picture credit Shelley
As soon as he walked out onstage at Daryl’s House in Pawling last Saturday night, I knew he wasn’t the same David Archuleta that I left at Westbury seven years earlier. After not seeing him for a long stretch of time, the change in his stage presence was remarkable; I could not take my eyes off of him. The Livestream doesn’t do him justice.
Experience shows; he’s now like a well-oiled machine. His confidence level has risen and there’s now a subtle sophistication about him. Unlike other singers, David doesn’t just sing; he performs each song, with it’s own set of dance moves, particular to that song. And yet at the same time; he’s humble. An interesting combination of traits in one person; confidence, experience, sophistication and humility; a humility that only comes from within. Male or female, the audience loves him and gave him a standing ovation several times during the evening.
The small, sold-out venue gave way to an intimate performance, allowing David to lock eyes with audience members, as he delivered the messages of each song. At one point, he sang the last verse of “Crush”to a young girl in the front row, corner. When he walked away I glanced at her. She was overwhelmed, almost in tears. There was a bunch of older fans in the audience, too. We caught every change up in melody or lyric and every dance move and we responded with applause.
David’s talent is so diverse that he’s able to have a setlist comprised of different genres including ballads, rock, jazz, spiritual, Latin, pop and even songs from movie soundtracks. The medley of tunes he sang from “The Great Showman” movie was awesome!
video credit David Archuleta UK/Daryl’s House Club
My other new favorites are “Nunca Pense” – his Latin dance moves are killer and I love how his band provided boy-band type dancing backup…
video credit David Archuleta UK/Daryl’s House Club
I also loved the new finger-snapping in one of my early favorites “Invincible”.
video credit David Archuleta UK/Daryl’s House Club
“Thunder” was a powerful performance, too! And seeing him sing “Spotlight Down” before my eyes was a treasure. So many favorites!
It was a perk getting to see Marlie from The David Chronicles and SnowAngelz, Deb and Refnaf again! DJbell is such a hoot online and in person. For the fans, it was like no time had passed. ❤
I have no idea if David is interested in having a role on Broadway but from my perspective, he looks ready. I can visualize him onstage in the play, “Dear Evan Hansen”. Anyone else?
Some things never change, especially the euphoric feeling you get when one of David’s shows is over. As I left the venue, that familiar feeling washed over me, reminding me that David Archuleta is truly one of the blessings in my life.