Well, unfortunately I can't share photos with you because there are no photos.
The show in Anderson, IN at the Hoosier Park Casino and Race track took place on
a stage that is literally in the center of the casino floor, So….no cameras
allowed.

When we heard about this gig and the space available we expected it to be a
terrible show. But any show is better than no show at all!

So….I worked until noon on Friday then went home to head to Anderson.

When we showed up, we realized there was no place to sit. No chairs allowed.
Sheri was quite disappointed to find that the constant drone of the slot
machines was going to continue during the show. And the disappointments go on
and on.

This was NOT The Van-Dells show we are used to attending!

So after dinner and a few minutes rest….we returned to the casino.

I sold a few of Glenn's gospel CD's while waiting for the show to start.

When it was show time we stood in front of the knee high stage and it felt very
strange. I am accustomed to standing at a Rod Stewart concert. But the only
Van-Dells show, where I have stood, was at The Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, IA.
And the stage was higher there. So this was strange.

I didn't expect much from this show. Although I was glad to be able to be at a
show.

But I was pleasantly surprised.

You would think that with all the years I have been seeing The Van-Dells, I
would realize they can make a show….a GOOD one…anytime, anywhere.

This was no exception. From the beginning it was fun watching the "crowd". They
actually didn't start out as a crowd. There were, of course, the regular fans
that showed up to see the show. But the majority of people were either gamblers
or employees. Until the 2nd or 3rd song. And then they became a crowd. And less
than ˝ way into the first show….they became fans. Dancing and singing along

We had fun standing in the front row doing choreography.

Although the show was good. It was different. There was no place to change
clothes so there were no costume changes. So when they went into "Duke of Earl"
we were a bit confused. How in the world???? Well, we would see.

Mark & Glenn actually described the suit Duke would be wearing if he were able
to change. And then Duke came on stage and "played" The Duke of Earl. He did
every move as if he were opening the top hat, and the cane. Then he put the
imaginary cane on the stage and held his hand on it. It was hilarious. Anyone
who knows me know s that this is NOT one of my favorite songs. Even Duke. So
when he sang, "Nothing can stop the Duke of Earl", I turned my back to the stage
and leaned over and said to Kelly, "Nothing can stop, the duke of earl." When I
turned back around Duke was leaned down toward me and shook his head, "no". Uh
oh! BUSTED! LOL

We had to use our imaginations for "Personality", too. Since Mark & Glenn
realized they had no hats to put on for this bit. The regular fans were cracking
up but, as Sheri said next to me, "Most of these people probably wonder what the
heck is going on!"

Another fun part of the show was when Duke sang, "I Don't Know why I Love You
(but I Do)". (wow, all these Duke songs were fun. I TOLD you it was an odd show
;-) HeeHee)

Anyway, since the guys could not change clothes when it was not their turn to
sing they just stood behind the stage. This was still in full view of the crowd.
So when Duke started singing I could see Glenn & Mark plotting. And sure enough,
they came around to the front of the stage and started acting like they were
crazy about Duke & his singing. They grabbed at him (Glenn actually got hold of
his sweater and Duke pulled away), they screamed and held out their arms.
Someone gave Glenn a napkin to try to get Duke to wipe his sweat on it & I
handed Mark a pen and paper to try to get an autograph. Duke ignored them but
had a "look-at-me" quality to his step across the stage. The whole thing was
hilarious and the crowd loved it.

Soon the first show was over and it was fun to hear all the comments from people
who had never seen a show. Everyone seemed to have a good time.

We hung out at the stage area between shows but the crowd thinned.

When it was time for the second show the crowd began to gather again.

This was another fun show but the music seemed to get lost in the casino noise
this time. Or maybe I was just tired. After all, I had been in heals since 6am.
(and, of course, one of our activities at work had been to walk around the
walking trail….IN HEALS!)

But the guys did a great job. And they pulled off the "special guest"
appearances, without costume changes, quite well. Nancy had a pair of sun
glasses for the Roy O. But Glenn did the Neil Diamond with no props. They were
wearing the black lam'e jackets. So that helped.

Glenn got a really good compliment when he sang, "American Trilogy". A lady at
the end of the front row was crying. It apparently really touched her.

After the show Sheri commented that she was actually glad when the show ended.
Because we are not used to standing through the entire show. (it merits
mentioning that we had been told between shows that we were not able to sit on
the edge of the stage. And since all stools were for slot machines, we couldn't
sit there either, without gambling. So we were forced to stand for the hour
between shows, too. Kelly & I finally ended up sitting on the floor for a
while).

I don't know if I was "glad" the show was over. I haven't seen a show in so long
that I was very happy to be at one. I had, in fact, been a little stressed about
taking off work early (I hate leaving co-workers to deal with everything) but
when the show started, all was well! But I do have to say, I was tired and was
glad to have a chance to sit down.

By the time we made a quick stop at Walmart to pick up some Coke & Sprite and
then a visit to Perkins for a bite to eat, I was exhausted! Actually I mentioned
to Glenn that while we waited almost 30 minutes to be waited on at Perkins that
I was at the "grumpy" stage. I was glad to get back to the hotel and get some
rest!

Now, Saturday afternoon, we are getting ready to go have some lunch and then I
am looking forward to the show tonight. I will not under estimate The Van-Dells
again.