Empire Produces Unprecedented Lineup of International Talent for Major Party in Monte Carlo, Monaco

When the rich and powerful celebrate, they do it in legendary style and in the most beautiful places on earth. So it was when one of the world's leading business leaders and entrepreneurs wanted to celebrate his 70th birthday with family and friends in the fairy tale Kingdom of Monaco, located between the French and Italian Rivieras. For this anything-but-ordinary birthday party, the client chose superstar event designer Colin Cowie to create a legendary event in the Sporting Club in Monte Carlo. Colin Cowie, turned to Empire Entertainment to help coordinate and produce the massive entertainment components of the evening.The event began with cocktails in the luxurious gardens of the Sporting Club, overlooking the beach and Mediterranean. The 350 guests were serenaded by Los Paraguayos, a France-based ensemble whose music is reminiscent of that of the Gipsy Kings.

The guests then entered the stunning Sporting Club venue for dinner in which Colin Cowie had designed and installed sumptuous table settings, ringed by a series of five giant, floor-to-ceiling rear-projection video screens on which graphics and animation shifted and moved to enhance the setting. A jazz ensemble played from the stage.After the appetizer course and a speech, the curtains opened to reveal a cast of 14 stunning French showgirls in specially-made feather costumes and headdresses, who performed an original, high energy Moulin Rouge-style dance number to a track of 'Copacabana' for which Empire had recorded custom vocals written in collaboration by the birthday boy's wife and recording artist Corey Hart.

After dinner, toasts and speeches, a giant cake was wheeled onto the dance floor and Bebe Winans led the audience in a special rendition of 'Happy Birthday.' While this happened and the guests of honor prepared to cut the cake, the entire roof of the Sporting Club was opened and, just as the cake was cut, an incredible fireworks display began with fireworks embedded in table centerpieces, spreading to fireworks on architectural elements and then revealed to the guests directly overhead as a massive pyrotechnic display was launched from barges in the Monte Carlo harbor.No sooner did the last fireworks of the finalé fade then the guests turned around just in time to see Bebe Winans introduce the incomparable Dame Shirley Bassey who then performed her hits "Diamonds Are Forever," "Big Spender" and "Goldfinger" in front of an orchestra led by keyboard legend and musical director Greg Phillinganes. As Shirley Bassey performed, images of falling diamonds and gold were projected onto the screens surrounding the room.

Next Natalie Cole stepped into the spotlight to perform "This Will Be" and "Unforgettable" to the awestruck audience.Bebe Winans then performed two songs including "It All Comes Down to Love" and the "Legends Theme" which he had first performed for Oprah Winfrey's Legends Weekend in Santa Barbara 4 months earlier.Then pianist Billy Stritch began the telltale piano intro to "New York, New York" as a skyline images came up on the screens and the great Liza Minnelli stepped into the spotlight - bringing to their feet an audience that included U2's Bono and REM's Michael Stipe among many others. Liza looked and sounded fantastic as she performed "New York, New York" and "Cabaret" before turning over the mic to the host to address the audience.

As the host thanked his family and friends and reminisced about his extraordinary fortunate life, an army of workers scrambled behind the curtains to reset the stage for the the next phase of the event - moving an entire orchestra and band set offstage and setting up a huge new stage set for the next performers. Just as the host concluded his remarks, he introduced his musically-talented grandson who stood onstage as the curtains parted with Wyclef Jean and his band. They performed a reggae version of "Hotel California" as the guests took to the dance floor and then Wycl