Last Waltz Tour ’24 brings star-studded lineup to Beaver Creek

In 1976, The Band played a Thanksgiving concert at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco that still stands the test of time. Hailed by many as the greatest concert event ever, it acted as The Band’s farewell, and what a farewell it was: It included more than a dozen special guests, including Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Ringo Starr, Muddy Waters, Ronnie Wood and Neil Young, among others.

While Saturday’s Last Waltz Tour ’24 at Vilar Performing Arts Center won’t include a turkey dinner or extend into the wee hours of the night, it still features a star-studded lineup comprised of Ryan Bingham, Mike Campbell, Benmont Tench, Don Was, John Medeski, Dave Malone, Terence Higgins, Cyril Neville and Mark Mullins & The Levee Horns. 

It’s the first time that original Heartbreakers members Campbell and Tench have toured together since 2017 — a phenomenon that hasn’t occurred since Tom Petty died. 

And, audiences in Colorado — which includes the Vilar Performing Arts Center — will be treated to Lukas Nelson joining the tour.

The original Last Waltz began with “Up on Cripple Creek” and ended with “Don’t Do It,” The Band’s cover of Marvin Gaye’s “Baby Don’t You Do It.” The current Last Waltz tour, which only stops in 17 locations throughout the nation — with an 18th, and final, show in Ontario — honors the legendary concert, as well as the legacy of The Band’s co-founder, Robbie Robertson. Blackbird Presents established The Last Waltz Tour in 2016 as a 40th-anniversary celebration of the original show.

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“This band, made up of these artists, playing these songs, is what (we) dreamed of when we began planning this tour. Now the dream is a reality. Do not miss these shows,” said Keith Wortman, creator and producer of The Last Waltz Tour franchise. 

The Vilar Performing Arts Center audience has taken that last bit of advice to heart; as of Oct. 22, the only tickets remaining were for standing room only in the orchestra pit — albeit, that’s an exceptional spot to see the musicians up-close and personal.

“The line-up of The Last Waltz is truly iconic, offering a one-time opportunity to hear some of the greatest voices and instrumentalists in rock and country perform the music of The Band, together on-stage,” said Owen Hutchinson, Vilar Performing Arts Center’s artistic director. “To host any one of these artists on our stage would be an honor. To have them performing together in the intimacy of the Vilar is a dream come true.”