At 10:16 a.m. on Thursday, October 16th, an email from Lucy Dacus hit my inbox: “Lucy Dacus will be performing a special total request live trio set at Mickey’s Black Box in Lititz, PA on Oct 27.”

Earlier this year, I attended the first show of the Forever Is a Feeling tour at The Met. That performance made buying tickets for this special performance an easy decision—and it quickly sold out.

My drive from Philly to Lititz set the tone perfectly. As traffic loosened, the sky shifted from orange to purple, silhouetting silos and barns. It’s peaceful here. Mickey’s Black Box sits within the 96-acre Rock Lititz campus—home to rehearsal studios, concert set production spaces, Hotel Rock Lititz, and this intimate 600-capacity venue.

Lucy Dacus | photo by Bridget Massa for WXPN

Lucy Dacus | photo by Bridget Massa for WXPN

As the room steadily filled, the simple stage setup hinted at a more relaxed evening ahead. Ashley Gellman, tour photographer and manager, walked onstage: “Welcome to TRL!” she shouted before introducing the trio one by one—Alan Good Parker, Sarah Goldstone, and Lucy Dacus. Lucy entered with a cup of tea in hand, greeting the crowd: “We’re in a really silly mood. This will be fun.”

She laid out the rules for the night: raise your hand, make a request, and they’d play it—maybe.

The requests began with “Lost Time,” followed by “Triple Dog Dare.” The trio bounced across albums and even sprinkled in rarities, including “Afraid of Heights” and two covers—Jim Croce’s “Time in a Bottle” and Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark.”

A request from the back of the room brought us to “Christine.” Julia Cashman made the drive from Philly with her dad to celebrate her 24th birthday. The whole night felt so personal, and watching her father beam as she sang along to every word was truly magical.Some requests—primarily from early albums—went unplayed, as Lucy gently steered the crowd toward alternatives. “I know this isn’t what you asked for, but we’re working together here,” she joked, before performing “Yours and Mine” live for the first time.

The candid banter and musical experimentation added to the show’s charm, showcasing Lucy’s adoration for her fans. The trio played a quick beginning of “Forever Is a Feeling” before stopping, knowing it didn’t quite fit the format. After performing “Green Eyes, Red Face,” Lucy reflected: “I feel like a totally different person from when I wrote that song. Isn’t it weird that songs stay the same, and you change?” I know I’m not alone in cataloging life’s moments with her lyrics over the last decade. We have certainly changed.

Even with the stripped-down setup, the crowd sang along loudly to favorites like “Ankles” and belted out “Night Shift” which Lucy saved for the closer. With love and excitement she asked the crowd, “I’ve never been to a show like this before, have you?! It’s fun!”

Before leaving the stage, setlists were folded into paper airplanes and flown into the crowd. Redd Sierra caught one, alongside her partner in a custom kiss-painted shirt—love was all around. No opener. No encore. A perfectly intimate format and beautiful setlist. The simplicity of this night was refreshingly wonderful.

As the room began to empty, I met Drew Scheeler from Ohio, who summed it up perfectly: “Lucy is an incredible songwriter, and it’s so special to have nights like tonight where you can hear songs from throughout her career. She could’ve sung the phone book and it would have been great—but it was so special that every song tonight was someone’s requested favorite.”

Setlist

Lost Time (extended)
Triple Dog Dare
Time in a Bottle (Jim Croce cover)
Brando
Yours & Mine
Modigliani
Kissing Lessons

Dancing in the Dark (Bruce Springsteen cover)
Christine
Ankles
Afraid of Heights
Please Stay
Green Eyes, Red Face
Night Shift

Kathleen Edwards: “Chameleon/Comedian” (XPoNential Music Festival – 2019)