Trans - Siberian Orchestra Turns Grand Rapids into The North Pole
Show Review ★ Kenzie Gay ★ @kenzwrites ★ 4 Minutes
As another year of ups and downs winds to a close, one would think that someone such as myself is done with concerts for the foreseeable future (until March, at least). In the dead, depressing gray of Michigan winters, these events are hard to come by, especially during a month as chaotic as December. The holidays, finals, and routine end of the year tasks can feel suffocating yet somehow, I still found myself standing in the center of Grand Rapids’ own Van Andel Arena this past weekend - I couldn’t get away if I tried.
Around ten years ago, I sat in the lower bowl at this very venue for the same artist. I hadn’t yet bought into the rock n roll or live music lifestyle though I can fondly recall the band’s ability to give me holiday magic - something I’d never quite felt - even if it was just for one night. Now, at 21 years old with my 17 year old brother, we returned to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra just a few weeks shy of Christmas.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra, right photo via Jim Hill
After a breezy visit to the box office then a walk past security’s metal detectors, we found ourselves a whopping 12 rows from the center stage: by far the best seats an artist has ever gifted me with. We discussed our last experience with TSO, which lacked many details since we were so young, but there was one thing we remembered for certain: the fire. We’ve never been particularly giddy about the holidays but tonight and that night ten years ago, we were. Maybe it’s the power of TSO, maybe it’s something else completely. Nobody can be for certain.
The show opened up with 23 (approximately) band members taking the stage under low lighting. TSO has two different orchestras who are currently touring and Grand Rapids was gifted with the orchestra composed of guitarists Chris Caffery and Joel Hoekstra, bassist Tony Dickinson, drummer Jeff Plate, and violinist Roddy Chong alongside a slew of backing vocalists, pianists, and a 7-man string section of local musicians. Clearly, Trans-Siberian Orchestra knows how to make an impact whether it be due to their high energy, their volume, the excessive amount of pyrotechnics they utilize, or their sheer power in numbers.
With the first act of Sunday night’s show being along to the band’s 1999 film The Ghosts of Christmas Eve, there were plenty of fond, resurfaced memories to be had. Growing up, we watched this movie every Christmas Eve at my grandma’s house so the reinvented imagery was able to pack a nostalgic though fiery (no pun intended) punch. The band alongside narrator Bryan Hicks took the audience through the magical story of The Ghosts of Christmas Eve including their all-time holiday hit: Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12/24.
The second half of TSO’s performance in Grand Rapids was just as electric whether it be through their cover of Black Sabbath’s Changes or through the fake snow (which was really non-toxic soap) that showered those of us lucky enough to be seated on the floor. Throughout the whole night, Caffery and Hoekstra really gave it their all and moved around fluidly - which you don’t see much of within musicians over 40 these days.
Other notable members included Chong and Dickinson, whom my brother and I couldn’t seem to stop watching no matter where they were onstage or what they were doing. In fact, about two songs in he leaned over and said “The bassist is sigma” - which is a compliment for those of us who haven’t been in touch with pop culture since the Obama administration.
Ultimately, I’d like to call TSO and their showmanship as a whole something I always refer to as a Rock N’ Roll Circus. It’s intense, lively, charismatic, thrilling, and you never know where to look because of how much is going on all at once. It attacks the senses without totally overstimulating audience members and it drives it home by digging up a united sense of holiday cheer from even the biggest of Scrooges - myself included.
With a final rendition of, yet again, Christmas Eve / Sarajevo 12/24, TSO left the stage after a slew of smoke, flames, strobes, and even fireworks. In the show’s aftermath, the crowd was on cloud nine even once we all spilled back out into the harsh cold and it lasted all the way home.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra proves to be a continuously timeless act of holiday spirit and rock n roll: the best of both worlds. The band has a plethora of upcoming shows left this season in cities such as Orlando, Duluth, San Antonio, Detroit, Philadelphia, and more (with every city having 2 available showings each). Their Winter 2025 Tour will conclude on December 30th in Fargo and tickets are available for purchase below. Trust me, you do not want to miss out on the magic of TSO this year.
Sincerely, a recovering Scrooge.
