Capacity: 9,000

Concert starts: 8pm

Address of venue: Rue Madeleine Roch, Orange 84100, France. MAP

Website: www.theatre-antique.com

COMMENTS

David's 2015 tour of Europe heads to a place called Orange in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. Another stunning venue picked for a concert - the Théâtre antique d'Orange is seen as one of the finest Roman theatres still existing, and was built in the early first century AD.

Tickets went on sale Friday, March 6th at 10am UK time, and the DavidGilmourblog.co.uk presale started Wednesday, March 4th for those quick off the mark.

For the main sale of tickets, you can use these links: FNAC Spectacles, GDP and LeVraiBillet although please be aware that demand is incredibly high so you might need to be patient and keep retrying, as they seem to be adding tickets for sale progressively.

Our thanks to Jean-Christophe Maille for the ticket scan to the right.

WARNING - SPOILERS AHEAD!

Do not read on if you don't want surprises to be spoilt, regarding what the band played!

With some fairly dramatic weather forecasts, things at one stage looked a little precarious for this concert. Certainly the unload and stage construction was delayed - Wednesday night, a friend and I wandered down to the venue to see what had been done ready for the show, to find nothing to see. Upon speaking to members of the crew on show day, fears of heavy winds on Wednesday night along with the storm which arrived in Orange in the early hours of Thursday, bringing thunder and lightning, resulted in the delays.

Thus, 11am on show day saw the trucks at the side of the venue, unloading flight case after flight case. At various points, absolute torrents of rain fell, but David obviously has a deal with the weather gods, as the deluges happened between trucks - as each arrived and opened, magically the rain stopped for long enough. The moment the doors were closed again, down it came again.

Eventually though the weather cheered up, and quickly the venue was bathed in the heat of the sun, drying up much of the rain, enabling the crew to do their work, albeit in the heat and the brightness of the sun.

The venue itself is stunning. More normally used to operatic productions, it is an incredible Roman construction, with much of the original stonework. Cut into the side of a hill, it has a relatively modern roof, for the benefit of theatrical productions. However, due to the weight of the equipment due to be flown (hung) from the roof, it was clear that for this show, the latest iteration of Mr Screen wouldn't be able to be used, as the roof wouldn't have been able to support it - as one of the LED Operators explained to me during the afternoon, the surround with the lights weighs 8 tons, and the LED screen itself weighs 5.5 tons - a total of 13.5 tons, along with the lights, lighting operators, and speakers, would be just too much. This meant no videos or animation for this show, and (I think) some subtle lighting changes to take this into account.

During the stage construction during the afternoon (and the crew did an incredible job - particularly the ones who got things like the sound and lighting desks and equipment, and the very heavy follow-spots, up the steep, ancient and well-worn Roman stonework steps) I had some concerns over the sound, as various bangs or thuds of equipment boxes seemed to reverberate at times. Would that mean that the show itself would be beset by echoes (and not the Echoes many were hoping to hear!)?

Clearly David's sound wizards know their stuff, as the audio quality during the show was fairly jaw-dropping - it was one of the best concert sound experiences I'd had over many years of seeing so many different bands in action. Maybe the assembled 8,300 absorbed the sound as it hit the fabric of our clothes?

The setlist from Firenze was used again for Orange - the set we've been used to, with the addition of Coming Back To Life. With the album release tomorrow (Friday) will the shows that follow feature a revised set, making more of the album, and performing it in order?

With Mr Screen used just for lighting effects (and Astronomy Domine had some particularly interesting moments when it looked like the screen was bulging toward the audience in the middle dramatically - due to a particularly effective lighting trick to fool the eyes) it seemed to focus the audience's attention to the music and the performance - and what a performance it was. Having missed the intermediate shows, my reference point was the superb Brighton show. I felt that Orange far exceeded the Brighton show in terms of musical performance and an imperceptible sense of confidence from the band playing the material. This resulted in an at times staggering reaction from the audience, which came (seemingly) from all parts of Europe, with a number making a longer journey, with American and Canadian accents overheard at times.

All packed up now, and with the last of the outdoor shows under their belts (until the South American shows in December) the production is heading up to the German city of Oberhausen for Saturday night in a modern venue which will be a stark contrast to Le Theatre Antique.

