If it were just fireworks they wanted, Bostonians could watch them from any number of vantage points around the city. But people make the trek to the Hatch Shell for the annual Boston Pops Fireworks Spectacular to get the whole experience: the logjam crowds, the cannons going off at close range, the excuse to wear ridiculous headgear. There's also the music, of course, and last night's festivities covered pieces spanning Francis Scott Key and John Phillips Sousa to the Dropkick Murphys and featured guests Rascal Flatts.
The common thread connecting such a wide range, appropriately enough, was America, and Pops conductor Keith Lockhart expanded on that theme with sets built around Leonard Bernstein and baseball. The salute to the national pastime included the Tanglewood Festival Chorus singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" (including the verses that nobody knows about), a reading of "Casey at the Bat" by WBZ-TV's Jack Williams, and "The National Game March," jaunty as only a Sousa march can be. For the latter, Lockhart donned a Red Sox jersey and simulated the crack of the bat.
Some of the most memorable moments from Evening at Pops are celebrated in this new Broadway's Best at Pops DVD which will make a great addition to your Pops collection.
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