The return of the Turnage Theater is heralding the return of the King.

On the nationally celebrated day of love — Valentine’s Day — renowned Elvis impersonator Keith Henderson will bring “Illusions of the King” back to Washington for a family friendly show that Elvis lovers will love.

Henderson, who originally hails from Jacksonville, makes his home in Chapel Hill, but more than 30 years of Elvis impersonation has taken him many places: to Biloxi in 2002, where he beat out Elvis impersonators from across the world to win the $50,000 Tribute to the King contest; onto the pages of New York Magazine in 1999; to Council Bluffs, Iowa where he won the “Image of Elvis” competition for three years running, 1998-2000.

Promoter Marshall Stephenson, a musician and host of the Bluegrass Train radio show on The Big Dog, 98.5 FM, calls Henderson the best Elvis Presley impersonator there is—and he should know: in 1955, he met the King at the Ambassador Theater in Raleigh.

“I met Elvis before he was really a household word,” Stephenson said. “Such a friendly guy, one of the friendliest guys I ever met.”

As far as impersonators go, Stephenson said that Henderson’s voice is a dead ringer for Elvis.

“Keith Henderson is such a good artist. You’ve got to be good to have people come and see you time and time again. He is that good,” Stephenson said.

Henderson is no stranger to Washington — when he was growing up in Jacksonville, he used to come to Washington to go crabbing. He said he’s looking forward to performing at the Turnage Theater again.

“That is a very nice theater. They did a fantastic job when they redid it,” Henderson said. “It’s not too big. You can have a good up close and personal show.”

Audience interaction is a staple in Henderson’s performance: he often leaves the stage to sing to audience members. But one thing that Henderson makes clear is that “Illusions of the King” is good, clean fun.

“Our show is a family show,” he said. “It’s a show you can bring your baby sister or great-grandmother to.”

Unlike many performers, Henderson encourages the audience to bring their cameras — the more flashes going off during the show, the better, he said.

“All the flash is part of the experience,” he laughed.

Tickets to the 7 p.m. “Illusions of the King” performance on Feb. 14 are $28 and can be purchased through the Beaufort County Arts Council/Turnage Theater box office at 252-946-2504. The box office will open at 6 p.m. on the day of the event. For more information, call Marshall Stephenson at 919-633-5576.