However, let's not leave Orange yet. We'd love to know what you thought about it - how was the concert for you? Let us know what YOU thought!

CONCERT REVIEW and PICTURES by BD CONTRIBUTOR, NICK SPEKKELS
We arrived in Orange around noon on the day of the concert (after a flight from Amsterdam to Marseille the day before). Because the old town of Orange is not that big we noticed that it was like the Floyd/Gilmour fans had taken over the complete town. All restaurants/bars were filled with groups of people wearing Floyd and Gilmour shirts (...and the occasionally Waters tour shirts ? Huh...ah well, okay) So the day itself, before the actual concert, had a great atmosphere with people from all over the world and all excited of whats to come.

On their site I read that the venue, the Theatre Antique, is a museum during the day, so we bought online tickets for the museum in beforehand, which was great, because in the first place it is an awesome place to visit in general, but as a bonus we saw the tour-crew preparing and setting up the stage on this very sunny afternoon.

With only 8,500 seats available it was a very intimate concert. The show was superb! Performance, Sound, Lights, Ambiance it was all just perfect. And the fact that the screen was not showing video was even better. Even though I know most videos, but still, when it is shown your eyes automatically are drawn to the screen, but now that the screen was not working I only had eyes for Gilmour and band and had more attention to the music. By the way, at that moment I did not realize that, it was two days later in Oberhausen where the videos were on screen when I realized that I preferred the show without the videos.

During Run Like Hell some people moved slowly forward (including myself) and with the encore we were right in front of the stage. This was a very cool experience and gave me an excellent opportunity to make some nice pictures that I want to share with you via BD.

The next day I bought two local newspapers that had articles around the concert. I can't tell you what they wrote, because my French is not as good as my high school teacher taught me 25 years ago, but if the journalists are half as enthusiastic as I was it would still be very positive articles!

CONCERT PICTURES by BD CONTRIBUTOR, JASON WAKEFIELD

CONCERT REVIEW by BD CONTRIBUTOR, JOCK ROSS
Set in the wonderful surroundings of a Roman Amphitheatre, my second David Gilmour concert, the previous one being London's Royal Albert Hall 2006, was easily one of the best concerts I'd experienced.

We travelled on the Monday by train from London and got to Avignon in time for lunch. We had to walk past the Theatre to get to our hotel, and despite the concert being 3 days away, the butterflys started. The town Orange is a very intimate town with the traditional narrow winding streets lined with shops and restaurants. As the days ticked by, the town got busier and busier and the sight of Pink Floyd T shirts appeared around every corner.

As we left our hotel on the Wednesday morning to make a day trip to Marseille, I passed Colin Norfield (sound engineer) in the reception...then a huge tour bus in the car park. David Gilmour would be staying in our hotel!

The day of the concert brought thunder and rain storms until 12pm, but as forecasted, the sun shone through for the rest of the day. I made my way down to the Theatre during the morning rainstorms to have a peek at the set up, only to find nothing going on, I'm guessing due to the weather.

Returning at 12pm in the sun for a tour of the Theatre, we were delighted to see the crew loading in and setting up. The Theatre itself is breathtaking and the perfect setting for a Pink Floyd show. I sat there for 3 hours watching the crew and taking lots of photos before heading back to the hotel to try and catch a peek of Mr Gilmour; sadly I never did.

After being told to get to the ticket office at 5pm to collect our tickets, we arrived at 5:30pm to find the office closed and a HUGE queue. Finally at 7pm they started handing out tickets, the same time they opened the doors to the main theatre, but at this point there must have been 300 people waiting to collect tickets. Luckily we managed to collect our tickets and find a great seat by 7:30pm. Due to the ticket fiasco the concert did not start until 8:30pm, as the theatre looked far from full at 8pm.

The new songs sounded great and it was nice to hear Wish You Were Here so early in the set. The screen was not used to project films as the weight was too much for the roof, but the amazing light show made up for this. The sound inside was perfect and his voice sounded great. In Any Tongue was clearly the standout for me in the first half, an absolute gem of a song.

