Members of Heartland Men's Chorus are gearing up for a "magical mystery tour," as they launch a British Invasion, March 27 & 28, 2010, at the Folly Theater. Highlighting the best popular music from across the pond, the concert promises familiar music presented with HMC's Signature Sound and irreverent antics.
The term "British Invasion" is most often used to describe rock and roll performers from the United Kingdom who became popular in the United States from 1964 to 1966. HMC will pay tribute to this fi rst wave of pioneers with selections from The Beatles ("Nowhere Man," "Paperback Writer," "Let It Be"), Herman's Hermits ("This Door Swings Both Ways") and Dusty Springfi eld ("Wishin' and Hopin' ").
The 1980s-and the dawn of MTV-saw a second wave of British groups dominate the pop charts. Groups such as Culture Club became popular with their androgynous personas and techno-infl uenced beats. The Chorus will perform songs by Queen and Boy George to highlight the best of Britain's pop music from the 1980s.
While many gay men's choruses have developed concerts highlighting British pop music, artistic director Joe Nadeau has put his own stamp on the repertoire. "Other choruses have devoted entire concerts to a particular British artist or group, such as Elton John or Queen," said Nadeau. "But I liked the idea of presenting a variety of different musical styles, tied together by the fact that all of them hail from the UK. We'll present the classic pop music most often associated with the British Invasion, but also include some more recent acts, like the Spice Girls, an outrageous song from the comedy troupe Monty Python and theme songs from the James Bond fi lm series."
"No concert like this would be complete without Sir Elton John," said Nadeau. "We'll close the first act with a medley representing the enormous breadth of his work." Selections from John's canon include "The Bitch is Back" (from his 1974 album, Caribou), the iconic "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road," the Marilyn Monroe tribute, "Candle in the Wind," and the raucous "I'm Still Standing."
Other UK artists represented in the concert are Welsh-born crooner Tom Jones ("It's Not Unusual"), Eric Clapton ("Tears in Heaven") and The Bee Gees ("Stayin' Alive," "How Deep is Your Love?").
Returning to choreograph this concert is Tracie Davis, who set the men of HMC in motion last summer in the concert HeartThrobs. Between musical offerings, some members of the Chorus will assume the guises of British personalities Benny Hill and Susan Boyle, as well as Australian entertainment icon Dame Edna Everage.
"I have a feeling the Queen herself might even make an appearance," hinted Nadeau. Heartland Men's Chorus performs British Invasion Saturday, March 27 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, March 28 at 4:00 p.m. at the Folly Theater, 300 West 12th Street. Tickets from $15 - $30 are available at www.hmckc.org or by calling (816) 931-3338
