Las Vegas Road Trip: Day Five

Feb 19, 2005- Permalink

Two shows lined up for today. We contrast last night’s half-empty new show with a sold out ten-year-old Vegas veteran, Cirque du Soleil’s Mystère. Mystère, which runs in a 1,600 seat theatre at Treasure Island designed especially for them, features a cast of 70+ acrobats, clowns, comedians, actors, singers and musicians. Like most Cirque du Soleil shows, Mystère comes from a mystical place. Director Franco Dragone says that “Mystère is a voyage to the very heart of life where past, present and future merge, and all of our emotions converge. Mystère is the enigma of time, the bearer of hopes and dreams but also of tragedy.”

If you’re the sort of theatregoer who is willing to surround yourself in a sensory experience that defies the norm and pulls references from a variety of theatre styles, then Mystère is for you. If you’re the type of theatregoer who doesn’t get what the heck the director was talking about, Mystère is still for you if you focus solely on the talent of the performers and their work on aerial cubes, Chinese poles, hand-to-hand acrobatics, bungees, trapezes and Korean planks. I think only the dead wouldn’t get any enjoyment from this show. Even if your idea of art is Elvis on black velvet, you can’t help but have some part of your heart and soul touched by this performance.

Showtimes: Wednesday – Saturday 7:30pm & 10:30pm Sundays 4:30pm & 7:30pm

After Mystère, we rushed to Harrah’s to catch the monorail to the Tropicana Hotel where we were going to see Folies Bergere.

Folies is now in its 46th year at the Tropicana. Like Jubilee, Folies Bergere is the traditional Vegas show with dancers, singers, topless showgirls, and specialty acts. It doesn’t have all the stage mechanics of Jubilee, which gives the audience time to actually focus on the flow of the show. The shows lead singers, Traci Ault and Dan O’Brien, display much more personality in their performances than the lead singers in Jubilee, the proof being that I actually took the time to learn their names. O’Brien, who reminded me of American Idol’s ill-fated co-host Brian Dunkleman, is given the task of introducing Folies Bergere’s clunky segues. The theme of the show is women through the ages. After a dance from the Twenties, O’Brien must intone that “Yes they had the vote now, but the women of the Twenties were also sexy!” and lo behold we get a topless number. “Today’s woman runs companies, but she’s still sexy!” Clothed-topless-clothed-topless-specialty act.

Specialty act? I guess I should investigate the history of Vegas more, but the showgirl shows, from Splash to Jubilee to Folies Bergere, all stop the dancing at one point and bring out a juggler, acrobat or comedian. Obviously it gives the showgirls a chance to take off the feathered headdresses and relax for a few minutes, but topless girl/zany juggler is the dictionary definition of juxtaposition. In the case of Folies Bergere, that task is handled by amazing comic juggler Wally Eastwood. His juggling style and self-deprecating humour are so well done that the audience doesn’t realize that he probably makes the same “errors” and comments each and every performance.

Apart from the clunky segues, Folies Bergere is still populated by talented dancers, good singers and beautiful showgirls. As a 46-year-old show, it’s a grand throwback to the original Vegas shows. In a city that literally blows up their landmarks, catching this show is a must.

7:30 p.m. & 10 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday. 8:30 p.m. Tuesday & Friday Dark Sundays