Donny & Marie team up again on the Strip
Donny Osmond wanted Marie Osmond to sing. Marie wanted only to watch.
So the Osmond siblings worked out a compromise. Marie did both.
The Donny & Marie show returned to the Strip, kind of, Saturday night at Harrah’s Showroom. The two were in the same venue in Vegas since November 2019, when they closed their residency production at the Flamingo. Donny’s solo show opened at Harrah’s in August 2021. But Marie, who has headlined her own orchestra show across the country, hadn’t seen her brother’s show until this weekend.
This … @donnyosmond & @marieosmond sing together for the first time since closing @FlamingoVegas in November 2019. A lot of great energy tonight … #RINow @reviewjournal pic.twitter.com/ujVHwgPOJG
— John Katsilometes (@johnnykats) November 6, 2022
Donny had said that Marie “better be ready to sing” when she finally made it to Harrah’s. Marie offered that, yes, she would be ready — to sit. She had no intention of joining the performance. But as Donny entered his “all-request” segment, he showed a list of songs specifically sung by Donny & Marie.
Donny then introduced Marie with, “There is one of my favorite people on the planet, my sister, Marie, right there.” Donny pointed at Marie in her VIP booth. The crowd erupted. “It’s so nice to see you! I love you, baby!”
Donny then said, “Someone called for, ‘A Little Bit Country-Rock ‘n’ Roll.’ Do you mind?”
“How does he not know?” Marie said to her booth guests (yours truly was one of them, as esteemed TV producer John Redmann). Donny walked through the crowd and extended his mic. “I just want to you to know, Donny’s awesome, isn’t he? I’m here for him, not to do this. But I’ll do this one.”
“We did this for like 100 years,” Donny said of the song performed in every “Donny & Marie Show” in the late-’70s. “Do you remember the words?” And the two sang the chorus.
It was just a hint of the Donny & Marie show that ran for 11 years in Vegas. But it was a great show of solidarity, and the crowd ate it up. The Osmonds always get it.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
