INDEPENDENT NEWS

Elvis Lives Again

Published: Fri 18 Aug 2006 10:53 AM
Elvis Lives Again
If You’ve Never Seen Elvis Live In Concert This Is The Closest You’ll Ever Get -You Won’t Believe Your Eyes!
For The First Time Ever In New Zealand!
Christchurch Westpac Centre
Wednesday 18 October
Tickets On Sale Monday 28 August
Elvis Presley In Concert, the stunning theatrical production that reunites former band mates live on stage alongside Elvis as he performs a full concert on a giant video screen, continues its historic and critically acclaimed world tour with the announcement of one New Zealand show only in Christchurch.
Elvis Presley In Concert performing to legions of Elvis fans in Christchurch on Wednesday 18 October at the Westpac Centre. Tickets on sale Monday 28 August.
This is, in effect, Elvis' first-ever world concert tour, which began in America in 1998 and has since performed sold-out tours in Europe, Japan, Australia and the US.
In his lifetime Elvis' only concerts outside the United States were five shows Canada in 1957. A world tour was an unrequited dream for Elvis and his fans. Long after the superstar's death, the dream has come true with the production Elvis Presley In Concert which has had critics raving……..
"The concert was something more than a musical event...it was an encounter with a phenomenon who radiated charisma." NEW YORK TIMES
"Elvis - The Concert.....the Eighth Wonder of the World." "...such was the power of the music, the voice, the legend, it was hard to resist being sucked into its vortex of high emotion." LONDON DAILY TELEGRAPH
"The sights and sounds were dramatic, and maybe too real." NEWSWEEK
"You’re in for something different - unlike anything you’ve ever seen." ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
"When Elvis finally left the building, he took plenty of satisfied customers with him." LOS ANGELES TIMES
" ...the crowds ready to rush the stage...willing to succumb to the illusion!" LONDON TIMES
The Elvis Presley In Concert concept is to present an authentic as possible Elvis Presley concert. The producers edited together a collection of Elvis' finest concert performances that exist on film and video and removed virtually all sound from the footage except for Elvis' vocal.
The Elvis footage is projected on a large video screen. On stage a 16-piece orchestra and a group of Elvis' original band mates from the concert era of his career and other cast members perform live with the Elvis video.
All music heard in the concert production is performed live except for Elvis' voice. On either side of the Elvis performance screen are screens that carry live action from the stage. From the first song it's magic. You're at a real Elvis concert.
The original Elvis band mates in this production are: Joe Guercio (musical director/conductor), Myrna Smith (vocals) of The Sweet Inspirations, Ed Enoch (vocals) of J.D. Sumner & The Stamps, and the TCB Band: James Burton (lead guitar), Glen D. Hardin (piano), Jerry Scheff (bass guitar), and Ronnie Tutt (drums).
Today, people are accustomed to seeing giant video screens used in live concerts to bring the star closer to the audience. Elvis' recorded voice and his on-screen presence are so powerful, the interaction with the live musicians and singers so seamless, the audience reaction so intense that, a few songs into the show, one can almost forget that Elvis isn't really there in person. Everything in terms of staging, set design, lighting, sound, and overall production is as if Elvis were alive and back out on the road.
The audience response to this concept has been overwhelming. Long-time Elvis fans who attended actual Elvis concerts say they feel that same original excitement and electricity. The fans who never got to see him perform, many of whom were born after Elvis' death, say it is a dream-come-true experience they thought had been lost to them forever. The production is so authentic and so well done that there are moments in the show when even Elvis' own band mates and members of the production team almost think Elvis is really back in the building!
Elvis concert footage for the show comes primarily from material shot for the MGM concert films Elvis, That's The Way It Is (1970) and Elvis on Tour (1972) and from the historic 1973 global television special Elvis: Aloha from Hawaii, via Satellite. This footage contains some of Elvis' finest performances from the big concert era of his career, the era that is celebrated by the Elvis Presley In Concert production. The 1970-1973 footage shows Elvis at the pinnacle of his superstardom, at the height of his powers as a concert performer, and in top form physically.
Ends

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