ASTONISHING. UNPREDICTABLE. MIND-BENDING. Omega Mart is an immersive interactive experience from groundbreaking art collective, Meow Wolf. Featuring jaw-dropping work from international and local artists, Omega Mart sends participants of all ages on a journey through surreal worlds and immersive storytelling. Discover secret portals or simply soak up the innovative art as you venture beyond an extraordinary supermarket into parts unknown.
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12.09.21
L A S V E G A S W E E K LY
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IN THIS ISSUE WANT MORE? Head to lasvegasweekly.com.
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SUPERGUIDE
Your daily events planner, starring Jason Aldean, The Chainsmokers, Pink Martini, Jamey Johnson, Travis Cloer, the Golden Knights and more.
FOOD & DRINK Tood English’s Olives makes its Vegas return in a new resort.
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SPORTS
It’s been an uphill climb for the fighters squaring off in UFC 269’s main event.
NOISE
Talking horror films and more with Chvrches.
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VEGAS INC
STAGE
Charging phones in Las Vegas could be big business.
Nevada Ballet Theatre makes its Smith Center return with The Nutcracker, naturally.
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FEATURE Sales of vinyl records are booming, but pressing and shipping delays are making it tough for local shops and labels to keep up with demand.
TOP The Nutcracker (Virginia Trudeau/Courtesy) BOTTOM Zia Records (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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SUPERGUIDE MUSIC
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THURSDAY
ARTS
FOOD + DRINK
COMEDY
MISC
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DEC.
MIJA 10 p.m., Discopussy, discopussydtlv.com. (Courtesy)
S U P E R G U I D E
JASON ALDEAN His duet with brand-new Las Vegas Strip resident headliner Carrie Underwood was one of the highlights of last month’s American Music Awards show, with Aldean perched at a rooftop piano performing “If I Didn’t Love You.” The collaborative single is on November’s first half of Aldean’s epic double album, Macon, with second half Georgia slated for release next year. Expect to catch a decent amount of new material when his Back in the Saddle tour takes over Dolby Live at Park MGM for three nights. December 9-11, 9 p.m., $63$220, ticketmaster.com. –Brock Radke (AP Photo)
WRANGLER NATIONAL FINALS RODEO Thru 12/11, Thomas & Mack Center, nfrexperience. com. NATE BARGATZE 7 & 10 p.m., Encore Theater, ticketmaster. com.
UNLV EARLY MUSIC ENSEMBLE CONCERT: WOMEN’S VOICES OF THE BAROQUE 7:30 p.m., Doc Rando Recital Hall, unlv.edu.
F O R M O R E U P C O M I N G E V E N T S , V I S I T L A S V E G A S W E E K LY. C O M .
CODY JOHNSON 8 p.m., the Chelsea, ticket master.com. STEVE TREVINO 10 p.m., Mirage Theatre, ticket master.com.
JOHN ANDERSON 10 p.m., Golden Nugget Showroom, ticket master.com. JEFF DUNHAM 7:30 p.m., the Colosseum, ticketmaster. com.
DEE JAY SILVER 10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zouk grouplv.com. PAULY SHORE & THE CRUSTYS 10 p.m., Sand Dollar Lounge, thesanddollarlv. com.
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FRIDAY 10 DEC.
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JAMEY JOHNSON 10 p.m., Golden Nugget Showroom, ticketmaster.com. (Charles Reagan Hackleman/ Courtesy)
EMO NIGHT TOUR 8 p.m., 24 Oxford, virgin hotelslv.com. RON WHITE 12/11, 10 p.m., Mirage Theatre, ticketmaster. com.. DJ IRIE 10 p.m., Drai’s Nightclub, drais group.com.
RODNEY CARRINGTON & 12/11, 9 p.m., David Copperfield Theater, ticketmaster. com.
GRYFFIN 10:30 p.m., XS Nightclub, wynnsocial.com.
JOHN CAPARULO & 12/11, 7 & 9:30 p.m., Wiseguys, vegas.wiseguys comedy.com.
LOST KINGS 10:30 p.m., Marquee Nightclub, marqueelvnc. taogroup.com.
The ultimate Christmas movie “gets its wings” thanks to a sweetly clever adaptation by Vegas-based theater company Poor Richard’s Players. In this story-within-a-story, a small-time radio station’s production of It’s a Wonderful Life is thrown into crisis by a blizzard that strands the actors, and the station staff pitches in to obey the law of theater: The show must go on! Can the magic of Christmas conquer all? December 10-11 & 17-18, 8 p.m., $15$20, the Playhouse, theplayhouselv.com. –C. Moon Reed
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NELLY With Red Shahan, 9 p.m., Brooklyn Bowl, ticketweb.com.
GOST With True Body, 9 p.m., the Dive Bar, brownpaper tickets.com.
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TSTMRKT 8 p.m., Vegas Theatre Company, tstmrkt.com.
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DIERKS BENTLEY & 12/11, 8 p.m., the Chelsea, ticketmaster. com.
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VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS VS. PHILADELPHIA FLYERS 7 p.m., T-Mobile Arena, axs.com.
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Re-Bar, Derek Stonebarger’s bar and antique shop, has been open five years now, though it feels longer because the beloved Arts District joint ascended to landmark status pretty much from the jump. Re-Bar is celebrating with free beers, free pretzels, giveaways and live music from 3-5 p.m., then moving on to an all-night party for its steinholders in its sister establishment Davy’s. Both bars will serve $1 Rolling Rock drafts all night long. 3 p.m., free entry, 1225 S. Main St., 702-998-8777. –Geoff Carter
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SUPERGUIDE SATURDAY 11
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THE CHAINSMOKERS 10:30 p.m., XS Nightclub, wynnsocial.com (AP Photo)
MS. PAT There’s always been a little bit of nightlife and music and other fun to be found in the suburbs, but comedy has been harder to come by. That’s why the Bonkerz Comedy series at Red Rock Resort’s cozy Rocks Lounge is such a welcome treat, and this week Atlanta mom, actress, podcaster and star of her own BET+ series Ms. Pat takes her turn. Summerlin hasn’t laughed like this in a while. December 11, 9 p.m., $25, ticketmaster.com. –Brock Radke
CHVRCHES With Donna Missal, 7:30 p.m., Brooklyn Bowl, ticketweb. com. NEVADA BALLET THEATRE: THE NUTCRACKER Thru 12/26, times vary, Reynolds Hall, thesmithcenter. com.
MUSIC
LOUIS THE CHILD 10:30 p.m., Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv.com.
THE FANTASTIC YULE BALL 8 p.m., Millennium Fandom Bar, Fandombar.com.
COOLIO 8 p.m., Ravello Lounge, the mresort.com.