The second half started with Astronomy Domine and a dazzling hypnotic light show; it's always great to see David play homage to the late Syd Barrett. Shine On was as always a joy to listen to and the solo in Fat Old Sun got the crowd on their feet.

The gasps and awwws that came from the crowd as Gilmour rang out the first 3 notes of Coming Back To Life clearly showed this was still a crowd favourite and deserved its reappearance in the set, and a personal highlight for me. Hearing Us And Them was a first for me from any Floyd member, and Gilmour played it tonight with added energy where the chorus came through as loud and powerful as any song tonight.

Finishing the main set with Run Like Hell, it got the crowd on their feet for a spectacular finale with another dazzling light show and crisp perfect sound. Returning to finish off with Comfortably Numb, we were again treated to a guitar-playing master class from a man who has been delivering the goods for 40 years, and he did it again tonight in the best possible surroundings.

CONCERT REVIEW by BD CONTRIBUTOR, KEVAN PORTER
As I make the almost three hour journey to Gatwick Airport, passingly slowly through hold up after hold up on the M1 followed by the interminable M25 I cannot help but wonder what the next evening's gig in Orange is going to be like. I know that the three day excursion with my good friend Matt will be a trip to remember but will the gig live up to expectations? After all, I was not totally bowled over by the earlier Brighton gig. After almost missing our flight to Marseille, this pontificating might all have been academic!

After our most enjoyable journey via plane and train (but not automobile) we arrive quite late in the evening, to find the beautiful and ancient town of Orange is basking in a warm and gentle breeze. After checking in at our hotel we immediately investigate the town centre looking for a meal and a drink (or two) plus a sneaky peak of the Théâtre antique d'Orange, the ancient Roman theatre that will be the venue for the following evening's gig. It is a striking and impressive building, and looks especially dramatic bathed in the light of the spot-lights that illuminate the building so effectively.

The following morning the weather is decidedly most inclement and it is pouring it down which neither seems to bother nor interrupt the furious equipment load-in taking place at the main entrance to the Théâtre antique d'Orange. It is an impressive sight to see this army of road crew working like a well oiled machine, not missing a beat as artic' after artic' is driven in via narrow roads and unloaded in swift succession. Was it a coincidence that the rain stopped just as one lorry opened its doors only to start again once those doors were then closed after being emptied? (All morning!). Or might Mr Gilmour have a deal with God?

Just after lunch the clouds disappeared and the sun came out drying up all but the last few drops of rain as we made our way into the Théâtre antique d'Orange arena to soak up the now warm and sunny atmosphere whilst we watched the road crew and various technicians calmly build the frame-work for the evenings show.

Immediately apparent was the giant circular frame suspended behind the stage and the lighting trusses flying even higher above with an array of assorted Vari-Lites. And then, the majesty of the arena itself, all magnificent stone work, Roman columns and the echoes of so much atmosphere that can only be found in such an architectural masterpiece as this. The scale of the building is at once huge yet also very human with its semi-circular stone seating stepping ever upwards at a dramatic 45 degrees. There is not a bad seat in the house.

Wandering around the venue we watch with avid interest the various technicians assembling the assorted components that will be the framework of tonight's show; the huge follow spots sat atop the rear of the seating, the sound and lighting mixing desks and so on. We learn that, although the iconic circular screen is present with its attached Vari-Lites, the central LED video wall not be used this evening as, at an additional five and a half tonnes on top of the already eight tonnes of circular steel framing and lights, it is far too heavy for the venues inbuilt support structure.

As we sit, bathed in sunshine, we watch the crew continue to build this most impressive and complex jigsaw as more giant black boxes are brought in, man-handled up flights of steep stone steps, their contents unpacked and then assembled like some giant Meccano kit. We can't help but notice how calm the crew seem, which is quite a paradox really, as we know the light breeze the night before and the heavy rain that morning has set them all back a little. Swans perhaps?

The stage is now ready to accept the battery of instruments that will be later filling the venue with sonic delights; racks and racks of electric and acoustic guitars, assorted keyboards on both sides of the stage and a drum kit. Phil Taylor, David's guitar tech, can be seen darting around the stage preparing guitars, checking connections, tuning and quite possibly fretting, although his demeanor would suggest otherwise.

