I had an inkling of what Donny’s show was like from following Donny on social media. His fans post so many fabulous glimpses and I know the “theme” of the show is Six Decades of Donny. As with every other time I’ve seen Donny and the Osmonds, it was ever better than I expected.
The biggest thing that struck me was the very personal nature of the concert and Donny’s inactions with the audience. It was truly the most intimate show I’ve ever seen in Vegas or on a concert stage. It’s such a win-win because from moment one Donny shows his gratitude to his life-long fans and we express our love for Donny with every applause, cheers and request.
I loved the variety of the different seasons of his career. Who doesn’t love seeing Donny do the song and dance routine to “One Bad Apple?” I found myself singing along to many of the songs. Memories just flooded through me as I relived the shows I had seen 50+ years ago. Donny voice is remarkable, but it’s so much more than a singer singing a song! The emotions that so many songs carry for him and us are at fever pitch throughout the performance!
I thought the tribute to Andy Williams was so touching and watching Donny watch himself at five years old seemed like a family watching a family video, not a superstar showing a tidbit from the past.
I really enjoyed the “requests” portion of the show. No spoilers here – but Donny sets aside 15 minutes for the audience to shout out requests. And the requests can be a song from any one of his 65 albums! His set-up with the band where they can pull up the music and lyrics on tablets in an instant is mind blowing! Occasionally, Donny allows us to see his vulnerability when he would honestly tell us, “I can’t remember the words to that song!” His band plays a few bars and he hums along and grasps at a few lines of the lyrics and finishes with a belly laugh. It doesn’t get more real than that. You feel as though he is letting you in on a secret and sharing it with you!
The most touching moment for me was when he shared the story of his son Brandon’s phone call to him while Brandon was on his Mission. I won’t spoil this for you if you haven’t seen Donny’s show yet, but that phone call moved Donny to write a touching song in just 10 minutes. It was beautiful. I don’t know about you, but it brought tears to my eyes as it did Donny’s. Straight from the heart.
I was delighted to see Donny’s great band of musicians and the incredible dancers. They were as “on” as Donny, giving their everything to the dynamic performance. Overall, the production is flawless. I feel privileged to have shared the early times with Donny and am so proud of the man he became. As a few of you have mentioned – it was a full circle moment that I will always cherish.
Tomorrow: Come along backstage after the show for our “catch-up” in his dressing room.
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