NGHTMRE 10:30 p.m., Omnia Nightclub, hakkasangroup. com.
UFC 269 3 p.m., T-Mobile Arena, axs.com.
EXHORDER With Take Offense, Extinction A.D., Plague Years, 8 p.m., the Dive Bar, brownpaper tickets.com.
UNLV MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. HARTFORD Noon, Michelob Ultra Arena, axs. com.
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FRANKIE MORENO 3 p.m. & 7 p.m., Myron’s, the smithcenter.com.
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F O R M O R E U P C O M I N G E V E N T S , V I S I T L A S V E G A S W E E K LY. C O M .
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YOUNG ARTISTS ORCHESTRA OF LAS VEGAS: THE NUTCRACKER 7 p.m., Windmill Library, lvyao. org. SEAN STEMALY 10 p.m., Stoney’s Rockin’ Country, etix.com.
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DJ SINCERE 9:30 p.m., Foundation Room, house ofblues.com/ lasvegas/fr.
RYAN BAKER 2 p.m., the Space, the spacelv.com.
CIPHA SOUNDS With Mia Jackson, Landry, Michael Yo, 7 & 9:30 p.m., Comedy Cellar, ticket master.com.
MONDAYS DARK 8TH ANNIVERSARY
VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS VS. MINNESOTA WILD 6 p.m., T-Mobile Arena, axs.com. (AP Photo/ Photo Illustration)
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Brayden McNabb
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Back in 2013, performers/producers Mark Shunock and Cheryl Daro created a new kind of variety show. Mondays Dark would feature a kaleidoscope of Las Vegas talent with the goal of raising $10,000 in 90 minutes for different local charities. Since then, the popular bi-monthly event has raised more than $1 million for 100 Las Vegas organizations—and counting. The show celebrates its 8th anniversary with a blow-out bash sure to feature an impressive mix of talent and more than a little holiday spirit. 8 p.m. $20$1,500, the Theater at Virgin, mondays dark.com. –C. Moon Reed
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DJ SHIFT 10:30 p.m., Jewel Nightclub, hakkasangroup. com. FULL MOON 10 p.m., Sand Dollar Lounge, thesanddollarlv. com.
TRAVIS CLOER Jersey Boys was only the beginning. If you’ve seen Travis Cloer onstage in Las Vegas singing in his own mesmerizing style at the Space or the Smith Center or anywhere else, you know you’re dealing with a sublime talent. He just performed as part of the Philharmonic’s holiday show, and now he’s doing Christmas at My Place at the iconic Italian American Club. December 12, 8 p.m., $75, iacvegas.com. –Brock Radke (Photograph Courtesy)
WIL SYLVINCE With Mark Pitta, Jared Freid, Monique Mavez, Michael Yo, 7 p.m., Comedy Cellar, ticket master.com.
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TUESDAY 14
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THE FABULOUS FLAMINGO: BUGSY, BILLY, VIRGINIA AND THE MAKING OF MODERN LAS VEGAS
In celebration of the Flamingo’s 75th birthday, delve into the classic casino’s notorious past. Listen as three author-historians take you back to the golden era of Old Vegas, where the Mob ruled and the FBI was hot on its tail. Learn about troubled founder Benjamin “Bugsy” Siegel, heartbreaker Virginia Hill and other colorful characters in this exciting trip back to the origins of a Strip institution. For extra authenticity and drama, the event takes place in the Mob Museum’s Historic Courtroom. 7 p.m., $17-$30, themobmuseum.org. –C. Moon Reed
MUSIC
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REBA, BROOKS & DUNN 7:30 p.m., & 12/10-12/11, the Colosseum, ticketmaster. com.
FOOD + DRINK
JANTSEN 10 p.m., Discopussy, discopussy dtlv.com.
COMEDY
WEDNESDAY 15
MIKEY FRANCIS 10:30 p.m., Omnia, hakkasan group.com.
MISC
DEC.
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F O R M O R E U P C O M I N G E V E N T S , V I S I T L A S V E G A S W E E K LY. C O M .
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FERGIE 10:30 p.m., the Library at Marquee, marqueelvnc. taogroup.com.
HOSTILITIES With Neto, The End of Everything, Life’s Torment, 6 p.m., Eagle Aerie Hall, brownpaper tickets.com.
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DAN SHAKE 10 p.m., Commonwealth, clubsodavegas. com.
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With China Forbes, 8 p.m., Encore Theater, ticketmaster. com. (Courtesy)
UNLV MEN’S BASKETBALL VS. OMAHA 7 p.m., Thomas & Mack Center, unlvtickets.com.
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DEUX TWINS 10:30 p.m., Encore Beach Club, wynn social.com.
Still kicking yourself for missing the arty Austin indie rockers in January 2020 at the Bunkhouse … a few weeks before the world shut down? Here’s your shot at redemption. The band, which released its 10th studio album—X: The Goddess Void and Other Stories—about a week before last year’s Vegas’ gig, returns to Fremont Street, this time playing Backstage Bar & Billiards with tourmate Death Valley Girls and local opener Orange Eats Creeps. If Trail of Dead’s hometown November 27 setlist is any indication, expect some of the early work upon which the group built its (memorable) name, plus a selection of what has followed. 8 p.m., $18, eventbrite.com. –Spencer Patterson
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Author Claire Vaye Watkins on creativity, Mojave living and the blurry line between fiction and autobiography
DESERT SOUL
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Do you have any favorite literature about the American West? The writer who illuminated the American West for me was Wallace Stegner, especially his nonfiction. … Mary Austin’s The Land of Little Rain is a very cool book. … She travels through Death Valley and the Mojave. Cadillac Desert: The American West and Its Disappearing Water by Marc Reisner. Oh, Sally Denton’s book The Profiteers is about this one Nevada company, but it also really helped me understand the history of the place. Sally Zanjani has a great book about Sarah Winnemucca. … Ben Ehrenreich’s book Desert Notebooks is not easy on Las Vegas, but I think Las Vegas can handle that sort of thing. How did it feel to be called the “new voice of the American West” by the Los Angeles Times? Like The Big Lebowski, that’s just one man’s opinion. The headline writer wrote that. I mean, I do think of myself that way, as a regional writer and being of a specific place. Obviously … I’m obsessed with the history and geology and natural history of this place. Using that voice, what should people know about our desert? We continue to see this myth of the desert as a wasteland and a place
that is expendable. We’re seeing that with the so-called “green gold rush” in arid lands, specifically, lithium mining and industrial solar arrays. … I’m worried it will be a long continuation of the profit motive that gave us 1,000 nuclear bombs being dropped on the desert, Yucca Mountain and really destructive mining. … These are the places that we go to find ourselves. It nourishes your soul—even if you never go into the wilderness—to know it’s there. It’s a really important part of being fully human. So, industrialization of the wilds is soul rot to me. If people want to know more about the threat to public wilderness from industrial solar and mining, they should check out Basin and Range Watch, Protect Thacker Pass and People of Red Mountain. Your latest novel is autobiographical. What’s real and what’s fiction? The cool thing about books is that they seem real. [This is] a novel that pretends to be a memoir. Like, why didn’t you just make it a memoir? Well, ’cause none of it really happened. But, of course, some of it did. How is Claire the author different from Claire the book character? [She’s] only a part of me, like an id … what the Jungians would call
What is your daily creative routine? I wake up, have coffee and I write in a notebook by hand. I don’t look at [screens] until at least noon, if I can help it. … Usually, I walk up into the mountains for two hours, sit up there, read, drink a beer and watch the sun. The pandemic made me too hard on myself, like, if you don’t write X number of words today, it’s trouble. ... Instead, how about, I didn’t jump off a building today. That seems like a great accomplishment. I kept living and breathing and fed myself good food. So I just tried to let go of any type of internalized, capitalistic logic about artmaking. What advice would you give to somebody who is interested in writing as a hobby? The Nevada landscape itself is one huge writing prompt. Pay extra close attention to what you see and notice when you get curious. For me, it’s that weird little shack way out there by itself. Do you have travel tips for the Mojave Desert and Las Vegas? Shoshone [California] is a great place to land if you’re new to exploring the hinterlands because it’s this cute little village that’s enclosed and has a lovely swimming pool. I like walking around in the Tecopa area, the Amargosa Canyon Trail off China Ranch, which is of course a legendary destination. You can see the Amargosa River coming to the surface. It’s an incredibly beautiful place. [In Las Vegas], the Writer’s Block, of course. I really like … the mountains, Red Rock. I really like Springs Preserve; my grandma lived right near Springs Preserve before it was Springs Preserve.