This is our cue that it is time to depart the arena as the technicians prepare the stage area for this evening's sound check. Earlier that afternoon we'd noted how 'reverby' the venue sounded as we listened to the echoes of the occasional bangs and crashes as equipment boxes were being moved around and wondered if this natural reverb would affect the sound quality of tonight's show.

After a quick wash and brush-up at the hotel and having not eaten since breakfast we head to one of the many pavement cafes in Orange for a quick bite to eat before heading back to the Théâtre antique d'Orange to take our seats in the now shady venue to await, with great anticipation, tonight's show. The atmosphere is palpable as more and more people slowly and calmly make their way into the venue to find their seats.

We cannot help but notice our Continental cousins are extremely stylish in their appearance as though they were visiting a gallery or some other swanky event! Jealous, moi? The sun is very low, the temperature dipping slightly and still more and more fans are entering the venue as we learn that the gig will be delayed 30 minutes. No bother, it takes a while for around eight and a half thousand people to find their seats after all. I am glad Matt thought to bring his foam seat pads with us though as the stone seats are already making my derriere comfortably numb!

Watching the last flicker of the wings of the bats flying around the auditorium above the stage, the lights dim and the first set begins at 8.30pm. As if spending the afternoon watching tonight's show unfold before our very eyes wasn't enough excitement to pique our anticipation, we now are euphoric as a huge, cacophonous howl erupts when David and his band take to the stage and the show starts with the opening bars of first track from the new album, 5AM. Almost immediately it is abundantly clear the band are sounding and playing great together, and our earlier concerns about reverb are unfounded as the sound quality is crystal clear and near perfect.

Particular favourites of the first half are the new songs A Boat Lies Waiting (which forms the middle section to a three song tribute to the late Rick Wright beginning with Wish You Were Here and ending with The Blue) and In Any Tongue which is already a firm fan favourite with its searing guitar solo that grows and grows in stature not unlike Comfortably Numb.

The rest of the setlist remains as previous shows on this tour but quite noticeably, for me, is how great this show sounds now; the playing is remarkable, (the earlier nerves dispensed with?), the segues from one song to the other seemless and the sound is crisp, clear and loud with great detail in the bass which in lesser hands can be nothing more than an awful drone. The first set flies by and very soon we are listening to the final notes of High Hopes which, as with the other songs played, receives rapturous applause. After the Brighton warm up gig I had high hopes for this show and they have not been dashed – at all.

The light show has long been an integral part of Pink Floyd's shows and no less so with David's solo shows. Mark Brickman has devised a light show that is a treat for the eyes, that compliments the music in a subtle and artistic way but does not dominate proceedings. This is not the kind of 'son et lumière' that could quite easily have been over the top, rather this light show compliments beautifully the songs being played and the venues they are being played in helping to create the perfect atmosphere. The lack of accompanying video this evening might have been disappointing for some I'm sure but, for me at least, it did not spoil my enjoyment.

In fact, if anything, it allowed me to concentrate more on the music.

And I must commend David's sound guy(s). For my ears, sat slightly below and to the right of the mixing desk, the sound was perfect and I say that as someone who is very picky about audio quality! By the way, it was somewhat of a surprise halt to proceedings as David announced the birthday of one of the sound crew as we sang Happy Birthday with the rest of the audience.

After the usual and, this time, welcome intermission (those stone seats really are tough, even with a foam seat pad) the second set begins with a superb version of Astronomy Domine, loud, swirling and very psychedelic, just as it should be! This gives way to Shine On You Crazy Diamond parts I to V and, as the Brighton gig, is majestic. I am so pleased David has chosen to return to its original arrangement for this tour as it sounds, apart from magnificent, so respectful to Rick who played such a big part in the creation and sound of this piece. Whilst writing about this part of the show, if I could ask for one change, it would be for David and his band to perform the whole, full length version of Shine On, as this would, in my mind at any rate, make for a truly superb centre piece to the show, one that was once occupied by audience favourite Echoes on the last tour. I'm pretty sure that most, if not all, the fans would agree.

