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Janae Longo as Adele in “Legendary Divas”
Tuesday, Feb. 1, 2022 | 2 a.m.
The newest version of the longest running show on the Las Vegas Strip opens this week at the Tropicana, a musical tribute to some of the greatest female headliners in the city’s entertainment history — even if some of those living legends aren’t currently performing as planned.
“Legends in Concert” returns to its eponymous theater at the Trop on Feb. 2 with an all-new production dubbed “Legendary Divas,” built around the music of Celine Dion, Cher, Lady Gaga and Adele. Performances are set for 7:30 p.m. Wednesday through Monday and tickets and information are available at the Ticketmaster website or troplv.com.
Of the four female superstars, only Lady Gaga has an ongoing residency on the Strip, and she recently announced more dates for her "Jazz & Piano" production at Dolby Live at Park MGM. Celine Dion and Adele have famously postponed their new residency shows in recent months at Resorts World and Caesars Palace, respectively.
Frank Marino returns to host "Legendary Divas" as Joan Rivers at the Tropicana.
Those changes won’t affect “Legendary Divas” or the talented cast members who are ready to bring this popular material to the stage. Elisa Furr, winner of the new “Clash of the Cover Bands” competition show on the E! Network, performs as Dion; Tierney Allen takes her second turn on the Tropicana stage returning as Lady Gaga; Lisa McClowry portrays Cher; and Janae Longo makes her Vegas production show debut as Adele.
A native of Buffalo, N.Y., who has been entertaining audiences across the country and on cruise ships for two decades, Longo relocated to Las Vegas in October without knowing the opportunity in “Legends” would come up.
“I was driving down Las Vegas Boulevard the day [Adele] announced her residency, going to work at five in the morning, and no one knew it was happening,” she says. “All of a sudden the Caesars [marquee] lit up with her face, and I thought, if that’s not a sign, I don’t know what is.”
She auditioned for the role as soon as she heard about it.
“The ‘Divas’ theme is definitely powerful. I don’t know if it’s a Cinderella story but it’s a special thing that I came to Vegas, haven’t been here six months, and boom, I’ve got this gig where I’m going to be onstage with Frank Marino and these women who are so talented, all impersonating these great artists,” Longo says. “I really can’t wait, and I feel grateful and really excited. I’m gonna knock it out of the ballpark.”
The show also marks the return of Marino, a legendary headliner in his own right, serving as guest host and resurrecting his performance as Joan Rivers. Marino had left “Legends” in the fall after joining the cast in 2019 and was considering his next move among several different potential projects while touring his own “Divas” drag show, but the new iteration of “Legends” was too great an opportunity to pass on.
“They asked if we could combine the two brands somehow and I said, okay, what’s your idea?” Marino says. “I’m used to doing my ‘Divas’ show and representing all these famous women who have performed on the Las Vegas Strip [through drag], and now it’s going to be real women and real live vocals and a live band.
“This [cast] is the best of the best. Elisa’s voice is better than Celine. Tierney is the best Gaga in the business. I’m really excited. This is going to be the best form of a tribute show ever on the Strip, in my opinion.”
Marino says the appetite to see these stars will be greater than ever because they’re not currently performing on the Strip, something he has seen happen time and again through the years.
“That happened a lot with my show, certainly with Cher and Celine,” he says. “One time on a Monday night my show was sold out, and I found out Celine had to cancel at the ladies at the box office [at Dion’s theater] were telling fans to go across the street and see ‘Divas.’ Strange things like that happen, and people who wanted to come to see Adele, who unfortunately canceled, still want to see something Adele-esque.”