Q & A
Your latest book presents quite the ambivalent opinion about Las Vegas. What are your thoughts about the city? I have a lot of fondness and affection for it. That’s why I allowed this Claire character to be so critical of it and so afraid of it. She thinks of it as like a vortex pulling her back. When I grew up in Southern Nevada, I was being constantly encouraged to leave and really warned in a dire, almost fatalistic way like, “Little girl, don’t go into the forest,” but it was, “You need to get out of here or you’re gonna end up in Las Vegas.”
a shadow. It’s the bad, the naughty, scary, secret part of you. She’s also as much me as any other character I’ve ever written. If I’m writing a story about an old guy panning for gold in the Gold Rush, he’s as much Claire as Claire is Claire.
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After teaching in the Midwest, you’ve returned home to live near Joshua Tree. How does it feel to be back? It’s very intense, because the Mojave Desert is my first landscape. On some deep, primordial level I have been here since I was the egg in my mom, when my grandma was pregnant with my mom. So it feels deeply peaceful, like the skies are the right color and the right height. The plants make sense to me. When I see a little animal or my neighbors, I’m like, “Hello, I know about you.”
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uthor Claire Vaye Watkins is both object and observer of the Desert Southwest. Her blockbuster short story collection, Battleborn (2012), and critically acclaimed novel, Gold Fame Citrus (2015), are both set in the ever-shifting deserts of Nevada and California, her region of origin. This past fall, Watkins published a powerful and peculiar new novel titled I Love You but I’ve Chosen Darkness, which has garnered rave reviews in the national press. Being a sort of autobiographical fiction, the main character shares the same name as the author. And the book delves into Watkins’ personal family history, including a large section on her late father Paul Watkins’ connection to the Manson Family. Now, Watkins is teaching creative writing remotely at UC Irvine and living her best desert life.
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BY GEOFF CARTER clear out Vegas’ casino floors; it strengthened their appeal. And people didn’t stop playing slots when their cash payouts were replaced by an audio sample of cascading coins and a “cashout voucher.” But Vegas’ most recent upgrade might take a bit of time and effort to roll out. Several Valley properties, including Resorts World on the Strip and Aliante in North Las Vegas, have introduced cashless gaming to their casino floors, both on their machine and table games. To put it simply, cashless gaming replaces nearly all the elements of casino play that call for physical currency; no more ATMs, no more feeding bills into a slot machine, and perhaps surprisingly, no more TITO. “You’ll be able to take your phone into a property, connect it to a slot machine and transfer funds from an account, basically using your phone as an in-between,” says Blake Rampmaier, senior vice president and chief information officer for Boyd Gaming. “When you’re finished playing the machine, any funds you have left over move back into your digital wallet.” It sounds simple enough on paper, and it’s likely second nature to anyone who came of age in the smartphone era. If you’ve recently used Venmo to pay for your share of a work lunch, you’ll probably get the hang of the Boyd Pay digital wallet inside Boyd’s B Connected app or Resorts
***** Cashless gaming didn’t emerge fully formed yesterday. “Really, what we’re talking about is electronically funding my slot machine using digital currency,” says Richard Hutchins, Resorts World’s senior vice president of casino operations. “I could also do that with a keypad entry in a slot machine, and in its infancy stage, that’s what some of the operators had started to try years ago. I’d go to the cage, make a deposit of cash to my cashless account and then insert my player’s card into a slot machine and enter my PIN number.” The Nevada Gaming Control Board began addressing cashless wagering in its regulations in 2003, according to NGCB Senior Economic Analyst Michael Lawton. He points to a more recent, 2017 NGCB regulation that defines a “wagering account” as “an electronic ledger operated and maintained by a licensee for a patron in connection with the patron’s use and play of any or all authorized games and gaming devices,” along with some 3,700 more words on how such an account should be created and used.
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The industry name for the technology is TITO, short for “ticket-in, ticket-out.” When you cash out of a video poker or slot machine, it produces a printed voucher of your winnings, which you can then take to a cashier—or leave atop the machine for the next player, if you feel like passing on some good karma. TITO has been in widespread use for years, long enough for a generation of gamblers to not know what it’s like to walk around a casino floor with a bucket of quarters. It’s been around for so long, in fact, that some older gamers might not remember that they used to hate it. “When TITO was introduced 15 to 20 years ago, it was just an absolute failure,” says professional gambler and Las Vegas Advisor publisher Anthony Curtis. “I mean, nobody wanted to touch it. Nobody wanted tickets coming out of slot machines and video poker machines. They shelved the whole thing, and it took a couple more years for it to surface and pick up a little bit of steam. Now, you can hardly find a place that does not use TITO.” Las Vegas adapted to TITO, as it has adapted to numerous other sea changes in gaming, entertainment and hospitality. Mobile apps have eliminated the need for guests to wait in line for show tickets and hotel check-in. The advent of online sports betting and online poker didn’t
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A city built on currency moves toward a future without it
World’s Play+ inside of two minutes. Older players, however, might be intimidated by the learning curve (the Play+ app comes with a 5-minute tutorial video) or mistrustful of the technology. “This is something for the kids who are already indoctrinated into this sort of commerce,” Curtis says. “But the current people, the Boomers and Gen Xers, who [are gaming now] are going to be a much tougher sell.” And then there’s the matter of what cashless casinos mean to a city whose identity was built on the concept of cash. Even machines that no longer dispense coins have images of coins and bills on them. These are the headwinds cashless gaming faces. But this innovation has something going for it that TITO didn’t—TITO itself. People are already accustomed to taking their winnings as something other than a bucket of metal. A cashless Vegas is a when, not an if.
