Desert Companion - June 2015

06 JUNE

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The 3rd annual

PHOTO ISSUE Shutter to think

The stories behind cool local snaps

Focus on Nevada photo contest winners Plus

We Just Had to Ask: HOW’D YOU GET HERE?

Inspiring Las Vegans share their arrival stories

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EDiTOR’S Note

Past presence

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as Vegas’ transient populace can make for a lot of brain-drain and skeletal, undernourished relationships, but there’s definitely one advantage to living in a city where everyone comes from somewhere else: Whoa, what great backstories. Amid the drifters, dreamers and second-chancers who float our way, there are countless compelling tales of arrival. Some fled oppressive regimes and even civil war to come here; others arrived through lucky encounters and chance meetings that transformed their lives; still others consciously bull’s-eyed Sin City with success in their sights. Whatever the reason, those fascinating origin stories of How I Came to Vegas are the subject of this year’s installment of We Just Had to Ask (p. 68). You’ll meet a newspaper cartoonist who got his big break from a gruff phone call from a former Nevada governor, an entrepreneur whose crossroads moment was a (thankfully) bad haircut, an artist couple who fled a stifling theocracy halfway around the world, and a Lost Boy of Sudan now living the American dream in Southern Nevada — and who still sometimes wonders if he is, in fact, dreaming.

The extraordinary thing to me is a certain unextraordinariness about it all. Not, of course, their stories and their struggles. I’m thinking, rather, of the idea that living in a drowsy north valley suburb is a Sudanese man who as a 7-year-boy walked for a month barefoot, through jungle and over hill, to reach the promised land that was a crowded refugee camp in Ethiopia. That our city is a magnet for such stories — that the people who’ve lived these stories are our friends and neighbors — is a fine thing. And when you think of it in that light, our transience isn’t such a problem. It suggests instead that while VeNext gas peddles luck to the tourists who MOnth Enter feast stream constantly through, we also mode! With our offer hope to those who choose to live sixth annual here, for however long.

DEALicious A refreshed vision of Las Vegas Meals

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awaits, too, in our annual photo feature package. Once again, everyone from smartphone shutterbugs to pro shooters get time in the spotlight as winners — out of 1,426 entries! — in our third annual Focus on Nevada photo contest (p. 50). And when you’re done drooling over that cache of eye-candy, be sure to check out the companion feature, “How I got the shot” (p. 61), a personal how-and-why walk-through of some seasoned photographers’ favorite shots. Photojournalists share anecdotes about some of their more newsworthy snaps, fine art photographers unveil the techniques behind their startling images, and commercial shooters reveal the secrets behind their surprisingly complex images. Smartphone cameras and image apps may have democratized the art of photography, but there’s no Instagram filter for instincts, ingenuity and inspired thinking.

Finally, ’scuse us while we pat ourselves on the back: Desert Companion took home two Maggie awards (“the Oscars of publishing”!) at the 64th annual Western Publishing Association awards banquet May 1 in Los Angeles. We won a Maggie for James Joseph Brown’s humorous Dungeons & Dragons memoir, “Mage Against the Machine” (November 2014), and another for Chris Morris’ sharp illustration for our May 2014 story, “Bad to the bones,” about the Tule Springs fossil beds. Woot! CongratulaAndrew Kiraly tions to them, us and the real winner: You. editor

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Wielding hashtags like throwing stars, the social-media have ventured into the wilderness west of Las Vegas over the ages. ninjas at the Nevada National Security Site showed us The group got a grant from the city to help cover printing costs, some love for Alan Gegax’s account of touring the former Williams says. They’re shopping for a publisher now and hope Test Site, which ran in our May issue: “Great #article by Des- to have one nailed down by June. All proceeds from sales of the ert Companion magazine about the many #cultural resources softcover book will go back to the nonprofit to help its efforts to at the #Nevada National Security Site,” they posted. Careful preserve Red Rock’s safety and beauty. “This is something we’ve there; it’s all fun and games until someone puts their eye out on been talking about and working on for a long time,” Williams says. a pound sign. Speaking of cultural resources: “Raw and real,” “It’s great to see it finally coming to pass.”

Lonn M. Friend’s May profile of local rocker Shelley Beth Miller, had ’em belting out a love song in Miller’s hometown. “We love Shelley back here in the Motor City,” Jake Smith commented at desertcompanion.vegas. “She’s our blood and our soul.

Rock on, Shelley.” Writing on Miller’s Facebook page, Karla Kay Harris gave subject and writer their due: “You have earned every word and every note. Lonn Friend captured your incredible strong spirit.” Another strong spirit is Melissa McGill, a parent featured in Heidi Kyser’s report about the expansion of magnet schools in Clark County — McGill’s a vocal critic of that process. And, it seems, a whole lot more. “Melissa McGill is a rock star and a wonderful human being and raises amazing children,” one Facebooker writes. Finally, in another short burst of reasonable praise, Eric Hunter Dept. of Humble Bragging: Desert Companion Maggied had this to say about Vern Hee’s May report on efforts to turn it up last month at the 64th annual Western PublishBeatty into a mountain-biking hot spot: “I think this could be ing Association awards (the Maggies). Nominated in a great place,” he posted. “When I make the drive from Mameight categories, we brought home the clear tubular plastic moth, California, to Las Vegas to Southern Utah, I drive thru statues in two: In Best Signed Editorial or Essay, the winner this town and think what an awesome place this area would be to ride, and also a reason to camp out at the nearby hot spring.” was James Joseph Brown’s November piece “Mage Against the Machine,” a lively memoir about playing Dungeons & We think you mean “#nearby #hot #spring.”

Dragons as a kid. And under Best Single Editorial Illustration, A reader at the City of Las Vegas spotted the segment de- frequent contributor Chris Morris won for his vision of a buvoted to Friends of Red Rock in our March feature “Good reaucrat standing atop a vanquished mammoth, which accomNeighbor Policy,” and wrote to let us know that the panied a story about the political obstacles to preserving the community group is about to add another feather to its cap — a Tule Springs fossil beds. “Getting a Maggie award is always book, Seekers, Saints & Scoundrels: the Colorful Characters of Red particularly gratifying,” says editor Andrew Kiraly, “because Rock Canyon. The 300-page collection of stories was researched, in this competition, Desert Companion — with our comparawritten and edited by volunteers for Friends of Red Rock Canyon, tively tiny editorial staff of six — swims with some pretty big says president Chuck Williams. Several years in the making, it fish, such as Ms., Variety, Backpacker and more.” Fist-bumps documents the lore of hikers, climbers, miners and settlers who all around if, indeed, fist bumps are still a thing.

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Features 50 oh, snap!

Time to unveil the best submissions from our annual Focus on Nevada photo contest — including one very enlightening grand-prize winner

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61 shoot

first, answer Questions later To learn more about what goes on behind the shutter, we asked eight photographers who work in very different styles — from landscape to photojournalism, from art to commercial — to show us a picture and tell us a story

74 we just

had to ask

So many Las Vegans come from elsewhere, usually with a story about how they got here. So we listened to some.

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75 46

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departments All Things

28 essay

41 Dining

75 The Guide

15 environment Did

You know all that optimisim about those great “jobs of the future”?

Well ...

By Hugh Jackson

42 The Dish Summer

Did a yogurt truck overturn on the freeway? ’Cause we’ve got culture all over the place!

34 health

In which you learn the chemical name of a bitter-alkaloid component of chocloate. Mmm, bitter alkaloid ...

a leadership vacuum hurt conservation in the 2015 Legislature?

18 history A whole Nevada history. Finally.

20 zeit bites Don’t

fear the abstract art!

22 Profile Dr. Cuba 24 STYLE A man in

Fuller 26 Open topic “ How can we capitalize

on all this beauty?!”

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Can a new form of the drug naltrexone help addicts by taking all the fun out of addiction?

By Andrew Kiraly

dishes — perfect for that hot period between early spring and late fall!

43 Eat this now

46 at first Bite

Julian Serrano’s Lago doesn’t serve old-fashioned Italian fare — and it’s (mostly) terrific

80 End note The only satirical roundup of the 2015 Legislature you’ll ever need

By Andrew Kiraly & Scott Dickensheets

on the cover PHotography Miguel Villegas, Focus on Nevada photo contest entrant

m i c h a e l f u l l e r ; lu c k y w e n z e l ; i l lu s t r at i o n : b r e n t h o l m e s ; l i n g u i n e : e l i z a b e t h b u e h r i n g ; V e i l s : c o u r t e s y a s y lu m t h e at r e

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Keep Your Landscape Fresh…and Your Weekends Free

p u b l i s h e D B y n e va d a p u b l i c r a d i o

Mission Statement Desert Companion is the premier city magazine that celebrates the pursuits, passions and aspirations of Southern Nevadans. With awardwinning lifestyle journalism and design, Desert Companion does more than inform and entertain.

We spark dialogue, engage people and define the spirit of the Las Vegas Valley.

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Subscriptions: Chris Bitonti, (702) 259-7810; subscriptions@desertcompanion.com Website: www.desertcompanion.com Desert Companion is published 12 times a year by Nevada Public Radio, 1289 S. Torrey Pines Dr., Las Vegas, NV 89146.

It is available by subscription at desertcompanion.com, or as part of Nevada Public Radio membership. It is also distributed free at select locations in the Las Vegas Valley. All photos, artwork and ad designs printed are the sole property of Desert Companion and may not be duplicated or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher.

The views of Desert Companion contributing writers are not necessarily the views of Desert Companion or Nevada Public Radio. Contact Chris Bitonti for back issues, which are available for purchase for $7.95.

ISSN 2157-8389 (print) ISSN 2157-8397 (online)

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06 15

where h ave all the eco-warrior s gone?

A history book that makes history page 18

ENVIRONMENT

Earth change Nevada’s environmental movement is evolving — just not in time to have made an impact in the 2015 Legislature b y H E I D I K YS E R

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wo months into Nevada’s 78th legislative session, the public learned that a 3 percent cap on distributed generation — which limits the number of utility customers who can participate in state’s net-metering program — could stymie the nascent rooftop solar industry, self-proclaimed creator of some 6,000 jobs. No bill had been introduced to raise the cap, and NV Energy made clear its intention to fight any provisional effort to that end. The environmental community, which had so cohesively and effectively fought for the shutdown of NV Energy’s coal-fired power generation plants in 2013, appeared to be caught off-guard.

Meanwhile, a bill pushing for a statewide increase in energy efficiency went nowhere. And Senate Joint Resolution 1, calling for 7 million acres of federal land in Nevada to be turned over to state and private development interests, was picking up steam.

Since the last legislative session, some high-profile organizations in Nevada’s conservation/environmental movement have undergone fundamental changes. In June 2013, the board of directors of Nevada Wilderness Project voted to dissolve the organization. A few months later, Scot Rutledge handed the reins of Nevada Conservation League to April Mastroluca, who resigned in June 2014 to direct the ALS Association Nevada Chapter. She hasn’t been replaced. That same month, Rob Mrowka retired as senior scientist for the Center for Biological Diversity in Nevada; although he has continued consulting for the organization on local issues, he returned home to upstate New York. He hasn’t been replaced. In February of this year, Lydia Ball passed the Clean Energy Project torch to Jennifer Taylor.

It’s tempting to draw a line from these transitions to the dearth of Earth-friendly action in the Legislature this spring, but, as with most concurrent historical phenomena, the relationship between the two is more complicated than cause-and-effect.

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ALL Things

environment

Hear more For one thing, having fewer high-profile conservation and environmental activists in Carson City might not have made much difference there this spring.

“In terms of the legislators, it’s not too different than how it’s been in the past,” says Kyle Davis, who lobbies on behalf of the Nevada Conservation League and a few other groups. “There aren’t as many bills this time around as there normally are that have an environmental or conservation impact. There are a couple pretty big ones, but that hasn’t really been the focus of the session.”

Davis is hinting at a political reality: With conservatives having taken over both the Assembly and Senate in the November elections, environmental issues took a back seat to the majority’s priorities — gun rights, prevailing-wage suppression, voter ID. Even if the environmental lobby had big plans, they probably would have been thwarted.

And the proposals to hand over federal lands have actually moved several groups to trek to Carson City in protest (full disclosure: one of them, Friends of Gold Butte, included my husband).

“I think the push-back against the privatization of public lands has shown that, in spite of the turnover in some organizations, whether it’s Las Vegas or Reno, the community as a whole is still loaded for bear,” says Bob Fulkerson, state director and cofounder of the Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada. “Now, we just have to coalesce around some longer-term goals.”

Fulkerson points out that the state has several active issue- and place-specific groups, a few of which, such as Protectors of Tule Springs and the Lower Colorado River Water Trail Alliance, have scored major wins recently.

Efforts like these, which reach further than the state Legislature, have elicited considerable participation by the conservation/ environmental community. Most recently, the Conservation Lands Foundation has led the push to garner support for U.S. Senator Harry Reid’s Basin and Range

‘If we don’t bring our shared, larger values into the fight, we’re not going to win the longer-term battle.’

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Can the

proposal, which would protect fight, we’re not going to win the Devil’s Hole 800,000 acres of land in Lincoln longer-term battle. … At Earth Day in pupfish help cure cancer? Reno, there were booths where and Nye counties from mining Hear a and development. people were talking about intersecdiscussion The CLF is represented in tions between various issues, such as on “KNPR’s Nevada by David Bobzien, the the corporations that use our sky as State of Nevada” former state assemblyman and free garbage dumps being the same at desert current Reno City Council ones trying to do away with companion. member-at-large who was collective bargaining and privatizing com/hear more involved with the Nevada public land for their own use. There Wilderness Project until it shut are huge opportunities in fighting down. There are few national environmenclimate change that are going to bring tal heavyweights with boots on the ground together these coalitions.” locally that are as well-connected and Fulkerson adds that millennials, who -schooled in local issues as Bobzien. The grew up with easy access to vast stores Nature Conservancy and Sierra Club are a of information, are good at connecting couple of exceptions. Most, such as the the dots and using social media to rally National Wildlife Federation and the diverse crowds around common causes.

Natural Resource Defense Council, have Davis also believes the next generation regional offices that send representatives to of conservation and environmental activNevada to fight battles as they come up. ists holds great promise.

But this doesn’t mean they’re ineffec“I can tell you, from the NPCA’s tive, says Lynn Davis, Nevada director of standpoint, that people are lined up, the National Parks Conservation resumés in hand,” she says, “environmenAssociation, giving the example of the tally passionate young people who want Bureau of Land Management’s Resource positions in conservation nonprofits. There Management Plan for Southern Nevada, is no shortage of recruits, and those who which is being developed for the next 20 come across my desk humble and awe me.” years. A who’s-who of national conservaIn April, the Nevada Sierra Club and tion nonprofits dispatched teams to Alliance for Climate Education sent six Nevada to study the plan and make public high school students from Liberty High comments, Davis says.

School to the Nevada Legislature to “They’re not overlooking Nevada. testify in favor of the energy-efficiency They’re engaged here, particularly in bill. They failed to persuade the state’s energy-transmission issues and renewleaders to commit to a 1 percent increase ables, that sort of thing,” she says. in efficiency, which, the nonprofits And some homegrown groups, such as estimate, would have created 4,600 jobs Friends of Nevada Wilderness and Great and saved businesses $3.4 billion by Basin Resource Watch, are growing their 2020. Sierra Club spokeswoman Marta staffs and memberships, gearing up for Stoepker hopes the experience eneractivism on issues in various regions of gized, rather than demoralized, them. the state.

