Get your Blue Suede Shoes on and get ready to dance, cry, smile, laugh and sing out loud as The King of Rock and Roll takes you on an iconic rollercoaster journey of some of his greatest hits.
‘The Elvis Years’ charts the singer/actor’s career from his first studio time sessions in Memphis in 1953 to his death in 1977, at times giving you a feeling like you’re watching the King for real and perhaps even after 46 years following his death, he’s still alive. But his musical legacy lives on. It’s ironic that he’s been dead for longer than he was alive and yet his name and musical talents can get venues like the Dominion Theatre packed out, even when the men’s England football team is playing on the same night in the Euro 2024!
Mario Kombou is no novice at mastering the King, he landed the coveted role of Elvis’ character Vince Everett in the West End musical production of ‘Jailhouse Rock’ and has been playing Elvis ever since – it's been more than 20 years and at times it really does feel like you're watching Elvis live on stage.
The first half of this performance felt quite rigid, but then again maybe the King himself was a bit a rigid while starting out trying to find his own dancing rhythm and style in those early years. But the second half saw a significant shift - Mario was playful with the audience, funny when something went wrong, interactive with his live band and dancers and definitely more out there busting his Elvis moves.
Prepared to be wowed by what feels like an endless Elvis jukebox sounding out nostalgic hits that feel like magic lighting up the stage stirring all sorts of emotions including a moving tribute to his Mother who died in 1958.
There was a poignant crowd-pleasing moment when the actor comes off stage to meet, greet and cheek-kiss the audience, but for some it was like meeting the man himself. He was presenting some audience members with thin scarves as a memento, but the recipients didn’t wait for him to walk through the stalls of the theatre, they went to the King himself. There felt something very humble about the way they went to him and how he reacted to them.
The set was quite basic given it was taking over the stage of Sister Act for a one-night show, but it wasn’t obvious. While Elvis was performing centre-stage, a screen would provide video footage covering parts of his life, including his military service, during the umpteen much-needed costume changes that really allowed a show and tell of his personality and wardrobe.
The production will be back at the Dominion Theatre in February next year, but there are other UK venues the show will be touring. For a full list visit www.theelvisyears.com
It’s definitely not one to be missed!
Review: Sunita Jaswal