As I sat down in the Quick Center this Saturday and familiar tunes flowed into my ears, I couldn’t help but wonder, ‘Are those real?’
Nothing about ‘Beatlemania ‘- The Tribute’ is really real, I guess someone could argue, even down to the wigs that the imposter John, George, Paul, and Ringo wear.’
However, the professional cover band is very impressive in its abilities to mimic The Beatles look and sound. No wonder they are the most popular cover band to walk the earth.
I first saw Beatlemania when I was about 7 years old, with my parents in upstate New York. I don’t remember much except that I liked it, but my parents enjoyed it much more than me. I don’t even remember if I actually knew who The Beatles were before that show. I hope I did.’
Seeing them again at the Quick Center was definitely a blast from the past for me then, in more than one way.
The guys are obviously professionals: They sing in the timbre of the voices of the greats, and even use old Vox amps. The sound is just impeccable.’
What I enjoy most about the show is that when a person watches the cover band, they will notice that almost everyone around them is singing along, from children to senior citizens. Both were going crazy when they played ‘Love Me Do’ and ‘She Loves You.’ I even felt myself being transported to memories of listening to the hits in my car or at other occasions. I could only imagine what real die-hard fans feel like when they see the impersonators.
That’s the beauty of The Beatles – we all know it, and ‘Beatlemania’ brings us together to remember that.
The concert was part of a larger event held by the Jamie A. Hulley Arts Foundation, a non-profit organization that gives money to students in the arts. The foundation is very closely knit to Fairfield University, as they give an annual scholarship to a member of Theatre Fairfield, and also give funds to the music program. Live and silent auctions took place before and in between the ‘Beatlemania’ sets, so for anyone who has never seen a guy talk a million words a minute, that was a show in itself.’
Sadly, though, because the show was part of a benefit, many Fairfield students were either unaware of the concert or unable to purchase a ticket.
Of course, like most benefits, when you weren’t being harassed for money or hoping that you had more to spend, you were running after the people with hors d’oeuvres trays.’
Although the Quick Center may have been a little crazy, Beatlemania made that all OK when they played ‘Twist and Shout’ and everyone sang the big ‘ah’ section.
After playing together for about 10 years, it looks like ‘Beatlemania – The Tribute’ will always have an audience, especially with such talented members that have even starred in the Broadway hit, ‘Beatlemania.’
I just hope the group will return to Fairfield soon and when I go, I expect to see more Fairfield students filling the seats.
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