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06 las vegas weekly 12.28.17
Trust Us
30 SATURDAY, 11 A.M.
Happy Earth Market Costume Party AT NEW ORLEANS SQUARE It can be difficult to find activities for the whole family on New Year’s weekend in Las Vegas, but the Happy Earth Market is hoping to spread some festive cheer to everyone this holiday season as the eco-friendly collective celebrates its launch. Happy Earth’s local entrepreneurs are on a mission to create a community with its ecological footprint in mind, while helping other Vegasbased businesses grow and thrive. Meet the folks behind the Market as they usher in the New Year with an all-day party featuring live reggae from Jamaican singer Stan Rankin T, a drum circle, craft booths, vendors, food trucks and more. Everyone’s encouraged to arrive in costume, so now’s your chance to bust out those Halloween threads one more time—or create something new—before officially saying so long to 2017. 11 a.m.-9 p.m., free, 900 Karen Ave. #D-102. –Leslie Ventura
ever y thing y o u absol u tely, positively m u st get o u t and do this w eek
31
SUNDAY, 12:30 P.M.
GOLDEN KNIGHTS VS. MAPLE LEAFS AT T-MOBILE ARENA Here’s a cool way to hit the Strip on the last day of 2017 without hassling with New Year’s Eve shenanigans: Close out the calendar with a hockey matinee. The (presently) 48-point Golden Knights will try for some revenge against the 45-point Maple Leafs, who defeated Vegas 4-3 in a shootout back on November 6 in Toronto. Beating the Knights in their own building will be a tougher task; Vegas has lost just three times at T-Mobile Arena all season and comes into this one riding a four-game home win streak. At press time, select tickets were still available on Stubhub from $75. If that’s too pricey and/or you don’t wanna risk being anywhere near the Strip on 12/31, you can catch the Knights in action on December 28 … without having to travel to LA for the team’s clash with the Pacific Division rival Kings. The puck drops on Topgolf’s official watch party at 7 p.m., and it’s free and open to fans of all ages. The game will be broadcast on a 48-foot screen, so try not to flinch when Shea Theodore sends a body check in your direction. –Spencer Patterson (Las Vegas News Bureau/Courtesy)
29
FRIDAY, 8 P.M.
Zac Brown Band At THE CHELSEA The country group, set to play the national anthem for college football’s title game on January 8 at Atlanta’s 71,000-capacity Mercedes-Benz Stadium, closes out its 2017 schedule in more intimate environs: the Cosmopolitan’s 2,500-cap Chelsea. We’re guessing no one will take a knee during that one. $100-$200. –Spencer Patterson
1
MONDAY, 10 a.m.
29
FRIDAY, 8 P.M.
Ranger-Guided Hike at Spring Mountain Ranch STATE PARK
Four bands at Bunkhouse Saloon
Mark one resolution off your list by getting out into nature on the first day of 2018. A park ranger will lead you on a scenic two-mile hike as you enjoy the brisk mountain air. Bring comfy shoes, warm clothes and a sense of adventure. Nevada residents pay $7 per car. –C. Moon Reed
The Vegas pop-punks of Rayner are sending out 2017 with a three-date New Year’s weekend mini-tour alongside Salt Lake City’s Problem Daughter. It begins Downtown—with locals No Red Alice and Jesse Pino—before moving on to California cities Pomona and San Diego. $10. –Leslie Ventura
07 las vegas weekly 12.28.17
30
Saturday, 8 p.m.
Duran Duran at The Chelsea Duran Duran lives, and lives, and lives. The venerable English band has survived just about every music industry pitfall you can name: changing trends, the loss of founding members (though most have returned to the fold) and even the slow disappearance of the music industry itself. (Au revoir, MTV.) And through it all, the Birmingham blokes who gave us “Hungry Like the Wolf,” “Ordinary World,” “Notorious” and many other pop gems have stayed the course, making new music and touring as if the 1980s never ended. And the funny thing is, when Duran’s onstage, it’s kinda like they never did. The band’s 2015 album Paper Gods successfully melds its New Wave DNA with recent pop trends—oh, hi, Mark Ronson—and Duran Duran brings an energy to live performances that makes you forget just how long it has been doing this. $148. –Geoff Carter Fle fle fle fle flex. (Stephanie Pistel/Courtesy)
08 LAS VEGAS WEEKLY 12.28.17
GUITAR HEROES
the inter W H E R E
I D E A S
Now’s your chance to help preserve the former Hard Rock Cafe’s iconic sign BY LESLIE VENTURA
I
t was modeled after an instrument Pete Townsend once owned. It’s been featured on countless postcards, in TV shows like Entourage and in feature films like Honey, I Blew Up the Kid. (And it was destroyed in that movie, but no hard feelings). Now, Hard Rock Cafe’s iconic, YESCO-built, 80-foot-tall Gibson Les Paul is on course to join Vegas’ best and brightest retired signs as part of the Neon Museum’s Boneyard tour. The famous guitar-shaped beacon was erected in 1990 outside Las Vegas’ original Paradise Road Hard Rock Cafe location, which closed last year on New Year’s Eve. YESCO designed and maintained ownership of the sign, recently donating it to the Neon Museum. But its massive size meant it had to be taken down in pieces. Transporting and reassembling it is no cheap feat, so the Neon Museum has launched a $350,000 fundraiser to restore the sign to its original glamour. Those who donate $100 will be recognized on a plaque at the sign’s base, and all donors will be entered into a raffle to win a neon art piece. “It’s the largest restoration fundraising activity we’ve ever undertaken,” says Brenda K. Bogue, the museum’s director of development. “The inner workings of it are in tatters.” Bogue adds that the money will also go toward electrical repairs and maintenance, and that it’s not a matter of if the museum will hit its goal, but when. As of Christmas Eve, the campaign had amassed $50,000. “We’re confident, and we’re receiving donations from around the world. It’s an iconic sign that has meaning, not only to Las Vegans but to our following around the world. We’re super-excited and look forward to having this in our boneyard.” To donate, visit neonmuseum.org/hard-rock.
FITNESS TIPS FOR A POST-HOLIDAY TRANSFORMATION Real Results fitness co-founder Branden Collinsworth, a Nike Master Trainer and certified strength and conditioning specialist, offered up some suggestions for making 2018 your healthiest year yet. 1. Establish some simple, non-negotiable daily rituals. “A lot of people want to change it all overnight, but that’s a prescription for failure.” Instead try small steps, like drinking water in the morning or cooking breakfast.
2. Switch it up and keep it fun. Try out a new gym or hobby, like hiking or rock climbing. “You have to constantly switch it up. If you have fun, chances are you’re going to stick with it.” 3. Big change comes from small wins. “Just win the day, not the week, month or year. The micro turns into the macro. Once we start to stringing multiple wins together, that’s when real change happens.” –C. Moon Reed For more of Collinsworth’s tips, head to lasvegasweekly.com.
rsection A ND L IF E M E ET
09 LAS VEGAS WEEKLY 12.28.17
RAIL AGAINST THE MACHINE
Beat the Strip’s New Year’s Eve closures by taking Vegas’ much-maligned Monorail BY GEOFF CARTER
+
1 BIG PHOTO
(Photo Illustration by Ian Racoma/Staff)
DO WE HAVE ENOUGH NET, POST-NEUTRALITY? When Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai directed his agency to repeal net neutrality rules, he insinuated that increased competition between Internet providers would keep them honest—that no one would dare throttle speeds or block websites if competitors weren’t doing the same. Even if that specious theory proves out, Las Vegas’ broadband marketplace doesn’t appear big enough for spirited competition. Aside from market leader Cox, we’ve got CenturyLink (now offering a $45 monthly “price for life”), LV.Net and a couple of obscure companies unfamiliar to me. (Does anyone out there use Rise Broadband? Is it any good?) That’s not nearly enough to keep Cox in check if it ever goes rogue. For what it’s worth, Cox has a statement on its website that promises it’ll never throttle, block legal content or engage in discriminatory pricing. Here’s hoping. –Geoff Carter
Every year on December 31, Metro closes off the Strip to all vehicular traffic—private cars, taxis, ride-hailing services, even RTC buses. The resulting wave of pedestrians that washes over our city’s busiest roadway in the absence of cars is an impressive sight, one that everyone should see at least once. But if you’re expecting to simply attack the Strip from its sides—Frank Sinatra Drive to the west, Koval Lane to the east—there’s a little something you should know: Don’t do that. According to Metro, freeway offramp closures will begin at 5 p.m. on December 31. By 6 p.m., nearly all roads crossing the Strip—from Mandalay Bay Road north through Sahara Avenue—will be closed to east-west traffic. (The notable exception is Desert Inn Road, which ducks under the Strip completely.) The roads won’t reopen until after the street sweepers have done their work—a projected 3:30 a.m. on January 1. Frank Sinatra and Koval will remain open, as will the freeways. But having done the park-atCaesars thing in the past, I strongly recommend against taking that easy bait. Even taking a Lyft, Uber or taxi to mid-Strip is risky, considering the traffic they’ll need to battle getting to their staging areas, if those areas are accessible at all. Basically, you have two good options. One is parking at Mandalay Bay and taking that hotel’s free tram to Excalibur. From there you can walk, or use the second option: the Las Vegas Monorail, which runs from MGM Grand to SLS. The monorail will run into daylight on January 1, and it still costs just $1 per trip for anyone who presents a valid Nevada ID at the ticket booth (or $5 for out-of-towners). Parking at SLS is free, and nearby Sahara Avenue is open to traffic all night. If I were doing this, I’d park at SLS early on, get dinner at Bazaar Meat or Cleo and take the monorail to the Linq or Bally’s/Paris. It’s not a crazy “lifehack”; this is what the monorail was designed for. Let’s get our $2 worth.
10
THE INTERSECTION
LAS VEGAS WEEKLY 12.28.17
SLAM DUNK On a comeback of its own, the WNBA is a great fit for Mandalay Bay e’re suddenly surrounded by sports. Much of the infectious current excitement is being generated by the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights, the city’s first major league professional team, which is defying expansion expectations by leading the Western Conference. And of course there are the NFL’s Raiders— due to arrive in 2020—and their $2 billion stadium. But the new team that could prove to be the most natural fit here is arriving stealthily. The Las Vegas Aces made their biggest splash on December 11 when they unveiled their name THE and logo in typically INCIDENTAL Vegas flashy fashion TOURIST at the House of Blues BY BROCK RADKE at Mandalay Bay. The WNBA team formerly known as the San Antonio Stars will begin play at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in May. Like Las Vegas’ other sports developments, this team’s transition has been shockingly fast. MGM Resorts International purchased the team in October and hired veteran WNBA figure Bill Laimbeer to lead the way as head coach and president of basketball operations. This month, MGM also announced it’ll spend $10 million to spruce up the Aces’ new venue.
W
(Photo Illustration)
WNBA president Lisa Borders told ESPN the move to Vegas is all about “tickets, tickets, tickets. Fill the arena, fill the arena,” she said. “Vegas brings star power to our league. It’s a destination city, so you are importing people that are a potential fan pool. And the data tells us that Vegas is a top-10 basketball market. We want to go where the fish are biting.” Basketball has always been a favorite sport in Las Vegas, but Borders believes the WNBA needs Vegas, and she should know. The former chair of the CocaCola Foundation took over in 2016, one year after the WNBA posted the lowest attendance numbers in its 19-year history. It might be the most recognizable women’s pro sports league in the world, but it has always struggled for relevancy and financial success, even though experts and observers agree the quality of play has never been better. “The players are bigger, faster and stronger by far than ever before,” Laimbeer told the Las Vegas Sun. “All
the ladies in college basketball are on TV, they get exposure and now they want to go to the next level, because there is a next level in professional sports for them.” The idea that young girls’ athletic dreams can come true is the foundation of the league’s “Watch Me Work” ad campaign, an exciting and empowering effort that sparked a boost in attendance for the WNBA’s 20th season in 2017. Under Borders’ leadership, the league has displayed a united, progressive stance on social issues like the national anthem protests that have divided the NFL’s audience. The league has also launched a public-awareness campaign with LeanIn.org to spotlight the role men play in gender equality. As Laimbeer repeatedly mentioned at the House of Blues event, the WNBA’s connection to its communities truly sets the league apart. Its charitable outreach, WNBA Cares, focuses on education, youth and family development, health and wellness, with specific programs
like Hoops for Troops, supporting active and retired service men and women; Fit, a grassroots wellness, fitness and nutrition outreach; and summertime Pride and breast cancer awareness initiatives. Laimbeer promised Las Vegas will regularly spot the Aces out and about in the community. “If we can show everyone how hard we play and show them how passionate we are, that will help, but [so will] community involvement,” Aces player Kayla Alexander told ESPN. “As players in the WNBA, we pride ourselves on giving back, and that will be the same here. If we do that, I think the fans will come.” Like Las Vegas as a whole, Mandalay Bay is still recovering from the October 1 tragedy, but the South-strip resort offers the complete Vegas entertainment package in a way few properties can, and it boasts one of the largest convention centers anywhere to help keep traffic flowing. Adding a new sports team to Mandalay’s mix—and Las Vegas’— looks like a genius stroke.
