In Episode 389 of the Iron City Rocks Podcast, which can be heard via the audio player below, Trans-Siberian Orchestra drummer Jeff Plate is the featured guest. Jeff as been the band’s drummer since TSO’s inception. Jeff talks about the plans for the 2018 20th anniversary of live performances tour which will include a performance of The Ghosts Of Christmas Eve. Jeff shares how he prepares for so many shows in such a short time, what it was like performing without founder Paul O’Neil in 2017 and much, much more.

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Marking the band’s 20th consecutive year of touring, Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) recently announced its highly-anticipated Winter Tour 2018. A new video trailer can be viewed below:

TSO’s annual November-December multi-sensory extravaganza, which sells out venues year after year, has cemented the group’s status as a must-attend, multi-generational, holiday tradition. This year’s 20th anniversary tour, a presentation of TSO’s unforgettable The Ghosts of Christmas Eve, featuring founder/composer/lyricist Paul O’Neill’s timeless story of a runaway who finds her way into a mysterious abandoned theater, is set to begin on November 14th and will visit 65 cities across North America, for 100-plus performances, before concluding on December 30th (see full itinerary below). TSO’s Winter Tour 2018 is presented by Hallmark Channel.

Based on TSO’s multi-platinum DVD and long running PBS fundraiser, The Ghosts Of Christmas Eve, this year’s tour will include new awe-inspiring effects, as well as amazing staging with an all new design from the dedicated team handpicked by the group’s late creator, Paul O’Neill.

The rock opera also features such enduring fan-favorites as "Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24", "O’ Come All Ye Faithful", "Good King Joy", "Christmas Canon", "Music Box Blues", "Promises To Keep" and "This Christmas Day". Additionally, the tour will enjoy a new second set containing some of TSO’s greatest hits and fan-pleasers.

As in all previous years, a portion of every ticket sold benefits select local charities. To date, more than $15 million has been distributed from TSO to worthy charities all across North America.

On September 28th, Rhino Entertainment will release a 20th Anniversary Edition of The Christmas Attic on CD and digitally. A vinyl version of the release will be available November 23th. The second instalment in The Christmas Trilogy tells the story of a little girl who spends the night in an attic filled with yuletide reveries, while guitar solos and choral vocals soar over a rock orchestral backing across 16 tracks, including a previously unreleased on CD and vinyl version of “Christmas Jam" (Live).

Tour dates:

November
14 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center (4:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
14 - Council Bluffs, IA - Mid-America Center (7:30 PM)
15 - Fort Wayne, IN - Allen County War Memorial Coliseum (7:30 PM)
15 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center (7:30 PM)
16 - University Park, PA - Bryce Jordan Center (7:30 PM)
17 - Allentown, PA - PPL Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
17 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
18 - Wilkes Barre, PA - Mohegan Sun Arena 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
18 - Colorado Springs, CO - Broadmoor World Arena 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
20 - Salt Lake City, UT - Vivint Smart Home Arena (4:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
21 - Erie, PA - Erie Insurance Arena (3:30 PM & 8:00 PM)
23 - Manchester, NH - SNHU Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
23 - Spokane, WA - Spokane Arena (7:30 PM)
24 - Worcester, MA - DCU Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
24 - Portland, OR - Moda Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
25 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
25 - Tacoma, WA - Tacoma Dome (3:00 PM)
28 - Albany, NY - Times Union Center (7:30 PM)
28 - Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena (7:30 PM)
29 - Rochester, NY - Blue Cross Arena (7:30 PM)
29 - Fresno, CA - Save Mart Center (7:30 PM)
30 - Toledo, OH - Huntington Center (3:30 PM & 8:00 PM)
30 - Sacramento, CA - Golden 1 Center 3:30 PM & (7:30 PM)

December
1 - Dayton, OH - Nutter Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
1 - Ontario, CA - Citizens Business Bank Arena 3:30 PM & (7:30 PM)
2 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
2 - Phoenix, AZ - Gila River Arena 3:30 PM & (7:30 PM)
5 - Indianapolis, IN - Bankers Life Fieldhouse (7:30 PM)
5 - Oklahoma City, OK - Chesapeake Energy Arena (7:30 PM)
6 - Lexington, KY - Rupp Arena (7:30 PM)
6 - St Louis, MO - Enterprise Center (7:30 PM)
7 - Greenville, SC - Bon Secours Wellness Arena (4:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
7 - Knoxville, TN - Thompson-Boling Arena (8:00 PM)
8 - Charlotte, NC - Spectrum Center 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
8 - Duluth, GA - Infinite Energy Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
9 - Greensboro, NC - Greensboro Coliseum Complex 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
9 - Birmingham, AL - Legacy Arena at The BJCC 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
12 - Raleigh, NC - PNC Arena (7:30 PM)
12 - Columbia, SC - Colonial Life Arena (7:30 PM)
13 - Charleston, WV - Charleston Civic Center (7:30 PM)
13 - Jacksonville, FL - Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena (7:30 PM)
14 - Cincinnati, OH - U.S. Bank Arena (4:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
14 - Sunrise, FL - BB&T Arena (8:00 PM)
15 - Buffalo, NY - KeyBank Center 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
15 - Orlando, FL - Amway Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
16 - Hershey, PA - Giant Center 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
16 - Tampa, FL - Amalie Arena 3:00 PM & (7:30 PM)
19 - Richmond, VA - Richmond Coliseum (7:30 PM)
19 - New Orleans, LA - Smoothie King Center (7:30 PM)
20 - Uniondale, NY - NYCB Live/Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (8:00 PM)
20 - Austin, TX - Frank Erwin Center (7:30 PM)
21 - Philadelphia, PA - Wells Fargo Center (3:30 PM & 8:00 PM)
21 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center (3:30 PM & 8:00 PM)
22 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
22 - Dallas, TX - American Airlines Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
23 - Washington, DC - Capital One Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
23 - San Antonio, TX - AT&T Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
26 - Columbus, OH - Nationwide Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
26 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
28 - Pittsburgh, PA - PPG Paints Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
28 - Chicago, IL - Allstate Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
29 - Detroit, MI - Little Caesars Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
29 - St Paul, MN - Xcel Energy Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
30 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)
30 - Milwaukee, WI - Wisconsin Entertainment and Sports Center (3:00 PM & 8:00 PM)

Since its historic touring debut, TSO has played in excess of 1,850 Winter Tour shows for more than 15 million fans, with tour grosses of more than $675 million. The group has also sold 12 million albums and DVDs.

TSO’s Winter Tour 2017 achieved a record gross of more than $61.5 million with approximately 1 million tickets sold. The tour was ranked #11 on the Worldwide Ticket Sales “Top 100 Tours” chart (also #11 in 2016), #15 on the “Top 200 North American Tours” chart (up from #16 in 2016), and #27 on the “Top 100 Worldwide Tours” by concert industry trade Pollstar magazine. In 2009, Pollstar ranked TSO at #20 on the “Top Tour(s) of the Decade” and Billboard placed TSO at #25 on its “Top Touring Artists of the Decade.”