“You know, the future of this moveNevertheless, Fulkerson acknowledges, ment is not just millennials,” she says, “the environmental presence in Carson “but also people of color, anyone who’s City has never been what it needs to be, in been marginalized because of these terms of the battles we have to wage issues. Traditionally, environmental against the polluters — mining, energy groups have been known as old white companies and the rest.” men who like to hike. That’s not what we He believes that, if they’re to succeed, are anymore. … Being an environmentalist groups with broadly related interests are isn’t just about being out in the moungoing to have to collaborate more tains; it’s about what’s going on in the strategically: “If we’re only focused on communities right outside your door.” saving one set of rocks or plants and don’t And, she and others in the movement bring our shared, larger values into the hope, in the capital.

ALL Things

history

good read

A state in full Michael Green delivers a Nevada history that finally gives Las Vegas its due — and doesn’t shrink from the state’s dark side B y G e o f f S c h u m a c her

T

his book was long overdue. For more than two decades, a new comprehensive Nevada history has been sorely needed. In addition to the fact that many transformative events have occurred over the past quarter-century, we’ve needed a new approach to better reflect the driving forces behind the state’s 20th-century history.

More specifically, Nevada has needed a history that gives proper attention to Las Vegas. All the previous histories — the most recent being those by Russell Elliott (1973) and James Hulse (1989) — have barely acknowledged that Las Vegas is part of Nevada, let alone the state’s primary political, economic and social influence since the 1960s. Writing from the vantage point of Reno’s ivory tower, Elliott and Hulse intentionally or naïvely short-shrifted the rising colossus in the south.

UNLV history professor Michael Green’s Nevada: A History of the Silver State (University of Nevada Press) addresses this glaring deficiency at every opportunity. Rather than treating Las Vegas as a footnote or sidebar to what previous writers have considered the main story happening up north, Green weaves the city’s history logically into the larger narrative. The Mormons settle in Las Vegas on Page 70, Helen Stewart enters stage left on Page 156 and Steve Wynn gets his due on Page 386. For the first time, readers living south of Beatty have a state history they can identify with.

Green addresses another weakness

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of past histories by confronting the darker aspects of Nevada’s past: political corruption, bigotry and organized crime.

Political figures such as Pat McCarran and Paul Laxalt are honestly portrayed, their successes and failures described in equal measure, and organized crime’s pivotal role in the growth of Las Vegas is not glossed over. (Hulse could not summon a single mention of Bugsy Siegel or Moe Dalitz in his state history.) Green is at his most animated when chronicling the thrusts and parries of Nevada political battles, a subject he knows particularly well.

This book is refreshing, too, for eschewing old-fashioned notions that certain topics are unsuitable for a prim state history. In Nevada, perhaps more than any other state, popular entertainment is an essential element of the cultural and economic history, and Green embraces this. He name-checks many of the showroom stars who helped put Las Vegas on the map, including Liberace, Frank Sinatra and even the Strip’s first nude show, Minsky’s Follies at the Dunes.

(By contrast, Elliott’s history ekes out a short paragraph on the early symphonies, ballet troupes and theater companies in Las Vegas but fails to mention the Rat Pack or Elvis Presley.)

Green has wisely not tilted his history too heavily in favor of the state’s south-

ern half. He updates the rest of the state as well, including the redevelopment of downtown Reno, the 21st-century mining boom in Northern Nevada and the cultural phenomenon of Burning Man in the Black Rock Desert.

In the end, Nevada: A History of the Silver State is a “survey” history, ideally suited for college students taking a course in Nevada history. As such, it sometimes lacks the literary flavor or storytelling power of more narrowly focused works. But Green, recognizing this, incorporates some fun Easter eggs to enliven the reading experience, often in the form of unexpected pop-culture references. He cites the musical Porgy and Bess, quotes the environmental writer John Muir and mentions the Charlie Chaplin movie The Gold Rush, among other such references.

For Nevada history buffs, this book is essential, serving as a solid foundation for all subsequent reading. As a favor to those readers, Green concludes each chapter with a “suggested readings” list that includes all the better nonfiction books about Nevada.

Geoff Schumacher is the director of content for the Mob Museum and author of Sun, Sin & Suburbia: The History of Modern Las Vegas.

P h oto g r ap h y B R E N T HO L M E S

BOLD ITALIAN. SMALL PLATES.

ALL Things

zeit bites

art appreciation

Mystified is normal How to break the ice with Brian Porray's work "/'\0SCILL4T0R/'\" b y d aw n - m i c he l l e b au de

Z

ap! Clang! Zwoosh! The “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” is here. The robust work of Vegas-born artist Brian Porray, “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” moves into its new home at UNLV’s Barrick Museum June 19 (with the Recent Acquisitions show). Time to get to know the new neighbor. Here’s how.

Start out on the right foot. Although you’ve probably never seen a painting like this, that doesn’t mean you won’t become fast friends. Porray is considered one of the best painters of his generation … which means he’s doing something that’s never been done before.

(You don’t stand out by doing familiar stuff.) Feeling a little perplexed or mystified by “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” is normal.

Don’t be shy. In order to bond with this piece you have to get right into the game. Look for the symmetries the painting is built on. …. Oops. The center of the X isn’t exactly in the center of the painting.

The left side of the canvas doesn’t exactly mirror the right. Do lines really meet? Where is Porray making you think you should see something that isn’t there?

Reach beyond first impressions. The simulated binary structure and the “leet” (Internet) language of the “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” title must mean something. Art derives its staying power by

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bloomin' vegas June 16 is the 111th anniversary of Bloomsday; not bad, considering it marks a day in 1904 that only exists within James Joyce’s legendary modernist classic Ulysses, a novel that nearly all literati bow down before even if many have never finished it. Joyce’s transposition of The Odyssey to early 20th-century Dublin follows the wanderings of one Leopold Bloom, Joyce’s Everyman, over the course of a single day and evening as he navigates the city. Scholars and fans dubbed the book’s June 16 date as Bloomsday, setting it aside to celebrate Joyce in particular and Irishness in general, a happy decision that allows highbrows who disdain the blarney that is St. Patrick’s Day an excuse to heft a few pints of Guinness in genuflection.

But while anyone spending Bloomsday in Dublin can trace Bloom’s route around the city, it’s harder to emulate the hero’s perambulations

providing commentary on the age in which it’s made. Gee, what’s up?

Freedom vs. control, cyborg vs. human, digital vs. organic, science vs. humanities, neuroplasticity vs. stasis are a few conversations that this painting can’t wait to start.

Let the experience flow. Relationships, like art appreciation, are often the result of gradual unfolding. Chill with “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” and see what happens. Summer of Love? Electric Daisy Carnival? A rainbow snow cone? Neo’s moment of truth in The Matrix?

When you’re comfortable enough, you may even venture how the paint drips in “=/’\0SCILL4T0R/’\=” defy gravity.

Dawn-Michelle Baude is art critic for Las Vegas Weekly

2 in Las Vegas; 105 in the shade discourages, to paraphrase Joyce, the ineluctable modalities of the peripatetic (stop whining and Google the words). You can, however, get into the spirit of Bloomsday easily enough with these simple prescriptions: The Book. Even though you likely haven’t read Ulysses, that’s no excuse not to do what countless bohemians have done: Walk around with a copy under your arm. Head to Vegas’ independent bookstore, The Writer’s Block (1020 Fremont) and pick up a copy. Walk to (1) The Beat (Fremont and Sixth), order an espresso, and flip it open. Don’t forget to stroke your chin occasionally and gaze pensively into the distance. And if you actually start reading it, here’s a pro tip: Put in your earbuds, pull up YouTube, look up “Ulysses Audiobook Unabridged” and listen as the novel is read aloud. You can even follow along. Hey, it’s only nine hours.

The Wandering. Bloom visits numerous places around Dublin, on errands large and small, many charged with melancholy, hope, lust and curiosity. Do the same, whether on foot (hardcore) or by car (normal). Visit the post office

3 (bonus points if you’re receiving an illicit love letter), a (2) Catholic Church (Guardian Angel Cathedral on the Strip), a pharmacy, a newspaper office (Bloom goes to place an ad, but you can just stop by the R-J to complain about its Op-Ed page), the (3) library (bonus points if you discuss your theory of Hamlet with random patrons), and a maternity hospital, if you can find one. Don’t forget to have lunch (we recommend Eat) and dinner at a hotel (you’ll find one). Bloom also visits a brothel, but we’ll leave such high fidelity to the novel to the reader’s discretion.

The Drink. All of this has been leading up to the real point of Bloomsday, of course: that aforementioned Guinness. The best immersion in something resembling Bloom’s Dublin is to stop into (4) McMullan’s Irish Pub (4650 W. Tropicana Ave.), where the atmosphere is just authentic enough to encourage spontaneous readings from your now doubtlessly dog-eared copy of Ulysses, having fallen under the spell of Joyce’s protean prose and the spill of a good Irish stout … at least, until next June 16. - Gregory Crosby

4

THE BOTTOM LINE ›› words north las vegas should add to its newly edited "values statement": 1. integrity (recently removed) 2. solvency-prayerful

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ILLUSTR ATION B R E N T HO L M E S

traditions

Still shakin’ it!

For her new book Legends: The Living Art of Risqué, French photographer Marie Baronnet traveled the country to take joyous, revealing portraits of early burlesque performers, many in Las Vegas (such as Bambi Jones, above).

What made you undertake this?

It was my fascination for this community of talented women, pioneers in their own way, who brought a great contribution to the emancipation of women in general. They were in charge of their lives with such audacity and freedom at a time when women were supposed to be perfect housewives. Also, I wanted to work with mature women who, past a certain age, are never shown as desirable. I wanted to represent them in their full age, showing still, to me, a lot of seduction, glamour and even eroticism. As a European woman it was also fascinating to see the history of American striptease unfolding through these stories, from WWII to the ’90s.

What was your goal while shooting these portraits?

I thought of showing those women today without trying to dissimulate their age,

helped by their beautiful costumes.

And their theatrical talent. After each portrait I would do an interview, asking about their work and burlesque careers but also about their lives. It was very moving to see how those women have been survivors, leaving a great legacy of a world that has now disappeared.

What’s the funniest thing that happened during this project?

My first interview was with Dixie Evans; she was 85 at the time. She hosted me in her little caravan in Vegas. She was wearing a wonderful red dress. When we started to shoot the portrait, she proposed to take her top off. She stripped in front of the camera with such joy and glamour, it was contagious. She initiated me in a way that gave me faith to pursue this project.

The Burlesque Hall of Fame Weekender is June 4-7 at The Orleans, bhofweekend.com

juneteenth

Fourteen summers ago I happened upon a festive gathering in a strip mall parking lot on H Street and Owens Avenue.

My first experience with Juneteenth happened to be the city’s first large-scale commemoration of June 19, 1865, the day slaves in Galveston, Texas, learned of their freedom. A black history buff, I somehow knew next to nothing about Juneteenth. I wasn’t the only one. Organizers gathered a group of us neophytes and filled in the historical blanks: Though the Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery on January 1, 1863, it took two and a half years and additional Union troops to enforce the executive order and inform the Galveston slaves of their freedom; some areas have celebrated Juneteenth for more than a century. In the years since my Juneteenth discovery, I’ve become an advocate, campaigning (mostly among family) to give it the same respect as the Martin Luther King Holiday. Meantime, organizers of local observances watched interest grow, with the food and music festival hosted by Diane and Anthony Pollard annually welcoming hundreds to venues like Lorenzi Park, the Clark County Government Center Amphitheater and Symphony Park. It’s history, with a side of fun. –Damon Hodge

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ALL Things

people

profile

Dr. Antonio Serru Internist

D

r. Antonio Serru’s office is nestled in a modest medical district on Eastern Avenue just south of Flamingo Road. Appearances aside, though, there’s a particularly interesting story behind the unassuming building. Like many Las Vegans, Dr. Serru came from elsewhere.

In his case, that elsewhere was 90 miles from the United States and yet worlds away: He was a refugee who fled Cuba 17 years ago with his wife and two sons. “The main reason I left Cuba was because of the poor economic conditions,” Serru says, his Cuban accent still noticeable. “The doctors are really paid nothing. I mean, I was paid $25 a month. I was actually seeing people that didn’t really study, people that really didn’t sacrifice as much as I did, getting rewarded more than I was. It was really unfair.” Once he settled in Las Vegas, he received assistance from Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada, beginning a relationship that continues to this day.

Every day, travelers arrive in Las Vegas from across the globe, but many are here for more than a vacation.

They’re refugees seeking a better life.

About 1,800 of them a year arrive in Las Vegas through Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada’s Migration and Refugee Services.

“The goal of our program is to help refugees become self-sufficient as quickly as possible,” says Whitney Eich, assistant director for the program.

About 70 percent of Catholic Charities’ refugee clients come from Cuba. The rest flee Afghanistan, Burma, Eritrea, Iran, Iraq and Somalia, among other nations. They often spend several years, stateless in a refugee camp, waiting to be approved by the United Nations for

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“third country” resettlement, often in a place where friends and relatives can receive them. Not surprisingly, that third country is often the U.S. “Chances of being resettled to a third country are less than 1 percent,” says Eich. “Many of our clients describe it as winning the lottery. You might be living in a camp for five years, 10 years, just waiting for your name to appear one day on a list and find out that you have the chance to go to a new country.”

Serru was one the lucky ones who won that lottery. After settling in the United States, he was eventually hired by a Cuban doctor. When that doctor retired five years later, Serru bought both the practice and the building that

now houses Serru Medical Center. He’s since added a medical spa that offers aesthetic treatments (fat reductions, facials), but the core of his services center on traditional medicine — while serving a community that’s very special to him.

He says half of his patients are Cuban; another third are Spanish-speaking or refugees from places where Cuban doctors are held in high esteem. In fact, he makes sure they know he is Cuban and was once a refugee himself.

“I want them to feel like I am also a foreign person too,” he says. “I tell them, ‘I came the same as you. I didn’t drop in a helicopter here being a doctor and having all this. I came here and started working, getting $8 an hour too,’ to set an example. They come depressed.

They come sad at their situation. They don’t have a job. I tell them ‘Look, I came the same and look at me. You can do it. Everyone goes through this.

I lived in an apartment at Charleston and Maryland where there was drugs, where there was shooting everywhere.

All that you’re doing I went through, and look at me.’ I try to show them that they can make it because it’s really frustrating at the beginning when you come. It’s scary, it’s scary.”

— Matt Kelemen

P h oto g r ap h y C h e c ko S a lg a d o

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ALL Things

style

If you could pick your favorite designer and cook a meal for him or her, who would it be? I’m

not really a designer groupie. I don’t deify many people except really the Gandhis of the world.

I’ve admired many people for their contributions to society or careers that impacted and changed industries, and I do appreciate swagger. I dig personal style. Fashion is a tool used to express personal style to me. So who has great personal style that I would want to cook for? Lenny Kravitz, Daniel Craig or Justin Timberlake.

Where do you weigh in on the great men’s shirt debate: tucked or

trendsetter

Michael Fuller

untucked? There’s a time and place for everything. It’s the cut of the shirt that dictates tucked or untucked. You shouldn’t wear a proper full-sleeve collared shirt designed for a suit untucked. There are specific cuts in long-sleeve collared shirts designed to be worn out and even with their sleeves rolled up. Know the difference. I would say the only exception is if you’re overweight and feel more comfortable with it out. Big guys stuffing themselves into tight pants and shirts is not a good look.

Hospitality developer, operator and consultant

What’s your best tip for men when shopping for

By Christie Moeller

summer clothing? Keep it to the basics. Solid light color for

a shirt or short and give a little color with the other item. One small accessory like a leather bracelet. Don’t go print on print unless you know what you’re doing and being very intentional.

