Cheese squeezed for celebrity impersonators
Last month, dozens of celebrity impersonators were supposed to descend on Las Vegas in all their fake glory, just as they had since 2001.
They were supposed to mix and mingle, the Tina Turners hanging with Marilyn Monroes, the Michael Jacksons in the same ballroom with the Minnie Pearls. They were supposed to have a big four-day party, complete with filet mignon, red carpet and A-lister look-alikes.
They were supposed to. But they didn’t.
A few days before the Original Celebrity Impersonators Convention started last month, founder and organizer Elyse Del Francia canceled it. The producer, agent and fairy godmother to celebrity impersonators was devastated. Since its inception, the convention has been her baby, her pet.
This year, her pet petered out. The reason for canceling?
“Talent buyers outnumbered the talent,” she said.
And that is a formula that does not work in the celebrity impersonator world. It would not be right to have only 28 celebrity impersonators, the total number who registered to attend the convention, meet with dozens of agents. How would that look when they handed out talent awards? Or honored the legendary John Stuart, founder of “Legends in Concert,” the show considered the pinnacle of success for a celebrity impersonator?
“That wouldn’t be good,” Del Francia said.
Still, 28 people had already signed up. Two Robert De Niros, a Tina Turner, The Andrews Sisters, Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe impersonators had paid their $400 convention fees. They had purchased their plane tickets and booked hotel rooms. So Del Francia hosted an unofficial get-together for those impersonators, taking them to see “Tribute Royalty” at Planet Hollywood Resort. They dined together. They discussed the state of the industry over cocktails at a Golden Nugget bar. And they wondered, why were so few professionals interested in this year’s convention? Past gatherings attracted as many as 125 impersonators.
“I can’t take it personal,” Del Francia said. “It’s got to be the economy.”
All the hallmarks are there. The cost of everything is up. Corporate bookings are down. And those bookings pay a lot less, on average, than they did 10 years ago, impersonators say.
While a gig used to average about $800, it has bottomed out to about $400, said Joe Manuella, who has been impersonating Robert De Niro for 35 years. Of course, some impersonators make more but it depends a lot on your character and the company hiring you, he added.
“To me, this is an indication of the economy,” said Manuella, who works mostly on the East Coast. He does about 30 to 40 gigs per year. “Problems occurred in 2008. People want to pay a lot less for impersonators than they used to. Celebrity impersonators don’t have liquid cash.”
Even at last year’s convention, people were saying that times were getting tough, said Robert Nash, a local De Niro impersonator. Someone suggested canceling the 2013 convention. Del Francia decided to keep it going but the damage was probably done; people may have made other plans.
Another reason for the lack of interest in the convention: The cheese is being squeezed out.
For a good 10 years, it was perfectly acceptable to have not only top-tier look-alikes in the impersonator ranks but also cheesy celebrity impersonators. There was a fat Elvis, a female Elvis, an African-American Elvis. Someone could impersonate Britney Spears just by shaving her head. You could slap a dark wig on a woman and call her Katy Perry because she was in demand, not because she looked or sounded like the singer.
But those days are going if they’re not already gone, said Matt Lewis, executive producer of “Tribute Royalty” at Planet Hollywood Resort.
For 11 years, Lewis performed as Elvis at “Legends in Concert” on the Strip. He left the stage in 2012 to devote himself full time to producing shows.
“One of the reasons I went into producing was I saw an Elvis in Denny’s at 3 o’clock in the morning,” Lewis said. It was about 10 years ago, right after a show, and Lewis was hanging out with friends. “He had big old lambchops (sideburns) on his face and he looked haggard.”
Lewis’ first thought? “Look at that freak.”
Then he realized, “Oh. That’s me one day if I don’t figure out what direction to go in soon.”
Too often, celebrity impersonators take their gig far past its lifespan. If you don’t know when to hang it up, you run the risk of turning audiences off of celebrity impersonators.
That night in Denny’s was the point when Lewis realized that an impersonator career has limitations.
He started producing part time in 2005. He is quick to give his wife credit for making everything happen. Still, Lewis’ company has seven tribute shows on the East Coast, a testament to the popularity of celebrity impersonators.
While people used to think the cheese aspect was fun, they don’t want it anymore, Lewis said. Audiences want to go back to those days when a celebrity impersonator made them feel like they were in the presence of the real thing. They want a production.
Instead of bombarding his audiences with a gaggle of impersonators, Lewis puts on three miniconcerts in “Tribute Royalty.” He’s got an Elvis, a Lady Gaga and a Michael Jackson. There are eight dancers and special effects.
“I think that the cheese factor has got to go, I think that’s part of what we’re seeing,” Lewis said. “People have to get lost in it again and believe what’s going on.”
Whatever adjustments the industry is experiencing, Del Francia hopes they will level off by next year. She plans to host the convention in 2014.
“The truth of the matter is, this isn’t the end,” said Carla Fiore, producer, impersonator and founder of The Andrews Sisters tribute act, Company B. “Let’s turn this bitter into sweet. Life is too short. We’ve got to make this a positive. Those of us who came this year, we are those die-hards. We are bound and determined to keep this industry alive.”
Contact reporter Sonya Padgett at
spadgett@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-4564.
Follow @StripSonya on Twitter.