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12 WEEKLy Q&A 12.28.17
Help of Southern Nevada’s Kelly Robson has made homeless assistance a year-round mission
H u m a SnE R V I C E S By Leslie Ventura | Photographs by Wade Vandervort
F
ounded in 1970, Help of Southern Nevada has grown into one of the leading nonprofit organizations in Las Vegas, working to help the homeless attain self-sufficiency. Chief Social Services Officer
Kelly Robson oversees all five of Help’s social service programs, from emergency resource and homeless services to the new Shannon West Homeless Youth Center—which opened its doors in July—and the Mobile Crisis Intervention Team. The Weekly sat down with Robson to discuss issues facing the Las Vegas homeless population and the ways Help of Southern Nevada provides vital services for those who need it most.
13 WEEKLY Q&A 12.28.17
What got you interested in social services? Honestly, I thought I would be a physical therapist, but I took one science class and was like, what am I thinking? So I changed my major to psychology, and here I am. What sorts of programs does Help of Southern Nevada offer to the homeless? We have programs that put people from the streets into a [housing] unit, and then we do intensive case management with them. We break down all the barriers that led them to become homeless, and hopefully when the time is ready they’re self-sufficient and can sustain on their own. But we need a lot more housing and more homeless-prevention dollars. That’s one of the biggest challenges we face right now. We may be housing 50 people a month and taking them directly off the street, but if we’re not preventing hundreds of people from becoming homeless, [then they’re] entering our homeless system. What are the most common reasons a person here might end up homeless? If you’re talking about a typical client who’s on the streets right now, most of them face mental health and drug abuse. A lot of our clients don’t know how to navigate our [health] system anymore. It’s not that they don’t want to get treatment, it’s that they don’t know how. I don’t think anybody wakes up one morning thinking, “I’m going to go to Las Vegas and live on Foremaster and Main,” or “I’m going to live in the tunnels under the famous Welcome to Las Vegas sign.” A lot of the abuse of drugs and alcohol comes from masking symptoms, because they’re not treated for their mental health. It’s all one big dilemma. What might prevent someone who’s homeless from utilizing services, seeking treatment or going to a shelter? They might not be ready. It takes, sometimes, 10, 15, even 20 or 30 contacts with the same person to get them to trust you. A lot of the homeless people on the streets have been burned before—they’ve had people come and say “I’m going to do this” and “I’ll be back on this day,” and then nobody shows— so why would they take us at our word the first time we do it? It takes a lot of contact to get where they want to get some help. Tell me about the new Shannon West Homeless Youth Center. We rank third in the nation for youth homelessness and first in the nation for unaccompanied street homelessness for youth. We raised $10 million dollars, and we said we’re just going to build. [The new center
has] 166 beds. Our old building had 65 beds, so we’ve more than doubled. Right now we have 80 beds open; it’s just [a matter of] funding. For every 20 beds we open, we have to hire an additional case manager. It’s expensive to run, and we could help more youth if we were able to open all of the beds. What are some of the issues homeless youth face here? A lot of it is education. Everybody who goes through our youth center, if they don’t have an education, whether it’s a GED or high school diploma, they have to go back to school. We know education is key to moving anywhere in this city as far as employment goes. We see a lot of LGBTQ kids who have come out to their parents, and the parents aren’t accepting of it and they have to go. There’s a lot of trafficking. It takes a while for them to realize we’re just here to help. Speak about some of the successes from the Homeless Youth Center. Every day, a kid stays clean and sober—that’s a huge success for us. The kids who have truancy issues and are actually attending school and doing homework; the kids who got employed; the kids who are LGBTQ and are starting to break down the issues and talk about it and trust. For us, success is the little tiny things. We like to celebrate all of it. How many people who enter Help of Southern Nevada’s permanent supportive housing program end up self-sufficient? It’s about an 85 percent success rate. It may take them one or two times coming in to get it, to say, “Okay, I’m going to do this.” It’s teaching them the littlest things: how to budget food stamps and making them last the whole month, going to the grocery store, getting their laundry done, getting to mental health appointments and getting their substance abuse treated—making sure that all the needs and barriers are broken down one by one to the point where they can be living on their own. How can the community continue to support the homeless, not just during the holidays, but throughout the year? Obviously, we can always use monetary donations to put toward services for our clients. [And] we always need volunteers. Maybe it’s doing a donation drive and getting toiletries and cases of water, food, lotion, Chapstick, hand-warmers, gloves and feminine hygiene [products]. Maybe it’s teaching a group at our homeless youth center and teaching kids something. There’s so many things volunteers can do not just at Christmas but all year ’round.
14 COVER STORY WEEKLY | 12.28.17
2018!
When the rapper and singer behind early-2000s collaborative hits like “Always on Time” and “Down 4 You” first teamed at Brooklyn Bowl last fall, the result was a surprise sellout for a stripped-down show packed with music. It’s no wonder the Linq Promenade venue is bringing them back for a New Year’s Eve show on a night when the majority of hip-hop and R&B acts will be doing their thing in nightclubs instead of concert halls. 9:30 p.m., $75-$125.
What better way to exorcise the demons of 2017 than by closing it out shaking your body to the frenetic electro-house of Toronto duo Jesse F. Keller (yeah, the dude from Death From Above) and Al-P? MSTRKRFT drags its modular synths and drum machines Downtown for a live set that should get 2018 off on a righteously right foot. 9 p.m., $25-$30.
With six 2018 Grammy Award nominations, a world tour that extends into Mexico in February and the hottest headliner show on the Las Vegas Strip, Bruno is staying on top of the pop world. Catch him at the Bank at Bellagio after his NYE show. 9 p.m., $100+.
15 COVER STORY WEEKLY | 12.28.17
Dragge, second from left. (Josh Coffman/Courtesy)
Since forming in 1988, the Hermosa Beach punk rockers of Pennywise have taken their melodic, politically minded skate punk around the world. Fourth album Full Circle just turned 20, and the band recently embarked on an Australian anniversary tour to celebrate. We caught up with guitarist Fletcher Dragge to chat about the current political climate, Pennywise’s next record and more.
1
It’ll be the band’s first public, non-festival show in Las Vegas in almost a decade (the Joint, 2008). Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins & Co. played 20 songs at Life Is Beautiful in 2014, but when they headline for their own crowds, things frequently grow to epic proportions. Like, the three-hour range.
2
They tend to kick things up a notch on special occasions. The Foo Fighters know how to throw a great party. Gigs that land on special occasions or advertised as oneoffs frequently involve celebrity guests and spirited covers, and the band’s recent Saturday Night Live appearance featured festive holiday sweaters and an amped-up, rock ’n’ roll take on Vince Guaraldi’s “Linus & Lucy.”
3
You’ll know almost every word. Where New Year’s Eve entertainment is concerned, the familiar tends to land better, and the Foos possess the right catalog for that job. Along with cuts from this year’s excellent Concrete and Gold, expect a setlist loaded with hits. 10:30 p.m., $150-$350. –Annie Zaleski (Courtesy Photo)
Full Circle includes politically and we’re actually listening to the charged anthem “Society.” What mixes today. I’d compare it to Full do you see as the biggest differCircle-era Pennywise. It’s a good ence between society now and in mix that diehard fans will love, but 1997? Those messages of angsty critics will slam. rebellion and the ills of society are more poignant than ever. I think it’s Pennywise has a long history of sad that we can write a song about playing in Las Vegas—from Punk the world being in disarray 20 years Rock Bowling to club shows. Why ago and see that things do you think the band’s have only gotten worse. music resonates with With Strung Our country is really this city? It’s one of those Out, Good divided, and it operates cities that seems big, but Riddance, how politicians, the govit’s got a small-town vibe. Mercy Music. ernment and the rich want It’s packed with good, 9 p.m., it to work. … We’ve been high-energy people who $30-$75. forced into this perpetual love showing support. downward spiral, but We’ve had many good people are too focused on the times in that city. Two years ago, on Kardashians, so they don’t care. New Year’s Eve, we played at Larry When we’re all united, we become Flynt’s Hustler Club. We wound up a powerful force more capable of playing on some tables with a piece running the country. of plywood on top—something they just threw together. We played to Is there a new Pennywise album around 500 people, and we even in the works? Yes, expect to hear it had a personal backstage suite. We within the next couple of months. had a lot of beers that night. We worked with Cameron Webb, –Ian Caramanzana who has also worked with NOFX, Social Distortion and many more. For more of this interview, visit We’ve got 14 tracks recorded, lasvegasweekly.com.
Also consider
Drew Baldridge at Stoney’s (10 p.m., $10-$20)
Celine Dion at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace (7:30 p.m., $175-$750)
Biz’ Dirty Harvard & Bazooka Zac at the Tap, Boulder City (9 pm, $5$10 donation requested)
Kristin Chenoweth at Smith Center (7:30 p.m., $39-$189)
Michael Cavanaugh at South Point (10:40 p.m., $150)
Maroon 5 at Mandalay Bay Events Center (8 p.m., $90-$395) Britney Spears at the Axis at Planet Hollywood (9 p.m., $149-$279)
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Fremont Street Experience
On the other side of Fremont Street, bounce between four stages featuring live bands and EDM DJs, catch the new Killers-themed Viva Vision show overhead and interact with wandering talent—and one of the liveliest NYE crowds anywhere. 6 p.m., $35-$45.
Gold Spike & Inspire
Ideally, you won’t limit your New Year’s Eve revelry in Downtown Las Vegas to one venue. Escape Masquerade makes that easy. Start your evening overlooking the Fremont East Entertainment District at Inspire, grooving to DJ Absynt Mynded. And maybe sometime before midnight, wander northwest to Gold Spike for a live backyard set by Super Lemon and the midnight champagne toast. Bonus: The $65 option comes with an 8-11 p.m. open bar at both venues. 8 p.m., $10-$65.
Want to see the Strip fireworks show without getting stuck on the Strip? Or, are you looking for a country alternative? Gilley’s provides lively sanctuary for both those needs, along with live music, a DJ, party favors, a midnight champagne toast, one free drink and—for you fence-sitters—$5 mechanical bull rides. 9 p.m., $25.
Charlie's Las Vegas
The southwestern LGBT nightclub ditches the boots for platform shoes this NYE. RuPaul’s Drag Race all-star Latrice Royale will headline the festivities, which will include an outdoor viewing area for the fireworks show over the Strip. Locals get in for as low as $15, and open bar packages abound. 11:30 p.m., $15-$125.
Fremont East’s throwback rocker bar is doing things a little differently for its NYE bash. For one, its open bar option includes Moscow Mules on tap. And at midnight, the bar will hand out the Champagne ... of beers, Miller High Life. Sounds by DJ Tino. 8 p.m., $10-$65.
