From Wikipedia: “A lei can be given to someone for a variety of reasons. Most commonly, these reasons include love, honor, or friendship for another person.” They forgot to mention “when onstage with Elvis.”
I was already wearing a lucky lei when Elvis called me on stage to serenade the Hawaiian Wedding Song. He held my hand, looked deep into my eyes, then looped another garland of flowers around my neck. I don’t think hubby Mark was jealous, as he was the one taking the video. My job was to hold the mic at Elvis’s mouth as he played ukulele. Little did he know how qualified I was for the job!
I was so impressed by this Elvis tribute artist and the show that he created. As a fellow musician, I enjoyed hearing his personal journey of performing as Elvis for the last 30 years. He called his 11-year stint in Las Vegas a “prison” – then he broke free and convinced a Maui theater to host his show (now running four years). Burn’n Love is the number one show in Maui and I’m so glad we spent Christmas night with the King!
I was impressed not only with the musicianship but with the physicality of the show – that 50-year old Elvis really had the moves! Darren Lee (his real name) has found his calling and really throws his whole self into it. He channels Elvis but also lets his true light shine.
It reminded me that there is no point in performing without love, honor and friendship for your audience. I might just be inspired to strut around onstage adorned with flowers like Elvis. Heck, why not incorporate leis into my every day? Here’s sending you Elvis love and aloha spirit as we face this new year.
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