L.V. Burlesque Festival, Pitbull, Smith Center and ‘Showstoppers’ permeate scene

By John Katsilometes

Published Thursday, Oct. 8, 2015 | 7:15 p.m.

Updated Friday, Oct. 9, 2015 | 8:41 a.m.

The Kats Report Bureau is gearing up — gearing, I tell you! — for the Las Vegas Burlesque Festival at Gold Coast. The event starts tonight (or Thursday night, depending on when you are absorbing this information), and I am involved.

Not as a performer. We’ll leave that to Mr. Gorgeous.

Rather, on Friday night, the restraining order is lifted, and I am invited to judge the Festival’s “Best of the Fest” competition. I’ll be the third wheel to fellow judges “Absinthe” star Melody Sweets, and the world’s foremost burlesque-ian magician Dusty Summers of Rose. Rabbit. Lie. The event begins at 9 p.m. in Gold Coast Showroom, which was once the home of “Forever Plaid” and Barrie Cunningham’s Jimmy Buffett and Neil Diamond tribute shows (there’s some intense institutional-knowledge action).

The competition is to involve voting from the audience, too, which takes some of the pressure off, as the winner is awarded $1,000.

The action begins tonight with a striptease (yes, this is true) performance by Las Vegas jam band Moksha, then rolls into a costume contest hosted by longtime Elvis tribute artist (that’s Presley, not Costello) Harry Shahoian. Friday’s activity includes a jazz performance and meet-and-greet event from 8 to 9 p.m. Saturday is “The Spectacular!” show at 8 p.m., which is an all-star performance that caps the weekend.

Many recognizable names and Las Vegas faves are in that lineup, including Kalani Kokonuts, LouLou D’vil and Buttercup Delight (Burlesque has the greatest stage names in entertainment, by the way). It should be a crackling good time with tickets available starting at $45 (available at the door or at LVBurlesqueFestival.com).

With all that, let’s shimmy elsewhere, eh?

• On the topic of doling awards, the performer who wins this year’s award for the Best Show I Expected Not to Enjoy Nearly As Much As I Did goes to Pitbull. His thunderous run at Axis at Planet Hollywood culminated with Wednesday's performance, and, in that seven-show spree, Pitbull managed to create strong buzz in the scene, fill the room with a genuine groove-fest and open a charter school in Henderson.

Given all this electricity, and his obvious zeal for performing in Las Vegas, I would not at all be surprised to see Pitbull back for another mini-run in 2016.

• Imagine Dragons is managing an appearance at Wine Amplified at Las Vegas Village on Friday and Saturday nights, but don’t expect any collab with fellow Las Vegas band Panic! At the Disco. Rather, through the auction company Whip Fundraising, I.D. is represented in a silent auction table at the event to benefit the band’s chosen charity, the Tyler Robinson Foundation. Among the items to be awarded is a signed guitar. Signed by the members of Imagine Dragons, specifically, including bassist Ben McKee.

Anyone who purchases a silent-auction item will automatically have a chance to win that guitar. Items up for bid include portraits of Madonna, Bono and Kid Rock, among others; a number of signed guitars; VIP seats to "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”; VIP tickets to Coachella; and VIP seats to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York. All kinds of cool stuff.

This marks the first onsite silent auction ever for Wine Amplified, in its 10th year as a Las Vegas event and second year at the Village under the steady stewardship of Chris Hammond and Sonny Barton. And, for those recurring imbibers, for every glass of vino purchased, a meal is donated to Three Square food bank. As we say, cheers!

• The new vocalist in “Steve Wynn’s Showstoppers” is great.

I can’t wait to see her actually perform.

But already we know Rachel Tyler is a topnotch entertainer based on the performers she beat out to win one of the three female leads in the Encore Theater production. Trust me, some serious talent went before Steve Wynn and show director Phil McKinley during the audition process to replace the departing Kerry O’Malley.

Credits-wise, Tyler is impressive, hearkening to London’s West End in such shows as “Smokey Joe’s Café,” “Miss Saigon” and “The Rocky Horror Show” (and we need that last one added to “Showstoppers,” just to shake things up a little).