17 COVER STORY WEEKLY | 12.28.17
Also
consider Best Effen Celebration at 107 Skylounge (10 p.m., $199) All That Glitters Is Gold at Artisan (10 p.m., $55-$65) The Grand Gatsby at Downtown Grand (4 p.m., $40) New Year’s Eve Bash at Flair (8 p.m., $35) Paint the Quarter Gold at House of Blues restaurant (6 p.m., $55-$135) Countdown to 2018 New Year’s Eve at PKWY Tavern Flamingo, Marks and Rampart (7 p.m., free) A Vintage New Year’s Eve 2018 featuring DJ ?uestlove at SLS Las Vegas (10 p.m., $95-$200) Old School Party featuring Rob Base at Sam’s Town Live (10 p.m., $79-$129) Terrace NYE + Afterhours + Sunrise Sessions at Terrace Afterhours (9 p.m., $10-$60)
Fremont Street on New Year’s Eve 2016. (Las Vegas News Bureau/Courtesy)
Skyclose featuring Kenny Glasgow at World Market Center Building B (11 p.m., $45-$70)
There’s no better place to watch New Year’s Eve fireworks than the Delano’s French-Italian rooftop restaurant with unparalleled Strip views. Executive Chef Bruno Riou’s menu boasts Kristal caviar, Angus beef with foie gras and a rich chocolate-hazelnut dessert, plus butternut squash and white truffle risotto. $125-$295, 702-632-9500. Stay off the Strip without sacrificing luxury. This Downtown Summerlin destination impresses with a special four-course menu that includes salmon rillettes, chestnut soup with duck tortellini, roasted lobster and a brown butter lemon pie for dessert. $95, $45 beverage pairing, $75 bottomless Moet, 702-685-8002. Usher in 2018 at Thomas Keller’s famed French bistro inside the Venetian. Kickstart your holiday celebration with braised beef cheek ravioli or Maine lobster bisque with fennel pollen crème fraiche before choosing between Scottish salmon baked in brioche with King Trumpet mushrooms or tender duck breast with white asparagus. Finish with a tarte aux pommes—an apple tart with almond frangipan and salted honey ice cream. $105, $45 wine pairing, 702-414-6200. Avoid the hustle and head to this Henderson, serving your choice of smoked duck Carpaccio, brie and vegetable strudel, rack of New Zealand lamb and roasted veal with truffle sauce—plus a seafood cocktail of lobster, shrimp and crab for $15 extra. End the evening on a high note with a complimentary glass of Champagne. $65; 4350 E. Sunset Road, 702-259-8633.
Also consider
If Chris Brown is forever making a comeback, he made some strides in 2017 thanks to wellregarded double-album Heartbreak on a Full Moon and the candid documentary Welcome to My Life. But he’s been drawing big crowds for full concerts at Drai’s all along, and he’s starring in the rooftop club’s black tie affair for New Year’s Eve. 10 p.m., $150-$200.
The former Hyde Bellagio resident performer takes his drum-and-DJ act to the Hard Rock Hotel’s mostly deactivated Vanity club space for a raging rock-and-dance party to usher in the new year. 9 p.m., $50-$125.
Marquee might end up looking like his new Ciroc French Vanilla commercial when Montana takes the stage at the Cosmo club, but don’t expect Diddy to be there—or Puff, or whatever his name is now. 9 p.m., $69-$138.
There are plenty of reasons to party at Mandalay Bay until the clock strikes midnight this year, and the wild and woolly rapper and actor returning to the stage at Light is as good as any. 9 p.m., $50-$100.
Also consider Countdown by the Lake Party with DJ Hollywood at Hyde Bellagio (9 p.m., $50-$75) Marshmello at Intrigue (9:30 p.m., $45-$100) Lil Jon at Jewel (9 p.m., $30-$50)
MB Steak Hard Rock Hotel, 702-483-4888.
2 Chainz at 1 Oak (9 p.m., $40-$75)
Charlie Palmer Steak Four Seasons, 702-632-5120.
Karma Never Felt So Good Party at the Foundation Room (9 p.m., $150-$300)
Americana 2620 Regatta Drive #118, 702-331-5565.
Steve Aoki at Hakkasan (8 p.m., $50-$175)
Rí Rá Mandalay Place, 702-632-7771. La Cave Wynn, 702-770-7375.
Calvin Harris at Omnia (8 p.m., $100-$225) Gucci Mane at Tao (9 p.m., $64-$138)
Beauty & Essex (Jon Estrada/Sun File)
You know all about those tasty, bite-sized grilled cheese, bacon and tomato soup dumplings made famous by chef and restaurateur Chris Santos. Now add lobster ravioli, sweet chili glazed sea scallops and more at this Cosmopolitan hot spot. Guests also receive free entry into Marquee Nightclub after midnight. We’ll toast to that. $175, 702737-0706.
Their first year as top-line resident DJs at Wynn Nightlife venues XS and Encore Beach Club has been very good to Alex Pall and Andrew Taggart. The Chainsmokers packed both elite venues on the regular while being named Billboard’s Top Dance/Electronic Artist for the second straight year. They also finished with three singles in the year-end Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart: “Something Just Like This” with Coldplay at No. 1, “Closer” with Halsey at No. 2 and “Paris” at No. 7. If you can’t catch their NYE gig at XS, they’ll be back for the first Saturday night of the year on January 6 and a Tuesday-night CES opening set on January 9. 10:30 p.m., $75-$200.
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about us
g r e e n s p u n m e d i a
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Publisher Mark De Pooter (mark.depooter@gmgvegas.com) Editor Brock Radke (brock.radke@gmgvegas.com) Staff Writer Leslie Ventura (leslie.ventura@gmgvegas.com) Creative Director Liz Brown (liz.brown@gmgvegas.com) Art Director Corlene Byrd (corlene.byrd@gmgvegas.com) Designer Ian Racoma Circulation Director Ron Gannon Art Director of Advertising and Marketing Services Sean Rademacher CEO, Publisher & Editor Brian Greenspun Chief Operating Officer Robert Cauthorn Group Publisher Gordon Prouty Editorial Page Editor Ric Anderson Las Vegas Weekly Editor Spencer Patterson 2275 Corporate Circle, Suite 300 Henderson, NV 89074
lasvegasweekly.com/industry lasvegasweekly.com /lasvegasweekly /lasvegasweekly /lasvegasweekly
on the cover
Fri Dec 29
Las Vegas, NV
TAO Las Vegas
Sat Jan 13
Las Vegas, NV
TAO Las Vegas
Fri Feb 09
Las Vegas, NV
TAO Las Vegas
Maroon 5 Photo by Travis Schneider
T o
a d v e r t i s e
Call 702-990-2550 or email advertising@gmgvegas.com. For Bookings: fredo@skamartist.com Download Sizzle from the app store for an exclusive Skam Artist experience >
For customer service questions, call 702-990-8993.
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Bloodshy and Style of Eye will prep for their February European tour by spending some NYE weekend time in Vegas.
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G a l a n t i s b y S c o t t R o t h / A p ; f u t u r e b y O w e n S w e e n e y / AP ; G u c c i M a n e b y Am y H a rr i s / A p ; D i p l o c o u r t e s y W y n n N i g h t l i f e
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Recently seen shooting a video on a yacht with Taylor Swift, Future returns to Drai’s Saturday to pump up the party.
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Gucci comes into Tao’s NYE party with momentum from with a hot new mixtape, El Gato: The Human Glacier.
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You won’t want to miss the first big party of 2018 at XS. Keep the good vibes going with Diplo on Monday night.
Download Sizzle from the app store for an exclusive Fremont Street Experience >
Download Sizzle from the app store for an exclusive Fremont Street Experience >
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is keeping the music coming—he just released the brassy, bassy “Danger,” a hip-hop track featuring Migos from the soundtrack to the Will Smith-starring Netflix original movie Bright. Expect more new music in January from Marshmello, who was working on a track with Lil Peep right before the emo rapper’s untimely passing in November.
ew Year’s Eve weekend offers a double dose from Wynn Nightlife’s two biggest headlining DJs for the year’s biggest party. Marshmello plays XS on December 29 before taking the decks at Intrigue on the 31st, while Diplo takes over at XS on December 30 and January 1.
Diplo, who extended his Wynn residency for two more years in October, remains one of the most in-demand producers in music. He’s gearing up for an even bigger 2018 that should see the release of a long-simmering Major Lazer album and, based on his recent comments, some more collabo time with DJ buddy Skrillex, with whom he teamed for the acclaimed Jack Ü project in 2013.
The ’mello one’s still riding high behind recent hits with superstar collaborators Khalid (“Silence”) and Selena Gomez (“Wolves”). But the mysterious stay-puft producer
Along with Marshmello and Diplo, the clubs at Wynn will host The Chainsmokers, RL Grime and Cheat Codes this weekend to ring in the new year right.
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Download Sizzle from the app store for an exclusive Fear The Walking Dead Survival experience >
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ew Year’s Eve means a lot of things in Las Vegas, and one of them is Maroon 5. This weekend marks the sixth-consecutive year the pop band has played a pair of shows on the Strip to usher in the new year, which means the holiday-in-Vegas tradition began shortly after NBC’s The Voice launched frontman Adam Levine’s second career as a TV personality. That span of time has also seen Maroon 5 record a series of team-up tracks, many of which have become hits. It really all started with “Moves Like Jagger” with Christina Aguilera, and though the band has since collaborated with familiar names in country (Lady Antebellum) and pop (Gwen Stefani), hip-hop artists have been the weapon of choice most recently. Levine has sung on tracks by Kanye West, the Ying Yang Twins and 50 Cent and Eminem, and Maroon 5 has worked up memorable tunes with Wiz Khalifa (“Payphone”), Kendrick Lamar (“Don’t Wanna Know”) and Future (“Cold”). The band might have crafted its catchiest collaboration yet for the lead single from November release Red Pill Blues—the funky and friendly “What Lovers Do,” featuring white-hot singer-songwriter SZA. It recently peaked at No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100, another hit to add to the collection. Maroon 5 at Mandalay Bay Events Center, December 30 & 31. –Brock Radke
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ne of the most iconic bars on the Las Vegas Strip has a whole new look, and if you haven’t experienced the renovated Chandelier at the Cosmopolitan, it’s time to return. The crystal-adorned, three-tier lounge that stands as the centerpiece of the Cosmo’s casino was originally designed by the Rockwell Group and is constantly popping up on every travel magazine and website list of mustvisit Vegas destinations. Changes to the ground floor were completed last year, including the addition of bartop
video poker machines to complement the gaming experience at that level. But it’s the second level that’s all the buzz right now. That Chandelier space, previously closed off and dark per typical bar-lounge design, is wide open and brighter, with a social area facing new restaurants Eggslut, Milk Bar and Momofuku and seating that has expanded from 15 to 70. Modern, minimal furniture has replaced bulkier pieces inside the lounge, adding a feeling of flexibility. And level 1.5—still a bit of a lesser-known, hidden-gem when the crowds take
over the rest of the Chandelier during busy weekend nights—is wrapping up a similar cosmetic upgrade that includes USB ports and power outlets to keep the party well-charged. Most importantly, the stellar cocktails and service remain intact. Because even a three-story chandelier needs a solid foundation.
Anthony Mair/Courtesy
evolution
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ight around Thanksgiving, Raiding the Rock Vault celebrated its 1,000th show at Vinyl inside the Hard Rock Hotel at the same time as its fifth anniversary—the epic musical assault originally debuted in 2012 at LA’s Mayan Theater. The dual special occasions were marked by a week of performances that included past and present band membersand, for the first time ever, encores—because you can never get enough rock. If you missed the celebration, don’t
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fret. Raiding the Rock Vault carries on at full stream into the new year, with shows Saturday through Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. in the Hard Rock’s intimate music hall. The show’s rotating cast of all-star musicians—Heart guitarist Howard Leese, Bon Jovi bassist Hugh McDonald, Asia and Yes drummer Jay Schellen, REO Speedwagon guitarist Dave Amato, Quiet Riot singer Paul Shortino and many more—brings classic rock’s greatest hits to life during every performance, tunes from The Rolling Stones, The Who, Jimi Hen-
drix, Led Zeppelin, Fleetwood Mac, Queen, U2, Aerosmith, Van Halen, AC/DC, Whitesnake and more. The music is embedded in the DNA of this legendary Las Vegas destination, which makes Raiding the Rock Vault a perfect fit for the Hard Rock Hotel.
