2015-12-03 - Las Vegas Weekly by Greenspun Media Group

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SO GOOD

THAT SANTA IS STAYING

FOR BREAKFAST

frank sinatra sun file; double down by spencer burton; carbone courtesy

Contents 7 mail Strong opinions from

46 comedy TV star and veteran

both sides of the Hey Reb fence.

funnyman Billy Gardell.

8 as we see it Guerilla giving

47 fine art Photo-realism gets

with Keep the Homeless Warm. The CAC finds a new home. A Budweiser park in Paris?

nailed by teenage LVA students.

14 Feature | why we love

48 stage The Onyx hosts a holiday mashup.

mondays Mark Shunock and his Mondays Dark crew entertain their asses off for great local causes.

49 scene The Double Down

16 Feature | Happy b-day,

the Italian you’ve been craving, and American chefs represent.

ol’ blue eyes Sinatra would have been a century old, and his friends and fans are celebrating.

24 nights Righteous cocktails

turned 23, so drink that Ass Nog.

50 food & drink Carbone has

54 calendar Country outsider Nikki Lane.

at the Mob Museum.

39 A&E Muse muses on music. 40 screen The fight in Chi-Raq is waged with sex. Holiday horror!

42 noise John Mayer joins the Dead. Plus, the Boss (deluxe).

Cover photograph By Associated press (Photo illustration)

KIDS EAT FREE TUESDAYS

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Ask your server for details about additional Kids Eat Free Nights. Restrictions may apply. © 2015 DFO, LLC. At participating restaurants for a limited time only. Offer not valid for the Las Vegas Strip locations. Selection and prices may vary. *See server for details.

y a d i l o H

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THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR There’ll be parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting and caroling out in the … desert? From ice skating (and snowfalls!) on the Strip to visiting the man in the bright red suit at your neighborhood shopping mall, there’s a lot of holiday spirit to take in around the Valley. Find our roundup of wintertime fun at lasvegasweekly.com. CREATIVE CONNECTION An exhibit connecting Northern and Southern Nevada artists has been announced for next October at Reno’s Nevada Museum of Art, Contemporary Nevada: State of the State. We take a look, only online.

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FIRST TIME RIDERS USE CODE “PTEG” AND RECEIVE A FREE RIDE UP TO $20 DOWNLOAD UBER NOW & ENJOY YOUR HOLIDAYS GAMING FOR GEN Y Wynn Las Vegas aims to usher in “a new era in casino gaming” with its upcoming Encore Player’s Club, a luxury lounge targeting millennials that will open later this month. Get the dish at lasvegasweekly.com.

‘SANTA MAYBE...’ The new holiday song by Absinthe siren Melody Sweets is naughty and nice, and we’re guessing the release party will be, too. Want the deets? Head to lasvegasweekly.com for a taste of the tune and festivities at Fizz.

LET’S BE FRIENDS!

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1. Wynn targets millennial gamblers with Encore Player’s Club 2. The ballad of Ryan Pardey: The musician, DJ and scene architect makes another musical leap 3. Cozy Californian Mexican food lands at Downtown Summerlin with Pancho’s 4. Will UNLV keep mascot Hey Reb? 5. Almost two decades in, South Park remains a relevant critical vehicle

COSMOPOLITAN SKATING RINK BY MIKAYLA WHITMORE

MOST READ STORIES lasvegasweekly.com

Mail

REBELS WITH A CAUSE UNLV’s mascot is once again mired in controversy, but not everyone thinks Hey Reb should be reconceived.

If Hey Reb goes, I go. –Edward Riley Only alumni should have any say. My vote: Bye Reb. –GwenLoveLightLaughter Everyone needs to grow a pair. He stays. –Andrew Hartness Looks more Wild Wild West than confederate to me. –Amanda Perry Hey Reb has nothing to do with the Civil War or the confederacy. He was created to honor the pathfinders, the first men to explore the state. The ignorance isn’t on the university, it is on those students who have no clue about the history of their university and the state they live in. –Chris Riley There are a lot of UNLV donors that will stop donating if the mascot is changed. The board needs to stand up for what is right and kick these protesters off the campus. –Fightback1111 Who cares about the mascot? The football team needs to go. –Austin McMaster

PAW PATROL

photograph by l.e. baskow

A lot happened recently in local pet-ownership news.

Finally, a journalist who addresses both sides of the issue rather than jumping on the bandwagon of public lash-out against officials’ actions that are meant to preserve public safety and ensure better treatment of non-human residents. With the over-abundance of home-

less animals, many of which are euthanized, and the negative consequences of inexperienced private ownership of exotics, we have to go to the source of the problems and take steps to minimize them. Mike Prevatt got it right. If we can look past the photo ops and cute, cuddly animals and become better informed, perhaps we could all agree that we need to act responsibly and humanely. –Annoula Wylderich

MODERN ART A new Las Vegas art museum is slowly taking shape Downtown.

Vegas continues to amaze and impress me. This city has grown up and changed so much—in a good way! –Whitney Kulwicki Let’s create some masterpieces! –Jeremiah Kaniaupio

MEXICAN MAYBE We enjoyed the food at California transplant Pancho’s. You? Meh.

This place is horrible. The prices are higher than any Mexican restaurant on the Strip while the food quality is somewhere between Macayo’s and Ricardo’s. The building is all it has going for it. –Marissa Humayun Why do people think Las Vegans are going to pay high prices for low-quality, tasteless food? Step it up, Pancho’s. Leticia’s level of quality and service should be your goal. –Kelly Shields Save yourself a trip and go to Frank & Fina’s. –Travis Fields

BACKSPACE k In last week’s holiday gift guide, we listed the wrong address for Sin City Yoga. The studio is at 1231 S. Main Street.

LVWeekly@GMGVegas.com Letters and posts may be edited for length/clarity. All submissions become the property of Las Vegas Weekly.

AsWeSeeIt N E W S + C U LT U R E + S T Y L E + M O R E

WARM INTENTIONS ∑ It began, as many things do these days, with a Facebook post—an inspirational photo drifting in a sea of otherwise bad news. Refugees are dying, Paris is mourning and the Republican presidential race is devolving into a farce. But then this: “I saw something online,” Las Vegan Angie Bosco says. “In Canada someone was hanging coats for the homeless from poles. I shared it on Facebook, but then thought, ‘Why not make it actually happen?’” So on Sunday, December 6, at John S. Park Elementary School, Bosco and several dozen volunteers will meet between noon and 12:30 to collect and distribute warm coats and accessories around Downtown, with tags that read: I’m not lost. If you’re cold, please take me to keep you warm! Bosco and co-organizer Kathleen Kahr D’Esposito will assemble volunteer groups of four or five to tackle the city’s center, including the Huntridge neighborhood, the Arts District, the Charleston underpass and various alleyways. Called “Keeping the Homeless Warm,” the effort has been well-received. On Facebook, more than 100 expressed interest and 50-plus plan to attend. Kudos fill the event’s Facebook wall, thanking organizers and expressing excitement at hosting such an event in Las Vegas. But Bosco stresses it’s the idea, not the event, that’s paramount. Anyone who would like to donate but can’t participate Sunday can contact her to drop off items or have them picked up, or they can hang the coats themselves. “I encourage people to do this in their own community,” she says. “It doesn’t take any money, it just takes your time and digging up a coat from your closet that you don’t use anymore.” Wanted items include coats, beanies, scarves, gloves and socks, and any undistributed clothing will be donated to local charities, including Safe Haven and the Las Vegas Rescue Mission. Though the event is the first, Bosco hopes to extend to other parts of the Valley, including West Las Vegas and the east side. “I read the news, and there are such tragic things going on in the world right now,” she says. “Instead of being sad about it, I actually want to do something.” –Kristy Totten

GIVING THANKS A weekend of eating ends with a grateful gesture

∑ It’s three days after Thanksgiving, and Ashley Michaud is watching over eight people inside Alex Huerta’s PeaceNart Studio making peanut butter and/or jelly sandwiches. They’re to be distributed to Downtown’s homeless— a test run for what he hopes becomes a monthly endeavor. Vegas Tribe, the arts collective of which Michaud is a principal member, has been raising money every year through its otherwise free events center-

8 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 3-9, 2015

ing around dance, performance and mindfulness. On this day, the Tribe spends nearly $70 of its collected $1,200 on bottled water and supplies, producing 106 sandwiches, packed two to a bag. Michaud fills his SUV with the sack lunches and water and gives his crew instructions, including handing out at two locations and then looping back for potential clean-up. The City of Las Vegas has already reached out to discourage him, emphasizing litter and safety concerns.

Someone in the group wonders if they’ll be cited. “I’ll take the ticket,” Michaud says. But feeding a park’s indigent patrons is no longer illegal, and Michaud and crew are uninterrupted during distribution. It’s not the ideal strategy for assisting the poor or the community, but after feasting all weekend, it’s an immediate and meaningful way for the group’s members to give thanks—which every recipient verbally returns. –Mike Prevatt

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AS WE SEE IT…

HANDBASKET IN HELL What to put in your survival kit for [enter apocalypse here] BY MIKE PREVATT Widespread civil unrest. Cataclysmic natural disaster. Nuclear and/or chemical World War III. The next untreatable plague. Nervous yet? You’re not alone, thanks to the growing global instability, doomsday headlines—and proliferation of the prepper movement. People stockpiling goods, supplies and self-defense aids have long been dismissed as paranoid. But it’s likely that you’ve stopped a casual scroll of your social-media feed once or twice and wondered: How screwed am I if the Valley/country/planet goes to hell in a handbasket? An increasing number of retailers now assist everyone from preppers and survivalists to generally cautious locals deal with that anxiety. Hahn’s World of Surplus in North Las Vegas advised the Weekly on non-weaponry essentials. Food: Military-grade MREs (meals ready to eat) last three to five years, cook via single-use water heaters and run $2-$8. A cheaper alternative: rice and beans stored in stainless-steel barrels.

Water: For those “bugging out,” or in outdoor-survival mode, there are hydration backpacks and 29-cent clean-water packets. For those “bugged in” at home, dark-colored storage containers and water purification tablets are a must. Fire and warmth: Magnesium firestarters or waterproof matches for the former, blankets—a foldedup emergency one for travel and a wool one for home and camping— for the latter. Medical supplies: Since a first-aid kit won’t cut it, Hahn’s puts together $300 backpacks that accomplish everything from clotting to bullet removal. Also: Colloidal silver (found at health stores) can be an antibiotic. A mid-size shovel: For a variety of needs (including human waste), $20-$24 gets you a fold-up or traditional version. Clothing: Long-sleeve shirts are essential in our desert climate, as are boots. Backup power: Go old-school with kerosene lamps or wind-up (read: battery-less) LED flashlights. Respirator masks: These face filters can run from $40 to $400. Multi-use tool: Hahn’s recommends a simple Leatherman.

RETURN OF THE CAC The 27-year-old arts organization has a new permanent home > JUST A TASTE Elizabeth Blau’s “Lavender Berg.”

The Contemporary Arts Center’s new permanent space inside Soho Lofts is active on a Monday night, with artists dropping off works for the upcoming Taste exhibit. It seems like business as usual. But it’s been about 19 months since the CAC went nomadic to regroup and strategize its future, navigating the situation with popup exhibits, screenings and talks like the David Hickey and Michael Govan discussion on Michael Heizer’s land art at the Smith Center’s Cabaret Jazz. Now, with the help of developer Sam Cherry, the 27-year-old nonprofit has a new home and is launching a show designed to highlight diverse and prominent artists

10 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 3-9, 2015

working in Las Vegas. The installation of Taste, officially opening in January, was sped up to coincide with a three-day symposium on the role of art in Las Vegas held by the internationally renowned Zabludowicz Collection (Poju Zabludowicz is director of Tamares Group, owner of the Plaza), which is wrapping up its recent artist residency in Las Vegas. It follows the Modern’s recent announcement that plans for an art museum Downtown are still underway. The CAC board had planned an eventual return to a brick-and-mortar space, but the closing of the Cosmopolitan’s P3Studio and the upcoming symposium pushed swifter action, says CAC Board President Melissa Petersen, adding that Taste gives exposure to artists making work here. The exhibit includes an 80-page catalog highlighting the artists with text by them and multiple images of their works, along with an essay by writer Danielle Kelly on the relationship between artists and the city. “We’d been planning this show for a while, and the opportunity presented itself,” Petersen says, standing in the space formerly held by the Amanda Harris Gallery of Contemporary Art. “The span of work is really a great representation of what’s going on here and a great representation of the artists who are working in Las Vegas.” Taste’s 15 artists are Wendy Kveck, Justin Favela, Chris Bauder, Mikayla Whitmore, Linda Alterwitz, Adam Morey, David Ryan, Daniel Habegger, Shawn Hummel, Sean Russell, Brent Sommerhauser, Alisha Kerlin, Mark Brandvik, Sierra Slentz and Elizabeth Blau, working in different materials at different places in their careers. The CAC will host a private reception for the show during the Zabludowicz Collection’s Think Vegas symposium, which will have “key international figures” in the art world exploring the local art scene and the role of art in an entertainment/attraction-based place. When officially open, the new gallery will offer regular hours, with the programming and guest curators mostly established for the coming year. –Kristen Peterson For more of the story, visit lasvegasweekly.com.

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AS WE SEE IT… T H E I N C I D E N TA L TO U R I ST

> WHEELS IN MOTION The land once planned for SkyVue is up for sale.

NORTH AND SOUTH With casino-resorts under construction and Strip sites for sale, the Vegas engine is running again BY BROCK RADKE Vegas Inc reported last week that investor/ developer Howard Bulloch is selling the 38-acre south Strip parcel where he’d been planning to build SkyVue. Don’t remember that project? Don’t feel bad. A lot is happening on the Strip, and it’s tough to keep up. You know those two towering concrete columns just hanging out across from Mandalay Bay? That was supposed to be SkyVue, a 500-foot-tall observation-wheel attraction intended to be surrounded by retail and restaurants. It’s not going to happen, and it always seemed like a long shot—especially since Caesars Entertainment’s taller High Roller wheel at the Linq Promenade came along quicker. It’s the second high-profile Strip site to get listed in recent weeks. To the north on Las Vegas Boulevard, the never-occupied, towering Fontainebleau resort building—bought out of bankruptcy by billionaire Carl Icahn in 2010—is available for $650 million. Considering the hotel tower and casino space are about 70 percent finished, it appears to be a much more valuable property than the SkyVue site. Also impactful is Fontainebleau’s location. Even though SLS—the first new casino to open on the northern portion of the Strip in seven years—has struggled mightily since its arrival last year, the perception remains that the north end is where it’s at. There’s opportunity and action there. Genting Group’s Resorts World Las Vegas and Crown Resorts’ Alon are both in the early stages of construction on the west side of the Boulevard between Fashion Show Mall and Circus Circus. One new ground-up megaresort is enough to shift the Strip’s momentum; we have two coming. Add in the impending destruction of the Riviera, set to become the hub of the LVCVA’s Global Business District— more convention and exhibition space—and it’s easy to understand the northern buzz. “There is a lot going on, but I think what

IN BRIEF

precipitated all of this was MGM,” says Steve Sisolak, who, as chairman of the Clark County Commission, is essentially the mayor of the Strip. “With Alon and Resorts World, it’s definitely a couple of years from that first shovel to actually booking a room night. A place like Fontainebleau is very interesting, if someone wants to put up the money to finish that one, depending how anxious someone is to get into the market ... But I think when MGM announced it was building its arena a year and a half ago, that got everybody re-energized. It showed a lot of confidence in the Strip and helped bring more [investment].” The 20,000-seat Las Vegas Arena, a partnership between MGM Resorts and AEG that could be renamed by a corporate sponsor by the time it opens for events in the spring of 2016, is located between New York-New York and I-15. It will be fixed at the western end of the Park, an outdoor, pedestrian drag of restaurants, bars, shops and entertainment options branching off the Strip, similar to the Linq.

BUD GARDEN The French might take issue with Las Vegas come January, when Anheuser-Busch’s Beer Park by Budweiser opens at Paris Las Vegas in the shadow of the hotel’s half-scale Eiffel Tower. That’s right—an American bar and grill (with 100 beers!) by arguably the most recognized American beer brand, right next to France’s most recognized symbol. While the restaurant’s placement might appear odd, it’s unquestionably Las Vegas—and who doesn’t want another party patio for soaking up the Strip’s many cultural mashups?

12 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 3-9, 2015

xxx

“Casinos are always nice but we’ve got quite a few. We don’t have an arena of that magnitude,” says Sisolak. “It’s unique, and if it does generate a [major league] hockey or basketball team one day, that would be really exciting for us.” It remains to be seen if a unique development like the arena, on the south end, will create a rising-tide effect that could benefit a property like SLS, on the north end. But it’s clear the Strip’s future is based on a blend of alternative, non-gaming attractions—like the arena, the Park, the Linq and outdoor festivalevent venues—with traditional Vegas-style resort development. It seems natural someone will finish the Fontainebleau into their own new casino and hotel, something to compete with Alon and Resorts World. The SkyVue site, basically between the Tropicana and MGM’s Las Vegas Festival Grounds, is a blank canvas. Whatever happens there will have to contend with a serious lack of tourist foot traffic, the same essential problem for SLS. Look for something other than a casino to develop there.

PORN ELITE Best Actress, Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay … Best Double Penetration Sex Scene? Congratulations are in order for hundreds of adult-film actors and executives, as Adult Video News announced the nominations for its 2016 AVN Awards— often called the Oscars of Porn—November 19. And as the industry is ever evolving, AVN again changed up its awards and requirements. Best Polyamory Movie was added to the mix, and scenes solely distributed on the web were nominated in major categories.

SIDE NOTE Containers of French’s French Fried Onions and cans of Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup must have been plentiful at local grocery stores this Thanksgiving, with Nevada ranked No. 39 by Del Monte Foods in its green bean casserole index. The company surveyed 3,000 Americans, finding that only 22 percent of participating Nevadans were planning to eat the classic dish this Turkey Day—a far cry from No. 1 Louisiana’s 60 percent concentration. We say blasphemy, and we’ll take extra onions on top. –Mark Adams

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t h e k at s r e p o rt

Mark Shunock’s passion pushes his monthly charity shindig to its two-year mark at the Hard Rock Hotel By John Katsilometes

ark Shunock played lots of hockey as a teenager in Sault Ste. Marie in northern Ontario, Canada. He ascended through the youth ranks and finally to the Canadian Hockey League, the top youth organization in the country for players aged 16-20. A goaltender throughout his youth career, Shunock was apt to play for really good teams. This made for a lot of idle time in the crease, where he learned to sing—in front of a crowd, even. “I was usually at the end of the ice, all by myself, and you could hear my voice through the arena,”

14 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

Shunock says during a coffee chat before performing as club manager/ narrator Lonny in Rock of Ages at the Venetian. “I would be singing whatever the hits were at the time, and my coach would be yelling at me, ‘Save it for the stage!’ I’d say, ‘I’m just trying to stay focused, Coach!’” These days, Shunock’s stage is portraying the pivotal character in ROA (which has no dates listed past January 3 and is expected to move to the Rio by the end of that month). It was evident from the beginning, when the show opened in December 2012, that the guy in the now-famous mullet wig and “Hooray for Boobies” T-shirt aspired to be more than a performer in a Strip production.

