Page 65 - ION Indie Magazine SeptOct 2018

AVA Amphitheatre

Tucson, AZ • July 22, 2018
https://www.casinodelsol.com/venues/ava-amphitheater
Story and Photography by Marty Haviik
www.arizonathunderphotography.com

It was 1976. I was 13 years old when I finally saved up
enough money from collecting pop bottles…just enough to
buy myself a Donny & Marie and The Osmond Brothers
concert ticket. It was only 6 dollars and 75 cents – but that
was a lot of money for a kid in the 70s. However, well worth
the sacrifice for a kid who just happened to be in love with
Marie Osmond. 42 years later, who would have thought I
would be photographing two of my teen idols of that time,
Donny & Marie, as they took their stage show to the AVA
Amphitheater in Tucson, Arizona. This time, the admission
was free, as I was behind the lens for ION Indie Magazine –
but whatever the cost, well worth the ticket price for the
appreciative fans who packed the Amphitheatre.

Now I wouldn’t call this an average concert. It was more of
a Vegas show, complete with lights, smoke, sequins galore,
and a large video screen that showed 40 years of video clips
of Donny & Marie performing while growing up. It made for
an evening of just over-the-top, slightly crazy, sentimental,
sweet nostalgic fun. Their 4 stage dancers were a great
addition, allowing Donny & Marie to showcase their
significant dance abilities (as seen on successful runs on
“Dancing with the Stars”). All told, Donny & Marie was the
most polished, high energy, intoxicatingly perfect 90-
minute concert that I’ve seen in a long while. Essentially,
Donny & Marie took their Las Vegas production from their
resident home at The Flamingo Hotel Las Vegas and
transferred it as their summer tour 2018.

In classic Vegas fashion glitter show style, Donny & Marie
exploded with a few cover songs. Okay, a LOT of cover
songs. They came down the main stage stairs while belting
out The Beastie Boys' "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To
Party)." But Donny and Marie did more than sing covers,
they made them their own in true Osmond-esque stlye.
That opening number was blended with other great
choices, including "I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas
and The B-52’s "Love Shack" — and the whole thing went
down without a hitch.