Uniquely able to bridge languages and genres with her audiences, Charlotte Cardin is at once playful and intimate on stage. The audience sang along to every track, from the show opener Looping to the rhythmic Someone I Could Love.

People came from as far as Mexico and France to see the show, which included hits from Cardin’s breakout album 99 Nights to her latest single, Tant pis pour elle.

Mother and daughter Christelle and Catriona flew in from Lille, France for the concert. This was the third time they’ve crossed the Atlantic to see Cardin. “Nous sommes des super-fans!” they said.

The Base’s Acting CEO, Assaf Weisz, also at the concert, saw the show as a testament to the appeal of the Drill Hall as a venue, and to Picton as a destination for arts and culture. “This is more than double the crowd we were able to draw when she played here two years ago,” he noted. About 1500 tickets sold for Saturday’s show compared to 700 in 2023. “It’s really exciting to see the Base grow in this way.”

Cardin acknowledged the full circle moment on stage, noting Picton was one of the first stops on the 99 Nights Tour. Since then, she has performed to sold out arenas, NBA games, and even a state gala with US President Joe Biden. The tour concludes in Paris in April.

Cardin’s show was also a full circle moment for 9-year-old Éliane Lavoie, whose family moved to Picton from Chicoutimi, Que., just a few weeks before Cardin was to play there. “All my friends were going to Charlotte Cardin in Chicoutimi in July. When I heard she was coming to Picton, and I was super excited!” she said. Her mother, Caitlin, said that her two girls “could hardly contain themselves, singing the songs all day.”

As the concert closed with Éliane’s favourite song, Feel Good, she and the crowd were doing exactly that.