Even on the opening night of Rock of Ages, Shunock talked of this idea called Mondays Dark, a monthly gathering of entertainers who would perform for charity at a cabaret show and party. The event regularly sells out, and hits its target of raising $10,000 per month for rotating Las Vegas charities. As Shunock says, $250,000 has been raised, $20 at a time, 90 minutes at a time. Mondays Dark will celebrate its second anniversary December 14 at the Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel, just a few cartwheels from Vinyl, where it’s held the third Monday of each month. The show will benefit all 11 charities featured in the 2015 Mondays Dark series, and is

expected to draw upward of 1,400 ticket-holders. The format is a rollout of many of the performers who spiced Mondays Dark through the year, highlighted by Dave Amato of REO Speedwagon; Travis Cloer of Jersey Boys singing from his new holiday release, Christmas at My Place; Josh Strickland of Vegas! The Show; Golden Nugget headlining impressionist Gordie Brown; Alice: A Steampunk Concert Fantasy founder and frontwoman Anne Martinez; Vegas rocker Rockie Brown, who just released her debut album Brand New Day; veteran stand-up Louie Anderson; For the Record: Baz’s Ginifer King; burlesque star LouLou D’Vil (a Miss Exotic World photographs by Denise Truscello/wireimage

> shining, shimmering, splendid Cheryl Daro and Mark Shunock perform at Mondays Dark at Vinyl inside the Hard Rock Hotel; (below) Josh Strickland.

title-holder and swing for Claire Sinclair in Pin Up) with her nefarious husband, the Baron; Stephanie Calvert of Raiding the Rock Vault and Starship; fine-art specialist Jimmy Mulligan; Vegas singer Chadwick Johnson, a regular at the Italian American Club; and a “secret guest” to be announced. As always, the acts are buoyed by the Kenny Davidsen-led backing band, and such unique elements as Robin Leach reading segments from “Missed Connections,” the personal-ad link on Craigslist. This is the second consecutive Mondays Dark anniversary

show to be held at the Joint, and it’s a realization of Shunock’s original vision to crystallize the philanthropic energy of Las Vegas. This concept was not new: It was similar to the types of shows Shunock assembled while living in LA at the end of his national tour of The Lion King. Those were called the Session Series and held at a bar called First and Hope, which has since closed. That was the seed for Mondays Dark in Las Vegas. “What I noticed when we first started in Rock of Ages in Las Vegas is how many red carpets we were being asked to hit,” says Shunock, wearing a Mondays

when his original venue, the Act at Dark ball cap. “Most of these were Palazzo, closed less than two weeks charity events, and I really got to before Mondays Dark was to debut in thinking about a cabaret show for October 2013. As word of Shunock’s charity. It was just a matter of time plight spread through the communito put it together.” ty, Hard Rock Hotel officials offered The idea of holding benefit to host the show, first at Body English shows in Las Vegas was like tossing and finally, regularly, at Vinyl. a match into a gas can. The city has “It’s actually a blessing for us that long been a haven for linking enterthe Act closed, because the Act is in tainment and charity—other notea tourist place and I really wanted worthy examples being the Power of to make it a locals event,” Shunock Love galas benefitting the Cleveland says. “There is not a tourist in any of Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain these shows. Maybe—maybe—you’ll Health and the Andre Agassi Grand have some guys getting hammered Slam for Children (which halted at the Center Bar who will come in, in 2011 when Agassi raised enough but otherwise the tourists who come money to fund his Andre Agassi in to Vinyl are with locals who have College Preparatory Academy brought them to the show.” schools in perpetuity); and the Penn The ticket-selling strategy is & Teller-led AFAN AIDS Walk and split between the Hard Rock box AFAN Black & White Party. Many office, the charity of the month and of Shunock’s fellow entertainers, Shunock’s own team. By his math, including former Jersey Boys cast he reaches $7,500 in ticket sales member Jeff Leibow (NF Hope each month and fills the balance Concert) and Jeff Civillico (Winthrough silent-auction sales and by Win Entertainment’s Headliners selling keys at $20 a pop Bash) have founded charto a treasure box housity productions that preing a pair of tickets to date Mondays Dark. As MONDAYS AEG Live shows (Celine Shunock himself noted, DARK Second Dion, Elton John and Rod it seems there’s a charity anniversary show: Stewart among them). event asking for entertainDecember 14, The band gets a stipend, ers’ participation to raise 7 p.m., $20-$50, and the room and staff are money and awareness here the Joint. Regular donated. The Hard Rock every weekend. show: every Hotel keeps the bar tab— But what Shunock third Monday, no small figure, given the has achieved is a char8 p.m., $20, large crowds. Sponsors ity event that effectively Vinyl. Mondays have stepped forward, blankets the community dark.com. including Greenspun throughout the year with Media Group (this pub’s regular shows that are at parent company), Gay once highly entertaining Vegas, the Leo App and Chapman and also a great “hang” for those in Automotive Group, which will again the industry. The nights have been donate the use of a Jeep for one themed since the second show (the year as part of the giveaways on first being a regretful talk-show forDecember 14. mat that labored for 90 long minutes Shunock says he’s committed at the event’s original home, Body to Mondays Dark regardless of the English). Over the past two years, fate of the show that brought him Mondays Dark has paid tribute to to Vegas. Rock of Ages is expected to Disney films, artists from Canada, have a new set and its usual superthe British Invasion, the work of solid cast when it reopens, but no Trey Parker and Matt Stone, country show lasts forever. Shunock and his music, soul and funk and famous wife, Cheryl Daro, herself a topflight female rock vocalists. entertainer who has toured with “It’s just been a hustle to put Rock of Ages on Norwegian Cruise all of these together, but the coopLines, are taking the future day to eration has been really incredible,” day. But even if he has to parachute Shunock says. “Mondays Dark in from, say, LA, Shunock wants the originally fell on our dark night at charity show to live on. Rock of Ages—a lot of shows are dark “I’m seeing a lot of shows like this Mondays, which is why we called taking on charities now, and I think it that—but now we have a seventhat is great,” Shunock says, noting night schedule. My off night is still that the most recent Andy Walmsley Monday, but I can tell you that it production, Drop the Mic at SLS Las is more work to put on a Mondays Vegas, was a benefit for the Shade Dark show than it is to do a Rock of Tree’s Noah’s Animal House pet resAges show. I’m at Vinyl at noon, with cue foundation. “We all support the band, starting soundcheck, and each other. Showing up, making a stay through the show.” contribution, inspiring people to Mondays Dark audiences typicome out and donate and have a cally top 400, standing room only. great time—that’s what Mondays Shunock actually slipped on the Dark is all about.” LVW ice at the start of Mondays Dark, December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

> C’mere, kid On his 100th birthday, Frank Sinatra remains the embodiment of Old Vegas style and personality.

A century of cool Happy birthday, Sinatra, from famous friends whose memories make us miss you even more By John Katsilometes

Bob Anderson has been singing and performing this role all night, an adaptation that’s been a lifetime in the making. Over the previous two hours, the summer wind has blown in, luck has been a lady tonight, and the lady has been a tramp. 16 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

Anderson sets his feet for the big finale, as someone shouts a song title. “You want ‘My Way?’” he says, squinting to find that voice in the crowd. “Okay, we’ll do it.” The great tribute artist then removes his tie, a certain indication that this spot-on interpretation of the man and his music is over. Frank Sinatra did not remove his tie onstage. Then Anderson, heeding the advice of his friend and mentor Tony Bennett, sings that last song as himself. “There will never be another Frank Sinatra,” he says. “My name is Bob Anderson.” The crowd’s response is a thunder of applause. The close of this performance, and this run of shows called Frank: The Man, the Music, is so bittersweet. The show helmed by Anderson, in full stage makeup and a vintage-era tuxedo, is coming to a halt at Palazzo Theatre after spending almost a year on the Strip. This dimming of the lights ordered by the Venetian/Palazzo hierarchy comes just two weeks short of what would have been Sinatra’s 100th birthday,

December 12—a perplexing decision (at least to scores of Sinatra devotees) to stop the music without a final party honoring the Chairman of the Board. This is the site of the Sands, after all, where Sinatra and the Rat Pack sang and cavorted in the infancy of the Strip. That hotel was long ago imploded in one of our city’s famous wipeouts of its own history. In similar fashion, Anderson’s fantastic strut down memory lane is being knocked down in favor of some entertainment advancement that requires a major overhaul of the theater that could not be put off for two weeks. No matter. Whatever takes the place of the Sinatra show will likely be forgotten in 100 years. But not Ol’ Blue Eyes, whose indelible recordings and cocksure image defy time, and define the golden era of Vegas entertainment. “He was the greatest singer, and he was the most popular singer, ever,” Tony Bennett says today. “People adored everything he did. He was the guy, there’s no doubt about it.” photograph by Sid Avery/capitol records

Tony Bennett ∑ Still a bankable star at age 89,

Bennett is heading up a monster lineup for the CBS special Sinatra 100—An All-Star Grammy Concert, which was recorded December 2 at Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas and will air December 6. The night’s array of stars includes Celine Dion, Harry Connick Jr., Lady Gaga, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Alicia Keys, Carrie Underwood, John Legend, Adam Levine and Usher. Bennett is the singular voice among them who was a contempo-

rary of Sinatra. He remembers when it all started. “When I got out of the service, after World War II, Frank Sinatra was just getting big. He’d left the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra and went out on his own,” Bennett says. “He was 12 years older than I was, and I was on the jazz scene. He was already one of the biggest singers in the world at the time, a beautiful singer, and I was always kind of following him. I loved the way he sang, and I idolized him from the beginning.” Bennett hit commercial success in his own recording career in the early ’50s, with the singles “Because of You”

> timeless voices Sinatra and Bennett in 1980 in Reno. “I loved the way he sang,” Bennett says.

photograph by associated press

and “Cold, Cold Heart” hitting 1 million sales. “I was given the opportunity to be a summer replacement guest on [television’s] Perry Como Show, a very big opportunity at the time, and Sinatra was at [Times Square’s] Paramount Theatre, and I had the chance to meet him then,” Bennett says. “He had me come up to his dressing room before the show, and I was very nervous about this TV appearance. It was a very small stage; they had very few guest artists at the time.” Sinatra took a look at the young singer and said, “What is it, kid?” “I told him, ‘I am very nervous about this audience,’” Bennett recalls. “I didn’t know what to expect, even though I’d had a couple of million-sellers. But he said, ‘The audience is your friend. They are nice enough to come and see you, they appreciate you, and you should respect that. Give them a good show, because they are with you.’ “I never forgot that advice. It really created my career.” Bennett is one of the few entertainers still performing who can speak to the era before Sinatra was famous. “There were some very good singers before him, you know. Rudy Vallee was a good singer, but Sinatra had a way of picking the right songs and really delivering them,” Bennett says. “A song like, ‘I Get Along Without You Very Well,’ is just so intimate. It’s a great saloon song, a song you would hear in a nightclub. One of my favorites. He had so many, of course, but more than anything he was a friend until the very end.” Late in his life, Sinatra told Bennett he was concerned that Bennett had moved back to the East Coast and that it seemed “a boring kind of existence.” But Bennett has long been an active live performer, selling out theaters and arenas for decades whether solo or, today, in tandem with Lady Gaga. As he says, Sinatra made that boxoffice success possible, too. “Years ago he did the interview with one of the great magazines, Life magazine, and was asked, ‘Everyone listens to you, but who do you listen to?’ He said, ‘For my money, Tony Benedetto is the best singer in the business. He gets to me every time.’” Bennett chuckles. “That was 50 years ago,” he says, “and it changed my whole career. People were saying, ‘If Frank said that, we need to check him out.’ To this day, I sell out all over the world. They are still checking me out, because of Frank Sinatra.”

Steve Wynn ∑ First, the resort mogul who hired Sinatra to perform at the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City in the early 1980s explains what he wasn’t. “I wasn’t his running mate. I wasn’t his crony. I was too young—he was born the year before my parents,” Wynn says. “He wasn’t my dad, but I was the right age to be his son. I wasn’t his boss, either. I was his colleague.” But for all of those qualifiers, Wynn reflects, “I spent a lot of time with Frank Sinatra.” Wynn says the introduction could not have been more vintage Vegas: at the Sands’ Copa Room in December 1965, a Rat Pack performance that marked the 13th anniversary of the hotel-casino so often linked to the group. “I ended up there on a Saturday night in the 500-seat Copa Room, in an audience with Elizabeth Taylor and Gregory Peck and Lucille Ball, everyone you could imagine,” Wynn says. “When [the Rat Pack] walked onstage, it was an unbelievable experience. I was so dazzled. I mean, it was the small Sands, there were 150,000 people in this town and there were at least 10,000 of those people trying to get inside that building and get a glimpse of what was going on.” Wynn lets out a sigh, as if letting the memory marinate. “And that was it,” he says. “That’s one of the reasons I stayed here.” Over the years, Wynn has named one of his restaurants at Encore for Sinatra, and once presented a stage show at Encore Theater, Dance With Me, a series of dance numbers set to Sinatra classics. But the bond between the two was cemented through Wynn’s ownership of the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City, when he booked Sinatra and Martin for a run of performances beginning in 1982. Wynn typically picked up the two superstars on his private jet in Palm Springs and flew them back to Atlantic City for the shows. “On these flights back, Frank always did The New York Times crossword puzzle—with a pen,” Wynn recalls “Pretty good, huh?” The two recorded a series of TV commercials, a dozen total, that aired on the East Coast (these spots are particularly remarkable for Wynn’s 1980s-coiffed hair). “Whenever I get lonely, I put on one of those commercials,” Wynn says. “I have a disc with all of them on it.” December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

One of his favorites is titled “Towels,” in which Wynn introduces himself to Sinatra in a hotel suite. “I’m Steve Wynn, and I run this place,” Wynn says, and Sinatra slips him a $5 bill and says, “Make sure I have enough towels.” “Towels?!” Wynn says in a single moment picked from a dozen takes. “I kept saying ‘towels,’ over and over, with as much pain as possible,” Wynn says, laughing. “What really made that spot was the music. We needed to get grand rights for ‘New York, New York,’ from Kander & Ebb. They didn’t just give away those rights.” But Sinatra used his powers of fame and persuasion. “Frank intervened; it took him to get that done for us. We paid $75,000 a year to use ‘New York, New York,’ and it really made the commercial. If you saw it without the music, it was not nearly as funny,” Wynn says, adding that the impact was felt far beyond that one TV spot. “That’s where I learned that music in the hotel is so important in setting the mood.” So when you hear the music at Wynn/Encore, you can thank Sinatra for that, too. Another favorite memory: Wynn and Sinatra were working across the street from one another on Park Avenue in New York City. Sinatra called and asked Wynn to lunch at Gino’s, the famous Italian restaurant (long ago closed) many blocks away on Lexington and 60th. Frank and Barbara Sinatra joined Steve and Elaine Wynn for lunch that day, and took a limo to the restaurant. By then, Wynn had long been suffering from retinitis pigmentosa, which limited his ability to see in the dark. “We come out of the restaurant, and it’s not dark yet. The girls get in the limo, but I say to Frank, ‘I want to walk.’ It was a beautiful day, May or June, and Frank says, ‘Okay, but I’m going with you, you might walk into a lamppost,’” Wynn says. “Now, the sun is out, and I can see as well as he can, but he takes my hand and we walk from Lexington to Park, then 11 blocks down Park Avenue, with him holding my hand.” Quite a pair. “People are walking by, doing double-takes, and I feel like I’m 12 years old,” Wynn says. “We were on television all the time, and he’s Frank Sinatra … and he looked at me and said, ‘I used to be a single.’ And you know what? I didn’t say a damn word. I loved it.” Wynn says that he later learned Sinatra would commonly say of the casino entrepreneur, “One thing about that kid: He pays attention to everything in the joint. I love that.” “That was his take on me,” Wynn says. “So, in other words, he watched me be as fanatical about detail as he was about his music. And that was how we came together.”

18 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

> the power of frank Sinatra’s surprise introduction of Dean Martin at the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon at the Sahara in September 1976.

Jerry Lewis ∑ “One thing people don’t realize is

that I looked a lot like Frank when I was young. Photos of us from those days are almost identical,” Lewis says. “I met him when I was very young, back in 1943. ... He came to see my show. I was appearing at the Glass Hat at the Belmont Plaza in New York, even before I worked with Dean, I’ll have ya know. And Frank walked in one night with his mother and a few people in my party.” Sinatra knew of Lewis. “He heard I was doing an impression of him, which I did that night. I sang to a recording of his, ‘All or Nothing at All,’ and I did him very well that night,” Lewis says. “He and his mother came in a few times during the engagement. He liked the show, he liked me.” The two became close enough that Sinatra was apt to call Lewis and ask him to fly nearly across the country on a moment’s notice—for no specified reason. “He called me one day, this was about 1957, right in there, and I had to interrupt production of a movie I was making at the time,” Lewis says. “He said, ‘Pack up. We’re flying out.’ We wound up at an auditorium in Gary, Indiana. We walked into the hall, there’s a 30-piece orchestra onstage.” The night was a charity show for a police officer killed on duty, who had left behind a wife and four children. Sinatra had committed himself and Lewis to perform a single benefit show for the Gary police fund. “We did a couple of hours, the place went nuts, and afterward we

> detail men A promo shot of Wynn and Sinatra taken during the singer’s run at the Golden Nugget in Atlantic City.

heard what we raised—$480,000 in one night. … This was a tremendous inspiration for the work I was doing on behalf of the [MDA] telethon, which had already started. It was a major event in my life, and Frank did this five or six times during my career.” Lewis says Sinatra’s power of

personality led to one of the more remarkable celebrity reunions ever, played out on the 1976 MDA Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon broadcast from the Sahara. During that show, Sinatra, who was onstage in conversation with Lewis, abruptly called for an old friend to join them. Of course, it top photograph by associated press

> friends in high places Sinatra (far left) with an array of stars at an event for President Reagan in the 1980s.

was Lewis’ old comic partner, Martin. “It was a great moment. I had 400 crew members on the floor. They all knew about it. My 32-piece orchestra knew about it. My production team of 165 people knew about it,” Lewis says. “Now, wouldn’t you think somebody would slip? No. Frank made sure it was a secret. I didn’t have the faintest f*cking idea. It was so perfect, and when Frank did something like that, he had three or four of his people spread among the other people who knew about it so they would keep their mouths shut, and he did it fabulously.” Only Sinatra could have convinced Martin to take part in such a high-risk event. This was a moment caught on live TV. “We had not talked, and I mean at all, for 20 years,” Lewis says. “He is coming onto the telethon stage, which is like my home court. But Frank was there to bring us together.” Lewis says he was taken totally offguard at the introduction of Martin by Sinatra. “If you look at the footage, look at my face, you know. I feel like I am going to pass out,” Lewis says. “I didn’t know what to say. I was never so happy to have someone take 52 steps to make it to me. I finally said, ‘So, are you working?’ And that was it. We talked nearly every day from that point on until he died. Frank brought us together.” There’s an occasional misconception that Lewis himself was a member of the Rat Pack, or at least an extended version. He never was in that group. photograph by Scott Stewart/ap

“The Rat Pack came about as Dean and I were breaking up, and it was Dean’s thing. If I’d had a part of it, it would have diminished his role,” Lewis says. “I had a lot going on in those days, too, performing and doing a lot of work. My film career alone kept me very, very busy to be involved in hanging around the Rat Pack all night. My time with Frank was mostly in the day. So, he got Jerry in the day and Dean at night.” As is common among even the greatest stars of Sinatra’s era, Lewis’ tone is reverential when speaking of the Chairman. “The thing that connected me and him, which he liked, was that I was open, and I think we really did inspire each other,” Lewis says. “He was always looking for ways to keep an audience’s attention, to be free onstage. He was a master at holding an audience’s attention.” Lewis recalls one of Sinatra’s performances at the Copa Room at the Sands. “It was the opening night of his last engagement there, and he walked onstage, my God, the place was electrified,” Lewis recalls. “I was sitting in that audience, with all these people, and here was a person I knew—we had dinner together after the show— but when he was onstage, he seemed like he was someone else. It was so exciting, and I still get gooseflesh thinking about it right now.” Lewis smiles. “That’s something, huh? I’m feeling it. But he really had that kind of effect on me.”

Steve Lawrence ∑ Lawrence met Sinatra at WNEW

studio in New York, the introduction made by the man Lawrence calls “the Frank Sinatra of DJs,” William B. Williams. “Willie B. was the biggest DJ in the country,” Lawrence says, “and he was the one who first called Frank the Chairman of the Board.” A man who favored the standards for more than four decades on New York radio, Willie B. was close with Sinatra, who walked into the station randomly when a then-18-year-old Lawrence was also in the studio. “My God, I was just in awe, standing and looking at this man,” Lawrence says. “I’m just staring at him, my eyes bugging out.” Sinatra became close with Lawrence and Eydie Gormé, the legendary husband-wife singing team Steve & Eydie. Blessed with a flawless voice himself, Lawrence recalls learning the art of phrasing from Sinatra. “Everybody sang boop-boop-dedoop, in tempo, all the time, and they sang the words that were there on the sheet,” Lawrence says. “But they weren’t really reading it. Frank read the lyrics first, to make sure it all made sense to him; he was very conscious of that. When he approached a song he approached it in a way that was like a mini-screenplay. There was a beginning, a middle and an end.”

