With dazzling bright lights, Magic Elvis takes to the stage: it’s time for the showdown. Little by little, the King of Rock’n’Roll has transformed from the much desired and idolised superstar into the helpless, ugly wreck of his last few days.
Cloaked in his hits, at first he still radiates the charm of the eternal winner and doles out attention with the patronage of a king. James Dean is still closer to him than anyone else. The little pills in between are still a symbol for the pop star’s sophistication. But after a while, the tone changes, the façade of the flawless show begins to crumble. He who once ruled the world’s stages, who could break a woman’s heart at will, he still knows his business. But what fails him is strength and self control, and, increasingly, the professional must give way to the private. Lonely and disappointed, he seeks refuge in drugs. Plagued by shame and guilt, he seeks consolation in his daughter. He invents a world that won’t be his any more. Elvis is just a legend now.
With Graceland, Ulrich Zaum has written a monologue that truly does Elvis justice. The most famous man of the 20th century drowns in the glittering fireworks of glamour and fame. Only his music still serves as evidence of a time when Elvis the person was no less great than the songs are. But nothing could stop his decline.