Marie Osmond stage shot (all photos mine) |
Most folk know that the
kind of concert I attend is constructed of reverb-base driven, guitar-fugue
infused, sweaty, over-the-top Mick Jagger-like front men running from one end
of the stage to the next in fear that he might "miss a beam of theater light”
characteristics.
And so, you can
understand my self-befuddlement a couple of weeks ago when I called Sherry and
said…
“Hey, wanna go to the
Marie Osmond concert at the Blue Gate Theater in Shipshewana?”
After a brief chuckle she
replied “Why not. It will be like revisiting our childhood.”
It was indeed a fun
concert as Marie sang “Paper Roses”, songs from her latest album “Unexpected”,
show tunes, and more.
Her concluding song
before the obligatory encore-send off was a very powerful performance of “How
Great Thou Art”. So very rich in vocal quality and stirring of the emotion that
I almost anticipated Elvis, unable to resist the urge, momentarily manifesting
from the beyond to sing duet with Marie.
Marie performing a show tune |
Alas…no Elvis. It would
have been no use. No one could upstage Marie last night!
I amend my words…
Not that David Osmond
upstaged his aunt Marie, or “Aunty M”, as he referred to her, but I was greatly
impressed with his vocal talent, stage presence, and audience-engagement.
Photo of projected image Marie and David duet |
David tours with Marie
and sings duets with her, and also performs some solo numbers of his own.
Now forty-two, at age
twenty-six David experienced multiple sclerosis and was confined to a wheelchair.
Having overcome that disability, yet with much pain in his legs, he too moves
about the stage in dance evocative of the memory of an Osmond Brothers
performance.
He just looks, sings,
and choreographically moves, like an Osmond.
It was like being in
1970!
Anyway, he won my
admiration!
And also, he referred to
us as his cousins!
Never heard Mick or Ozzy
do that!
Sherry and I had much
fun.
For sure, it was a memorable
concert.
I even bought the
“Unexpected” CD.
It will rotate along with
my CDs of Jimmy Hendrix, Beatles, Stones, and Herbie Mann.
Thank you, Marie and
David for a great experience!
And the rest of David's cousins |