Reinvention is a necessity for any entertainer looking for longevity. But no performer has had a career quite like the one Donny Osmond has assembled over the course of nearly six decades in show business.
His debut came at the age of 5, singing “You Are My Sunshine” on The Andy Williams Show in 1963, and his most recent performance occurred late last month at Harrah’s Showroom on the Las Vegas Strip, with the still youthful star taking the stage at age 63. Much of what happened within that timespan was built around Osmond’s ability to reinvent himself.
The full unique spectrum of his career is deftly displayed during his new Vegas show, marking the first time Osmond has become a solo resident headliner on the Strip. After more than a decade selling out the nearby Flamingo Showroom with his equally talented sibling in the landmark Donny & Marie residency, Caesars Entertainment signed him up for another run that kicked off on Aug. 31 at Harrah’s, and after the first week of shows, Caesars announced Osmond’s extension through the end of next year. It’s a winner right off the bat.
A big part of this early success is the fact that no one caters to their audience the way Osmond does, and you can tell by looking around the showroom that he has one of most dedicated and loyal followings around. Working with director Raj Kapoor, Osmond has built an energetic production packed with music and storytelling that allows him to personally connect with his fans from different generations. If you don’t know him from his early days of singing pop hits with his brothers or starring in the 1970s TV variety series with Marie, you might know him from his Broadway turn in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat or from his championship run on Dancing With the Stars.
Fitting all these pop-culture moments from his life into a 90-minute stage spectacular is no easy feat. Osmond opens with 1989 hit “Soldier of Love,” perhaps the most significant single of his career as it marked one of his musical reinventions and proved he could still top the charts all by himself as an adult. Then he soars through a smash ballad from that same era, “Sacred Emotion,” before unleashing new single “Who,” a thick groove from his recently released 65th album Start Again. Osmond accomplishes a lot with his first three song selections and paves the way for plenty more new music and crowd-pleasing nostalgia.
He’s even created a fully interactive segment in the middle of the show where audience members can request any track from any of his many albums, and Osmond and his rocking five-piece band will provide the blast from the past. It’s one of many emotional moments in the show as he also takes time to perform tributes to his showbiz family, inspirations and mentors.
By the time the confetti rains down and the curtain closes, Osmond will have rapped his way through a career retrospective, danced his way through a flashy Sin City-style medley, revisited 1971 teenybopper hit “Puppy Love,” and forced everyone out of their seats with the appropriately titled new song “Let’s All Dance.” He was already a major star in Las Vegas, but even that status was ripe for reinvention.
Harrah’s, 800.745.3000 Ticketmaster
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