Allie Hughes: Prom Queen 2011
Allie Hughes’ Prom Queen Dream was nothing short of a theatrical presentation. Every portion/performer adhered to said theme; a “principal” introduced each act, and addressed the crowd as a graduating class of a fictional high school. Everyone was on board to play along.
Opening act, Gentleman Reg, was featured as “Chad”–Allie Hughes’ prom date. The character of Chad is a key player in Hughes’s act (played by a member of Meligrove Band during CMW). Gentleman Reg’s vocals are very similar to that of Torquil Campbell, of Stars and Memphis fame. Using keys as a bass line and having a strong lead guitar to disambiguate their sound, Reg had a tender, soulful tone. Albeit a beautiful set rich with eloquent lyrics and melodic episodes, Gentleman Reg may have been too much of a mellow opener to have at a show that was supposed to be a party.
The principal returned to the stage to introduce the winner of Prom Queen: Miss Allie Hughes. Her band anxiously waited for her to take to the stage, and played an energy boosting intro before she turned to face the audience. After a couple of her signature tunes, Allie addressed the audience and explained that this evening was her Prom Queen Dream, and that everyone there must have had an impact on her somehow to have made it into her dream. She went on to say, “This is my dream, so I decide everything that happens.” Her back-up singers were the “mean girls” from high school, and Chad, her prom date/hottest guy at school picked her.
Her performance style just screams fun. She’s so committed to her character and seems to lose herself in it as she plays. Every song tied into the next, and the crowd was very receptive, which in turn kept the show energy a-flowin’. At one point, after she was faced with the heartbreak of “Chad” leaving her for the mysterious stranger he macked on after their lovers tune, I thought that she was going to freak out a la Carrie style. The show was just full of ups and downs.
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, Allie’s voice is so whimsical and alluring. Once again she won the crowd over and had our complete and utter attention. The combination of her beautiful vocals and the skillful playing of the band of characters accompanying her made for an enjoyable night.
The closing band, introduced as “Pop Salvation”; a “local Christian rock band” was actually none other than Dwayne Gretzky. They played a set made up entirely out of rock covers, including signature tunes by Roy Orbison, The Beatles and many other songs that made the audience dance and sing along. The band made up of seven highly skilled musicians from local acts, Sweet Thing, Arkells & Flash Lightnin’, played all the hits, and served as an excellent end to an evening.