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curtain up
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veryone knows the Las Vegas Strip offers one of the most dynamic restaurant landscapes in the world, but only locals and sharp visitors understand the delicious evolution of the off-Strip food scene. Today, well-known celebrity chefs are getting off Las Vegas Boulevard and into the neighborhood—Summerlin, to be specific. Wolfgang Puck already operates a restaurant at Downtown Summerlin, and now Chopped favorite Scott Conant is getting ready to open Masso Osteria at Red Rock Resort in February. “I feel like Las Vegas is one of the prime restaurant markets in the country, and I believe in it from a business perspective,” says Conant, who previously opened Scarpetta and D.O.C.G. at the Cosmopolitan. “But I’ve also spent a lot of time ingratiating myself there. It’s been eight years since I [started in Vegas]. My daughter learned to walk in Vegas while I was opening there. It’s a special place to me.” Conant says he’s excited to be part of a new wave of restaurant
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developments at Station Casinos properties, which includes his famous friend Michael Symon, who is working on a restaurant at the Palms and helped connect Conant to the company. Masso, Conant says, will be somewhere between Scarpetta and D.O.C.G., “a little more casual with a very approachable design.” He’s taking the space of the former Salute restaurant, which has a striking exposed kitchen and wood-fired grill, of which he plans to take full advantage. “I think we’ll do a lot of grilled items and wood-roasted items, and I have to have a flatbreads section on the menu,” Conant says. “I want to have a nice wine bar section in the front space. Overall, I want people to feel comfortable whether it’s a special occasion or drinks and bites after work. I’m looking for a sense of conviviality.” –Brock Radke
Download Sizzle from the app store for an exclusive Rock & Reilly’s experience >
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astronomy reaches its absolute pinnacle at Guy Savoy’s legendary Caesars Palace dining room, a Las Vegas institution since the iconic chef’s debut on the Strip in 2006. Savoy’s restaurant in Paris was just named the best restaurant in the world by La Liste, which uses an algorithm that factors in international dining guides, reservations and reviews to tally its list of 1,000 top destinations. Like its French counterpart, the Caesars Palace location is known for precise presentation and beautifully decadent dishes, served with the highest at-
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tention to detail. The recently unveiled winter menu offers the opportunity for yet another memorable masterpiece of a meal, crafted by executive chef Julien Asseo under the master Savoy’s watchful direction. New options include langoustine with dashi, hibiscus and Osetra caviar; Mediterranean red mullet with toasted fregula sarda, cured lemon and jus cores; seared foie gras with crispy tamanishiki rice, sea urchin and tangerine gastrique; grilled veal sweet bread with crispy hazelnut milk skin and mushroom extraction; and roasted California squab
with cabbage chartreuse and bitter chocolate squab jus. There simply isn’t another dining experience like Guy Savoy, and in the season of celebrations, there’s no better place for the ultimate one. Restaurant Guy Savoy at Caesars Palace, 702-731-7286; WednesdaySunday 5:30-9:30 p.m.
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t’s been said Las Vegas needs professional sports, or a thriving arts and culture community, or a more diverse economy in order to become a truly great city. But we believe there’s something else that defines a major metropolis, something simple yet necessary, and Vegas has its very own version—street food. The Strip is more than the most wellknown street in Las Vegas; it’s our main artery. And it’s stacked with our own over-the-top version of street food—delicious offerings that put a taco truck or hot dog cart to shame.
Take a stroll down the “side street” known as the Linq Promenade and take your pick from fish and chips (from Gordon Ramsay), classic pastrami (from Canter’s Deli), gourmet dogs, cheesy slices or sushi burritos, just to name a few. And now that there’s an In-N-Out Burger along the Linq—the first on the Strip—the collection is complete. Midwest, East Coast and international visitors have been getting their In-N-Out fix in Las Vegas for years; now the exalted Double-Double beckons from an even more convenient location. Do they even need to go to California anymore?
c o u r t e s y PHO T O
hot plate
As it does everything else, the Strip handles street food in a glitzy and delicious way. It doesn’t get any more major than that. In-N-Out Burger at the Linq Promenade, 800-786-1000; Sunday-Thursday 10:30-1 a.m., Friday & Saturday 10:30-1:30 a.m.
ON SALE NOW THE ORIGINAL MISFITS
WITH ALKALINE TRIO AND FEAR MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA
THUR, DEC 28
MAROON 5 MANDALAY BAY EVENTS CENTER
DEC 30 & 31
PITBULL TIME OF OUR LIVES THE AXIS @ PLANET HOLLYWOOD
JAN 17-27 & APR 27 – MAY 12
STYX & DON FELDER RENEGADES IN THE FAST LANE 2 THE VENETIAN THEATRE
JAN 26 – FEB 3
BACKSTREET BOYS LARGER THAN LIFE
THE AXIS @ PLANET HOLLYWOOD
JAN 31 – FEB 17
CHICAGO THE VENETIAN THEATER
FEBRUARY 7-24
B U Y T I C K E T S A T L I V E N A T I O N .C O M
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ver the past two years, Dizzy Wright has written and recorded more music than some musicians create in an entire decade. His latest releases—The Golden Age 2 and State of Mind 2, followups to 2013 and 2014 albums, respectively—are grounded in conscious, thought-provoking perspectives shaped by his upbringing in the desert, an affinity for smoking weed and passionate, personal-is-political lyrics.
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Wright says his back-to-back LPs are his way of helping people find their footing after a daunting year. “It’s about understanding yourself,” Wright says on the phone from Austin, Texas. “We’re all going through this universal transition of waking up and understanding things a little better.” Combining mindfulness with soulful beats and a casual delivery, Wright has become one of the most recognizable MCs in hip-hop’s underground, but he’s still famously anti-major label. “I’m not willing to make the kind of music other people want me to make,” he says. He spent most of this year on tour and in the studio,
and 2018 is setting up for more of the same. But first, he’ll wrap up a recording session in Austin—for a collaboration tentatively known as One Week Notice—and enjoy a homecoming of sorts at Brooklyn Bowl before hitting Colorado’s Magness Arena for New Year’s Eve. That will be followed by a 27date winter tour. “There’s nothing like being in a room full of creative people and coming up with a masterpiece. That feeling is amazing,” Wright says. “I just want to get the city involved and let them know this music is coming from a spirit that was raised in the city we all love.” Dizzy Wright at Brooklyn Bowl at the Linq Promenade, December 29. –Leslie Ventura
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CH ATEAU 12/29 DJ Dre Dae. 12/30 DJ Bayati. 1/3 DJ Strip. 1/4 DJs Bayati & Casanova. 1/5 DJ Eddey. 1/6 DJ ShadowRed. 1/10 DJ P-Jay. 1/11 DJs Bayati & Casanova. 1/12 DJ ShadowRed. 1/13 DJ Ted Morris. Paris, Wed-Sat, 702-7767770. DRAI’ S
intrigue courtesy wynn nightlife
12/28 DJ Esco. 12/29 Trey Songz. 12/30 Future. 12/31 Chris Brown. 1/12 DJ Esco. 1/13 Wiz Khalifa. 1/14 Ty Dolla $ign. Cromwell, Tue, Thu-Sun, 702-777-3800. EM BASSY 12/28 DJ Low. 12/29 DJ Animation. 12/30 DJ Fuzion. 12/31 New Year’s Eve Masquerade Ball with Sencilla Conexion. 3355 Procyon St., Thu-Sat, 702-609-6666. F O U NDATIO N
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12/29 Kay The Riot. 12/30 DJ Sam I Am. 12/31 Karma Never Felt So Good New Year’s Eve Party. 1/5 DJ Excel. 1/6 DJ D-Miles. 1/12 DJ Crooked. 1/13 DJ Joe Maz. Mandalay Bay, nightly, 702-632-7631. LIGHT H Y DE 12/29 DJ Ikon. 12/30 DJ Konflikt. 12/31 DJ Hollywood. Bellagio, nightly, 702-693-8700.
INTRIG U E 12/29 RL Grime. 12/30 Cheat Codes. 12/31 Marshmello. 1/5 Lost Kings. 1/10 Marshmello. 1/12 Flosstradamus. 1/13 Dillon Francis. Wynn, Thu-Sat, 702-770-7300.
12/29 Metro Boomin. 12/30 T-Pain. 12/31 Ludacris. 1/3 Kid Funk. 1/5 DJ J-Nice. 1/6 DJ E-Rock. 1/10 Rick Ross. 1/12 DJ E-Rock. Mandalay Bay, Wed, Fri-Sat, 702-632-4700. MARQUEE 12/29 Galantis. 12/30 DJ Mustard. 12/31 French Montana. 1/1 DJ Mustard. 1/5 Oliver Heldens. 1/6 DJ Mustard. 1/8 French Montana. 1/12 Vice. 1/13 French Montana. Cosmopolitan, Mon, FriSat, 702-333-9000.
TAO 12/28 DJ Five. 12/29 Enferno. 12/30 Jermaine Dupri. 12/31 Gucci Mane. 1/4 DJ Five. 1/6 Justin Credible. 1/11 DJ Mustard. 1/12 Ruckus. 1/13 Enferno. Venetian, Thu-Sat, 702-3888588. XS 12/29 Marshmello. 12/30 Diplo. 12/31 The Chainsmokers. 1/1 Diplo. 1/5 Marshmello. 1/6 The Chainsmokers. 1/7 Marshmello. 1/9 The Chainsmokers. 1/11 Kygo. 1/12 Diplo. 1/13 The Chainsmokers. 1/14 Marshmello. Encore, FriMon, 702-770-0097.
NEW GUESTS RECEIVE 10% OFF* *Must mention LVW. Some restrictions apply.
COMPLIMENTARY AREA OF LASER Mention
NEW-ME $1,250 VALUE
*Cannot be combined with any other offer. Must be booked before 1/15/18.
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12/31 Rhythm Nation. 1/20 Najee. 2/17 The Special EFX All Stars. 2/24 Average White Band. 3/10 Russ Freeman & The Rippingtons. 3/24 Blue Öyster Cult. Aliante Casino, 702692-7777.
TH E
AX IS
12/28-12/31 Britney Spears. 1/17-1/27 Pitbull. 1/31-2/17 Backstreet Boys. 2/21-3/3 Jennifer Lopez. 3/9-3/17 Lionel Richie. 3/24-4/21 Jennifer Lopez. 4/27-4/28 Pitbull. Planet Hollywood, 702-777-6737.
B R O O K LY N
BOWL
12/29 Dizzy Wright. 12/31 Ja Rule & Ashanti. 1/6 Another Journey. 1/16 K. Flay. 1/17 G3. 2/1 Rebel Souljahz. 2/7 Fetty Wap. 2/9 Stick Figure & Twiddle. 2/13 Lettuce. 2/16 Tribal Seeds. 2/22 Dark Star Orchestra. 2/27 Celebrating David Bowie. 3/14 Donavon Frankenreiter. 3/15 Hippie Sabotage. 3/24 Ministry. 3/27 Galactic. 3/30 The Darkness. 3/31 Senses Fail. 4/7 3LAU. 4/10 Nightwish. Linq Promenade, 702-862-2695.
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12/28-1/6 Paul Shaffer & The Shaf-Shifters. Caesars Palace, 702-731-7333.
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12/30-1/20 Celine Dion. 1/31-2/3 Van Morrison. 2/9-3/2 Elton John. 3/9-3/10 Jerry Seinfeld. 3/14-3/24 Reba, Brooks & Dunn. 3/27-4/18 Celine Dion. 4/15 Sebastian Maniscalco. 4/204/21 Jerry Seinfeld. Caesars Palace, 866-2275938. DOWNTOWN LAS VEGAS EVENTS CENTER 12/29-12/30 Boys Noize & Gorgon City. 4/204/21 Las Rageous. 200 S. Third St., 800-7453000.