Your personal style? Straightforward and classic.

What are your tips for guys to spice up their looks What’s the biggest fashion mistake most men make? Too many accessories.

One bracelet or simple necklace goes a long way. We all love Mr. T, but that was the ’80s.

24

with accessories this season? The bracelet goes a long way for me. Whether it’s a digital tracking your information or leather or metal, it gives just a hint that you’re paying attention to your style, but you aren’t going overboard and being “metro.”

What clothing item would you love to see make a

What should a man never leave the house without?

comeback? Short suits. Perfect for Las Vegas summers.

Breath mints, a pen, and a business card.

June 2015

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P h oto g r ap h y Lu c ky w en z el

NEVADA

5 Things I can't live without

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Scotch & Soda classic stretch V-Neck tee, $39, Scotch & Soda in the Fashion Show Mall

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VMODA XS foldable headphones, $212, Best Buy and vmoda.com

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Paul Smith blue “Cosway” sunglasses, $389, Paul Smith in The Shops at Crystals

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Original Penguin mesh ESPY sneakers, $100, Original Penguin in the Fashion Show Mall and Miracle Mile Shops

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June 2015

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ALL Things

open topic

discomfort zone

Valley of Fire detox When the city gets you down, there’s nothing like a natural spectacle to remind you of what, um, really matters … B y B j o r n D i h l e

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T

he first time I visited Las Vegas, I was cautioned by my Alaskan friends and family. I was coming to see a pretty girl named MC, who didn’t have a beard or smell like salmon. This, combined with the fact she’d never killed a bear while pissing in the Yukon River, made my people nervous. One crusty old fisherman friend voiced his concerns.

“You go to Vegas and the next thing

you know you’ll be wearing gold chains, walking a Pomeranian and trying to turn a trick for a few coins to play the slots,” he said. “Are you sure this isn’t some sort of scam to harvest your kidneys for the black market?”

When I landed at McCarran I felt like a starry-eyed lamb venturing into a fold of wolves. Walking past security, I got wedged between members of a bachelorette and bachelor party amping themselves up for the weekend. I laughed with them but sounded like a horse in heat. Nothing kills a party like a sweaty, hairy man dressed like Forest Gump making horny barnyard-animal sounds. The cold truth was that I did not belong in any city, especially Vegas.

Which brought me back to my friend’s question — what did a fancy metro woman want with me? Was she part of a Bacchae cult that sacrificed socially awkward men? Was she an alien who wanted to do weird experiments on my eyes? I soon learned it was much worse.

Getting me to come to Vegas was MC’s ploy to harvest my soul.

I quickly became addicted to Malibu rum and Taco Bell, which led to unnatural flatulence and urban despair.

After a couple of weeks, MC reached her breaking point. One morning she asked me to pack my bag and get in the car. Instead of driving to the airport, she drove northeast, past the casinos, lascivious billboards and suburban sprawl.

Now that she owned my soul, she was obviously going to dispose of the rest of me. I imagined all the folks the Mob had buried in the stretch of desert.

“So this is how it ends,” I said.

“What are you talking about?” she asked. “You’ve been in the city too long.

I’m taking you to the Valley of Fire for a detox.” We drove beneath desiccated brown mountains, through canyons and over arroyos. Plastic bags rustled on barbed wire fences as turkey vultures swung wide circles on the never-ending circuit of winds. We turned onto the Valley of Fire Highway, rode through the Moapa

ILLUSTR ATION h e r n a n va len c i a

There was a solitary peace this place offered.

Could we solely market solitude? Maybe we could buy a few acres nearby and set up a ticket booth and concession stand ...

Paiute Indian Reservation, and climbed undulating hills. A red-tail hawk feasted on a jackrabbit off the shoulder of the road. After we crested a rise, a Martian landscape of jagged bright red rocks appeared beneath distant brown mountains.

I’d never been to the Valley of Fire before, and the static in my head quieted as I got lost in swirl of red geology, bighorn sheep, desert hawks and petrified logs. The place’s natural beauty and pristineness brought to mind one thing and one thing only: capitalistic venture.

“What if we started a cult here and then had our followers build a casino and amusement park? We could blast a bunch of tunnels through those sandstone pillars — well, we should just remove that mountain altogether. We’d have to replace the bighorn sheep — we’ll need some sort of animal that will let children pet them and ride on their backs. I’m thinking elephants, but maybe just baby elephants. We could open a uranium mine on the side.” I was still listing my plans when MC cut me off.

“This is Nevada’s oldest state park.

Try to just enjoy it for what it is.”

She had a point. There was a solitary peace this place offered. Could we solely market solitude? Maybe we could buy a few acres nearby and set up a ticket booth and concession stand where people pay money to sit by themselves in the desert and afterwards, have cocktails? We could sell the experience as the “Fire Detox.” How big do they make billboards? Over time, with increased revenues, we could build a solitude- and nature-themed casino. A green casino.

There’d be no talking, music or manmade noise — only a soft recording of nature sounds in the background as folks gamble at eco-friendly tables and slots, or do yoga in a recycled plastic jungle full of rescue monkeys.

We drove past the visitor’s center, up a giant red canyon to a parking lot leading to a place called Mouse’s Tank.

“This is what I wanted to show you,” MC said. “It’s named after a Paiute Indian bandit who hid out here in the 1890s.”

From the canyon’s shade, we stared up at the blue sky contrasting with red cliff walls. MC pointed at an Anasazi petroglyph containing three anthromorphs, one with two horns jutting from its head, holding hands. The Anasazi people — their name is a Navajo word meaning “ancestral enemies” — seem to have disappeared at the beginning of the 1300s. Theories abound as to what happened. Migration and assimilation into other Pueblo groups, drought, starvation, warfare and genocide are just a few. Most respected archaeologists agree they were probably extraterrestrials who simply got in their spaceships and rolled on to a quieter planet.

For the first time in days I stopped thinking about fast food, booze and conspiracy theories. I lost myself in thousand-year-old images of people holding hands, bighorn sheep, antelope, lizards, serpents, rain, sun, anthropomorphs, hand-prints and a variety of other depictions. One anthropomorph, known famously as “mystical bat woman,” was high on a cliff and looked like an alien with wings. We spent the rest of the day exploring the park until the basin began to darken. A spell of light and rock blended together; I felt like a visitor to the cathedral of another world.

We were in the presence of the Ancients, where it’s best to sit quiet. The potential for economic growth was endless.

There was a sobering eeriness to the starry night as we drove toward the lights of Las Vegas. It was time to begin drawing up plans to market Fire Detox before someone else stole my idea. I’d employ aliens dressed like cocktail waitresses; all those kids who used to work for Kathie Lee Gifford could mine uranium. When I became rich I’d create a habitat and breeding program for cute baby animals. I went to sleep dreaming of the Nobel Peace Prize.

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essay

About those exciting jobs of tomorrow Many of them will still involve French fries

I

f you paid any attention to the Nevada Legislature this year — the policy part, not the part about the weird woman with all the guns who thinks cancer is a fungus — you heard a fair amount about the need to finally improve education so that Nevada’s youth will be prepared for the exciting jobs of tomorrow.

Great. I started tilting at the better-living-through-education windmill immediately upon arriving in Nevada nearly 20 years ago. Happy to see the establishment inertia that thwarted increased education spending for so long is finally coming dislodged. Better late than later.

But with so much focus on the most fashionable policies of 1995, Nevada policymakers in business, education and every level of government are ignoring a big, hairy fact:

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B y H u g h Ja c k s o n

The lion’s share of the jobs of tomorrow are, well, pretty much the jobs of today.

Over the next several years, the top occupation in Nevada, in terms of the number of jobs created, will not be the design and manufacture of energy-infrastructure-transforming household power storage units at Tesla. Nor will it be tending servers at giant data centers, or creating “innovative tech-based solutions.”

The occupation that will grow the most in Nevada through 2022, according to official projections generated by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics and adopted by the Nevada Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation (DETR), is “combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food.”

That is, according to DETR, also one

of the lowest-paying occupations in the state. Eight of the 10 biggest-growth jobs through 2022 are among the state’s lowest-paying. (Carpenters and construction laborers are the exceptions.) For three of those occupations, the “typical education needed for entry” is “high school degree or equivalent.” For the other seven, it’s “less than high school.”

Though not in the top 10, other biggrowth Nevada occupations include janitors, maids, security guards, office clerks, cashiers and bartenders — also jobs that require relatively little education and that are typically (though not always) low-paying.

The Brookings Institution’s Hamilton Project calculates that more than a third of Nevada workers are paid less than $12.38 an hour (150 percent of Nevada’s top-tier minimum wage). Given the nature of most of the jobs that will be created over the next several years, the portion of Nevada’s workers in low-paying jobs will only get bigger.

It’s no secret. Last month, DETR released an updated analysis of the labor market through the end of 2017. Yes, the report singled out anticipated growth in manufacturing jobs due to the Tesla/Panasonic battery factory near Reno. But a closer look at DETR’s analysis shows that the number of jobs merely added to the hospitality and

i l lu st r at i o n b r e n t h o l m e s

retail sectors between now and the end of 2017 will exceed the total number of manufacturing jobs in the state by then.

No matter how many battery factories, or spaceships, or robots (to eat all the battery factory and spaceship jobs?) Elon Musk or anyone else builds in Nevada, at least a third and perhaps, in time, closer to half of all working Nevadans will be employed in jobs characterized by poor pay, few if any benefits and little opportunity for advancement.

IT’S NOT JUST THE PAY, IT’S THE HOURS

A

nd more and more of those jobs will be part-time. Many already are. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates more than a fifth of Nevada employees are working part-time, some by choice, but a growing number because full-time work is unavailable. Retail in particular — Nevada’s second largest employer and one of the lowest-paying — is notorious for scheduling employees, including those who desperately want to work full-time, for only 15 or 20 hours a week, or less.

Blaming the Affordable Care Act, by the way, is a red herring; the rising employer preference for part-time, disposable labor was documented long before anyone had ever heard of Barack Obama.

The transition from regular, stable work schedules to precarious part-time, contract, temporary and freelance labor (you’re reading some now) is rife throughout the economy (Uber is a symptom of this, not a solution for it). And, pioneered by retail, what employers like to call “flexible” employment is especially prevalent in low-paying jobs that require little educational attainment — that is, Nevada’s jobs of tomorrow.

Make no mistake, improving education in Nevada is the single best way to attract and create high-paying, high-quality jobs in fields other than historical local mainstays such as the care and feeding of tourists, and building houses for people who make a living building houses.

Education is a necessary prerequisite for any Nevadan hoping to land a non-resort, non-construction, high-quality, high-paying job of the sort politicians and civic leaders are always promising. Again, it’s refreshing that at least some establish-

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essay

TOP 10 BIGGEST GROWTH OCCUPATIONS IN NEVADA 2012-2022

ment palms have gone to establishment foreheads on that score.

But no matter how many conferences and roundtables and summits are packed with upper middle-class professionals solemnly chanting “STEM,” the jobs in Nevada that actually require training in science, technology, engineering and math will be a tiny fraction of the number of jobs created in retail, accommodation and food services, and clerical work. No matter how earnest the hope for a growing and more diversified economy tomorrow, or how sincere the concern for the well-being of our precious snowflakes in the classroom today, we need to be honest about the type of careers many Nevadans are actually going to have when they grow up — jobs they’ll have not because of their laziness or personal failings or low character or insufficient self-hoisting via bootstrap, but because those are the jobs we are going to have.

1. COMBINED FOOD PREPARATION AND SERVERS, INCLUDING FAST FOOD 2. RETAIL SALESPERSON 3. CARPENTERS 4. CONSTRUCTION LABORERS 5. WAITERS AMD WAITRESSES 6. LABORERS AND FREIGHT, STOCK AND MATERIAL MOVERS 7. GAMING DEALERS 8. PERSONAL HOME CARE AIDES 9. CUSTOMER SERVICE REPRESENTATIVES 10. COOKS, RESTAURANT

IT NEEDS TO GET BETTER BEFORE IT GETS WORSE

icule and stigmatize factory workers as somehow unworthy. Factory workers were not begrudged a living wage, a regular work schedule, overtime and holiday pay, and health and retirement benefits. Politicians, media personalities and an almost rabid contingent of the American public were not constantly demeaning factory

O

ur economy and society depend on the goods and services delivered by the people in those jobs. They are to the 21st century what factory workers were to the 20th.

Except America generally didn’t rid-

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workers for their perceived lack of effort or morals. The buzz on factory workers was that they worked hard, so they deserved a decent home, dependable transportation and the other accoutrements of a middle-class lifestyle. Factory workers were okay. This is part of why America is so nostalgic for manufacturing jobs, and why Nevada is so eager to attract them.

Accommodation and food service workers work hard. So do retail salespersons. So do people filling the other occupations that are projected to grow more than others in coming years — the actual jobs of tomorrow.

Popular hostility to people in those jobs needs to stop, and not just because work and workers should be respected. Demeaning a third or more of the workforce only makes it all the less likely that the pay, conditions and quality of those jobs will ever improve.

And that sucks for Nevada’s economy.

If the jobs of tomorrow offer inflation-adjusted pay and working conditions comparable to that offered today, a lot of working Nevadans will be exploited, often by out-ofstate corporations, to create profits that will fly out of Nevada to enrich hedge funds and other wealthy out-of-state investors. Corporations and their investors will continue to shift more costs to Nevada, for example, to cover health care for retail employers whose low incomes qualify them for Medicaid. And other Nevadans, especially small business owners, contracted service-providers and the self-employed, themselves frequently teetering on the financial precipice, will suffer because so many Nevadans working in the jobs of tomorrow won’t have enough money to buy what those other Nevadans will be selling tomorrow.

Solutions to all this aren’t shrouded in mystery. Local wage and sick-pay ordinances, revising a federal tax code that redistributes wealth from the bottom to the top, protecting workers through regulations and empowering them through bargaining … economists, policy analysts, non-governmental organizations and grassroots community groups have identified numerous tangible measures to bring some sense, and some dignity, to a deliberately distorted and unfair labor “market” that serves no one well except some of the nation’s richest

celebrate with us all mont h long as we sip our way through some of the best marg arita s in town featured in the july issue of desert companion magazine more detail s at desert compa nion .com

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essay

Your smart wants to party.

npr.vegas 32

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investors. Policy is the easy part.

Approval and implementation of policy is harder, because the status quo has been baked into our culture. In case you missed it, here’s the recipe: In a large sphere, pour politicians who don’t care about low-income workers, especially low-income workers who don’t vote; add politicians who might care but care about campaign contributions more (any remaining politicians can be discarded or, alternatively, julienned for decorative garnish).

Stir in several heaping dollops of ideology about how the market and only the market may decide the value of work (almost always served with generous portions of aggressively disparaging remarks about burdensome government regulations). Marinade in extremely rich (i.e., well-funded) anti-labor, pro-corporate propaganda. Top with an acquiescent, source-friendly media. Cook on high heat for four to five decades. Dish is done when retail workers are outraged because food-service workers want a raise.

Note: Sure to delight executives in both the retail and food-service industries.

A report on “The Future of Work in the States” produced by the Economic Policy Institute’s state-level Economic Analysis Research Network shows that low-wage, precarious occupations will lead job growth throughout the nation, not just in Nevada.

But by the time the U.S. had transformed into a service economy, Nevada had already been there/done that for decades. More than most states, maybe more than any state, Nevada is now obliged to confront the future — and the present — realistically.

