Pictures
Next up was Lorenza Ponce, a violinist. While she was playing, some people came up to the front of the stage and leaned a portrait up against one of the monitors. I'm guessing the man in the picture was a Port Authority police officer. During the show, more people came up and put smaller pictures and mementos in the edges of the frame, and hung banners on the front of the stage. This was a touching tribute, and our reminder of the reason everyone was there.
Next was John Waite, who was very well received by the crowd! Everyone knew it was going to be a long evening, so a lot of people seemed to be saving their energy and sitting down. I have to admit I didn't stand up every minute, but I didn't sit too often! For much of the first half of the show, the seats in front of us in the second row were empty, and the people in the front row didn't stand. That was good with me, since it made for a really clear view of the stage! Not to mention it was a fantastic vantage point for taking pictures. Micky had a photo pass for the show, and she would go up to the stage to take a few pictures of each new performer, then come back and sit with us. Her actual seat was in the middle of a row, and we had an extra empty seat right near the aisle, so this was easier. And not a bad spot to take more pictures right from her seat!
It really was a luxury to be able to take pictures with no one minding. Lately I've cut down on taking pictures or not taken any at all during shows because I'm tired of being a photo rebel. But since security was okay with it at this show, I took advantage of the opportunity! It may have been different section by section, but security in our area was great. I stood whenever I wanted and no one cared, which was also nice. I know that's always different in different sections! It did take me quite a while to get over that automatic guilt, though - every time the staff person sitting at the front of our aisle got up and came toward me, I was sure she was going to tell me to stop doing something or other! But it was always someone else who was in trouble. The only time they ever came up to me was when I accidentally moved out too far into the aisle. I finally noticed that there was a line of tape on the floor, and any time I put my foot past it, they came and made me move back in. So after that, I was careful to keep my foot inside the tape, and just lean out into the aisle! That was allowed!
The only slight complaint I had all evening was that when I stood, my feet were freezing! There was ice under the floorboards, and standing right over it was making my feet cold! Edith said she couldn't really tell - guess I need new sneakers with thicker soles!
