Bob Dylan opened The Capitol Theater (setlist, poster)

Dylan at The Cap 9/4/2012 (via @tommynyc)

At 8:03 p.m., and without an opening act, Dylan emerged in a black suit jacket with red piping and brass buttons, white pants and a bolo tie, proceeding to growl, smirk and grin his way through a 1-hour-44-minute set of hits and deep cuts.

“Watching the River Flow” began almost immediately after Dylan and the rest of his six-piece band hit the stage. There was no buildup, no hype — and fans in the crowd seemed to appreciate it.

Gary Davis, 56, of Greenwich, Conn., called what he’d seen a “great show at a great venue,” and picked “Thunder on the Mountain” as his favorite performance of the night.

The crowd definitely skewed older, with most in attendance flaunting gray hair (or none at all), but there was definitely a contingent of curious 20-somethings. With balcony seating and a general-admission lower level for standing fans, Dylan was greeted mostly with polite nods to the beat and the occasional thrusted arm, but a handful of folks on the lower level were dancing as if they were in a mud pit at Woodstock, at the dawning of the age of Aquarius.

And all along the perimeter of the stage, security personnel were vigilant (and cranky) about thwarting fans’ attempts and photos and video. While they were just doing their jobs, their somewhat vain efforts were taking place at a concert happening in the year 2012. (As a result, the attached photo is from a previous Dylan show.) Even live-tweeting the event earned a few glares, but I managed to do so.

Dylan wasn’t exactly doing backflips, but his subtle gestures showcased his showmanship. For “Shooting Star,” he spoke-sang the words as he leaned on the piano like a lounge singer before rising to wail on his harmonica. (It was definitely a highlight, and Yarrow agreed, calling it the best song of the night.) For “High Water,” Dylan fashioned the mic stand like a scepter before gripping the mic with his right hand and a harmonica in his left. And by the time “Highway 61 Revisited” came around, Dylan was plinking out the melody on the grand piano with his right hand, and gesticulating toward the crowd with his left. -[Newsday]

Bob Dylan opened the newly-renovated, much-hoopla’d, iconic Port Chester venue The Capitol Theatre Tuesday night (9/4) with a 17-song set that mixed tracks from his upcoming 35th solo album, Tempest (due out 9/11), with songs from his 50-year catalog of songs. Setlist is at the bottom of this post.

Much has been made of The Cap’s atmosphere and light show, including astral projections on the venue’s domed ceiling. Though he didn’t mention the psychedelic lighting, here’s what the NY Times’ Jon Pareles said of the place:

The Capitol’s interior is once again resplendent in red brocade and gilded painted reliefs; many of the exit signs have Art Nouveau panache. For Mr. Dylan’s concert, with a capacity of 1,835, the orchestra level was standing room, surveyed by a balcony and boxes with a few rows each of steeply raked seats with assured sightlines. The sound, similar to that of other vintage movie palaces like the Beacon Theater and the United Palace Theater in Manhattan, was clear and boomy, with the kind of reverberation earplugs can help correct. The theater had opening glitches to be worked out –a lobby bar still under construction, box office slowdowns, confused visitors in search of parking –and one bad practice: waitresses soliciting drink orders from concertgoers during songs, an intrusion. But those are minor; a rock theater that looks and sounds as good as the Capitol is something to celebrate.

The venue also made screenprint posters (designed by Stanley Mouse and David Welker) for the show which ended up not getting approval from Bob so they weren’t sold… but you can check it out below.

The Capitol Theatre’s next show is Friday (9/7) with The Roots and Bob Weir and tickets are still available. Other notable upcoming shows include Dirty Projectors (9/25), Regina Spektor (10/3), Crystal Castles (10/4), Sleigh Bells (10/5), Fiona Apple (10/10) and three nights with My Morning Jacket in December (12/27 – 29). Tickets for all upcoming shows at the venue are available here.

As for Dylan, his Tempest tour starts next month and hits NYC on November 21 at the Barclays Center. Tickets to that show go on sale Friday, September 14 at 10 AM.

The Setlist for Bob’s show at The Cap is below along with the unapproved poster.

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Set list: Bob Dylan @ The Capitol Theatre 9/4/2012
“Watching the River Flow”
“Love Minus Zero/No Limit”
“Things Have Changed”
“Tangled Up in Blue”
“Rollin’ and Tumblin'”
“This Dream of You”
“Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum”
“Shooting Star”
“High Water”
“Visions of Johanna”
“Highway 61 Revisited”
“Can’t Wait”
“Thunder on the Mountain”
“Ballad of a Thin Man”
“Like a Rolling Stone”
“All Along the Watchtower”
(Encore) “Blowing in the Wind”