As many of his friends have recalled over the years, Sinatra had a great sense of humor—in the sense that he liked to laugh. “He loved jokes. He couldn’t tell ’em, but he loved ’em, and I happen to be able to tell ’em well,” Lawrence says. “Eydie and I were traveling with him for over a year on the Diamond Jubilee tour [in 1990-’91] as his opening act, through Europe, Australia, Japan. We were in Mexico, and Eydie was very big there—her Spanish-language albums sometimes outsold our English-language albums down there. And we asked him, ‘How much time do you want us to do?’” Sinatra loosely answered, “Do whatever you want.” And Lawrence said, “Okay, tomorrow, how about you open and we close?” Sinatra halted, then laughed. “I love that. Great.” Lawrence recalls the formative years of the Rat Pack (a name Sinatra didn’t use, favoring the Clan or the Summit or the Boys), when Sammy Davis Jr. was not permitted to stay at the Sands, where he was to perform in the Copa Room, and was directed to the short-lived Moulin Rouge. “If you want to talk about Frank, you’ve got to know that Sammy Davis—back when he was in Vegas as part of the Will Mastin Trio—there was a big problem with him staying at the Sands because of his skin color,” Lawrence recalls. “It’s well-known that Frank broke the color code for the greatest stars, regardless of color, to be able to stay at the hotels where they worked. Frank just went to hotel management and said, ‘If you don’t let Mr. Davis stay at this hotel, I’m leaving here.’ He broke through for Sam, and subsequently for Lena Horne and Harry Belafonte, so many others, and he needs to be applauded for that. Sinatra was blessed not only with talent, but timing. “He came along when there were so many great songwriters out there: Cole Porter, Irving Berlin, Johnny Mercer, Rodgers & Hart, Rodgers & Hammerstein. He was really overwhelmed by what these guys could do in 32 bars,” Lawrence says. “Same is true of the arrangers. Nelson Riddle, Don Costa, Quincy Jones, Billy Byers, all those guys. You know, he’s probably responsible for maybe 25 percent of the Great American Songbook.” Lawrence stayed close with Sinatra until his death on May 14, 1998, and was a pallbearer in Sinatra’s star-studded funeral service at the Church of the Good Shepherd in Beverly Hills. Lawrence will never forget his friend and mentor’s final message. “You know what he put on his tombstone? The best is yet to come,” Lawrence says, chuckling at the lyric from the song Sinatra recorded in 1964 with the Count Basie Orchestra. “He’ll be right, I’m sure. He was a really a special guy.” December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

Worship, with cocktails

> ritual reunion The Las Vegas chapter just held its 100th gathering.

The Church of Frank Sinatra enshrines the style of his era By Kristy Totten The party is positively midcentury: women flaunt tailored, curve-loving dresses, men their crisp suits and pressed ties. Glasses clink and laughter floats above hazy music, setting the scene as wistful and romantic—a frame of American leisure frozen in time. This is the Church of Frank Sinatra, a modern-day social club that honors the 1950s and ’60s, when cell phones weren’t a distraction and people dressed like they gave a damn. The church began in the late 1990s in San Francisco, and was brought to Las Vegas by “bishop” Donny Jacobs in 2012. The invitation-only chapter meets every six weeks to celebrate retro cocktail culture and music of the era—played on vinyl, naturally. “I was tired of the mainstream and what comes with it,” says Jacobs, who DJs swing and lounge music under the name Lucky LaRue. “It lacks style. Music’s not what it used to be, fashion’s not what it used to be. We’re drawn to a better lifestyle.” Jacobs was initiated nearly a decade ago during a rockabilly festival in San Francisco, and has since founded two chapters—one in his hometown of Houston, Texas, and now Las Vegas, a city almost synony-

20 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

mous with Sinatra, the captivating, blue-eyed entertainer who turned this dusty Western town into a glamorous desert destination. Sinatra’s ghost can be tracked through Valley casinos and restaurants, but here, in this dreamy, 1958 abode called Dr. Foemmel’s House of Cheer, his spirit is alive. “Frank is more or less the iconic figure of all those performers that sang the American Songbook,” says founding member Eric Foemmel. “All of them are great—Bobby Darin, Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, Louis Prima—but Sinatra was really considered the Chairman of the Board.” From an imaginative perspective, the gloved women and hat-wearing men of Sinatra’s church might be housewives and secretaries, insurance brokers and ad men. Through a modern lens they’re far more diverse. “Everyone is from a totally different background,” member Vivian Martin says. “Everyone here comes from a different walk of life.” Among those in attendance is a Beatles tribute musician, a vintage shop owner, a dental hygienist, a doctor of physics, a graphic designer and a construction worker who adores vintage clothing. They dig the music, they admire the style and, as Martin observes: “We all

photographs by zack w

like to have a drink.” Martin, an artist and teacher who DJs and organizes Cinemondays at the Sci Fi Center, fell in love with retro culture through swing dancing. She comes from a long line of entertainers: Her grandmother, who performed at Folies Bergère in Paris, knew the Rat Pack casually and moved to the city in the 1950s to dance at the El Rancho. Her great grandmother, too, was a burlesque and vaudeville performer with Ziegfield Follies in New York, the first company to feature showgirls. But right there with the dancing is the clothing of the time. “Nothing fits me that’s modern. Old stuff hugs me and fits me very well,” says Martin, adding that most of the retro scene is into thrifting. An oversized vintage dress for $9 can be fitted with $20 in tailoring and still beats buying new, she insists. Between social gatherings showcasing their authentic garb, churchgoers might attend jazz or burlesque shows, or hone their wardrobes and record collections. Member P.J. Forbes collects tobacco pipes, his prize being a Meerschaum piece used by his great-great grandfather. Forbes, wearing a suit with pocket square, wingtip shoes and a hat with a feather, puffs on a wooden piece and discusses his latest tobacco blend with a friend. Retro’s appeal is in its aesthetic, Foemmel says. “It’s pleasing to the eye.” And pleasure is a focus for this crowd, whether it’s historic fashion or music or just a good cocktail. Vintage Vegas is fading away at a rapid pace, but Sinatra’s congregants are here to keep it swinging.

The Steer celebrates as one of Sinatra’s fave spots ∑ Any spot on the Strip that’s been around long enough advertises a connection to the Rat Pack era, even if it’s just a photo of Frank and his pals. Some venues have stronger ties. The Golden Steer, which calls itself Las Vegas’ longest-running steakhouse and has been open since 1958, is celebrating Sinatra’s 100th birthday with a special three-course dinner

GOLDEN STEER BY CHRIS WESSLING

and a Golden Steer Zippo lighter with Sinatra’s birthday engraved. But what makes the Steer experience special is the opportunity to dine at Frank’s booth, table 22. Sammy Davis Jr. first brought Sinatra to the Steer, its location in those days between the Sands and the Moulin Rouge. Sinatra was “known for walking around the restaurant and serenading fellow guests,” says restaurant owner Michael Signorelli. To take a seat at Sinatra’s table on December 12, his birthday, be ready to shell out a minimum of $1,000. –Brock Radke

THE GOLDEN STEER 308 W. Sahara Ave., 702-3844470. Daily, 4:30-11 p.m.

consisting of the Chairman’s favorite dishes—clams casino, a medium-rare New York strip served with tomatoes and garlic in white wine sauce and bananas Foster flambéed tableside.

You’ll also drink Jack Daniel’s the way he did—three fingers, two ice cubes— and the $100 experience (available through the end of the year) also includes a ticket to the Mob Museum

DECEMBER 3–9, 2015 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM

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> THE WAY HE MOVES Big Boi goes from the stage to the DJ booth December 4.

Nightlife News & Notes

HOT SPOTS

DJ set. December 4, 10:30 p.m., $35+ men, $25+ women.

RISE THURSDAYS WITH DJ SHIFT AT HAKKASAN Las Vegas’ own Justin Bueltel—a graduate of Cheyenne High School—just turned 35 and celebrates Thursday night at Hakkasan, so consider starting your weekend with one of the city’s favorite DJs. December 3, 10:30 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women. PURE THROWBACK THURSDAY AT OMNIA

DJ Gusto takes the decks as Heart of Omnia helps you relive the most memorable moments of this space’s legendary former occupant, Pure. December 3, 10:30 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women.

SUNDRAI’S WITH NIYKEE HEATON AT DRAI’S The story: A

South African songwriter equally enamored with Bob Dylan, Tom Waits and hip-hop posts some acoustic covers on YouTube and blows up. Then, she celebrates turning 21 by performing live at Drai’s this Sunday. December 6, 10:30 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women.

Languages represented in Keith Ape’s “IT G MA”

NEAL MCCOY AT STONEY’S A Filipino-Irish country star with 10 studio albums under his belt, including platinum breakthrough No Doubt About It,, seems like a big Friday night score for the resurrected Town Square honkey-tonkery. December 4, 7 p.m., $15. BIG BOI AT SURRENDER If you missed it, watch that Key &

Peele clip spoofing an OutKast reunion in an Atlanta coffee shop (“Why does your breath smell like birdseed?”) and it should put you in the right mind-set to catch Antwan Patton’s

24 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 3-9, 2015

ALESSO AT XS The Swedish superstar and newest Wynn resident tunes up for his mega NYE gig this Saturday night. December 5, 10:30 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women.

KEITH APE AT FOXTAIL The story: A suburban South Korean kid listens to Nas’ “Life’s a Bitch” and three years later, he drops out of school to make music. At 21, he releases viral hit “IT G MA” and moves to LA, then makes his Vegas debut performing at Foxtail this Sunday. December 6, 10:30 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women.

DJ MUSTARD AT LIGHT The programming hasn’t changed a whole lot under new ownership at Light yet, which, in the case of resident DJ and LA “ratchet” hip-hop producer Mustard, is a good thing. You can never have too much Mustard. December 9, 10 p.m., $30+ men, $20+ women.

Hakkasan Group might have unloaded a few of its Vegas venues, but the global hospitality goliath isn’t slowing down one bit. In 2016 it will bring its Michelin-starred Yauatcha restaurant brand to the U.S. with locations in Houston and Honolulu, while expanding into Indonesia with two restaurants (Hakkasan and Sake no Hana) and a nightclub (Omnia), located in the Alila SCBD Hotel. These developments follow recent openings in Shanghai, Mykonos, LA and London, and here on the Strip, Hakkasan is set to open the Herringbone restaurant at Aria later this month. Change continues at the Mirage, and we’re not talking about 1 OAK, though that club remains high on the list of mostrumored-to-be-switchingup venues. There’s a new combo spot in the middle of the iconic casino, Center Bar and Parlour Lounge, featuring an amber-hued, open atmosphere, a Steinway grand piano in the lounge, a proprietary beer from local brewer CraftHaus that pays tribute to the resort’s tropical theme, and cocktail lists created by Food & Wine’s “Best New Mixologist” Liz Pierce of Chicago. Drai’s is starting off the new year in a big way with a doubleheader from resident artists Chris Brown on January 1 and The Weeknd on January 2. –Brock Radke

Nights

Boot-scootin’ beats

> Country club Dee Jay Silver brings the twang to GBDC on Saturday.

Remix artist Dee Jay Silver brings the country to electronic music A Luke Bryan/Eminem mashup track is probably the last thing you’d hear on the dancefloor at a Vegas nightclub, but not when Dee Jay Silver is in the booth. The country-remix DJ has been thinking outside the box of EDM, Top 40 and hip-hop for more than two decades, which explains how the Las Vegas local has toured with some of the genre’s biggest stars and was the first DJ signed to a major record label in Nashville, country music’s capital. Silver will spend the week playing the National Finals Rodeo’s Gold Buckle Zone afterparty (and a few clubs, including GBDC—what?!), so we got on the horn with the Austin native to talk country’s place in Vegas, his upcoming album and more. Not many DJs work country music into their sets. What was your motivation? Some people

know hip-hop, some know rock ’n’ roll. I knew country. It’s just what I grew up on. ... The typical Las Vegas DJ, you play everything in order to gig. But I was always known as the guy who mixed in country.

GIDDY UP AND TWERK with Dee Jay Silver. December 5, 1 p.m., $20 men, $10 women. Ghostbar Dayclub, 702-942-6232.

Nashville is very much a livemusic city. When you play there, are audiences receptive to the electronic-music format? Oh, for sure. A lot of those bands will go on at

5 or 6 o’clock. We don’t start till midnight. We do the whole club vibe, club format. It’s just a good time. It gives them a different way to hear the music that they already know and love. Las Vegas has become a destination for electronic music. Do you think it’s a good town for country music, too? Country music is growing in Las

Vegas. This is my third NFR, and to see how far it came in the last three or four years, it’s just leaps and bounds. What can you tell us about the new album you’re producing? It’s all original stuff. I do remixes for a

living, but I want to come in and do a complete original album—an original production, original writing.

We’re gonna write and produce it. One-stop shop.

You’re playing NFR’s afterparty. Think you’ll have time to check out the rodeo? No. I’ve been to a few of ’em.

Will you also sing on the new record? Oh, lord no. I don’t sing (laughs). A little auto-tune will help it out! I want to do the whole DJ Khaled kind of thing for country music, where we write and produce and bring our friends in on the record, like Austin Webb, Tyler Rich. Stuff like that.

To be honest with you, I’m a trained professional in Las Vegas. I know during the day we’re probably going to be recovering from that hangover. –Mark Adams For more of our interview with Silver, visit lasvegasweekly.com

Cocktails and then some The Mob Museum celebrates Repeal Day just right If we know anything about the Mob Museum, it’s that it’s big on details. The more time you spend in the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, the more juicy revelations come to light about this specific branch of our history tree. ¶ Its annual Repeal Day Party is no different. This is not just another Prohibition-themed cocktailer with Roaring ’20s costumes and an official toast from Mayors Oscar and Carolyn Goodman—but it has those, too. Southern Wine & Spirits is in charge of booze, ensuring the city’s top mixologists will be crafting the poison you’ve picked. The Boss of the Bars Cocktail Competition is back, where all the top Downtown watering holes will battle for the Repeal Day Cup; Atomic Liquors took the prize last year. This year’s judging panel is led by Joy Robertson, host and producer of foodchannel.com, and Scott Deitche, author of Cocktail Noir: From Gangsters and Gin Joints to Gumshoes and Gimlets. So yeah, this is gonna be a booze-education celebration. ¶ The party also includes a costume contest, casino table games, specialty bites provided by Jolene Mannina’s Relish catering, and performances by a jazz swing band and classic cabaret dancers. VIP tickets offer early access at 6 p.m., an open bar and dance lessons. Museum members get 10 percent off ticket prices, and proceeds benefit educational programming at the nonprofit museum. –Brock Radke

26 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

REPEAL DAY PARTY December 5, 6-10 p.m., $46$66. Mob Museum, 702-2292734, mob museum.org

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Arts&Entertainment Movies + Music + Art + Food

FLYING HIGH

> METAL TIMES TWO DragonForce (top) and Kamelot pair up at House of Blues.

Muse bassist Chris Wolstenholme talks Drones— the album and the tech You’re playing in the round for the first time on this tour. How different is that? Very different, actually. A lot of

the time you’ve got to think about where you’re at, who you’re actually playing to. You’re used to having people in front of you all the time, and behind you is kind of a dead space normally. So no matter where you look, and no matter where you stand, you’re always looking at somebody. What sort of technology are you bringing along?

MUSE with Phantogram. December 6, 7:30 p.m., $37-$69. Mandalay Bay Events Center, 702-632-7777.

We’ve actually got flying drones in the show. I don’t think that’s ever been done before. We’ve had a few sleepless nights about that in the last few days. The first few attempts at getting the drones up and flying were pretty disastrous. When the P.A. was switched on, the vibration was decalibrating the drones. So all of a sudden, they didn’t know where they were; they were crashing into things. … It’s a little bit fingers crossed at this point in time, but we’ll see how it goes. (laughs)

Trust Us

crowds, you need a beer … or eight. Sample suds from local breweries and regional favorites between taking on H&M and the Gap at Town Square. December 5, 1-6 p.m., $30.

Hear

see

KAMELOT & DRAGONFORCE Two fantastically named power-metal favorites—the former a quintet from Florida, the latter a six-piece from London—team for a night of guitar wizardry and mystical lyricism. December 7, 7:30 p.m., $30, House of Blues.

a christmas carol UNLV’s Nevada Conservatory Theatre yet again gets into the spirit—three of them, in fact—of Christmas, as Charles Dickens’ yuletide classic comes to life on the Judy Bayley Theatre stage. December 3-5, 9-12, 8 p.m.; December 5, 12, 2 p.m.; $27.50-$33.

merle haggard The Hag at the Nug—it’s become an NFR tradition. And with a six-decade career and 40 country-radio No. 1 hits, the enduring outlaw strummer has no shortage of gems to perform. December 7-8, 10 p.m., $99-$299, Golden Nugget.

Stuff you’ll want to know about

space karate Get an earful of alt-rock icon Beck’s endearingly pretentious sheetmusic album Song Reader, as interpreted by Space Karate, a band of local entertainers playing quirky instruments, including—yes!—accordion. December 5, 7 p.m., $10-$12, Winchester Cultural Center.

drink BREW’S BEST BEER FEST Sometimes after braving the holiday shopping a christmas carol by steve marcus; muse by gavin bond

made & found Downtown coffee hub Makers & Finders celebrates its first year with an evening of live music (featuring Vegas bands like Echo Stains and Sloan Walkers, plus DJ Buhoo), live mural painting, and coffee- and tea-inspired cocktails. Plus, an all-day food drive benefits Three Square. December 4, event begins at 4 p.m., 1120 S. Main St.

How conscious was the decision to make June album Drones more guitaroriented than the past few records?

It’s something we thought about for a while. There were a lot of other influences creeping into the music, particularly the electronic things. We still feel like we’re young and we can rock out onstage, so we felt that maybe we should continue to make heavy music, energetic music. –Annie Zaleski For more of our interview with Wolstenholme, visit lasvegasweekly. com.

HOLIDAY BAZAAR & JUNKFEST Vintage furniture, jewelry and knick-knackery, oh my. Go for a double dose of highintensity gift-finding with thrift and consignment goods, arts and crafts and everything in between. December 5, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Not Just Antiques Mart, 1422 Western Ave. December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

A&E | SCREEN l i st

> RHyme Time Samuel L. Jackson as the loquacious Dolmedes.

Holiday horrors With Christmas-themed horror movie Krampus opening this week, here’s more seasonal scariness Black Christmas (1974) With its story of a mysterious killer targeting sorority sisters over the holidays, Black Christmas is an often unsung influence on the slasher genre. Director Bob Clark later went on to make the much less horrific A Christmas Story. Christmas Evil

film

gangs. After a young girl loses her life in the crossfire of a turf war, Lysistrata organizes a sex strike that grows to encompass prostitutes, strippers, porn stars and eventually women all around the world. Although he’s drawn attention and controversy for his use Spike Lee barrels through Chicago with of the Chi-Raq name and setting, Lee isn’t making a gritty, the messy Chi-Raq By Josh Bell naturalistic drama about life amid Chicago’s gang wars. The two major gangs (named the Trojans and the Spartans) are fictional, and their flamboyant, color-coded fashion senses Spike Lee has never had much use for subtlety, and Chimake them look more like something out of The Warriors Raq, his movie about gang violence in Chicago, handles the than from the evening news. Lee and co-writer topic about as gracefully as a screaming op-ed piece. Kevin Willmott also come up with some truly atroIt’s possible to argue that an issue this urgent and cious rhyming dialogue to mimic the cadence of a polarizing deserves nothing less than Lee’s loudest, aaccc classic play, although the rhyming comes and goes messiest, most obnoxious filmmaking techniques, CHI-RAQ seemingly at random. and he certainly holds nothing back in what has Teyonah The entire movie is a scattered collection of become his most high-profile film in nearly a decade Parris, Nick techniques: highly stylized back-and-forth patter (thanks in part to Amazon, which will stream the Cannon, about sexual relations (plus rigidly composed shots movie at an unspecified date shortly following its Angela to match); a local preacher played by John Cusack theatrical release). But Chi-Raq, like so many Lee Bassett. delivering a non-rhyming speech about economic joints, is a jumble of ideas and approaches that clash Directed by and social policy; a dance number set to a sexy and fall flat more often than they connect. Spike Lee. slow jam; crude, lowbrow comic relief from Dave The movie is a loose adaptation of Aristophanes’ Rated R. Chappelle, among others; a dapper rhyming Greek ancient Greek play Lysistrata, in which the title Opens Friday. chorus of sorts played by Samuel L. Jackson. Lee character leads her fellow Greek women in denyputs together some striking images, and Parris is ing their men sex until the Athenians and Spartans fierce and dedicated as the no-nonsense Lysistrata. But like his agree to end their armed conflict. Lee’s Lysistrata (Teyonah protagonist, Lee starts with admirable intentions only to find Parris) lives on Chicago’s notoriously violence-plagued South himself in over his head. Side, and she’s sick of the killing between the two main rival

The windy city

(1980) Goofy title aside, Christmas Evil is a surprisingly gritty psychological thriller about a man whose Santa-related childhood trauma causes him to descend into madness, dressing as Santa and attacking anyone who doesn’t fit his idea of the Christmas spirit. Santa’s Slay (2005)

Did you know that Santa is actually the son of Satan, cursed by an angel to spread joy? When he’s released from the curse, Santa (played by ex-pro wrestler Bill Goldberg) goes on a ridiculous killing spree in this campy horror-comedy. Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale

(2010) This oddball Finnish movie features Santa as a demon accidentally released by a scientific expedition. Local hunters must stop him from killing their reindeer and lethally punishing their naughty children. –Josh Bell

film

Although A Royal Night Out opens with somber real-life images of Londoners taking to the streets as Germany’s World War II surrender is announced, the rest of the movie is almost entirely frivolous, a heavily fictionalized story about the adventures of teenage princesses Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon) and Margaret (Bel Powley) as they cavort around the city on the night of V-E Day. The prim Elizabeth engages in flirty banter with a workingclass airman (Jack Reynor), while the more free-spirited Margaret gets whisked off to shady nightclubs, as they both conceal their royal identities. Gadon and Powley are charming (and Powley gets unfairly sidelined for Elizabeth’s predictable romantic storyline), but the movie can’t quite settle on a tone, landing somewhere between The King’s Speech and The Princess Diaries. The silly fun and the rudimentary personal reflection come off as equally superficial, and end up equally forgettable. –Josh Bell

princess power

40 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

aabcc A ROYAL NIGHT OUT Sarah Gadon, Bel Powley, Jack Reynor. Directed by Julian Jarrold. Rated PG-13. Opens Friday.

