Aphrodite

Okay...so there was one last thing standing between me and Ricky Martin...

Tonight we made a joyous return to Auditorio Telmex to catch Kylie Minogue as she nears the conclusion of the North American leg of her Aphrodite tour. Only five dates left! Will you catch one?

Kyle makes her Guadalajara debut

Kylie Minogue should be Madonna. She really, really should be. Both are blonde (sometimes). Both are very popular within the gay community. Both are popular internationally. Both sewed the seeds of stardom in the 80s (Kylie with "Loco-Motion," Madonna with "Everybody"...and let's face it, who remembers "Everybody"?). Both are well into the latter half of their lives/careers (though Kylie is ten years Madonna's junior). Both put on one hell of a show. And yet, somehow, Kylie never quite wove her way into the tapestry of the American mainstream. Though her new album certainly comes close.

In a recent blog post, I discussed how a couple of events this month have mirrored events from my past and have therefore caused me to think about other aspects of my life. Kylie's Aphrodite tour is no exception. Though I have never seen her in concert before, hearing the vocal talents of Ms. Minogue always causes me to flash back to two key moments in my life.

1: During my time in the Walt Disney World College Program, as I was just coming to terms with who I am and who I wanted to be, my friend Jason introduced me to a lot of new music. Amidst the piles of CDs I would listen to during that six month period was Kylie's Fever. It became a favorite, and still is. That album reminds me of a time in my life when everything was new, nothing was certain, and the ignorance of youth was malleable.

2: When we travel to Paris to visit our friends Yann and Charles (TJ, coincidentally, met Yann prior to our relationship while said Parisian was in the midst of his own Walt Disney World College Program experience), we inevitably end up watching a Kylie Minogue concert video. The French LOVE Kylie. On our first visit, we literally could not escape the constant playing of "I Should Be So Lucky," no matter where in the city we went, and despite the fact that by this point the song was, well, really old. It's ok. I love that song. It reminds me of how lucky I am to have someone like TJ who can put up with all of my caca. It reminds me of how lucky we are to have such great friends abroad that we are able to visit, and who are able to visit us in return (Um, guys? When are you coming to Mexico?!?!?).

Unfortunately, that particular song wasn't lucky enough to make it onto the set list tonight. Here's what DID make the cut:

Set List

"Aphrodite"

"The One"

"Wow"

"Illusion"

"I Believe in You"

"Cupid Boy"

"Spinning Around"

"Get Outta My Way"

"What Do I Have to Do?"

'Everything is Beautiful"

"Slow"

"Confide In Me"

"Can't Get You Outta My Head"

"In My Arms"

"Looking For An Angel"

"There Must Be An Angel (Playing With My Heart)"

"Love At First Sight"

"Can't Beat the Feeling"/"If You Don't Love Me"

"Better the Devil You Know"

"In Your Eyes"

"Better Than Today"

"Put Your Hands Up (If You Feel Love)"

Encore

"On a Night Like This"

"All The Lovers"

Can We Just Take a Moment to Discuss Copyright Infringement?

Thanks to tonight's show, I have a third Kylie memory. Wherever the Foreign Service takes us, Kylie's music will always remind me of our friend Genaro. As I have said before, Genaro's a great guy that has gone out of his way to show us the sights, whether it be a restaurant, museum, or musical production. And tonight was no exception. He snagged these tickets for us months ago.

He's dying to take us to the Ballet Folklórico. That will likely be the subject of a future blog.

But first, how would you like to hear about our adventures in Mexico City with Ricky Martin?