I Witnessed a God Perform AKA I Went to the Vampire Lestat Concert in New York City

I am someone who grew up knowing that Lestat de Lioncourt is a rockstar. Partially because the first thing I ever saw from Anne Rice’s Immortal Universe was the 2002 film Queen of the Damned. My family loved Aaliyah, what can I say?

So when I finally engaged with Rice’s universe as an adult, I was shocked by how different Lestat was in the 1994 film. Tom Cruise did an incredible job but I needed to know how he went from an over the top, angry vampire who loved Louis de Pointe du Lac most of all to a rockstar. Luckily the AMC series Interview with the Vampire brought that to me with season 3, The Vampire Lestat.

Season 3 puts Sam Reid’s Lestat at the forefront of the story, shifting from Louis’ (Jacob Anderson) perspective. And it takes us into the Rice novel that does have Lestat in his “rockstar” era. To celebrate, the show’s NYC premiere included watching the first episode of season 3 and then Lestat himself came out on stage to perform.

It was not a simple “Let’s bring Sam Reid out to sing a song and then wrap it up” situation. Instead, it was a 30 minute concert of songs featured throughout the entire season of The Vampire Lestat, including my two favorites from the first six episodes: “You’re Biggest Fan” and “The Loneliness”. One of which I put on my Instagram account for your listening pleasure.

For 30 minutes, I felt as if I was watching Lestat himself bewitch a crowd. Even though some of the songs were completely new to most of the audience, they were captivated just as I was. It did make it special having heard some of the songs while watching the show though, singing along to “The Loneliness”? Breathtaking.

Sam Reid literally is Lestat de Lioncourt

Sometimes, you watch an actor play a part and think “wow, they’re great at this role.” Other times, the role becomes synonymous with them. Reid’s performance of Lestat is kind of both but also something even better at the same time. He is a man possessed while on stage as Lestat.

I watched as Reid slunk on stage as Lestat as the opening chords of “Long Face” played. I use “slunk” because that is the best way to describe how sweet Sam Reid transformed into Lestat before our eyes. Yes, that included a mid-show rant about his love (Louis de Pointe du Lac, of course).

Even with a slight technical issue, Reid kept the show rolling and made it truly something that Lestat (and Anne Rice) would have loved. But what made this special for me was seeing just how many people were captivated by the Vampire Lestat on stage.

These novels and this show have reached a global audience, with so many falling in love with the antics of Louis and Lestat. Hearing the screams, seeing the posts, and watching Reid fully embody Lestat before our very eyes was an experience I will cherish forever. But it has also made me greedy.

I would give my mortal life to see Reid take the stage as Lestat once a year at least. Because who doesn’t want to see Lestat have 6 costume changes within 5 songs and body roll his way through one of the best songs written about loneliness?

The Vampire Lestat airs Sudays on AMC. You won’t want to miss it.

(featured image: Rachel Leishman)

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