British Invasion in New Hyde Park

Donning the iconic hairdos and lavish costumes that made The Beatles second to none through the 1960s and 70s, The Cast of Beatlemania brought New Hyde Park back in time to relive the magic of that era.

The Cast of Beatlemania has visited New Hyde Park six times and on Saturday the group performed once again to nearly 4,000 patrons.  Playing two acts with three different costume changes, the group performed a gambit of hits that made the Beatles as profound to culture as they stand today. 

Supervisor, and also the man responsible for the entertaining evening, Jon Kaiman is a big Beatles fan.  He watched the audience from the side of the stage and was pleased to see everyone was enjoying their night.Kaiman was especially enamored by the mix of people as well as the older generation and the younger generation filling the seats and bleachers to listen to the timeless sounds. 

“The Beatles’ music transcends generations,” Kaiman said.  “That’s what makes them such a success.”

Kaiman estimated the turnout to have been between 4,000 and 5,000 people. Prior to the concert, the Town had set up signs all over and sent out emails to Town of North Hempstead residents.  Kaiman believes the large turnout is due to the feeling of being at a stadium. Each year the concert has been held at , the stage has been pushed further and further back to allow more people to come. 

For Floral Park resident Joseph, this was his first time seeing The Cast of Beatlemania. Having never seen the actual Beatles perform live, Joseph believes this is the next best thing. He and his wife had previously seen the Liverpool Shuffle, another Beatle cover band, twice early in the week. Despite Paul McCartney’s concert at Yankee Stadium the same night, Joseph chose this event because it brings the community together and is an overall excellent idea.

Another Floral Park resident, Jim Heine, has seen The Cast of Beatlemania perform four times; every single time he has loved it.  The only thing he would change about the concert is the lineup as his favorite Beatle song; “Here, There, And Everywhere” was not performed. Other than that, Heine’s night was perfect as he enjoyed it with his family.

The Cast of Beatlemania is an international tour that has been on the road after performing on Broadway for a number of years. Carlo Cantamessa plays the late John Lennon on the rhythm guitar, Lenie Colacino plays Paul McCartney on the bass guitar, Jim Filgate plays the late George Harrison on the lead guitar, John Delgado plays Ringo Starr on the drums, and added to the quartet is Mark Templeton who plays the keyboard.  The group channels the spirit of the original Beatles not only from their music but down to the style of their glasses.

As parents enjoyed the music, their children ran around barefoot on the turf.  Kaiman believes the traditional event is so special because everyone can enjoy it. 

“It is a good cross section of time," Kaiman said.

Setlist:

Act One:
Seventeen
Beethoven
Till There Was You
Please Please Me
All My Loving
A Hard Days Night
Happy Just to Dance
I Call Your Name
Honey Don't
Help!
In My Life
Norwegian Wood
Nowhere Man
Drive My Car
I Feel Fine
Daytripper

Act Two:
SGT. Pepper/ A Little Help
Strawberry Fields
Penny Lane
I Am The Walrus
Hide Your Love Away
Got To Get You
Come Together
Back In The USSR
Birthday
Something
Lady Madonna
Hey Jude
Here Comes The Sun
Get Back
Revolution

Download the movie