The Fayette Citizen-News Page

Wednesday, September 3, 2003

Our man Mike hobnobs with Las Vegas's biggest star

By MICHAEL BOYLAN
mboylan@TheCitizenNews.com

I have attended a number of shows at the Frederick Brown Jr. Amphitheater over the last five years and have often wondered what goes on behind the scenes. I got my chance to experience a day in the life of the amphitheater last week and I wasn't merely a passive observer.

Thursday, Aug. 28, 11:30 p.m.

The day begins as I pull into the parking lot by the guest house at the amphitheater. Parked near the entrance to the house are two 15-seat vans, two cargo vans, a Lincoln town car and a Yukon. I enter the building and meet with the other people I will be working with this evening. Along with amphitheater director Donna Romeo and Executive Director of the Peachtree City Development Authority Virgil Christian, I am joined by staff members Ed Richardson and Julie Rushin and volunteers Jim Rutherford and his daughter Melissa.

Our task is to drive the vehicles to Airport Group International, located near Hartsfield Airport, and pick up singer Wayne Newton and his entourage. I am driving one of the 15-seaters, so I will drive members of Newton's band and crew to the Wyndham Executive Conference Center. According to our schedule, they are due to land at 12:30 a.m. I pour myself a cup of coffee and get behind the wheel of the van.

We drive to the airport in a caravan that would make any celebrity proud, until we miss the exit and get a little turned around. Within three minutes we have righted ourselves and find the parking lot of the airport at 12:20 a.m.

Friday, Aug. 29, 12:25 a.m.

We have yet to see a soul inside this building. There is a television in a break room with rabbit ears (which I find very confusing). It appears that time has stopped at 1975 in the building. Everything from the furniture to the pictures of employees on the wall look incredibly dated. The emptiness is also eerie. If Wayne Newton is scheduled to land in less than 10 minutes, where is everybody?

We had to make the trip to Airport Group International because Newton's pilot couldn't land at Falcon Field. He had said something about needing 7,000 feet of space. I play with the rabbit ears on the television and sit down to watch the end of The Tonight Show.

12:55 a.m.: Wayne Newton has yet to arrive but we have seen several employees. They have not heard anything about an arrival scheduled for tonight but make a few calls for us. We are beginning to think that the Newton group thought we were in central time. They were flying out of Shreveport, La., Thursday evening and probably thought we were at the same time as them. With new calculations, we are now expecting them at 1:30 a.m. I am now watching Conan O'Brien with Virgil.

1:30 a.m.: The plane lands but because nobody at the airport knew anything about it, some people had to exceed their job descriptions and wave the plane over. They also opened the gate, something that is usually never done, so that we can get our vehicles on the runway, load up and leave. I park my van and get out just in time to see Newton duck into the Yukon. The Yukon takes off as we wait for the pilot and mechanic to finish up with the plane.

1:55 a.m.: We are on the road. The band and crew are punchy. It has been a long tour and a very long day. They are laughing and joking with each other. One band member in the other van calls a friend in my van and pranks him by doing his Newton impression. This weekend marks their last shows for a month, so the guys are looking forward to doing the shows and going home. One guy starts talking about the Christmas show this year and an impromptu rendition of "Silver Bells" breaks out.

2:30 a.m.: We arrive at the hotel. The band thanks me for driving and goes to their rooms. I drive back to the guest house, pick up my car and drive myself home. I crawl into bed at 3:20 a.m. I am due back at the amphitheater by noon.

12:30 p.m.: Members of The Show Business crew, the group that provides sound and lighting equipment to the amphitheater, are on stage with members of Newton's sound and light crew. They are working on the very long process of getting the sound and lights ready for sound check at 5 p.m. During sound check, the final levels for the show will be set.

The band was scheduled to eat lunch at the hotel at 11 a.m. and afterwards a number of them were taking some complimentary golf carts out for a spin. The guest house is empty but cool, clean and smelling good. There is not a lot going on.

12:40 p.m.: I'm chatting with Ed about what he has done since last night. He slept for a few hours but was back early this morning, cleaning and finishing some chores. "Fridays can be rough," Ed says. "On Fridays you don't know what to expect but Saturdays typically run very smooth." A crew member approaches Ed. He is seeking a table for Newton to use to place drinks and things on during the show. Ed is off.