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1/6 The King Symphonic. Green Valley Ranch Resort, 702-617-7777. H OU S E
BLU E S
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1/10-1/20 John Fogerty. 1/26-1/31 The Moody Blues. 2/7-2/24 Diana Ross. 2/28-3/10 Elvis Costello. 4/27-4/28 Mel Brooks. Wynn, 702770-9966. T HE
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12/30 The Dan Band. 12/31 Pennywise. 1/6 Holiday Hangover. 1/12-1/13 Marilyn Manson. 1/14 The Minimalists. 1/24-2/3 Santana. 1/25 Gilberto Santa Rosa. 2/8 Jeezy. 2/10 Judah & The Lion. 2/17 Beth Hart. 2/18 Theory of a Deadman. 2/23 Black Label Society. 2/25 Josh Turner. 3/1 Machine Head. 3/2 Black Veil Brides & Asking Alexandria. 3/3 Walk Off the Earth. 3/6 K. Michelle. 3/9 Stone Temple Pilots. 3/10 PVRS. 3/17 Psychedlic Furs. 3/24 J Boog. 3/27 Michael Schenker Fest. Mandalay Bay, 702-632-7600. T H E
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FOUN DRY
1/7 Markiplier. 1/12 Tracy Morgan. 1/20 The National. 1/27 AVN Awards Show. 2/2-2/3 Incubus. 2/23-3/3 Nickelback. 2/28 A Day to Remember. 3/8 Datsik. 3/16-3/17 Kenny Chesney. 3/30-3/31 Incubus. Hard Rock Hotel, 702-693-5000. M A N D A L AY B AY EVENTS CENTER
1/12 Dylan Scott. SLS, 702-761-7617. 12/29 Zac Brown Band. 12/30 Duran Duran. 12/31 Foo Fighters. 1/12-1/13 Willie Nelson & Family. 1/20 Spoon. 1/27 Adam Sandler. 2/16 Queens of the Stone Age. 2/17 Cake. 3/9 Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. 4/13 Portugal. The Man. Cosmopolitan, 702-698-6797.
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1/20 John Waite. 1/27 Dennis Wise. Santa Fe Station, 702-658-4900.
GOLDEN N UGGET SHOW ROOM 12/29 Loverboy. 1/5 Lita Ford. 1/12 Rick Derringer. 1/19 The Association. 1/26 Ambrosia. 2/2 Eddie Money. 2/9 America. 2/16 Orleans. 2/23 Tonic. 3/9 Grand Funk Railroad. 3/16 Tommy James & The Shondells. 3/23 Jeffrey Osborne. Golden Nugget, 866946-5336.
12/30-12/31 Maroon 5. 2/16 Lana Del Rey. 3/24 Kid Rock. Mandalay Bay, 702-632-7777. MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA 12/28 The Original Misfits. 2/3 The Killers. 2/10 Shakira. 3/3 Demi Lovato. MGM Grand, 702-521-3826.
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1/26 Gran Concierto Baile. 1/27 Latin Hip-Hop Comedy Jam. 2/10 Love Affair Concert with GQ, Zapp, Atlantic Starr & more. 3/7-3/10 WAC Tournament. 3/22-3/24 Stellar Gospel Music Awards. Orleans, 702-365-7469.
O R L E ANS
SH OWRO O M
1/13 38 Special. 1/20 Lil Duval. 2/10-2/11 Engelbert Humperdinck. Orleans, 702-365-7111.
PA RK
TH EATER
12/30-12/31 Bruno Mars. 1/12-1/13 Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. 1/14 Katt Williams. 2/142/19 Bruno Mars. 2/25 G-Eazy. 3/10-3/11 311. 3/15-3/25 Ricky Martin. Monte Carlo, 844-6007275. TH E
RAIL H EAD
1/4 Rick Estrin & The Nightcats. 1/18 Tommy Castro. 2/15 Tinsley Ellis. Boulder Station, 702432-7777. R O CKS
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1/20 My Favorite Murder. 1/26 Richard Cheese. Red Rock Resort, 702-797-7777.
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12/28 Frankie Moreno. 1/19-1/20 Norm Macdonald. 1/26-1/28 Capitol Steps. 2/92/11 Atlantic City Boys. 2/16-2/18 Herman’s Hermits. 2/23-2/24 Dennis DeYoung. South Point, 702-796-7111.
TE R RY
FATO R
TH EAT ER
12/29 Joe Rogan. 12/30 Jay Leno. 1/12-1/14 Gabriel Iglesias. 1/19-1/21 Boyz II Men. 1/19-1/21 John Mulaney. 1/26 Jay Leno. 1/27 Tim Allen. 2/2-2/3 Daniel Tosh. 2/9-2/10 Ron White. 2/162/17 Jim Jeffries. 2/18 Tiffany Haddish. 2/232/24 David Spade & Ray Romano. 2/23-2/25 Boyz II Men. 3/2-3/3 Tim Allen. 3/9-3/10 Bill Maher. 3/16-3/17 Daniel Tosh. 3/23-3/24 George Lopez. 3/29-3/31 Gabriel Iglesias. 4/64/7 David Spade & Ray Romano. 4/6-4/8 Boyz II Men. 4/13-4/14 Daniel Tosh. 4/13-4/15 Boyz II Men. 4/20-4/21 Ron White. 4/20-4/22 Boyz II Men. 4/27-4/29 Boyz II Men. 4/27 Tiffany Haddish. Mirage, 702-792-7777.
T-MOBILE
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12/30 UFC 219. 1/5-1/6 Ice Vegas Invitational. 1/20 Katy Perry. 1/27 Calibash with Jennifer Lopez, Luis Fonsi, Maluma & more. 2/2-2/3 George Strait. 2/25 WWE Elimination Chamber. 3/3 UFC 222. 3/7-3/10 Pac-12 Tournament. 3780 Las Vegas Blvd. S., 702692-1600. TOPGOLF 12/28 Dead Winter Carpenters. 4627 Koval Lane, 702-933-8458.
VEN E T I AN
T H E AT R E
1/24-1/25 Jeff Foxworthy. 1/26-2/3 Styx & Don Felder. 2/7-2/24 Chicago. Venetian, 702-4149000. VI N Y L 12/29 Firehouse. 2/3 Tonight Alive & Silverstein. 2/9 Lights. 2/15 Poppy Computer Tour. 3/4 Of Mice & Men. 3/16 Fortunate Youth. 4/2 Knuckle Punk. Hard Rock Hotel, 702-693-5000.
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When it comes to real Mexican tacos, nobody does it better than Roberto’s Taco Shop. Celebrating over 54 years of goodness, Roberto’s was voted best tacos in Las Vegas time and time again. With over 10 million tacos sold on just 99- cent taco Wednesdays alone, proves Las Vegans just can’t get enough of those fat, juicy, crunchy tacos that Roberto’s has been known for since 1964.
“Real Mexican Food You Like“ 52 Convenient locations! www.robertostacoshop.com
55 las vegas weekly 12.28.17
5. The Buffet at Bellagio Long a buffet standard-bearer, Bellagio just added a selection of dishes from other resort restaurants, like chicken pad Thai from Noodles and Sardinian gnocchetti with pork sausage from Lago. 866-259-7111. (Jon Estrada/Special to the Weekly)
Arts & entertainment Casino buffets worth the gorge
The Weekly 5
1. The Buffet at Aria
2. Bacchanal Buffet
3. Studio B Buffet
4. The Buffet at Wynn
One of the most diverse buffets on the Strip boasts a raw bar, an extensive selection of Asian soups and dim sum and a Tandoor oven for fresh-baked naan bread. 702-590-8630.
From smoked meats to delicate desserts—and VIP reservation packages with specialty seafood towers—this feast is still the most talkedabout buffet in Las Vegas. Caesars Palace, 702-731-7928.
The locals’ favorite is known for its weekend seafood dinners and Friday prime rib brunch, along with stellar service and friendly prices. M Resort, 702-797-1000.
Is the buffet as fancy as everything else at Wynn? Of course. And with 15 cooking stations, a rotisserie and imported charcuterie, it tastes as good as it looks. 702-7703340. –Brock Radke
56 las vegas weekly 12.28.17
Comedy Captain LA to Vegas creator Lon Zimmet on putting together TV’s newest Sin City series By Josh Bell V veteran Lon Zimmet’s writing and producing credits include Happy Endings, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and Scrubs, and he’s the creator and executive producer behind the new Fox comedy LA to Vegas, set on the weekly Friday and Sunday flights between LA and Las Vegas. The LA resident, who calls Vegas “just one of my favorite places to be,” spoke to the Weekly about his show’s origins and its connections to our city.
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What’s your personal experience with visiting Las Vegas? When I first moved out to LA, it was right when ESPN starting airing the World Series of Poker, so a lot of people started getting very into poker. And luckily for me, my father was a huge card player, so I grew up playing cards. So I discovered that as Vegas was blowing up with people getting interested in poker [who] had no idea how to play, I could get in there and make some money playing them.
When you were making those trips, did you see some of the same passengers and flight crew each time, as on the show? You definitely see the same sorts of people. You start to recognize the types—the people flying out just to gamble, the people flying out just to get unbelievably messed up for the weekend, the people flying out to be strippers, which is the big thing on the LA to Vegas route. Only on the flight from Vegas back to LA do you randomly sit next to the politest porn star in the world offering to give you some water. Is there any chance you’ll get to shoot in Vegas this season? Probably not this season. Hopefully we’ll be a huge hit, and then they’ll open up the purse and then we can come to Vegas for a month and do all of our things.
Are there any Vegas movies or TV shows that inspired you? Nothing that’s directly inspired this [show]. I love The Hangover, and I feel like I watched National Lampoon’s Vegas Vacation at a time that was impressionable for me, so that a lot more of that movie than I expected has stuck with me. But no, I feel like there haven’t been, in the last 15 years—aside from The Hangover—really iconic Vegas movies or TV shows. So hopefully we can encapsulate at least some of that. How involved are executive producers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay? They weighed in a lot during the pilot, as far as casting-type stuff. They were very helpful. Now they’ve been extremely supportive in putting weight behind whatever they’ve needed to, but mostly it’s been kind of hands-off and trusting us to do it and letting us do our thing.
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CALL WAITING
9-1-1 DIALS UP A STANDARD PROCEDURAL
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Kim Matula and Dylan McDermott fly the friendly skies. (Fox/Courtesy)
Main character Ronnie (Kim Matula) is a likable flight attendant with typical sitcom problems (unlucky in love, stuck in a deadend job), and she provides a solid, grounded contrast to the broader supporting characters, including recognizable faces Dylan McDermott Anyone who’s made the flight between LA and Las as a smarmy, overconfident pilot and Peter Vegas, especially on a particularly busy holiday Stormare as a sleazy but well-meaning gambler. weekend, knows that it’s full of colorful, sometimes Ronnie’s will-they-or-won’t-they dynamic with obnoxious characters, and the new sitcom a handsome divorced professor (Ed AABCC Weeks) who travels to see his son every LA to Vegas attempts to mine that LA TO VEGAS for laughs, with mixed results. week is pretty tired, and the character Tuesdays, 9 p.m., The show’s regular cast is split relationships haven’t quite come toFox. Premieres January 2. between employees of the fictiongether in the three episodes available al Jackpot Airlines for review. and passengers With jokes about strippers, quickie who make frequent trips weddings and niche conventions, the show ceron the bargain flights tainly doesn’t have a sophisticated or original between the two title cities, take on Vegas. Its take on air travel is slightly and its humor is equally broad fresher, but for the most part it occupies the whether addressing air travel or same sitcom level as the budget airline for life in Las Vegas. which its characters work. –Josh Bell
BUMPY FLIGHT AIRLINE SITCOM LA TO VEGAS DELIVERS A ROUGH RIDE
Prolific TV producer Ryan Murphy is known for pushing the envelope, from his hyperactive teen dramas (Popular, Glee) to his candy-coated takes on horror (American Horror Story, Scream Queens) to his tabloidadjacent docudrama anthologies (American Crime Story, Feud). So it’s a bit odd to see his name as co-creator and executive producer (along with AHS collaborators Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear) of 9-1-1, the kind of generic ensemble procedural that broadcast networks use as reliable scheduling spackle. There’s little in 9-1-1 to set it apart from shows like Dick Wolf’s NBC Chicago franchise or the many long-running CBS crime series. Murphy’s cachet does afford the show a pretty impressive cast, including Connie Britton as a 911 emergency operator, Angela Bassett as a nononsense police officer and Peter Krause as a compassionate firefighter. Britton’s Abby Clark ties the show together, dispatching first responders to a variety of emergencies, some of which get a slightly outlandish Murphy tweak (a woman is being choked to death … by her pet snake!). At least in the first episode (the only one available for review), Abby doesn’t actually interact with the rest of the cast, which is a little awkward, and the detours into the characters’ personal lives are a little overwrought. But the cases are fine for the genre, and 9-1-1 seems like an acceptable time-passer for procedural fans. From Ryan Murphy, though, that qualifies as an anomaly. –Josh Bell
AABCC 9-1-1 Wednesdays, 9 p.m., Fox. Premieres January 3.