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The tech has been ready for a while, too. Apple famously introduced the first mass-market smartphone in 2007. PayPal, one of the methods you can use to fund your Play+ account, debuted its first mobile apps in 2006. And QR (Quick Response) barcodes, a key component of cashless wagering apps, have been around since 1994. All the parts needed to make cashless gaming apps have been lying in wait for several years, ready to fall into place together. What has changed in recent years—very recent years—is that we’ve acquired an aversion to touching things other people have touched. “COVID sped up a lot of technology and innovation,” Rampmaier says. “Contactless products is one of the things that we’ve been working on that really helps to improve the customer experience—to make it more seamless, to reduce friction. Because, let’s face it, it’s not about the wallet. The customer really doesn’t necessarily care about the wallet. They care about the fact that they don’t have to carry cash [and] they can move their money around for multiple things within the Boyd gaming ecosystem. It makes their experience more enjoyable.” Boyd and Resorts World parent company Genting aren’t alone in adapting their business to COVID-era sensibilities. Disney’s theme parks division recently killed off its paper-based “FastPass” service in favor of a mobile app, continuing a move to mobile that began with its ticketing. But Disney might be moving into the cashless space too quickly; it has also gone all-in on mobile restaurant reservations and mobile food and beverage ordering, and its social media accounts are filled with guest complaints about spending half a day at Disneyland consulting phones for one thing or another. Vegas doesn’t intend to go that route. “We still have players cards,” Hutchins says. “You don’t want to prohibit anything when a guest walks in; you don’t want to restrict them.” Boyd’s approach is the same, Rampmaier says. Cashless wagering is only a component of the player’s club, not a replacement for it. “You need to be a B Connected member in order to use Boyd Pay,” Rampmaier explains. “When you’re accessing your funds with Boyd Pay, it’s the same thing you use to access any of the other items that we offer through the B Connected program.” In other words, Vegas isn’t about to make it harder for anyone to play. “We want to introduce the latest technol-
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ogy, build a framework for the future and to continue to develop that value proposition, and make some guests want to adopt it,” Hutchins says. “But if they want a physical player’s card, or they want to walk up with cash, they can still continue to do that.” * * * * *
PROTECT YOUR TECH Your phone is like a wallet. It contains information that can be used to steal your identity, expose your personal life and drain your bank accounts. If you’re going to use it in casinos—or anywhere outside your home, really—here are several steps you should take to safeguard your phone in the event that it’s lost or stolen.
ENABLE A LOCK SCREEN. This is your phone’s first line of defense, and if you don’t have one enabled, stop reading this and turn it on right now. The best versions are the least convenient— complex passwords and long PIN codes that are tiresome to enter
several times a day. Biometric lock screens—fingerprint scanners, iris scanners, facial recognition— also offer strong protection. Don’t bother with pattern locks; thieves only need look at the shape of the smudges on your screen.
TURN ON YOUR LOCATOR.
SET UP REMOTE LOCK/WIPE.
Hey, you left it sitting on the bar; it happens. Make sure you’ve turned on your “find my device” functionality now, before you need it.
Nearly all recent Android and iPhone models offer a way to use your home computer to lock your phone remotely, or even wipe it clean of personal data. Take the time to set it up, and familiarize yourself with how it works. –Geoff Carter
V E G A S
are too indelible to be removed. They can only be upgraded. “Change is usually good,” Curtis says. “This one’s going to be a bigger hump to get over, because it’s so widespread; it affects so many different things. It’s not just the way your coins come out of the machine. It’s the way you do everything—the way you order a cup of coffee in the morning, the way you pay for your room, the way you get chips to play on a table … you know, if we’re even using chips at that point. “This change is so immersive and all-encompassing that it’s gonna take longer,” Curtis continues. “But overall, these technological things that come along progress things favorably. And that’s probably what’s going to happen here.”
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“I absolutely do envision a time when just about everything is cashless, somewhere between a decade and 15 years from now,” Curtis says. And it’ll happen just about everywhere. Resorts World, the first Strip resort to launch with a cashless gaming component, will likely see the functionality spread to its neighbors within the next few years. Boyd intends to roll out cashless across all of its resorts once it has proven itself at Aliante, and gaming tech company IGT also has a carded/mobile cashless service, Resort Wallet, in trials. And then there’s everything else for which Vegas is known: dining, entertainment, nightlife, accommodations. Hutchins envisions a time when entire visits to Resort World will be directed from your phone. “[When a guest] takes off at the airport, they’re using their phone as a ticket, right? When they land, they’re going to want to get an Uber, so they’re going to use their phone to do that. They walk into the resort and check in with their phone, and their phone is their digital key. … I go to the restaurants and bars, and I use my phone for the payment. I go out to the casino and use my phone for cashless wagering. “There’s a lot of things that happened in that process, with different technology companies and technology partners, [but] it’s absolutely where we’re going. And it’s not one of those long-term future things. It’s within eyesight.” Rampmaier concurs. “By year’s end, we should be good with Boyd Pay at most, if not all, of our food and beverage outlets,” he says. “Next year we’ll be focusing on hotel and other non-gaming amenities— spas, entertainment and so on.” Cashless transactions might even benefit employees, Curtis says. Rather than deterring guests from tipping, he suggests it could help there, too. “I think people who tip are going to tip. I grew up in this culture, and I know that when I do things I tip, and if it’s easier for me to tip it’s just great. … In a way, that
makes it a little bit easier when you put [the suggested gratuity] right in front of them and give them a prompt.” That’s the good news. The bad news, Curtis suggests, is that some current casino jobs could change radically, or be eliminated outright, if cashless gaming becomes ubiquitous. “The whole idea behind cashless, robots, everything else, is to make things more efficient and more profitable, which unfortunately often means the loss of jobs,” Curtis says. “You can get clues about this stuff by looking back in history. … Every casino used to have people walking around, making change. You don’t see that anymore.” Even so, it’s difficult to imagine what comes next. Boyd is quietly introducing cashless elements at its other properties, and Resorts World’s app feels like it could easily accommodate more cashless elements without changing its sleek, handsome UI. And Las Vegas, founded on concepts that are as analog as they come, will always feel like itself, even if its casino floors are staffed by robots and its stages peopled by holograms. When TITO took away cash payouts, the sound of the coins remained. Some parts of this experience
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E C N E G R U S D E R R O C RE
M A N U F A C T U R I N G
ops h s cal ep up o l , oar to ke s s e saletruggl l y vin ss As label and
12.09.21
BY ARLEIGH RODGERS
