On a freezing January morning, hundreds of people lined up before dawn in hopes of receiving free tickets to one of the most inspirational concerts held at the Kennedy Center.
Many AU students waited in the cold for hours to get a ticket. C.J. Schmied, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, arrived at 11 p.m. with friends and stayed the night to get tickets. For him, however, braving the below-freezing temperatures was worth it.
"The communal atmosphere experienced while waiting in line for 10 hours was not lost when Sufjan took the stage," Schmied said. "Everyone in the audience was connected by Sufjan's music, and it was really an incredible ride."
The evening celebrated the 10th anniversary of the Kennedy Center's Millennium Stage. In a prime example of the Kennedy Center's firm grasp on melding pop culture with more stolid arts hallmarks, it featured performances by The Navy Commodores, the National Symphony Orchestra and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater before Stevens capped off the evening.
The audience roared as Stevens walked across the stage, wearing a handsome suit and tie. Accompanied by his band and the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, Stevens sat down at the piano and began to play "Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois." His powerful and almost angelic voice filled the room and immediately captured the audience's attention.
After the orchestra chimed in to bring the song to a stirring close, he told the audience that the next song would be about his home state of Michigan. Throughout "Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head! (Rebuild!)," the orchestra created a beautiful blend of Stevens' music and their own, with an outstanding saxophone solo in the midst of the song. As Stevens' performance progressed, in the natural harmony between him and the orchestra was evident.
At times, songs ended in chaos with crazy minor chords that could have been unsettling. However, these moments of mayhem were overshadowed by the quick regrouping of the string section followed by the rest of the orchestra to leave the final seconds of the song pure bliss.
There is a huge religious component to Stevens' music, which was especially evident during his performance of "Seven Swans." Stevens' voice and the chords following his repetition of the phrase "I am the Lord" were truly awe-inspiring.
Stevens also gave a shout-out to the Chicago Bears and proceeded to sing an invigorating version of "Chicago." Finally, the performance ended with an exhilarating and uplifting rendition of "Majesty Snowbird" and the audience gave a cheering, standing ovation.
But the performances weren't the only sweet treats. Target and the Fannie Mae Foundation created a perfectly decadent atmosphere in the lounge on the top floor of the Kennedy Center. This lounge was stocked with white and milk chocolate fountains, a variety of candy and free Shirley Temples. The sugar rush was just the right kind of icing on the cake for an evening starting in high spirits and ending in joyful goose bumps.
Eagle Contributing Writer Eugene Johnson contributed to this report.
