De Alba relocated to Las Vegas in 2004 to focus on his career.   He has since appeared locally during special engagements and on the radio and television.   De Alba also owns a collection of Garland memorabilia, which has been the subject of television interviews.

SPOTLIGHT

David de Alba will bring the songs of Judy Garland to the stage with "A Tribute to Judy" at 2 p.m. Jan. 28 at the Winchester Cultural Center Theater, 3130 S. McLeod Drive.   In addition to de Alba's singing impersonations, "A Tribute to Judy" includes narration and Garland anecdotes.

Tickets are $5.   For more information, call 455-7340.

Winchester Cultural Center Select Events: The center is located at 3130 South McLeod, Las Vegas.   702-445-7340

Mr. de Alba sings to a studio recording done in Menlo Park, CA. in 1983 under the musical direction of Mr. Bill Bullard, who was the musical conductor, arranger and pianist at the world famous Finocchio Club where Mr. de Alba performed for many years.   Three other talented musicians at that recording session were: Jeffrey Sanford at tenor sax and clarinet; Pat Klobas at the bass, and Jim Chanteloup at the drums and cymbals.

The live concert included the following songs:

• Introduction and Overture
• Come Rain or Come Shine
• Hello Bluebird
• If you Feel Like Singing - The Boy Next Door Medley
• Life is Just a Bowl of Cherries
• If Love Were All
• Lorna
• I'd Like to Hate Myself in the Morning
• Together
• Zing Went the Strings of my Heart
• San Francisco
• Never Will I Marry
• What Now My Love
• Comes Once in a Lifetime
• By Myself
• The Man That Got Away - Bow Music
• Over The Rainbow - Maybe I'll Come Back
• Encore: Just Once in a Lifetime
• Encore: Rockabye Your Baby With a Dixie Melody
• Encore: You Made me Love You - For Me and My Gal Medley
• Encore: Almost Like Being in Love - This Can't Be Love Medley
• Final Bow Music (Over The Rainbow)

Mr. de Alba thanks Mrs. Irma Varela Wynants and Mr. Louis García for contracting him and for all their efforts in presenting his performance at The Winchester Cultural Center Theater.   A special thanks to Mr. James R. Smith, author of "San Francisco's Lost Landmarks" * and his wife Liberty for flying in from Northern California to see David perform, and to speak at the introduction of the show.   David also extends a warm thanks to Miss Linda La Blanche, his musical director/arranger, for driving in from Southern California with her husband to attend the show.

Mr. de Alba dedicated his concert to the memory of his late and dear friends, pioneers of the England Chapter of the Judy Garland Fan Club;   Mr. Charles Blair of England, Mr. Billy Tweedie of Ireland, and Mr. Sonny Gallagher of PA, USA.

Photo credits:   Thanks to Linda La Blanche, Loren and Marlene Hale, James Smith, Margaret, EduarDesign and Sue McNamara for providing some of the photos included here.

Editor's note:   Flash photos were not allowed during the performance, so the pictures of David on stage were taken with cell phones or by video capture with a telephoto lens from the back of the theater.

The audience at the Winchester Theater in Las Vegas took an entertaining step back to San Francisco in the 1980s when David de Alba took the stage in his tribute to Judy Garland.   Reminiscent of the Finocchio Club on Broadway, de Alba slipped effortlessly in to Judy's persona with songs spanning her career and anecdotes offered in Judy's voice.   David's light Cuban accent added a flavor of self admitted humor and of course, a smile when speaking as Judy, yet his singing voice bears no trace of it.   He sang his role with ease.

Costume changes proved an opportunity to see David's own humorous side, having to handle these on his own while remaining connected to the audience.   The costumes were classic Judy as were the simple props of a mike stand, a stool and a chair.   Nothing imposed on the created mood.   Judy's mannerisms and movements accurately portrayed brought another level of reality to the performance.

David de Alba's years of experience as a female impersonator were evident in make-up, attire and performance.   He was no longer the David we shared an evening with but rather, Judy Garland herself, returned to the stage for an afternoon.   Songs like Hello Bluebird and You Made Me Love You presented the dreamy side of Judy while I'd Like to Hate Myself in the Morning and Zing Went the Strings of My Heart showed her playful mood.   A lively rendition of San Francisco, Judy's tribute to Jeanette MacDonald brought extra heavy applause from the audience as well as from this reviewer.   Each song evoked some memory of Judy's illustrious career.   Totally in character, David took his show into the audience, personalizing the experience for many.   The emotional finale, Over the Rainbow brought the house down, inspiring a standing ovation from the capacity crowd.

David offered a top notch performance, then remained to greet the audience after the show, warmly hugging many and posing for innumerable photos with his fans until each had an opportunity to speak with him.   The show was a rousing success, well prepared for and very well received.   Remarks overheard were uniformly positive and many looked forward to future performances.   David de Alba continues strong in his role and I sincerely expect a continuation of his illustrious career.

David de Alba’s loving tribute to Judy Garland at the Winchester Cultural Center last Sunday was a total success without precedent in this theater.   Sold out three days before the event, he did not disappoint his fans and gave one of the best performances of his career.   His charisma galvanized and charmed the audience from beginning to end, who gave him a standing ovation at the end of the show.

At present, David is one of the last survivors of the female impersonation genre who has true talent and tremendous vocal ability, hardly paralleled by his peers today.   As I have said before many times, de Alba, like good wine, gets better and better with time.

What a wonderful show!   It was great to finally see David De Alba perform in person.   Throughout the years I have seen some of the great female impersonators, Charles Pierce, Craig Russell, Jim Bailey & Jimmie James to name a few.   Now I can add David De Alba to that list.   If you love female impersonation, then you must see David's Tribute to Judy Garland.   David's renditions of the Garland standards were right on, from the glamorous outfits to the flawless make-up, to the Garland poses.

It was a thrill to be in the sold-out audience.   As much as I liked the singing, I also got a kick out of the stories and anecdotes that David told between the music.   All I can say is BRAVO David, and I hope we get to see more of your perfomances.   A New Fan, Kim.

David captures the feel of a Garland performance to a T.   His rendition, as Judy, of "Rockabye Your Baby" gave me the chills.   The show was enjoyable from beginning to end.