A little under four years ago, Ani DiFranco was doing a national coffeehouse tour which included the cozy, 300-capacity Java Joe’s in Des Moines.

Thursday night proved that DiFranco’s popularity has increased dramatically since then, when she played the 2,500 seat venue, Stephens Auditorium.

Although she lost the intimacy factor of playing a coffeehouse show, the audience still managed to enjoy the performance.

The nearly sold-out crowd welcomed DiFranco with a full force reminiscent of what a Beatles concert may have sounded like in 1964. Dozens of high-pitched female screams filled the auditorium, which made the first audible notes of “Training Bra” almost indistinguishable.

It also didn’t help that the first three rows emptied and rushed the stage, forcing DiFranco to deal with screams coming from just a couple feet away.

DiFranco wasn’t fazed at first. She continued rocking through her set with the beatnik-ish “Fuel,” her answer to the issue of conformity.

It was after this song that she finally decided to address the crowd, singling out a group right in the front. “You know I really do appreciate your enthusiasm,” she said, “but you know I do know my own name.”

DiFranco’s statement didn’t seem like enough of a clue to cause the perpetrators to shut up for awhile, so when it came down to the faint chorus of “Pulse,” a DiFranco on the verge of tears pleaded with the audience, proclaiming, “Please, please don’t scream.”

The rest of “Pulse” went on with a virtually silent crowd, bringing back some of the intimacy that DiFranco so desires from her accustomed coffeehouse audience.

As if apologizing for what she said during “Pulse,” DiFranco explained why she was originally upset with the screaming.

“I never wanted to be a superstar,” she said. “So help me in just staying a folk singer.”

The rest of the show went on without a hitch, but not without another retort from DiFranco in the form of her love song “Untouchable Face,” which could have easily been written specifically for the crowd (“Fuck you and your untouchable face/Fuck you for existing in the first place/And who am I, that I should lying for your touch/And who am I, I bet you can’t even tell me that much.”)

“Yeah, this is my big radio hit,” she said jokingly between verses.

DiFranco continued with a more subdued set, which included “32 Flavors” and “Not a Pretty Girl,” but also introduced several new songs from her upcoming album, “Up, up, up, up, up, up, up.” The quiet audience listened attentively as she played the forthcoming album’s title track, minus the band.

Keyboardist Julie Wolf helped lighten things up a bit by singing a Broadway-like tribute to Iowa. DiFranco gave her four words for why she loves Iowa so much: Greg Brown and Bo Ramsey, Iowa’s own folk singer-songwriters.

The first set came to a close with three of DiFranco’s more “rocking” tunes, including “Shy,” “Anticipate” and “In or Out,” which boasted a folky-guitar feedback solo.

The band didn’t waste any time coming back to the stage for an encore, jumping into the title track from DiFranco’s latest album, “Little Plastic Castles,” which included Wolf on the accordion in place of the horn section featured on the album. DiFranco then took a bow and said goodnight.

Ani DiFranco is probably one of the most honest songwriters in the business. She also has the advantage of being a great guitar player and a beautiful singer.

But a place like Stephens is just too big for her to get her message across. Those who caught her on the coffeehouse tour probably saw one of the best shows of their lives.

Now Ani DiFranco’s concerts are just too watered down for her signature folk sound.