Elected officials and policy leaders must acknowledge that improving education, while long overdue, will not in itself determine Nevada’s prosperity, let alone whether prosperity will be shared. Respect for workers needs to be restored — and that includes among Nevada employees themselves, who need to reject the poisonous recipe deliberately concocted to pit them against each other. Nevada voters need to demand and support policies that will assure better pay, conditions and lives for the Nevadans who will be working in the real, actual jobs of tomorrow. And we need to start doing all that yesterday.

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This is not intended to be an offer to sell nor a solicitation of offers to buy real estate in Ascaya by residents of any state in which registration is required but in which registration has not been made. This off prohibited by law. Ascaya is a Nevada residential common interest community. All information, depictions, specifications, lot sizes, prices and amenities of Ascaya listed or referenced are preliminary and a by the developer at any time without notice. The actual terms and conditions of purchasing a lot at Ascaya are available through the Ascaya sales office.

HEALTH

dry ideas In a hard-drinking, 24-hour town, a new form of a drug holds hope for recovering alcoholics B y A n d r e w K i r a ly

E

ric Mathis had the roommate from ally important homework assignment due hell. This roommate was constant- the next day, but you have this really loud ly making noise, disrupting Mathis’ roommate. The roommate is that voice, sleep, ruining his solitude, that addiction, that pull telling you screaming and shouting to drink,” he says. “You really can’t focus because it’s always there.” at all hours. The roommate was Hear Beer was Eric’s beverage of constantly urging Mathis: Come more Learn about on. Let’s party. Have a drink. choice. His way of unwinding after the costs The roommate lived inside work was three or four 24-ounce of painkiller Mathis’ head.

Bud Lights. His alcoholism marred addiction “When you’re an alcoholic, try- on “KNPR’s his college years, ruined his maring not to drink is like having a re- State of riage and jettisoned a promising

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career in the military. (Mathis says he actually joined the military hoping the environment of order and discipline would drum the desire to drink right out of him; instead, he found that the hard-partying atmosphere managed to thrive outside the rigorous schedules and drills.) But it wasn’t as though Mathis hadn’t tried to get help.

“I’ve been to 30-day detoxes, 12-step programs, and when you’re there, you feel awesome,” he says. “You feel, this is what I need. But as soon as you walk out that door, that craving says, ‘Well, that was cool.’ It didn’t do anything for the physical aspect. That’s the hardest. You can want (to quit drinking) all day, but that voice never shuts up. Sometimes it’s all you can hear until you satisfy it.”

When he discovered that there’s a med-

Nevada” at desert companion. com/hear more P h oto g r a p h y Aa r o n m ay e s

NEVADA PUBLIC RADIO JUNE 18-27

Sobering truth: Eric Mathis says naltrexone saved him from a life of alcoholism.

ication shown to help alcoholics kick drinking for good, he leapt at the opportunity. As a client of Start Fresh Recovery, a drug and alcohol addiction treatment center, Mathis began taking naltrexone tablets March 11; three weeks later, he replaced those with a slow-release naltrexone implant, surgically embedded just below his beltline, that lasts from nine to 12 months. He also receives life-coaching sessions to help him navigate the everyday enticements of bars, parties and casual drinking. The Start Fresh premise: Chemically quashing alcohol cravings for up to a year gives people in recovery plenty of runway to get their lives together again, time to rewire their habits and recast their behaviors. Today, the roommate clamoring in Mathis’ mind: silenced.

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HEALTH buzz kill

“N

altrexone extinguishes the desire to drink,” explains the Las Vegas clinic’s Executive Director Bonnie Barnett. Called an opioid antagonist, naltrexone works by blocking the receptors in the brain that alcohol interacts with to make you feel intoxicated. The tablet has been used in treating alcoholism since the ’90s, but the implant form, developed in Australia, has only been available in the U.S. for about five years. Santa Ana, Calif.-based company BioCorRx developed the Start Fresh program in 2010, coupling naltrexone implants with life coaching. As the website tells it, BioCorRx co-founder and President Neil Muller launched the treatment program after watching his then-fiancée Deidre struggle with alcoholism for 14 years. Individual Start Fresh Recovery clinics use the program, but are independently owned.

Just as important as the pharmaceutical technology, though, is what naltrexone’s adoption as a treatment for addiction says about the changing perception of alcoholism.

When Mathis told his superiors in the Air Force that he had a drinking problem, he was surprised at their unenlightened response. "I was told to suck it up," he says. "You're treated like you're weak."

“The growing popularity of medical-assisted therapy means maybe there’s a groundswell of understanding that the white-knuckle, behavioral approaches to treating alcoholism — that look on it as a moral failing — don’t work,” says Barnett.

“It’s only in the last seven to 10 years that we’ve really started talking about alcohol and drug abuse in terms of a disease model,” adds Paul Kapsar, director of patient care services.

Mathis certainly tried to cure his disease with a variety of methods. Even

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when he told his superiors in the Air Force he had a drinking problem, he was surprised how unenlightened the response was. “I was told to suck it up,” he says. “You’re treated like you’re weak.”

While in the military, he was finally admitted to a treatment program, which included a stint in inpatient rehab in Las Vegas. “They basically locked me up for 30 days. But they might as well have picked me up in a beer truck as soon as they dropped me off, because that craving never went away.” 'i switched brains'

G

iven Las Vegas’ high profile as a 24hour party town, you’d think Start Fresh Recovery would have problem drinkers knocking down its door. As the Strip goes, so goes Nevada: We like to drink. The Centers for Disease Control studies rank Nevada near the middle for prevalence of adult binge drinking, and high for intensity of binge drinking. In

Fresh maker: Start Fresh Recovery's Bonnie Barnett

other words, Nevadans binge drink (i.e., consume five or more drinks on a single occasion for men, four for women) with average frequency; but when we do binge drink, we do it intensely, consuming about seven drinks per occasion.

But there are complications. Since Start Fresh Recovery opened in Las Vegas in September, it’s taken on 16 clients. Part of that is because the naltrexone implant is relatively new — and relatively unproven.

While many clinical studies show oral naltrexone can help reduce heavy drinking and frequency of heavy drinking episodes, naltrexone implants are a different story.

Given its relative newcomer status, there isn’t much published research addressing whether it works.

That means the implant version of naltrexone isn’t yet approved by the FDA. And that, in turn, means insurers are reluctant to cover it. For instance, in a policy bulletin, Aetna Insurance calls the

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HEALTH

2015

F R I D AY

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S AT U R D AY

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AUGUST 1

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You will see your choice of four plays:

You will see four plays:

You will see three plays:

TAMING OF THE SHREW AMADEUS HENRY IV, PART TWO CHARLEY’S AUNT SOUTH PACIFIC

THEY’RE PLAYING OUR SONG I’M NOT RAPPAPORT THE FOREIGNER CHAPTER TWO

CHARLEY’S AUNT DRACULA TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA

For more information or to reserve your seats, please visit knpr.org

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implants “experimental and investigational” because of “insufficient evidence in the peer-reviewed published medical literature of their safety and effectiveness.”

And that means those seeking treatment have to pay out of pocket for the implant.

It’s $15,500 for the course of treatment, $17,000 on a payment plan.

Barnett cites internal, unpublished research that claims an 80 percent success rate of naltrexone implant users successfully abstaining from alcohol, versus a 70 percent failure rate with naltrexone taken orally. Why the big difference? Alcoholics can forget to take their tablet — or skip it on purpose.

“The implant is the answer to that,” says Barnett. “With the whole nine-month curve of coaching and behavior change, that habit has changed, and it has to change along with an absence of craving.

The implant is so much more effective than any other method, and until somebody ponies up the time and money to put it up through FDA approval, it’s going to be expensive.”

But if you ask Mathis, it’s a small price to pay in exchange for rescuing years, relationships, careers from the whirlpool of alcoholism. “It’s like an elephant getting off your chest. There’s no telling where I would have been in life had I found this back when I first identified there being a problem.”

While there aren’t yet a lot of studies about naltrexone implants, Mathis’ personal story is compelling, and his passion about how the drug changed his life is palpable. Today he works in a local casino — and says he can walk past a casino bar or cocktail tray without so much as a second thought. And when he gets home after a long day, he unwinds in a dramatically different fashion than he used to.

“This is gonna sound weird, but every night after I get off work, I sit in my living room. I don’t do anything. I don’t turn the TV on. I just sit and enjoy the silence. Because for 15 years, there was that voice, that unrest, that, ‘Go get your beer.’ Now it’s gone, and it’s so peaceful, so pleasant. It’s like I switched brains with somebody.”

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The Dish 42

06 15

eat this now 43 at first bite 46

Our c i ty's be st sp ots to eat & drink

Well bread: Veal sweetbreads at StripSteak

P hoto g ra p h y Sabin ORR

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Dining out

THE DISH

spring all summer The delicate, earthy flavors of the season take center stage in these fine-dining dishes

By Mitchell Wilburn

O

ur spring may be short, but it’s still as inspiring to the valley’s fine dining chefs as it is to any poet or musician. More than any other culinary season, spring is heavily reliant on natural forces: A dry winter may hobble mushroom harvests, a wet March can cut leafy greens short, and this year was an especially exceptional wait for any good tomatoes.

The moral: Appreciate what you have.

Here's how some very appreciative chefs are welcoming the season this year — with tastes you can enjoy well through summer.

Tortelloni

Carnevino Chef Nicole Brisson is one of the greatest

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proponents of rare produce, and dandelion greens are one of the more unusual.

Cooked down along with mustard greens and chard, and then mixed with ricotta, they fill handmade little “ravioli.” They’re served in an aromatic dried Cara Cara orange peel butter and garnished with sorrel, making the dish not only incredibly satisfying and creamy, but an interesting balance between sweetness and the complex bitterness of the greens. The Palazzo, 3325 Las Vegas Blvd. S., carnevino.com

fried or seared piece, these are broken into small nodules, roughly the size of the little ricotta cavatelli they’re plated with, giving each piece more surface area to volume. Also, they use morels, the coveted spring mushroom, by infusing them into a cream sauce and making an emulsified foam. The mixture of the creamy, earthy foam and the savory, silky sweetbreads are offset by the fresh spring peas, snap peas and pea tendrils. Mandalay Bay, 702-632-7200

Veal sweetbreads

Seared New Bedford sea scallops with spring garlic

StripSteak Chef Gerald Chin is always doing something interesting in the kitchen, and this dish has its share of surprises.

Whereas most sweetbreads are a big

RM seafood Chef Rick Moonen is as much a champion of sustainable seafood as he is a creative,

P h oto g r a p h y S ABIN O R R

HOT PLATE

Eat this now!

Chocolate fondant at Gelato Massimo

1980 Festival Plaza Drive, 702-832-1000, gelatomessina.com/us One of the Westside’s new sweet spots, Gelato Massimo has display cases filled with shiny mounds of frozen concoctions ranging in flavor from pistachio and pear-rhubarb to blood orange and vanilla. But it’s chocolate fondant that rules the Downtown Summerlin shop. This theobromine depth charge is a triple-chocolate amalgam with a taste that’s the quintessence of cacao. There’s a faint undertone of hazelnut in the mix, as well as a whisper of spice (they won’t say which). Beyond this serotonin-releasing dessert, the gelateria has a cool mod design and a large window through which you can watch its chilly offerings being made fresh. Greg Thilmont

Ocean of flavor: Opposite, RM Seafood's seared sea scallops; above, Guy Savoy's roasted Dover sole

cutting-edge chef. For this dish, he sources some of the best scallops available, and sears them lightly, plating them with green garlic purée, a creamy flavor that’s lighter than you expect. This goes along well with confit pork belly and fingerling potato hash, and a spring citrus salad. Mandalay Place, rmseafood.com

Guy Savoy Guy Savoy is always evolving, always experimenting, drawing the best dishes from the best ingredients from around the world. This dover sole combines some classic techniques and motifs, but with a touch of haute cuisine. Plated with blanched baby white and green asparagus, passion fruitcooked spinach, and a few thin ribbons

at The Great Greek

C h o c o l at e F o n d a n t: C h r i s t o p h e r S m i t h

Whole roasted dover sole

Athenian Burger 1275 W. Warm Springs Road, 702-547-2377, thegreatgreekgrill.com If Zeus had blown into Henderson from Olympus, he’d surely stop for a bite at the Great Greek. I’d like to think a famished god in a foreign land might bypass the more authentic Greek food and try a little cross-cultural exchange instead: the Athenian Burger. From America, a half-pound of just-pink-enough Angus; from Greece, tzaziki sauce and feta cheese. While it’s not nearly as exotic as, say, the manic pixie dream burgers concocted at Bachi, the Athenian’s abundant mouth-feel — the graininess of the beef thickened by the feta, with a brief afterparty of tzaziki —holds its own. Tip: Make it a little Greece-ier with extra tzaziki; a half-pound of meat is a lot for one dollop of sauce to contend with. Scott Dickensheets

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Dining out of “celtuce” (a Chinese lettuce heart that tastes a bit like coconut and taro), the dover sole is topped with dots of a piquillo pepper and piment d’espelette purée and a passion fruit/smoked butter sabayon.

Caesars Palace, 702-731-7110

Roasted foie gras

Rose.Rabbit.Lie. For centuries, nothing has said “spring” quite like strawberries. California-based Harry’s Berries has become famous for plump, picturesque berries, and these are paired with an equally beautiful piece of seared foie gras and a slice of fresh brioche. They’re garnished alongside some early-season pickled green strawberries, a unique bite that gives just enough acidity to really bring out the sweetness of the berries and the fatty richness of the foie gras. The Cosmopolitan, roserabbitlie.com

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Chilled pea soup with carrots

Le Cirque Perhaps no other dish uses spring’s bounty to its full potential like this one from Chef Wilfried Bergerhausen. This dish — arguably the most delicious on the Le Cirque menu — is also completely vegan. It’s a nest of fried carrot strings and emulsified carrot foam, with crispy fried mint leaves, pea tendrils, popcorn shoots, watercress, a citrus vinaigrette, and all topped with a chilled English pea veloute. The result is a symphony of fresh, earthy flavors. Bellagio, 702-693-8100

Durham ranch rabbit

Sage Spring greens aren’t the only delicious things that emerge from the ground in spring. The humble hare is another terrific example of the bounty of nature’s favorite

season. There’s roasted leg in its own jus, a confit “bar” of belly, and milk-poached loin topped with pistachio and cardamom.

All of this is with fresh English peas and Anson Mills polenta, another unique and decadent dish from the minds behind Sage. Aria, 877-230-2742

Springtime burrata

Honey Salt Taking a page from Guy Savoy’s classic “Peas All Around,” the Honey Salt mastermind Brett Uniss changes it up by using a large piece of creamy burrata in the center, surrounded by English peas, pea tendrils and snap peas, and a bit of preserved lemon and extra-virgin olive oil. One of the simpler items on the menu, but also one of the most satisfying. Creamy, rich burrata and the freshness of peas go so well together, this dish deserves to be a classic.

1031 S. Rampart Blvd., honeysalt.com

Dining out at FIRST Bite

Meatballs, meet modernism At Lago, Italian classics get a fresh makeover for the modern palate B y

I

grew up in a Sicilian enclave just outside of the Bronx. It was a place where manicotti outnumbered meatloaf on dinner tables and everyone’s last name ended with a vowel. This has had considerable influence on my standards for a good Italian meal, my bias leaning towards Americanized, homespun food served in boat-sized vessels and shared among convivial family members who, if cut, bleed gravy. (Where I’m from, you never called it sauce.)

