Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Ricky Martin is ready to hit the Strip with ‘All In’ and explore Las Vegas beyond the bright lights

Ricky Martin

Martin is All In starting Wednesday.

In November, international pop star Ricky Martin announced he’d be the next Las Vegas Strip resident performer. On Wednesday April 5, Ricky Martin: All In opens at the Park Theater at Monte Carlo, where we’ve already seen new productions starring Bruno Mars and Cher debut. We caught up with Martin this week amid final rehearsals to talk about the show and what will set it apart.

The show opens in just a few days. How is everything going? Everything is coming along fine. We’ve been rehearsing for eight weeks now, and we got to Vegas last week and started rehearsing in the actual theater. It’s another world. It’s heaven. I am working with an amazing group of 18 dancers and some great musicians onstage with me. The whole production is just amazing. We are putting together a show for this theater and it’s something that’s never been done before, so it’s pretty spectacular.

You’ve been touring seemingly nonstop for years. How was the process of creating this show different from touring productions? The good thing about being in one place, steady and stable, is you don’t have to deal with the technical limitations of the road. You know, you’re walking into a venue in the morning, putting the stage up, and then taking it down right after the show, loading it into a truck and taking it to the next city. It’s very challenging. Here, we can pretty much do whatever we want, production-wise, really be comfortable and stay a while. It’s pretty different and, I have to say, very relaxing. And this production is pretty big—the investment for us and [MGM Resorts] is very important. The Las Vegas audience is used to incredible shows and we are going to give them what they want—an hour and 45 minutes of heavy adrenaline.

Have you had the chance to make the rounds on the Strip and see some of the other headliners? I did see Celine [Dion]. I haven’t been able to see Jennifer [Lopez] yet, and I might see Britney [Spears] tomorrow. There are [so many]. I’ve been visiting Vegas since I was 14 years old. Every tour I’ve ever done, I always stop in Vegas.

How do your fiancé and your twin boys feel about this new Vegas adventure? Do they like spending time here? It’s funny, my kids were born on the road. When they spend more than a week in one place, it’s like, “Okay dad, what’s next? Let’s go!” And my fiancé [Jwan Yosef] is very low-key. He’s a conceptual painter, and he creates his art in a very quiet environment, a silent mode, and I’m completely different. I’m very loud when I do my art, a completely different monster. But we’re all very happy with the fact that we get to be here, and it’s going to bring some stability to our family.

Your sons are going to be nine years old this year. How has being a father changed the way you approach making music and performing? Every decision I make is based on the well-being of my kids, but also my kids want me to be happy. It may not seem like a normal life, but what’s normal? This [life] is pretty much all they’ve known, and they’re happy. You know, I’ve been doing this since I was 12 and I still love it.

Are you hoping to make some time to explore Las Vegas with them, play tourist a little? We must. We have to. And not only on the Strip. It’s a beautiful city to go outside and enjoy nature. We really want to see what the city and the area has to offer.

Ricky Martin: All In will be presented at the Park Theater April 5, 7, 8, 11, 14 and 15. It returns again in June. Find tickets at 844-600-7275 or ticketmaster.com.

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