THE BEATLES: THE LOST CONCERT Documentary Comes to U.S. Theaters Tonight, 5/22

Screenvision, in partnership with Ace Arts, and multiple-award winning music documentary producer Iambic Media, brings one of the music world's true "lost treasures" to the big screen with the feature presentation of THE BEATLES: THE LOST CONCERT. The new 92-minute documentary charts the birth and impact of Beatlemania in America and includes, in its entirety, their first-ever full U.S. concert performance from February 11, 1964 at D.C.'s Washington Coliseum, the only complete Beatles' concert available to fans, one which has remained unseen by movie theater audiences across the nation for over 47 years. Rock superstar and American Idol judge Steven Tyler commented: "This blows away every performance I've ever seen, including Elvis!"

The story of their historic arrival in America and the impact they had is revealed through new interviews with more than 20 Beatles' associates, journalists, disc jockeys, concert attendees, historians and music luminaries and archival footage of the Fab Four. The list includes Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and Joe Perry, rock pioneer Chuck Berry, super producer Mark Ronson, journalists Maureen Cleave, Larry Kane and Ed Rudy, concert promoter Sid Bernstein, Beatle George's sister Louise Harrison, The Strokes' Albert Hammond Jr. and Nick Valensi, chart-topping U.K. songstress Duffy, renowned Beatles historIan Bruce Spizer, and Mike Mitchell, whose recently unearthed photos of the event are seen throughout the movie.

On February 11, 1964, two days after their record shattering appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show," The Beatles traveled by train through a snowstorm to Washington, D.C. to perform their first-ever concert before an American audience at The Washington Coliseum, before an overbooked audience of 8,092 screaming (mostly female) teenagers. Their 12-song set that lasted a little over a half-hour and included both chart-topping originals like "She Loves You" and high-energy covers like "Twist and Shout." Professionally filmed by an eight-camera crew and mixed live on location, the show was broadcast a month later via closed-circuit to movie theaters across America to two million teenagers. The film of the concert was then lost and remained unseen in its entirety by audiences for over 47 years! The original master tapes have now been restored and re-mastered and the entire concert, the ONLY complete Beatles concert available to fans, is included in The Beatles: The Lost Concert.

Sure to rekindle the fires of Beatlemania for both the generation who lived it and the younger ones influenced by it, the event will be shown in movie theaters across the U.S. in a limited engagement tonight, May 22, 2012. In addition, a special World Premiere is scheduled at New York's landmark Ziegfield Theater on May 6 with two showings. For information, including detailed history, movie trailer and tickets, go to www.lostbeatlesconcert.com.

The resonating impact of the Beatles' in performance is illustrated in the raves given in interviews during the documentary. Commenting on them as musical competition for all who came in their wake, Mark Ronson, the producer behind hits from Amy Winehouse and Adele, adds: "You're always going to be standing in the shadow of The Beatles." U.K. pop sensation Duffycalls them "the Holy Grail of music," while Mike Mitchell, the young photographer who chronicled the show, adds: "The concert was like being in the delivery room at the birth of an entire generation." Tommy Roe, one of their opening acts that evening may have put it best: "This is history!"

To post a comment, you must register and login.