I feel so privileged to have been able to attend Barbara Mandrell's Last Dance Concert and the VIP Party afterward. It was not obvious that this was Barbara Mandrell's last public performance. The concert was exceptional as all of hers are because she puts in 110% of herself.

The differences in this concert and previous ones I have attended were that TNN was taping for television and thus Barbara had to keep moving along. During the time that the video tape had to be changed Barbara did accept gifts from fans which took about 20 minutes. Barbara very gratefully accepted the T-shirts, flowers, "sterling roses", etc.

The costumes were quite spectacular and sparkly. Barbara changed from a baby blue pants suit with sparkling vest to a long red glittering gown to a shorter bright blue skirt.

Barbara started off the show appearing on the staircase and then singing and dancing to the uptempo song, "Footloose". She sang many of her hit songs including "I Was Country When Country Wasn't Cool", "In Times Like These", "Sleeping Single In A Double Bed", and danced a line dance to "Ten-Pound Hammer." This Queen of Country Music performed "You Are My Sunshine" in the various musical styles with the Do-Rites, which is a concert favorite. The concert was ended with "Can't Turn You Loose" and followed by an encore of "You'll Never Know".

Barbara worked very hard in this performance both physically and mentally. She took water breaks and there some times when she had to really fight off the tears, but she did appear to handle things in stride.

The VIP Reception was held in the foyer of the Grande Ole Opry House and was very elegant. Many more people were in attendance than I expected. It was super anyway though. There were tables of cheeses, crackers, vegetables, dips, chipped cucumbers and zucchini, cream cheese appetizers, and a variety of chocolate desserts. They also served complimentary beverages with the price of a VIP ticket.

I saw quite a few country celebrities walking around and socializing at this reception. I briefly saw Irlene and Vanessa and Deric were at the dessert table indulging in some chocolates. Ralph Emery and Reba McIntyre were at the concert, but I did not see them at the reception (though Ralph stood very near me after the concert speaking with some friends). Ken gladly posed for pictures with fans at the reception as did Matthew and Nathan. Mary was at the reception and Irby was at the concert, but I did not see him at the reception. While seeing all these people, Barbara was being interviewed by various TV crews. After about two hours, she finished and had the opportunity to meet with us. It was very special to talk with Barbara and she was sure to let us individually know how much she appreciated us coming to the concert. Barbara stayed until the wee hours of the morning autographing and having pictures taken. She made each of us feel very special and I will remember that for the rest of my life.

Get to the Heart The Barbara Mandrell Story- TV Biopic CBS Sunday Sept 28,1997

Starring Maureen McCormick as Mandrell

"Get to the Heart... was top rated movie of the night" according to Neilsen ratings. - For the week of 9/22 thru 9/28, "Get to the Heart" ranked #12 in the Top Ranked Programs in Primetime; Pulling in an estimated 19.9 million viewers!