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Special screenings Doctor Who: Twice Upon a Time 12/28, Doctor Who Christmas special plus bonus features, 7 p.m., $10.50-$12.50. Select theaters. Info: fathomevents.com. Sci Fi Center Mon, Cinemondays, 8 p.m., free. 12/30, Insidious trilogy, 6 p.m., $2.50-$5. 12/31, New Year’s Eve movie marathon, 2 p.m.-midnight, $10. 5077 Arville St., 855-501-4335, thescificenter.com.
New this week Gandarrappido!: The Revenger Squad (Not reviewed) Vice Ganda, Daniel Padilla, Pia Wurtzbach. Directed by Joyce Bernal. 111 minutes. Not rated. In Filipino with English subtitles. A superhero team reveals itself after its latest member manifests his powers. Orleans. The Liquidator (Not reviewed) Chao Deng, Ethan Juan, Shi Shi Liu. Directed by Xu Jizhou. 126 minutes. Not rated. In Mandarin with English subtitles. A serial killer targets people who’ve been acquitted of controversial crimes. Town Square.
The Disaster Artist aaacc James Franco, Dave Franco, Alison Brie. Directed by James Franco. 103 minutes. Rated PG-13. Franco’s film about the making of notorious cult movie The Room is more of a loving tribute than an exposé. People unfamiliar with The Room may be underwhelmed by this mildly affecting story of friendship among misfits, but Franco packs the cast with enough comedy ringers to make the movie consistently amusing. –JB Green Valley Ranch, Palms, Santa Fe Station, South Point, Suncoast. Downsizing aaccc Matt Damon, Christoph Waltz, Hong Chau. Directed by Alexander Payne. 135 minutes. Rated R. This sprawling sci-fi story (in which people voluntarily shrink themselves to a few inches in height in order to help both the environment and their own financial security) is part satire, part domestic drama, part political commentary, and almost all a disjointed mess. At 135 minutes, it’s like several misguided movies strung together. –JB Theaters citywide. Father Figures (Not reviewed) Ed Helms, Owen Wilson, Glenn Close. Directed by Lawrence Sher. 113 minutes. Rated R. After learning that their mother had been lying to them about their supposedly deceased father, two brothers set out to find him. Theaters citywide.
Now playing
Ferdinand aaccc Voices of John Cena, Kate McKinnon, Bobby Cannavale. Directed by Carlos Saldanha. 106 minutes. Rated PG. This loose adaptation of the beloved children’s book features Cena voicing the title character, a kind-hearted, nature-loving, non-confrontational bull who shuns fighting. The jokes are mostly painful, the voice work is perfunctory and the story’s themes are muddled. Even the animation and character designs are second-rate. –JB Theaters citywide.
All the Money in the World aaabc Michelle Williams, Mark Wahlberg, Christopher Plummer. Directed by Ridley Scott. 132 minutes. Rated R. Scott’s slick, tense film about the 1973 kidnapping of J. Paul Getty III is sometimes overly concerned with laying out every detail of the case, but it features a number of taut, suspenseful set pieces and strong performances from Williams (as the kidnapped teen’s mother) and Plummer (as his wealthy, miserly grandfather). –JB Theaters citywide.
The Greatest Showman aabcc Hugh Jackman, Michelle Williams, Zac Efron. Directed by Michael Gracey. 105 minutes. Rated PG. As sugary and insubstantial as cotton candy, this old-fashioned musical turns the life of circus pioneer P.T. Barnum (Jackman) into an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza that bears essentially no resemblance to reality. It’s a cloyingly inspirational story about following your dreams, with bombastic, overproduced songs that sound more like modern pop than Broadway standards. –JB Theaters citywide.
Coco aaabc Voices of Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt. Directed by Lee Unkrich. 109 minutes. Rated PG. Young Miguel gets trapped in the land of the dead during the Mexican Dia de los Muertos holiday in Pixar’s bright, familyfriendly animated movie. Miguel’s quest is a mostly simple story about family bonds, but the journey is still well worth taking, thanks to the gorgeously realized world. –JB Theaters citywide.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle aaacc Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, Karen Gillan. Directed by Jake Kasdan. 119 minutes. Rated PG-13. This quasi-sequel to 1995’s Jumanji boasts a fresh take on the central premise (changing the jungle-adventure board game that comes to life into a video game that pulls players inside its world), some surprisingly sharp writing and a talented, enthusiastic cast with genuine chemistry. –JB Theaters citywide.
Youth (Not reviewed) Huang Xuan, Miao Miao, Zhong Chuxi. Directed by Feng Xiaogang. 137 minutes. Not rated. In Mandarin with English subtitles. The members of a Chinese performing-arts troupe experience personal upheavals over a period of two decades starting in the 1970s. Town Square.
Darkest Hour aaacc Gary Oldman, Lily James, Ben Mendelsohn. Directed by Joe Wright. 125 minutes. Rated PG-13. Oldman’s astounding transformation into Winston Churchill is Darkest Hour’s main selling point, but there’s compelling drama in its portrait of the prime minister’s crucial first weeks on the job, as he orchestrates the evacuation of Dunkirk and is pressured to negotiate with Hitler. Too bad an invented sequence toward the end shamelessly betrays history. –MD Green Valley Ranch, Suncoast, Town Square, Texas Station.
Justice League aabcc Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Ezra Miller. Directed by Zack Snyder. 121 minutes. Rated PG-13. This team-up of DC’s biggest superheroes is a simple, streamlined superhero story, with one hero (Affleck’s Batman) gathering others (including Wonder Woman and Aquaman) to take on a world-ending threat. The action is rote, the special effects are surprisingly poor, and the character interactions are only occasionally entertaining. –JB Theaters citywide.
(From left) Brittany Snow, Anna Kendrick and Rebel Wilson get ready to sing in Pitch Perfect 3. (Universal Pictures/Courtesy)
Lady Bird aaabc Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Beanie Feldstein. Directed by Greta Gerwig. 93 minutes. Rated R. Gerwig’s solo writing and directing debut follows many of the familiar beats of the teenage coming-of-age story, but Gerwig gives it a personal specificity that sets it apart, depicting the sullen, sensitive title character (Ronan) with a low-key authenticity and a sharp (but not unrealistic) wit. –JB Green Valley Ranch, Village Square. Molly’s Game aaabc Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costner. Directed by Aaron Sorkin. 140 minutes. Rated R. Chastain’s Molly Bloom is a prime Sorkin protagonist, a type-A overachiever who makes millions of dollars running underground poker games for the ultra-wealthy. Based on the real-life Bloom’s memoir, the smart, witty movie charts her rise and fall, and is more entertaining at its dizzying heights than at its sometimes heavy-handed emotional lows. –JB South Point, Town Square. Pitch Perfect 3 aaccc Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow. Directed by Trish Sie. 93 minutes. Rated PG-13. What was once a light, fun comedy about college a cappella singers (now reunited for a USO tour) has turned into a globe-trotting espionage story, complete with action sequences. The mess of half-formed subplots, useless new characters and underwhelming musical numbers prove that the filmmakers are thoroughly out of ideas. –JB Theaters citywide. The Shape of Water aaacc Sally Hawkins, Richard Jenkins, Michael Shannon. Directed by Guillermo del Toro. 123 minutes. Rated R. A mute woman falling in love with a sea monster sounds like the storyline for a bad B-movie, not a sensitive and visually accomplished fantasy drama. But del Toro manages to make that premise into something beautiful and
occasionally moving, if not quite as emotionally rich as it aims to be. –JB Select theaters. Star Wars: The Last Jedi aaacc Daisy Ridley, John Boyega, Adam Driver. Directed by Rian Johnson. 152 minutes. Rated PG-13. The second installment in the Star Wars sequel trilogy offers less comforting familiarity, but writer-director Johnson doesn’t quite have a handle on how to take the beloved sci-fi franchise effectively into (relatively) uncharted territory. He does his best work when he stops trying for narrative complexity and just stages some cool outer-space action. –JB Theaters citywide. Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri aabcc Frances McDormand, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson. Directed by Martin McDonagh. 115 minutes. Rated R. McDonagh’s third film, starring McDormand as the outraged mother of a murdered teen, is quite taken with its own cleverness, to the detriment of storytelling and characterization. The strong performances smooth over some of the rough spots, but not enough to make up for the shifts in motivation and tone. –JB Green Valley Ranch, Sam’s Town, Suncoast. Wonder aaacc Jacob Tremblay, Julia Roberts, Owen Wilson. Directed by Stephen Chbosky. 113 minutes. Rated PG. Adapted from R.J. Palacio’s 2012 children’s book about a 10-year- old boy (Room’s Tremblay) born with facial disfigurements, Wonder observes the fallout when his parents (Roberts and Wilson) finally decide it’s time for him to attend school with his peers. It’s partly a complex drama, partly an earnest anti-bullying PSA. –MD Select theaters. JB Josh Bell; MD Mike D’Angelo For complete movie listings, visit lasvegasweekly.com/movie-listings.
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One last look back Shining a light on some of 2017’s underappreciated gems he B Side: Elsa Dorfman’s Portrait Photography This documentary is as spare as it gets—just a Boston-based photographer in her studio, going through boxes of old photographs, telling stories about famous friends and her family. Coming from the legendary Errol Morris (The Thin Blue Line, The Fog of War), it might even feel a bit fluffy. But aside from being an utterly adorable character, Dorfman is an endangered species: an 80-year-old bohemian whose signature craft—a large-format Polaroid camera that’s bigger than she is—has been rendered obsolete. It’s not quite as sad as that Nat Geo video of the emaciated polar bear looking for food on iceless land, but it’s close. American Witness: The Art and Life of Robert Frank If Elsa Dorfman doesn’t fit the serious-artist Cultural attachment mold (a lovable person who takes pictures of people smiling?!), by smith photographer Frank is the perennial galtney iconoclast—a creator of eternally influential work (The Americans), who steadfastly refuses to be defined by his past. In the intro to this solid biography, RJ Smith tells a younger person of Frank’s distrust of money, how he’s altered the course of his life to avoid repeating himself, all at great cost. “Wow,” the young person
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A country for old men? Blade Runner 2049. (Courtesy)
responds. “People my age don’t understand that at all.” Who knew Robert Frank’s life was even more inspiring than his work? Saint Etienne, Home Counties Long before Spotify turned everyone and their great aunts into eclectic tastemakers there was Saint Etienne, the London trio whose early-’90s golden period paired hip-hop and house with Dusty Springfield and Neil Young. The group returned this year to great fanfare from longtime devotees and … pretty much no one else, which is just fine. Music this pure and blissful sounds even sweeter when it feels like a secret. Jens Lekman, Life Will See You Now Take these lyrics: “At Babak’s school, there is a 3D printer/And he prints out a model of the tumor/That was surgically removed from his back this winter/And it’s rugged gray plastic, it looks lunar/He puts the tumor in his breast pocket/As we head out for a beer.” Now sing them to a meaty, candy-coated disco beat. Suddenly all that LCD psychobabble about haircuts and aging sounds a tad trifling, don’t it?
Jonathan Groff in Mindhunter Okay, so a lot of people watched this Netflix series, and maybe it doesn’t belong on this list, but I’m still not convinced it got the attention it deserves. Jonathan Groff helps us forget about his star turns in Looking and Hamilton by creating one of TV’s iciest, most peculiar and weirdly boyish FBI agents ever. And Cameron Britton as serial killer Edmund Kemper deserves every award he can get. I’m still shuddering from his speech about the pros and cons of throat muscles. Blade Runner 2049 I walked out of Wonder Woman wondering what all the fuss was about. I thought the special effects were sterile, Gal Gadot was boring and it all went on too damn long. While watching this, though, I was transfixed. As the end credits rolled, I thought, “That was the smartest, most-beautiful, least-sanitized-looking blockbuster I’ve seen in eons.” Then I turned on my phone and got a news alert: “Blade Runner misfires, only appeals to older males.” So I’m officially an old man now. Thanks, 2017.
