Streisand Sings for 13,105 in Las Vegas

A sellout crowd waited impatiently for an hour, then roared its approval as Barbra Streisand opened her first paid concert in 22 years with “Everything’s as If We Never Said Goodbye.”

“I’m a little nervous. Forgive me,” she told the audience.

The New Year’s Eve show was delayed nearly an hour, mainly because the crowd of 13,105 ticket holders had to pass through airport-style metal detectors.

Streisand last performed in a paid concert in 1971, at the Las Vegas Hilton.

Streisand noted that it had been 30 years since she was an opening act for Liberace a few blocks away at the Riviera Hotel. The audience applauded as a photo of a younger Streisand and the late pianist were flashed on screens around the MGM Grand Garden.