TRAVEL
AT THE TIME OF HIS UNEXPECTED DEATH ON MAY 1, SINGING IMPRESSIONIST DANNY GANS WAS THE BIGGEST SOLO STAR ON THE LAS VEGAS STRIP. NO ONE ELSE EVEN
Ever since Jimmy Durante, Rose Marie, Xavier Cugat, George Jessel and George
Next door at the Luxor, the latest Cirque production, Criss Angel Believe,
Raft helped open the Flamingo for Bugsy Siegel in 1946, casino operators have
remains something of a work-in-progress. Rarely, if ever, has one of the Montreal-
counted on headliners to lure customers not only to the main showroom, but also to
based company’s shows met with such scathing reviews and audience negativity.
their restaurants, shops, slots and gaming tables. Moreover, ever since the epochal
Fans of the pop-idol illusionist said they were confused by the show’s fantasy ele-
launch of Wynn’s Mirage 20 years ago, theaters costing tens of millions of dollars
ments, while Cirque loyalists were underwhelmed by Angel’s magic.
have superseded glitzy showrooms, and marquee attractions were no longer treated
CAME CLOSE WHEN IT CAME TO TICKET SALES FOR SOLO
Still, the marketing clout that stems from having two formidable entertainment
as loss leaders. They were expected to be profit centers.
brands — three, if you count hotel parent company MGM Mirage — collaborate on a
Wayne Newton was once able to fill a showroom on a nightly basis, but times
ACTS. OBITUARY WRITERS RIGHTLY CREDITED THE FORMER PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL PLAYER WITH BEING A SINGULARLY LAS VEGAS–STYLE PHENOMENON, BUT THEY
$100 million show is formidable. It has kept the production on a more even keel at the
have changed for veteran performers. Now it’s the younger ones who attract big audi-
box office than might have been expected a few months ago. And the marriage of
ences. Celine Dion proved that the mountain would come to Mohammed when she
Cirque’s artistic sensibilities to the Beatles’ timeless songs in Love at a sister property
committed to performing exclusively at Caesars Palace for nearly five years. The show,
— the same Mirage venue where Siegfried & Roy’s trained animals once magically
a collaboration with former Cirque mastermind Franco Dragone, was a huge draw,
disappeared — could have a very long life.
inspiring Elton John, Bette Midler and Cher to sign similar long-term deals there.
A seventh Cirque production, this one honoring the memory and music of Elvis
Also hoping to follow in Dion’s footsteps is Carlos Santana, who agreed in May
STRAINED TO EXPLAIN THE PRECISE QUALITY GANS POSSESSED THAT OTHERS LACKED.
Presley, is scheduled to open in December at Aria, at CityCenter, another MGM Mirage
to a two-year “residency” deal at the Hard Rock Hotel’s refurbished Joint nightclub,
property. Meanwhile, one of the city’s most formidable entertainments, the Tropicana’s
where he’ll play 36 shows a year. Donny and Marie Osmond have extended their stay
Folies Bergere, has packed up its feathers and sequined bras after 49 years, leaving
at the Flamingo through October, 2010. And until 3 p.m. on June 25, some observers
Donn Arden’s Jubilee! at Bally’s Las Vegas the only true topless extravaganza in town.
1. Criss Angel Believe at the Luxor 2. The Lion King at Mandalay Bay 3. Love at the Mirage Background: Beyoncé helped fill the void at the Encore after Gans’ death.
Connecting the World One Phone at a Time
were predicting that Michael Jackson would end up headlining at the Las Vegas
tions. The sudden loss of a performer who could command $100 a head and routine-
Hilton, in the same room Elvis Presley once ruled. The owners of the off-Strip proper-
ly fill the Wynn Encore’s 1,500-seat house immediately recalled the economic damage
ty were owed a substantial sum of money by the King of Pop, so it made sense.
caused when a 7-year-old white Bengal tiger named Montecore sank his teeth into
As for Broadway-spawned musicals, they’ve met with mixed success in Las
Roy Horn, closing the book on Siegfried & Roy’s long Vegas run. That shocking inci-
Vegas. Mamma Mia!, Jersey Boys, The Phantom of the Opera, Menopause, the
dent occurred at the Mirage in 2003, only a short stroll from the stage where Gans
Musical and Defending the Caveman have logged long runs, but Hairspray, The
was performing. At the time, the only ticket price that rivaled Siegfried & Roy’s $111 a
Producers, Avenue Q, Spamalot and the Queen jukebox-musical, We Will Rock You,
head was the $135 tab for Cirque du Soleil’s O, and that production had an infinitely
were costly disappointments.
