We received two complimentary tickets to this show by attending a timeshare presentation. (Discounted lodging and free show tickets from timeshare companies are readily available in Branson.) This show performs at the Starlite Theater which is fortunately located towards the west end of highway 76. Francis Street crosses over from Gretna Road, bringing us right on 76 just in front of the theater. We bypassed most of the traffic!
The 50’s theme prevails in the theater. I immediately noticed the two toned red on white ’55 Chevy Bel Air in the lobby. Excellent condition. Of course, a photographer offered to take a picture of us in the car, but the price was too high. A pizza and ice cream parlor filled a quarter of the lobby and a small gift shop sat over in the back corner. Walking over to the ticket counter, we obtained good seats for the Friday evening performance even though we did not cash in our voucher until late Friday afternoon.
The people seating next to us introduced themselves and asked about our families. They had pictures of their grandchildren and shared stories with us while waiting for the show to begin. Noticing our younger ages, they wondered what interested us in the 50’s era. They also stated that other people had recommended this "50’s" show over the other "50’s" show. People are very friendly in Branson!
The singers and dancers in the show performed over 70 songs during a two hour show. I lost count of the costume changes as they sang and danced to a wide variety of songs from artists such as Everly Brothers and Buddy Holly. Members from the five piece band joined in with some musical numbers such as the Stroll. The Master of Ceremonies impersonated George Burns, Ed Sullivan, Red Skelton and other great comedians as he presented the history of the music and artists. In this manner he introduced a soloist who performed the country and western music of the 50’s by singing two of Patsy Cline’s hits. He shared information on the gospel and soul music of the 50’s bringing out another soloist to perform.
As with many of the Branson shows, a member of the audience was brought up on stage for one of the songs. Then throughout the rest of the show, "Jerry of Kansas City" was an extended character and referenced in several dialogs and acts.
The funniest part of the program was Elvis. He was good in his imitation of the King, but the women in the audience were the best. These women were probably teenagers when Elvis first appeared on the Ed Sullivan show. They screamed and carried on with this actor just as though he was real. When he came off the stage into the audience, women were running down the aisle, hanging all over this singer. Some followed him back on the stage, continuing with their wailing and arm waving. I could barely hear this guy sing. It was a riot.