"Viva las Vegas" Aussie style as Elvis fans parade at festival honouring rock n' roll idol

Record ID: 164239

  • Title: "Viva las Vegas" Aussie style as Elvis fans parade at festival honouring rock n' roll idol
  • Date: 14th January 2017
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) PARADE ATTENDEE, KEITH BRADBURY, SAYING: "But the whole parade has been fantastic. Everybody's involved. It's just an amazing sight, first time I've ever seen it. I'll be back next year."
  • Embargoed: 28th January 2017 06:24
  • Keywords: Elvis Presley parade festival Australia
  • Location: PARKES, AUSTRALIA
  • City: PARKES, AUSTRALIA
  • Country: Australia
  • Topics: Human Interest/Brights/Odd News,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA0095Z1Y4IH
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: With an air of Las Vegas glamour, thousands of people took to the streets of the rural Australian town of Parkes on Saturday (January 14) to honour entertainer Elvis Presley in the town's 25th annual street parade.
    The glitzy spectacle is part of the five-day Parkes Elvis Festival, held every year to celebrate Presley's birthday on January 8.
    This year's parade kicked off with the town crier marching down the street ringing his bell followed by bands playing "the King's" major hits, die-hard fans dressed up as their idol, posing in old-timer cars, as well as families partying on Elvis-themed floats.
    "There is something so Australian about a festival about an American singer in the middle of an outback country town," said Australian senator, Sam Dastyari dressed in a white Elvis-inspired jumpsuit.
    In keeping with the 2017 theme of Elvis's iconic film 'Viva Las Vegas', many not only donned jump-suits and wigs but feathers, sequins and all things Vegas-inspired, while singing and dancing to Presley's music.
    "There's only one Elvis Presley, there's only one king of rock and roll, and they all keep coming back to celebrate what he was and what he did. Priscilla said that she never wanted people to forget but if you look around you'll see that no one is ever going to forget, especially with all the little children and all their parents coming here to Parkes to celebrate. It's the largest festival in the country," said Elvis fan Graham Lawrence who had travelled from the Gold Coast.
    Even now in its 25th year the Parkes Elvis Festival is continuing to grow, explained the festival's official Elvis ambassador, Al 'Alvis' Gersbach.
    "This year is just as good as anything, especially on the 25th anniversary and everything else like that. It's been absolutely fantastic. The crowd was very responsive and it makes it so much better when it's like that because you just go at it all the time. So, we are getting more and more and more involved, so you just can't highlight how good it feels coming down the street."
    As for the festival-goers themselves, they said it was the best one yet.
    "But the whole parade has been fantastic. Everybody's involved. It's just an amazing sight, first time I've ever seen it. I'll be back next year," added Elvis fan Keith Bradbury from Sydney, who was attending the parade for the first time.
    The Parkes Elvis Festival will come to an end on Sunday (January 15).
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