A&E | screen

stars to join Murray in cracking a few jokes and singing some familiar Christmas songs. Some celebrities (Chris Rock, Miley Cyrus, George Clooney) play themselves, while others (Rashida Jones, Jason Schwartzman, Maya Bill Murray croons and Rudolph and more) play semischmoozes in A Very fictional characters, although Murray Christmas Murray and collaborators Sofia Coppola and Mitch Glazer aren’t really interested in creating charBill Murray’s best role in acters. The songs range from the the past decade has been that of obvious (“Silent Night,” “Do You Bill Murray, Eccentric Celebrity, Hear What I Hear?”) to and he takes that to an the offbeat (“Fairytale of extreme in his Netflix New York,” “Santa Claus Christmas special A Very aabcc Wants Some Lovin’”), Murray Christmas. A A VERY mostly sung by stars not semi-ironic throwback MURRAY known for their singto old-fashioned TV CHRISTMAS ing. It’s mildly amusing Christmas variety shows, Available at times but mainly just it features a threadbare December 4 wildly self-indulgent. narrative setup (Murray on Netflix. Like Murray’s endearing is holed up in New York real-life antics, the show City’s Carlyle Hotel durwas probably loads of fun for the ing a blizzard, which has kept all people involved, but the feeling the guests away from his immidoesn’t necessarily carry over to nent live TV Christmas broadcast) the viewing audience. –Josh Bell as the excuse for a cavalcade of tv

SEASON’S GREETINGS

FILM

HOLY MOTHER abccc THE LETTERS Juliet Stevenson, Max von Sydow, Rutger Hauer. Directed by William Riead. Rated PG. Opens Friday. Biopics often gloss over the shortcomings of their subjects in favor of hitting the inspirational highlights of their lives, but the Mother Teresa story The Letters takes that one step further, functioning literally as an argument for her sainthood. It’s framed by a Vatican official’s investigation into canonization for the renowned Catholic nun and missionary, and then further framed by the correspondence between Teresa (Juliet Stevenson, sporting a vaguely Eastern European accent) and her longtime spiritual advisor (Max von Sydow). He describes (and describes, and describes) Teresa’s efforts to minister to the poor and dying in Calcutta, India, which writer-director William Riead depicts with as much liveliness and dramatic tension as a Bible study class. Riead doesn’t have to include the various criticisms of Teresa’s work, but he could at least make her (or anyone else in the movie) an interesting character. In the end, the Vatican official concludes that Teresa absolutely deserves to be a saint. Anyone who sits through this movie probably deserves the same. –Josh Bell

Job Security can be hard to find unless

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A&E | noise c o n c e rt

Playing in the band

> JOHN CAN JAM Mayer teamed well with Weir and his other Dead & Company bandmates.

John Mayer—yes, that John Mayer—sparks the Dead’s latest live lineup By Spencer Patterson

If Mayer stumbled sigIt’s a strange trip nificantly, it happened indeed, to look at the curduring free-form segment rent touring version of the “Space,” when he charged Grateful Dead and see John out fast rather than letting Mayer playing lead guitar. the groove develop, and But close your eyes, as I did his smooth vocals felt odd several times during Friday standing in for Garcia’s on night’s Dead & Company “Althea” and “Row Jimmy.” show at MGM Grand, and But Mayer more than made the notes erupting from the up for that with some man’s instrument feel nothintense and interesting guiing short of magical. tar work during “Playing The 38-year-old pop in the Band” and “Let It star has succeeded Trey Grow,” which for me repAnastasio of the more closeresented the night’s peak ly jam-aligned Phish at the song pairing. band’s musical center, and Bob Weir, the Dead’s Mayer’s name alone surely third veteran member, kept some longtimers on demonstrated surprisingly the couch, judging from the good guitar chemistry with curtained-off upper seats Mayer, with the two comfor the first of two Vegas aaabc bining to turn “Jack Straw” gigs. But instrumentally, DEAD & COMPANY November 27, heavy at its finish and push Mayer more than held his MGM Grand Garden Arena. the tempo of “Casey Jones” own, meshing with his new to a fitting extreme. Original mates and producing a series bassist Phil Lesh’s presence was missed, but exof dazzling solos that felt connected to Jerry Allman Brother Burbridge held down the low Garcia’s legacy even as they added a few fresh end solidly, minus a few of Lesh’s famous bombs. splashes to the palate. And keyboardist Jeff Chimenti might have been I witnessed Friday’s concert with a Dead newthe band’s secret weapon, flavoring the music bie, and the setlist could scarcely have been betwith simple but effective piano touches throughter for her first experience: a funky-meets-folky out the night. first set loaded with favorites like “Shakedown Overall, though, there was no denying the true Street,” “Uncle John’s Band” and “Jack Straw,” hero—Mayer, who no doubt won many new fans then a more exploratory second set built around on this tour. I’m not queuing up “Your Body Is a psychedelic warhorses “Dark Star” and “St. Wonderland” as I write this, but I will keep an Stephen,” plus a tribal “Drums” piece that saw eye on the guy, to see what he does next. Because bassist Oteil Burbridge pick up sticks and join anyone who sits in Jerry’s seat and not only surlongtime rhythm devils Bill Kreutzmann and vives but thrives, has earned a reconsideration. Mickey Hart.

c o n c e rt

“Start Wearing Purple” might be a song about a aaaac crazy neighbor, but the way Gogol Bordello played it GOGOL and the way the audience responded Saturday night BORDELLO at Brooklyn Bowl, it felt more like a call to revolution. November 28, The band often had nine members onstage, playBrooklyn Bowl. Gogol Bordello brings ing everything from acoustic guitar to electric violin, washboard to accordion, usually at breakneck speed. the shake and quake Add onto that the power of the many excitable vocalto Brooklyn Bowl ists backing leader Eugene Hutz and you have a combustible musical engine feeding a wild crowd, much of it dressed in colorful gypsy garb. Gogol is touring for the 10th anniversary of Gypsy Punks: Underdog World Strike, a record filled with energetic, dance-ready tunes, which enter a even higher stratosphere live. Hutz, charismatic and super-charged, led manic renditions of “Immigrant Punk,” “60 Revolutions” and “Avenue B” early on. That all served as a precursor to “Dogs Were Barking,” which best achieved the band’s mission statement: “To provoke audience out of postmodern aesthetic swamp onto a neo-optimistic communal movement towards new sources of authentic energy.” While the night served to spotlight Gypsy Punks, Hutz smartly changed the song sequence, switching “Mishto!” and “Undestructable” to build better momentum. The mid-set addition of “Wonderlust King” from 2007’s Super Taranta! also served the greater good and gave those who might be unfamiliar with the band a glimpse into its seemingly nonstop touring lifestyle: “I traveled the world looking for lovers/Of the ultimate beauty, but never settled in/I’m a Wonderlust king!” By the time the band encored with “American Wedding,” the audience had moved from dancing to bouncing, so much so that, for the first time, I felt the floor shake at Brooklyn Bowl. Revolution, indeed. –Jason Harris

Purple people

42 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

gogol bordello by fred morldge/kabik photo group

c o n c e rt

I kept waiting for the announcement that this one had been aaabc canceled. Not only did history suggest it wouldn’t hold up—Public PUBLIC Image Ltd nixed a booked Vegas date in 2012—but the heartbreaking IMAGE LTD erasure of another formative British band’s scheduled stopover Public Image Ltd makes its November 25, (Ride’s November 10 House of Blues show) had me feeling gloomy Brooklyn Bowl. about the chances PiL would actually play Brooklyn Bowl last unlikely Vegas visit count Wednesday … right until John Lydon walked onstage, glared at the lanes and yelled, “Are you f*cking bowling again?” ¶ Yes, the gig actually happened, and though the room was far from full, it was nothing like the pretty vacant scene I’d expected walking in. Fans filled about a third of the Bowl’s deep floor area— along with some spillover by the side bar—and participated actively, in a concert lasting nearly two hours without the benefit of opening acts. ¶ The quartet kicked its set off with a slew of recent material, four songs from September’s What the World Needs Now and one from 2012’s This Is PiL, broken up by 1983 U.K. hit “This Is Not a Love Song.” But really, the specific numbers mattered little. This night was about the groove, a hypnotic, rhythmic pulse forged by drummer Bruce Smith and bassist Scott Firth, atop which Lu Edmonds’ guitar sizzled and spiked and Lydon (that’s Sex Pistols vocalist Johnny Rotten, for the uninitiated) sang of corporate greed and religious intolerance. ¶ The 59-year-old frontman looked a bit bloated in his prison-striped jumpsuit, but his voice sounded formidable as ever. During throwback cuts like 1979’s “Death Disco” (a tweaked version of which became “Swan Lake” on seminal post-punk LP Metal Box) and 1993’s “Open Up” (originally a collaboration with electronic duo Leftfield), Lydon altered his tone and inflection constantly, bringing a full range of character to his delivery. He also said things between songs like, “This one’s about the death of my mother—enjoy!” ¶ Though the encore pairing of early single “Public Image” and “Rise,” the band’s best-known song, drew the loudest response, the night’s high mark was undoubtedly “Religion,” off PiL’s 1978’s debut, First Issue. Lydon pushed the lyrics (“Do you pray to the Holy Ghost when you suck your host?”) uncomfortably into our faces, then began repeating “Turn up the bass, turn up the bass, would you like more bass?” The sound man obliged, and the bass gradually became a vibrating, all-consuming force—and one more reason to give thanks, for a show that actually happened, the night before Thanksgiving. –Spencer Patterson

Imagine that

dead & company & Public Image Limited by erik kabik

December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

A&E | NOISE ROCK

Bound for glory Bruce Springsteen’s outtake-rich River box shines more light on a critical period By Jason Harris As with many things Bruce Springsteen, “The Ties That Bind” has multiple meanings. It’s the opening track to The River, announcing the theme of that 1980 double-album. It was the name of the same record when Springsteen first turned it in to his label, as a single album, before taking it back and making it a double-LP, because he felt it needed more. And it’s the name of the new box set focused on The River era, giving fans more insight into that important period. “The ties that bind” is also a pretty perfect way BRUCE to describe where The River falls in the Springsteen SPRINGSTEEN canon—chronologically, musically and from a storyThe Ties That Bind: telling standpoint. Springsteen creates worlds on his The River Collection albums and fills them with characters often striving for aaaaa. similar things in similar places. Born to Run (1975): desperate for something more in your 20s (“It’s a town for the losers, and I’m pulling out of here to win”). Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978): what happens after those dreams die (“Keep pushing till it’s understood, and those badlands start treating us good”). And The River: starting your real life—family, work, finding your place (“Now you can’t walk away from the price you pay”). These are characters forced to deal with broken relationships, as on “Independence Day” (“We wouldn’t change this even if we could somehow”), broken hearts, as on “Point Blank” (“Did you forget how to love girl, did you forget how to fight?”) and broken lives, as on “The River” (“Is a dream a lie if it don’t come true, or is it something worse?”). In The Ties That Bind documentary, Springsteen says these ballads—along with other gems like “Drive All Night” and “Wreck on the Highway”—make up the spine of the double album. The rest of it is filled with fast rockers that set out to re-establish the E Street Band as the best bar band in the world. Big saxophone solos from Clarence Clemons. Beautiful organ from Danny Federici. And the dirty garage feel of Steven Van Zandt’s pop construction and backing voice. These songs are fun on record but become real monsters in the live show. The summer party that is “Sherry Darling.” The full band assault of “Ramrod.” The crowd call-and-response of “Cadillac Ranch.” As with any Springsteen album, once you dig deeper, you get more amazed. The band cut 104 demos and recorded 53 songs in the studio before Springsteen whittled The River down to its final 20-song set. That means some of his best were left out. Off the original version of the album, Ties, those include “Loose End,” one of Springsteen’s most emotionally compact stories of love gone wrong (“How could something so bad, darling/Come from something that was so good”); “Be True,” a tight pop tune and could-have-been single; and the murky “Chain Lightning,” which feels like an odd ’60s dance-rock number. Among 22 outtakes, half have never been released. The others can be found in various forms on box sets like Tracks, including favorites like “Roulette” (which Springsteen has said should have made The River’s final cut), the wild and loose “Restless Nights,” and “I Wanna Be With You,” which seems made for rock radio.

> restless nights Bruce Springsteen, performing circa The River.

The unreleased batch is loaded with even more hit potential. “Meet Me in the City” is a prototypical fist-pumping Springsteen show-opener. “Little White Lies” is speedy and intense, a nod to the Boss’ camaraderie with punk music. The cinematic “The Time That Never Was” nods to Phil Spector’s influence on Springsteen’s early work. And “Stray Bullet” is a stunning ballad that ranks with the best ballads of this or any other Springsteen era. Every time Springsteen releases a treasure trove like this, we wonder how he could leave so many jewels in the vault for so long. What if “Lonely Night in the Park” had made it onto Born to Run? Where would “The Promise” have fit in the world of Darkness? Would “Where The Bands Are” or “Party Lights” have climbed the charts like “Hungry Heart” during The River years? But that’s what Springsteen has always done. He’s not about creating the most hits; he’s about creating the best album. He’s always been striving for something greater. And that’s why The River, like so many other Bruce Springsteen albums, feels as vital now as it did then.

pop-ROCK

Coldplay’s biggest hits have tended to fall into the categories of surging rock tunes or earnest piano ballads, and the band’s seventh studio album has COLDPLAY no shortage of either. “Everglow” finds frontman Chris Martin showing off a A Head Full deeper and more nuanced vocal range, as he seemingly comes to terms with of Dreams Coldplay’s latest LP falls short of his divorce, while the title track highlights Edge-like, reverb-coated guitar aaacc its grand aspirations jangle. ¶ But the U.K. quartet’s most interesting moments, historically, have explored the intersection of modern pop sounds and cerebral electronic music. That’s also the case on A Head Full of Dreams, which retains the adventurous spirit of 2011’s Mylo Xyloto while possessing a contemporary production sheen, thanks to co-producer Stargate (Rihanna, Katy Perry). The somber piano instrumental “Kaleidoscope” and Viva La Vida-esque “Colour Spectrum” sample Barack Obama singing “Amazing Grace;” “Army of One” features some slick retro electro-pop production before seguing to the grooving hip-hop jam “X Marks the Spot;” and the measured “Fun” is an ’80s Euro-pop throwback featuring wistful vocal harmonies from Tove Lo. ¶ Highlight “Up & Up” has equally huge guest stars—vocals from Merry Clayton and guitars from Noel Gallagher—though their contributions are barely discernible between the mincing orchestral samples, clattering ice-drop rhythms and burbling electronic touches. Even more disappointing is “Hymn for the Weekend”: Not only are Beyoncé’s vocals buried and thin-sounding, but the song’s analogies between love and debauchery are cringeworthy. It highlights the album’s main downfall: Coldplay’s new music doesn’t measure up to its sonic ambitions and marquee collaborations. A Head Full of Dreams overflows with good intentions and intriguing ideas, but lacks focus and cohesion. –Annie Zaleski

Dreaming big

44 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

PHOTOGRAPH BY AP IMAGES/Mike Derer

A&E | noise > Finding his Muse Shelestak and Phantogram open for the British rock giants December 6 at Mandalay Bay.

POSITIVELY ARTS REVOLUTION DECEMBER LINE-UP

SUNDAY DECEMBER 6 KEEPIN’ IT COUNTRY 6-9pm

Keepin’ It Country is a high energy, fast paced and FUN romp through country music! From the classics to contemporary country, Keepin’ It Country is a show that celebrates all that is the joy of country music. Proceeds go to Arbor View High School arts program

Rest stop Nicholas Shelestak pauses between Phantogram dates to tend bar Downtown By Leslie Ventura After 18 months on the road with Phantogram, multi-instrumentalist and touring member Nicholas Shelestak had to make a decision: move back to freezing Williamsburg, New York, in the dead of winter or find somewhere to wait out the cold. The 35-yearold musician chose Vegas, and for the past two months he’s been slinging drinks inside Downtown’s newest dance bar, Oddfellows. “I don’t really feel like going back now, because it’s sunny and warm here,” Shelestak says on an arguably brisk November night at PublicUs, one week before the group headed out on tour with Muse. “I’ve been loving being in the desert.” Born and raised in Seattle, Shelestak was an optician before moving east in 2004 to pursue a music career and help his thengirlfriend start a clothing line. Once in New York, he answered a Craigslist ad and began playing with The Antlers, and later Exitmusic, which helped him meet Phantogram’s Josh Carter and Sarah Barthel. Since 2013, Shelestak has served as a vital weapon for that band, playing guitar, synth, keys and a hodgepodge of electronics. And yet, tending bar at Oddfellows, the musician

doesn’t have the typical demeanor of a bigwig. “It gets a little stir crazy just sitting alone playing music all day,” he says. “I thought it’d be fun to bartend, ’cause that way I can be out but I’m not spending money.” And Vegas has unlocked a new creative spark, Shelestak says, especially when it comes to his other craft, photography. “I’ve wandered every street down here shooting pictures. I actually hated doing it in New York, because you walk around and there’s 40 other assholes with a DSLR [camera],” he says. “I can walk around here and there’s just nobody … everything’s still covered in art, there’s no tagging on it. I find it kind of a unique scene down here, how much it varies by one block.” While Vegas’ slower pace and empty streets might make for excellent photo fodder, Shelestak acknowledges that the city can be tricky for rising touring indie groups. “I definitely consider our [February] Brooklyn Bowl show a success, but it took being at this level to finally do it,” he says. “Even though it’s a city, you’ve got to scale it down … If you look at Downtown and you plopped it somewhere else, this is a small town. That’s how [bands] actually have to see it.”

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A&E | Comedy > Sitcom star Gardell is gearing up for Season 6 of Mike & Molly.

Dream come true

Billy Gardell has parlayed TV fame into stand-up glory By Jason Harris

photograph by bill hughes

Gardell is also still damn As Billy Gardell walked funny. This is working-class comonstage at Treasure Island Friday edy from a man who’s so personnight to Frank Sinatra’s “That’s able, audiences want to be his Life,” he bowed to the audience friend. He tackles topics most of multiple times, an expression of us have some memory of. On his his appreciation for this. All of disgust with kids having access this. Though our paths crossed to pornography on cell phones: only briefly years ago and he “They should have to earn it like probably wouldn’t remember it, we did—stumble across a Playboy I couldn’t help feeling happy for that had been rained on in the the larger-than-life comedian, one woods. Hold it up to the light. of the best I’ve ever worked with. ‘Is that it?’ ‘I don’t know. In 2009, Gardell headI’ve never seen one. I think lined July 4 weekend at that’s it.’” Palace Station, where I aaacc BILLY Gardell changes the was the house emcee for a GARDELL power in his voice as he club that often drew fewer hammers certain topthan 50 patrons a night. November ics. “The generation that Back then, Gardell was a 27, Treasure Island. came before us should spit touring comic who made in our face. They fought guest-starring appeartwo World Wars. The ances on various television Industrial Revolution. The Great shows. Rumor had it he was about Depression. Cut the Panama Canal to hang up his Hollywood dream, with f*cking shovels. Civil rights. move back to his hometown of Women’s rights. We need some Pittsburgh and get a radio job. medicine ’cause somebody hurt A year later, Mike & Molly preour feelings! Does that sound right miered on CBS—with Gardell playto you? You think the guys who ing Officer Mike Biggs opposite were riding those boats to D-Day Melissa McCarthy’s Molly Flynn— stopped and went, ‘I feel so anxand today Gardell is playing theious about what we’re doing right aters. Toward the end of the show, now. I can’t breathe.’” he expressed his gratitude: “In my He’s come a long way since 40s, I just wanted a job to take those days of playing in front of care of my family, and I’ve landed 35 people. Billy Gardell is finally the single-greatest job a comedian playing in front of the crowds he could have, so thank you for letting deserves. me do it for six years.”

