Derek Marshall

The legendary male voices of Vegas: Elvis, the Rat Pack, Tom Jones and many more, come alive onstage during Showboat Summer Festival Theatre's pre-season opener, Vegas Knights, created by Chris McHarge, Colin Stewart, and Derek Marshall. And what a fantastic trip down memory lane this show was, featuring the masterful singing of Derek Marshall, accompanied by a fabulous live band of musicians, this show had all the smooth sophistication and best-loved songs of the 50s, 60s, and 70s era of music.

Following a rousing, Viva Las Vegas, Marshall took his audience back to the days of the Rat Pack scene on the desert strip, painting the Vegas backdrop with popular movies of the day, humorous anecdotes and gossipy tidbits of information on the best-loved lounge singers such as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Sammy Davis Jr.

Marshall was every bit as entertaining as any of the night club entertainers he paid tribute to, and equally as handsomely magnetic, and his easy-going rapport pulled audience members completely under his spell. And even though his show did include some short bursts of impersonations - there were recognizable gestures and facial expressions of the singers he portrayed - for the most part, Marshall remained true to his own, fine voice, never bending it to become someone else's. This was, at all times, Marshall doing Vegas hits.

Still, that being said, his singing style and vocals were almost eerily reminiscent of Sinatra, in songs performed such as "Luck Be a Lady," and "I've Got You Under My Skin." Marvellous pacing, rich vocals, great musicianship, and an entirely laid-back camaraderie with band members made this show really something to lose yourself in for over 2 hours.

Marshall's Dean Martin tribute has every body in the theatre swaying to "That's Amore," and later in the set, goosebumps travelled up my arms for the marvellously bass-rumbly, "King of the Road." For his Sammy Davis Jr., tribute, Marshall even incorporates dance moves from "Mr. Bojangles" that are signature to the song. The cues are all there, but the style still is Marshall's own, and I appreciated that honesty.

The 5-piece ensemble accompanying Marshall were fabulous players, and the saxophone lent that bluesy, jazzy quality so integral to songs like "Just a Gigolo," and "Mack the Knife."

Masterful piano chops made "One For My Baby," and "I Left My Heart in San Francisco," very pretty indeed.

The second act gets hot and sexy with Tom Jones' classics, "It's Not Unusual," and Marshall has everyone singing the chorus to "Delilah." Feeding off the crowd’s obvious adoration, the Vegas show singer poured on the heat with sizzling dance moves for the Jones' era of music.

The last of the Vegas tribute rocked with Bobby Darin's "Splish, Splash," and "Dream Lover." Marshall pulled out the big guns to finish, with the King of Rock, Elvis. "CC Rider," and "Suspicious Minds," gets the blood, and music, flowing. The band brings it down a few notches for a very pretty, "Are You Lonesome Tonight," with Marshall crooning to a few choice ladies in the crowd, but brings it back up again with hip-shaking "Burning Love," followed with a wild and crazy, Blue Suede Shoes, encore.

Marshall is a engaging entertainer in the truest sense of the word, and he sings the heart out of this fabulous Vegas tribute show. Terrific singing, movement and musicianship makes Vegas Knights a pre-season show not to miss.
Vegas Knights plays for four performances only at the Roselawn Centre, with a matinee and evening show on Saturday, June 14. Theatre is located on 296 Fielden Ave., in Port Colborne. To reserve your tickets for the Showboat season, call the box office at 905-834-0833, or visit their website at www.roselawncentre.com - Welland Tribune

Vegas Knights, honouring the Rat-Pack era of big Las Vegas musical shows, opened at Lighthouse Festival Theatre as a definite crowd-pleaser. Translating casino-land musical sophistication to make it fit the intimate Port Dover stage, versatile actor Derek Marshall brought polish and energy into his one-man tribute to eight of the biggest names in American show-biz history.
Pitched against the backdrop of a slide-show of historic Las Vegas photographs, Marshall’s Dean Martin imitation was an immediate delight. His Dino act was simply bursting with Latino wit and super-smooth charm, perhaps his best effort of the evening at carving out an exact impersonation.
On the other hand, it was Marshall’s raw energy in full-bodied re-creations of Louis Prima and Sammy Davis Jr., with a bucket of sweat dripping from his face, which really hit home far better than mere impersonation. I Ain’t Got Nobody/Just A Gigolo and That Old Black Magic were hot work, but worth every drop pf sweat he expended on them.
At the same time, Marshall mercifully refrained from overworking his impersonations at the expense of the music or the choreography. Director Chris McHarge’s choice in giving pride of place to the music and choreography rather than to the cult of personality was definitely the right choice for this production.
Leading up to the intermission, powerhouse drumming by Don Reid and deft guitar work by John Kenny allowed Marshall to easily convert Kurt Weill’s steamy old chestnut, Mack the Knife, into one glorious Bobby Darin showstopper.
Throughout the rest of the evening, Marshall easily swept from Frank Sinatra’s jazz moodiness into Tom Jones swiveling lust-fits, from Tony Bennett’s wailing lounge lizardry into Sammy Davis Jr.’s incomparably touching Mr. Bojangles, and finally on into Elvis Presley’s heartland of Suspicious Minds.
Aiding and abetting the delicate balance between personality and music, a five-piece band led my musical director, Colin Stewart, teased, underlined, and punctuated Marshall’s every move, much to the delight of the audience.
At one point, Stewart stepped out from behind the band shell with his electric bass to provide a beautifully sweet falsetto harmony for the Dean Martin version of the well known Roger Miller classic, King of the Road. At another point, jazz sax riffs played by Chris Robinson and poignant piano work by Chris Dahmer helped Marshall melt hearts with that old Sinatra classic One For My Baby (And One More For The Road).
Obviously, with the likes of Luck Be A Lady, The Lady Is A Tramp, Delilah, That’s Amore, Dream Lover, and I Left My Heart in San Francisco filling the bill, the contents of the show needed little introduction to those familiar with the list of American Song Book classics. Good pacing and eloquent contrast between these well-arranged renditions kept the audience thoroughly engaged. Vegas Knights is a keeper, well worth catching before it heads out on world tour.

Linda Geary - Brantford Expositor - Brantford Expositer