Most toddlers love characters like Spongebob or Dora, and watching shows like Sesame Street or Caillou. When I was this age, I loved these typical types of things, too; however, there was one person I loved that I honestly do not think many (if any) other preschoolers do: Cher.
I became a Cher fan when I was four years old, when I would watch my mom’s “Cher: Live in Concert” tape over and over and over again. I clearly remember being fascinated by how she had so many different hair colors throughout the one show, and thinking she had to be the coolest person ever. While most preschoolers favorite song is likely something along the lines of the “ABC’s” or “Mary Had a Little Lamb,” mine was “Believe,” and only has it recently occurred to me how odd this probably was. It did not make a difference, though, because all I knew was that I liked watching the concert, and loved her and thought she was cool. Especially for a four year old, that was really all that mattered.
Today, I cannot say much has changed. I grew up loving Cher and her music, and I still think that she is just as cool now as I thought she was when I was four (maybe even cooler).
This being said, when I found out in the fall that she would be doing residences in Maryland and Las Vegas, and was lucky enough to have my mom have gotten tickets, to say that I was excited would be a massive understatement. After a five month wait that seemed like forever, the day finally arrived on March 17, when I saw her Classic Cher show live at the MGM National Harbor in Maryland.
From the second the show started, I knew that the concert would be as perfect as I have always pictured it to be. After opening with “Women’s World,” Cher went from one of her classic hits to another spanning her nearly six decade career, and mesmerizing the crowd with not only her voice, performance, and the incredible visuals of her show, but also her iconic Bob Mackie costumes. Whether it was her headdress for “Half-Breed,” her Burlesque costume from the 2010 film for “Welcome To Burlesque,” sixties inspired ensemble (fur vest and all!) for the Sonny and Cher set, and, of course, her especially well-known “If I Could Turn Back Time” bodysuit, every costume dazzled more and more. In reality, the whole show was more than just a concert, it was a production of incredible stature that only Cher could put on.
While there were many memorable moments throughout the night, there was one that was by far my favorite. I absolutely love Sonny and Cher, and my favorite song is “I Got You Babe.” Only in recent years has Cher performed this song in her live shows, having found it too difficult to sing for a long time. As soon as those first familiar few notes of the song started, however, it became apparent how special the performance of this song in particular was, and that it would be a moment that I knew I would never forget.
Ultimately, getting to see Cher live was a dream come true, and I hope that I am lucky enough to see her again one day.
All this being said, at the age of 70, there are very few people that can perform shows that are similar to ones they did when they were in their twenties and thirties, but if anyone can, it is undoubtedly Cher. She is truly a legend that has had an incomparable career, and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon. Why should she? Perhaps she put it best herself in her opening monologue, talking about her age and how she is still performing the same ways she did forty years ago, asking the audience, “What’s your granny doing tonight?”