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60 las vegas weekly 12.28.17
noise
From left, Jerry Only, Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein and Glenn Danzig, together again. (AP Photo/Photo Illustration by Ian Racoma/Staff)
Night of the living dead Five reasons to catch the reunited (Original) Misfits By Ian Caramanzana e’ll keep this introduction brief: You need to see the Misfits. The seminal New Jersey quartet exploded onto the scene in 1977— shocking the punk scene with horror-film themes and a sonic assault as melodic as it was brash. The sound was so unique, it influenced generations of bands, from Alkaline Trio (which will open Thursday’s show, along with Fear) and AFI to Metallica and Steve Aoki. We can think of a hundred reasons why you should catch the legendary band, but here are five to get you started …
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You’ll get a solid lineup. In their 40 years of existence, the Misfits have become a revolving door of fill-ins and guest musicians. Thankfully, the 2017 iteration will feature two key originals—frontman Glenn Danzig and bassist Jerry Only—along with longtime guitarist Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein, who was monumental in crafting the band’s aesthetic, both visually and sonically. Those three will be joined by Slayer drummer (and longtime fan) Dave Lombardo. The foursome came together for Riot Fest last year in Chicago, and has just one other 2017 gig scheduled: December 30 at LA’s Forum.
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They’re likely to perform hits from their The visuals should be massive, too. Even early catalog. When the horror-punk if you’ve never heard a single Misfits song, trailblazers played Riot Fest, Danzig handpicked you’ll surely recognize the band’s iconic “crimson a carousel of “hits from hell” for the occasion. ghost” logo. It first appeared as a character in the It was a journey through the Misfits’ defining 1946 horror serial The Crimson Ghost and has moments—songs that serve as anthems of the since popped up on clothes worn by celebrities like past and relics of the future. The Misfits rode Justin Bieber, Drake, Robert Pattinson and Lindsay through the boisterous “Die, Die My Darling,” Lohan. Expect a sea of fans sporting the logo, and, “Horror Business,” “Hybrid Moif the stage setup remains the same as ments” and 22 others—all from 1983 for the band’s Riot Fest reunion, the The Original or earlier. With Danzig at the helm crimson ghost to truly come to life. Misfits with Alkaline Trio, Fear. again, we can expect a similar setlist December 28, 8 p.m., You literally have to be there packed with fan favorites. $50-$160. in order to see it. Danzig, who MGM Grand Garden Arena, 702-891-1111. They’re playing an arena. And has been vocal about his disdain for one of the biggest in the city, amateur photography, has instituted a at that. Sure, we’ve witnessed other no-camera policy during his shows, and versions of the Misfits rock stages across the city this one will be no different. “Upon arrival at the from dive bars to Brooklyn Bowl, and we’ve been venue, all phones and smart watches will be secured able to catch solo sets from Danzig, Only and in Yondr cases that will be unlocked at the end of Frankenstein here and there. But it’ll be interestthe show.” That means if you’re there, you can focus ing to see how the songs—originally performed in on singing along or hitting the circle pit without basements, small venues and dives—translate to interference—but don’t expect to rewatch the show the big stage. later on YouTube.
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las vegas weekly 12.28.17
Sound Judgment
revival
No One Ever Really Dies
eminem abccc
N.E.R.d. aabcc
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The rap game has passed Eminem by. The Detroit rapper who took the world by storm in the late ’90s and early 2000s with his shock lyrics and ridiculous technical skill has now become the old man in the nightclub. Ninth studio album Revival is a painful slog, with Eminem attempting to present himself as a more mature version of his once-controversial self, but he merely comes off outdated and out of touch. Revival is filled with cringe-worthy punch lines (“Your booty is heavy duty like diarrhea”), out-of-place pop-star guests (Ed Sheeran, Pink) and uninspired production from a variety of big and smaller names. A decade ago, the old Eminem would have playfully trashed some of the folks with whom he’s currently working. Now, even his attempts to offer thoughtprovoking subject matter are derailed by underwhelming execution. Songs like the socially conscious “Untouchable”—about racial injustice—often suffer from witless lyricism, atrocious beat selection or both, spread over a bloated 19-track sequence. It’s evident that Eminem’s sober Revival came at a cost—the quality of his music. –Andreas Hale
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The rollout of N.E.R.D.’s fifth album was odd, to say the least. The hip-hop trio announced its comeback last month, with its first proper performance in three years at ComplexCon in Long Beach, California. Instead of playing its chart-topping hits, the group played its new album—the first in seven years—in full, billing the event as a “live listening party.” That spirit of ambition carries over to the music on No One Ever Really Dies. N.E.R.D. recruited some of hip-hop’s A-list for its return: Rihanna adds syncopated, staccato raps over rattling drums on first single “Lemon,” André 3000’s hovers over an experimental 808 passage in “Rollinem 7’s” and Kendrick Lamar provides two doses of politically charged fury on “Don’t Do It” and “Kites.” Speaking of politics, Pharrell proudly displays his newfound “woke” side this time around, singing anti-Trump sentiments over smooth piano (“Deep Down Body Thurst”) or dance-y art punk a la Talking Heads (“ESP”). The overall result? An incoherent project that finds the band losing its identity as it strives to expand its sound. –Ian Caramanzana
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46860 the D Andiamo LV Weekly Print Ad 2.0625x11.indd 12/8/17 1 5:16 PM
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Aunty Entity (Natalie Shipman) rules with an iron cowbell. (Miranda Alam/Special to Weekly)
STAGE
WEEKLY | 12.28.17
IMPROV TO THE MAX Class by class, Vegas Theatre Hub helps our city’s performers DEVELOP and grow By Geoff Carter t’s straight-up, post-apocalyptic improvisational comedy war tonight at Vegas Theatre Hub. The hardscrabble theater instruction school—housed in a former VFW hall across the street from the Neon Museum—is hosting “Funderdome,” a recurring Mad Max-themed improv night that has two teams of thirst-struck comics going head-tohead. Gags are deployed; bombs are alternately lit and defused. And Darren Pitura, garbed in a lacrosse helmet and carrying a bullwhip, is in the middle of it all. At one point, a sound cue goes off at the wrong moment—a whip-crack sound—and Pitura shrugs, “It just went off.” The nimble thinking that produced that quick, effortlessly funny throwaway is what Pitura, his partner Derek Shipman and their fellow instructors—Liz Allen, Shannan Calcutt, Philip Faiss, Paul Mattingly, Benedikt Negro and Derek’s wife Natalie Shipman, who’s playing Aunty Entity this evening—teach here at the Hub. Pitura, an on-
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call performer with Zumanity and, like Derek, a veteran of the Flamingo’s late, lamented Second City show, started doing this for just the reason you’d expect: because no one else was. “I realized that a lot of local performers here were going to LA to take workshops on their days off,” Pitura says. “After Second City left, improv slowly went away. There were drop-in classes here and there, but no leveled courses. You couldn’t really get from point A to point B.” Pitura, the Shipmans and the other instructors now offer three levels of improv classes through the Hub, along with courses in clowning, sketch writing, miming and even some advanced theater disciplines like bouffon. (Simply put, bouffon is a freewheeling, subversive, in-your-face style of clowning—think Sacha Baron Cohen.) Some of the Hub’s students are already working performers looking to widen their skill sets (“Cirque du Soleil comes here for some of their workshops, because a lot of the acrobats want to branch out,” Pitura says), but many are neophytes who want
the confidence that improv provides. “We’ve had people taking these courses that work at MGM in the catering department. There’s lawyers, there’s marketing people—and they’re all in the same classes with someone from Blue Man Group and someone from Cirque,” Pitura says. “I love seeing people come into that first class; they’re nervous and too awkward. A year later, they’re hopping up onstage every chance they can get.” Our chat ends when Pitura has to go crack the whip. But before he goes, he rolls out a carpet to the wasteland. “I like doing non-traditional theater, physical theater,” he says. “There’s traditional theater classes out there, but I wanted to do something different, like bouffon. People really don’t know what that is, but they take a chance, take a class, and they love it.”
Vegas Theatre Hub 705 Las Vegas Blvd. N., 702-569-9070.
D I N N E R I DA N C I N G I C O C K TA I L S SUNDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2017 6:00 PM – 10:00 PM
Tickets are available for purchase at the Westgate Box Office for $150 each, plus applicable taxes and fees. Ticket purchase includes entrance to the cocktail hour, dinner and 9:00 pm countdown. Must be 21 or older to purchase tickets and attend the NYE 2018 party. No refunds or exchanges on tickets purchased. Space is limited. Please visit the Westgate Box Office for tickets and event details.
64 LAS VEGAS WEEKLY 12.28.17
SEAFOOD TO SANDWICHES PLAYA PAPAGAYOS CELEBRATES REGIONAL MEXICAN CUISINE BY JIM BEGLEY
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idden away within the labyrinth of strip malls at Decatur and Sahara in the site of a onetime Baja Fresh dwells the unassuming Playa Papagayos. A SoCal import, Papagayos specializes in the cuisine of chef/owner Alberto Ocampo’s home state of Guerrero on the western coast of Mexico. Ranging from beachfronts overlooking the Pacific to mountainous regions, Guerrero’s diversity is reflected deliciously on Papagayos’ menu. From the sea, a variety of ceviche-laden tostadas are offered; the pulpo ($7) particularly impresses, avoiding the characteristic chewiness often found in octopus dishes. Orden de pescaditos ($9), modestly described by our delightful server as “fish sticks,” are so much better than the Gorton’s version. Lightly fried in beer batter and served with a duo of salsas— the roja is particularly potent—they’re a treat. The same fish is used for the pescado super taco ($3.50), where it’s generously garnished with cabbage and a dollop of crema. Landward, Papagayos delivers an outstanding rendition of chilaquiles verde con asada ($12). A swath of the menu is dedicated to huaraches— ovals of fried masa topped with smashed pintos, cheese and your choice of meats. The pambazo ($9) makes for a unique sandwich option, a glorious mess mixing chorizo and fried potatoes with queso blanco and crema inside a fried, saucedipped red guajillo pepper. And then there’s the Cubana Mexicana ($11). The pambazo might be more of a destination dish, you have to see the Cubana to truly believe it. It’s a beast of a dish, layering a quintet of meats—pork, ham, hot dog (affectionately referred to as wiener on the menu), breaded steak and Mexican sausage, with cheese for good measure—inside a flaky torta roll. It’s the stuff dreams are made of.
PLAYA PAPAGAYOS 4760 W. Sahara Ave. #21, 702-822-6691. Daily, 9 a.m.-9 p.m.
Playa Papagayos cooks up the stuff of blissful dreams. (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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food & Drink
las vegas weekly 12.28.17
A healthy evolution for Purple Potato
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A vegan falafel bowl from Hummus Bowls & Wraps. (Wade Vandervort/Staff)
As fresh as it gets
Hummus combines a scratch kitchen with a fast-casual approach
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Hummus Bowls & Wraps owner Najib Saab many options. First, choose your vessel—bowl or pita opened his Henderson fast-casual spot in wrap—then pick your hummus: creamy classic; spicy; a September to bring healthy and affordable paleo-friendly, bean-free “market” hummus made from Mediterranean food to the ’burbs. A far cry from Saab’s sesame seeds; or the eggplant-based baba ganoush. Lebanon-based Mexican restaurant, the concept evolved Next come the greens, followed by your choice of from years of healthy eating at home, he herbed rice or black lentils and then a pick says. “We just kind of grab whatever and put Hummus Bowls among proteins: flame-grilled chicken ($8) it all together, and it’s magic.” featuring a Saab family marinade, grilled & Wraps 10895 S. Eastern The detail that goes into Hummus’ menu beef ($9), braised Colorado lamb ($10), Ave. #100, 702feels anything but thrown together. There’s vegan falafel ($8), halloumi cheese ($8) and 778-6300. Daily, no freezer in the kitchen, and everything’s veggies ($7). 10 a.m.-10 p.m. made from scratch daily. Saab refuses to use The customization doesn’t end there. You canned ingredients, so each batch of humselect toppings, too—from feta to tabbouleh, mus is a three-day ordeal, starting simply with dried an apple-fennel salad and more. And make sure to chickpeas. The tahini? That’s flown in from Lebanon, load up on the scratch-made sauces before you go. I and the halloumi cheese gets imported from Cyprus. recommend mixing the muhammara (roasted pepEverything on the menu’s worth trying, though it per and walnut) with the hot chili harissa. You can might take you a few trips to work your way through the thank me later. –Leslie Ventura
If the name Purple Potato sounds familiar to local diners, that’s because it has been reincarnated. Originally the lunchtime alter ego of westside favorite Yonaka, Ramir De Castro’s healthy eatery got its start when he began to prepare family meals at that Japanese restaurant. “Everyone started liking it, and then we [thought], why don’t we just share it with other people,” he says, explaining how the lunch service attracted everyone from CEOs to students. “We thought, maybe we’re onto something. People were asking for a brick-and-mortar location, so ... there’s no harm in trying.” Purple Potato opened near the corner of Eastern and St. Rose in September as a stand-alone joint with a simple concept: Eating healthy doesn’t have to be bland or boring. “We want to make it taste good first, and then also have it be good for you,” says De Castro, whose top-selling items are salad bowls (starting at $8) with vegan options like falafel or mushrooms and tofu. There are also chef specialty bowls (starting at $8), for which you pick a protein along with other options like veggies, grains, toppings and dressings. The 1,300-square-foot restaurant seats around 30 people and offers everything from porridge bowls in the morning to sandwiches for lunch and dinner, along with freshly made muffins, cookies and more. Even desserts are created with a lighter approach—Japaneseinspired homemade treats that taste less sweet and intense. –Diana Edelman
Purple Potato 10090 S. Eastern Ave., 702-6857338. Daily, 10:30 a.m.-8:30 p.m.