So when it was announced that chef Julian Serrano of Picasso would replace Circo at the Bellagio with Lago, a modern Italian concept, my response was tepid. Tourist-priced shared plates served in shiny environs are anathema to working-class, garlic-flavored roots.

And, truth be told, it was hard to muster any excitement when I’ve never been wowed by SerLago In the Bellagio rano’s eponymous Spanish 702-693-7111, restaurant at Aria. bellagio.com But a recent dinner there turned out to be one of the HOURS nicest meals I’ve had in four Sun, Mon, Wed, Thu 5-11p years of living in Las Vegas.

Tue, Fri, Sat 5p-12a Half of this was due to strategic planning. I studied the weather report and chose a pleasant day. A prime time reservation was sacrificed for a weekday meal at 5 p.m. so my party could claim an outdoor table. I would recommend you do the same — a front-row, lakeside view of the fountain show is priceless, but the interior is hit-or-miss. The bright, ultramodern space reminds me of George Jetson’s living room.

Anyway, an early dinner is a minor inconvenience for what Serrano’s team gives in return. Outstanding and knowl-

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Debbie Lee

edgeable (but never intimidating) service made all three members of the table kvetch about its rarity. Cocktails, while expensive, are creative. Sip on a Sicilian gin and tonic while you get spritzed from the fountains. Made with kaffir lime, Italian soda and blood orange pearls, your favorite college well drink is much better in this grown-up form.

I was partially right about the small plates — they possess none of the hearty lustiness that I associate with Italian cooking. However, some of them are surprisingly lovely. A miniature round of focaccia topped with shaved pork jowl and fava beans screams of springtime; I only wish the crumb on mine was a little less dry. Of the four crudo (think Italian sashimi) available, try the capasanta, or scallops. The sweet slices of flesh are enhanced with blood orange segments, Sicilian pistachios and a splash of mild olive oil for a light and bright starter.

The only ho-hum pick is the insalata sarda. Slices of heirloom tomatoes and cucumbers, arranged like dainty tiles and showered with grated ricotta salata, leans on the wrong side of minimalism.

(If a 5-year-old can make it in five minutes, I’m not paying $14 for it.)

Serrano fares better with pastas. A proper linguine with clam sauce is a shameless thing: bursting with plump seafood, oozing with oil, offending you with its garlicky goodness. His version, made with house-made spaghetti chitarra, hits all of those marks. From the carne section, a shared plate of quaglia saltimbocca, or boned quail wrapped in prosciutto and sage, is a creative alternative to the usual veal. The meat on this bird tends to dry quickly, but the addition of pork keeps it moist.

P h oto g r a p h y E l i z a b eth Bue H r i n g

R

R

$10 POWER

LUNCH

NOW AVAILABLE DAILY! ∙ 11 AM TO 2 PM Choose 2 items from a select menu of Soups, Salads & Woodfired Pizzas — FOR JUST $10!* Getting fresh: Above, Lago's scallop crudo; left, linguine with clam sauce; below, panna cotta with passion fruit sorbet

The rest of the menu is equally diverse. Handmade gnocchi with lobster knuckles will appeal to the gourmand, while meatballs and Italian sausage skewers will satisfy the guy who wants to eat like a Goodfella. For those who consider pizza taste-testing a fond pastime, Serrano has three to choose from: margherita, zucchini/provolone and speck with cipolline onions.

For dessert, expect well-executed and visually stunning takes on familiar classics. A wobbly panna cotta flecked with heady vanilla bean seeds is matched with refreshing citrus segments and a sweettart passion fruit sorbet. And the giadujotto, which will appeal to Nutella addicts, is a study in textures and temperatures that every pastry chef should strive to achieve. Decadent chocolate and hazelnut mousse gives way to a crunchy biscuit base; a spoonful of hazelnut ice cream with each bite completely sets it off.

Lago may not have provoked a rush of nostalgia, but it also didn’t disappoint. In fact, I’m grateful that I ate there when I did, because I suspect my future requests for a fountain-side table will be met with a “fuhgeddaboudit.”

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Visitors will explore the Age of the Dinosaurs!

Travel back in time to when dinosaurs last roamed the land at DISCOVERY Children’s Museum traveling exhibit, Dinosaurs: Land of Fire and Ice™. As visitors move through the exhibit, they encounter unfamiliar landscapes, touchable dinosaurs of all shapes and sizes including a Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops. This exhibit builds on the popular fascination with dinosaurs and includes science activities to challenge all ages and opportunities to investigate clues about what dinosaurs left behind.

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47

Together we can ...

Thank you

for helping us put a stop to childhood hunger. $2 Million

Together, we raised which will provide 6 million meals to hungry children in Southern Nevada.

To learn how you can get involved, visit:

BagChildHunger.org 702-644-FOOD (3663)

Together, we can bag childhood hunger.

With our sincere gratitude to our sponsors and supporters

Diane and Robert Bigelow

Jill and Frank Fertitta, III

Teresa and Lorenzo Fertitta

CORPORATE SPONSORS Cash America SuperPawn Dunkin Donuts & Baskin Robbins Community Foundation

Nevada State Bank Northern Trust

Neiman Marcus The Grainger Foundation

HONORARY EVENT COMMITTEE Diana Bennett Mrs. Richard Crawford (Jeri) Gary Goett William Hornbuckle Nancy Houssels Stephen and Bart Jones Families

Doris and Ted Lee Richard and Claire MacDonald Audrey and Larry Plotkin Ted and Maria Quirk Mario and Francine Sanchez Michael Shulman

Lindsey and Mike Slanker Ed and Shauna Smith Carolynn Towbin Jesika Towbin Mansour Elaine Wynn

SUPPORTERS Abbie Friedman Allen Family Foundation Amy Rossetti Audrey and Larry Plotkin Avalanche Canyon Foundation Bank of America Brian and Angel Nettles Edwin Skonicki Elizabeth Kaplan Faith & James Knight Foundation Five Together Foundation Fletcher Jones Management Group Gloria and Mark Fine Family Foundation

Janie and Jeff Gale Jean McCusker Law Offices of Daniel Simon Leor Yerushalmi MacDonald Center for the Arts & Humanities Mayors Carolyn and Oscar Goodman Meadows Bank Michael Yackira MidCountry Bank Olympia Management Services Rachel Shiffrin Ritter Charitable Trust Robin Greenspun

Ronn Nicolli Shulman Family Foundation Tariq and Griselle Shaukat Tax Law Center The Firm Public Relations & Marketing The Friedmutter Group Tom and Paula McCartney Tutor Perini Building Company US Trust William and Shannon McBeath Yaron Barami Zappos.com, Inc.

WITH SPECIAL THANKS Al Powers Photography Arthouse Design Studio Artisanal Foods Big Picture Studios Blue Ribbon Sushi Brenda Decker Buddy V’s Ristorante Cherie Flannigan David Steen Destinations by Design Donn Jersey Eileen Cox Elizabeth Blau Floyd Mayweather

Foxtail Floral Geary Company Advertising Gimme Some Sugar Herve Leger Hexx Chocolate Izzy Haring Joe Coomber Katie Farrell Coughlin Kayla Agnello Kim Canteenwalla Las Vegas Color Graphics Las Vegas Parking Mayweather Productions Nancy Nichols

Neiman Marcus Paragon Gaming Phil Hernandez Pictographics Production Resource Group Proof Interactive Punam Mathur RSVP Party Rentals Sage Tech Sandi Wheeler Scott Menke SW Steakhouse The Firm Public Relations & Marketing Yale Rowe

Three Square is grateful for every individual who contributed to the Bag Childhood Hunger campaign. The above listed donated $1,000 or more prior to going to print. We make all efforts to ensure accuracy; however, errors do occur. Please contact our donor relations department at 702-644-3663 to report corrections.

3rd annual F O C U S O N N E VA D A photo contest

... and

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THE WINNERS are ...

ABLE HONORMENTION Opposite page:

(Left to right, Top to bottom)

Jeff Scheid artistic/Abstract professional

Christiana Houck Altered Images Amateur/student

Andy Grajeda Nevada at work/play

Amateur/student

Mike Wetzel Landscape/Nature

Amateur/student

Richard-Paul Rider Places/Architecture

Amateur/student

Kevin Miller Landscape/Nature

Semi-professional

Michael Marschner Altered Images Amateur/student

THis page:

(Left to right, Top to bottom)

Allan Duff Landscape/Nature Amateur/student

Scott Warner Landscape/Nature professional

Sandy Dorau Places/Architecture

Amateur/student

Ivan Carrillo Places/Architecture

Semi-professional

Martina Zandonella In the moment Semi-Professional

Arnold Despi Artistic/abstract Amateur/student

Martin Dunaway artistic/Abstract professional

Matthew Carter in the moment professional

Kirstie McGuinness in the moment Amateur/student

JUNE 2015

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51

3rd annual F O C U S O N N E VA D A photo contest

ARTISTIC

01STPlace

Timothy Salaz

Semi-professional Camera: Canon 5d MKIII Lens: Canon 24 1.4 ii L ISO: 100 Shutter: 1/60 Aperture: f/8 ARTISTIC

02NDPlace

Terri Hunt

Amateur/Student Camera: Nikon,

point and shoot

JUDGES

Ryan Reason Photographer Aya Louisa McDonald Art history professor, UNLV Heidi Kyser Desert Companion staff writer

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Nevada at work/play

01STPlace

Miguel Villegas Amateur/Student

Camera: Nikon D7000 Lens: nikkor 35mm f/1.8G ISO: 400 Shutter: 1/60 Aperture: f/4 Nevada at work/play

02NDPlace

Skylar Stephens professional

Camera: Nikon D610 Lens: nikkor 70-200mm F/2.8 ISO: 400 Shutter: 1/4000 Aperture: f/5.6

JUDGES

Michael Herb Commercial photographer Mark Andrews Chief marketer, Clark County Credit Union Brent Holmes Desert Companion designer

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Landscape/Nature

01STPlace

Scott Warner professional

Camera: Nikon D800 Lens: Nikkor 24-70mm ISO: 125 Shutter: 1/80 Aperture: f/11 Landscape/Nature

02NDPlace

Justin Dworak

Amateur/STudent Camera: Nikon D3100 Lens: Nikkor 24mm f/2.8 ISO: 1000 Shutter: 1/8 Aperture: f/8

JUDGES

Sabin Orr

Photographer

Becky Spencer

Designer, Studio 21 Tattoo Brian Henry

Brian Henry Design Scott Lien

Desert Companion senior designer

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PLACES/Architecture

01STPlace

G l e nn E l l i o t t

Amateur/STudent Camera: Pentax K-01 Lens: 21 mm F3.2 ISO: 200 Shutter: 1/1250 Aperture: f/8 PLACES/Architecture

02NDPlace

christian rodriguez Semi-professional

JUDGES

Camera: Nikon D5000 Lens: Nikkor 18-55mm ISO: 400 Shutter: 1.3 Seconds Aperture: f/9

Jerry Metellus Photographer Erick Sanchez President, GDC Construction ChrisTopher Smith Desert Companion art director JUNE 2015

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IN THE MOMENT

01Place ST

I s a a c D av i s

JUDGES

Warwick Stone Hard Rock Hotel curator Shannon McMackin Gallerist Andrew Kiraly Desert Companion editor

Amateur/student Camera: Nikon D5200 Lens: NikKOR 18-55mm ISO: 125 Shutter: 20 seconds Aperture: f/10

IN THE MOMENT

02NDPlace

Willam Mark Sommer professional

Camera: Nikon D7000 Lens: Nikkor 18mm ISO: 1600 Shutter: Bulb Aperture: f/4.5

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JUDGES

Todd VonBastiaans Alios lighting design Chris Brown Art director, Robertson + Partners Scott Dickensheets Desert Companion deputy editor

Altered Images

01Place ST

Jason Hekkert

Amateur/student Camera: Nikon D3200 Lens: Tamron 18-270mm ALtered Images

02Place ND

Chadwick Pope

Amateur/student Camera: Canon 5D MkII Lens: EF 24-105mm F/4.0L ISO: 50 Shutter: 1/667 Aperture: f/7

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GRANDPRIZE I s a a c D av i s

amatEur/Student Camera: Nikon D5200 Lens: NikKOR 18-55mm ISO: 400 Shutter: 10 seconds Aperture: f/5.6

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How I got the shot Seasoned photographers share the stories behind memorable shoots — the how, the why and what happened next

Zarkana percussionist Bill Hughes, freelance photographer When I first met Zarkana percussionist Aaron Guidry for the “before” photo for this shot, he kind of reminded me of the lead singer from Nada Surf during the classroom sequence in the “Popular” video. When I saw him after a half-hour’s worth of makeup, hair and costuming, the change was so striking that I almost asked him if he’d seen Aaron Guidry. As for the shoot, I initially planned to have a couple of sticks flying through the air, but he had a bunch of them, so a bunch of them we used. On the initial toss, the sticks went up in one mass, which completely covered his face, defeating the purpose of the whole before and after comparison, so I thought about it and figured that if he pulled his hands apart in a certain way and at a certain speed we just might be able to get the effect you see here. I think it took about seven or eight tosses to get the whole thing right. We actually spent more time picking up sticks after each toss than we did shooting. As you can probably tell, we both had a lot of fun. He was a real trouper.

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“East Side Super Moon” Ginger Bruner, Our Las Vegas photography project lead photographer, associate producer Wonky stuff: I’d recently bought a new SLR, the Olympus OM-D E-M5, from their new micro 4/3 platform. I’d been in the market for a new SLR, and tested numerous lines of cameras, but wasn’t happy.

Then my friend Brian Henry, a wonderful lighting designer and artist, told me about the Olympus, and let me try his out. It was exactly what I needed. As a bonus, it had traditional film-camera styling, and looked almost exactly like my first film camera, the venerable Olympus OM2. What a delicious throwback!

I have a long-standing love of neon and sky — and photographing them — so the super moon was like a beacon calling me out to shoot. The Eastside Cannery has some really great architectural lighting elements designed by Brian Henry (fittingly, the guy who turned me on to my camera) and the juxtaposition of the moon, clouds, and neon color were just overwhelming.

Needless to say, it was like shooting fish in a barrel, so many great images came of those moments. This image was made on July 25, 2013, during the super moon.

“Randy,” from the series Just Breathe Linda Alterwitz, fine art photographer Traveling to the Dominican Republic a couple years ago, my husband David and I were so impressed by the beautiful night sky and ocean. In an attempt to capture the beauty of the moment, I used the only tools I had, my digital camera attached to an insufficient tripod. I placed the 6-inch plastic tripod in the sand for a 10-second exposure. It failed. The camera sunk into the sand and started to topple over backward, with my lens then pointing up to the sky. It captured something unexpected — the movement of the stars in the sky. This launched the new series — Just Breathe. The subjects lay on the ground with a camera on their chest for a long exposure. The movement of their breathing creates a distinct (and somewhat primitive) pattern of the stars on the sensor of my camera.

Randy, a musician, lives in Calico Basin, so we took his “star portrait” on his back porch, which overlooks the Red Rock mountains from about two stories high. It was a night with low ambient light — no moon. That’s really important if I want the sensor to capture as much starlight as possible.

Part of my process is to collect the GPS location where each star portrait was taken, then record each participant’s words about the experience. But that night was so cold I completely forgot to ask Randy about that. However, he did talk about his music, and, in all actuality, that may have been more appropriate of a response.

