Erik Kabik
Prepare for battle when you see Tournament of Kings.
Thursday, Sept. 27, 2018 | 2 a.m.
Opened in June 1990 as the largest hotel in the world at the time with more than 4,000 rooms, Excalibur is perhaps the best living example of the family-friendly, themed-casino era of Las Vegas Strip development. The castle arrived before the pyramid of Luxor or the city skyline of New York-New York, and Excalibur’s medieval vibes extended to almost every aspect of the resort’s existence.
And they still do. Excalibur also offered a one-of-a-kind dinner show called King Arthur’s Tournament, where knights battled with swords and jousted on horseback while the excited audience cheered along while feasting on food sans silverware. Nine years in, the show was revamped into Tournament of Kings, which now stands strong as one of the longest-running productions on the Strip and a frozen-in-time gem. And it still draws a very excited audience.
“Like any show, it’s a living organism and it’s subject to whatever is going on in the world. Fads come in and go out, but one thing that stays consistent is people’s attraction to the medieval era, to knights and the ideas of chivalry and swordplay,” says director Phil Shelburne. “The food, the audience participation and the entertainment value of what’s taking place on that stage is a pretty good triple threat and it has helped keep the show vital. There’s nothing more fun that sitting behind a group of kids and watching them wail on the table and yell and put on the Viking hat and wave a chicken leg in the air. And then you look over at the parents doing the same thing and that makes it very rewarding.”
Like Tournament of Kings producer Patrick Jackson and stunt coordinator Ivan Caulier, Shelburne has been the show’s director since it opened in 1999 and was also involved with the previous King Arthur’s Tournament version. He’s also a Las Vegas native and graduate of Rancho High School who works as director for many other stage and musical productions.
He says the show is always making small changes and amping up the action, although if you see it now for the first time like I did, you’ll be impressed with the athletic and dangerous stunts as the knights and their foes fly from their horses and swing real weapons at each other.
“The mixture of the horses and the falls, the pyrotechnics and stunt work is a fun, high-energy mix,” Shelburne says. “One thing people are always amazed at is the speed at which the fights are happening and the sound of the weaponry, titanium swords bouncing off those shields. Those are real hits and they require excellent training and plenty of rehearsal to be able to be that precise and keep everybody safe.”
The 900-seat arena wrapping spacious seating around a “stage” of soil and synthetic fibers that provide a little extra cushion is just as unique as the show itself. There are 22 horses in the Tournament of Kings stable, 10 of which are used in the show. The venue has been modified slightly over the years to accommodate upgrades in special effects.
And then there’s the food: Excalibur has been the No. 1 purchaser of Cornish game hens in the United States for years thanks to the traditional Tournament of Kings feast. Since June 1990, approximately 6.7 million little chickens have been served.
“The meal being there in this festive environment is part of the experience, the same way the audience is looked at as an additional player within the show,” Shelburne says. He’s currently working on the annual holiday version of the show, which will begin at the end of November.
Tournament of Kings is presented at 6 and 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, and at 6 p.m. Monday and Friday, at Excalibur and more information can be found at excalibur.com.
