Memphis stars in show Hallmark’s ‘Christmas at Graceland’ has premiere
even before the movie’s premiere, as Graceland workers handed out garlands of glowing Christmas lights to the hundreds of visitors who gathered across the street from the mansion to see country music artists Marty Stuart and Scotty McCreery symbolically flip the switch to illuminate the traditional holiday decorations that light up Elvis Presley’s famous home. Meanwhile, a Santa Claus who had undergone what a Graceland worker called an “Elvis remix” — his eyes twinkled (presumably) behind a pair of aviator shades and his traditional black belt was replaced with a rhinestone-studded jumpsuit belt — roamed the grounds, while artificial snow was pumped from a blower near the photo-op red carpet.
For many visitors, the happy vibe was genuine, and needed no encouragement.
“We come to Graceland any time we can,” said Trenton, Florida, resident Hannah Long, 24, in Memphis for the lighting ceremony with her mother, her father and her two daughters, both named for Elvis: 4-year-old Presley and 10-month-old Aron.
“When I was 18, 19, I had some tough stuff going on in my life,” Long said. “I was struggling with anxiety very bad. I would listen to Elvis if I felt a panic attack coming on, and listening to him and watching him in one of his movies was the only thing that would calm me.”
The lighting ceremony was followed by a brief live performance by McCreery and his band, across the street from the mansion. A performance also marks the end of “Christmas at Graceland,” when Laurel leaves behind her laptop and “pah charts” (i.e., pie charts — Pickler makes Dolly Parton sound like a Bowery Boy) to join Clay on an outdoor stage on the mansion grounds itself, to belt out “Joy to the World” with the accompaniment of a gospel octet. The song delivers a message of salvation, while Laurel shares another message, through dialog: “You can’t beat Christmas at Graceland.”