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“Leaving Behinds” Jeff Scheid, photographer, Review-Journal “No Ifs, Ands, or Butts” — it’s probably one of the most photographed set of derrières in the world. The shapely bronze statue exposes the backsides of dancers from the “Crazy Girls” burlesque show. One of the longest running shows on the Las Vegas Strip, “Crazy Girls” was recently forced out of its cozy confines shortly before its host, the Riviera, closed on May 4.

Just hours before the closing of the 60-year-old hotel, I was there when workmen showed up to dismantle the famous statue that had been located at the front entrance of the casino since being unveiled in 1997. The crew of nearly a dozen men struggled with the awkwardly shaped weight and were unsure if it was appropriate to place their hands in areas usually off-limits.

While the burly men were laboring with the 600-pound, life-size beauties, one jokester yelled out: “You guys don’t know how to handle a woman!” The object of admiration was loaded on a flatbed trailer and driven off — but not away. The statue will reappear soon at the “Crazy Girl” show’s new location, the Planet Hollywood Resort.

“Big Tiny Town” Nancy Good, multimedia artist Though many people look upon Las Vegas as a big city, based on her footprint and population, I’ve always been more tuned into its small-town feel of community. Throughout this beautiful, mountain-flanked bowl, we have small neighborhoods filled with people who look out for each other. Wanting to convey the “smallness” of close community, I chose to use a Lensbaby tilt-shift-type lens and shot this image from my back porch (10 miles from the Strip). Using the lens in this way and from this distance, Vegas is wrapped in an illusion of tidy petiteness that her iconic, larger-than-life presence usually belies. Further, converting her gaudy colors to black-and-white, Vegas is wrapped in a blanket of soft calm. As a photographer and mixed-media artist, there always exists within me a desire to find creative ways to express what I see and feel, and this often means finding and utilizing new tools. I also love the wonderful surprises that come through fearless experimentation.

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“The Next Level” Michael Herb, commercial photographer If a picture is worth 1,000 words, this photograph made up of over 200 images would result in a healthy-sized novel. It took five separate photo shoots and more than 40 hours of Photoshop editing to complete this image inspired by comic book superheroes.

To stay focused and organized, I work from the background forward. The background for this image was shot on the bridge in front of New York-New York hotel-casino. (I’d walk around and snap shots of textures while getting teased by people on the street: “Hey, you should try backing up a bit.” I’d smile and nod as if they had any clue on what I had planned!)

Once finished with the background, I shot with Las Vegas local Justin Current, the guy bursting into water. It was a cool 65-degree night when I shot the base images of Justin.

Shirtless and dry, it was a bit chilly. Add bucket after bucket of hose water, and it’s safe to say chilly doesn’t even come close to describing the feeling. Justin was a sport and took bucket after bucket of water to the body and face. The fire demons in the middle and background are played by Joyce Chanel, who never backs down from getting photographed in less than flattering poses.

I was more than pleased with the outcome. I had created the image I had set out to create, and it looked every bit as cool as it did in my head one week prior.

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“Abandoned Brothel, 2014” Marshall Scheuttle, fine art photographer One weekend while traversing central Nevada ghost towns, I came upon an abandoned brothel south of Tonopah. When I tracked down the temporary overseer of the parcel, it was agreed that I could enter the confines as long as I caused no trouble.

One mid-day in May I slink through the chain-link fence. It’s clear the structure has been overtaken by squatters and tweakers. Entering, I was greeted by a jacuzzi full of broken glass and apocalyptic graffiti emblazoning the walls. I realize that in order to photograph with my 8 x 10 view camera, I will need to be under my dark cloth for minutes at a time, unable to see my surroundings, and therefore vulnerable. So I unsheathe my KA-BAR knife and go room to room, opening doors and preparing for a bloody mess or a half-naked hell-child clawing at me with strung-out limbs. As I turn one corner, knife drawn and heart racing, I see, from the edge of my eye, a figure across the hall. I drop my tripod, raise my blade and cry out a pleasantry along the lines of “&%#&*!” It’s my own reflection in a broken mirror.

Finally, after making a few images, I come across a room with a stained mattress and the cover of a pulp romance novel on the bed. Water of Life, the title reads. I set up my camera and sit until the sun begins to kiss the edge of this beautiful still life. Done, I pack and slowly exit, making sure not to alarm any dwellers returning from whatever one would do 20 miles south of all hope lost. To this day, I’m not sure I’ve ever stumbled onto something as tragically beautiful as that novel in that room.

Untitled Bryan McCormick, Vegas Vernacular photography project Quite by chance last summer, I picked up a very special and rare type of Polaroid 600 camera. It was, through a magic toggle switch on the side, able to make multiple exposures on a single piece of Impossible 600 film. I made a single test shot one night, which involved a window setup at the now-defunct Resnick’s. It was of the pig in the window, and the tree right behind me. When the two were combined, it was a hint of magic possibilities.

I wanted to make more accidents, to use the camera as a way of “directed randomness.” Without being conscious of it, one develops a quick visual memory of each frame one shoots. I wanted to see what would happen if I could capture each of those and toss in a little serendipity to keep myself from directing the outcome. After all, I could do that in Photoshop. This was to be more a record of my experience shooting, capturing traces of discrete moments in time and space.

One night at Atomic Liquors, I shot two packs in short order. This one was my favorite of the group.

By moving around the main sign at angles to it and a varying distances, I was trying to capture in 2D something of the 3D/4D experience of it. The way certain elements come together in the conflicting planes, the out-of-focus elements highlighted by brighter, sharper ones, just “worked” for me.

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WE JUST HAD TO ASK

Some were reaching for the brass ring. Others were running for their lives. Whatever reason they came here, these Las Vegans from around the globe have fascinating origin stories

photography

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CHRISTOPHER SMITH

Lost and found in Las Vegas

Biar Atem

Assistant manager of in-suite dining, Venetian/Palazzo

I

t’s said that Las Vegas is a city of second chances. Biar Atem, a food and beverage manager at the Venetian/Palazzo, is dramatic proof of that adage. At age 7, he fled his rural home in South Sudan as fighter jets bombed the nearby village. The long-brewing civil war between the Arabic north and African south had come to his family’s doorstep: If you didn’t leave the country as a young man, chances are you’re going to be a child soldier or be killed by the Arabs. They don’t care about the age. If you’re taller than an AK-47, chances are you’re going to get adapted to become a child soldier.

(The refugee caravan was) people from different villages, it just kept getting larger and larger, it was at least a

group of a thousand or more. You would walk all day, and at night catch up on your sleep. You’re just worried about keeping up with the group, not knowing where you’re going, getting scared and then thinking about your family being left behind.

We would eat whatever we could find, mostly antelope, fish and then wild fruits. I remember some villages where we would have to sell our clothes to get food from them. What you normally do at night, people take turns and act as a security guard in case something is coming.

Because hyenas or lions would come and grab young kids and run away with them.

Barefoot, he made the nearly month-long journey to a refugee camp in Ethiopia. After three years there, the Sudanese refugees were ejected by the Ethiopian government.

They left for Kenya, where Atem spent another nine years living in Kakuma refugee camp, a U.N.-supported site with schools and a steady food supply. With the assistance of Catholic Charities, he eventually qualified for refugee status. On the relocation roster, one day he saw the name of a strange city next to his name.

When I saw my name, I was like wow. ...

You had 48 hours to get ready, but you were ready to go anytime, because we didn’t have anything to bring with us.

It was my first time on a plane, actually. We left the camp to Nairobi, then to Brussels, to New York to St. Louis. We arrived in Las Vegas around 10:30. It was crazy getting to see the light of Las Vegas for the first time. The only reliable light we had in the camp was just the daylight and the moonlight, so you had to get your homework done during the day.

He arrived in April 2001 at age 21. His first job was as a janitor at the Venetian, where his 6-foot, 7-inch stature made him the guy who’d dust the chandeliers. He climbed the ladder fast, ultimately earning an MBA. Today he’s the assistant manager of in-suite dining at the Venetian/Palazzo.

He’s also raising an infant son with his wife and has launched the nonprofit South Sudan Center of America to help other Lost Boys displaced by the war.

I’m almost at a point where it felt like a dream. Am I really living this kind of life compared to what I used to go through at camp? When I came to Las Vegas, I had a sweatshirt and pants. Now I have a house, the degrees, the job with a Fortune 500 company, the family. Life can change so fast. I appreciate all the opportunities given to me. Being here, I feel like I have too much in this country and I feel the need to give back. — Andrew Kiraly

Discovering the art of freedom

Ali Fathollahi & Nanda Sharifpour Artists

“T

hey want to censor everything over there,” Nanda Sharifpour says of her native country, Iran. For an artist — and the daughter of a prominent philosophy professor — Iran’s climate of theocratic control and government suspicion made it inevitable that she and her husband, Ali Fathollahi, also an artist, would join the exodus out: JUNE 2015

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Nanda: Because of the social and political unrest in 2008, 2009, lots of people had to leave our country and go to other countries, either as an immigrant or refugee. Indirect pressure is on everyone’s shoulders over there; you can never feel like super-comfortable. You don’t have freedom of speech, you don’t have freedom of the way you think. We had the (direct) pressure of being art professors not only teaching art but also philosophy of life — the philosophy behind your art, whatever you think that makes you create something different, to express yourself, to express your pressures that you have in your society through your art. These are the things that some governments do not like.

So in 2009, they fled to Turkey. “That’s one of the only countries you can travel to without a visa, for Persian people,” Ali says. “There are only two or three counties that will let you in, and Turkey is the closest one.”

Nanda: We stayed there for three years, trying to get the refugee status approved and get the permission to go to another country and start our lives over,

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from zero, again. We brought very little with us (to Las Vegas).

Ali: Because we spent all of our savings in Turkey for three years.

Nanda: You have no right to work.

Ali: Exactly. Nothing. We were trying to have shows and exhibitions, but we only got one, in Istanbul, and that’s it, in three years. You have to spend your time and your money. And everything for you, as a refugee, is more expensive than for the normal citizens.

Nanda: You have no rights.

Ali: You don’t have any idea what it’s like.

In 2012, Fathollahi and Sharifpour were finally allowed to come to America because she had relatives in California. The couple heard about the lower cost of living in Nevada, and a friend suggested Las Vegas, where they set about getting their bearings.

Nanda: We started to seek out and search around — Ali: Walking around in the hot summer — Nanda: — in the art community, the 18B. We had no idea. We just knew there was something, some galleries around,

so we started walking. I remember that we had our backpacks on our backs, water and some food, and we were searching for hours.

We ended up meeting (artist) Alex Huerta at Arts Factory.

He opened up his heart and his knowledge to help us. He gave us more information: Go to this place, meet this person …

Ali: Go to Blackbird Studios, find Gina (Quaranto, Blackbird’s operator) …

Nanda: He gave us our first show in his studio. A month after that, we had a show at Blackbird, and everything rolled after that one.

That show found them reveling in their newfound freedom.

Ali: The first show in Blackbird Studios, I had most of my pieces based on the political problems in my country. I know it wasn’t good for a show in the U.S., I don’t know, but it happened.

Nanda: You had to express yourself.

Ali: Exactly. Because I was free. I was really free: Okay, let’s do this.

Las Vegas, with its melting-pot mix of cultures, languages and cuisines, reminds them of the crossroads feel of Tehran. Not surprisingly, they still miss aspects of their native country, especially the small things …

Nanda: … like the smell of weather after the rain ...

Ali: The taste of the tea in the afternoon …

Nanda: … talking to friends. Of course, not the bad things, like the authorities. … but they seem genuinely content here.

Nanda: We may want to work in other states, but for living? I feel safe here, and I don’t want to put my foot out of the safe zone. We were in chaotic situations for a very long time. And after arriving here, I feel like I’ve come out of a battle. I want to take a break and just be with my art and people that I love. I don’t know where the future takes us, but here, in Vegas, with these people, it’s good. — Scott Dickensheets

A h o m e f o r e v e ryo n e

Beli Andaluz Owner, Pico Madama

B

eli Andaluz, the youngest of 10 children, remembers little about her childhood in Guatemala — her mother never stayed anyplace for long. But Andaluz applied herself as a student, and that helped her find her own stability: I went to boarding school in Quetzaltenango, and when I was 17 I did an internship at a real estate office. I started as an apprentice, but my bosses could see that I took things very seriously, so they put a lot of faith in me.

Soon, I was showing and selling houses.

I put some money together and moved to Antigua. … I got a job as a bartender there, and a week later, I was the manager. A few months later, I heard from the owners of the hostel where my ex, Felix, and I were staying that hostels were opening in Nicaragua because tourists were starting to go there. So, we bought a car and drove to Nicaragua. And they were right! Our business was so successful that we sold it in two years for three times as much money as we put into it.

She and Felix moved back to Antigua and opened an Internet café. After a bad haircut, Andaluz complained to a friend, whose uncle happened to be an accomplished Guatemalan stylist. He gave the young women private lessons, once again spurring Andaluz’s entrepreneurial spirit.

He was a tough teacher. We didn’t train on mannequins, just real people. And he would let us make mistakes so that we could learn from them. He was aggressive, but I lost all my inhibitions when it comes to explaining things to clients. After about six months, I bought a salon where I could practice before opening my own big, beautiful spa, Skin Deep. … That’s where I met (my husband) Scott (Seidewitz). I had everything: a hair salon and spa,, an Internet café, a house in the

mountains, a beautiful son, but I felt like it was not enough. I searched my head and heart, and I decided to move to Las Vegas.

My sister lived here and she had a lot of property Downtown that she had sold to Tony Hsieh.

Before Long, Seidewitz left New York to join Andaluz in Las Vegas. But even after building a successful salon business here, she still felt something was missing.

One evening after a charity gala, Seidewitz suggested to his wife that she explore philanthropy.

I wanted to support the community, I think, just because I once had so little.

We were very poor, and now that I can give, it feels nice. I go to Shade Tree, and I think, “Oh my gosh, I could be one of these women.” I joined the board about 10 months ago, and now I’m the second vice chair. Last year, in November, it was their 25th anniversary, and they weren’t planning a celebration. I thought I could do something, even though I only had three weeks. So, I bought out Vintner Grill, invited all my friends and clients, and they invited all theirs, and we raised $55,000. People said it would be hard, but everybody helped me. When you do good, good comes back to you, and you have to keep it going. — Heidi Kyser

Perseverance, luck and one $8 job after another

Mike Smith

Editorial cartoonist, Las Vegas Sun

M

ike Smith began his journey to Vegas in 1982, during his senior year at Loyola-Marymount University in Los Angeles, though finally getting here would require the help of a major figure in Nevada history. We pick up Smith’s story after the inveterate doodler had begun drawing editorial cartoons for the campus paper and had a life-changing realization: Once I saw how much trouble I was getting into, I thought, Wow, this is a lot of fun!

People get mad, they’re talking about what you have to say. I need to try to do this for a living. So I started sending cartoons to newspapers across the country, asking editors to give me a job. For a while I had a box of rejection letters. I could’ve wallpapered a room with them. If you’re going to be an artist, you learn to have a thick skin.

I had a film noir class, and one of the films we studied was One From the Heart, the Francis Ford Coppola film about Las Vegas. I was intrigued by it, and I thought, I need to send letters to the papers in Las Vegas. So I sent letters to Mary Hausch at the Review-Journal and to Hank Greenspun at the Sun. I got a very nice rejection letter from Mary Hausch. A few days later, someone from the campus newspaper ran up to me and said, “Some guy from the Las Vegas Sun is trying to reach you.

He said his name is Mike O’Callaghan, and you need to call him immediately.”

Arguably among the state’s greatest governors, O’Callaghan had taken a post-gubernatorial position as the Sun’s executive editor. He made Smith a deal: “I’ll pay you eight bucks for each cartoon I print.” Smith agreed.

