Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2019 | 11:45 p.m.
It comes as no surprise that the D Las Vegas is renovating the second level of its casino space in order to expand sportsbook operations. After all, owner Derek Stevens has made sports betting a major part of his downtown business and earlier this year launched his own book, Circa Sports, that will eventually have locations at both of his other Fremont Street operations, the Golden Gate and Circa.
Unfortunately the downtown entertainment landscape is taking a hit. The D renovation will result in the closure of the second-floor showroom, which has been home to popular boutique shows produced by Ivory Star Productions for more than 10 years. There are five productions there now, and January 5 will be the last performance date in that space.
“Our sales are strong, the strongest they’ve ever been, and 70 to 80 percent of our audience is coming from the Strip. We bring hundreds of people every night to the property and to Fremont Street to experience these shows and we really thought we would be able to keep our [showroom] even as the D is renovating,” said John Bentham, Ivory Star CEO.
Now looking for a new home are the long-running “Marriage Can Be Murder,” “Defending the Caveman” and “Adam London’s Laughternoon,” as well as the newer “Friends! The Musical Parody” and the late-night Jokesters Comedy Club stand-up show.
Where could they end up? Bentham has no plans yet. His company produces the annual Glittering Lights extravaganza at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway and his team was deep into organizing that holiday event when they were told about the showroom’s impending closure.
“This happened so quickly so we are just now getting down our list of people to talk to. We don’t have anything lined up,” said Bentham, who founded the company in 2003 after working with David Copperfield and on other local shows for four years. “We’re just getting around to analyzing what’s out there and what our options are.”
Ivory Star operated the box office and leased the Showroom at the D and it could be difficult to find a similar situation at a downtown venue or somewhere on the Strip. “Marriage Can Be Murder,” which has been running in town for more than 20 years and originally opened at the Showboat, is a dinner show and therefore has specific needs from its venue.
Bentham said “all options are on the table” and he’ll do whatever he can to find new homes, or one perfect home, for these shows. “We have about 75 people working with us between the box office and the shows who really rely on this. I’d love to keep everybody intact and move together.”
More show news this week:
I returned to the Sands Showroom at the Venetian days ago to revisit Human Nature’s show, recently retitled “Australia’s Human Nature Sings Motown & More,” and I’m pleased to report that even though the fantastically talented foursome had to trim its band and dancers, this show hasn’t lost any luster. The lively juke joint-themed portion of the production still gets the audience up and dancing and the group has (obviously) added even more Motown to the set, lots of fan favorite tunes that they perform in their own unique way. Human Nature is celebrating 30 years together as a group this month after marking 10 years headlining in Las Vegas in October, and in a few weeks the guys will head home to Australia to be inducted into the Aria Hall of Fame, akin to the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. On November 19-22 and December 16-23, the Vegas show transforms into the holiday-themed “Human Nature: Christmas, Motown & More!” Plan accordingly.
Also add these to your holiday show consideration: “Tournament of Kings: Twas the Knight” returns to Excalibur November 20 through December 31, transforming the Tournament of Kings Arena into a winter wonderland and allowing the magical Merlin to summon snowfall during the show. And “Motown Extreme” at OYO Hotel and Casino (formerly Hooters Casino) will become “Merry Motown Extreme” from November 27 through December 22, allowing the impressionist singers to show off some holiday classics. Four matinees will be added at 3 p.m. on November 30 and December 7, 14 and 21 in addition to the normal 7 p.m. showtimes.
Jimmy Kimmel’s Comedy Club continues to expand its programming at the Linq Promenade. Starting at midnight on Saturdays on December 14, L8NITE will be a $20 ticket for three acts — a host, a featured comic and a headlining comic — booked on a rotating basis with an anything goes vibe. Locals will park for free when presenting a valid Nevada ID and showgoers will enjoy special pricing from the happy hour menu.