Vinyl record sales grew 94%—to $467 million—during the first half of 2021, according to a midyear report by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), accounting for more than two-thirds of physical-format music revenues. But for longtime collectors like Durham, who has worked at Zia for 12 years, vinyl is far from novel. “What we saw, about 10 years ago, is people, especially young people, finding new ways to appreciate the format and being able to hold something tangible in their hands, as opposed to downloads or streaming,” he says. “People want to be able to support the artists they love and have that experience.” Shahab Zargari, co-owner of the Las Vegas-based label Geykido Comet Records, says larger imprints get priority over smaller ones like GC when it comes to pressing. Considering the level of distribution for a label like Universal Music Group—featuring a roster of artists that includes Taylor Swift, whose 2020 album Evermore broke vinyl album sales records this past summer—it makes sense, Zargari says, but it still stings. “The big guys can really do whatever they want,” Zagari says. “It still hurts all the same. Those 500 [records] we’re doing, that means a lot to us.” Ma Nerriza Dela Cerna, a project manager of Erika Records, a record manufacturer in Buena Park, Califonia, says the plant works with a mix of indie and major record labels. Nevada isn’t home to any record manufacturing plants, where vinyl is cut and pressed. Dela Cerna says the process of creating vinyl cannot be sped up, even with fresh machines, so the most direct solution is to attempt to accommodate increased demand. Erika Records now has 40 machines on hand, a huge uptick from the six or eight machines it had in 2009,
she says. “We tried to get ahead of it, but now we’re just adapting and reacting to the realities,” Dela Cerna says. “And we’re not the only ones dealing with it.” ■■■■■ Prices—of both new and used records—have also increased during the current boom. Alaina Derkas, assistant manager at Zia’s Eastern location, recalls a customer who brought in a copy of Frank Ocean’s 2016 album, Blond, to sell. Zia uses Discogs, a user-driven online music marketplace and database, to gauge the value of used vinyl, and Derkas’ Discogs search for Blond placed its value at $600. She convinced the customer to hold onto the rare record, since Zia typically pays out a third of the price for which it will sell a record. “That one really blew my mind because I was never going to see that ever in my life,” Derkas says. “It’s up to the person if they do want to give it up.” Customers who come to the store to sell vinyl tend to be older, Derkas says, while teenagers usu-
ally browse the new vinyl stacks. “I like retail,” she says. “You can make people happy with soaps and shampoos and stuff, but here, it gets so personal for people. And I get to go home each day knowing that I made someone’s day.” And for local stores specializing in used vinyl, pressing problems aren’t a significant issue. At Record City, a new and used music dealer with two Valley locations, customers can dig through boxes of records dating back to the ’60s and ’70s, or peruse a well-stocked wall of used VHS tapes, DVDs and CDs. Doug Tann has worked at the store’s Sahara location since August, arriving at the plum-colored building each day to greet die-hard metalheads and classic rock fanatics while organizing the store or picking through someone’s collection. On a recent day, a customer arrived with his records haphazardly strewn across the trunk of his car—not a promising sight, Tann says. “It was all over the place, but you take your time, you start cherry picking, and you go, my goodness, there’s some stuff here.”
Dave Cleland, who travels around the country looking for vinyl records for his Denver-based record store, Invincible Vinyl, browses through the selection of used records at Record City. (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
R E S U R G E N C E
New vinyl releases at Zia Records (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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long the red shelves at Zia Records are a bounty of CDs, DVDs and, of course, records, sheathed in plastic and tagged with price stickers. The store, which has two locations in Las Vegas, sells the music industry’s most popular physical format, purchases of which have boomed during the pandemic. The process of pressing vinyl— with approximately 23 minutes of music per 12-inch record—remains the same as it was decades ago. What has changed dramatically in recent months, however, is the time it takes stores like Zia to receive new records, or fresh copies of old ones, and get them out where customers can buy them. “It’s more difficult to expect to have everything available all the time,” says Mike Durham, media buyer for Zia. “It never really was [easy], but there’s been more issues with that [lately].” A shortage of vinyl pressing plants and key materials, along with recent supply chain and labor issues, have dragged the process down at a time when demand has skyrocketed. These days, Durham says, vinyl on order can take a year or more to arrive, whereas in the past, he anticipated 90-day to six-month turnarounds. Customers can expect major artists, like Billie Eilish and Adele, to have their records out in time, Durham explains, but smaller musicians and labels are bearing the brunt of the current delays.
L A S V E G A S W E E K LY
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NEWS 2
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
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SUPERINTENDENT RETURNS After being terminated and then voted back into his job as Clark County School District superintendent, Jesus Jara reached an agreement with the board of trustees to continue in his duties at least through January 15, 2023.
INSURRECTIONIST ARRESTED Josiah Kenyon, 34, of Winnemucca, was arrested and charged with engaging in physical violence for his role in the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. He is said to have assaulted officers with a table leg.
NEVADA, CALIFORNIA GOVERNORS PLAN A FIX FOR 1-15 CONGESTION A five-mile stretch of Interstate 15 between the Nevada-California border and Barstow, California, will be temporarily expanded with hopes of easing traffic congestion, officials said December 5. Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a joint statement announcing the expansion of the highway, which will use the shoulder on the southbound route into California as a part-time third lane during peak travel periods. The $12 million project will be completed by the summer of 2022, Sisolak’s office said. It will be funded by California State Highway Account resources, taking to three lanes the five-mile segment between the border and the California Department of Food and Agriculture station, where the majority of the congestion occurs. “I appreciate Gov. Newsom and California’s willingness to work together on this critical issue,” Sisolak said in a statement. “Annually, more than 11 million Las Vegas visitors drive in and out of town on I-15, and this is a major step forward while we continue to collaborate and work toward more permanent solutions.” With visitors heading back to California on Sundays and Mondays, the average travel time is between three and five hours on the 113 miles from the state line and Barstow, Sisolak’s office said. About 20% of Las Vegas’ 42 million visitors in 2019 came from Southern California. The Vegas Chamber, which has long advocated for easing the traffic congestion, said this was an important step in improving safety and reducing travel times between Las Vegas and Southern California. “We hope this partnership between the leaders of our states leads to the longterm expansion of I-15 that will increase trade and tourism between our economies,” Mary Beth Sewald, president and CEO of the Vegas Chamber, said in a statement. –Ray Brewer
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MATCHUP SET Wisconsin (8-4) will play Arizona State (8-4) in the Las Vegas Bowl December 30 at Allegiant Stadium. The Badgers finished second in the Big 10 West, the Sun Devils second in the Pac-12 South.
