André Rieu Arrives in Perth To a Rousing Cheer From Fans!

With such bad weather in Brisbane and all flights being grounded, there was 24hrs of tension waiting to hear when André would arrive. I finally got word and organised the troups! We all gathered at Dome café one hour before his arrival to get ourselves organised. André t-shirts, banners and flags etc all well hidden but the atmosphere was electric with excitement and anticipation while at the same time trying not to be noticed. My grandson Daron was overcome with excitement and being only 4 kept asking, “Is André here yet?” so much for discretion! After whispering in his ear not to say André’s name, he then said, “is that man on TV with the violin here yet” OH DEAR !

Heading towards the escalator to go to the gate upstairs we encountered the press who said they had to wait downstairs as they were not allowed to take their equipment up to the gate

We stopped and spoke to them about our love of André and the JSO and about our Appreciation Group and how excited we all were. They wanted to know how I came to start it, how I advertised it and how many were in the group. Of course I told them how I had emailed Jann to see if there were any groups in Perth and she had suggested I start one and was very encouraging and supportive of my efforts to get the group up and running. A plug for all the great work Jann does.

Moving up to the gate in small groups we milled around the gate area trying not to look obvious while watching for André's plane to land which was running a bit late. Photos were taken of the plane as it taxied in and of André and Pierre walking across the tarmac. The excitement was building as the regular passengers began disembarking and soon André banners, t-shirts and Aussie flags were revealed.

As André came through the door a huge cheer went up and André smiled and said, “ah this is nice”. He commented that it was a really long flight with turbulence and looked tired but was happy to pose with fans and give a few autographs, the Group were delighted to have been able to spend this special time with him.

The procession then proceeded downstairs where the press were waiting. The press took over at this stage with interviews and André was obliging and stunning with his beautiful smile. My 4 yr old grandson Daron is a huge fan and was able to demonstrate to André the leaps that we have seen on many of his DVDs during the Chianti Song. This was later broadcast on Channels 7, 9 & 10. I did manage to tell André about our Appreciation Group and although despite being heavily photographed, he was listening.

Moving to the baggage carousel things became hectic and André was really crowded, the press were still milling around him and by now many others at the airport had come across and the crowd had become quite large. It was easy to see André was tired but some of these people and reporters didn't know when to back off.

This was when I stepped back to give him some room and my space was immediately filled by half a dozen others. Daron and I were then nabbed by the press so it was the end of my André time. I glanced up to see many of our group getting photos taken with André so I knew everyone was enjoying their special day. The group were really appreciative and thanked me profusely for organising their special André time.

Huge thanks to Universal and Jann for giving us this fantastic opportunity and wonderful memories. The fans in Perth are thrilled to have him here, with or without the Castle. It's the MUSIC and our Maestro's CONCERTS we want to hear and see. ~ Teresa

All PHOTOS are the property of Teresa in Perth