Having sold more than 100 million albums, worldwide; not only is Cher the only recording artist to have a single go to number-one, on a Billboard chart, in each of the past six decades (starting with Sonny & Cher’s “I Got You Babe” in 1965); but she is also the only female artist to have a single in the UK Top 40 in six consecutive decades, with 34 songs so doing.

With such a massive and successful body of work, you’re just not gonna hear every one of her hits (sorry, “Song for the Lonely”); but you’re gonna hear a bunch of ‘em (17, to be precise) – and they’re gonna sound just the way you know them – sung in that rich contralto voce that is undeniably Cher’s.

My experience and thoughts regarding Cher’s new month-long Classic Cher residency, at the Park Theater; can best be described through the retelling of this exchange I had, while waiting on my car, in the main valet, at Monte Carlo Resort and Casino, after the opening night’s performance.  I was chuckling with my friend, Todd-Avery, saying something along the lines of “How much do you love that her first look showed-off one of her butt-cheeks?  She might be seventy, but she looks fantastic!”

Then, out of nowhere, this random woman turns and says “She was wearing pantyhose, you know…” 

So, I decided to transform this into a teaching-moment, and replied thusly, “First of all, those aren’t pantyhose.  In any other situation, I’d have said they were ‘shimmer tights’ – but with Cher, you know it was run-up by Bob Mackie, and as such, we call that material ‘Nude Illusion’.  And frankly, I don’t care if she’s wrapped-up in tin foil and painted blue; she looks incredible!”

SO, let’s talk about the show, itself.  What a blast!  At roughly ninety minutes, the Oscar, Grammy, and Emmy-winner had us dancing had us dancing in our seats.  There were some new Bob Mackie costumes (with 11 looks worn throughout the show), and some set pieces that will be new to even the most ardent of her fans; all of which worked great in the Park Theater.  

The Park Theater happens to have a very wide stage, and Cher made a point to grace both sides of the audience, with her attentions. That interaction with her audiences has always been one of Cher’s assets as a live performer, and Classic Cher is no exception.  As a matter of fact, she actually sends someone into the crowd with a microphone, and conducts a short Q&A with a few lucky audience members.

The great thing about Cher – and the reason why I’m such a fan – is that she combines moxie, nerve and empowerment, with vulnerability, humor and self-awareness; all delivered in that immediately recognizable voice emanating from that statuesque beauty.  The costumes, and the dancers, and the sets are all terrific (because she’s Cher, and she only deals in the best); but at the end of the day, it’s that voice, that sense of humor, and that undeniable talent that keeps us all coming back to bask in her bejeweled Cher-ness.

Should you make the time to see Classic Cher, before the tour moves-on, to The Theater at MGM National Harbor, in Washington D.C.?  Abs-and-pecs-o-lutely! (Unless, of course, you know how to turn back time...)  And if you don’t, you can always catch her on the flipside; because Classic Cher will return to conclude its run at the Park Theater, this May.

Cher | Classic Cher
Park Theater | Monte Carlo Resort and Casino
Click HERE for info

Get into it!
#ClassicCHER