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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Friday, May 23, 2008

IMPERSONATORS
Michael, Madonna drawing crowds in Waikiki

Photo gallery: Starry, starry nights

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

Hawaii news photo - The Honolulu Advertiser

Veteran Michael Jackson impersonator William Hall is convincing in every way, down to his moonwalk.

REBECCA BREYER | The Honolulu Advertiser

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'STARS IN CONCERT HAWAII'

Featuring impersonations of Elvis Presley, Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Madonna and Michael Jackson

9 p.m. daily except Wednesdays (dinner seating 6:45 p.m., cocktail seating 8:45 p.m.)

Ainahau Showroom, Sheraton Princess Kaiulani hotel

Dinner $89 adults, $45 children under 12 (choice of Pikake Terrace or Momoyama restaurants); show only, $49 adults, $25 children; one-drink minimum

Kama'aina rates: dinner $66.75 adults, $33.75 children; show only, $38 adults, $15 children; one-drink minimum

923-1245

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Smartly reformatted and invigorated with two high-octane troupers, "Stars in Concert Hawaii," the impersonation revue at the Sheraton Princess Kaiulani hotel, is Waikiki's latest secret — but not for long.

William Hall is a lean, white-faced, moonwalking dead-ringer for Michael Jackson, and wisely, he closes the show — before a gather-the-cast finale. He is smokin' good, with body language, hairstyle, makeup and moves of the King of Pop. If you walked into the showroom not knowing you were in impersonator heaven, you'd think he was the genuine article. Oooh, what a thriller.

And Kimberly Goltry is a sassy, svelte, sizzling Madonna — not the pointy-bra vision, but a sleek and fashionable blonde bombshell, figuratively exploding with both scanty and tailored (as in pantsuit) garb. She is the essence of the Material Girl — with the voice, patter and stamina. What a ray of light she is.

Add holdover favorites Jonathan Von Brana (as Elvis Presley, the King of Rock), who now opens the production, and the one-two punch of Denita Asbery (as both Whitney Houston and Tina Turner), and you've got the makings of a real chic celebration — with the accent on celebs.

Hall and Goltry are on a four-month visit, with one month under their belt. The "Stars in Concert" format means the impressionists rotate — so the Blues Brothers and Elton John are gone.

But buzz is building and crowds multiplying, now that Michael Jackson and Madonna are aboard; and while producers can extend contracts, don't take chances. Go see and cheer this splendid duo.

Hall does "Thriller," for sure, though the ghostly number doesn't have the ghastly makeup (Hall does have three bandaged fingers). One of the highlights is "You Are Not Alone," the No. 1 R. Kelly-written ballad that prompts spectators to raise and wave the candles on the table, just like at a concert. He has multi-looks and costumes (white jacket, blue shirt, red jacket, military outfit, etc.) that help enhance the iconic MJ. And yes, there is the glove and the crotch-grabbing in "Billie Jean."

Hall is a San Antonian who has vast performing credits abroad, performing throughout Asia and Europe. His Jackson has played 10 years in Las Vegas, too, and 10 in Berlin. So it's a fine-tuned, perfected creation.

Goltry's fedora-topped black-suit entrance to "Express Yourself" is power-packed with animation, bounce and verve — a contrast to her body-revealing "Vogue" production number topped by a glitzy headpiece. She's a quick learner, too, adding "arigato" and "mahalo" into her thank-yous to audience members.

Surely, the Ainahau Showroom — home of the Tihati Polynesian spectacle "Creation: A Polynesian Journey" earlier in the evening — is part of the reason "Stars" looks and plays like a big-room production. The performance space has high-tech lights, precise sound equipment and ample romping space for wild abandonment, which the Jackson and Madonna impersonators use to great advantage, accompanied by large-screen video projections.

The arrival of the Jackson and Madonna characters surely must have inspired the regulars, Von Brana and Asbery, to beef up their moments in the show, too. Von Brana long has been the king of the kings who inhabits the Presley songbag. He now fills an expanded opening segment that taps a gamut of Elvis signatures, from "Jailhouse Rock" to "Are You Lonesome Tonight," from "Love Me Tender" to "Heartbreak Hotel," and a "Blue Hawai'i" moment that includes "Rock-a-Hula." There's also a stroll into the crowd to pass out scarves — just like Elvis used to do — and Von Brana carries the Elvis banner with new vigor.

Asbery juggles Houston and Turner with aplomb, with the obligatory "I Will Always Love You" and crowd-pleasers such as "I Wanna Dance With Somebody," "I'm Every Woman" and "How Will I Know," and turns Turner's "Proud Mary," "Simply the Best" and "What's Love Got to Do With It" into personal triumphs.

Four women dancers, led by dance captain Tori Anguay, provide visual splendor and embellishment for all of the featured acts, and a four-piece band is versatile and engaging in providing the tempo and the melodics for the impersonators.

Stay for the meet-and-greet after the performance; you'll be able to take photos and get autographs with the performers — perhaps the closest you'll ever get to these megastars.

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com.