The Daily Tribune recently caught up with TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHSETRA mastermind/director Paul O'Neill. An excerpt from the interview is available below:

The real excitement is over a pair of projects targeted for the stage, both of which are "about 60 percent done" according to O'Neill. Romanov: What Kings Must Whisper, a rock opera about Russia's Bolshevik Revolution in 1918, was supposed to be TSO's first album in 1994, while Gutter Ballet began life as a 1989 album for the group Savatage, whose frontman, Jon Oliva, is working with O'Neill on the rewrite.

"As it gets closer and closer to the end, it gets harder and harder to finish," O'Neill explains. "Each album is unique, with their own problems and their own perks. We've just got to work it all out. I learned a long time ago not to predict when things will be ready. There are songs I thought would be done in five days that took us two months. That's just the way it works. The bottom line is we don't turn in albums until they're ready."

That said, O'Neill says he feels a certain pressure not to let nine years elapse as he did between Beethoven's Last Night and Night Castle. "I don't want to go that period of time without a new record again," he acknowledges. "That was too long to go without something new."

But even as he's working on the music, O'Neill is thinking about how the new productions will look on stage. And rest assured he's thinking big.

"We're probably going to avoid (Broadway) and open up in a casino in Vegas or something," O'Neill predicts. "What rock considers great production is way past where Broadway is at; they simply don't have the infrastructure to support the things we have in mind. A lot of Broadway shows are running on technology that was around 100 years ago — basically light bulbs and sets that move on and off by manual labor, on wheels.

"The take-your-breath-away special effects of PINK FLOYD and THE WHO simply don't exist on Broadway. The entire model has to change, and we have to go where we think we have the best chance of changing it. The bar keeps getting higher and higher, and we're the ones raising it, whether it's the Christmas show or the things we're planning for the future."

Click here for the complete story.

In the video below, TSO performs 'Wizards Of Winter' for iHeartRadio on November 28th at the iHeartRadio Theater presented by P.C. Richard & Son:

The remaining routing for both the east and west coast TSO companies is available below:

December

15 - Milwaukee, WI - Bradley Center
15 - Milwaukee, WI - Bradley Center
15 - Wichita, KS - Intrust Bank Arena
16 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena
16 - Grand Rapids, MI - Van Andel Arena
16 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
16 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
17 - Detroit, MI - Palace Auburn Hills
17 - Detroit, MI - Palace Auburn Hills
17 - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center
17 - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade Center
18 - Columbus, OH - Schottenstein / Nationwide Arena
18 - Columbus, OH - Schottenstein / Nationwide Arena
18 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
18 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
21 - Uniondale, NY - Nassau Coliseum
21 - Uniondale, NY - Nassau Coliseum
21 - Austin, TX - Frank Irwin Center
21 - Austin, TX - Frank Irwin Center
22 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
22 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
22 - San Antonio, TX - AT&T; Center
22 - San Antonio, TX - AT&T; Center
23 - Pittsburgh, PA - Consol Energy Center
23 - Pittsburgh, PA - Consol Energy Center
23 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
23 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
26 - Albany, NY - Times Union Center
26 - Albany, NY - Times Union Center
26 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
26 - Denver, CO - Pepsi Center
27 - Buffalo, NY - HSBC Center
27 - Buffalo, NY - HSBC Center
28 - Salt Lake City, UT - Energy Solutions Arena
28 - Salt Lake City, UT - Energy Solutions Arena
29 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
29 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre
29 - Las Vegas, NV - Thomas & Mack Center
29 - Las Vegas, NV - Thomas & Mack Center
30 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena
30 - Cleveland, OH - Quicken Loans Arena
30 - Phoenix, AZ - Jobing.com Arena
30 - Phoenix, AZ - Jobing.com Arena