Center Presents: Marie Osmond: A Symphonic Christmas Tour

The Palladium // Saturday, Dec 10, 8 p.m. ET

October 2022

Marie Osmond has spent more than six iconic decades in the entertainment business performing as a successful singer, television performer and talk show host, dancer, actor, author, entrepreneur and public speaker.

Osmond’s debut single “Paper Roses” reached the No. 1 spot on two Billboard charts, a feat that not only placed her among an elite class of musical royalty but instantly catapulted her into international superstardom.

Going beyond her small-screen fame co-hosting “Donny & Marie,” Osmond has remained an instantly recognizable figure across the globe. Since she and brother Donny ended their 11-year Las Vegas residency at the Flamingo in 2019, she has traveled the nation with sell-out shows featuring a 30-piece orchestra. Osmond’s latest album is 2021’s “Unexpected,” a collection of Broadway and opera classics.

Osmond is a multiple gold and platinum selling artist and CMA winner, garnering numerous Billboard chart-topping singles and albums and three New York Times Bestselling books. As a philanthropist, Osmond cofounded Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, which has raised more than 8 billion dollars for children to date. Marie was recently awarded “The Secretary of Defense Medal for Outstanding Public Service” by four-star General Bob Brown, US Army Pacific (representing Secretary of Defense James Mattis), during her birthday concert in Hawaii.

Osmond’s recently released “Unexpected” studio album pushed her voice to remarkable heights and debuted No. 1 on Billboard’s Classical Crossover Albums Chart following its December 2021 release. It has spent several weeks in the Top 10, having entered and re-entered the charts.

Osmond has always had great affection for her countless fans and personally keeps in touch daily with them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:

www.facebook.com/marieosmond http://twitter.com/marieosmond http://instagram.com/marieosmond

Purchase your tickets to share a special experience with Marie Osmond this holiday season at thecenterpresents.org.

Janelle Morrison: You have enjoyed a remarkable career, and now with the holiday season approaching, you have decided to end your residency in Las Vegas and tour again. What was the motivating factor behind that decision?

Marie Osmond: It’s interesting — philosophically, I don’t really need to tour anymore. I really love being home with my eight children [pauses] well, I have seven now, but I will always have eight. And I have eight grandchildren. I am a spiritual and intuitive person, you know what I mean? I think to have survived my career — this is my 6th decade of performing consistently — as a female [artist] is just ridiculous in this business. There’s not many of us, and even my sweet friend Olivia [Newton-John] had five decades. But I’m still young, and I believe that you find the holiday spirit through serving others. So, it was an absolute must to go out and do shows. People are so sad right now. Some are lonely, some have lost loved ones, and some are financially stressed. So, for these reasons, I made the decision to go to them instead of having them come to Las Vegas. It’s not about the profit. That’s not why I am doing it. I give [the tour] the “Marie Osmond Good Housekeeping Stamp of Approval”! You will leave feeling happy — I promise you!

JM: Your show features several different musical genres that you appear to effortlessly perform. Is there any one genre or a few that resonate with you more than the others, or do you enjoy them all equally?

Osmond: Yes, and I’ll tell which ones during my show! I am one of those few entertainers that can sing multiple genres, and I don’t think there’s many of us, but I love putting all of that into a show because it gives something to everybody. I really love doing that. I am going to put one or actually maybe two songs from new album in the show. I was blown away by the success of the album, honestly because it’s my farewell album, and I did it strictly because I spent 25 years learning to sing soprano and opera. I sing in German, French and Italian. Now, the album isn’t strictly [opera]. I do songs from the Great American Songbook like “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” which is really the song that got me to sing when I was a little girl in “the business.” I knew when I heard [Judy Garland] and looked into her eyes, she knew my life and what it was like to be a child performer. I’ll also be singing “Unexpected,” the title cut.

JM: Speaking of your album “Unexpected,” congratulations on it being in the top ten for multiple weeks. Isn’t it like 22-plus weeks or more now?

Osmond: It keeps going back up in the top ten, and I’m like, “Shut up!” It’s my best album ever, and it’s the last. [Laughing] My brothers all tease me, “Wow, Marie. You beat us all.” Not that there’s competition in my family whatsoever! “Unexpected” was such a sweet and truly unexpected thing for me. It was a labor of love. It was recorded in Prague, and I really enjoyed doing it.

JM: Knowing how challenging times have been and continue to be for people throughout our nation, what words of encouragement do you have for your fans as we begin to plan for the holiday season and a brand-new year?

Osmond: I don’t know how much longer I’ll do this [touring], but I really do love people. And people are so sad, it just breaks my heart. I do these messages on social media and I do all these things to try and lift people up. You can get through it — I promise you. I’ve seen the other side of hell and back in my life. And I know there’s people that are worse off. Serving [others] gets you through it. So, get some people together and come to the show and enjoy each other. Because you don’t know how much longer you will have each other. I promise you this show will be so fun! You will laugh and you will cry. So, go out and celebrate this time of year. We need to experience joy and happiness again.

JM: In addition to joy and happiness, what else can we expect to experience when you perform at the Palladium in December?

Osmond: It’s going to be so fun! I’m doing some elements that are not only “Christmas,” but I’m going to take them down memory lane a little bit and remember times past. I’ve been associated with some of the best Christmas shows, I think, on the planet from Andy Williams to Bob Hope and my own specials with “Donny & Marie,” and we’re going to make you remember what’s good in life, I promise you! And I’m bringing David Osmond [nephew] who is a bona fide miracle. Wait until you hear this kid sing! There’s just the two of us in our family that can sing multiple genres of music, so you’re going to hear everything from big band to opera to traditional. It’s going to be so fun! We’re going to give it everything that we have out there!

Writer:

Janelle Morrison

Photography:

Courtesy of the Center for the Performing Arts