Theater review: Shake off the winter blues at 'Heartbreak Hotel'

GAIL CHOOCHAN - The Free Lance-Star

January 16, 2025

Elliott Litherland stars as the king of rock and roll in “Heartbreak Hotel” at Riverside Center for the Performing Arts through March 2nd. Suzanne Carr Rozzi Photos

Elvis has entered the building.

Walking into the Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, theatergoers are greeted by black-and-white cardboard cutouts of one of the world’s greatest performers — Elvis Presley. And when the lights go up onstage in the theater, the beloved superstar comes to life in full-blown technicolor, swiveling hips and all.

“Heartbreak Hotel,” which opened Wednesday, kicks off Riverside’s new season on a strong note. This jam-packed jukebox musical, with a book by Sean Cercone and David Abbinanti, charts the singer’s meteoric rise to fame and fortune. Conceived by Floyd Mutrux, “Heartbreak Hotel” serves as a prequel to “Million Dollar Quartet” (which he co-wrote) about the legendary jam session featuring Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash.

So if you’re a fan of early rock and roll, you can’t help but fall for this nostalgic tribute.

“Heartbreak Hotel” offers a glossy glimpse of Elvis’ early career, without diving too deep, and tells it in a non-linear fashion. The musical opens with Elvis, standing before the audience for his comeback 1968 TV special, showered with images depicting headlines from his storied career — his younger selves joining him onstage. Frank Foster’s eye-catching set design is complemented by Michael Jarett’s bold lighting choices and projections, which help guide audiences through the trip down memory lane.

With sharp direction by Jacquez Linder-Long, the musical remixes Elvis’ songs with moments from his past, like listening to music at the record store as a kid, getting his first guitar from his parents, working with Sun Records founder Sam Phillips, meeting Priscilla while serving in the army and heating up the stage with Ann-Margret in “You’re the Boss.” It also strongly acknowledges how the Black music scene helped influence his genre-bending sound and his unbridled dance moves. Linder-Long and Stephanie Wood are behind the musical’s fun, electric choreography.

More than 40 classics are featured, including “That’s All Right,” “Blue Suede Shoes,” “Are You Lonesome Tonight,” “A Little Less Conversation” and “Love Me Tender.” While heavy on Elvis, the musical also weaves in songs by Black artists, including the Prisonaires (“Just Walkin’ in the Rain”) and the trail-blazing Sister Rosetta Tharpe. The gospel standard “Peace in the Valley” is sung during one of the show’s pivotal moments. Carson Eubank leads the fine seven-piece orchestra.

Almost 50 years after his passing, Elvis still has quite a grip on popular culture, with Hollywood heartthrobs Austin Butler and Jacob Elordi channeling the pompadoured singer in films by Baz Luhrmann and Sofia Coppola. For Riverside’s production of “Heartbreak Hotel,” Elliott Litherland is donning the form-fitting black leather suit.

The wildly charismatic Litherland commands the stage as this larger-than-life showman, entertaining audiences with his deep, sultry voice and loose and limber dance moves. He’s effective as the king of rock and roll, but also at showing Elvis’ more human side. The heavy emotional moments come into play during the second act: Elvis unloading his frustration on Priscilla, lashing out at his bandmates, coming to blows with the controlling Colonel Parker, as the singer tries to keep up in a changing industry and a never-ending stream of motion pictures. In this whirlwind of activity, it’s touching moments, like the one with his baby girl Lisa Marie, that grounds him.

As Teen Elvis, Luke Purcell turns in a strong performance; when Elvis and the band plays “That’s All Right,” his contagious energy changes up the whole room. And Grayson Lewis as Kid Elvis is a charmer, especially when he hones his signature dance moves.

“Heartbreak Hotel” may be a jukebox musical, but it also looks behind the music. It’s a story about relationships, those who played a major role in Elvis becoming who we all know today. There’s the sweet connection between Kid Elvis and Black record store owner Betty (Sydney Archibald); the tumultuous relationship with manager Colonel Parker (Ian Lane), in contrast with the nurturing producer Sam Phillips (Andy Braden); and of course, the tight bond with his loving mother Gladys Presley (beautifully played by Sheri Hayden).

“Heartbreak Hotel” aims to show that Elvis was more than a crooner with a cool hairdo and explosive dance moves. Yes, he’s an icon, but also a real person.

If You Go

“Heartbreak Hotel,” Riverside Center for the Performing Arts, 95 Riverside Parkway. Runs through March 2. $55–$82 plus processing fee. 540/370-4300; riversidedt.com.