Lights flashing, fans screaming, ears pounding from the sound of good old fashion rock ‘n roll, that’s what a crowd gathered for at the Oriental Theater this week. The band on stage sure looked and sounded like a well known band called The Beatles, but as most folks know, that band had broken up 40 years ago, and two of the bands members have passed away. How is this musical phenomenon even possible?

To keep the magic of The Beatles alive, four talented musicians take on the roles as John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr in their tribute band, Rain. Rain is not your average cover band, but a unique performance directly from Broadway. Once before had I seen another Beatles tribute band called American English. Although they provided a good show, Rain really takes home the gold with their own way of bringing the music of The Beatles to the audience.

The musicians portraying The Beatles truly proved that they had done their research. The musicians gained so much knowledge on the band member they were, from the way that each Beatle acted, to the way each of them had their own playing style. This made the portrayal of each member even more authentic. The downside to the show: the continuous costume changes. Although transforming from the early young Beatles, to the ‘Sergeant  Pepper’ mid-career Beatles, to the end of the Beatles with their roof top concert, it all wasn’t necessary. Less changing and more music would’ve made for a better show, and a satisfied audience.

Although there were no screaming girls crying their eyes out and pulling their hair throughout the concert, the fans still showed their love for the legendary band. When ‘John’ broke out into Twist and Shout, sure enough everyone was up on their feet twisting and shouting. With their closing song, ‘Give Peace A Chance’, people had their arms around each others shoulders, holding up peace signs and swaying to the music. The audience definitely were not there to just sit and watch, they interacted with ‘Rain’ as if it really were The Beatles on stage themselves.

As for the audience themselves, there were old fans, and new fans as well. Even ‘Paul’ noted from on stage that he saw a lot of younger faces, and proceeded to point them out while singing ‘Hey Jude’ while asking those 21 and younger to sing along. Although there weren’t that many voices heard, it still showed that good music never dies, even with the newer generation.