'Oh my God ...': The Jonas Brothers play to throngs of young fans

HIDALGO — The level of excitement was so intense Saturday night it stretched from the parking lot all the way to the front row of Dodge Arena.

Thousands of bouncing tweenagers, most with parents in tow, could hardly contain that enthusiasm upon realizing they were mere minutes away from seeing Nick, Joe and Kevin Jonas, the pop sensations otherwise known as Jonas Brothers, take the stage.

The New Jersey trio continued its Look Me in the Eyes Tour with a stop this weekend at BorderFest, Hidalgo’s annual four-day festival celebrating the arts, culture and heritage of the border region.

The tour kicked off in Tucson, Ariz., on Jan. 31. The brothers have played sold-out shows in each city so far, including Saturday’s performance.

Many concert-goers expressed their undying devotion to the brothers by sporting homemade shirts or carrying signs with messages of adoration.

It wasn’t hard to miss best friends Aracelis Garcia and Dialis Molina, both 14, who were on a mission to court the bushy-haired brothers by wearing shirts that read, “Can I have your number?”

They were eager to get backstage, take a photo of the tour bus and — even if just by a long shot — score one of the Jonases’ digits. It was the least the girls could ask after driving about 250 miles from San Antonio to get to the concert.

“Oh my God, I love them,” gushed Dialis, who has seen the group twice already. “I don’t have a favorite. There couldn’t be one without the other.”

Before the brothers took the stage, fans enjoyed opening acts Rooney and the resurrected and revamped version of Menudo.

The excitement went up a notch when the Jonas siblings emerged from behind a white curtain and beneath the stage.

They opened the show with the catchy anthem “Year 3000,” sending the crowd of screaming tweens into a frenzy.

The Jonases displayed their musical talents, with Kevin Jonas on acoustic guitar, Nick Jonas behind the drum kit and Joe Jonas leading the way on the mic.

The frenzy only amplified when they slowed things down a bit with the song “Hello Beautiful.”

The performance reached the hearts of many young fans, but thanks to the catchy power-pop stylings, the show also was entertaining for those outside the tweenage realm.

“How y’all doing tonight?” Joe Jonas, 18, asked the crowd before going into another pop ballad.

As glowsticks waved in the air, the brothers took their time on each corner of the multi-platform stage to say a quick hello to the fans.

The show included several songs from their upcoming album, due out in the next several months, but wasn’t without the ubiquitous tunes “S.O.S.” and “When You Look Me in the Eyes.”

The Jonas Brothers shot to superstardom in late 2006 but can attribute some of their newfound fame to the time they spent on the road with Miley Cyrus (aka Hannah Montana) on the record-breaking Best of Both World Tour last year. The Jonases also can be seen in the 3D Hannah Montana concert movie that premiered Feb. 1.

Last week, pop punker Avril Lavigne added the Jonas Brothers as an extra support act on her current world tour. There has been no word yet, however, as to whether the siblings will return next month when Lavigne’s show hits Dodge Arena.

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Miriam Ramirez covers features and entertainment for The Monitor. You can reach her at (956) 683-4468.