Review: Fans Gleek Out During LM/DC Concert at DPAC

At what concert can you hear music from both Young the Giant and Olivia Newton-John? The LM/DC Tour featuring former "Glee" stars Lea Michele and Darren Criss.

Michele and Criss kicked off the second leg of their tour this week. This weekend they play both the Durham Performing Arts Center and Ovens Auditorium in Charlotte.

A youthful energy erupted when Michele and Criss took the stage at DPAC Friday night. They opened the show with "Broadway Baby," followed by two more Broadway showtune duets, "Suddenly, Seymour" and "Falling Slowly."

Michele opened her solo set with "Cannonball" and "Battlefield" two songs from her first album "Louder." She continued singing fan favorites from "Glee" and paid homage to Lady Gaga and Pink, but it was "Don't Rain on My Parade," a song most recognizably sung by Barbra Streisand, that brought the audience to a standing ovation.

Unlike Michele, who is best known for belting out Broadway melodies, Criss is a musician's musician. He not only plays multiple instruments but also is a singer-songwriter in his own right. His set included an eclectic mix of alternative rock, folk spins on Broadway ballads like "I Dreamed a Dream," and songs from his EPs "Homework" and "Human," including his original song "Not Alone," which he performed at Barack Obama's second inauguration. He delighted the Durham audience with a tribute to James Taylor, including a rendition of "Fire and Rain." But it was his "Glee" rendition of Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream," a song that catapulted him to the top of the Billboard charts in 2010, that brought the audience to its feet for a rousing ovation.

Michele returned to the stage to join Criss for the close of the show. He accompanied her on the piano as she belted "The Coolest Girl," from his internet musical comedy "A Very Potter Musical," and they finished off the show with "Don't You Want Me" and an unplugged version of "Make You Feel My Love."

While the tour is currently scheduled to end in Charlotte July 1st, Michele and Criss hope to expand the tour overseas sometime in the foreseeable future. For now, though, and judging by the response of the audience Saturday night at DPAC, the LM/DC Tour is just what Gleeks have been thirsting for.

 

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