As long reported, “Showstoppers” is adding new numbers, keeping the rotation of acts fresh as the show moves toward its first anniversary in December. Added to the lineup are “Big Spender” from “Sweet Charity,” featuring Lindsay Roginski; “Nobody Does It Like Me” from “Seesaw,” featuring Nicole Kaplan; and “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from “Funny Girl,” featuring Tyler. We still don’t have a number from my favorite musical, “Kats,” so let the auditions commence …

• The D.P. Express (there’s a great name for something), otherwise known as David Perrico’s Pop Strings band, opens its kinda-residency at Lounge at the Palms at 11 p.m. Saturday (doors open at 10, no cover). Perrico is back for another locked-in date Oct. 24, and unless something goes totally haywire, is on target for additional shows at the Palms on Nov. 7 and Nov. 21. Perrico also is hoping to return Pop Strings to the Smith Center in January.

• On the topic of people who own and play trumpets, Lon Bronson has added a second show to his 25th anniversary spectacular at Cabaret Jazz in the Smith Center on Oct. 17. What was once a single performance has now been spliced to shows at 7 and 10 p.m. Bronson’s guest stars for the event: Anne Martinez, Michelle Johnson, Michelle Rohl, Chris Phillips of Zowie Bowie, Tony Davich, Dave Loeb and members of Tower of Power including the great Doc Kupka. Expected in the audience (and possibly onstage) are such All-Star Band frequenters as Drew Carey and Penn Jillette.

In this mix, I am honored to be introducing the band in some groovy fashion, but do try to take part anyway. Bronson has been performing industrial-strength, show-band action since the days when Steve Schirripa hired him at the Riv’s Le Bistro Lounge. Tickets for both shows are a mere pittance, $20, absent fees, and are still on sale (but at this very moment only four tickets remain for the 10 p.m. performance). To buy, go to TheSmithCenter.com.

• On the topic of Cab Jazz, you know what the show’s motto is?

Eat. Drink. Groove.

Awesome.

That leads us to this heartfelt endorsement of this weekend’s triumvirate of performances by Clint Holmes, who premieres his tribute to Sammy Davis Jr. at 8:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. He’ll be joined by flamethrower Earl Turner, so this should be a dandy of a show.

Holmes once performed in the room originally named for Davis at Harrah’s on the Strip. His favorite memory of Davis was a night in 1988 when Davis performed at Circus Maximus at Caesars Palace. The two spoke for about three hours, and afterward Davis jotted down his number on a slip of notepaper and told Holmes, “Call me. I want to pass the torch.”

Two years later, as Davis had fallen ill from throat cancer, Holmes covered Davis’ 60th anniversary TV special from L.A. for “Entertainment Tonight.” Holmes was an “E.T.” correspondent in those days and during the show was seated next to Gregory Peck. “That was the night when Gregory Hines knelt down and kissed Sammy’s feet after they tap danced,” Holmes says. “I’ll never forget it.”

• An event and cause to support, “Circus Couture,” is set for 7 p.m. at the Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel. The event is a fundraiser for Children’s Specialty Center of Nevada, which provides care for patients facing life-threatening conditions, including cancer, regardless of insurance status. The night is a performance, art auction, silent auction and fashion show that was created by Erica Linz, a one-time Cirque du Soleil artist who performed in “Ka” at MGM Grand.

I experienced the great work at Children’s Specialty Center in January, during the treatment of Elann Saula, as part of this story about his care.

The title of this year’s Circus Couture event is “Twelve.” Tickets start at $35; go to Circus-Couture.com for information.

• M Pavilion continues its strong lineup of one-off local headliners as Lani Misalucha, “Voice of the Nightingale,” performs at 7 p.m. Saturday. Misalucha was long the frontwoman for the popular Las Vegas lounge act Society of Seven and in 2009 briefly appeared with Turner in a co-headlining run at then-Shimmer Cabaret (now Westgate Cabaret) at then-Las Vegas Hilton (now Westgate Las Vegas).

Misalucha’s collection of backing singers: Autumn Madill (the original singer in “Pin Up”), Anne Martinez (“Alice — A Steampunk Concert Fantasy,” and, soon, “50 Shades! The Parody” at Windows at Bally’s), Lily Arce (the bands The Jones and Rock This Town and a swing in “O” and “Fantasy”) and Maren Wade (the esteemed author of the Las Vegas Weekly column “Confessions of a Showgirl” and producer of a show by that name). Tickets are $42, $55 and $68 and are available at the M box office at Player Services, by calling 800-745-3000 and at any Ticketmaster location.

Arce is pulling one of these only-in Vegas doubleheaders that night, running from M Resort to Rocks Lounge, where The Jones perform at 11 p.m. That is dual-resort action.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at Twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow “Kats With the Dish” at Twitter.com/KatsWiththeDish.