A&E | Fine art

Fresh perspective LVA freshmen photograph, and then draw, slivers of Downtown By kristy totten

That black and white photo of a Downtown alleyway? It’s not a photo, it’s a drawing—and it was made by a 14-year-old at Las Vegas Academy of the Arts. Playing on the theme of art activism, freshmen art majors from the magnet school explored Downtown, seeking out unexpected beauty in the city’s dilapidated center. The young artists photographed and then drew their chosen images, infusing them with social and political themes like sexism, racism, gun control and child abuse. “The goal is to create art that has a purpose, that has meaning and evokes emotion in its audience,” says art teacher Natalie Delgado, who wanted to raise awareness among her students. “I wanted them to learn about the news and what’s going on around them.” Using graphite pencil, 14-year-old Nicole Laurencio depicted an old, wooden house with a security screen door, adding to it the now-iconic clothing of Aylan Kurdi, the 3-year-old Syrian refugee who drowned during his family’s journey to Turkey. In the drawing, Kurdi’s shirt and shorts dry on a clothesline, entertaining the possibility that the child could have survived. Kylee Shay Mitchell drew a graffitied Arts District alleyway, sneaking in her own socially conscious street tag. On a utility box, Mitchell scratched in a combined male and female symbol above an equal sign and the label “human,” signifying her ideal of equality among sexes. Through a rigorous course of line drawing, shading, drawing by touch and other exercises, Delgado takes novice students and develops nearly photorealistic talent. The themed art courses are somewhat new to the curriculum, but the students appreciate their impact. “I’ve learned to add meaning to my work,” Laurencio says. “Before it was just, ‘Do the assignment.’” –Kristy Totten

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Naughty or nice?

Dark reindeer monologues to a cornball variety show, the Onyx has your holidays covered By Jacob Coakley This is kind of different.” Whether you’re more about a Heard also has something for jolly old soul or rooting for Krampus those who want more of a traditionthis Christmas season, the Onyx al holiday show. Opening December Theatre has you covered with two 10 at the Onyx is The Blanche DeBris shows that celebrate both aspects Emergency Xmas Broadcast. Written of the holiday. First up is the dread by and starring local burlesque aspect, with cult hit The Eight: luminary Blanche DeBris (Annette Reindeer Monologues by Jeff Goode, Verdolino), the show thrives on the opening December 4. Directed by cornball ’70s varietyTroy Heard, it offers a show Christmas specials disturbingly dark twist where everyone comes on Rudolph’s story— The Eight: together under the flimincluding allegations of Reindeer siest of circumstances horrific sexual abuse at Monologues to sing and share jokes. the North Pole. Friday & In this instance, that “Each reindeer has Saturday, flimsy circumstance their own perspective— 10 p.m., $15. occurs when the owner from working-class joe of Slippery Crease, to politically activated The Blanche Nevada’s only radio stafeminist to gang memDeBris tion, dies unexpectedly ber taken off the streets Emergency in a horrible rhinestonwho had his life turned Xmas ing accident. So it’s up to around by Santa Claus,” Broadcast DeBris to keep the staHeard says. “Vixen has Thursday-Sunday, tion on air. the final monologue, and 8 p.m., $20. “I’m a sucker for the the play revolves around big, stupid Christmas the question, will she Both through stuff,” Verdolino says. testify or not, and if she December 19, “Like holiday specials does, did it happen? It’s Onyx Theatre, from the ’60s and ’70s, a bit of Rashomon—each 702-732-7225. with these guest stars monologue fills in differyou’d never see togethent elements of the story. er singing with each other—like What keeps it interesting is each Bing Crosby and David Bowie, reindeer’s perspective on events how did that combo happen?” that may or may not have happened. Verdolino’s combo includes memYou go into it expecting something bers from the burlesque community light-hearted, fun and cute, slightalong with songs and comedy bits ly twisted—but it’s not. There’s a inspired by the variety shows. “I’m very dark undercurrent that runs making myself laugh as I’m writthroughout.” ing it, creating some original songs It’s an undercurrent that Heard for it as well, and including gals feels is as bound to the holiday from the burlesque scene,” she says. as tidings of good cheer. “There’s “It’s something I’ve always wanted only so much treacle and eggnog to do—it’s just that combination of you can take before diabetic coma,” goofy and put-on-a-show ethos, and Heard says. “You don’t have light why not have it at Christmas?” without dark, God without Satan.

A&E | scene

photographs by spencer burton

> HAPPY DIVING The Mapes (here) and Nickole Muse (inset) contributed mightily to the celebration.

Raise your Ass Nog

The Double Down celebrates No. 23 with wild bands, big drinks and limbo By Rosalie Spear

Back in the ’90s, while I was suckAmid the lewd scribblings of naked ing on binkies, Moss was hosting a women, sticker-smothered walls and a different kind of Toothless Tuesday, punk remix of “That’s Amore,” a comduring which free beers went to manding voice bellows: “Happy 23rd patrons who had two consecutive birthday, Double Down! Now, shut up missing teeth. Although Toothless and drink!” The voice belongs to Rob Tuesday is a thing of the past, the DeTie of Franks & Deans, a punk-rock saloon is always evolving its rough tribute band that emulates the Rat brand of merriment (ceramic shotPack. It’s 11 p.m., and F&D is up first in glass Ass Juice toilets are now availtonight’s lineup of local acts celebratable in black or white). ing Double Down Saloon’s five-day “The Double Down is a 23rd Anniversary Weekend. fickle creature,” Muse says, The cacophony of bass and laughing. “It has its own hollering diminishes for an DOUBLE pulse.” A pulse occasionally instant as the crowd slams DOWN SALOON fueled by impromptu limbo down drinks. sessions. As the surf-rocking Welcome to “The 4640 Paradise Tiki Bandits shred, patrons Happiest Place on Earth,” Road, 702-791literally bend over backwhere the bouncers know 5775. 24/7. wards for them and their you by name, nothing is luchador lead vocalist. One couple normal and last call doesn’t exist. in particular, Aiméi Wagaman and On this Saturday night, patrons have Tyler Skillingstad, lead the dancing swapped the fabled Ass Juice for a throughout the night. They came in more Christmassy cocktail, Ass Nog. from Kingman to be part of “one of It’s an inch of Stroh rum, a quarterthe biggest crowds they’ve ever seen.” inch of both brandy and Jim Beam Skillingstad vehemently gyrates his Kentucky Fire, and a drizzle of egghips as his wife, Wagaman, jigs, pink nog. The $5 drink claims to be “just and blonde pigtails bouncing. like Grandma made on skid row.” “We go to punk shows,” she says. Also Grandma-approved is Nickole “That’s what we do.” Muse, the Franks & Deans’ burlesque Around 2 a.m., The Mapes continue dancer, who jiggles her exposed cheeks to blow out the sound system while at the audience. Women and men, hitting whatever they can with their including bar owner P Moss, applaud instruments. The guitarist can barely her derrière and swift disrobement. be seen over his massive, crimson cowAlthough the Double Down boy hat; the drummer drinks conspicuis the diviest of Las Vegas dives, ously from a foot-tall flask; and the it’s also one of the most prominent singer, clad in a fur jacket and skull cultural influences. Over the past mask, shouts, “We love penis!” two decades, it has become home to The saloon erupts into elated countless bands, growing into one of chaos, worthy of a bigger, more trathe most integral pieces of the local ditional milestone tally. But 23 hardmusic scene. Muse and DeTie both partying years deserve some clatter, affectionately call it their hangout, and the Double Down delivers unlike but this isn’t an ordinary clubhouse. anywhere else in Las Vegas. It’s proudly for “the lunatic fringe.”

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FOOD & Drink > Treasure Hunt Carbone’s menu includes gems like baked clams and (below) Chicken Massimo.

Flashy yet familiar

Service, style and so much of a good thing at Carbone By Brock Radke should be doing anyway. Sure, he’ll point you One of the biggest restaurant openings toward signature offerings like the giant veal of the year on the Strip, Carbone effortparm ($64) and the perfect, slightly spicy rigalessly fulfills its promise to provide a toni vodka ($27), but dig a little deeper and distinctive experience. The building blocks that you’ll be recommended treasures like Chicken come together to make it unique—dramatic Massimo ($35), named for the proprietor of Villa design, warm service, favorite Italian-American Manodori balsamic vinegars. It’s sticky and foods, tableside service for several dishes— rich, broiled crisp and tender and served can be found at a handful of other Vegas with a bit of parmesan and artichoke. eateries. But it’s the collection of all these, CARBONE Carbone’s food is mostly well-honed, and the confidence and style with which Aria, 702affectionate renditions of classics, from Carbone does business, that set it apart. 590-2663. minestrone ($18) to linguini and clams The staff somehow creates a big smallness, Daily, ($28) to market-priced lobster fra diavolo. a pervasive feeling of special-occasion din5-10:30 p.m. It’s big on meat, too, with mighty, shareable ing that fits within an intimate space. steaks and an incredible, rich pork chop First you have to decide which beautiful with peppers ($39). But mix some new flaroom is better, the bustling, bar-fronting vors into your meal. Baked clams ($21) is a must blue room, with its shiny tile and golden accents, starter, trios of clams oreganata, clams casino and or the more formal red room in back, with its a fresh, new creation topped with ginger, scallion sexy, shimmering chandelier and perfect two-top and sea urchin. Spaghetti Julian ($25), named for booths set into the walls. There are no disapthe restaurant’s art conspirator Julian Schnabel, pointing tables here. also works uni in, a decadent twist with tomato, The lack of descriptions on the menu plays garlic and herbs. There’s a lot to get through, but perfectly into Carbone’s service style as you’re try to save room for some of the terrific vegetable compelled to chat with your captain about the sides ($15), especially the creamed escarole or finer details of intriguing dishes, something you

50 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

duck fat-laced Potatoes Louie, as well as the carrot cake and tiramisu for dessert. With Carbone and Bardot Brasserie aligning here in 2015—the hottest Italian and French restaurants on the Strip, just steps away from each other—and the promising Herringbone on its way this month, a question must be asked: Is Aria the best restaurant resort on the Strip? Cool neighbor the Cosmopolitan has held that position in the minds of many, and now it’s beginning to undergo the kind of culinary changes that Aria has just about completed. Wynn, Bellagio, Caesars Palace and Venetian/Palazzo have a place in the conversation, too, but with its elevated quality and diversity, Aria might have earned the title today.

photographs COURTESY

THE ROYAL

> TOP CHEFS Thomas Keller (left) and Daniel Boulud have aided America’s Bocuse d’Or efforts.

T H E S P E C TAC L E C I R C U I T

SERIOUS AMERICAN COOKING

The Bocuse d’Or is coming to Vegas, and this is no quick-fire challenge BY ANDY WANG The difference between gimmicky Food Network cooking competitions and the Bocuse d’Or is like the difference between The Amazing Race and climbing Mount Everest without supplemental oxygen. One is made for TV. The other is about preparation—what happens behind the scenes—and process as much as it’s about any public achievement. It’s about rigor and skill and method and precision and creativity and willfulness bordering on madness. Which is to say, the biennial Bocuse d’Or is about what it takes to be a truly world-class chef. Vegas will get its first taste of this international event on December 17. That’s when four chefs compete at the Venetian for the opportunity to represent the U.S. during the 2017 Bocuse d’Or in Lyon, France. The contenders include Brian Lockwood, chef de cuisine at New York City’s NoMad, an elegant Daniel Humm restaurant famous for stuffing roast chicken with foie gras, truffles and brioche. Lockwood previously cooked at sister restaurant Eleven Madison Park, which is even fancier and has three Michelin stars and a No. 5 ranking (highest of any American restaurant) in the 2015 S. Pellegrino World’s 50 Best Restaurants. Eleven Madison Park’s James Kent (now executive chef at the NoMad) represented the U.S. at the 2011 Bocuse d’Or. “I’m really excited for Chef Lockwood to be a part of this as he’s one of the most precise and focused chefs I know,” Humm says. “Having seen James Kent compete, I know how demanding the Bocuse d’Or can be, but I have no doubt in my mind that Chef Lockwood will succeed.” Humm is a humble dude, so those might not sound like fighting words, but he’s making a bold statement about a competition in which the U.S. had never finished higher than sixth until 2015. It’s a showdown against countries that invented classic cooking technique, against nations where competitors are often sponsored by government organizations or culinary-minded donors allowing them to take a year off just to prepare. But the U.S. isn’t an afterthought at the Bocuse d’Or

anymore. Not after chef Philip Tessier finished second in 2015. Tessier left his full-time gig at Thomas Keller’s French Laundry, a restaurant as legendary as fine dining gets, with Keller’s blessing. Keller, along with Daniel Boulud, is part of Ment’or, a group that supports America’s Bocuse d’Or efforts; the revered chefs will co-host the Venetian event. Instead of cooking tasting menus, Tessier continued working for Keller by organizing thousands of recipes from 20 years of the French Laundry and 10 years of Bouchon. This gave him the mind-set and time to prepare for 14 months. He had a mantra: “Whatever it takes, whatever we need, we’re going to do it.” This went well beyond the kitchen. “For me, if there’s anything I can do in any realm, physically, mentally, spiritually, practically, I’ll do it,” Tessier says. He took French lessons, sweated through CrossFit, went to the gym at 6 a.m. before working in the kitchen for 12 to 18 hours a day. He compares the process to how a gymnast or figure skater would prepare for the Olympics, where exactitude is everything but it often takes a personal, nuanced twist to win the gold. So what is it going to take for the U.S. to triumph at the Bocuse d’Or? “It’s going to take a half a percentage of a point,” Tessier says. “We missed gold by nine points out of 2,000. There were so many subjective factors. Guys we had competed against thought we had won. There’s no barrier for us anymore.” Winning the Bocuse d’Or isn’t out of reach now, because chefs like Keller, Boulud and Humm have elevated American fine dining to the heights of any other country’s. So it’s no surprise that Mathew Peters from Keller’s Per Se in New York City is also competing at the Venetian. Meanwhile, the other two chefs in the running—Gerald Ford of New York’s Westchester Country Club and Angus McIntosh of the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs—have sharpened their knives in cooking competitions before. There are no quick-fire challenges here. This is a clash that lasts four and a half hours, where all four contenders will prepare a meat platter with Snake River Farms Kurobuta pork and a fish dish with Norwegian fjord trout. For chefs at this level, all that’s at stake is everything. Although Tessier is writing a book about his Bocuse d’Or experience with a chapter simply titled “Intimidation,” he knows representing the U.S. comes with some swagger now. “When we showed up there with our USA jackets, there was no expectation,” he says. “France was surrounded by a jungle of media and cameras. When we go back in 2017 with the same jackets on, people aren’t going to ignore us. They’re going to say, ‘That’s the U.S.; they’re going to do something.’”

INGREDIENTS 2 oz. Michter’s Straight Rye Whiskey /2 oz. Crown Royal Regal Apple Whisky

/2 oz. Casa Martelletti Vermouth Classico

2 dashes of bitters 2 Luxardo Gourmet Maraschino Cherries Twisted orange peel

METHOD Combine ingredients and stir. Strain over an ice sphere in a 13-ounce Old Fashioned glass. Garnish with cherries and a twisted orange peel.

Double the whiskey, double the joy. This cocktail combines a Kentucky rye whiskey with an apple-flavored Canadian whisky, and the results are just as perfect as one would imagine.

Cocktail created by Francesco Lafranconi, Executive Director of Mixology and Spirits Education at Southern Wine & Spirits.

DECEMBER 3–9, 2015 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM

A&E | Short Takes Special screenings

> The terrors of christmas Allison Tolman, Adam Scott and Toni Collette face Krampus.

Bolshoi Ballet in Cinema 12/6, The Lady of the Camellias, 12:55 pm, $15-$18. Theaters: COL, SF, SP, ST, VS. Info: fathomevents.com. Cinemark Classic Series Sun, 2 pm; Wed, 2 & 7 pm, $7-$10. 12/6, 12/9, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. Theaters: ORL, ST, SF, SP, SC Lincoln Center at the Movies 12/5, 12/10, New York City Ballet performance of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker, Sat 12:55 pm, Thu 7 pm, $16-$18. Theaters: COL, ORL, SF, SP, ST, VS. Info: fathomevents.com. Midnight Brewvies Mon, movie plus popcorn, midnight, free. Elixir, 2920 N. Green Valley Parkway, Henderson, 702-272-0000. RiffTrax Live 12/3, Santa and the Ice Cream Bunny with comedic commentary, 8 pm, $10.50-$12.50. Theaters: COL, ORL, SF, SP, ST, VS. Info: fathomevents.com. The Rocky Horror Picture Show 12/5, augmented by live cast and audience participation, 10 pm, $9. Theaters: TC. Info: rhpsvegas.com. Sci Fi Center Sun, Doctor Who Night, 6 pm, free. Mon, Cinemondays, 8 pm, free. 12/5, Legend, 3 pm, $1. 12/5, Labyrinth, 5 pm, $1. 5077 Arville St., 855-501-4335, thescificenter.com. Tuesday Afternoon at the Bijou Tue, 1 pm, free. 12/8, White Christmas (1954). Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Road, 702-507-3400.

New this week Chi-Raq aaccc Teyonah Parris, Nick Cannon, Angela Bassett. Directed by Spike Lee. 127 minutes. Rated R. See review Page 40. Theaters: TS Just Let Go (Not reviewed) Henry Ian Cusick, Brenda Vaccaro, Sam Sorbo. Directed by Christopher S. Clark and Patrick Henry Parker. 106 minutes. Rated PG-13. A Mormon husband and father struggles to forgive the drunk driver who killed his wife and children. Theaters: SC Krampus (Not reviewed) Allison Tolman, Adam Scott, Toni Collette. Directed by Michael Dougherty. 98 minutes. Rated PG-13. A young boy accidentally summons a Christmas demon. Theaters: AL, BS, CAN, CH, COL, DI, FH, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SC, SF, SHO, SP, SS, TS, TX The Letters abccc Juliet Stevenson, Max von Sydow, Rutger Hauer. Directed by William Riead. 114 minutes. Rated PG. See review Page 41. Theaters: AL, GVR, RR, SF, SP, ST, TS, VS Medusa acccc Jeff Allen, Tom Struckhoff, Britt Rose. Directed by Jorge Ameer. 109 minutes. Not rated. This ultra-low-budget horror movie finds a college professor possessed or haunted (or something) by mythological creature Medusa, who’s attempting to enter the real world. The bargain-basement production values are matched by terrible expository dialogue, amateurish acting and a deathly slow pace, with occasional moments of so-bad-it’s-good hilarity. (Filmmaker

Ameer will appear at opening-weekend showings.) –JB Theaters: VS A Royal Night Out aabcc Sarah Gadon, Bel Powley, Jack Reynor. Directed by Julian Jarrold. 97 minutes. Rated PG-13. See review Page 40. Theaters: VS A Second Chance (Not reviewed) John Lloyd Cruz, Bea Alonzo, Billy Crawford. Directed by Cathy GarciaMolina. Not rated. In Filipino with English subtitles. A young couple experiences troubles after getting married. Theaters: ORL, VS

Now playing The 33 aabcc Antonio Banderas, Rodrigo Santoro, Juliette Binoche. Directed by Patricia Riggen. 120 minutes. Rated PG-13. A movie about the 2010 incident that saw 33 Chilean miners trapped underground was inevitable, but there was no need for it to be so patently phony. Apart from a hammy Banderas, most of the characters amount to a grimy, bearded look of concern and a single tossed-off trait. –MD Theaters: GVR, ST, TX, VS Ant-Man aaabc Paul Rudd, Michael Douglas, Evangeline Lilly. Directed by Peyton Reed. 117 minutes. Rated PG-13. Semi-reformed thief Scott Lang (Rudd) is recruited by scientist Hank Pym (Douglas) to steal a version of a size-changing suit from a greedy technocrat. Ant-Man plays things relatively safe, but it’s still a different sort of Marvel superhero movie, a looser, funnier and lower-stakes story than Marvel’s typical world-ending spectacles. –JB Theaters: TC Bridge of Spies aaabc Tom Hanks, Mark Rylance, Amy Ryan. Directed by Steven Spielberg. 135 minutes. Rated PG-13. In his fourth film for Spielberg, Hanks plays a lawyer

