InspirationDestination- SO glad you were able to get in! And thank you for your overly kind words!
Despite it not being a great Damien performance (truth be told, not great Damien is still pretty darn good!) it was a fun night, and I'm grateful for the experience! I feel badly that Damien was obviously not really feeling it and seemed very uncomfortable- I don't think the extent of his talent will be obvious in the televised program. There was a sound issue (buzzing or humming sound) that irked him, especially during Elephant. He stopped playing in the middle of The Greatest Bastard to ask that certain lights be turned off (not all of them). The one that projected "The Artists Den" over his head was particularly annoying him and he called it a laser beam. Other than that, he didn't say a word the entire show.
In some songs, in places where he usually gets more intense, he kept it pretty quiet and almost spoke a few lines rather than singing them (2 that I can think of off the top of my head are Woman Like a Man and The Box I think...sorry, I'm tired). I had a little trouble seeing his Cheers Darlin act (I don't think the woman was pulled from the audience) since it was at the bar off to the side and other people and cameras were in the way, but it sounded funny. Oh, the choir that backed him during Trusty and True at the Apollo Theater also joined him here. Again, not the best performance for him to showcase his gift, but I hope others less familiar with him will not realize it was lacking the emotion and intensity we know he's capable of.
We went to the after party realizing it was extremely unlikely Damien would be there, however, I had hoped he would make an appearance nonetheless. I so enjoyed my time with the other people from this forum- madhat181 (and fiancé), InspirationDestination, Signalfire, DesoleinBoston, MikeRennie, and Wmacson! Everyone was super friendly and we all left about the same time (a few mins after DesoleinBoston). InspirationDestination was kind enough to give me, Madhat181, and his fiancé a ride to the subway.
She had parked near the venue, and as we made a turn to head to the subway station, we passed the venue and I noticed someone with a funny hat and asked the others in the car if they thought that was Damien (I was fairly certain it was, but hard to tell since his back was to the street).
We pulled over and mahat181 walked over to him, followed by me and InspirationDestination. We could tell he was about to leave and wanted to be respectful, so we barely took a minute or two of his time. We thanked him for the show and he said it was "weird." He was definitely in better spirits (most likely still buzzing from the wine he drank during Cheers Darlin) and he initiated a lovely hug. I'm bummed the rest of our crew weren't with us at that point. I just realized this second that I should've asked Damien for a lift back to Manhattan instead of driving to the subway with the others!
Just kidding!
I appreciate the opportunity to have been a part of the taping, and hoping I'm not on camera at all looking like an idiot!
