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Is Terry Fator Funny Or Offensive? You Decide

Where: 3400 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89109
March 17, 2010 at 12:50 PM | by juliab | 5 Comments

As we told you yesterday, Terry Fator's people kindly invited us down to see the show on its first anniversary, and witness the unveiling of his latest character, Wrex the crash test dummy.

And although we already reviewed the show when it first launched, we felt the need to update it and post a different view.

First up, as we said yesterday, Fator is technically very competent. He’s a great ventriloquist. He can sing pretty well too. But the novelty of singing puppets wears off after a couple of minutes, so in order for you not to be bored for the next hour and a half, you need to engage with him.

And we didn’t engage with him at all.

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Sound Off On Your Fave and Worst Shows in Vegas

January 20, 2010 at 8:11 PM | by juliana | 1 Comment

Not all shows are created equal in Vegas. We know this much to be true. With offerings ranging from the campy "Bite" at the Stratosphere to the menopausal set's "Menopause The Musical" to stand-up comics and magicians, divas, tribute shows and Cirque Du Soleil performances (which have their own hierarchy), there's a wide variety of options for visitors to choose from.

And some visitors don't always choose wisely, usually because something is advertised as something it's not. We'll do our best to give you honest and accurate show reviews but if there's ever a time when you shell out $100+ for a ticket to a show that disappoints or wins you over, let us know. Become a member of VegasChatter here and then comment away. Or send in your reactions by email instead.

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Viva Elvis Still Has a Whole Lotta Rehearsing To Do

December 16, 2009 at 1:25 PM | by juliana | 3 Comments

It's not fair to judge a show based on a preview of only four numbers. It's just not. So the sneak peek that we received yesterday for the Viva Elvis show is probably not going to be the same as what theater-goers on February 19th, the show's grand opening gala, will see. But folks with tickets on Friday will probably see a version close to this. And we are a little worried about that.

But let's take it from the top. The Viva Elvis theater is spectacular. It's new, it's got incredibly high ceilings and the seats are red and plushy with cup-holders, almost like giant Laz-e-Boys. Elvis' TCB with lightning bolts logo (which is found all over Graceland) is found all over this theater from the door handles to the TCB belt buckles that the ushers wear. (TCB? Taking care of business.) The souvenir shop outside the theater has everything you could want of Elvis memorabilia.

The feeling is very much like the frenzy that fans feel at LOVE at The Mirage, the Cirque du Soleil show about The Beatles. Even in the media preview with just a smattering of folks in the audience, the anticipation was high.

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The High-Low Appeal of Garth Brooks at The Encore

December 14, 2009 at 1:22 PM | by juliana | 1 Comment

After we took this photo, Purple People yelled at us.

If you find yourself strolling around the Wynn and Encore properties these days, chances are the one and only song you will hearing blaring from the Wynn's outdoor speakers is "Friends in Low Places." And yes, that's because country superstar Garth Brooks has officially kicked off his semi-permanent residency here. (Wynn might be playing his other songs but the four different times we were outside the hotel, it was that ultimate bar crowd pleaser playing.)

We were invited along with several other Vegas media folk to attend the 10:30pm showing of Garth's concert on Saturday night, his second night in town.

With tickets at a healthy rate of $143 (including tax) for any and all seats, front row or back row, we're here to tell you exactly what you're gonna get. Well, not exactly since Garth might be taking different requests when you go. Yes, he takes requests.

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Ignore The Freaks On the Strip; See These Ones Instead

Where: 3555 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89109
November 4, 2009 at 1:16 PM | by juliab | 0 Comments

First things first, there are a lot of freaks in Vegas. You will probably see them walking from your room to the buffet, from the buffet to the casino, from the casino to the club, and definitely, definitely on the Strip.

So why, you ask, would one pay to see a show called Freaks when one can enjoy the glorious walkway of them that is Las Vegas Boulevard? Because the self-defined freaks who perform every night upstairs at O’Sheas are, actually, amazing.

Another brainchild of Paris hypnotist Anthony Cools along with Luke Jermay’s show, which precedes them in the theatre above O’Sheas, Freaks is the kind of sideshow that you’d assume exists in Vegas, but actually is normally drowned out by the boozing and the gambling and the nekked ladies.

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This Man Will Actually Read Your Mind (We Think.)

Where: 3555 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89109
November 2, 2009 at 5:55 PM | by juliab | 0 Comments

So you’re in Vegas. You want to see some magic. But you don’t want to get landed with a cheesefest like Xtreme Magic and you’d rather tweeze your own fingernails out than spend money on Criss Angel. What to do?

May we suggest you try a slightly different kind of magic, courtesy of Mr Luke Jermay over at O’Sheas? Mental, his show, has no rabbits out of hats or prancing tigers or show-stealing acrobats. It just has an hour of so-good-I’m-actually-quite-spooked mindreading. Yup, good old-fashioned mindreading.

Jermay’s totally different from what you’d expect from a Vegas performer (from London, not brash, a kind of humble stage presence) but don’t let that put you off. Likewise, the special effects are reduced to a couple of swirly lights and confetti that he sprinkles when he’s taking a while to read minds. Don’t worry though – it just makes the magic stuff even more insane.

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We Once Didn't Know Who Matt Goss Was, But We Definitely Know Him Now

Where: 4321 West Flamingo Road [map], 89109
October 23, 2009 at 3:34 PM | by juliana | 0 Comments

Globetrotting Gourmet had an intimate encounter with Matt Goss the other week. Here's her story.