I thought, I need to milk this for all it’s worth, and I started drawing a cartoon every day and sending it off to Mike O’Callaghan. And he kept running the cartoons. At one point I figured, I need to go see Mike. By this time I had graduated from col-

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lege. I got a job working for National Car Rental at LAX, working the night shift.

I’d draw cartoons in the morning, send ’em to O’Callaghan, pump gas at night.

So I called up Mike, and I made up this story about how I was driving through Vegas and would like to see him, and he said, Yeah, sure, come on out. So I got my free rental car and drove to Las Vegas. I ended up spending the whole day with him, finishing up with a steak dinner at his house. So we kind of hit it off.

Still, the Sun wasn’t hiring. After a year of pumping gas and drawing $8 cartoons, Smith decided he needed a real job. About then he was offered a position in Hertz’s management-training program.

I called O’Callaghan and said I had this job offer from Hertz, and I think I’m gonna take it. And Mike said, “You tell Hertz to stick it up their ass! You’re too talented to be doing that.” And the next day the Sun hired me.

At last, vindication! Now Smith had to find a place to live. He wound up looking at a new apartment complex near Valley View and Spring Mountain.

There were these two very statuesque, attractive young women who were also there to look at the same apartment. So the manager took all three of us. I heard one woman say to her, “I don’t have all the money right now, but I can give you half the deposit now and half later …” I could see the manager wasn’t too impressed. Once the two women were out of earshot, I told the manager, “Look, I’ll give you the money right now if you give me the place.”

She said, “Do you have a job?”

“Yeah, I’m working at the Las Vegas Sun.” “Do you know Mike O’Callaghan?”

“Yeah, I know Mike O’Callaghan,” “Well, I worked on his campaign when he ran for governor.” (Laughs.)

Then she said, “Okay, the apartment’s yours.

I wasn’t going to rent to those women, anyway; they’re prostitutes.” I was like, Really?! I had no clue. — SD

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H e lp i n g o t h e r s i s i n her blood

Beata Kwiatkowska Physician and lab director

T

he first movement in Beata Kwiatkowska’s three-part life symphony sounds sunny and hopeful. Born on a mid-century June day in Warsaw to a lawyer mother and civil engineer father, the fair child was groomed for great things: In high school, I was thinking about art. Art conservation is a very important and popular profession in Poland. Then, when I was 17, I had a boyfriend, Andrew, who was invited for a family dinner. After dinner, we were sent to the kitchen to wash dishes, and he fainted in front of me. He was a basketball player, tall and strong — so I was shocked; I started screaming. Fortunately, my aunt Teresa, who was a pediatrician, ran in and said, “Pull him out of the kitchen,” which was very small. In the living room she did CPR, and she revived him. For me, it was horrible to feel that someone I loved was dying in front of me and there was nothing I could do. I said to myself, “I don’t want to experience that helplessness

again for the rest of my life.” So, I told my mom I would like to go to medical school.

She was upset about that choice, because your salary as a doctor in a country with socialized medicine was terribly low.

Several years later, on a medical school vacation to Scotland, Kwiatkowska fell for an Argentine doctor, who eventually married her and took her to his home country.

Cue an exuberant intermezzo.

I loved Buenos Aires. I didn’t speak any Spanish at that time, but I very much liked my ex-husband’s family. They were Jewish, very warm, and received me well.

A military junta was in power there at that time, the end of Peron’s period. … For me, this was worse than living in a communist country. In front of the Casa Rosada (presidential palace), I saw women who had lost children putting on white scarves and demonstrating. To me, this was shocking and very, very sad. But the reaction of other people was also shocking — they were saying, “Go home. What do you want?” I remember thinking how naïve they were; they would rather think about futbol than protest.

After two years in Argentina, Kwiatkowska moved to California, where an aunt lived, to pass equivalency licensure exams and pursue her medical career. She and her first husband ultimately separated to pursue their respective internships, and Kwiatkowska eventually landed in Sacramento with a pathology specialization,

second husband and two sons. The finale of her composition — still in progress — is set in Las Vegas, where she moved in 2000 to become the director of a blood bank.

The first year, the boys would cry and say, “Mommy what are we doing here?”

And I’d say we moved for my job. I told them to give it at least three years. But after that time, I asked what they wanted to do and they said, “Stay!” They were in a good school (in Summerlin), and we were part of the community. But, you never get something for nothing. My career was going well and I was able to create a nice nest for my children, but my husband decided not to move from Sacramento, so I filed for divorce. … The U.S. is definitely my home now, and I’m happy where I am. When I retire, I’d like to write a book called Three Lives. — HK

The dancing never stops

Mary Scott Boulder Station cocktail server

B

ingo players at Boulder Station know her as Mary Scott, 63, a smiling cocktail waitress who’s curiously graceful on her feet. That’s because, in a previous life, she was an aspiring ballet dancer. At 17, she was in New York, studying under a scholarship at the American Ballet Theatre.

But the enticements of the big city proved perhaps too strong: I found out about food and sex, and gained a lot of weight. I’d never really eaten in my life. When you’re a ballet dancer, you don’t eat. You know that movie, Black Swan? That’s how you live.

What kind of food? Any food! Oh, the hot dogs in the street with the red onion sauce. My boyfriend, he was also in the entertainment business, and a lot of performers would play at Greek restaurants, so we’d go to all the Greek restaurants.

What happens when you weigh too much? You lose your scholarship. You come in and it’s like, “Sorry, you’ve gained too much weight.”

started doing spreads and everything, After losing her scholarship, Scott did dancing stints at Radio City Music Hall, and guys would go, “Let me see some pink!” I’d go (sticking out her tongue and and the go-go circuit in New Jersey. The pointing at it), “It’s pink!” The guys were pay was good, but the Southwest beckoned: really good at not grabbing, until the last Her mother had moved to Las Vegas from couple of years, because, I’m sorry, you Phoenix. Scott thought she might continue a dancing career in some form in Las Vegas. can’t spread your crotch in front of a guy The topless clubs turned her off. (“Twen- and not have him want to grab it. By then, I had been stripping for 15 years. ty-five dollars for eight hours? They’re In 1989, she took a cocktail-waitressing job nuts. I went to the Aladdin and was a pit at Palace Station — a different kind of stage. clerk.”) But the pay at all-nude joints was I was terrified. Because I only danced tempting. Twenty-six year-old Scott — dancing under the stage name Brandi Du- all my life. For the first two months, when walking from the parking lot ran — did her best to keep it classy.

After the Aladdin, I went into work- to the casino, I had such stage fright I thought I would puke. When you’re on ing at the Palomino — when Paul Perry owned it — The Cabaret, The Jokers Club, stage, there’s a distance between you and the audience. It’s more of a claustrostripping totally nude. Back then you’d phobic thing when you’re right next to practice bending over, so you thought all the people. you might see something, but you never She got over that stage fright, however, did. ... We were used to being true striptease, where you had an act — every- and has been a cocktail server for 26 years thing from Cleopatra to something with — but still makes the occasional move.

Ballet is still my first love. I still go a beach ball. I did a can-can on pointe, upstairs, where I have a barre, and do we did a bit where the girls dressed as plies, tondues. I never stopped dancing. kitty-cats came out of garbage cans, a If a certain song comes on at work, I get Halloween production where we did the dancing. The eye in the sky could probaMonster Mash. bly tell you. — AK Then it started to get raunchy. Girls

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your Arts+Entertainment calendar for June

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John Butler Trio Brooklyn Bowl Four words you might not’ve put together before — “Aussie roots jam rock” — come together in superbly listenable fashion. Groove it or lose it, people! 7p, $22-$27.50, Brooklyn Bowl, brooklynbowl.com

Veils Onyx Theater

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Sinatra Recent Acquisitions Sings Sinatra & Vogel Collection

The Smith Center

Barrick Museum Here, the Barrick is saying, look at these cool items from our storage room: excellent works it’s recently acquired, or accepted from the Herb and Dorothy Vogel Collection. Fine art overload!

Opening reception 6p.

Through September 19, free, Barrick Museum, unlv.edu/ barrickmuseum

Been 100 years since Frank Sinatra was born, and, thankfully, The Smith Center isn’t, in the popular fashion, marking the occasion with a hologram of Ol’ Blue Eyes — though, sadly, such a monstrosity exists. Instead, Frank Jr. will share memories, film clips, photos and, of course, perform his father’s songs.

7:30p, $25-$115, Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center, thesmithcenter.com

In Tom Coash’s play, presented by Asylum Theatre, two young women — an Egyptian and an AfricanAmerican who’s also Muslim — become college roommates in Cairo. Perspectives collide; great theater happens. Through June 20, 2p and 7p, $25 general admission, Onyx Theater, asylumtheatre.org

24 What Happened to Jimmy Hoffa The Mob Museum Some say he was worked into the foundation of a stadium in New Jersey. Others that he was ground up into a Florida swamp.

Catch up on the latest in Jimmy Hoffa Studies when the Mob Museum convenes an expert panel of writers and lawyers.

7p, $25, the Mob Museum, themobmuseum.org

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THE GUIDE ART

‘TIL DEATH DO YOU PART – MARRY YOURSELF THROUGH JUNE 7 Guests write vows to themselves, then artist Gabrielle St. Evensen guides them to choose a few costume elements, pick a bouquet and choose a ring to keep. Next, guests enter an inner sanctum where a priestess whispers the vows as guests repeat them to themselves in a mirror.

Guests are pronounced married to themselves and are given a personal wedding cake, cheers and a photo. Free. P3Studio at The Cosmopolitan, cosmopolitan lasvegas.com

SPRINGS PRESERVE PHOTO CONTEST EXHIBITION

COUPLED

JUNE 4-JULY 6, MON-THU 7A-5P The pieces in this exhibit will feature artists who are married, united or co-existing with another artist. Each artist couple will show a piece of each of their work and there will be a statement outlining how each artist’s work relates to the other artist in the couple.

Free. Las Vegas City Hall Chamber Gallery, 702-229-1012

FIRST FRIDAY

THROUGH JUNE 21, 10A-6P This year’s theme was “Celebrations and Traditions” when the challenge went out to professional, amateur and youth photographers throughout the valley. Come see the results of the sixth-annual juried photo contest. Free with regular admission. Big Springs Gallery at Springs Preserve

JUNE 5, 6P Experience local artwork with varied exhibits, open galleries, live music and DJs, food trucks, vendor booths and special activities for the kids.

Free. Arts District; hub at Casino Center Blvd. between Colorado St. and California St., firstfridaylasvegas.com

NEVADA 150 EXHIBIT

JUNE 10-JULY 12 Artists Amy Gartrell and Patterson Beckwith will create a laboratory for experimenting with color in all its form and non-form and explore the myriad of ways color affects us. Participants will experience color silks therapy and color water or hydrotherapy. In the final stage, Beckwith will take a color portrait of guests in the color field determined by Gartrell. Free.

P3Studio at The Cosmopolitan, cosmo politanlasvegas.com

THROUGH JUNE 30 This exhibit contains many articles from the celebration year, including the Sesquicentennial saddle handmade by J.M. Capriolas which features the GS Garcia stamp and Nevada 150 commemorative silver medallions; a diorama entitled “Home Means Nevada” created using only materials from Nevada; multiple photos from the celebration and much more. Free.

First floor of the Grant Sawyer Building, nevada150.org

CELEBRATING LIFE! 2015 JURIED SELECTIONS EXHIBITION

THROUGH JULY 11, WED-FRI 12:30-9P; SAT 9A-6P This exhibit is the result of a juried fine arts competition open to residents ages 50+ of Clark, Esmerelda, Lincoln, Mineral and Nye counties of Nevada. Participants submitted one artwork only; categories include drawing/pastel, painting, mixed media, photography, ceramics, sculpture and watercolor/gouache. Free.

Charleston Heights Art Center Ballroom, 800 S. Brush St., 702-229-1012

SOLO CHIC

THROUGH JULY 13, MON-THU 7A-5:30P A five-year retrospective by C.A. Traen featuring ceramic sculptures inspired by a catalogue of

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sketches. The work is uniquely and dynamically designed to be rich with personality by combining fine hand-sculpted details with wheel-thrown elements, vibrant underglazes and opulent lusters. Free. Las Vegas City Hall Grand Gallery, 495 S. Main St., first floor, 702-229-1012

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CHROMOPHILIA

GOING HOME

JUNE 26-SEP 19, WED-FRI 12:30-9P; SAT 9A-6P These large-scale drawings by Domenic Cretara and Christopher Troutman are narratives of their personal exploration of environment and family. Free. Charleston Heights Art Center, 800 S. Brush St., 702-229-1012

MUSIC

FRANKIE MORENO: UNDER THE INFLUENCE

JUNE 2 & 9, 8P Named Las Vegas Headliner of the Year two times running, Frankie Moreno has been wowing audiences from coast to coast with his mix of Rat Pack glamour, original and classic hits, and vintage funk-infused sounds. $20-$25.

Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

LAURIE BERKNER

JUNE 4, 10:30A & 6:30P The award-winning children’s recording artist will be live in concert singing her famous songs.

Wristbands will be distributed one hour before the performances on a first-come, first-served basis. Free. Main Theater at Clark County Library, lvccld.org

CLINT HOLMES

JUNE 5-7, FRI-SAT 8:30P; SUN 2P The acclaimed singer named Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year three times, Singer of the Year four times and awarded the Sammy Davis Jr. Foundation award performs a spellbinding evening of music that’s both live and alive. $37-$46.

Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

DYNAMIC TROMBONE QUARTET

JUNE 6, 2P Walter Boenig leads in a concert of eclectic music from classical compositions to popular contemporary standards. Free. Charleston Heights Arts Center, 800 S. Brush St., artslasvegas. org/performances/music

RAT PACK LIVE

JUNE 6, 7P A blockbuster tribute to Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Joan Rivers.

This high-energy, fast-paced, hysterically funny show presents the best of these legendary stars by the top tribute artists in the country with hits like “Mr. Bojangles,” “Luck Be a Lady,” “New York, New York” and so many more. $18. Starbright Theatre at Sun City Summerlin, suncity-summerlin.com/ starbrighttheatre

DANCE

SIMPLY ELLA

JUNE 12, 7:30P The Las Vegas Contemporary Dance Theater will present a very special performance celebrating the music and life of the legendary Ella Fitzgerald. This one-night-only event features a special performance by vocalists Clint Holmes and Reva Rice. $35-$125. Reynolds Hall at The Smith Center

HENDERSON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

JUNE 6, 8P Cool off with the orchestra’s summer performance featuring the concert version of Giacomo Puccini’s “La Bohème.” Free. Henderson Pavilion, 200 S. Green Valley Parkway, hendersonlive.com

INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE SHOW

JUNE 9, 6P A great variety show featuring Dokkoi Shamisen, Happy Feet Vegas, belly dancing, Tendoryuu Japanese Dancers, Korabo Taiko, Chinese Lion Dance and Mariachi. $8 in advance, $10 concert day. Winchester Cultural Center, clarkcountynv.gov

STEVE TYRELL

JUNE 12-13, 7P Steve Tyrell sings the hits of legendary songwriters Burt Bacharach, Carole King, Leiber and Stoller and others. $39-$59. Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

The First Peoples

THE DESERT TENORS

JUNE 14, 3P Bill Fayne, Mark Giovi and George DeMott will take you on a musical journey through opera, R&B, Popera, musical theater, jazz, swing and more! These are voices, personalities and a musical experience that are designed to please audiences of all ages. $18. Starbright Theatre at Sun City Summerlin, suncity-summerlin. com/starbrighttheatre

Series Premiere

Wednesday, June 24 at 9 p.m.