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Complimentary Champagne Toast & Balloon Drop at Midnight Purchase tickets at the Silverton Box Office, by calling 702.263.7777 or online at silvertoncasino.com Must be 21 years of age or older. Bottomless drinks include Miller Lite draft beer, well cocktails and house wine at all casino bars.*Does not include all you can drink in the DJ Dance Party inside Veil Pavilion (which is a cash bar). Shots and super premium selections not included. Management reserves all rights.
New! WHITE CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY PANCAKE BREAKFAST
FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY ORDER ONLINE • 24/7 DELIVERY © 2017 DFO, LLC. Printed in the U.S.A. At participating restaurants for a limited time only. Selection and prices may vary. While supplies last.
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CALENDAR
LAS VEGAS WEEKLY 12.28.17
MUSIC
SoCal rockers Them Evils play Backstage Bar & Billiards on December 29. (Kaelan Barowsky/Courtesy)
ARTIFICE ’80s Retro Revival 12/30, 9 pm, free. 1025 S. 1st St., #A, 702-489-6339. ARTISAN HOTEL GRL 12/29, 7 pm, free. Neon New Yearzz 12/29-12/30, 11 pm, free. Jessica Manalo, Kaylie Foster 12/30, 6 pm free. All That Glitters Is Gold 12/31, 10 pm, $55-$899. NYE Afterhours 1/1, 2 am, $20-$30. 1501 W. Sahara Ave, 702-214-4000. BACKSTAGE BAR & BILLIARDS Them Evils, Professor Colombo, FreeLSD’s Badtrip, Leather Bound Crooks 12/29, 8 pm, $8-$10. Gallagher 12/31, 9 pm, $25. 601 E. Fremont St., 702-382-2227. BEAUTY BAR Outlook, Future Vinyls, All the Rage, Image Club, Oni Inc., The Red Seduction, Dirt Halo, Dream Girl, Girls & Wolves, Prolific, Lil Child Support 12/29, 6 pm, $10. Direct Collapse, The Culling, Dark Altar 1/7, 8 pm, free. 8 pm, free. 517 Fremont St., 702-598-3757. BUNKHOUSE SALOON Bricks (Pink Floyd tribute) 12/28, 8 pm, $5. Rayner, Problem Daughter, No Red Alice, Jesse Pino 12/29, 8 pm, $10. Adaven Two-Year Celebration 12/30, 9 pm, free. MSTRKRFT 12/31, 9 pm, $25-$30. Karaoke 1/1, 9 pm, free. Dark Black, Lanterns, Miss New Buddha, The Plastic Brains 1/4, 8:30 pm, $6-$8. 124 S. 11th St., 702-854-1414. COUNT’S VAMP’D Hookers & Blow, Crackerman 12/28, 10 pm, free. L.A. Guns, Budderside 12/29, 9 pm, $15-$20. L.A. Guns, Bad Little Sister 12/30, 9 pm, $15-$20. Count’s 77, Electric Dynamite 12/31, 8:30 pm, $10. John Zito Electric Jam 1/3, 9:30 pm, free. 750 W. Sahara Ave., 702-220-8849.
SAND DOLLAR LOUNGE Jimmy Powers & The Hang Dynasty 12/29. Chris Tofield 12/30. Moanin’ Blacksnakes 12/31. Billy Ray Charles 1/2. Carlos Silva & The Scatterbrains 1/3. Shows 10 pm, free unless noted. 3355 Spring Mountain Road, 702-485-5401.
THE DILLINGER Marty Feick 12/29. Part Time Criminals 12/30. All shows 8:30 pm, free, allages unless noted. 1224 Arizona St., Boulder City, 702-293-4001. THE DISPENSARY LOUNGE A Jazz New Year’s 12/30, 9 pm. Uli Geissendoerfer Quartet 1/3, 9 pm. Shows free unless noted. 2451 E. Tropicana Ave., 702-458-6343. DIVE BAR The Bakery, The Scoundrels 12/31, 9 pm, free. 4110 S. Maryland Parkway, 702-586-3483.
HARD HAT LOUNGE DJ Davewave 12/31, 10 pm. 1675 Industrial Road, 702-384-8987.
STONEY’S ROCKIN’ COUNTRY Troy Cartwright 12/29, 10 pm, $5-$20. Drew Baldridge, Carter Winter 12/31, 10 pm, $10-$20. Town Square, 702-435-2855.
THE RESOURCE For comprehensive casino venue listings, look inside Industry Weekly.
DOUBLE DOWN SALOON Atomic Video Jukebox 12/28. Franks & Deans, The Implosions, Alex Squared 12/29. Eric “Travis” Wilson, The Four07’s, Life Has a Way 12/30. Johnny Zig & The Force, Uberschall 12/31. Prof. Rex Dart & The Bargain DJ Collective 1/1. Unique Massive 1/2, midnight. Shows 10 pm, free unless noted. 4640 Paradise Road, 702-791-5775. GILLEY’S SALOON Rob Staley Band 12/28, 9 pm; 12/29-12/30, 10 pm. Scotty Alexander Band 12/32, 10 pm. Shows $10-$20. Treasure Island, 702-894-7722. THE GOLDEN TIKI Soul Shakedown Party 12/31, 9 pm, free. 3939 Spring Mountain Road, 702-222-3196. THE GRIFFIN Characters, Commonear 12/28, 10 pm, free. 511 Fremont St., 702-382-0577.
THE TAP Biz’ Dirty Harvard, Bazooka Zac 12/31, 10 pm, $5-$10 donation. 704 Nevada Way, Boulder City, 702-293-0532.
VELVETEEN RABBIT DJ Knife 12/31, 8 pm, free. 1218 S. Main St., 702-685-9645.
PERFORMING ARTS & CULTURE THE SMITH CENTER (Reynolds Hall) Kristin Chenoweth 12/31, 7:30 pm, $39-$189. 702-749-2000. WEST CHARLESTON LIBRARY Christmas Is a Funny Thing 12/15, 7 pm, free. 6301 W. Charleston Blvd., 702-507-3940. WEST LAS VEGAS LIBRARY Kwanzaa:
Affirming African Values, Culture & Community With Purpose 12/30, 2 pm, free. 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd., 702-229-4800.
GALLERIES & MUSEUMS BARRICK MUSEUM OF ART (East Gallery) Preservation Thru 1/20. (Grant Hall Gallery) (West Gallery) Liminal Thru 1/20. (Baepler Xeric Garden) Katarina Jerinic: Astronomy of the Asphalt Ecliptic Thru 1/20. Mon-Wed, Fri, 9 am–5 pm; Thu, 9 am-8 pm; Sat, noon-5 pm. UNLV, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway, 702-895-3381. BELLAGIO GALLERY OF FINE ART Samurai Thru 4/29. Daily, 10 am-8 pm, $16-$18. 702-693-7871. CENTENNIAL HILLS LIBRARY Desert Companion: Focus on Nevada Showcase Thru 1/9. Mon-Thu, 10 am-8 pm; Fri-Sun, 10 am-6 pm. 6711 N. Buffalo Drive, 702-507-6100. CHARLESTON HEIGHTS ARTS CENTER GALLERY Jeanna Eve Klein: Past Perfect Thru 1/20. Wed-Fri 12:30-9 pm, Sat 9 am-6 pm, free. 800 Brush St., 702-229-2787. CLARK COUNTY GOVERNMENT CENTER ROTUNDA GALLERY Holly Rae Vaughn: Collide Thru 1/19. Mon-Fri, 8 am-5 pm. 500 Grand Central Parkway, 702-455-7030. CLARK COUNTY MUSEUM Over Here: Clark County and World War I Thru 1/28. Daily, 9 am-4:30 pm, $1-$2. 1830 S. Boulder Highway,
702-455-7995. CSN (Fine Arts Gallery) Margaret Noble: Resonating Objects Thru 1/20. Mon-Fri, 9 am-6 pm; Sat, 10 am-4 pm. (Artspace Gallery) Marianic Parra: In Dreamy Solitude Thru 1/27. Mon-Fri, 8 am-10:30 pm; Sat, 8 am-5 pm. 3200 E. Cheyenne Ave., 702-651-4146. DONNA BEAM FINE ART A Wail and a Clang Thru 1/20. Mon-Fri 9 am-5 pm; Sat 10 am-2 pm. UNLV, 4505 S. Maryland Parkway, 702-895-3893. LEFT OF CENTER Desert Notes Thru 12/30. Tue-Fri, noon-5 pm; Sat, 10 am-3 pm; free. 2207 W. Gowan Road, 702-647-7378. MICHELE C. QUINN FINE ART Tim Bavington: Sounds of Silence Thru 1/5. Mon-Fri, 9 am-5 pm, free. 620 S. 7th St., 702-366-9339. NEVADA HUMANITIES PROGRAM GALLERY Mojave: Transcendent Desert Thru 1/25. Mon-Fri, 1-5 pm, free. 1017 S. 1st St. #190, nevadahumanities.org. PRISCILLA FOWLER FINE ART Benjamin Schmitt: Celestial Abstractions Thru 1/27. WedSat, noon-6 pm. 1025 S. 1st St. #155, 719-371-5640. WINCHESTER CULTURAL CENTER GALLERY Nancy Good: See, Touch and Go Dream: The Burning Man Tapestries Thru 1/1. Tue-Fri, 10 am-8 pm; Sat, 9 am-6 pm. 3130 S. McLeod Drive, 702-455-7340. WINDMILL LIBRARY Nevada Arts Council: Basin and Range Thru 1/22. Mon-Thu, 10 am8 pm; Fri-Sun, 10 am-6 pm. 7060 W. Windmill Lane, 702-507-6030.
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Tickets start at $50
Saturday, January 13 9:00pm Tickets start at $2995
CLAUDINE CASTRO
Saturday, January 20 9:00pm General Admission $10
TOMMY DAVIDSON
7200 SMOKE RANCH RD. #120 LAS VEGAS, NV 89128 M T W F 9 AM - 4 PM SATURDAYS BY APPOINTMENT
Saturday, January 27 9:00pm Tickets start at $3295
ENTERTAINMENT Done Right Ticket prices do not include taxes and applicable fees. Management reserves all rights. ©2017 Boyd Gaming ® Corporation, LLC. All rights reserved.
PECIAL S S L A C O S’S EVE L R A E Y AM W NE Y 1 AT 5 JANUAR M31 AT 9P R E B M E DEC
Must be 21. Happy hour not valid on non-alcoholic beverages, specialty drinks, premium spirits, select beer and wine. 50% off pizzas and surf & turf special not valid at non-kitchen locations. Surf & turf, party favors and champagne toast available while supplies last. Management reserves all rights. See server or bar host for details.
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