Stories, songs and memorable moments with Sting and The Philadelphia Orchestra...

Over the weekend, the Kimmel Center welcomed 17-time Grammy Award-winning artist Sting performing with The Philadelphia Orchestra, for a pair of sold-out shows at its Verizon Hall, which will be renamed in honor of Marian Anderson in June.

At 8 o’clock sharp on Friday evening, Sting took the stage to a roaring standing ovation as he graciously smiled and bowed to the audience, dressed in fitted black with a long formal jacket.

Sting, 72, who has sold over 100 million albums as a member of the rock trio The Police and as a solo artist, sat at center stage on a stool, relaxed, alongside the beloved Philadelphia Orchestra.

The ensemble was joined by Detroit-native Damon Gupton and principal guest conductor of the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra to conduct the evening’s presentation.

The performance featured stories from the legendary songwriter and musician, tales he shared with a smile.

Sting spoke of his time as a teacher at a school near the Scottish border, always loving playing music. He spoke of his travels throughout Europe alongside The Police, staying in cheap hotels and scraping by all while observing life around him.

Reimagined in the fullness of orchestral strings, Sting opened the evening with a version of “Roxanne,” contrasting the original with a slow and haunting tango rhythm. Sting spoke of observing the comings and goings of women and men in Parisian brothels, which inspired the 1978 hit and named for the main character in Edmond Rostand’s play “Cyrano de Bergerac.”

It would become a song that would elevate Sting’s life and career, and through its pairing with the orchestra would fulfill its potential.

The evening continued with “Englishman In New York” and “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” featuring his lively and signature call and response with the audience. Sting talked about his home in England where the barley fields look like gold, leading into the love song, “Fields of Gold.”

As a child growing up in northern England, Sting loved to watch western TV shows and loved country music, especially Hank Williams.

In the prelude to “I Hung My Head” from his 1996 release “Mercury Falling,” Sting acknowledged the recent passing of country music superstar Toby Keith, who released his own version of Sting’s song “I’m So Happy That I Can’t Stop Crying” in 1997.

The first half of the show continued with “Why Should I Cry for You,” inspired by the generational tension between fathers and sons in his family tree and paused for intermission right after “End of the Game,” a song about male and female foxes, relationships and demise.

After a brief intermission, Sting returned with “The Shape of My Heart,” a beautiful hit song about a gambler and philosopher. The few who returned late to their seats he jokingly scolded, revisiting his role as a teacher enforcing the classroom.

Reflecting on his life trajectory, Sting expressed guilt about leaving his shipyard hometown of Newcastle, England, which built “the finest vessels in the world.”

The evening performance continued with a trio of original songs he wrote for his childhood-inspired Broadway musical titled “The Last Ship,” featuring “When the Last Ship Sails,” “Practical Arrangement” and “What Say You Meg?”

He closed this segment with another original song titled “What Could Have Been,” written for Netflix’s animated series “Arcane,” which featured concertmaster violinist David Kim. The audience gave Kim a standing ovation for his amazing performance.

The intense height of the performance came during the moving song “Russians,” written about the Cold War and rising nuclear threats of the 1980s, echoing a call of hope that “the Russians love their children too,” as the lyric goes.

The song, ever present in today’s global climate, drew attention to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Sting commented on the carelessness and recklessness of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, and the death of the opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

Sting closed with “Every Breath You Take” and rejoined the orchestra for an encore featuring the upbeat Arabic-influenced hit “Desert Rose” and “Fragile.” His instrument of choice on the latter a guitar crafted by prisoners from the wood of refugee boats that washed up on the shores of the Italian island of Lampedusa during a migration crisis. It was a perfect ending to a memorable concert.

Sting commented on the incredible performance space and acoustics of Verizon Hall, which will soon be rededicated. The Philadelphia Orchestra continues its 2024 season under the direction of Yannick Nezet-Seguin now in his 12th season.

(c) The Daily Times by Nick and Marianne Gunther