Donna Summer performs at the Hard Rock in Hollywood. (Veda Jo Jenkins / sflimages.com)

Photos: Donna Summer at the Hard Rock | Visit this photographer’s website

The lights went down, the trumpeters blew their horns. They were announcing the arrival of the Queen — the Queen of Disco that is — Donna Summer. Dressed in regal purple, Summer commanded the stage with her presence and her huge voice at the Hard Rock Live on Aug. 18, bringing the crowd to their feet with her favorites “Dim All The Lights” and “Love To Love You Baby”.

Singing “I’m a Fire”, her Spanish lyrics “que sera esta vida
o yo te quiero, yo te quiero, yo te quiero esta manana” had the crowd cheering. Asking the crowd where they came from brought even more cheers, especially for Cuba. That said, the crowd was very diverse, showing how Summer has crossed all ethnic backgrounds and brings everyone together.

Three lucky ladies in the front row got the dream of a lifetime when Summer pulled them on stage as back-up singers for “On the Radio”, calling it Donna Summer Karaoke time. For Annie Balliro, Stacey Sanchez and Nina Warsager, it was a memory in the making.

“Her spirit is beautiful. She looked amazing.” shared Balliro. For Warsager it was the “best birthday of my life!”

Summer even sang “Happy Birthday” to Warsager with the crowd signing along. Having the queen of disco sing to you, now that trumps everything.

It just shows how humble summer is and she continually thanked the crowd “for loving me”. She shared “that no matter how she feels it’s her job to come out and make people happy. Performers aren’t always happy but it’s the music that is magic.” This led into “Let It Be Magic”, energizing the crowd.

Summer shed some tears during her tribute to the late Michael Jackson singing “Smile” which was originally sung by Nat King Cole, in 1954:

“Smile, what’s the use of crying?/You’ll find that life is still worthwhile, if you just smile.”

This was her message as she continued to sing hit after hit, shedding a few tears, inspiring people to love and forever thanking the audience for loving her over the years. The queen of disco showed she still has a voice that blows you away even at 61.

She is a performer, from her elaborate dresses (four dress changes!) to her diamond-studded microphone. The show moved through the royal entry, into south of the border and a “rain” section complete with dancers, two back-up singers and a 7 piece band.

She may have said “It’s very difficult to be a diva these days,” but Donna Summer has come a long way from singing in the choir.