Mannheim Steamroller Looks Ahead To Christmas

Matt Christine Photography – Mannheim Steamroller

Fans might suspect Mannheim Steamroller founder Chip Davis is always looking forward to Christmas.  A holiday tradition, the collection of highly talented musicians will embark on their annual holiday tour in November.

We probably should say two groups of highly talented musicians.  As in the past, the two-month outing will feature two Mannheim Steamroller groups traveling across the land.  Davis, who has 19 gold, eight multiplatinum and four platinum-certified records, will direct and co-produce performances with MagicSpace Entertainment.

You might say the 2018 Christmas season begins Nov. 14. That’s when one Mannheim Steamroller group performs at the Saenger Theatre in Pensacola, Fla., while the other group plays Rushmore Plaza in Rapid City, S.D.  Other stops include Colorado Springs, Cleveland, Daytona Beach, San Diego, Milwaukee and Philadelphia.  The tour concludes Dec. 30 with one group at the Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside, Calif., while the other wraps up the journey at Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land Texas.

Mannheim Steamroller’s annual holiday outing brings fans back again and again, resulting in solid box office numbers.  Data submitted to Pollstar reports the 2017 tour sold, on average, 94 percent of its tickets.  Information for individual dates confirms that figure, with many sold-out shows while others filled venues up to 85 percent, 90 percent or even 97 percent capacity.

One group’s Dec. 30  gig at Majestic Theatre in San Antonio, Texas, sold all 2,857 tickets and grossed $186,065. The other Dec. 30 show – E.J. Thomas Hall in Akron, Ohio – sold 2,526 out of 2,855 tickets and grossed $117,648.

You can also experience Davis’ creation via the PBS program “Mannheim Steamroller 30/40 Live” with the number 30 denoting three decades of holiday shows while the 40 tells you how long Mannheim has been rollin.’  The 2018 tour will include many of the songs heard on the broadcast.

Many shows go on sale in July.  Best to check with your local venue while monitoring Pollstar’s Mannheim Steamroller page for updates.

One more thing.  You can turn back the clock a few years to Pollstar’s 2014 interview with Chip Davis via this link.