Jon Bon Jovi is no stranger to arenas.

The charismatic front man of iconic rock band Bon Jovi bounced, skipped and danced across the Qwest Center Omaha stage Saturday night, playing the sold-out crowd of 20-, 30- and 40-somethings like he plays his black acoustic guitar.

“This is the best workout we’ve had all year,” Bon Jovi claimed early on in the two-hour plus show. And he was right.

With or without his guitar, Bon Jovi was almost always moving. In a blur of tight black jeans and feathered, sandy blonde hair, Bon Jovi left no end of the stage untouched.

He even performed “Blaze of Glory” on a small platform positioned along the inclined side of the arena, amid a crowd of dancing fans snapping pictures of the guitar-strumming rocker.

Bon Jovi made the 18,000-seat venue feel intimate with seemingly little effort, inviting the crowd to sing and dance along with the energetic beats.

Not that the audience needed much encouragement.

Fists pumped across the entire arena to favorites like “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “It’s My Life” and “Runaway.”

People abandoned their beers, dancing in the aisles or in front of their seats even when the band brought out new songs, like “Complicated,” “Have a Nice Day” and “Story of My Life.”

The audience sang most of the choruses to the classic “Livin’ On a Prayer” and the entire first verse and chorus of “Wanted Dead or Alive,” which the band saved for its last of two encores. The band closed the show with a cover of Otis Redding's “Treat Her Right.”

Unlike other aging rock groups, the boys of Bon Jovi –guitarist Richie Sambora, drummer Tico Torres keyboardist David Bryan and Bon Jovi – never seemed bored with playing the songs that have become the well-worn rock anthems on bar jukeboxes.

The band cared less about perfect chords or in-sync lyrics than making sure its audience was having fun. Torres’ drum kit at times shook unsteadily under the intensity of his play, Sambora drew cheers from even the shortest solo and Bon Jovi sent his microphone stand flying off the stage while swinging it during “Bad Medicine.”

At home in front of the bright, flashing screens, sprawling stage and thousands of cheering fans, Bon Jovi delivered a solid performance in a high-spirited rock show that looked and felt like an energetic experience for both the band and crowd.