higher nut to meet each night. Today, there are six Cirque productions on the Strip, with one more on the run-
Disney’s The Lion King is showing promise after opening in May to rave reviews and packed houses. The show has already proven to be as popular with local resi-
way. In the nearly six years since Montecore’s near-fatal improvisation, no illusionist or
dents as it is with visitors, while attracting a far more racially diverse audience than
animal act has come close to duplicating the German duo’s success. There are a half-
those at other big-budget Strip shows. Only about 15 minutes shorter than the origi-
dozen impressionists working Las Vegas showrooms, but none is threatening the
nal, The Lion King moved into the Mandalay Bay Theatre, Mamma Mia’s former
legacy of Gans, who broke box-office records at the Stratosphere, Rio, Mirage and,
home. The production is backed by a 20-member pit orchestra — with hand percus-
for a mere two months, the Encore.
sionists on either side of the theater — and the 50-plus cast is comprised of singers
Gans produced $18 million in annual box-office revenues for his employers, according to The New York Times. Two years ago, while still at the Mirage, the 11-time Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year took out a newspaper ad to announce
and dancers from the Broadway cast and touring companies. Nine company members are from South Africa, and ticket prices range from $53 to $113. As recently as 10 or 15 years ago, image-conscious Disney wouldn’t have con-
he’d grossed $200 million by 1996. That was the year he gave up a lucrative
sidered getting into bed with a Sin City property. But hotel officials say Mamma Mia’s
career as a road warrior and guest performer at conventions, trade shows and
success was utterly persuasive. The hotel has stepped up marketing efforts as well.
corporate gatherings.
“Because the show celebrates African culture and the cast is made up of African and
So who will figuratively fill Gans’ trademark dark suit, red socks and black-andwhite spectator shoes? 40 ~ OCTOBER 2009 ~ ARROYO
American blacks, our marketing efforts have been more inclusive and organic,” said Scott Voeller, Mandalay Bay’s vice president for marketing.
CALL THE PHONE GUY
3
• Phone Systems On a much less lavish scale, Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino’s “striptease spec-
• Sales / Service
tacular,” Peepshow, has replaced Mel B and Kelly Monaco with Playboy “girl-nextdoor” Holly Madison. In a city where the sight of bare breasts is only slightly less
• Installation
unusual than, say, Running Rebel T-shirts celebrating the home team, a $12 million
• Voice Mail
burlesque show may be the ultimate gamble. Meanwhile, in the race to sate tourists’ tastes for impressions of George Burns and the Rat Pack, America’s Got Talent winner Terry Fator and his “cast of thousands” have successfully taken over the stage commanded by Gans before his move to the Encore. And impressionist Gordie Brown, who skewed younger than Gans in the entertainers he chose to impersonate, has moved into the Golden Nugget downtown. This month, Jerry Springer begins a 10-week run hosting America’s Got Talent at Planet Hollywood. And at Steve Wynn’s palace, the guessing game continues as to who might succeed Gans on a regular basis in the Encore Theater. Several A-list entertainers, including Beyoncé, had already been booked to fill the theater on the
• Adds / Moves / Changes • Computer Cabling • Fiberoptic Cabling • Overhead Paging
CSLB #814946
T Over 27 years in the telecom business
star’s days off and more are likely to follow. Candidates are rumored to include Garth
T Commercial & Residential
Brooks, a newly rejuvenated Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey.
T Fully licensed & insured
They, at least, would help Wynn attract customers under 60, which seemed a PHOTO: Beyoncé courtesy Wynn
Gans’ death at 52 was ruled accidental, caused by an overdose of pain medica-
2
PHOTOS: Vegas skyline courtesy of Las Vegas News Bureau/LCVA; “The Lion King” by Joan Marcus, © Disney; “Love” by Richard Termine
1
distant dream after he invited 75-year-old talk-show host Larry King to headline in June, alongside his much younger wife. The publicity generated made it sound as if one of the Strip’s most glamorous destinations had suddenly become a retirement
The Phone Guy
home. That might have been fine 20 years ago — before Wynn opened the Mirage
626-568-8554 [ www.callthephoneguy.com
and forever changed the Las Vegas entertainment scene. Today, however, it’s just plain bizarre. AM ARROYO ~ OCTOBER 2009 ~ 41