AARP Orlando@50+ … Day 2
Martina Navaratilova & Nigel Worrall
Unfortunately priorities at work took over yesterday morning before I was able to get to Day 2 of the AARP Orlando @50+ and as a result I missed the opening show with Music in Motion. I also missed a few of the sessions but I did get there late afternoon and in time to hear tennis great Martina Navaratilova (pictured above with yours truly) talk about “Getting Back into the Game After Setbacks.” It was a revealing and personal story about her fight with breast cancer and how she battled back.Martina told how she dealt with the setbacks, the emotional, physical and psychological obstacles that she was driven to overcome and how she maintained her courageous and uplifting attitude during her fight. It was an interesting story and one you should read about in her new book “Shape Your Self.”
The highlight of the evening was the treat of seeing B.B. King and Gladys Knight share the stage. A lot of people use the words “brilliant” or “superb” after a concert but this simply went beyond those words. It was magnificent. There won’t be too many more chances left to see B.B. King in all his glory. Now aged 85 (he just celebrated his birthday on 16 September) the Mississippi native showed everyone that he can still strum the guitar and sing the blues like no other. It was a privilege to hear him and let’s hope he’s still able to go on for a few more years… he has work to do…so he said… as he apologized for all the rap artists currently talking women down in their music. Right on!
It was hard to beat B.B. King…but we were then treated to an astonishing performance by Gladys Knight. At one point she broke down in tears (after singing “The Way We Were“) and then gave everything as she performed some of her most famous numbers. With some artists you get the feeling they are just going through the motions but not with Gladys and that’s what makes her the superstar she is. It was a stunning and fantastic way to end the night… and it was over so so quickly as the final number “Midnight Train to Georgia” brought the house down far too quickly. I could have stayed all night listening to her!
Here’s some video…
