'The end of a dream': Beatles' music master faces close of 'Love'

LAS VEGAS — For Giles Martin, it was a “You say yes, I say no,” situation.

At stake was The Beatles’ music being remastered for “Love” at The Mirage. The dispute was between Martin and Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte, whose company was a partner in the production.

“I had this constant argument with Guy about the music and how to modernize the music for ‘Love,’” says Martin, who led the revival of The Beatles’ music for the whimsical production. “I say, if you had modernized the music of ‘Love’ 18 years ago, it would be 18 years old by now. But everything you hear now is The Beatles, and I stand by it.”

“Love,” the only licensed live Beatles show in the world, closed on Saturday night. The production has gone dark as The Mirage is to be redeveloped at Hard Rock Las Vegas.

‘Get Back’

The effort to embellish The Beatles’ original songs in 2006 resurfaced a decade later, through the show’s refresh. But Martin held fast to his vision all through the show’s run.

For the 54-year-old producer and composer, “Love” was an inherently personal project. Martin’s participation in recasting The Beatles’ music began with the Strip production.

In the early days, Martin consulted with his late, legendary father and Beatles producer, George Martin, on the production’s soundscape. The younger Martin stitched the music digitally in the same way his father sometimes cut and edited the tapes for the original recordings.

In one memorable moment, at the show’s fifth anniversary in June 2011, the Martins sat side-by-side and played the just-finished “Love” soundtrack at the theater’s listening room.

The closing of the show concludes a remarkable chapter in Martin’s life. The creative team was close-knit, with the Martins working with Cirque director Dominic Champagne on the first such partnership for both arts institutions.

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