Niagara Falls Elvis Festival: Part Two

The photo album that follows is dedicated to those who support ETAs. Whether you are a promoter, an agent, a festival organizer, a judge, a tabulator, a photographer—or any one of the dozens of other people who help ETAs do what they do best, you are part of the axis that makes the ETA world spin. Most of the photos below were taken at the Niagara Falls Elvis Festival, but they represent a bigger picture. It was difficult to categorize the photos according to job title, since some of the people wear many hats. While I attempted to take a photo of everyone who played a role in the success of the past week-end’s festival, some photos could not be added due to quality; but please know that you are all appreciated for your contribution, and sometime in the future your photo from another event will appear.

Promoters, Agents, Organizers, Judges

Tony Busseri, Heather Busseri, and Greg and Alanna Frewin, organizers of the Niagara Falls Elvis Festival are pictured above in the first three photos. Other Ontario Elvis festivals were well represented at the Niagara Falls event. Rosemarie Garrity O’Brien and Cathie Korsakas from the Collingwood Elvis Festival and Lisa Lesage from the Tweed Elvis Festival attended the NFEF. Pam Pettit and Sue Harris, organizers of the Flaming Star Festival, volunteered at NFEF. Pam was the backstage co-ordinator, with the help of Karen Craig-Frappier, and Sue Harris was the official tabulator for the competition. Talent agent and promoter, Sandra Gold, is pictured with her very good friend and assistant, Rita Petrone Caruso. Judges, Giacomo Folinazzo, Tony Sciara, Natasha MrKovich, Wendy King, Darrell Lacasse, and Kay Shannon, judged all three rounds of the competition, and Mayor James M. Diodati was a judge at the final round.

Vendors, Sponsors, Photographers, Media

B&K Enterprises Costume Co. Inc., who presented gift certificates for the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners at the NFEF, were well represented by Robin Theobald, Kim Polston’s assistant, and head seamstress, Kim Wein. Robin’s daughter, Chloe, helped look after B&K’s merchandise. All three are pictured above. Gilles and Jasmine Beaudin, of DanNel Transportation, a silver sponsor of the NFEF, were pictured in the slideshow that was posted yesterday.* Bronze sponsors of the event include Niagara Falls Taxi, Epik Escapes, Travelodge, Days Inn & Suites, and Days Inn. We had an enjoyable two night stay at Days Inn & Suites, and wish to thank the staff for making us feel so welcome. The city of Niagara Falls and the province of Ontario are public supporters. Two representatives from media sponsor, 610 CKTB NEWSTALK Radio Station, are pictured above. Professional photographers, Lori-Anne Crewe from LA Crewe Photography and Louis Young from Louis Young Photography were on hand to take photos. Amateur photographer, Clarence ‘Buck’ O’Dell took a series of photos of the event. Eva Brand of Eva Brand Media Group captured the three days in photos and videos. As editor of SIDEBURNS Magazine, I took notes to report on ETA events in articles. I also took the photos you see above. I added a photo of Judy LaForme, while not a sponsor or vendor at this event, because I am sure that many of the scarves that I have received from ETAs are Judy’s, making her a part of the ETA world.

Coming soon: Fan Photos, ETAs. Best regards, Carolyn.

* https://vimeo.com/266423499/16db54bb4d

On Wednesday, April 18th, 2018, ARB Productions in partnership with Greg Frewin Theatre held a free family day event as part of the Niagara Falls Elvis Festival. With the help of grants from the city of Niagara Falls and the province of Ontario, hot dogs, popcorn and drinks were offered to all adults and children. ETAs Bruno Nesci and Richard Wolfe sang Elvis songs and challenged those in attendance with music trivia questions at the 5:30 to 8:30 pm event. To amuse the children, a dinosaur danced to the music of DJ Brandon. Face painting was offered, and Charlize, in the photo below, shows the beautiful cheeta design that she chose. Some of the wonderful people whom I know from Casino Niagara Wednesday shows dropped by to share in the fun. As my blog followers know, these fine folks, who are big Elvis fans, are also my favourite dance partners, so we all appreciated the ample dance floor and music that Greg Frewin Theatre provided. It was a great event that set the tone for the fantastic weekend of competitions and shows that was to follow. I captured in photos some of the happy moments at the Niagara Falls Elvis Festival Day. On behalf of all who attended Niagara Falls Elvis Festival Family Day, I wish to thank Tony Busseri, co-founder of ARB Productions, his business partner, Heather Busseri, and Greg and Alanna Frewin, proprietors of Greg Frewin Theatre and business partners with ARB Productions, for hosting such an enjoyable family event.

Niagara Falls Elvis Festival Family Day Photo Album