A concert residency (also known as musical residency or simply residency) is a series of concerts, similar to a concert tour, but only performed at one location. Artist who performs on a concert residency is called resident performer. Concert residencies have been the staple of the Las Vegas Strip for decades, pioneered by singer-pianist Liberace in the 1940s and Frank Sinatra with the Rat Pack in the 1950s.
According to Billboard, Celine Dion's A New Day... is the most successful concert residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($454.39 million in 2017 dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. This commercial success was credited for revitalizing Las Vegas residencies, which was always known as a place where singers go when their careers are in decline.
Video Concert residency
History
According to The Guardian, the concept of a concert residency was established by pianist and singer Liberace with 1944 debut in Las Vegas. Nearly ten years later, Liberace had his own show at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, which reportedly earned "Mr. Showtime" around $50,000 per week. After years of pursuing other projects in Los Angeles, he returned to Vegas residency and earned around $300,000 a week until he died of AIDS in 1987. CeeLo Green held his 2013 residency, CeeLo Green Presents Loberace, as a tribute to Liberace.
Liberace's 1944 debut was followed by Frank Sinatra with the Rat Pack, and Elvis Presley. In April 1956, Presley began a two-week concert residency at the New Frontier Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, following the release of his self-titled debut album. His shows were poorly received by the conservative, middle-aged hotel guests--"like a jug of corn liquor at a champagne party," wrote a critic for Newsweek. From 1969 to 1976, Presley performed 837 consecutive sold out shows at the Hilton Las Vegas, which has since been renamed the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino.
Kurt Melien, vice president of entertainment at Caesars Palace, explained that "Historically, Vegas residencies were more a loss leader event - famous artists playing in small showrooms just to draw in the gambling crowds." In the live music world, Las Vegas used to be known as the place where singers went to die, where they could earn a crust in their twilight years entertaining tourists on the Strip alongside magicians like David Copperfield or Siegfried & Roy.
Celine Dion revitalized residencies in the 21st century, with the success of her A New Day... residency (2003-2007). Her residency introduced a new form of theatrical entertainment, a fusion of song, performance art, innovative stage craft, and state-of-the-art technology. She managed to popularize the Las Vegas residency as a desirable way for top artists to essentially tour in place, letting their fans come to them. Kurth Meline explained, "Celine was a pioneer without question. Twenty years ago, we couldn't have got someone the stature of Britney Spears to appear in Vegas. Stars like her would never have considered it if Celine hadn't paved the way. She changed the face of modern Vegas."
Dion returned to Las Vegas on March 15, 2011 with her second residency, Celine. She performed her record-breaking 1000th overall Las Vegas residency on October 8, 2016. Many other major performers such as Britney Spears, Cher, Toni Braxton, Rod Stewart, Shania Twain, Jennifer Lopez, Mariah Carey, Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Calvin Harris, Backstreet Boys and Gwen Stefani have followed and accepted residency offers. Their shows included Britney: Piece of Me, Cher and Classic Cher, Rod Stewart: The Hits, Shania: Still the One, Jennifer Lopez: All I Have, #1 to Infinity, Backstreet Boys: Larger Than Life and Gwen Stefani: Just a Girl respectively.
Maps Concert residency
Venue
Las Vegas has become the center of concert residencies for decades. New York City has also grown as a destination residency, beginning with Billy Joel at the Madison Square Garden in 2014. American rock band Phish also performed 13-shows residency at the same venue, from July 21 to August 6, 2017. Bruce Springsteen held his 2017-18 residency, Springsteen on Broadway, at the Walter Kerr Theatre, New York City. In August and September 2007, O2 Arena in London held 21 Prince shows. From January to March 2009, Luis Miguel played a run of 25 shows at Auditorio Nacional in Mexico City. Michael Jackson had scheduled 50 concerts in 2009 at The O2 Arena in London, they were unfortunately cancelled due to his death.
Boxscore
One of the most successful residency in history is held by Elvis Presley, who performed 636 consecutive shows at the International and Las Vegas Hilton from July 1969 through December 1976. However, the boxscore data for his residency is unavailable. According to Billboard, Celine Dion's A New Day... is the most successful concert residency of all time, grossing over US$385 million ($454.39 million in 2017 dollars) and drawing nearly three million people to 717 shows. Celine Dion leads as the highest grossing solo artist of all time in residencies (A New Day and Celine).
Following Celine Dion, Elton John has become the second most successful concert resident performer, whose The Red Piano residency grossed a reported $169 million between 2004 and 2009. Another top-selling residency was Britney Spears's Britney: Piece of Me, which began in December 2013 and ended on December 31, 2017. Spears's residency grossing over U$137 million.
Outside of Las Vegas, Bruce Springsteen has grossed over $56 million (as of May 2018) with 119 shows of his New York residency Springsteen on Broadway.
References
External links
- Concert Residency at Consequence of Sound
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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