Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

‘Spirit of 45’ a high-caliber event; setting new scene at Beacher’s Madhouse

Bob Anderson-Tony Bennett-Vincent Falcone

Palazzo

Bob Anderson, Tony Bennett and Vincent Falcone at “Frank: The Man, The Music” on Thursday, April 9, 2015, in Palazzo.

‘Frank: The Man, The Music’ Opening Night

Opening night of Launch slideshow »

Some Classic Vegas shtick from earlier Sunday during lunch with Bob Anderson, Clint Holmes, Frankie Scinta and the esteemed Jerry Jones. We grabbed a bite at Silverton’s Sundance Grill before Sunday’s “Spirit of 45” benefit show at Veil Pavilion.

The waitress delivered the check to the table, and Anderson reached for it, saying, “I got it.” There was the whole, “No, no, Bob! You don’t need to do that!” from the rest of the table.

“Hey, I said I got it,” Anderson insisted, slipping his glasses on to read the damage. “I’m a headliner.”

Scinta, who is still looking for a venue after his show left The D Las Vegas in April, turned to Holmes and said, “Remember when I used to be able to say that?”

I said, “Hey, you can still say it.”

Kind of a low blow …

Scinta followed with, “You’re not fond of your kneecaps, are you?”

Meantime, Anderson paid the bill. I now owe him a Greek omelet and Scinta a thoughtful write-up of many paragraphs when “The Scintas” — and that is once more the name of The Scintas’ act — finds a venue. I believe that will happen soon, but not at Silverton.

Time to make another order — to go:

Miley Cyrus Hosts Beacher’s Madhouse

Miley Cyrus, with Jeff Beacher, hosts the opening of Beacher’s Madhouse on Friday, Dec. 27, 2013, at MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Launch slideshow »

• An oft-discussed venue on the Strip, for its recent history and perceived opportunity, is Beacher’s Madhouse at MGM Grand. There have been murmurs about a supper-club show going into Madhouse. Don’t bet on it.

An MGM Grand spokeswoman said over the weekend that the Jabbawockeez and weekly Beacher’s Madhouse party performances were plenty to keep the room animated beginning this fall when the Jabbawockeez move from Luxor.

The Jabbawockeez will be performing two shows a night five nights a week, and Beacher’s Madhouse will be staged Saturdays, with occasional Friday nights booked. As it was put to me, “There is no other entertainment planned for that space, which will already have a very robust schedule.”

MGM Grand has been in control of the room since January 2014. For several months up to that point, the venue was a partnership among Hakkasan, Beacher and the hotel. But Hakkasan split with Beacher over operational disputes, allowing MGM to step in to run the room.

That led to a drawn-down schedule for Beacher’s Madhouse and the relocation of the masked acrobatic boogie troupe Jabbawockeez. Otherwise, some experienced entertainment figures in the city have said that room would be great for a burlesque production (as it was for “Crazy Horse Paris”) or comedy club. Not happening. It’s Beacher’s, Jabbawockeez … and a dream.

‘Mondays Dark’ Disney Night: 1/26/15

Host Mark Shunock, third from left, and guests arrive at “Mondays Dark,” benefiting the LGBTQ Center, at Vinyl on Monday, Jan. 26, 2015, in the Hard Rock Hotel. Launch slideshow »

• After a few months of speculation that “Mondays Dark” might be pulling out of Vinyl at the Hard Rock Hotel, we can confidently impart that the charity showcases founded by Mark Shunock are likely to remain at the Hard Rock. Though the formal documentation is yet unsigned, expect the monthly benefit shows to stay at Vinyl through 2016.

The next event is tonight, the theme being the soundtrack to “Animal House,” where we ask the musical question, “Do you mind if we dance with your dates?” Among those scheduled to appear are cast members from “For the Record: Baz” at Light in Mandalay Bay, newcomers to “Monday’s Dark.” Could be a landmark night.

Also set are cast members from “Rock of Ages” (including Shunock); Earl Turner; Francesca Camus; Jillian Austin; Daniel Park; Philip Drennan; and Jassen Allen. This month’s charity is Three Square food fight (I mean, bank); tickets are $20 in advance, $30 at the door and available at MondaysDark.com.

• Reckless in Vegas made its debut at Cabaret Jazz count Saturday night. This was one of the rocking-est shows ever in that room. Michael Shapiro’s three-piece band stormed through its collection of 1960s standards boosted by a high measure of crackling rock ’n’ roll.

Kelly Clinton-Holmes and Chris Phillips of Zowie Bowie made cameo appearances (and I will live to see the day when Phillips, who was characteristically dynamic, sing “That’s Life” without the aid of a lyrics sheet).

The use of video images of Old Vegas and The Rat Pack, and a pair of shimmering backing dancers, added to the experience as Shapiro raced through “Luck Be a Lady Tonight,” “All Shook Up,” “Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You,” “I Got You Babe,” “It’s Not Unusual,” “Volare,” “Mr. Bojangles” and “Everybody Loves Somebody Sometimes” all re-charted and infused with rocket fuel.

It was a fairly loud time, but there was a lot of really cool stuff happening up there. The band spent more than a decade performing in the Bay Area before Shapiro returned to his hometown of Las Vegas in April. RIV is playing Sept. 19 and Oct. 17 at Chrome in Santa Fe Station. Otherwise, this crew is looking for a place to swing and do its thing.

• Returning to our lead-in: “Spirit of 45” at Veil was to benefit Honor Flight, which provides free flights to Washington, D.C., for World War II veterans so that they can visit monuments in D.C. If a caregiver is needed, the organization provides that service, too, also free to the veterans.

Appearing at Veil, where about 500 folks turned out for a healthy Sunday-night lineup, were Michelle Johnson; Ronnie Rose; Chadwick Johnson; Swing City Dolls; Mark Giovi and Genevieve Dew; Carmine Mandina; Rich Natole; Craig Canter; Rob Garrett; Denise Rose; Martin Mancuso; and The Desert Tenors (Giovi and Bill Fayne).

Event organizer Evan Davis (that’s “E-V-A-N D-A-V-I-S,” as he reminded me during the show, so thanks for that) shared MC duties with Anderson, who continually reminded of the great, golden era of Las Vegas entertainment.

Earlier, he and I debated the quality of entertainment, overall, offered in the city in old days, when Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Elvis Presley, Jerry Lewis, Wayne Newton, Liberace and many of the true greats filled showrooms on the Strip.

I offered that today’s Las Vegas has the highest level of entertainment in the city’s history if you count the venues that were not in place in the days when Anderson was playing Top of the Dunes.

I noted the big-event facilities MGM Grand Garden Arena and Mandalay Bay Event Center, plus the Colosseum at Caesars, the Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel, the Chelsea at the Cosmopolitan, Axis at Planet Hollywood, Brooklyn Bowl at the Linq Promenade and the Smith Center for the Performing Arts.

I offered that the showroom superstars of the 1950s through, say, the mid-1980s were unsurpassed, but the concerts, production shows and top-end talent makes Las Vegas an even more appealing entertainment destination today.

But as Anderson kept reeling off, “Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Elvis …,” it was a tough argument. See him in “Frank: The Man, The Music” at Palazzo to get a hint of what we’re talking about.

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

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