THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, April 12, 1995 TAG: 9504120410
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KAREN WEINTRAUB, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Long : 124 lines
Elvis will come back from the dead, again. The Virginia Symphony will help celebrate a strawberry festival, and, as a finale, a beach ball will drop out of the sky.
It's going to be a busy year at the Oceanfront.
Cellar Door, the entertainment company that will run the city's beachfront events for the next two years, announced its plans Tuesday for the rest of 1995.
The company, which bested Virginia Beach Events Unlimited for the $1 million city contract in January, proposed events for 17 of the next 32 weekends.
Bill Reid, president of Cellar Door, told City Council on Tuesday that he plans to continue most of the popular events from years past, with a few modifications.
The North American Fireworks Competition will be held in June instead of over Memorial Day weekend to help fill hotel rooms on a less-popular weekend. The July 4th fireworks will be held only at Mount Trashmore so the event can be bigger and the police won't have to be spread out between the park and the Oceanfront. And the American Music Festival will last a week, instead of a long weekend.
The wackiest new event is the ``Elvis is Everywhere'' celebration, a long weekend in June during which The King will be celebrated by bands, paraders, imitators and skydivers. Elvis-inspired food - stuff like fried peanut butter sandwiches - will be sold along the boardwalk. It will include performances by Black Elvis, El Vez, an Hispanic Elvis, and even Elvis Karaoke.
Cellar Door wants the celebration to be so tantalizing that even Elvis himself will show up. As added incentive, Reid unveiled a 4-foot-long $1 million check, made out to Elvis Aron Presley. He promises to pay up if Elvis, who has been sighted thousands of times since his death in 1977, comes to collect.
The events year will come to a close with a New Year's Eve celebration that will include music and Virginia Beach's own version of Times Square's falling apple, a beach ball on a giant stick.
As part of the contract with the city, Cellar Door must also provide smaller-scale entertainment on a regular basis at the city's two beachfront stages.
Reid proposed 83 concerts by bands ranging from bluegrass to jazz, acoustic to rhythm and blues. Cellar Door also wants to start a kids' movie series at the 24th Street Stage, with screenings of 19 movies including ``The Lion King,'' ``The Secret Garden,'' ``The Little Rascals'' and ``Snow White.''
Shakespeare's ``Romeo and Juliet'' and ``The Taming of the Shrew'' will also be performed several times during the summer tourist season, as will several plays by the Hurrah Players Inc. of Norfolk and weekly puppet shows by Spectrum Puppet Productions Inc. of Virginia Beach.
Reid said his company's philosophy in developing the events plan was: ``More is better.
``We try to do varied entertainment that appeals to everyone,'' he said.
It certainly seemed to appeal to the City Council members, particularly the part about Elvis.
``I think your program - our program - sounds wonderful,'' Mayor Meyera E. Oberndorf said.
Reid did offer one bit of caution: because his company received the events contract only in January and has not had a lot of time to plan, there may be a few more glitches than usual this season.
``We all believe in these programs,'' Reid said. ``However, we've had to move pretty quickly, there may be a few things that didn't get done. I look at this year as a shakeout year.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Elvis Presley
MAJOR EVENT SCHEDULE Easter weekend celebration, Saturday and
Sunday, 24th Street Park. Includes visit from the Easter bunny,
easter egg hunt, bonnet parade, puppet show.
Eastern Surfing Association, mid-Atlantic regionals, May 5,
Second Street Beach, surfing competition.
Cinco De Mayo Festival, May 6, 24th Street Park, including bands,
Mexican-style food.
Beach Music Weekend, May 19 and 20, 24th Street Park and on the
beach, includes ``General Johnson and The Chairman of the Board,''
``Bill Pinkney and The Original Drifters'' and ``The Supremes
starring Mary Wilson.''
Virginia Symphony Concert, May 26, 24th Street Park, with the
Pungo Strawberry Festival.
Viva Elvis, ``Elvis is Everywhere,'' June 1 through 4, 17th
Street and 24th Street Parks, featuring an Elvis lookalike contest,
Elvis-inspired food, skydiving Elvises and an Elvis parade.
Budweiser Volleyball, June 3 and 4, Second Street Beach.
North American Fireworks Competition, June 9 through 11, 15th
Street Oceanfront, same competition, different weekend.
Laser Light Show, June 9 and 10, 24th Street Park.
Virginia Beach Sand Soccer Championship, June 10 and 11,
Beachfront.
Boardwalk Art Show, June 9 through 18, Boardwalk.
Fourth of July Fireworks, July 4, Mount Trashmore.
Budweiser Jet Ski Tournament, July 15 and 16, Fifth Street
Beach.
American Music Festival, Aug. 29 through Sept. 4, 17th and 24th
Street Parks and Beachfront.
Atlantic Labor Day Soccer Tournament, Sept. 2 and 3, Princess
Anne Park, Kings Grant.
Surf Fishing Tournament, Sept. 20 through 23, location to be
announced.
Columbus Day Soccer Tournament, Oct. 7 and 8, Princess Anne Park,
Kings Grant.
Blues at the Beach Festival and African American Festival of
Pride, a gospel music festival, Oct. 14 and 15, 17th and 24th Street
Parks.
New Age Jazz Festival (tentative), Oct. 21 and 22, 24th Street
Park.
World War II Film Festival, Nov. 9 through 13, various theaters
and Oceana Naval Air Station. Film festival tied to 50th anniversary
year of the end of World War II and Veteran's Dance with the Tommy
Dorsey Orchestra.
Oyster Bowl Weekend, Nov. 17 through 19, 24th Street Park,
including Oyster Roast, Oyster Bowl Ball and Taste of Virginia
Beach.
New Year's Eve Celebration, Dec. 31, 24th Street Park and
Boardwalk, including a band, fireworks and a descending beach ball
to mark the new year.
by CNB