When I first heard that the New Kids on the Block were considering making a comeback, I thought it would be fun and humorous to get into the hysteria, the way one gets into the theme at a themed party. I signed up on the NKOTB website to get updates on the comeback without realizing that this made me a fan club member. One of my fan club perks was sent to me a week and a half ago by email; it was an invite to RSVP for the New Kid's final dress rehearsal at The House of Blues in Hollywood. The rules to the invitation were quite strict: no cameras, cell phones, recording devices will be allowed, you will RSVP on a first come first serve basis, and you will not be allowed a "plus one" with this invite -- ONLY YOU. My friend Allyson got the email before me and called me four times on my drive home from work to sign up quick so we might go together.
It was a while before Allyson and I heard anything from NKOTB, and we almost forgot about it. On Tuesday morning, we got an email with our confirmation for that night's show. At first we had wanted to go to see the kind of crowd that might show up -- all thirty something women who otherwise love cupcakes and SATC or a younger pop-oriented crowd? As the day went on we got a little giddier, planning our outfits and bragging to our colleagues and students. Allyson and I had been in New York when NKOTB were on the Today Show to announce their comeback, but we were toting around fifty 14-year-olds and couldn't make it to the taping. This House of Blues show was our retribution.
Driving up La Cienaga to Sunset on Tuesday night, Allyson and I rocked out to the NKOTB greatest hits, along with the new single, "Summertime." (It reminded me that I'm not that into this type of pop music anymore, but I'd make exceptions for my first teenage obsessive crushes.) When we got to the House of Blues, we got to line up in a fan club line and got a black wrist band (pictured above) that let us into the pit right in front of the stage. Inside, there were already a row of 30-somethings surrounding the entire stage, but we stood in back of them in the "second row." We spent an hour waiting while reminiscing with our line friends and drinking cosmos.
Finally, the announcer came out and that's when the screaming started. At first Allyson and I looked at each other and started laughing. Then, we joined in. We completely reverted to our 11-year-old selves. The guys came on stage after a video that no one could hear over the screaming. They sang three mixes of old and new songs with mixtures of old and new dance moves. When the came out on the satellite part of the stage we were feet from them. We put our hands up and they touched us, making us scream even more. We didn't get as crazy as the girl who threw her bra onstage or the girl who passed Donnie the note (that he read) telling him that her husband allowed Donnie to be her "freebie." The show lasted only twenty minutes, but it was worth all the hilarity and excitement.
After the show, we reviewed it with our line buddies, signed a release to be interviewed for the official video archive, and headed home. I can't believe I saw NKOTB the same month the Sex and the City movie is coming out. By the way, I didn't take off my entrance bracelets until Friday.