The median sales price for an existing home in the Las Vegas area reached $420,000 during November, a new record high. Prices are up $10,000 from October and 22% from November 2020.
LIB GIVES BACK TO ITS VISUAL ARTISTS A peek inside the Dollar Loan Center, soon-to-be home of the Henderson Silver Knights, during a December 6 media tour (Yasmina Chavez/Staff)
UNLV TO COMPETE IN NEW YORK JAZZ CHAMPIONSHIP Jazz at Lincoln Center, one of the world’s largest jazz education program networks, has tapped UNLV to compete in the Jack Rudin Jazz Championship on January 10-11 in New York City. Only nine other colleges were chosen to participate. A panel of highly regarded jazz leaders, including Ayn Inserto, Camille Thurman, Jeff Hamilton, Randy Brecker and Wynton Marsalis, will judge the competition. The championship honors Jack Rudin, a staunch
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supporter of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s mission to educate youth about jazz’s importance as an art form. Rudin was also one of the organization’s first supporters of its monumental Essentially Ellington competition and festival, now in its 27th year. “In these divided times, our arts exist to call us home to our greatest historic achievements and our highest aspirations,” Marsalis said in a statement. –Amber Sampson
One of the most anticipated elements of the annual Life Is Beautiful festival is the fresh murals it brings to the walls of Downtown Las Vegas, created by local, national and international artists. This month, the producers of the festival present Art Is Beautiful, a series of graphic prints created by past LIB musical and visual artists, starting at $50 apiece. The collaborations include Big Gigantic and Lauren Martin, Dillon Francis and Chad Knight, and Rebelution and Pedro Correa. Proceeds from the print sales will be used to fund a Universal Basic Income (UBI) for developing artists. To purchase prints or learn more about the UBI fund, visit art.lifeisbeautiful. com. –LVW Staff
Runners dressed as Santa Claus head out onto the 5K course during the 17th annual Las Vegas Great Santa Run in Downtown Las Vegas on December 4. (Steve Marcus/Staff)
BENNY THE ICE-SKATING LABRADOR, OF LAS VEGAS, RECEIVED THE AMERICAN KENNEL CLUB’S AWARD OF CANINE EXCELLENCE.
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(Shutterstock/ Photo Illustration)
H E A L T H
ACTIVE SOLUTIONS
Las Vegas slowly builds resources to deal with youth mental health challenges BY BROCK RADKE
A
fter 21 months of unpredictable and stressful circumstances, it’s safe to say most communities across the country are promoting conversations about youth mental health and searching for methods and resources to help young people and families deal with related issues and challenges. Las Vegas certainly falls into this category. The Born This Way Foundation, founded by Las Vegas
Strip resident headliner Lady Gaga and her mother Cynthia Germanotta, was created to support the mental health of young people, with the goal of building “a kinder and braver world” through programming and partnerships. The foundation recently released the results of a two-year survey of hundreds of local young people, and the majority of respondents said mental health is a priority in their lives but they don’t believe they have access to resources
to deal with issues like suicide, sexual harassment or online harassment. “It mirrors the [information] from things we’ve done at the national level,” says the foundation’s executive director, Maya Smith. “The case no longer needs to be made that we need to dig into our resources. Young people are saying they want access.” The online study of more than 300 young people aged 13-24 was conducted with the Benenson Strategy Group. While the Born This Way Foundation’s main office is located in New York City, Smith says Las Vegas has become an important place since Lady Gaga began her residency at Park MGM and the foundation began partnering with the Clark County School District and other local organizations.
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Las Vegas might be a unique American city, but experts agree that local youth face similar mental health challenges as their peers around the country. on helping younger people since he took over seven years ago. Children’s Advocacy Alliance executives Tiffany Tyler-Garner and Patricia Farley wrote in a Las Vegas Sun guest column last month about a lack of available mental health services in the Vegas Valley, specifically for children. There are only two children’s mental health facilities in the Valley, they wrote, both of which are underfunded. That’s unusual for a city of this size, Robeck says. “There are a number of good after-school programs, for example, at the YMCA and Boys & Girls Clubs, but very few have licensed clinicians to deal with mental health,” he says. “We have 50 clinicians who work for us, and that makes us unique.” The new Bridge facility provides separate space for the
treatment of children and young people up to age 17, with two rooms dedicated for different kinds of child-focused therapy. Robeck anticipates treating an additional 250 clients per year. Las Vegas might be a unique American city, but the experts agree that local youth face similar mental challenges as their peers around the country. “I think they’re magnified because of the kind of business we have in our community, a resort community where a lot of parents work 24/7 and may not have both parents at home at the same time,” Robeck says. “Then you have the prevalence of alcohol in our community, problem gambling and a lot of divorce. It’s not as stable as it was when I was growing up in Las Vegas, and I’ve been here since the ’50s.”
The Born This Way survey finds that young people’s experiences in Las Vegas are reflective of other communities, Smith says, but she points out that many different kinds of local organizations are taking on this challenge, and finding willing business partners and collaborators. “What we have found is that access to megaphones for our programming has been so incredible in Las Vegas,” she says. “During our suicide prevention campaign, Please Stay, we had each of the billboards on a number of casinos on the Strip put this message on their marquees, that ‘This is the sign you’ve been looking for,’ and to ‘Please stay, you are loved.’ There is this incredible megaphone in Las Vegas because of the entertainment and all of that, and we’ve been able to tap into that.”
