I’ve been to a few events up at Revelstoke Mountain Resort but last Friday’s Return of the Phantom of the Opera dinner-cum-concert event was the first major entertainment event up there for me — and I think for them, as well.
Management and staff were a tad anxious about the outcome of the event and their audience’s reaction to it. I think I can, with confidence, speak for everyone attended it: the event was a fantastic experience that shows that RMR can offer a high-level entertainment experience to local people. The food — prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, garlic mashed potatoes, mushroom-stuffed pasta, mixed vegetables and salads, followed by a to-die-for dessert table — was superb. And the performances by, firstly, the 45 Minute Band of Dan Sculnick and Drew Payne and secondly by the headliners, Peter Karrie and Melina Moore, was excellent. At $75 a ticket this evening was worth every penny.
I know some people are not fans of the resort but the fact of the matter is that it is here to stay. That in itself is not enough to convince its critics to relent and accept it. But RMR’s efforts this year to first, run the gondola all summer to attract tourists and, now, hold classy events such as Return of the Phantom, tells me that the resort really does want to work with the rest of Revelstoke. And that makes me look forward to other such events at RMR. Kudos to everyone who made this a winning event.
Here are some photos from Return of the Phantom of the Opera:
About 100 people rode the gondola up Mount Mackenzie to RMR’s Revelation Lodge on Friday evening to attend the Return of the Phantom of the Opera. David F. Rooney photoDrew Payne (left) and Dan Sculnick’s 45 Minutes Band performed plenty of classic rock and pop tunes for the crowd before the main event — two hours of music from Phantom and other musicals and operas. David F. Rooney photoBesides the music, this event featured an excellent meal prepared by RMR staff. David F. Rooney photoChef Charlie Yang cuts a lovely piece of prime rib for Samantha Roberts. The prime rib and Yorkshire pudding were delicious. David F. Rooney photoChilean red and local Kölsch and ales were available to wet your whistle. David F. Rooney photoThe desserts were rich enough to satisfy treat-o-holics like me and light enough to convince me I wasn’t being a complete oink when I went back for seconds. David F. Rooney photoThe stars of the evening were Peter Karrie and Melina Moore. Karrie played the Phantom of the Opera in 3,000 performances of the Andrew Lloyd Weber production around the world and also played Jean Valjean in Les Miserables and many other roles during his career. Moore was trained at Julliard in New York and debuted as Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro with the Bel Aria Opera Company in Manhattan. She has sung roles as Despina in Cosi Fan Tutte, Gretel in Hansel and Gretel, Adele in Die Fledermaus and other operatic productions. David F. Rooney photoThe duo had a god time with each other and the audience during their performance, regaling the crowd with amusing anecdotes about life on stage that left everyone laughing. David F. Rooney photoHow often do we get world-class singers in Revelstoke? David F. Rooney photoKarrie and Moore were very ably accompanied by keyboardist Carol Colpitz. David F. Rooney photoThe crowd gave Karrie and Moore moe than one standing ovation during the course of the evening — they deserved it. David F. Rooney photoThis event was worth every penny of the $75 ticket cost and shows locals that Revelstoke Mountain Resort is more than just a ski resort set on attracting tourists to our winter slopes. The food and service were first-rate and the performances were terrific. I — and I believe I can speak for just about everyone who attended the event — had a marvellous time would love to see more events like this on the mountain. David F. Rooney photo
