Beatlemania tour is a ‘magical mystery’

BY SETH MANDEL
Staff Writer

MONROE — Tony Isoldi very clearly remembers the excitement when the Beatles first appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show.

More than four decades later, he would like to bring that same excitement to Monroe.

“I remember the hysteria,” Isoldi said. “I remember going to school the next day after the first Ed Sullivan Show and seeing everybody with Beatles buttons on, Beatles magazines, and collecting things that would be worth thousands right now.”

Isoldi is a member of the Monroe Township Cultural Arts Society, which is presenting “Beatlemania Now,” a show chronicling the career of the Fab Four.

The show features four musicians who impersonate the Beatles — John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and

Ringo Starr — at parties and concerts throughout the year.

“This is the premier Beatles concert act,” Isoldi said. “These guys have appeared on Broadway. They are four professional musicians who not only look like the Beatles and sound like the Beatles, but play the exact instruments the Beatles played.”

The band will be playing a 35-song set, complete with seven wardrobe changes to authentically portray each stage of the Beatles’ storied career.

“So, what people are going to be seeing is, not just four guys acting like the Beatles, it’s almost as if you’re in a time machine, and you’re going back to 1964, 1965, 1966 and seeing them perform in concert,” Isoldi said.

The concert includes replications of some of the most famous shows the band has played, such as pub gigs in Liverpool, England, concerts at Shea Stadium and on the Ed Sullivan Show, and their rooftop performance for the “Let It Be” album.

Also, Isoldi said, the show offers an added bonus for audience members who have actually seen the Beatles in concert.

He said that since the band only toured for a few years, many of their songs were never performed for a live audience, until now.

“Half of their songs were never performed live,” he said. “You’re going to get a chance to see them in the Sgt. Pepper outfits, and the outfits they wore and how they looked when they were filming ‘Let It Be.’ ”

But the show is not just for those who grew up with the Beatles, Isoldi said.

“This is a great show, and it’s not just for people who remember the Beatles, but for young people who never saw the Beatles,” he said.

If you’re planning to look for flaws or inconsistencies, you’ll be faced with quite a challenge, Isoldi said.

Members of Beatlemania will be using the same instruments the Beatles used, the same amplifiers, and, yes, the musician impersonating Paul McCartney is left-handed.

“The best thing about this is the authenticity of it. The costumes, the performances, the guys look like the Beatles, the instruments, and the attention to detail. It is like going to see a Beatles concert,” Isoldi said.

The Cultural Arts Society was founded in 1998, Isoldi said, and provides programs and events that bring the cultural arts to the Monroe, Jamesburg and Cranbury area.

It is a volunteer commission, and attempts to run at least one program each month, many of which are free of charge.

Isoldi said there are numerous Beatles impersonation acts, but this one was the commission’s first choice.

“There are a lot of other groups that do them, but we researched this and we found that these are the guys that put on the best show,” Isoldi said.

He said the group never changes its roster; each member always plays the same Beatle, and the whole show is live, without any background music or pre-recorded vocal tracks.

“It’s not that they’re imitating the Beatles, they are putting on a great performance in all ways — their costumes, their actions, their instruments, everything,” Isoldi said. “This is the Beatles.”

The show will take place Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. in the Richard P. Marasco Center for the Performing Arts at Monroe Township High School. Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for patrons, and free for students.

Tickets are available in advance at the Monroe Township Senior Center, 1 Municipal Plaza, or at the Monroe Township Community Center, 120 Monmouth Road.

said.

The concert includes replications of some of the most famous shows the band has played, such as pub gigs in Liverpool, England, concerts at Shea Stadium and on the Ed Sullivan Show, and their rooftop performance for the “Let It Be” album.

Also, Isoldi said, the show offers an added bonus for audience members who have actually seen the Beatles in concert.

He said that since the band only toured for a few years, many of their songs were never performed for a live audience, until now.

“Half of their songs were never performed live,” he said. “You’re going to get a chance to see them in the Sgt. Pepper outfits, and the outfits they wore and how they looked when they were filming ‘Let It Be.’ ”

But the show is not just for those who grew up with the Beatles, Isoldi said.

“This is a great show, and it’s not just for people who remember the Beatles, but for young people who never saw the Beatles,” he said.

If you’re planning to look for flaws or inconsistencies, you’ll be faced with quite a challenge, Isoldi said.

Members of Beatlemania will be using the same instruments the Beatles used, the same amplifiers, and, yes, the musician impersonating Paul McCartney is left-handed.

“The best thing about this is the authenticity of it. The costumes, the performances, the guys look like the Beatles, the instruments, and the attention to detail. It is like going to see a Beatles concert,” Isoldi said.

The Cultural Arts Society was founded in 1998, Isoldi said, and provides programs and events that bring the cultural arts to the Monroe, Jamesburg and Cranbury area.

It is a volunteer commission, and attempts to run at least one program each month, many of which are free of charge.

Isoldi said there are numerous Beatles impersonation acts, but this one was the commission’s first choice.

“There are a lot of other groups that do them, but we researched this and we found that these are the guys that put on the best show,” Isoldi said.

He said the group never changes its roster; each member always plays the same Beatle, and the whole show is live, without any background music or pre-recorded vocal tracks.

“It’s not that they’re imitating the Beatles, they are putting on a great performance in all ways — their costumes, their actions, their instruments, everything,” Isoldi said. “This is the Beatles.”

The show will take place Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. in the Richard P. Marasco Center for the Performing Arts at Monroe Township High School. Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for patrons, and free for students.

Tickets are available in advance at the Monroe Township Senior Center, 1 Municipal Plaza, or at the Monroe Township Community Center, 120 Monmouth Road.