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Despite wanting to prioritize mental health, almost one-third of young people polled say they never or rarely have access to resources. Fewer young people say they have access to mental health resources than in 2019, and nearly half reported they rarely or never have conversations about mental health. The numbers exceed 60% within the LGBTQ+ community. The survey found that young people in the Las Vegas area are more likely to know someone who either attempted or died of suicide (46%) than they were to know someone who died from COVID (37%). A majority of Black and LGBTQ+ youth knew more people in their community who attempted or died of suicide last year than of COVID. “I think it’s really easy to paint this survey in a doomand-gloom way, and it needs to be taken seriously, but there are some really hopefully pieces in the research as well,” Smith says. “Eighty percent of young people said they are comfortable taking classes that teach skills to support mental health, so there is a willingness on the part of young people to do more, learn more and take the initiative. It’s really on us to build the resources and fund the support programming.” Last month, Bridge Counseling Associates—the oldest nonprofit counseling center in Southern Nevada and the state’s first and largest Urban Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic—opened its new Child and Youth Community Treatment Center at its McLeod Drive campus. Supported by a $500,000 grant from Nevada Women’s Philanthropy, the facility adds six state-of-the-art children’s treatment rooms. Bridge CEO David Robeck says the organization has always offered services for children, but Bridge has intensified its focus
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Bridge Counseling’s new Child and Youth Community Treatment Center (Eugene Dela Cruz, OneSeven Agency/ Courtesy)
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N I G H T S
Electra Cocktail Club (The Venetian Resort/Courtesy)
NIGHTLIFE REFINED
Venetian’s Cocktail Collective began its journey five years ago
C U L T U R E
BY BROCK RADKE
T
his month marks five years of fun at the Dorsey, the stellar lounge at Venetian that began to chart a different course for Strip nightlife. A fresh alternative to Vegas casino megaclubs, it offered ultralounge energy and a refined atmosphere, while staying true to a unique mantra: Cocktails can be the centerpiece of a big nightlife experience. The Dorsey’s success evolved into what is now known as the Cocktail Collective. It includes the Champagne-inspired Rosina and the exuberant Electra
Cocktail Club, both located on the Palazzo side of the property. “Living in Vegas for a long time, the nightlife experience has really been about the megaclubs and focused along those lines. There wasn’t a focus on cocktails [at clubs],” says Electra lead bartender Daniel Yang, who has worked at all three venues. He started as a busser at the Dorsey without plans to make a career in cocktailing. “It was always craft or volume, and you couldn’t have both. When they found a way to marry the two with this amazing experience and still cater to a larger group,
that really led me to [think], this is what I want to do.” Each bar has its own vibe and specialty cocktail menu, and the Collective has been able to accomplish two rare feats when it comes to the Strip: Each venue pushes guests to visit the other two, and all of them attract an impressive number of locals. It shows the power of a great drink. “A big part of our appeal is offering those three different personas and that ability to really bar hop from one to another,” Yang says. “For me, it’s awesome to shift from the smaller, more intimate space at Rosina, which is
constantly focused on a bespoke cocktail experience, to Electra, which is all about high energy, people dancing and having fun and enjoying different styles of cocktails.” Yang says the Collective sees itself as a leader of cocktail culture on the Strip, and that means constant innovation is required. Each bar always offers something new while maintaining the classics and favorites regulars have come to expect and focusing on service and personal attention. To find more information and plot your cocktail journey, visit bit.ly/3ou76iF.
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LOUIS THE CHILD December 11, 10 p.m., $30-50. Zouk Nightclub, zoukgrouplv. com
FINDING
ENJOY THE STRIP’S ONLY 24/7
EUPHORIA BY AMBER SAMPSON n Chicago-bred DJ duo Louis the Child—Robby Hauldren and Freddy Kennett—has become one of the hottest acts around in recent years, thanks to a diverse discography of dance music as lush as it is experimental. The Weekly caught up with both artists to discuss their new EP, their Zouk Nightclub residency at Resorts World and more. Euphoria definitely evokes a sense of elation. How did you get into a mental state to consistently produce that feeling? Hauldren: We wrote “Waiting to Feel Like This,” with Alexander 23, and we literally were like, let’s imagine we’re at Lollapalooza in a couple months when the world is back open again. What’s that feeling going to be? What are you going to want to hear when you’re back in a crowd with all your friends? Alexander’s from Chicago, so we all united around this idea of putting ourselves back at the music festival we all had been going to for years. Your 2018 track “Better Not” has been streamed more than 200 million times. Why do you think it still resonates? Kennett: It has a great drop, [and] it has a really meaningful and powerful chorus. Wafia’s voice is great. It’s sometimes difficult to make a song that’s super meaningful strike through in [this] day and age. A lot of watered-down things get blown up to No. 1. To me, that song’s about loving more than just one thing. It’s about the love you have for what Kennett (left) and Hauldren (Megan Blair/ Courtesy)
Louis the Child on the gift of imagination and the new Vegas residency
you do every day and the love you have for the people around you, whether it’s a relationship or something that’s not a person. It’s great to have something that’s so meaningful be so successful. How is the Zouk residency going so far? Hauldren: We’ve played in Vegas a couple of times, but this is the first time it feels like the crowd really is there to see us. Other times, it felt like we’re just the DJ for the night and the crowd isn’t totally there
to hear our stuff. This is the first time where people are flashing little signs on their phone, asking for certain songs. We’ve pushed ourselves a lot more trying to find new music and put on the best, most fun, on-the-fly show we can. We basically freestyle almost the entire show every time, but it’s fun to … try out a bunch of new stuff, and have these things we’re excited to play.
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Find more of this conversation at lasvegasweekly.com.
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12.09.21 ARCADIA EARTH 3785 Las Vegas Blvd. S. #102, $27-$39 (discounts for locals, students & teachers), arcadia-earth. com.
EYE ON THE
EARTH
An immersive new Strip attraction highlights the beauty—and peril—of our planet BY C. MOON REED
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any immersive art installations transport viewers to fantasy landscapes. But with Arcadia Earth, the enchanting world on view is our own. The soon-to-open Las Vegas Strip experience will allow viewers to wander through 15,000 square feet of magic. Its 15 art exhibits will remind us of the unique beauty of our own planet … and the unprecedented peril it faces due to human actions. In addition to being visually stunning, each of the exhibits will aim to do three things, according to press materials: educate, enlighten and empower visitors. For example, guests will walk into an otherworldly cave made out of plastic bags by Polish-born artist Basia Goszczynska. On the aesthetic level, there’s the enjoyment of a beautiful space. The white bags are illuminated by colored lights, so that they resemble the cool interior of an arctic ice cave. On an educational level, viewers learn about the harmful waste created by countless single-use plastic bags. If this were a high school science class, things might end there, with depressing statistics about how we’re all doomed. But
Arcadia Earth takes things one step further with a call to action that can be accomplished immediately. Each exhibit contains QR codes with links to ways to help now. For creator Valentino Vettori, Arcadia Earth is equal parts artistic and moral undertaking. As a career, the Italian-born experiential artist has created fleeting experiences for the trade show and fashion industry. One day, Vettori says, he looked at the 14 truckloads of garbage created from an event and thought of its impact. “Oh my God, I am the problem,” he recalls thinking. “It’s me. I need to change.” He imagined a future day when his two young daughters would ask him what he did to save the environment. “I wanted to tell them that I actually did everything that I could possibly do,” says Vettori, who’s originally from Verona, the city, he points out, that’s famous for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The New York-based Vettori seems to carry some of Shakespeare’s creative energy and Romeo’s love into this project. Vettori mortgaged his house to build the first Arcadia Earth in New York City. The plan was a success and drew the attention of a local developer, who helped bring
Arcadia Earth to a Strip location that’s larger than the original. The magic of Arcadia Earth is the way Vettori and the stable of artists he has hired transform seemingly intractable global problems—such as biodiversity loss and deforestation—into an experience that’s somehow uplifting and beautiful. In addition to physical creations, holograms, augmented reality, virtual reality, robotics and even scents complete the experience. One of the show highlights is a room that feels as if it’s breathing. The dark-yet-glowing walls slowly inhale and exhale, representing the lungs of the Earth, phytoplankton. “In this work, columns of rippling surfaces create an immersive and expansive environment that speaks to the scope and nature of oxygen production,” artist Charlotte Becket writes in a statement posted at the room’s entrance. A weirdly fun room by artist Pamela Moulton is sure to invite a million selfies with its organically shaped, swinging red chairs. Addressing the problems born from fishing, the interactive exhibit
is made from reclaimed fishing nets. During a preview tour, Vettori jokes about the amount of cleaning it took to remove the smell. “By creating a knotted and visceral red environment that viewers can engage with, the work raises the public’s awareness of overfishing and the waste associated with this industry,” Moulton writes in her statement. No Strip attraction is complete without a gift shop, and Arcadia Earth is no exception. Here, however, the merchandise is about cleaner, more ecological living. In fact, the show’s website—arcadia-earth.com—hosts an entire marketplace of home goods that are less likely to pollute. As for whether Las Vegas tourists will be interested in a lesson alongside their fun, Vettori seems optimistic … that he can lure in people with joy. “I’m just opening the door, showing beautiful things,” Vettori says. “We don’t actually highlight the concept of climate change. We highlight the concept of entertainment. … Nobody wants to be educated. People want to be inspired.”
