Performer evokes memories of the King of Rock and Roll

Tony Roi remembers the feeling he experienced from listening to Elvis Presley on the radio as a young man. That feeling eventually translated into a successful career on the stage for the long-time entertainer and singer.

"The way he (Elvis) projected his instrument, it was like a hot summer day, and you're holding a glass of cool water. It just felt good," Roi said of Elvis' music during an interview with The Fort Scott Tribune last week.

The Elvis impersonator and Cuban native, who has performed for the last seven years in Branson, Mo., is bringing his full two-hour Elvis Presley tribute show to Fort Scott for a special concert at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 17, at Memorial Hall, 1 E. Third St.

For their first fund-raising event of 2007, the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce wanted to bring a different type of entertainment to the area, Roi said, and contacted him about giving his first-ever performance in Fort Scott.

Roi said he jumped at the idea of bringing his show to Southeast Kansas.

"It's my first time, man. I'm very excited," Roi said in a voice that is eerily similar to that of the late King of Rock and Roll. "I'm bringing the whole thing."

Roi's two-hour show, which contains a variety of popular Elvis tunes and nostalgia, is divided into two parts with a brief intermission, Roi said.

"After the first half gets going, it's like a freight train and then we just kick it in," he said.

The singer, songwriter and actor has even produced some of his own shows in the past. In addition to Elvis, he has performed several cover songs originally made famous by a variety of other singers and entertainers.

Roi said he became affiliated with the Legends in Concert show, which still runs today as a tribute to several different classic performers, in 1986. He then worked for about five years in Las Vegas, and 10 years in Atlantic City. He has traveled the country and the globe, performing and appearing on talk shows and various other television programs.

He began performing for the Legends in Concert theater in Branson, a city he has since grown very fond of, in 2000.

"I fell in love with Branson -- I love the area, the Midwest," he said.

Branson's close proximity to major U.S. cities like Kansas City, Dallas, Memphis, and Little Rock, makes it convenient for an entertainer who constantly must hop on a plane and travel to a location quickly, Roi said. He performs his Elvis tribute in Branson six days a week.

Roi has earned numerous honors during his years performing and recording music across the country and the world. He was voted Branson Entertainer of the Year in 2003, and Best Performer of the Year in 2004 and 2005. He also won Best Singer, Best Performer, and Best Show of the Year in Branson in 2006.

For Roi, these accolades mean music fans appreciate his performances, and they are rewarding him for his years of hard work.

"These are the fans that voted," he said. "I feel very honored and privileged to be recognized as a tenor, and as a showman. I'm up against a lot of names in town (Branson) -- a lot of huge entertainers. It tells me that my hard work is paying off. You do it because you love something. That tells you somebody likes you."

While the awards mean a lot to him, fan appreciation and respect mean even more, Roi said.

"When someone tells me after a show they were touched or moved, that's more important than any award," he said.

Roi began his long musical career when he was about 8 or 9 years of age. One of his musical inspirations, Roi said, was Gary Puckett, a singer who fronted the pop rock band Gary Puckett and The Union Gap in the late 1960s. Roi said he admired Puckett's vocal ability, as well as Presley, who he listened to on the radio in the 1960s and 1970s. Like many other Elvis fans at the time, he also watched the King on the silver screen, Roi said.

"People really missed him," Roi said of the years following Presley's death in 1977 at the age of 42.

Roi said at one point during his career, while performing his own music, he realized that he was at an all-time low, and didn't know which direction his music career would take him next. During this period, he said he felt like quitting several times -- and that's where Elvis came in.

"I thought, one day I wanted to do this (an Elvis tribute) but I didn't want to be typecast," he said. "You know what, I was doing all the night clubs, and hitting a dead end. Everyone was asking for Elvis, so I thought, 'Why fight it?'"

During part of Roi's show, the performer takes the stage to talk about the legend that was Elvis Presley and the variety of music he performed over the course of his career. Roi said he put Elvis' name on the marquee for his show as a way to represent Presley and his music. While Roi is only an Elvis impersonator, the performer said he does his best to embody Presley's spirit onstage.

"I dig this cat," Roi said of Presley. "You can't copy his charisma, the electricity, unless you have it. I was blessed with those gifts, and I have a passion."

Roi said he does not impersonate every aspect of the King, such as Elvis' now-famous catch phrase, "Thank you... thank you very much," and various other popular sayings. Roi said he concentrates more on capturing the energy and passion that is associated with an Elvis Presley performance, and giving the audience a true glimpse of the entertainer's style and emotion.

"Kids sometime think they're going to see a clown show," Roi said. "I don't say the peanut butter sandwich thing. I don't wear the glasses. I don't do any of that stuff."

Tickets for the show are now on sale, and are available in three different categories. Premium seating, priced at $20, is located within the first five rows of the auditorium. These are brand new seats recently installed by the city, chamber officials said. The general reserved section includes $17 seats, and the general admission reserved seats, which include stadium seating and seating in the back hall of the auditorium, are available for $15 each.

For more information, or to buy tickets, call the chamber at (620) 223-3566.