From Elvis to Oz
From Elvis to Oz
This weekend so far, we saw the King and followed the yellow brick road. The weekend started early for us, as Greg and I had tickets to see an Elvis impersonator. Dad bought the tickets, but they weren’t able to attend, so we invited Madelyn and her daughter, Caitlyn. Right after I got off of work, we started on the two-hour drive to Mississippi. The performance was held at the Hard Rock Casino.
Greg wrote to Dad about it afterwards. He described it well:
*****
“It was very entertaining. He did all of the songs very well.. about 90% of him looked like the King... and he was a great singer... always on key with a strong voice. Some of his movements were a little different than I’ve seen in recorded performances... but the effect was definitely there.
The only down side is very often his mouth was right ON the microphone and his words sounded distorted. A little too loud here and there.. and several times VERY bright lights were in the audiences face... too often if you ask me.
Other than that it was very good.
In my opinion... his best songs were Kentucky Rain and In the Ghetto... but all of his songs were well done. About 4 I didn't recognize though. He did "A little less conversation" very well too.
Thanks you for the show It is well appreciated... but I lost sleep!! LOL
Thanks ....it was great”
*****
I was pleasantly surprised with how good the Elvis guy sounded, but the crowd? They were something else! People screamed, “WE LOVE YOU ELVIS!” People gathered at the stage with napkins for the singer to wipe across his brow and neck and give back to the ladies. (At one point Greg told me, “The wiping the brow thing.. gross.. why not just piss on someone?” OK, that’s an interesting point of view! Not that I disagree, I mean… give me an autograph, not the sweat!)
As Madelyn said regarding the crowd, “If it was the REAL Elvis, I could understand it. But this was an impersonator!” A good impersonator, one of the best I’ve heard but.. nobody can shake it like the real Elvis did! I am glad we went and I’m happy that Greg, his sister and niece enjoyed it too.
On Saturday, Greg and I went with my family to see the Broadway musical performance, “Wicked.” O.M.G. To borrow the Boston meaning ~ It was WICKED AWESOME! I have to say, this performance ranks up there with Cats and Phantom of the Opera (those two being my favorites that I have seen multiple times). I would go see “Wicked” again, any time!
I didn’t know the story line, but one of my friends, Gwen, told me I would like it a lot and said it related to the Wizard of Oz story. My cousin, Holly, said she never saw it but has the music to it. It was a fantastic experience, from the excellent lighting, vibrant costumes, perfectly timed sense of humor, the tie in to the Wizard of Oz, the fabulous singing, acting at its believable best and… the song “Defying Gravity” ~ blew me away! The storyline had life lessons of ~ accepting differences and how good and evil can be manipulated and then there was the magic ~ from flying monkeys to when the “wicked witch” levitates. Powerful, powerful music and performance!
Greg said it best, “I’ll never be able to watch the Wizard of Oz again without thinking of this performance and how it changes everything.” I have never seen an old movie, a much loved old movie, explained (you get to know the origins of the Lion, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow, etc) and completely changed in meaning while staying on course to the “story” originally shared.
Spectacular, Spellbinding Show! An experience that pulled at my heart and left Goosebumps and had me off my seat with a standing ovation, along with everyone else in the audience!
This Broadway show ranks up there with the best that I’ve seen. As we were driving home, Greg said, “I’m glad I was able to experience this with you and your family.”
(Picture below is of the stage prior to the start of the show. I know, I know, not supposed to take picture. But… that dragon was SO cool and yes, it DID move and the eyes turned red and smoke came out of the mouth.)
This weekend so far, we saw the King and followed the yellow brick road. The weekend started early for us, as Greg and I had tickets to see an Elvis impersonator. Dad bought the tickets, but they weren’t able to attend, so we invited Madelyn and her daughter, Caitlyn. Right after I got off of work, we started on the two-hour drive to Mississippi. The performance was held at the Hard Rock Casino.
Greg wrote to Dad about it afterwards. He described it well:
*****
“It was very entertaining. He did all of the songs very well.. about 90% of him looked like the King... and he was a great singer... always on key with a strong voice. Some of his movements were a little different than I’ve seen in recorded performances... but the effect was definitely there.
The only down side is very often his mouth was right ON the microphone and his words sounded distorted. A little too loud here and there.. and several times VERY bright lights were in the audiences face... too often if you ask me.
Other than that it was very good.
In my opinion... his best songs were Kentucky Rain and In the Ghetto... but all of his songs were well done. About 4 I didn't recognize though. He did "A little less conversation" very well too.
Thanks you for the show It is well appreciated... but I lost sleep!! LOL
Thanks ....it was great”
*****
I was pleasantly surprised with how good the Elvis guy sounded, but the crowd? They were something else! People screamed, “WE LOVE YOU ELVIS!” People gathered at the stage with napkins for the singer to wipe across his brow and neck and give back to the ladies. (At one point Greg told me, “The wiping the brow thing.. gross.. why not just piss on someone?” OK, that’s an interesting point of view! Not that I disagree, I mean… give me an autograph, not the sweat!)
As Madelyn said regarding the crowd, “If it was the REAL Elvis, I could understand it. But this was an impersonator!” A good impersonator, one of the best I’ve heard but.. nobody can shake it like the real Elvis did! I am glad we went and I’m happy that Greg, his sister and niece enjoyed it too.
On Saturday, Greg and I went with my family to see the Broadway musical performance, “Wicked.” O.M.G. To borrow the Boston meaning ~ It was WICKED AWESOME! I have to say, this performance ranks up there with Cats and Phantom of the Opera (those two being my favorites that I have seen multiple times). I would go see “Wicked” again, any time!
I didn’t know the story line, but one of my friends, Gwen, told me I would like it a lot and said it related to the Wizard of Oz story. My cousin, Holly, said she never saw it but has the music to it. It was a fantastic experience, from the excellent lighting, vibrant costumes, perfectly timed sense of humor, the tie in to the Wizard of Oz, the fabulous singing, acting at its believable best and… the song “Defying Gravity” ~ blew me away! The storyline had life lessons of ~ accepting differences and how good and evil can be manipulated and then there was the magic ~ from flying monkeys to when the “wicked witch” levitates. Powerful, powerful music and performance!
Greg said it best, “I’ll never be able to watch the Wizard of Oz again without thinking of this performance and how it changes everything.” I have never seen an old movie, a much loved old movie, explained (you get to know the origins of the Lion, the Tin Man and the Scarecrow, etc) and completely changed in meaning while staying on course to the “story” originally shared.
Spectacular, Spellbinding Show! An experience that pulled at my heart and left Goosebumps and had me off my seat with a standing ovation, along with everyone else in the audience!
This Broadway show ranks up there with the best that I’ve seen. As we were driving home, Greg said, “I’m glad I was able to experience this with you and your family.”
(Picture below is of the stage prior to the start of the show. I know, I know, not supposed to take picture. But… that dragon was SO cool and yes, it DID move and the eyes turned red and smoke came out of the mouth.)
Comments
OH BOY I have seen Wicked and LOVED IT - It is the best and I still listen to my CD - I love the music too!!
The Elvis impersonator sounds super fun. I sometimes wonder what the king would think if he saw all these guys impersonating him - ha ha.
Thanks for sharing
Love that you saw an Elvis show. Those songs always make me feel good.
I loved Wicked. I got to work the show and see it for free. The author has a lot of books based on fairy tales. You should check it out. Glad you liked the show!!! Cheers!