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Purple Reign (show)

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Purple Reign is a tribute show featuring the music of Prince. It has been performed mainly at casinos in the Las Vegas area. Jason Tenner produces and stars in the show.

History

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The act originated out of The Mothership Connection, a 1970s funk tribute band in which Tenner played in the mid-1990s.[1] Tenner was inspired to begin incorporating Prince's music into the band's act after he dressed as the musician for Halloween in 1996 and received positive feedback on the resemblance.[1] He and other members of The Mothership Connection formed Purple Reign as a band in 1997.[1][2] It was named after Prince's 1984 hit song, "Purple Rain", and the film of the same name.[3] The group performed regularly at Tom and Jerry's, a bar near the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus.[4][5]

In 2001, the band was hired to perform nightly in the lounge at the Boardwalk Hotel and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.[1][6] They soon added impersonators of Prince associates Morris Day and Jerome Benton to the lineup.[1][6] The band remained at the Boardwalk until the hotel closed in 2006.[7] For the next few years, the band performed weekly gigs at various casinos, including Santa Fe Station, Mandalay Bay, and the Monte Carlo.[8][9][10] They made an appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman in 2008.[10]

In 2009, Purple Reign made its transition to being a ticketed show, rather than a band playing in open casino lounges; it was signed as a weekend headliner act at the Hooters Casino Hotel.[11][12] The show moved to The D casino in Downtown Las Vegas in 2012.[13] When the D's showroom closed for renovations eight months later, the show moved back to Hooters and then had a short run at the Planet Hollywood casino, before returning to the D in June 2014.[14][15][16][17]

Tenner moved his show to the Shimmer Cabaret at the Westgate Las Vegas in October 2014.[18] After Prince's death in April 2016, the show gained extra attention, and moved into the hotel's main theater, where a more elaborate stage production was developed.[19][20][21] A tribute to Vanity 6, a female vocal group assembled by Prince, was added to the show.[20][22] Tenner found that the larger venue was too expensive to make the show profitable, however, so he left in October 2017.[21] Purple Reign reopened at the Tropicana Las Vegas the following month.[22]

In March 2024, with the Tropicana preparing to close, the show moved to the V Theater at the Miracle Mile Shops.[23][24]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e Chris Jones (March 23, 2003). "Nevadan at work: Jason Tenner, musician, Prince impersonator". Las Vegas Review-Journal – via NewsBank.
  2. ^ Azaria Podplesky (September 6, 2018). "Prince, Pink Floyd tributes take to casino stages". The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  3. ^ Mandy Zajac (January 7, 2010). "'Purple Reign' tribute show comes to Valley". East Valley Tribune. Tempe, AZ. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
  4. ^ "Vegas tribute acts pay their respects to the real deal". Las Vegas Sun. August 6, 1999. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  5. ^ Megan Capehart (February 28, 2002). "Last call at Tom & Jerry's". Las Vegas CityLife – via NewsBank.
  6. ^ a b Katherine Anania (April 7, 2005). "Cult attraction". Las Vegas CityLife – via NewsBank.
  7. ^ Howard Stutz (January 10, 2006). "Bye bye, Boardwalk". Las Vegas Review-Journal – via NewsBank.
  8. ^ "'Superstars' an easy sell for value". Las Vegas Sun. July 16, 2007. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
  9. ^ Lauren Romano (June 20, 2006). "Santa Fe tribute show develops a following". Summerlin View – via NewsBank.
  10. ^ a b John Przybys (December 19, 2008). "Venues growing for Purple Reign". Las Vegas Review-Journal – via NewsBank.
  11. ^ Mike Weatherford (June 28, 2013). "Compiling fantasy team of tribute artists easy in Vegas". Las Vegas Review-Journal – via NewsBank.
  12. ^ "Prince tribute band Purple Reign lands at Hooters". Las Vegas Examiner. August 21, 2009 – via NewsBank.
  13. ^ Mike Weatherford (March 29, 2012). "Garrett shells out big for new club". Las Vegas Review-Journal – via NewsBank.
  14. ^ John Katsilometes (December 22, 2012). "Dave Perrico to appear on PBS on Jan. 18; new vocal trio raises eyebrows; Elvis-Andy Kaufman meeting revisited". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  15. ^ Mike Weatherford (June 11, 2014). "Job getting better for The Quad juggler Jeff Civillico". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  16. ^ Cathalena E. Burch (October 24, 2013). "Prince tribute act coming to Desert Diamond Casino". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  17. ^ Robin Leach (August 21, 2014). "Jason Tenner's 17-year tribute-show career as Prince started with Halloween costume". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  18. ^ John Katsilometes (September 9, 2014). "'Purple Reign' to shake up the scene at Westgate". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  19. ^ John Katsilometes (May 4, 2016). "Prince's death has shaken up Vegas tribute artist Jason Tenner's world". Las Vegas Weekly. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  20. ^ a b Jason Tenner (July 22, 2016). "What performing as Prince means to me now that the legend is gone". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  21. ^ a b John Katsilometes (October 13, 2017). "Purple Reign's departure has International impact". Las Vegas Review-Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-05.
  22. ^ a b Brock Radke (November 1, 2017). "'Purple Reign' makes the move from Westgate to Tropicana". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2018-10-06.
  23. ^ Brock Radke (March 6, 2024). "Blake Shelton, 'Purple Reign,' Kacey Musgraves and more Las Vegas showbiz news". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
  24. ^ "'Purple Reign' moves to Planet Hollywood". KVVU-TV. March 21, 2024. Retrieved 2024-04-03.
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