52 LasVegasWeekly.com December 3-9, 2015

who’s strong-armed into defending an accused Soviet spy (Rylance). Based on actual events, the film unfolds with superb old-school efficiency, and achieves something very difficult: It makes rooting for integrity fun. –MD Theaters: GVR, SC Brooklyn aaabc Saoirse Ronan, Emory Cohen, Domhnall Gleeson. Directed by John Crowley. 111 minutes. Rated PG-13. This 1950s-set drama, based on Colm Tóibín’s award-winning novel, is oldfashioned in its optimism about life for Irish immigrant Eilis Lacey (Ronan) as she starts over in New York City. Ronan brings Eilis to life in every small gesture and interaction. –JB Theaters: BS, COL, DTS, ORL, SC, SF, SP, TS Burnt aabcc Bradley Cooper, Sienna Miller, Daniel Brühl. Directed by John Wells. 100 minutes. Rated R. Adam (Cooper) is a recovering alcoholic and drug addict starting over as the executive chef of an upscale London restaurant, but the movie never conveys any kind of anguish over addiction or recovery. Instead it breezes through a predictable plot about a selfabsorbed jerk becoming slightly less self-absorbed. –JB Theaters: VS By the Sea aaccc Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie Pitt, Mélanie Laurent. Directed by Angelina Jolie Pitt. 132 minutes. Rated R. Jolie and Pitt play an unhappily married couple on vacation in a seaside French town. Although both are beautiful people with impeccable fashion sense, their life is full of ennui. This languid drama influenced by European art movies of the 1960s and ’70s is a deeply felt personal statement with very little to say. –JB Theaters: SC Creed aaabc Michael B. Jordan, Sylvester Stallone, Tessa Thompson. Directed by Ryan Coogler. 132 minutes. Rated PG-13. Retired boxer Rocky Balboa (Stallone)

reluctantly agrees to train Adonis Creed (Jordan), illegitimate son of his late friend/rival Apollo Creed. Not only is Creed a solid, rousing boxing drama, but it’s also an unexpectedly affecting look at Rocky in his twilight years, with Stallone’s best performance in a long time. –JB Theaters: BS, CAN, CH, COL, DI, DTS, FH, GVL, ORL, PAL, RP, SC, SF, SHO, SP, SS, TS, TX Crimson Peak aaacc Mia Wasikowska, Tom Hiddleston, Jessica Chastain. Directed by Guillermo del Toro. 119 minutes. Rated R. Shy American socialite Edith Cushing (Wasikowska) marries an English baronet (Hiddleston) and moves to his creepy, ghost-filled family estate. Del Toro is great at establishing the spooky setting, but his screenplay is less compelling, doing little to update or subvert its old-fashioned ghost-story elements. –JB Theaters: ST Everest aaacc Jason Clarke, Jake Gyllenhaal, Josh Brolin. Directed by Baltasar Kormákur. 121 minutes. Rated PG-13. This big-budget drama about the day in 1996 when eight climbers died on Mount Everest is not as informative as any of the several books on the subject, but it is viscerally exciting, with awe-inspiring visuals. The characters don’t make much of an impression, but the mountain and the storm do. –JB Theaters: ST The Good Dinosaur aaacc Voices of Raymond Ochoa, Jack Bright, Frances McDormand. Directed by Peter Sohn. 100 minutes. Rated PG. Pixar’s long-in-the-works animated movie is gorgeous to look at, and it’s solid, pleasurable entertainment for kids. But it’s only slightly more sophisticated than the similarly themed Ice Age movies, with a straightforward story about a young dinosaur conquering his fears while on a quest through the wilderness. –JB Theaters: CAN, CH, COL, DI, FH, GVL, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SF, SHO, SP, SS, ST, TS, TX, VS

Goosebumps aabcc Jack Black, Dylan Minnette, Odeya Rush. Directed by Rob Letterman. 103 minutes. Rated PG. Black is fun as teen horror author R.L. Stine, but the bigscreen Goosebumps movie is more focused on fast, loud action, dorky humor and special effects than it is on being spooky. Monster lovers may get something out of it, but it’s all rather graceless. –JMA Theaters: BS, CH, DI Hotel Transylvania 2 (Not reviewed) Voices of Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, Andy Samberg. Directed by Genndy Tartakovsky. 89 minutes. Rated PG. Dracula and his fellow monsters try to get Dracula’s half-human grandson to embrace his vampire side. Theaters: DI, TX The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 aaacc Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth. Directed by Francis Lawrence. 137 minutes. Rated PG-13. The second part of Mockingjay wraps up the entire four-movie Hunger Games series (based on Suzanne Collins’ dystopian sci-fi novels) in a mostly satisfying way. Although it’s overlong and sometimes oppressively bleak, the movie features some creative action set pieces and surprisingly complex themes about the costs of warfare. –JB Theaters: BS, CAN, CH, DI, FH, GVL, GVR, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SC, SF, SHO, SP, SS, TS, TX The Last Witch Hunter aaccc Vin Diesel, Rose Leslie, Elijah Wood. Directed by Breck Eisner. 106 minutes. Rated PG-13. This noisy, cluttered movie with cheap, globbylooking digital effects features a paltry battle between one-dimensional bad guys and a one-dimensional hero. Diesel plays his character cool, but is no fun to be around, and his costars suffer for it. A cursed affair from director Breck Eisner (Sahara). –JMA Theaters: BS, TC, TX

A&E | Short Takes Love the Coopers (Not reviewed) John Goodman, Diane Keaton, Ed Helms, Olivia Wilde. Directed by Jessie Nelson. 106 minutes. Rated PG-13. Four generations of the Cooper family face unexpected events when they get together for Christmas. Theaters: CH, COL, FH, ORL, RR, SP, SS, ST, TS, VS

Theaters (AL) Regal Aliante 7300 Aliante Parkway, North Las Vegas, 702-221-2283 (BS) Regal Boulder Station 4111 Boulder Highway, 702-221-2283

The Martian aaaac Matt Damon, Jeff Daniels, Jessica Chastain, Chiwetel Ejiofor. Directed by Ridley Scott. 141 minutes. Rated PG-13. Astronaut Mark Watney (Damon) is left behind on Mars when the rest of his team believes him dead. Damon carries the film with an excellent performance that conveys Mark’s mix of ingenuity and loneliness, and the story makes furious calculations and engineering simulations into gripping, can’t-lookaway drama. –JB Theaters: GVR, SF, ST, VS Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials aaccc Dylan O’Brien, Kaya Scodelario, Thomas Brodie-Sangster. Directed by Wes Ball. 131 minutes. Rated PG-13. There are no mazes in this sequel to The Maze Runner, but there sure is plenty of running. The second movie in the dystopian sci-fi series based on the popular YA novels just throws together a bunch of overused post-apocalyptic elements and careens haphazardly from one to the next. –JB Theaters: TC Minions aabcc Voices of Pierre Coffin, Sandra Bullock, Jon Hamm. Directed by Pierre Coffin and Kyle Balda. 91 minutes. Rated PG. In the two animated Despicable Me movies, the little yellow pill-shaped creatures were reliable sources of pratfalls, pranks and puns, but given the task of carrying their own 90-minute feature, they quickly wear out their welcome. It’s just a series of silly set pieces barely held together by a halfformed plot. –JB Theaters: TC The Night Before aabcc Seth Rogen, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Anthony Mackie. Directed by Jonathan Levine. 101 minutes. Rated R. This Naughty Christmas Comedy lacks the surprise of the very similar A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas, and is too limited by its simplistic character arcs. But the actors complement one another well, and their bond gives the movie a dose of good cheer. –JMA Theaters: BS, CAN, CH, COL, DI, FH, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SC, SF, SHO, SP, SS, TS, TX Pan aaccc Levi Miller, Hugh Jackman, Garrett Hedlund. Directed by Joe Wright. 111 minutes. Rated PG. This Peter Pan prequel gives the character a cluttered and unnecessary origin story, retrofitting him with a clichéd Hollywood “chosen one” narrative. It’s a rush of special effects that signify nothing, telling a story that pretends to add to a beloved mythology while instead mostly just cheapening it. –JB Theaters: TC The Peanuts Movie aaacc Voices of Noah Schnapp, Hadley Belle Miller, Alexander Garfin. Directed by Steve Martino. 86 minutes. Rated G. This big-screen computer-animated version of Charles Schulz’s beloved comic-strip characters is faithful almost to a fault. The central plot is about hapless kid Charlie Brown trying to win the affections of the mysterious Little Red-Haired Girl, but it makes room for plenty of diversions that incorporate almost every well-known Peanuts moment. –JB Theaters: BS, CH, COL, DI, FH, GVL, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SC, SF, SP, SS, TS, TX

(PAL) Brenden Theatres at the Palms 4321 W. Flamingo Road, 702-5074849 (CAN) Galaxy Cannery 2121 E. Craig Road, North Las Vegas, 702-639-9779 (CH) Cinedome Henderson 851 S. Boulder Highway, Henderson, 702-566-1570 (COL) Regal Colonnade 8880 S. Eastern Ave., 702-221-2283 (DI) Las Vegas Drive-In 4150 W. Carey Ave., North Las Vegas, 702-646-3565 (DTS) Regal Downtown Summerlin 2070 Park Center Drive, 702-221-2283 > candlelit horror Jeff Allen in Medusa.

The Perfect Guy aaccc Sanaa Lathan, Michael Ealy, Morris Chestnut. Directed by David M. Rosenthal. 100 minutes. Rated PG-13. A successful lobbyist (Lathan) becomes a stalking target for her unhinged ex (Ealy) in this overwrought, Lifetimestyle thriller. It’s too ridiculous to work as serious drama, but it takes itself too seriously to succeed as camp. Instead, it strands three talented actors in a story that devolves quickly from grounded to histrionic. –JB Theaters: ST Room aaacc Brie Larson, Jacob Tremblay, Joan Allen. Directed by Lenny Abrahamson. 118 minutes. Rated R. Emma Donoghue’s acclaimed 2010 novel, about a woman (Larson) and her young son (Tremblay) who’ve spent years held prisoner in a small garden shed, needed a singular directorial vision to work as a film, and it didn’t get it. Still, Larson is terrific, and the scenario’s inherent pathos is off the charts. –MD Theaters: SC Secret in Their Eyes aabcc Chiwetel Ejiofor, Julia Roberts, Nicole Kidman. Directed by Billy Ray. 111 minutes. Rated PG-13. An FBI agent (Ejiofor) and a prosecutor (Kidman) investigate the murder of their colleague’s daughter in this unremarkable thriller, a remake of the 2009 Oscar-winning Argentine film. Kidman and Roberts (as a traumatized, vengeful mother) are miscast, and both the central unrequited romance and the plot’s political connections are poorly realized. –JB Theaters: BS, CH, COL, FH, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SC, SF, SHO, SP, SS, TS, TX Sicario aaaab Emily Blunt, Benicio Del Toro, Josh Brolin. Directed by Denis Villeneuve. 121 minutes. Rated R. Blunt plays an FBI agent who gets in over her head when she agrees to join a special interagency task force intended to take down a Mexican drug kingpin. Brolin and Del Toro co-star as operatives with questionable tactics and loyalties; the tension throughout is palpable. –MD Theaters: ST, TX Spectre aaacc Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Léa

Seydoux. Directed by Sam Mendes. 148 minutes. Rated PG-13. Craig’s possible final outing as secret agent James Bond focuses a bit too much on wrapping up his story and bringing back familiar elements of the Bond franchise. Spectre succeeds mainly as a series of dazzling set pieces connected by a thin plot. –JB Theaters: CAN, CH, DI, FH, GVL, GVR, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SF, SHO, SP, SS, ST, TS, TX, VS Spotlight aaaac Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams. Directed by Tom McCarthy. 128 minutes. Rated R. Director and co-writer McCarthy’s drama about the Boston Globe reporting on the Catholic Church molestation scandal applies the same meticulous attention to detail as the Globe writers did in their reporting. The stars manage to turn sitting and listening into riveting drama, and the acting is powerful in how subdued it is. –JB Theaters: COL, DTS, SF, SP, ST, TS, VS Steve Jobs aaacc Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen. Directed by Danny Boyle. 122 minutes. Rated R. Director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Aaron Sorkin’s lively but somewhat empty biopic reduces the Apple co-founder and CEO’s life to three moments in time. Sorkin’s dialogue crackles when it focuses on professionals trying to solve complex problems, but the script falters when it tries to understand Jobs as a person. –JB Theaters: TC Suffragette aabcc Carey Mulligan, Anne-Marie Duff, Helena Bonham Carter. Directed by Sarah Gavron. 106 minutes. Rated PG-13. Mulligan plays an ordinary wife and mother in early 20th-century London who joins the fight to secure women the vote and gradually turns into an outright militant. That ought to be exciting and thought-provoking, but instead it’s mostly dully worthy—history as self-congratulation. –MD Theaters: VS Tamasha (Not reviewed) Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone, Javed Sheikh. Directed by Imtiaz Ali.

155 minutes. Not rated. In Hindi with English subtitles. A free-spirited young man drifts through life. Theaters: VS Trumbo aaacc Bryan Cranston, Diane Lane, Michael Stuhlbarg. Directed by Jay Roach. 124 minutes. Rated R. Dalton Trumbo was a brilliant writer who sacrificed his career and his family life to stand up for what he believed in, but the movie about him features neither brilliant writing nor daring social commentary. Trumbo is, however, a fitfully entertaining biopic, featuring a cast of recognizable faces playing other recognizable faces. –JB Theaters: COL, ORL, RR, ST, TS, VS Victor Frankenstein aabcc James McAvoy, Daniel Radcliffe, Jessica Brown Findlay. Directed by Paul McGuigan. 109 minutes. Rated PG-13. McAvoy is brightly manic as Victor Frankenstein, and Radcliffe is compassionate and soulful as Igor, and a good movie might have been made focusing more vividly on their fascinating, amusing friendship. But the movie goes too far off track with rambling subplots, distracted directing and lazy action scenes. –JMA Theaters: CAN, CH, DI, FH, GVL, GVR, ORL, PAL, RP, RR, SF, SHO, SP, SS, ST, TS, TX, VS The Visit aaabc Olivia DeJonge, Ed Oxenbould, Deanna Dunagan. Directed by M. Night Shyamalan. 94 minutes. Rated PG-13. Teenage siblings Becca (DeJonge) and Tyler (Oxenbould) start noticing strange things while visiting the grandparents they’ve never met before. Shyamalan brings impressive skill to the disreputable found-footage genre, effectively mixing comedy and scares and adding cinematic flair to the genre’s typically artless style. –JB Theaters: TC War Room (Not reviewed) Priscilla Shirer, T.C. Stallings, Karen Abercrombie. Directed by Alex Kendrick. 120 minutes. Rated PG. A couple turns to prayer to save their troubled marriage. Theaters: TC JMA Jeffrey M. Anderson; JB Josh Bell; MD Mike D’Angelo

(FH) Regal Fiesta Henderson 777 W. Lake Mead Parkway, Henderson, 702-221-2283 (GVR) Regal Green Valley Ranch 2300 Paseo Verde Parkway, Henderson, 702-221-2283 (GVL) Galaxy Green Valley Luxury+ 4500 E. Sunset Road, Henderson, 702-442-0244 (ORL) Century Orleans 4500 W. Tropicana Ave., 702-8891220 (RP) AMC Rainbow Promenade 2321 N. Rainbow Blvd., 888-262-4386 (RR) Regal Red Rock 11011 W. Charleston Blvd., 702-2212283 (ST) Century Sam’s Town 5111 Boulder Highway, 702-547-1732 (SF) Century Santa Fe Station 4949 N. Rancho Drive, 702-655-8178 (SHO) United Artists Showcase 3769 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-221-2283 (SP) Century South Point 9777 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-260-4061 (SC) Century Suncoast 9090 Alta Drive, 702-869-1880 (SS) Regal Sunset Station 1301-A W. Sunset Road, Henderson, 702-221-2283 (TX) Regal Texas Station 2101 Texas Star Lane, North Las Vegas, 702-221-2283 (TS) AMC Town Square 6587 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-362-7283 (TC) Regency Tropicana Cinemas 3330 E. Tropicana Ave., 702-438-3456 (VS) Regal Village Square 9400 W. Sahara Ave., 702-221-2283

For complete movie times, visit lasvegasweekly.com/ movies/listings.

December 3–9, 2015 LasVegasWeekly.com

Calendar LISTINGS YOU CAN PLAN YOUR LIFE BY!

VINTAGE COUNTRY: NIKKI LANE RETURNS TO HEADLINE VEGAS I saw you last summer in Cleveland, and when you returned recently, it looked like more people showed. Four times as many, which is what you want, right? I’m always nervous for the first time in a city, because we had a couple shows on this tour that looked like that first time we played Cleveland. We played Vegas opening for Jenny Lewis earlier this summer at Brooklyn Bowl, which was fun. Brooklyn Bowl in Brooklyn was my last job before I became a musician full-time, so it was funny to play on that stage and think about that. You recently opened for Social Distortion for a few months. What

LIVE MUSIC T H E ST R I P & N E A R BY Brooklyn Bowl Nashville Unplugged 12/5, 9:30 pm, $25. The Official Hooey Party ft. The Dirty River Boys, Midnight River Choir, Red Shahan 12/10, 10:30 pm, free. Joe Russo’s Almost Dead 12/11, 9:30 pm, $30. John Brown’s Body, Pure Roots, ST1 12/14, 8 pm, $15-$18. Maoli and Through the Roots, Bad Neighborz 12/15, 8 pm, $15. Pretty Lights 12/311/1, 10 pm, $60-$80. Warren G 1/17, 9 pm, $25. Stick Figure 1/23, 8:30 pm, $15. Madeon, Skylar Spence 1/25, 8 pm, $25. The Motet 1/29, 9 pm, $17. Lamb of God, Anthrax 2/11, 7 pm, $35. Hoodie Allen, Super Duper Kyle, Blackbear 2/12, 9 pm, $30. Metric,

was that like? We gained a lot of fans, but it was really challenging every night to try to win over people. Social Distortion are Southern California dudes, and there’s a culture there—a skate culture, a bike culture, a rockabilly culture, a car culture. We really had to do some work, but once it happened, it really happened. You have a vintage clothing shop in Nashville. How much demand is there for that stuff? Let’s be real: Vintage is what Forever 21, H&M and Urban Outfitters are all copying, stores where you can get stuff ready-made in three different sizes. And I understand the value of that.

Joywave 2/29, 8 pm, $26. Galactic, Son Little 3/1, 9 pm, $22-$25. Vance Joy, Elle King, Jamie Lawson 3/5, 8:30 pm, $40. Gary Clark Jr. 3/12, 9 pm, $30-$50. Underoath 3/26, 7:30 pm, $25. Coheed and Cambria, Glassjaw, Silver Snakes 3/25, 8 pm, $27. Underoath 3/26, 7:30 pm, $25. The Used 5/24-5/25, 8 pm, Linq, 702862-2695. The Colosseum Celine Dion 12/3012/31, 1/2, 1/6, 1/9-1/10, 1/12-1/13, 1/161/17, 2/23-2/24, 2/26-2/27, 3/1-3/2, 3/43/5, 3/8-3/9, 3/11-3/12, 5/17-5/18, 5/205/21, 5/24, 5/27-5/28, 5/31, 6/1, 6/3-6/4, 7:30 pm, $55-$500. Reba, Brooks & Dunn 12/2, 12/4, 12/6, 12/9, 5/3, 5/6-5/7, 5/10, 5/13-5/14, $60-$205. Elton John 1/20, 1/22-1/23, 1/26-1/27, 1/29-1/31, 4/16, 4/17, 4/19-4/20, 4/22-4/23, 4/264/27, 4/29-4/30, 6:30 pm, $55-$500. Mariah Carey 2/2, 2/5-2/6, 2/10, 2/13-

But it’s fun to put the real stuff out there. It’s one thing to have a newvintage leather jacket; it’s another thing to have one from the 1950s with the plaid lining. Fashion is meant to be disposable in modern culture. Vintage is meant to be something that you can buy and hold onto forever. –Annie Zaleski For more of our interview with Lane, visit lasvegasweekly.com.

NIKKI LANE with Clear Plastic Masks, The All-Togethers, Alex and His Meal Ticket. December 3, 8 p.m., $12-$15. Beauty Bar, 702-598-3757.