1 p.m.: Julie arrives with several meat and vegetable platters for after the show, as well as some soft drinks and other assorted beverages. I help her unload the truck and within five minutes members of the Georgia chapter of the Wayne Newton International Fan Club arrive to decorate Newton's dressing room. I leave to talk with them and end up helping them decorate the rooms. They must be out by 2 p.m.

There are no Fayette County residents present with the WNIFC or "Wayne-iacs" as some of them sometimes call themselves. The six members here today are from Acworth or Whitesburg and they have come loaded with Georgia themed decorations and banners. As we put up the decorations, they tell me all about Wayne Newton and where they have seen him perform. One woman goes to Vegas twice a year to see the show and has also attended "Wayne-iac" week in Branson, Missouri on several occasions. The one male "Wayne-iac" present calls a friend on his cell-phone, stating, "I'm in Wayne Newton's dressing room, right now!"

1:20 p.m.: Julie and Ed come upstairs to use the washing machines between the two dressing rooms. They are finishing some laundry that was left over from the last show, mainly towels from the Peter Frampton concert. I tell Julie that she should pocket some of this stuff and sell it on Ebay. I imagine that there are some people who would want a sweaty Peter Frampton towel. She tells me that there is still a bottle of wine that Pat Benatar opened that still has one glass left in it. That would probably bring in a small fortune, I tell her.

2:10 p.m.: The "Wayne-iacs" and I have finished decorating Newton's dressing room and the room that other band members will use. There are snacks and gift bags lining the countertops. I get my picture taken with them and tell them I might see them at the show tonight.

2:30 p.m.: I chat with Joel Donnington, the Facility Manager for the amphitheater. "I'm the first one here the morning of a show and I'm the last one out," says Joel. He then went on to tell me some interesting stories about a number of the acts who had performed here. One act had a rider attached to the contract, stating the need for four bottles of Cristal champagne for the weekend. The performer opened one bottle each night, had a small glass and left for the hotel with the other bottle. The following year, another act perused the autographed photos in the guest house and asked if this star still asked for four bottles of Cristal. Joel said yes and the performer said that the act asks every venue for the same amount of Cristal and that the other bottles of Cristal are given as gifts to people that Christmas.

Joel ticks off the list of performers he has especially enjoyed working with and at the top of the list is Arlo Guthrie. "He was real cool, very undemanding and just very laid back." Joel also praises Lou Rawls for being cool, despite having someone rush the stage during the show. "I ran up there and ushered the lady off the stage and Lou just kind of winked at me and smiled."

I could listen to stories like that all day but there is still much work to be done.

3 p.m.: Three of the six local musicians that will be playing with Newton's band arrive. They are under the assumption that rehearsal/sound check begins at 4 p.m. but it doesn't begin until 5 p.m. These three musicians, Seth, Tom and Greg, are all teachers at varying levels from elementary school to college. They have played here on a number of occasions, most recently with Bobby Rydell. They have never worked with Wayne Newton but are really looking forward to it.

They talk about some of the other acts they have worked with and whether it was fun or not. One of the recent shows was with Aretha Franklin at Chastain Park, who they claim had one of the biggest entourages ever with a full orchestra and between six and eight dancers also on stage. They have also worked with Barry Manilow and David Byrne, both of whom got high marks according to them, adding "It's just really nice when they make you feel like part of the show."

3:15: The caterers arrive with dinner and lay it out on the table.

3:50: Newton's longtime light man, Lee, sits down to dinner. He has been with Newton for 46 years.

4 p.m.: The rest of the band arrives and sits down to dinner. They unload their clothes, which are evening gowns for the ladies and tuxedos for the men, in the dressing room and bring their instruments to the stage. Band members call their families on their cell phones while Julie and Peggy Schnitzer, another member of the amphitheater staff, fill coolers with ice and drinks. Things are getting busier now and everybody is starting to hustle.

4:25: Joel and Ed need to bring another closet organizer to the women's dressing room. The stage is ready for sound check and the sound man pops in a mix cd into the system. Oasis' "Cigarettes and Alcohol" rings out before a song called "Nosegoblins" takes over.

4:45 p.m.: I sit down to dinner, which consists of lasagna, salad, green beans and garlic bread. The energy level is high as the band jokes around and laughs a lot.

5 p.m.: Sound check begins. This is the only chance that the locals will get to play with the band before the show. Each instrument goes through their scales several times. The sound man in the booth up towards the amphitheater entrance asks each performer or group of performers to play for a bit while the technician on the side of the stage adjusts their levels. One woman performs "Amazing Grace" on a violin and it sounds beautiful.

