Canadian Concert Culture

Canadian Concert Culture

Since I moved to Canada in 2011 I have been fortunate enough to see a few incredible musicians and artists in concert.

In Winnipeg we saw: The Eagles (amazing), Pink! (quite the acrobatic entertainer), Cher (costumes…), Queen & Adam Lambert (we were standing right by the stage – fantastic show), and finally, yesterday in Victoria we saw Sir Elton John, who will be celebrating his 70th birthday in two weeks time!

Pink! Truth About Love Tour – Winnipeg 2014

Elton John did not disappoint. What a talented musician who, along with his band, played non-stop for over two hours. I really enjoyed the concert and it was surreal to see everybody captivated on the stage, despite the simple set. The arena was packed and his piano playing was incredible.

After attending a few concerts in Canada, in two different provinces, I have observed a bizarre trend that I have never experienced at concerts in the U.K. A trend which I feel takes away a bit from the atmosphere of attending a live music event. Canadians sit down. They SIT DOWN! How can they sit down for an entire 2-3 hours of loud, lively, musical-legend, live music? Does nobody dance?

Sir Elton John – Victoria, March 11, 2017 (taken with my awful phone camera)

In all of the above concerts the only exception to the sitting rule seems to be the people on the ‘floor seats’ where, although seats are laid out, concert-goers often stand. Hoorah! I would have loved to have been able to get up and dance much earlier in the night but having never seen an angry Canadian before, I didn’t think I wanted to find out what Canadian wrath actually looks like by obscuring the view of all those sitting behind me. I know how frustrating that can be because the only two people dancing in the stands were directly in front of me, obscuring my view. Finally, after 2 hours, people in the arena seats began to get up and actually dance!

While I loved the opportunity to see Elton John play live and have enjoyed all the concerts I have been to for the music, I can’t wait until I have an opportunity to attend a concert in the UK again where I can put my dancing shoes to use, no matter where my ‘seat’ is located.

2 thoughts on “Canadian Concert Culture

  1. Emma- I know what you mean! I love standing up to dance to. I think it depends on the venue in Canada- the best places to dance and watch a concert seem to be The Commodore in Vancouver and the parks in Quebec City. On another note, I just came across a couple of comments that you left on my blog. Somehow I missed them. Merci

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