The rest of the show goes from strength to strength with Sorrow and Run Like Hell making a fitting and explosive ending to the second set. Particular highlights are Fat Old Sun, Coming Back To Life (which I'm liking now for the first time since the release of The Division Bell) and new song The Girl In The Yellow Dress. Although, to be honest, I'm now so won over with this show all the songs played are highlights!

An encore of Time/Breathe Reprise and a stunning Comfortably Numb are played to upstanding ecstatic applause as the final songs of tonight's show. David's soloing on Comfy is tremendous and raises the hairs on my neck as the final notes peel from his guitar. The audience have been madly enthusiastic and have been truly awarded for their appreciation. After the band take their final bows the crowd maintain their howls in the vain hope of just one more song but, alas, it is not to be and they leave the stage, triumphant.

There is no need to rush, no need to leave quickly. Only time to savour the magnificent show we have just witnessed. To recall the excellent musicianship of all the band, the stunning sound quality and the artistry of the light show. But, in particular, the remarkable, soulful and magnificent playing of our hero tonight.

CONCERT COMMENTS and PICTURES by BD CONTRIBUTOR, CAYO PONCE
A friend and I were at the concert in Orange. The experience was incredible. I'm a photographer and had the chance to change my place in the theater because the control was not very exhaustive. In the encore we were in the very front...

CONCERT REVIEW and PICTURES by BD CONTRIBUTOR, BRION HOKE
My name is Brion Hoke and I was lucky enough to see the David Gilmour show three times. Once in Pula, Croatia, in Verona, Italy and in Orange, France.

It was quite a journey. To make a long story a little shorter - I flew from Detroit to Amsterdam then to Venice. I rented an Alfa Romeo and drove through Slovenia and into Croatia. I arrived in Pula around 4 the day of the show - September 12th.

It was a sunny day and the coast of the Adriatic in Croatia is really nice. Before I left I had met Damir Barisic on Facebook. I had a ticket for the show in Pula that I bought from some ass that sold it for $300. It was a general admission ticket. Damir had promised to sell me a ticket for the show in France for face value. He had purchased several knowing that so many people are out to make big bucks. He had it in mind to sell the tickets at a fair price to real fans. Not only did Damir come through with a ticket for the show in France - when he saw my general admission ticket for the show in Pula - he pulled out a 20th row ticket and said with a smile, "you are sitting with us." The venue was amazing. As I entered the ancient stadium I saw David Gilmour giving an interview that I later saw. In it he said, "I wanted to give fans a night to remember and the venue really adds to the memory." There is no doubt about that =- it was a show that I will never forget. The people of Pula were amazingly nice as well. Thanks Bojan Sumonja for the great artwork and for a nice conversation.

After the show in Pula I drove to Verona. I did not have a ticket for the show in Verona but I was not deterred. I walking around beautiful Verona for hours with one finger in the air and repeatedly said, "I just need one!" It was a few hours but finally Rafael Ortega from Oregon and a Nike Football rep saw me with that one finger in the air. He came up to me and said, "I have been watching you for the past hour and my wife did not come on the trip. I have an extra ticket, do you want it for 60 Euro?" The sound was amazing - I felt like I could dive into a pool of sound. The band was really hitting its stride. They seemed to really have a great time together on stage. I really enjoyed the new videos that accompanied The Girl in the Yellow Dress, Rattle that Lock and In any Tongue.

I then drove to Florence. The show in Florence was help at an old racetrack. This was not really a very special venue and it was very close to Rome. The street prices were 300-1,000 Euro so I decided to skip this show and get some sleep.

I then ran into a problem. I stopped in Pisa for a few photos of the Leaning Tower and the Keith Haring piece there. I parked for a short time in a public lot. My car was broken into and my luggage was stolen. Luckily I had my passport, my cash, and my ticket for the show in Orange. I have the clothes on my back, a broken window and a seven hour drive.

The show in Orange was the best of the three because it was so intimate. I sat on a stone slab with some German guys, a couple from Grenoble, France. With no videos, the show was about the music and that made it even more intimate for me.

I was so lucky to see these shows. I truly love 5 AM - I listen to it every morning and it says to me - Just have a great day! I am 48 and The Boat Lies Waiting also forces me to look at my own mortality. It surely is a beautiful song.

YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover David's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!