. Burn, Heaven Help My Heart, Sorrento Moon, I Need Your Body, The Machine’s Breaking Down, Now I Can Dance, Symphony of Life and I Want to Know What Love Is. Kate Miller-Heidke also joined Tina on stage for a powerful, beautifully executed Not Still in Love, demonstrating her currency and popularity in the modern music industry.
Photo by Maria PapadontasOf course the crowd is enraptured as Tina sings one of her all time classics Chains. The crowd rise and singalong with her with love-filled enthusiasm for their icon. And when Tina sings her iconic Woman, you feel the tingles go up your spine, an inexplicable electricity that Tina creates with her unwavering voice, her passion and her presence.
As dramatically as Tina comes on stage, she also leaves, her parting words full of grace and gratitude: “It’s years of implication, highs and lows. Four decades later, I still love it, because I did it for the right reasons. Thank you for making it amazing.”
Tina, thank you, it truly was amazing.
Don’t miss out on Tina Arena’s Innocence to Understanding Tour
Tina Arena’s Innocence To Understanding Tour is proving to be one of the hottest tickets this year, with fans all over Australia eagerly securing tickets to see the Queen of Australian Music.
The Innocence to Understanding Tour will be Tina’s biggest in many years and celebrates the release of her new Greatest Hits & Interpretations double album which debuted at #2 on the ARIA Albums Chart making it her 8th Top 10 album release over three decades.
Tina said, “Thank you Melbourne for being so warm and beautiful and for always welcoming me back with open arms”.
Tina’s career boasts an incredible playbook of hits – I Need Your Body, Chains, Heaven Help My Heart, Sorrento Moon, Burn, Now I Can Dance, Symphony Of Life, Wasn’t It Good, Only Lonely, You Set Fire To My Life and I Want To Love You – and fans will get to hear these and more on the Innocence to Understanding Tour.
Fans seeking tickets for Tina’s shows are reminded to only buy tickets from the official ticket agents listed here so as to avoid “reselling” sites such as Viagogo who typically advertise heavily online and often mislead consumers into paying much higher prices than necessary.
Tickets to all shows are selling fast. Don’t miss your chance to see Tina Arena soar on the Innocence to Understanding Tour.
Tina Arena
Innocence to Understanding
Friday, 22 September 2017
WIN Entertainment Centre Theatre, Wollongong, NSW
Tickets on sale now Ticketmaster | 136 100 and www.ticketmaster.com.au
Saturday, 23 September 2017
ICC Sydney Theatre, Sydney, NSW
Tickets on sale now from Ticketek | 132 849 and www.ticketek.com.au
Sunday, 24 September 2017
Canberra Theatre, Canberra, ACT
Tickets on sale now from Canberra Theatre Centre Box Office
6275 2700 and www.canberratheatrecentre.com.
Tuesday, 26 September 2017
Princess Theatre, Launceston, TAS
Tickets on sale now from and Theatre North Box Office
6331 0052 and www.theatrenorth.com.au
Wednesday, 27 September 2017
Theatre Royal, Hobart, TAS
Tickets on sale now from Theatre Royal Box Office | 6233 2299 and
www.theatreroyal.com.au and Centertainment
Thursday, 5 October 2017
Thebarton Theatre, Adelaide, SA
Tickets on sale now from Ticketmaster | 136 100
and www.ticketmaster.com.au
Friday, 6 October 2017
Crown Theatre, Perth, Burswood, WA
Tickets on sale now from Ticketmaster | 136 100
and www.ticketmaster.com.au
