CONTRIBUTED CONTENT — Experience an unforgettable musical journey through the iconic sounds of Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley and other legends who put Memphis on the map. The “Memphis Rock and Roll Revue” is coming to Southern Utah and bringing some of the biggest hits of the 1950s with it.
“It’s a lot of nostalgia,” Washington County Legacy Park director Susi Lafaele said. “For the younger generation, they’ll be hearing the same songs their parents and grandparents grew up listening to.”
The concert will take place inside the Grafton Building at Washington County Legacy Park on Tuesday, Aug. 8. Doors open at 6 p.m., and a variety of food trucks will be available.
The stars of “Memphis Rock and Roll Revue” will take the stage at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $15 for general admission or $20 for premier seating and are available to purchase online.
This electrifying concert revisits the legendary recording that gathered Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis at the Sun Records studio in Memphis for an impromptu jam session in December 1956. These four superstars and American icons, dubbed the “Million Dollar Quartet” by the press, were brought together purely by chance for what would ultimately become a seminal moment in rock ’n’ roll history.
A few members of the cast have already performed in Southern Utah with Tuacahn’s adaptation of “Million Dollar Quartet,” the Broadway musical based on the Sun Records session, in 2021. Local musicians Isaac Ericksen and Mari Solana Erickson will also add their talents to the production.
“They’re no strangers to St. George,” Lafaele said. “It just feels like a great homecoming.”
Ben Hale as Johnny Cash
Ben Hale leads a multifaceted career in live music, recording and musical theater. After studying audio engineering and sound recording at Nashville’s Blackbird Academy, he has toured across the United States and Canada for the past decade performing both original music and tributes to icons like Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison.
He has portrayed Johnny Cash in the Las Vegas and Utah productions of “Million Dollar Quartet” as well as adaptations of “Ring of Fire.” An accomplished singer and songwriter, Hale opened for Idina Menzel, Diamond Rio and Blitzen Trapper and sang backup for Kristen Chenoweth at the American Country Awards.
Cole as Elvis Presley
By way of Nashville, Cole now resides in Las Vegas, where he portrayed Elvis and Johnny Cash in “Million Dollar Quartet” at Harrah’s. He went on to reprise those roles in various productions of the hit jukebox musical across the country along with starring in “Heartbreak Hotel in Concert” and “Million Dollar Reunion.”
A recording artist and songwriter in his own right, Cole has performed his original music throughout the world. His accolades include being inducted into the International Rockabilly Hall of Fame and being awarded BroadwayWorld’s Best Actor in A Musical award for his portrayal of Elvis in “Million Dollar Quartet.” His latest album, “Let’s Do This and Make a Memory,” is slated for release this year.
Bryan Hague as Carl Perkins
Bryan Hague earned a bachelor’s degree in commercial music from Utah Valley University and is a professional music producer, arranger and composer. He has played guitar in numerous stage productions and featured in several acting roles at the Hale Centre Theatre in Sandy, most recently Dewey Finn in “School of Rock.”
Other notable roles include Carl Perkins in “Million Dollar Quartet,” Pharaoh in “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and Robbie Hart in “The Wedding Singer.” Hague also portrays Paul McCartney in the Beatles tribute bands Imagine and Get Back.
David Paul Smith as Jerry Lee Lewis
David Paul Smith is a Salt Lake City-based actor, composer, director, singer and songwriter. He currently serves as artistic director of education and director of youth theater at the Hale Center Theater Orem and also performs with American Performing Arts International in the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Utah audiences will recognize his leading roles as Don Lockwood in “Singin’ in the Rain,” Jervis Pendleton in “Daddy Long Legs” and Jerry Lee Lewis in “Million Dollar Quartet.” Additionally, Smith writes and records music for film and theater and has directed his own original productions of “The Velveteen Rabbit” and “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.”
“People will be blown away by the talent,” Lafaele said. “You just can’t go wrong with these classics.”
Event details
- What: Memphis Rock and Roll Revue.
- When: Tuesday, Aug. 8, from 7:30-9 p.m.
- Where: Washington County Legacy Park, 5500 W. 700 South, Hurricane.
- Tickets: $15 general admission, $20 premier seating.
- Resources: Website.
Written by ALEXA MORGAN for St. George News.
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