5:30 p.m.: The band performs their first full song together. The flowers that will go on stage arrive and some concessionaires enter the facility and begin their work before the show. Comedian Jerry Farber arrives and unloads t-shirts that he will be selling near the concession area.

5:40 p.m.: The band works on the introduction. The announcer, who is also a back up vocalist and an integral part of the show, runs through his introduction of Newton while the band performs a version of "The Theme from 2001." It is very exciting and I feel very pumped up, even though Newton is still back at the hotel.

5:50 p.m.: They are doing the sound check for the instrument set, which is when Newton demonstrates his amazing musical talents and plays a number of instruments. The band member playing the instruments is equally adept.

5:57 p.m.: The band starts to jam and it is incredible. They start with some funk and then go bluesy with a rendition of "Mustang Sally." The talent level of the band is outstanding and some of the singers are shouting out requests. Everybody is having a great time.

6:15 p.m.: Newton arrives with his family and his manager. He is all business, golden microphone in hand, but still light and breezy with his band. He makes sure the levels are right for him and goes through a number or two. The ushers have arrived and are setting up the seats in the pit area. There will be no tables tonight. Farber and I chat for a few minutes about assorted things. What a cool and funny guy.

6:30 p.m.: I am asked to leave for the remainder of sound check. Apparently, sound check is supposed to be closed and Newton's manager did not know about the press being around for the amphitheater story. Everything gets cleared up later, when she finds out that I'm not sneaking around to do an exposé on Newton or the band, but rather to do a story on the amphitheater. I am asked to go to the meet and greet later that evening and will get a chance to meet Newton then.

6:40 p.m.: Donna Romeo is writing the announcements for the weekend that Uncle Rich of Magic 98.1 FM will read. She and Peggy also get out the passes for the meet and greet. The main sponsors have requested some passes and they can give out 12 of them for this evening.

7 p.m.: The gates open and some audience members arrive. Members of the Peachtree City Police Department are also on-site now. I head back to the guest house and chat with the local musicians again. They are very relaxed, though they admit they usually rehearse more before a show.

7:54 p.m.: Uncle Rich takes the stage with his announcements. Jerry Farber is on the side of the stage, sitting down and relaxing.

7:58 p.m.: It is starting to sprinkle and during Farber's set, it will rain heavily for a period of approximately 15 minutes. Farber's set is very funny and he gets the crowd warmed up properly. His jokes touched on everything from southern football fans to getting older and popular music.

8:45 p.m.: I head over to the meet and greet area and watch as Newton makes every guest feel like they are extra special. He hands out handshakes, embraces and kisses and chats with each special guest. When the crowd has ebbed I introduce myself to him but he knows who I am. He apologizes for any confusion about the story and wishes me luck. I get my picture taken with him and find it hard to wipe the smile from my face.

9 p.m.: The show starts and the crowd is electrified by the opening. Before he even sets foot on the stage, Newton has the audience in the palm of his hand. He buzzes through an opening number and does a great rendition of "Strangers in the Night," that features several encores, Newton kissing a few women and ends with a standing ovation from the crowd. Newton then tells some jokes and keeps the audience enraptured.

9:20 p.m.: Newton makes a dedication for the next set, thanking some friends in the audience and also the WNIFC for decorating his dressing room. I am shocked when he tells the crowd about me and the story I am writing. It is the most people who have heard my name at one time since I graduated from high school. I rush towards the guest house, away from the stage, and call my wife.

10:30 p.m.: Newton has put on a phenomenal show. He has played a myriad of instruments, thanked the local musicians, featured a number of his band members and has talked about his USO shows and supporting the troops. The crowd has responded by giving him multiple standing ovations. Newton performs "Danke Schoen."

10:45: Newton closes with "America, The Beautiful," and asks everyone to sing along.

10:48 p.m.: The show is over. Newton leaves the stage and the band plays him off as the lights come up. The band then leaves the stage, get out of their formal wear and kick back in the guest house. Newton will greet some more guests and the crew at the amphitheater gets ready for tomorrow night. They must clean up the seating area and parking lot and help usher the crowd to their cars and out of the parking lot safely. If the saying holds and Saturday goes smoother, Saturday's show should be even more amazing.