2/14, 2/17, 2/19-2/20. 8 pm, $55-$250. Tsai Chin 2/12, 9 pm, $58-$188. Rod Stewart 3/19-3/20, 3/23, 3/25-3/26, 3/29, 4/1-4/2, 4/5, 7:30 pm, $49-$250. The Who 5/29, 7:30 pm, $96-$501. Caesars Palace, 702-731-7333. The Cosmopolitan (Chelsea) Sam Hunt, Carter Winter 12/4, 8 pm, $30. Bruno Mars 12/31, 9 pm, $150. The Cure 5/19, 8 pm, $50-$100. Bryan Adams 7/2, 7 pm, $32-$57. Willie Nelson & Family 1/8, 8 pm, $20-$45. (Rose. Rabbit. Lie.) Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox 12/30-1/2, 9 pm, $50. 702-698-7000. Double Barrel Roadhouse DB Live! Sat, 9 pm, free. Monte Carlo, 702222-7735. Double Down Cherry 2000, Authentic Sellout, Agent 86 12/4. Ivana Blaize’s Pussyrama 12/6, 9 pm. TV Party ft. Urgh! A Music

War, music by The New Waves, DJ Atomic Fish 12/10, 9 pm, free. Yosemite Slam, Nathan Payne & The Wild Bores, Super Zeroes 12/11, 10 pm. F.S.P. Lethal Injection 12/12, 10 pm. Thee Swank Bastards 12/18, 10 pm. Vatican Assassins, Three Rounds, Thoughtcrime, Devil McCoy, Broken Cuffs 12/19, 10 pm. The Blooze Brothers 12/20, 10 pm. Jello Biafra’s Incredibly Strange Dance Party ft. Bargain DJ Collective12/31, 9 pm. Bargain DJ Collective Mon. Unique Massive Tue, midnight. The Juju Man Wed, midnight. Shows 10 pm, free unless noted. 640 Paradise Road, 702-7915775. Flamingo Olivia Newton-John Thru 12/5, 12/15-12/19, 1/1-1/2, 7:30 pm, $69-$139. Donny & Marie Thru 10/17, 10/20-10/24, 11/3-11/7. 11/10-11/14, 7:30 pm, $105-$237. 702-733-3333. Gilley’s Easy 8’s 12/26, 10 pm. Scotty Alexander Band 12/31, 1/1-1/2, 10 pm. Chad Freeman and Redline 12/3, 10 pm. Chancey Williams and the Younger Brothers Band 12/4-12/6, 10 pm. Locash, Rainey Qualley 12/712/12, 11 pm. Shows $10-$20 after 10 pm unless noted. Treasure Island, 702-894-7722. Hard Rock Live Queensrÿche 1/9, 8:30 pm, $25-$35. Europe, War of Kings 1/23, 8 pm, $30. Hard Rock Cafe (Strip), 702-733-7625. House of Blues DSB 12/3, 7 pm, $15. Urban Skies A Tribute to Keith Urban 12/4, 8 pm, $12-$15. The Garth Guy: A Tribute to Garth Brooks 12/5, 8 pm, $12-$15. Parkway Drive 12/6, 4:30 pm, $25. Kamelot, DragonForce 12/7, 7 pm, $22-$25. Eli Young Band 12/10, 8 pm, $21-$30. Sexxy the Show ft. Jennifer Romas 12/11, 7 pm, $20$25. Ramon Ayala ft. Ramon Ayala Jr. 12/12, 8 pm, $35-$60. Falling in Reverse, Atreyu, From Ashes to New, Assuming We Survive 12/19, 5 pm, $23-$26. Noisia 1/1, 10 pm, $15-$20. Steel Panther 1/8, 1/15, 1/22 8 pm, $22. Marianas Trench 1/16, 6 pm, $22-$25. Carlos Santana 1/27, 1/29-1/31, 2/3-2/6, 5/18, 5/20-5/22, 5/25, 5/27-5/29, $90$350, 8 pm. Charles Kelley, Maren Morris 1/28, 7 pm, $25-$28. At the Gates, The Haunted & Decapitated 2/18, 5:30 pm, $23-$25. Billy Idol 3/16, 3/18-3/19, 3/26, 5/4, 5/6-5/7, 5/11, 5/135/14, $80-$150. (Crossroads) Looped Sun, Thu, 9-11 pm, free. Nothing but the Blues Mon-Wed, 8-11 pm, free. Rockstar Karaoke Fri, 9 pm-midnight, free. Get Up and Dance Sat, 9 pmmidnight, free. Gospel Brunch Sun, 10 am, 1 pm, $60. Mandalay Bay, 702632-7600. The Joint Little Big Town, Ashley Monroe 12/4, 8 pm, $35-$150. Rob Thomas, Adam Lambert 12/5, 8 pm, $41. Gary Allan, Clare Dunn 12/1112/12, 9:30 pm, $40-$125. Bastille, Silversun Pickups, Fidlar, The Moth & The Flame 12/15, 8 pm, $40-$150. Morrissey 1/2, 8:30 pm, $45. Bullet For My Valentine, Asking Alexandria 2/6, 7:30 pm, $32. Rascal Flatts, Rhythm & Roots 2/17-3/5, 8 pm, $40. Twenty One Pilots 7/15, 7 pm, $43. Hard Rock Hotel, 702-693-5222. Mandalay Bay (Events Center) Maroon 5 12/30-12/31, 8 pm, $100$225. Iron Maiden 2/23, $62-$103. Ellie Goulding 4/9, 7:30 pm, $36-$55. Rihanna 4/29, 7:30 pm, $36-$160. 702-632-7777. MGM Grand (Garden Arena) Andrea Bocelli 12/5, 8 pm, $78-$403. Mötley

CHECK OUT OUR COMPLETE CALENDAR LISTINGS AT LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM/EVENTS 54 LASVEGASWEEKLY.COM DECEMBER 3-9, 2015

Crüe, Alice Cooper 12/27, 7 pm, $25$150. Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas 8/13, 7 pm, $28-$92. 702-891-7777. Orleans (Arena) Love Affair Concert ft. Midnight Star, The Emotions, Heatwave, Debra & Ronnie Laws, Jody Watley, Malo, GQ, The Jets, Evelyn King 2/13, 7:30 pm, $30-$79. Stellar Gospel Music Awards 2/20, 6 pm, $45-$200. (Bourbon Street Cabaret) Rowdy McCarran 12/312/5, 12/10-12/12, 2 pm, free. Scotty Alexander 12/4-12/5, 12/10-12/12, 9:30 pm, free. Siana King 12/6, 2 pm, free. Sam Riddle 12/6-12/7, 12/9, 9:30 pm, free. Voodoo Cowboys 12/7-12/9, 9:30 pm, free. Desert Outlaws 12/8, 9:30 pm, free. Jukebox Heroes 12/17-12/19, 9 pm, free. Chyna 12/25-12/26, 9 pm, free. Machine Gun Kellys 12/26, 9 pm, free. Volume 1 12/31, 9 pm, free. (Showroom) Josh Turner 12/4-12/5, 8 pm, $55. Charlie Daniels Band 12/11-12/12, 7 pm, $30-$55. Ronnie Spector’s Christmas Party 12/1912/20, 8 pm, $33-$55. Big Bad VooDoo Daddy 12/29-12/30, 8 pm, $22-$44. One Night With the King 1/9-1/10, 8 pm, $22-$44. Burton Cummings 1/14, 1/16-1/17, 9 pm, $44-$65. 702365-7075. Palace Station (Jack’s Irish Pub) Forget to Remember Fri & Sat, 9 pm, free. 702-547-5300. Palms (Lounge) David Perrico Pop Strings Orchestra 12/19, 11 pm, free. 4321 Flamingo Rd., 942-7777. The Pearl Puscifer 12/12, 8 pm, $43$103. Styx 1/16, 8 pm, $40-$86. Palms, 702-942-7777. Planet Hollywood Britney Spears 12/27-12/28, 12/30-12/31, 9 pm, $57$180. 702-777-2782. Rockhouse Rockhouse Live Mon, 9 pm, free. Venetian, 702-731-9683. The Sayers Club Plain White T’s 12/31, midnight, $50. Buckin Fridays Fri, 10 pm, $10. SLS, 702-761-7618. Stoney’s Rockin’ Country Neal McCoy 12/4. Carter Winter 12/5. The Swon Brothers 12/11. Brodie Stewart 12/12, 12/18. Shows and dance lessons begin at 7:30 pm. Town Square, 702-4352855. Tuscany Danny Lozada Sun & Thu 10 pm, free. Kenny Davidsen Celebrity Piano Bar Fri, 10 pm, free. 255 E. Flamingo Road, 702-893-8933. Venetian Diana Ross R5 12/29, 1/1, 8 pm; 12/31, 7:30 pm, $55-$150. Carly Rae Jepsen 12/30, 8 pm; 12/31, 10 pm, 1/2, 8 pm, $56-$75. John Fogerty 1/8-1/9, 1/13, 1/15-1/16, 1/20, 1/22-1/23, 8 pm, $60-$350. 702-4149000. Vinyl Reverend Horton Heat, The BellRays, The Lords of Altamont 12/4, 9 pm, $25-$45. South of Graceland 12/5-12/6, 10 pm, free. Thrillbilly Deluxe 12/10, 10 pm, free. American Icon: Johnny Cash Tribute 12/12, 10 pm, free. Ekoh, Almost Normal, Avalon Landing, Gregory Michael Davis 12/16, 7:30, $5. Otherwise 12/26, 9 pm, $15. Hard Rock Hotel, 702-693-5000. Wynn (Eastside Lounge) Michael Monge Wed & Thu, 9 pm, $10. 702770-7000.

D OW N TOW N Artifice Vegas Jazz Tue, 7 pm, $15. Thursday Request Live First Thu, 10 pm, free. 1025 S. 1st St., Ste. 100., 702-489-6339. Backstage Bar & Billiards Big Daddy’s Hayride ft. Henchman,

Calendar Delta Bombers, Eddy Bear and the Cubs, Yosemite Slam 12/4, 8 pm, $10-$15. Finch, Souvenirs, Casey Bolles 12/13, 8 pm, $18-$22. Kottonmouth Kings, Marion Asher, Chucky Chuck, C4mula 12/19, 9 pm, $11-$12. The Soft Moon, Close to Modern, DJ Fish, Dark Black 1/27, 8 pm, $10-$12. Mustard Plug, Dan Potthast, The Retrolites, Light Em Up, Dj Jr. Ska Boss 1/29, 8 pm, $11-$13. 601 E. Fremont St., 702382-2227. Beauty Bar Nikki Lane, Clear Plastic Masks, The All-Togethers, Alex and His Meal Ticket 12/3, 8 pm, $12-$15. Yowda 12/4, 9 pm, free. Everlast, No Red Alice 12/5, 9 pm, $18-$22. King Daniel 12/10, 8 pm, $10. Chicano Batman 12/11, 9 pm, $12-$15. Agnostic Front, Brick Top, Bro Loaf 12/15, 8 pm, $12-$15. Sudden Passion 12/16, 9 pm, free. Avenues, Mercy Music, War Called Home 12/19, 9 pm, free. The Generators, The Civilians, The Astaires 1/16, 9 pm, $5. The Love Cop 12/28, 9 pm, free. Metalachi 2/11, 9 pm, $12-$15. 517 Fremont St., 702598-3757. Fremont Country Club Jingle Bell Ball and Silent Auction 12/6, 6 pm, free. Finch, Souvenirs, Casey Bolles 12/13, 8 pm, $18-$22. 601 E. Fremont St., 702-382-6601. Fremont Street Experience 29th Annual Downtown Hoedown: Tracy Lawrence 4:30 pm. Jackson Michelson 5:40 pm. Chase Bryant 6:35 pm. JT Jodges 7:30 pm. Chris Janson 8:40 pm. Montgomery Gentry 9:50 pm. All shows through 12/13. (Main Street Stage) Spandex Nation 12/3, 9 pm. Cash Presley 12/3, 6 pm. (1st Street Stage) VooDoo Cowboys 12/3, 8 pm. (3rd Street Stage) Siana King 12/3, 10 pm. Shows free unless noted. Downtown Las Vegas, vegasexperience.com. Golden Nugget Edgar Winter 12/18, 8 pm, $32-$65. (NFR) Tanya Tucker 12/3, $43-$87. Big and Rich 12/4, $54-$142. Trace Adkins 12/5, $109-$164. Terri Clark 12/6, $43-$87. Merle Haggard 12/7-12/8, $109-$164. LeAnn Rimes 12/9, $54-$109. Alabama 12/10-12/11, $163-$252. Shows at 10 p.m. 129 E. Fremont St., 866-946-5336. Griffin Live music Wed, 10 pm, free. 511 Fremont St., 702-382-0577. Hard Hat Lounge Common Ground ft. Jessica Manalo, Maxwell Fresh, Fallow 12/4, 9 pm, free. Mr. Ebranes, Snuph, MP the MC, Moonstar, Helms, Ivory, Kinetic Beatz, Fun Rap Cypher 12/5, 9 pm, free. The Funk Jam Wed, 10:30 pm, free. Florescent Flames Second Sat, 9 pm, free. Foundation Factory Fourth Sat, 8 pm, free. 1675 Industrial Road, 702-384-8987. LVCS Black Knights Rising, Tail Gun 12/4, 9 pm, $15-$17. Rittz, Donnie Menace, King QP, Bom Green 12/11, 9 pm, $15-$17. Nik Turner’s Hawkind, Hedersleben, The Pysatics, Grim Reefer 12/12, 8 pm, $8-$10. Mushroomhead, 9Electric, Unsaid Fate, Ne Last Words, Bag of Humans, EMDF 12/13, 8 pm, $15-$18. DJ Ma-T, LKA 12/16, 9 pm, $22. Obie Trice, Chemis, King Qp, Anglo Sax, Donnie Menace, Slykat & Spyder, The Poke Masters, Vessel 12/18, 9 pm, $15-$20. Flotsam and Jetsam, The Thrill Killers, Spun in Darkness, My Own Nation 12/20, 8 pm, $10-$12. 425 Fremont St., 702-382-3531. Mickie Finnz Uprise 12/3, 8 pm. Safety Orange 12/4-12/5, 10 pm. JV Allstars 12/612/7, 8 pm. The Leeroy Jenkins Incident 12/8, 8 pm. Country Fried Garage Boys 12/9, 8 pm. Live music Daily, 4-7 pm. Shows free unless noted. 425 Fremont St., 702-3824204. The Smith Center (Reynolds Hall) Erich Bergen, Norm Lewis, Capathia Jenkins, Clint Holmes, Patina Miller 12/31, 7 pm, $39-$125. The Tenors 2/20, 7:30 pm, $24$95. (Cabaret Jazz) Clint Holmes 12/3-12/5 8:30 pm; 12/6 2 pm; $37-$46. Travis Cloer 12/7, 6:30 & 8:30 pm, $50-$65. Bronson, Brody & Beatles 1/20, 8 pm, $15-$35.Laura Osnes 12/11-12/12, 7 pm, $39-$59. Kristen Hertzenberg & Philip Fortenberry 12/19, 2:30 & 7 pm, $26-$36. Susan Anton 1/8-1/9, 7 pm, $35-$59. Lucie Arnaz 1/15-1/16, 7 pm, $39-$55. Christine Ebersole 1/22-1/23, 7 pm, $39-$59. Keola Beamer, Henry Kapono, Moanalani Beamer 1/29-1/30, 7 pm, $37$59. Lisa Fischer 2/19, 7 pm; 2/20, 6 & 9 pm, $37-$65. The Tenors 2/20, 7:30 pm, $24$95. Esteban, Teresa Joy 2/21, 3 & 7 pm,

$45-$55. Lucy Woodward 2/26-2/27, 7 pm, $39-$49. The Ronnie Foster Organ Trio 3/6, 2 pm, $19-$35. Cheyenne Jackson 3/11, 7 pm; 3/12, 6 & 9 pm, $39-$65. Engelbert Humperdinck 3/19, 7:30 pm, $29-$85. Lon Bronson Band 3/19, 8 pm, $15-$35. Yanni 3/21, 7:30 pm, $29-$99. Kristin Chenoweth 3/25, 7:30 pm, $29-$115. 361 Symphony Park Ave., 702-749-2000.

The ’Burbs Cannery Cannery Brett Rigby Thru 12/19, Wed-Thu, 8:30 pm, free. Brett Rigby, Toto Zara Thru 12/19, Fri-Sat, 7 pm, free. Luggnutt 12/23-1/2, Wed-Thu, 8:30 pm, free. Luggnutt, Clifton James 12/23-1/2, Fri-Sat, 7 pm, free. 2121 E. Craig Road, 702-507-5700. Green Valley Ranch (Grand Events Center) Ronnie Milsap 2/20, 8 pm, $20-$50. (Hanks) Dave Ritz Tue, Thu, 6 pm; Sat, 7 pm. Rick Duarte Wed, 6 pm. Nick Mattera Fri, 6 pm; Sat, 7 pm. Shows free unless noted. 702367-2470. M Resort (M Pavillion) Martin Nievera 12/12, 7 pm, $32-$46. Shows free/drink minimum. M Resort, 800-745-3000. Rampart Casino (Addison’s Lounge) Wes Winters Tue, 6 pm. Mark O’Toole Wed, 6 pm. Shows free unless noted. JW Marriott, 221 N. Rampart Blvd., 702-507-5900. Red Rock (Rocks Lounge) Zowie Bowie Fri, 10 pm. The Dirty Sat, 11 pm, $10. (Onyx) Jared Berry Fri & Sat, 9 pm. The Dirty Sat. 11 pm, $10. (T-Bones) Dave Ritz Wed, 6 pm; Fri, 7 pm. Rick Duarte Thu, 6 pm; Sat, 7 pm. Shows free unless noted. 11011 W. Charleston Blvd., 702-797-7777. Santa Fe Station (Revolver) Bro Country Thu, 8 pm. (4949 Lounge) Jared Berry Thu, 7 pm, free. 4949 N Rancho Drive, 702-658-4900. Sienna Italian Authentic Trattoria Vegas Good Fellas Thu, 7:30 pm. Red Velvet Fri & Sat, 8:30 pm. 9500 Sahara Ave., 702-3603358. South Point Tony Orlando Christmas Show 12/17-12/20, 7:30 pm, $45. Frankie Avalon 1/15-1/17, 7:30 pm, $45. The McCartney Years 1/29-1/31, 7:30 pm, $25. Santa Fe and the Fat City Horns Mon, 10:30 pm, $5-$10. Dennis Bono Show Thu, 2 pm, free. Wes Winters Fri & Sat, 6 pm, free. Spazmatics Sat, 10:30 pm, $5. 702-797-8005. Suncoast Trick Pony 12/5, 7:30 pm, $22-$44. The Texas Tenors 12/11-12/13, 7:30 pm, $33$55. Merry Christmas Darling: Carpenter’s Christmas 12/19-12/20, 7:30 pm, $33-$44. The Fab Four 12/26-12/27, 7:30 pm, $33-$55. 9090 Alta Drive, 702-636-7075. Sunset Station (Club Madrid) Yellow Brick Road Fri, 9:30 pm. Zowie Bowie Sat, 10 pm. (Gaudi Bar) Ryan Whyte Maloney, Cali Tucker Fri, Sat, 7 pm. Willplay Sat, 7 pm. (Rosalita’s) Tony Venniro Fri, 7 pm. Peter Love Sat, 7 pm. (Sunset Amphitheater) 1301 W. Sunset Road, 702-547-7777. Texas Station (A-Bar) Darrin Michaels Fri & Sat, 7 pm. (South Padre) VooDoo Band Fri, 9 pm. Yellow Brick Road Sat, 9 pm. 702-6311000. Tivoli Village The Meadows School Orchestra 12/4, 5 pm, free. 440 S. Rampart Blvd., 702-570-7400.

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33 Vegas Locations • capriottis.com

E v e ry w h e r e E l s e Arizona Charlie’s Boulder (Palace Grand Lounge) Live music Fri & Sat, 9 pm, free. 4575 Boulder Highway, 888-236-9066. Arizona Charlie’s (Naughty Ladies Saloon) Jerry Tiffe Fri, 4 pm. 740 S. Decatur Blvd., 702-258-5200. Boomers Live music Wed, 10 pm, $5-$10. 3200 Sirius Ave., 702-368-1863. Bootlegger Bistro Puttin’ on the Glitz Holiday Party ft. Joe Darro Trio, Inside Edition 12/6, 1 pm, $12-$15. 7700 S. Las Vegas Blvd., 702-736-4939. Boulder Dam Brewing Thu, 7 pm; Fri & Sat, 8 pm. Shows free unless noted. 453 Nevada Way, Boulder City, 702-243-2739. Boulder Station (Railhead) Carl Palmer 12/4, 8 pm, $8 pm. (Kixx Bar) Reflection Fri & Sat, 8 pm. 702-432-7777. Count’s Vamp’d Faster Pussycat 12/5, 9 pm, $10. Adelita’s Way, Bravo Delta, Stoked 12/11, 8:30 pm, $12-$17. Gary Hoey 12/20, 8:30 pm, $18-$22. Y&T 2/5, 8:30 pm, $20$25. Geoff Tate’s Operation Mindcrime

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2/6, 9 pm, $20-$25. Glenn Hughes, Joanne Shaw Taylor & Jared James Nichols 3/5, 7:30 pm, $20-$25. 6750 W. Sahara, 702220-8849. Craig Ranch Regional Park Amphitheater 628 W. Craig Rd., 702-633-2418. Dispensary Lounge Uli Geissendoerfer Trio Fri & Sat, 10 pm. 2451 E. Tropicana, 702-4586343. Dive Bar Duane Pere’s Gunfight, Sense We Were Kids, Spotted Dick, Jerk 12/4, 9 pm, $10-$12. Tartar Control, The Maxies, Alan Six, Los Carajos, Water Landing, Hard Pipe Hitters 12/5, 9 pm, $8. 4110 S. Maryland Parkway., 702-586-3483. Eastside Cannery (Marilyn’s Lounge) Claudine Castro Band Mon, 10 pm. Phoenix Wed, 9 pm. Spazmatics Sun, 9 pm. Shows free unless noted. 702-507-5700. Fiesta Rancho (Club Tequila) Sherry Gordy: Take the Stage Thu, 7 pm, $5-$10. (Cabo Lounge) Shows free unless noted. 702-6317000. German American Social Club Vintage Classic Jazz Night Tue, 7 pm, $4. 1110 E. Lake Mead Blvd., 702-649-8503. Milo’s Cellar Live Music Thu, 8 pm, free. 538 Nevada Hwy., 702-293-9540. Pioneer Saloon Krazy Karaoke 12/4, 12/11, 12/18, 5 pm. Jeffrey Michaels 12/5, 11 am. Ernie 12/5, 5 pm. Bill Tracy 12/6, noon. Charles Foster 12/6, 5 pm. Big Willies 12/9, 12/16, 6 pm. Michael DeGreve & Kris 12/10, 12/17, 7 pm. Jason Edwards 12/12, 11 a.m. Girl Haggard 12/13, noon. Bud MIckie 12/13, 12/19, 5 pm. Seth Turner 12/19, 11 a.m. Chris Heers 12/20, noon. Shows free unless noted. 310 W. Spring St., Goosprings, NV, 702-874-9362. Railroad Pass Music at the Pass ft. Easy 8’s 12/4-12/5, 6 pm, free. 2800 S. Boulder Hwy., 702-294-5000. Sam’s Town Los NiteKings Sun, 7 pm, free. Shows free unless noted. 5111 Boulder Hwy., 702-284-7777.