SAMBA EXOTICO

JUNE 19-20, 7P An exotic Latin flair takes the stage when the Assad Brothers, Brazil’s most celebrated classical guitarists, join with jazz guitar virtuoso Romero Lubambo and Clarice Assad for “Samba Exótico,” an exploration of Samba and Choros, a popular 19th-century genre that blossomed in Rio de Janeiro. $35-$59. Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

WILLIE WAINWRIGHT

JUNE 20, 2P World-renown Hawaiian fiddle player and singer, Wainwright has played for the White House, on The Tonight Show and at the Grand Ole Opry.

Free. Winchester Cultural Center, clarkcounty nv.gov

DJANGOVEGAS!

JUNE 20, 6P; PRE-CONCERT COCKTAILS 5P The annual celebration of the music of Django Reinhardt and other gypsy jazz musicians past and present, this year will feature the New Hot Club of America, the International String Trio with special guests Olli Soikkeli and Leah Zeger, and Las Vegas’ very own gypsy jazz group, The Hot Club of Las Vegas. $10 in advance; $15 event day. Historic Fifth Street School Arts Center, 401 S. Fourth St., 702-229-ARTS

The Bear Family and Me

Poldark on Masterpiece

Series Premiere

Series Premiere

Wednesday, June 10 at 8 p.m.

Sunday, June 21 at 9 p.m.

The Crimson Field

Last Tango in Halifax

Series Premiere

Season 3 Premiere

Sunday, June 21 at 10 p.m.

Sunday, June 28 at 8 p.m.

Visit VegasPBS.org today to see the complete schedule.

3050 E. Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, NV 89121 • 702-799-1010 JUNE 2015

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THE GUIDE ANNALEIGH ASHFORD: LOST IN THE STARS

JUNE 27-28, SAT 7P; SUN 2P Annaleigh Ashford comes to Las Vegas with an evening of song, story and sequins, in her critically acclaimed cabaret. $49-$65. Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

THEATER

SEVENS LIVE!

EVERY MON 7P Veteran poetry producer Lee Mallory will curate and host this selective open mic that will include edgy musicians, acerbic comics and lively spoken art visionaries. You will never think of poetry the same way again. Free with one drink minimum. The Cantina at Silver Sevens Hotel & Casino, 702-733-7000

IMPROV KINGDOM

EVERY MON 8P The Las Vegas comedy show featuring both short- and long-form improv from some of the valley’s most experienced improv actors. Wine and concessions available. Come at 6p for dropin class with Paul Mattingly. $10 show, $15 for both drop-in and show. Baobab Stage Theatre, 6587 Las Vegas Blvd. S., baobabstage.com

THE SPOT

EVERY WED 8P You never know whom you’ll see, but you know you will always enjoy some great longand short-form improv. Come at 6:30 for a donation-suggested drop-in class focusing on musical comedy, stay for the fun and games. $10. The Sci-Fi Center, 5077 S. Arville St., greyenvelope.com

THE BUCKET SHOW

EVERY WED 10P Paul Mattingly (Second City) and Matt Donnelly (former writer for Penn & Teller) offer up improv at its finest. You call the shots for everything from long-form to singing games. Free, donations go in your favorite actor’s bucket at the end of the show. Scullery Theater, 150 Las Vegas Blvd. N. mattandmattingly.com

DON’T QUIT YOUR DAY JOB

EVERY THU 9:30P Truth is indeed stranger than fiction. Learn more about the weirdest jobs in the valley in this talk-show-like format where the director interviews the special guest while improv actors recreate the hilarious workplace stories in the background. Created by Second City alumni Derek and Natalie Shipman. $10. Onyx Theatre, onyxtheatre.com

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THE GET

Siegel, the mob was a behind-the-scenes force in the Las Vegas casino industry from the 1940s to the 1970s. The Mob Museum’s Director of Content, Geoff Schumacher, will explain how it all happened and why it ended. Free. Main Theater at Clark County Library, lvccld.org

(W)RITES OF PASSAGE

JUNE 19, 7:30P Hosted by Keith Brantley, this monthly forum for established poets and open-mic participants features the best local poetry talent.

Ages 17+. Free. West Las Vegas Arts Center Community Gallery, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd., artslasvegas.org

EVERY FRI 9:30P Sketches, standup and improv–oh, my! All things comedy and unexpected happen every week in this variety show. Talent from all over the valley pools here, so come prepared to laugh. $10. Onyx Theatre, onyxtheatre.com

JUNE 5-6, 7P The Rainbow Company Youth Theatre Ensemble Show offers an entertaining view of growing up in Las Vegas, created from the writings of local students. Free. Sammy Davis Jr. Festival Plaza in Lorenzi Park, 720 Twin Lakes Drive, artslasvegas.com

THE KIDS IN THE HALL

JUNE 5, 9P All five original cast members – Dave Foley, Bruce McCulloch, Kevin McDonald, Mark McKinney and Scott Thompson – have reunited for a show that will feature characters well-known and loved by fans of their original show, as well as entirely new material. 18+ only. $55-$84. Mystère stage at Treasure Island, treasureisland.com

JESUS LOVES YOU! (BUT HATES ME)

JUNE 6, 7, 11, 13 & 14, THU-SAT 8P; SUN 2P Perhaps the only comedian to perform at an American Atheists convention AND a Baptist church, Thea Deley shares the hilarious epiphanies that led her to abandon Christianity. Equal parts storytelling, sketch comedy, film parody and game show, this is her love note to everyone who’s survived religious indoctrination with their faith in humanity still intact. Mature audiences only. $12. Black Box inside Las Vegas Little Theater, JesusLovesYouShow.com

LAS VEGAS IMPROVISATIONAL PLAYERS

JUNE 20, 7P Clean-burning, kid-friendly fun “Whose Line is it Anyway?” style. Be part of the show as the audience chooses the starter for each scene and song. Come early for Name that Tune and chocolate. $10 at the door, kids free. American Heritage Academy, 6126 S. Sandhill Road, lvimprov.com

LECTURES, SPEAKERS AND PANELS

LAS VEGAS STORIES: THE MOB’S HIDDEN HAND IN LAS VEGAS

JUNE 4, 7P From Meyer Lansky and Moe Dalitz to Bugsy

THE POETS’ CORNER

CONVERSATIONS WITH NORM PRESENTS “REMEMBERING SINATRA” JUNE 21, 2P Las Vegas Review-Journal celebrity columnist Norm Clarke interviews Frank Sinatra’s longtime friends Bob Anderson, Vince Falcone and Pia Zadora. Proceeds benefit the Education and Outreach Programming of The Smith Center. $25-$35. Cabaret Jazz at The Smith Center

THE ADVENTURES OF CREAMPUFF THE CAT: JOURNEY TO THE RAINBOW CITY

JUNE 27, 2P Author and illustrator Vernon Rowlette will present and then sign copies of his children’s book about an adventurous cat. Fun for all ages. Free.

West Las Vegas Arts Center, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd., 702-229-4800

FAMILY & FESTIVALS

FAMILY FUN DAY: ATOMIC COMICS

JUNE 6, 10A-3P Fun for the whole family, featuring a themed exhibit exploring atomic characters in comic books, games, activities, a costume contest and more. Free. National Atomic Testing Museum, nationalatomictestingmuseum.org

LAS VEGAS WINE AND MUSIC FESTIVAL

JUNE 11-13 Mingle with award-winning classical musicians and sip samples from Terlato Wines International’s luxury portfolio — paired specifically to the music — in a unique and intimate concert setting. $200 three-night pass, daily tickets $79-$109. Nevada State Museum at Springs Preserve, lasvegaswine andmusic.com

15TH ANNUAL JUNETEENTH FESTIVAL

JUNE 19, 5-9P Families come together to celebrate achievement, education, art, commerce, health and wellness. Sponsored by Rainbow Dreams Educational Foundation and the city of Las Vegas.

Free. Sammy Davis Jr. Festival Plaza in Lorenzi Park, june19lv.com

6TH ANNUAL LAS VEGAS JUNETEENTH CELEBRATION

MAY 29 – OCT 17

JUNE 20, 1P Spend the day celebrating the spiritual essence of people whose lives continue to be the creative catalyst of Juneteenth Independence Day which encourages critical thinking, conversation and reflection along with celebrating Nevada’s signing of the Juneteenth Bill to establish this day of observance. Co-sponsored by the National Juneteenth Observance Foundation and Las Vegas Jazz Society. Free. West Las Vegas Library, lvccld.org

SUMMER CAMPS AT THE MUSEUM

JULY 6-JULY 31, 8A-12P OR 1-5P Programming focuses on arts, science, technology, engineering and math. Campers will investigate, invent, experiment, interpret, strategize, discover and share what they’ve learned. Most important, they’ll have fun using their minds and engaging with others while igniting their imaginations. $180 per weekly session, $171 if registered before June 8, $153 museum members. Discovery Children’s Museum, discovery kidslv.org/camp

A LIVE MUSICAL SPECTACULAR OF DISNEY THROUGH THE YEARS FEATURING YOUR FAVORITE DISNEY CLASSICS!

JUNE 5 – OCT 16

FUNDRAISERS

NINTH ANNUAL FLIP-FLOP FUNDRAISER

THROUGH JUNE 30 Proceeds go to Camp Sunshine, a one-of-akind camp in Maine that is dedicated to helping children with cancer and their families. $1 per paper flip-flop, $5 for key fobs allowing 10% off purchases. Wear flip-flops on June 19 for a free smoothie! All 26 Las Vegas Tropical Smoothie Café locations, tropicalsmoothie.com

SWING SESSION CELEBRITY GOLF CLASSIC

JUNE 6, 9:30A Join celebrities and world-class chefs for an amazing day of gourmet food and golf alongside MBF Founder and renowned chef Mario Batali to raise funds children’s charities. $3,500 per golfer, $12,500 foursomes, $100-$250 non-golfers. Cascata Golf Course, Boulder City, mariobatalifoundation.org

A DIVINE MUSICAL COMEDY

JULY 31 – OCT 15

LOCATED IN SOUTHERN UTAH JUST 90 MINUTES NORTH OF LAS VEGAS ON I-15

TUACAHN.ORG | (866) 321-4953 JUNE 2015

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END NOTE SATIRE

Guns, guts and glory

By Andrew Kiraly & Scott Dickensheets

W

ith any luck, by the time you read this, the 2015 Legislature will have come to a merciful close.

Then again, it’s also entirely possible that, as of this writing, Assemblywoman Michele Fiore and Cliven Bundy are holding our lawmakers hostage at musket-point until they recognize the independent city-state of Fioria.

At any rate, here’s a roundup of the newsworthy people, the politics and the power plays of the 78th session.

players and politicos Michele Fiore After a rocky start in which Fiore was removed from key committees and legislative posts, the colorful, combative lawmaker proved a pivotal figure in this biennial’s session despite being “accidentally” locked out of Assembly chambers most of the time and thus forced to scream her testimony for the legislative record.

Despite her dogged efforts, Fiore’s controversial bill to allow concealed weapons on college campuses failed. Long-brewing suspicions about her motives for the bill were at last answered when an angry Fiore pulled her face skin off, revealing her true identity as Yosemite Sam. Victoria Seaman … Elmer Fudd.

John Hambrick The Assembly speaker, Hambrick was derided by some as “the man in the empty suit.” Asked for a response, the suit crumpled to the floor, releasing a wisp of dust.

Ira Hansen After being removed from his Assembly speaker post in light of revelations he had made racially insensitive comments in his column in the Sparks Tribune, Hansen delivered a sincere apology and publicly re-

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nounced his statements, and for the remainder of the session returned to the subtler, unspoken, more insidious brand of racism properly befitting a rural legislator.

Michael Roberson GOP Senate majority leader. By shepherding Gov. Sandoval’s education tax plan through the Legislature while quietly killing many of the red wave’s kookier proposals, Roberson was the Senate’s most effective Democrat in years.

BILLS Schools With the momentum of strong bipartisan support, SB811 passed the Assembly and Senate easily.

The bill breaks the Clark County School District into five smaller districts, then breaks each of those districts into 20 smaller districts, and then finally breaks down individual schools into separate pieces, which will be dismantled and sold for scrap.

UNLV medical school Encouraging bipartisan support of a Sandoval budget recommendation paves the way for UNLV to open a medical school as early as 2097.

Lobbyists AB704 narrows the list of gifts lobbyists can legally give lawmakers to include meals, alcohol, cash, trips, clothing, footwear, accessories, jewelry, vehicles, spa services, gym memberships, TVs, personal electronics, furniture, stationery, handguns, collectibles, antiques, maybe a little more cash, unused prescription medications, Netflix accounts, that last U2 album, seasons 2-4 of Breaking Bad on DVD, remaindered copies of the 50 Shades trilogy, brothel gift certificates and one last bundle of cash. Removed from list: novelty keychains.

Medical marijuana Despite intense lobbying by the maker of Canine Doritos, a bill to legalize medical marijuana for dogs failed after opponents

played a GIF of a stoned basenji thumping its head with a sneaker and barking, “That was my skull! I’m so wasted!”

Toy guns in schools Noting that a student had been reprimanded for chewing his Pop-Tart into the shape of a handgun, a worried Assemblyman Jim Wheeler, R-Glock, introduced a bill requiring all Nevada students to chew all their food into weapon shapes. “It’s time we made the Second Amendment as delicious to our children as it is to crackpot gun absolutists,” Wheeler said.

Controversies Uber In a pitched battle that tested the political power of taxi operators, the Legislature attempted to set policy for ride-sharing services such as Uber and Lyft. The bill finally passed when Uber grudgingly promised that its contractors would drive with the same recklessness and disdain for traffic safety as regular cabbies.

Federal land JR101 would ask the federal government to revert 7 million acres to state control. It’s an economic move, insisted its sponsor, Sen. Pete Goicoechea: “Since the mining industry pays so little in taxes, the obvious solution is to give more land to mining companies — that way, the state collects incrementally more of their insignificant payments!” However, pressed by conservationists, land-use advocates and a covey of sentient sage grouse, Goicoechea admitted it would be wrong to turn the entire 7 million acres over to mining. “We’ll also give more grazing land to Cliven Bundy,” he added.

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Beginning in our private preschool, each student is immersed in globalism, empowered with a personalized curriculum, and engaged with fine arts and athletics. Upon graduating from our middle school, each student feels fully prepared for success at their high school of choice.

Learn more at HendersonSchool.com. +1-702-818-2100

FR

Grace. Strength. Artistry.

CELEBRATION.

Nevada Ballet Theatre and Cirque du Soleil® Present

A CHOREOGRAPHERS’ SHOWCASE October 11 & 18, 2015

OMPAC ONKAG LY ES

A BALANCHINE CELEBRATION:

THE NUTCRACKER

Serenade / Slaughter on Tenth Avenue / Who Cares?

From Tchaikovsky to Rodgers & Hart to Gershwin

December 12 – 20, 2015

$1

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November 7 & 8, 2015

CINDERELLA

THE STUDIO SERIES

ROMEO & JULIET

February 13 & 14, 2016

March 31 – April 3, 2016

May 14 & 15, 2016

NEVADA BALLET THEATRE

2015-2016 SEASON ON SALE NOW (702) 749-2000 NevadaBallet.org 2015-2016 SEASON SPONSORS Photos by Virginia Trudeau. Cinderella photo by Yi Yin, courtesy of Oregon Ballet Theatre. Serenade Choreography by George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust. Programs subject to change.