STAY ‘FOREVER YOUNG’ AT TUSK RIO’S BARNYARD THEATRE

The Barnyard Theatre at Tusk Rio Casino is bringing you a once in a lifetime opportunity to stay ‘Forever Young’ with musical hits that make us all feel young and alive.

This exciting show will be playing at The Barnyard from 24 September to 3 October and tickets are selling out fast.

‘Forever Young’ is dedicated to those musicians and singers who remain etched in our memory because of the unforgettable mark they made on both the musical world and all our lives.

Buddy Holly makes an appearance in this iconic tribute and the much-loved song ‘American Pie’, which makes reference to his untimely death,  forms an integral part of the show. Emphasis is placed on the hard-hitting lines: “I can’t remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride, but something touched me deep inside, the day the music died.”

In the autumn of 1971 Don McLean’s ‘American Pie’ entered the collective consciousness and over thirty years later, remains one of the most discussed songs that popular music has ever produced.

Although it appears to chronicle the course of rock ‘n roll, it is not a mere catalogue of musical events. In using the cast of rock ‘n roll players from the 1960’s and putting them against the backdrop of Buddy Holly’s death, they become polarised – metaphors for the clash of values occurring in America at this time. Holly is used as the symbol of the happier innocence of the fifties and the rest are representative of the growing unrest and fragmentation of the 60’s.

The show takes it one step further by progressing through the 1990’s and is led by an Elvis impersonator, played by Brandon Auret of Isidingo fame. He pays tribute to his favourite artists like Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison, Freddie Mercury, Michael Hutchence, John Lennon and The King himself. Dusty Springfield, Karen Carpenter and Janis Joplin, to name but a few, represent legends of the fairer sex.

Featuring a nine-piece cast of talented musicians and singers, ‘Forever Young’ brings our musical heroes to life with verve and flamboyance. Performing along with Brandon is his wife Lee Heckrath on female vocals and newcomers Kyle Whiteside and Hendrik Mochudi on male vocals. The band consists of musical directors Barry and Calli Thomson on guitars and keyboards respectively, Mali Sewell on drums, Glen Veale on bass guitar and Marlene Hay on saxophone.

‘Forever Young’ pays tribute to evergreen hits like ‘American Pie’, ‘Only the Lonely’, ‘Chantilly Lace’, Suspicious Minds’ before moving on to more modern numbers which include ‘No Woman No Cry’, ‘Imagine’, ‘Never Tear us Apart’, ‘Light My Fire’ and ‘Who Wants to Live Forever’.

Upcoming shows at Tusk Rio’s Barnyard Theatre include ‘Glory Days’ from 7 October to 21 November and ‘Roll over Beethoven’ from 25 November to 15 January 2005.

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