If non-stop entertainment is what you're after -- a nostalgic compilation of some 22 songs performed without an intermission by a multi-talented ensemble -- you would be hard pressed to find a better example than the Alabama Shakespeare Festival's rollicking production of the award winning Million Dollar Quartet.
Based on an actual 1956 once-in-a-lifetime impromptu jam session at Sun Studios in Memphis, TN that brought together legendary music veterans Carl Perkins [Billy Finn], Johnny Cash [Chris Marsh Clark], Elvis Presley [Luke Monday] and then up and coming upstart Jerry Lee Lewis [Michael Kurowski], Million Dollar Quartet is a celebration of the early days of Rock'n'Roll spearheaded by Sun Records' founder, Sam Phillips [Josh Canfield], a man with a keen ear for raw talent that would have been passed over by establishment recording studios.
Narrated by Phillips, and joined by drummer Fluke [Tucker Cruz Marshall], Perkins' Brother Jay [Roy James Brown] on bass, and by Elvis's singer-girlfriend Dyanne [Fatima El-Bashir], the ensemble's infectious good will and impressive musical talents took ASF's opening night's audience on a fabulous ride.
They were treated to a variety of well and lesser known songs from each artist's repertoire: "Blue Suede Shoes", "Folsom Prison Blues", "Great Balls of Fire", and "Hound Dog" among them had the audience enthusiastically responding, sometimes singing along, and anticipating the next number throughout the hour and forty minute performance.
But there's a story here, too: Sun Studios (and Sam Phillips' pivotal role in giving unknown artists their starts in the early days of Rock'n'Roll), gave rise to the popularity of rock, blues, R&B, and rockabilly styles, and became renowned as the "birthplace of Rock'n'Roll". -- With each man at various stages in their careers, with a few personality clashes, and none of them content with the status quo, there are some hard decisions to make while acknowledging Phillips's role in their successes. History isn't always comfortable.
But this show is mostly about the music. And Million Dollar Quartet delivers a knock-out punch for a most satisfying evening out.