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Celebrate Frank Sinatra’s 100th Birthday with a new 5-film collection. Featuring five classic movies on Blu-ray™, this collection includes newly re-mastered releases of Anchors Aweigh, On the Town and Robin and the 7 Hoods on Blu-ray™ and Digital HD, along with favorites Ocean’s 11 and Guys and Dolls. AnchorsAweighFilm @WBHomeEnt OceansEleven1960 Facebook “f ” Logo

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to enter for a chance to win Frank Sinatra 5-Film Collection on Blu-ray™ Entries must be received by 12/10/2015. Winners will be notified by email and must pick up their prize no later than 12/24/2015. Anchors Aweigh, On the Town, Guys and Dolls © 1945, 1949, 1955 Turner Entertainment Co. and Ocean’s 11, Robin and the 7 Hoods © 1960, 1964 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.

Boomers Side Splitting Sundays Sun, 9 pm, free. 3200 Sirius Ave., 702-368-1863. Colosseum Steve Martin & Martin Short 3/6, 6:30 pm, $50-$180. Colosseum, Caesars Palace, 702-731-7333. Craig Ranch Regional Park Amphitheater 628 W. Craid Rd., 702-633-2418. The D Laughternoon Starring Adam London Daily, 4 pm, $20-$25. 702-388-2111.. Hard Rock Hotel (The Joint) Cedric the Entertainer 12/30, 9 pm, $50. Martin Lawrence 1/16, 7 pm, $40. Bo Burnham 1/30, 8 pm, $50. 702-693-5000. Harrah’s (Main Showrom) Mac King TueSat, 1 & 3 pm, $33. (The Improv) Jeremy Hotz, Don Barnhart, Jamar Neighbors thru 11/29. Jeremy Hotz, Steven Kravitz, Jesus Trejo, James Stephens 12/1-12/6. Charles Fleischer, Chase Durousseau 12/812/13. John Henton, Jodi Borrello, Jessica Michelle Singleton 12/15-12/20. Tommy Savitt, Paula Bel, Chris Crofton 12/22-12/27. Tue-Sun, 8:30 pm; Fri & Sat, 10 pm; $30-$45. 702-369-5000. Luxor Carrot Top Wed-Mon, 8 pm, $50-$60. 702-262-4900. MGM Grand (Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club) Eddie Ifft, Kathleen Dunbar, Marc Patrick thru 11/29. Steve McGrew, Sam Fedele, Drew Thomas. 11/30-12/6. Brad Garrett, Cowboy Bill Martin, Quinn Paterson 12/7-12/13. Jay Black, Mitchell Walters, Jodi Miller 12/1412/20. Drew Thomas, KT Katara, Matt Markman 12/21-12/27. Butch Bradley, Mike Merryfield, Shayma Tash 12/28-1/3. Kivi Rogers, Collin Moulton, Dave Williamson 1/4-1/10. Danny Bevins, Vargus Mason, Heath Harmison 1/11-1/17. Brad Garrett, Paul Ogata, Dave Landau 1/18-1/24. Quinn Dahle, Rick Overton, Greg Vaccariello 1/25-1/31. Richard Vos, Zoltan Kaszas, Derek Richards 2/1-2/7. Brad Garrett, Debi Gutierrez, Andrew Norelli 2/8-2/14. Darrell Joyce, Mark Eddie, Randy Kagan 2/152/21. Scott Henry, Frances Dilorinzo, Drew Thomas 2/22-2/28. Brad Garrett, Michael Sommerville, Landry 2/29-3/5, 3/7. Dark Christmas Day. Nightly, 8 pm, $43-$87. 702891-7777. Mirage Ray Romano 12/4-12/5, 12/11-12/12, 10 pm, $60. 702-792-7777.

Planet Hollywood (Las Vegas Live Comedy Club) Edwin San Juan Nightly, 9 pm, $56-$67, V Theater. (PH Showroom) Jeff Dunham Wed-Sun, 7 pm; Sat-Sun, 4 pm, $72.. (Sin City Theatre) Failure is an Option Nightly, dark Tue-Wed, 5:30 pm, $60. 702234-7469. Sin City Comedy & Burlesque Show Nightly, 8:30 pm, $38-$49. 702-7772782. Quad Jeff Civilico Sat-Mon, Wed-Thu, 4 pm, $39-$50. 888-777-7664. Rampart Casino (Bonkerz Comedy Club) Thu, 7 pm, free., 702-507-5900. Red Rock (Rocks Lounge) Hal Sparks 1/23, 8 pm, $25-$35. Justin Willman 2/20, 8 pm, $25-$35. 702-797-7777. Rio Eddie Griffin Mon-Thu, 7 pm, $73-$136. 702-777-2782. The Sayers Club (Bonkerz Comedy Club) Thu-Sat 8 pm, $10. SLS, 702-761-7000. South Point Dat Phan 12/26, 7:30 pm, $15. Charlie Murphy 1/8-1/10, 7:30 pm, $30. Louie Anderson 1/22-1/23, 7:30 pm, $15. Jon Lovitz 2/5-2/6, 7:30 pm, $25. 702-797-8005. Tropicana (The Laugh Factory) Nightly, 8:30 & 10:30 pm, $35-$55. 702-739-2222. Treasure Island 12/4, 9 pm, $53-$83. Billy Gardell 11/27, 9 pm, $44-$72. 702-894-7111.. Venetian Lisa Lampanelli 12/26, 8 pm, $50$118. Whitney Cummings 1/2, 8 pm, $50$118. 702-414-9000.

Performing Arts Christ Church Episcopal Advent-Christmas Recital 12/6, 4 pm, $15. Adam J. Brakel 1/8, 7:30 pm, $15. Hans Uwe Hielscher 2/5, 7:30 pm, $15. David Dorway 4/29, 7:30 pm, $15. 2000 S. Maryland Parkway, sncago.org. Italian American Club 2333 E. Sahara Ave., 702-457-3866. Las Vegas Philharmonic The Snowman 12/5/12-6, 2 pm; 12/5, 7:30 pm; $26-$96; 12/6, 2 pm, $46-$96. Cabrera Conducts Rachmaninoff 1/9, 7:30 pm, 1/10, 2 pm, $26$96. Pink Martini 2/6, 7:30 pm, $100-$250. Spotlight Series 2/16, 4/26, 5/3, 7:30 pm, $168. Smith Center, 702-749-2000. Nevada Ballet Theatre The Nutcracker 12/12, 8:30 pm, 12/13, 1 & 5:30 pm, 12/18, 7:30 pm, 12/19, 2 pm $ 7:30 pm, 12/20, 1 & 5:30 pm, $29-$179. Smith Center’s Reynolds Hall, 702-749-2000. Onyx Theatre Elf U: A Crash Course in Christmas 12/4-12/19, Sat, 11 am & 1 pm, $10. The Eight: Reindeer Monologues 12/4-12/19, Fri & Sat, 10 pm, $15. The Blanche DeBris Emergency Xmas Broadcast 12/10-12/12, 12/17-12/19, 8 pm; 12/13, 5 pm, $20. 953 E. Sahara Ave., 702-732-7225. Smith Center (Reynolds Hall) New Year’s Eve at the Smith Center 12/31, 7 pm, $39-$125. The Cat in the Hat 1/13, 6:30 pm, $15-$23. Riverdance 1/26-1/21, $29-$129. Panties in a Twist 2/2-2/6, $35-$43. The Symphonic Rockshow Presents: The Best of British Rock 2/5, 7:30 pm, $29-$59. Cinderella 2/13, 7:30 pm, 2/14, 2 pm, $29-$139. Elephant & Piggies We Are in A Play 2/17, 6:30 pm, $15-$23. The Bridges of Madison County 2/23-2/28, $29-$129. A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder 3/8-3/13, $29-$139. One Night For One Drop 3/18, 7 pm, $104-$329. (Troesh Studio Theater) ’Twas a Girls Night Before Christmas: The Musical 11/24-11/28, 7 pm; 11/28, 2 pm; $35-$43. My Mother’s Italian, My Father’s Jewish & I’m Home for the Holidays 12/2-12/5, 7 pm; $35-$40. Driving Miss Daisy 1/15-1/17, 8 pm; 1/16-1/17, 3 pm; $34. Shen Yun: A Gift From Heaven 1/21, 7:30 pm; 1/22, 8 pm; 1/23, 3 pm & 7:30 pm, 1/24, 1 pm. Bad Jews 3/3-3/5, 8 pm; 3/6, 2 pm, $35-$45. (Cabaret Jazz) Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill 2/12-2/14, 8 pm; 2/13-2/14, 3 pm, $34. 702-749-2000. UNLV (Rando-Grillot Recital Hall) Amernet Quartet ft. Rachel Calloway 1/28, 7:30 pm, $27-$30. Andrew York 2/20, 8 pm, $41-$45. Chelsea Chen 2/26, 7:30 pm, free. Jens Korndorfer 4/8, 7:30 pm, free. Duo Deloro 4/13, 8 pm, $41-$45. Dorothy Young Riess 5/20, 7:30 pm, free. (Artemus W. Ham Hall) Rockapella’s Holiday Concert 12/5, 8 pm, $20-$70. Sarah Chang and Julio Elizalde 2/6, 8 pm, $25-$75. Polish Baltic Philharmonic 3/17, 8 pm, $25-$75. (Judy Bayley Theatre) Nevada Conservatory

Calendar Theatre: The Magic of Seth Grabel 10/17, 7 pm, $30. 702-895-3332. Winchester Cultural Center Space Karate Plays Beck 12/5, 7 pm, $10-$12. Mark Deramo 12/12, 2 pm, $10-$12. The Slam Poets 12/12, noon, free. James and the Giant Peach 12/18, 7 pm; 12/19, noon & 6 pm, $5-$7. Naomi Emmerson plays Edith Piaf 3/4, 7 pm; 3/5, 1:30 pm, $25-$30. 3130 S. McLeod Drive, 702-455-7340.

Special Events A Winter Festival 12/18, 5:30 pm. Walnut Recreation Center, 3075 N. Walnut Rd., 702455-8402. Bill O’Riley and Dennis Miller: Don’t Be a Pinhead 12/5, 7:30 pm, $86-$501. The Colosseum, Caesars Palace, 702-731-7333. Blueprint Sound Charity Bowl benefitting Cure 4 the Kids 12/7, 8 pm, entry with unwrapped gift. Red Rock Lanes, 11011 W Charleston Blvd., 702-797-7467. Patricia D. Cafferata Signing and Reading 12/4, 7 pm, free. The Writer’s Block, 1020 Fremont St., thewritersblock.org. Scott Deitche Reading and Book Signing 12/3, 7 pm, free. The Writer’s Block, 1020 Fremont St., thewritersblock.org. Disney on Ice presents Frozen 1/6-1/11, times vary, $38-$83. Thomas & Mack Center, unlvtickets.com. Ethel M Chocolates Holiday Cactus Garden 5 pm to 10 pm, free. Ethel M Chocolate Factory and Cactus Garden, 2 Cactus Garden Dr., ethelm.com. Gary Leffew’s Legendary Buck’n Ball 12/3112/12, 2 pm & 9:30 pm, free. Buck’N Ball Saloon, Orleans, orleanscasino.com. Hypnosis Unleashed Tue-Sun, 8:30 pm, $30-$40. Binion’s, 128 E. Fremont St., 702382-1600. Hometown Holidays 12/5, 4 pm, free. Huckleberry Park, 10325 Farm Rd., providencelv.com. Julia Lee Signing and Reading 1/22, 7 pm, free. The Writer’s Block, 1020 Fremont St., thewritersblock.org. Kim Macquarrie Signing and Reading 12/10, 7 pm, free. The Writer’s Block, 1020 Fremont St., thewritersblock.org. Mannheim Steamroller Christmas 12/3, 7:30 pm, $35-$75. Orleans, 702-284-7777. Monday’s Dark with Mark Shunock Anniversary 12/14, 8 pm, $20-$50. Vinyl, 702-693-5000. National Finals Rodeo Pink Party ft. Josh Thompson 12/7, 10 pm, free. Westgate, 3000 Paradise Rd., 702-732-5111. New Year’s Spectacular ft. Frankie Beverly, Maze, Mike Epps 1/2, 8 pm, $34-$150. Orleans, 702-284-7777. Opportunity Village’s Great Santa Run 12/5, 10 am, $45 adults, $30 children. Downtown Las Vegas, lasvegassantarun. org. Poet Laureate Open Poetry Readings 12/12, 2 pm, free. Winchester Cultural Center, 702-455-7340. Repeal Day Celebration 12/5, 6 pm, $40-$46. Mob Museum, 702-229-2734. Santa Paws 12/6, 10 am to 2 pm, $7-$12. Magical Forest at Opportunity Village, 6300 W. Oakey Blvd., opportunityvillage.org. Sevens Live Music, comedy & spoken arts. Tue, 7 pm, one-drink minimum. Silver Sevens, 4100 Paradise, 702-733-7000. Switch: Trans* Clothing Swap Thu, 5 pm, free. Gay & Lesbian Community Center, 702733-9800. Toys for Tickets All-Star Jam ft. Tyler Farr, Jerrod Niemann, Eric Paslay, Canaan Smith, Old Dominion, Cam and Mickey Guyton 12/6, 7 pm, free with toy donation. Red Rock, 702-797-7777. Toys for Tots ft. David Perrico 12/18, 7 pm, $20. Orleans, orleanscasino.com. Windmill Music Club 12/20, 4 pm, free. Windmill Library, 7060 W Windmill Lane, 702-507-6030.

Sports Amsoil Arenacross 5/6, 8 pm; 5/8, noon, $29. Orleans, orleansarena.com. Cinch Boyd Gaming Chute-Out 12/10-12/12, 2 pm, $50-$110. Orleans, 702-284-7777.

Monster Energy Supercross Finals 5/7, 6:30 pm, $180. Sam Boyd Stadium, unlvtickets. com. Monster Jam World Finals 3/17, 5:30 pm; 3/18-3/19, 7 pm, $80-$180. Sam Boyd Stadium, unlvtickets.com. National Finals Rodeo 12/3-12/12, 6:45 pm, $58-$232. Thomas & Mack, unlvtickets.com. Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl 12/19, 12:30 pm, $24-$110. Sam Boyd Stadium, unlvtickets.com. UFC: Fight Night ft. Paige VanZant vs. Joanne Calderwood 12/10, $75-$225. Ultimate Fighter Finale 22 12/11, 3:30 pm, $75-$350. Cosmopolitan, cosmopolitanlasvegas.com. UFC 194 12/12, 3:30 pm, $603$1,253. UFC 195 1/2, 3:30 pm, $104-$804, MGM Grand Garden Arena, ticketmaster. com Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber Finale ft. Frankie Edgar vs. Chad Mendes 12/11, $150-$350. WFG Continental Cup of Curling 1/14-1/17, $22. Orleans Arena, orleansarena.com. World Series of Fighting 26 12/18, 6 pm, $30. Cosmopolitan, cosmopolitanlasvegas. com. World Series of Team Roping 12/5-12/8, 9:30 am, price TBA. Orleans, 702-284-7777.

Galleries Amanda Harris Gallery of Contemporary Art By appointment. 900 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-769-6036. Arts Factory 107 E. Charleston Blvd, 702-3833133. Galleries include: Joseph Watson Collection Wed-Fri, 1-6 pm; Sat, noon-3 pm; Sun, 11 am-2 pm. Suite 115, 858-733-2135. Sin City Gallery Wed-Sat, 1-7 pm; Sun, 11 am-2 pm. Suite 100, 702-608-2461. Suite 135, 702366-7001, trifectagallery.com. Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art Picasso: Creatures and Creativity Thru 1/10. Daily, 10 am-8 pm, $11-$16. 3600 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702-693-7871. Blackbird Studios By appointment. 1551 S. Commerce St., 702-782-0319. Brett Wesley Gallery Thu-Fri, 12-6 pm, Sat, 12-4 pm. 1025 S. First St. #150, 702-4838844. Clark County Government Center Rotunda 500 Grand Central Parkway, 702-455-7030. Clay Arts Vegas Mon-Sat, 9 am-9 pm; Sun, 11:30 am-6:30 pm. 1511 S. Main St., 702-375-4147. Downtown Spaces 1800 Industrial Road, dtspaces.com. Galleries include: Candy Wolves Studio 702-600-3011. Skin City Body Painting 702-431-7546. Solsis Gallery 702-557-2225. Spectral Gallery Sat, noon-10 pm & by appointment. Urizen Gallery First Fri, 6-10 pm. Wasteland Gallery Mon-Fri, 10 am-2 pm. 702-475-9161. Emergency Arts 520 Fremont St. Galleries include: Satellite Contemporary 973-964-3050. Rhizome Gallery 702-907-7526. Gainsburg Studio & Gallery Mon-Sat, 10am5pm. 1533 West Oakey Blvd, 702-249-3200. Las Vegas City Hall Chamber Gallery In Focus: Downtown Architecture by Ryan Reason & Jennifer Burkart Mon-Fri, 7 am-5:30 pm, 495 S. Main St., 702-229-1012. Left of Center Tue-Fri, noon-5 pm; Sat, 10 am-3 pm. 2207 W. Gowan Road, 702-647-7378. Michelle C. Quinn Fine Art By appointment. 620 S. 7th St., 702-366-9339. P3Studio Win, Lose or Have Fun! By Jesse Carson Smigel.Thru 11/8, Wed-Thu, 5-10 pm; Fri-Sun, 6-11 pm. Cosmopolitan. UNLV Barrick Museum Mon-Fri, 9 am–5 pm; Thu, 9 am-8 pm; Sat, noon-5 pm. 4505 S Maryland Parkway., 702-895-3381 Donna Beam Fine Art Mon-Fri, 9 am-5 pm; Sat, 10 am-2 pm. 702-895-3893. Lied Library The French Connection Thru 10/31. Mon-Thu, 7:30 am-midnight; Fri, 7:30 am-7 pm; Sat, 9 am-6 pm; Sun, 11 am-midnight. West Las Vegas Arts Center Wed-Sat, 9 am-7 pm. 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd., 702-2294800. Winchester Cultural Center Art Gallery Tue-Fri, 10 am-8 pm; Sat, 9 am-6 pm. 3130 S. McLeod Drive, 702-455-7340.

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The BackStory

‘THE TREE WITH THE LIGHTS IN IT’ | DESERT SHADOW TRAIL | NOVEMBER 22, 2015 | 10:17 A.M. My aunt changed my life with two things when I was 14: salt-and-vinegar potato chips and Annie Dillard. She gave me her old paperback copy of Dillard’s Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, a book whose yellowed pages now cling to threads of duct-taped binding. One of my favorite chapters is about seeing and not seeing, our world and ourselves. Dillard writes of the elusive “green ray” spurting from the moment of sunset; of the air in front of objects spinning with bugs; of noticing a creek in strata, from tiny snails in silt to her own startled reflection. She muses on the newly sighted, people with cataracts who’d been blind from birth suddenly taking in the rush of color and form. Post-op, one girl saw “the tree with the lights in it,” something Dillard hunted for years until one day on a walk, “thinking of nothing at all,” she saw it and was knocked flat. I hadn’t thought of it or Pilgrim for a long time, but on a cold, windless morning walk with my dog, there it was. A tree like a perfect flame on a match-tip, shooting out light as though the sun soaked into its roots like food coloring into a carnation. Being in the right place and time to catch such simple, breathless beauty is rare. Being in the head space to really see it might be even more so. As Dillard says: “The vision comes and goes, mostly goes, but I live for it.” –Erin Ryan