THERE was a time, not so long ago, when British superstar Phil Collins thought he could live without theatrics 'because some of it got in the way of being a musician'.
That was before he was bitten by the acting bug and today he sings a different tune and will be out to prove it with his solo concerts at the Hong Kong Coliseum on May 3 and 4.
The Genesis frontman will fly into the territory with his 'concrete jungle' on two jumbo jets to bring his own stage, sound and lights - not to mention an entourage of 70.
'It sounds like we're bringing in the Eiffel Tower or something but the stage is actually quite simple,' said Collins, in a telephone interview from the Swiss chalet in Montreux which he now calls home.
'It is an urban, concrete, metal ironwork jungle a little like the West Side Story set and some of it moves slightly to become something else.' The idea, Collins added, was to put over theatrically some of the new songs from his most recent release Both Sides (Of The Story).
'Some of the songs are quite slow and intimate and in a hall with 10,000 to 40,000 people, it is difficult to get the focus of attention . . . a theatrical set, lighting and where and how you perform it will help put over that sort of atmosphere especially with the melancholy songs.' Collins' shows here will follow the same rundown as his US tour, coming close to three hours with a 15-minute intermission. 'It will be the same musically speaking, but it will be slightly different visually because we're mainly playing stadiums this time round,' said the affable singer.