Until about three weekends ago, we'd never heard of Matt Goss. Someone six degrees separated from The Palms told us that he'd sold some ungodly number of records back in Britain (as in double-digit millions back in the 1980s when he was in Brit boy band, Bros), but still, the name Goss didn't ring any bells.

Bad girl, bad girl because Matt Goss sure rang our bell at his Matt Goss Live From Las Vegas show, which is showing in The Gossy Room at The Palms. Goss' recent resume doesn't suck either--after his stint as a hunky boy bander, he turned soulful songwriter and penned the main song for Fox's "So You Think You Can Dance" and the hit single "Change Me" for Keri Hilson and Akon.

Goss steps, snaps and slides his way through the hour or so-long performance, weighing heavily on Rat Pack-y originals, interspersed with snappy (and oddly unexpected) covers like "Hotel California." We love the intimate lounge venue with old school cocktail service, but admit, we expected total cheese--nothing less than synthetic orange, spray-from-the-can variety--and were completely and pleasantly surprised.

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'Xtreme Magic' Pulls Cheese Out of Thin Air

Where: 3801 Las Vegas Blvd. South [map], 89109
October 8, 2009 at 12:08 PM | by Jennifer Kester | 0 Comments

Dirk Arthur will go extreme on your behind with his magic tricks. He's serious.

It's funny how when you're at home, you never say, "Hey, let's do dinner and a magic show tonight." Yet in Vegas, it's one of those things that suddenly seems like a cool thing to do, with corny magicians getting top billing at hotels all along the strip. The Old Vegas Tropicana fittingly has its own resident cheesy illusionist, Dirk Arthur, who brings out his own litter of big cats for "Xtreme Magic," as seen on David Letterman (as Arthur likes to name-drop).

"Xtreme" is one word for it. The dancers in the show are extremely bad. In a town that attracts showgirls to perform in Jubilee! and acrobats to join Cirque du Soleil, you'd think that it would be easy to recruit some good cast-offs. The special effects—mainly the thick smoke—are extremely overdone. And Arthur's jokes fell flat; a dated dig at Dan Quayle was met with blank stares. But it wasn't all misses.

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'Just People Dancing Around in Bunny Costumes' Aptly Sums Up Criss Angel's 'Believe'

Where: 3900 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89119
August 7, 2009 at 3:31 PM | by juliana | 0 Comments

We've known for quite some time that Criss Angel's Cirque du Soleil show, Believe is quite unbelievable and not in a good way. However, the Luxor is still committed to this show and there are real people out there who are paying good money to see it. But they should beware. Below is an experience of one ticket-holder who recently took in the show on August 1.

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Want To See Talking Naughty Bits? Try The Anthony Cools Experience

Where: 3655 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89109
August 6, 2009 at 2:52 PM | by londontown | 0 Comments

Watching people hump chairs wasn’t top of our to do list when we arrived in Vegas last week, but we like to think of ourselves as go with the flow types, so when we were invited to Anthony Cools’ hypnotist show at Paris, we said "yes" straightaway.

Cools has been in Vegas for about four years and two weeks ago, they signed him up for another four. To celebrate, he’s introduced a four minute, welcome-to-Vegas-style 3D film at the start of the show, which actually, we could have done without – it’s amusing enough, but it won’t have you rolling in the aisles (unless you’re drunk, in which case you’ll love the 3D boobs which make an appearance around the three minute mark).

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Le Reve Is Not Just About Ribbons and Doves

Where: 3131 Las Vegas Blvd S [map], 89109
May 7, 2009 at 6:14 PM | by juliana | 0 Comments

Previously, we were never quite sure what Le Reve inside The Wynn was about. The ads for the show (like this one) seen around town always confused us--was it about silk ribbons and doves? Did it just involve one person? What was the story? Not getting the gist of the show immediately (and obviously, not reading any reviews), we never seriously considered seeing it.

But on a recent trip in January, we got the chance to see the show, thanks to the folks at the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Le Reve is the creation of Franco Dragone, the man responsible for the Cirque Du Soleil shows, Mystère and O. While he left Cirque in 1999, he stayed in Vegas to create Celine Dion's A New Day show at Caesars in 2003. Two years later, his Le Reve debuted at the Wynn.

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Peepshow Gives The Audience More Than Just A Peep...

Where: 3667 S Las Vegas Blvd [map], 89109
April 20, 2009 at 6:01 PM | by Stephanie Sims | 0 Comments

Mel B. sang and shook her thang on stage all while she was a Spice Girl; Kelly Monaco won the first season of “Dancing with the Stars,” the season that got America hooked. Now, both women are dancing, shimmying and showing a whole lotta skin in their next stage venture – main characters in Planet Hollywood's new burlesque show Peepshow.

This song-and-dance burlesque show actually has a plot – lonesome, single gal Bo Peep (Kelly Monaco) enters a dream world where the Peep Diva (Mel B.) and her burlesque dancers show Bo how to get what she wants from a man. The entire show features acts that are based on fairytales – updated, of course, and featuring modern songs also, like Ginuwine’s “Pony,” The Commodores’ “Brick House” and Christina Aguilera’s “Ain’t No Other Man."

There are even a few guys in the show. Yes, they’re minor characters, and they don’t exactly bare all, but their bodies are exposed and it's certainly easy on the eyes.

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