The Union Theater will fill with the majestic sound of Freddie Mercury and the music of Queen this Sunday. But instead of the leather-clad Mercury and his former bandmates, Gary Mullen and the Works will be playing the music of the legendary band.
“A lot of people are very excited about it,” said Assistant Director of the LSU Union Theater Terry Serio. “[Mullen] seem[s] to be very excited about it, and we’re hoping we’ll have a sold out house.”
For the performance, Mullen will be taking to the stage as the legendary Freddie Mercury. Mullen, a native Scotsman, began impersonating Mercury on the British television show “Stars in Their Eyes” after his wife and mother applied for him to be on the show in 2000.
After winning the competition, Mullen later formed his band, The Works.
“I put the band together in 2002,” Mullen said. “We started touring as a full functioning stage show.”
After putting his band together, Mullen started touring the world and playing for large audiences.
“One of the big career highlights for me was playing in front of 20,000 people in London,” Mullen said.
Now, Gary Mullen and The Works are on their sixth tour of the United States with stops in Shreveport, Fayetteville, Ark., and Jacksonville, Fla., in addition to playing at the Union Theater on Sunday.
“We really enjoy coming to the U.S. because the audiences are really responsive,” Mullen said. “I think it makes a difference playing places we’ve never played before and we’re looking forward to it.”
Mullen said Queen fans can expect the hits in addition to some deep cuts.
“We keep the show a secret,” Mullen said. “Songs like ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘We Will Rock You’ are songs that have to be in the show all the time, but we try to play some old cuts and some weird things as well.”
Mullen enjoys playing the lesser-known tracks with the hope that he can encourage new fans to look deeper into Queen’s back catalog.
“We want to show everybody that Queen [was] not just a singles band,” Mullen said. “They played almost every [genre] of music. One minute it was heavy metal, the next gospel, so we try to put the show together so that we can cover the entire back catalog in the two-hour show.”
One Night of Queen will take place at 4:30 p.m. this Sunday at the Union Theater. Tickets are free for students with an ID.
“We really enjoy coming to the US because the audiences are really responsive.”
Who: One Night of Queen
Where: LSU Union Theater
How Much: Free to Students with ID
