11th May 2024, Gabrielle Calise, Tampa Bay Times
“Sting and members of his touring band sat onstage with the Florida Orchestra, playing special arrangements of his lush pop and rock tracks. Before just about every song, Englishman #1 (Sting) walked the crowd through his lyrics, offering behind-the-scenes commentary on his characters. Then Englishman #2 (musical director Michael Francis) conducted the Florida Orchestra as it fleshed out a rich soundtrack.
If you closed your eyes during “Fields of Gold” and let your imagination take over, it was easy to picture the endless barley outside Sting’s Wiltshire manor. The orchestra’s delicate violin section and soft patter of drums called to mind foxes scampering through a forest in “End of the Game.” You could practically taste the spray of saltwater off a dock during the songs from Sting’s nautical musical “The Last Ship” or hear the clip-clop of a horse in “I Hung My Head.”