Valentino Vettori, founder of Arcadia Earth, inside his newest immersive experience (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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A preview of Arcadia Earth (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
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C U L T U R E
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(From left) Martin Doherty, Lauren Mayberry and Iain Cook of Chvrches (Sebastian Mlynarski & Kevin J Thomson/Source)
CHVRCHES With Donna Missal, December 11, 7:30 p.m., $31-$51. Brooklyn Bowl, brooklynbowl. com.
12.09.21
You started writing Screen Violence in February 2020. Why was horror on your minds during that time? Horror is always on our minds (laughs). We’re big horror fans. It was actually [vocalist] Lauren [Mayberry’s] idea. We had the name Screen Violence lying around for
SCREAM TEAM
Chvrches’ Iain Cook breaks down the horror of new LP Screen Violence BY AMBER SAMPSON
10 years when we were coming up with the [band’s] name. We would obviously eventually settle for Chvrches, but Screen Violence was a name that was in the running for it. She came across the document with all of the names we didn’t use, and for some reason, Screen Violence just jumped right out. I think it had a lot to do with, in a more modern context, the violence that goes on online, with social media, death threats, and all kinds of horrible things that happened. That was one of the elements that drew her to the name. It’s the first time we’ve ever started with a name for an album before there were ever really any songs. It’s not a concept album, per se, because the songs loosely fit in with the imagery, and it’s not a story from start to finish ... [but the name] just
stuck and acted as a framing device for the songs. I think it helped focus us creatively when it came to the lyrics and the music. But [bandmate] Martin [Doherty] and I, when we’re writing music, producing the music, we always have little nods to horror films in there anyway. Songs like “Final Girl” have a real slasher vibe to them and shine a light on the female survivor perspective. Why was that important to explore? Lauren is the one who writes the lyrics, and we believe that good lyrics come from a personal place and a personal perspective. … 2018 was a really tough year for Lauren, and she experienced a lot of flack online. ... I think the whole experience of being a woman in the spotlight can draw a lot of misogyny and hatred and bitterness and jealousy. A lot of
it comes from very real things that she’d experienced. You’ve created songs for video games, specifically Death Stranding and Mirror’s Edge. Is composing for horror next? Yeah, absolutely, that would be fun. Nobody’s asked us yet to do a horror movie score, but maybe after the whole Screen Violence thing it will be on people’s radar. I hope John Carpenter’s your first call. If John Carpenter asked us to score his film, it would be an instant yes. We actually got to remix one of his songs, and he remixed one of ours on this one, which was a real nice surprise. I never thought in a million years that we’d be able to work with John Carpenter, but that was a really fun project. How did you link up? Naturally, we just asked him (laughs). We were brainstorming cool ideas around who can we get to remix the songs that may tie into this world that we were trying to create with Screen Violence. [We were like], we should ask somebody like John Carpenter. We asked the actual John Carpenter, and he said yeah, so we sent him the album, and he picked “Good Girls.” He really liked that song. It’s amazing, he actually plays a guitar solo on our track. It blew our minds when we first heard it. Actually, Martin said to me, “Oh no, this is better than our version,” (laughs). So that was a great honor, one of the great honors of my life.
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N O I S E
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n 10 years of making music, Scottish synth-pop trio Chvrches has always taken its time. The band struck gold with 2013’s The Bones of What You Believe, but rather than re-create hit “The Mother We Share,” Chvrches went on to create three diverse albums, including August’s Screen Violence. That record explores themes of gaslighting, harassment, resilience and escapism in the digital age, loosely through the lens of 1980s horror tropes. The album is as mesmerizing as it is cinematic, easily one of Chvrches’ best creations to date. Ahead of the band’s December 11 Brooklyn Bowl show, multi-instrumentalist Iain Cook spoke to the Weekly about spooky films, guest star John Carpenter and more.
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12.09.21 THE NUTCRACKER December 11-26, times vary, $31-$181. Reynolds Hall, thesmith center.com.
The Nutcracker (Virginia Trudeau/Courtesy)
C U L T U R E
S T A G E
BY C. MOON REED
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ast Christmas, visions of Sugar Plum Fairies danced in our heads … but not onstage at the Smith Center for the Performing Arts. Like most everything else, Nevada Ballet Theatre’s traditional production of The Nutcracker was canceled due to the pandemic shutdown. This Christmas, The Nutcracker returns with gusto, and a fully vaccinated cast. The iconic James Canfield-choreographed production kicks off NBT’s 50th anniversary season. “It’s a great feeling to see the dancers in a studio working together, because throughout the pandemic, we weren’t able to do that,” NBT Artistic Director Roy Kaiser says. “It’s very, very hard to practice this craft over Zoom.” While countless ballet companies produce The Nutcracker at Christmas, NBT’s version is special. “It’s very unique,” Kaiser says. “The most amazing thing about it is the size and scope of the production. The scenic elements were built for Reynolds Hall.” One of Kaiser’s favorite parts of the production is the “Snow Scene” that ends Act I. “It’s really energetic music and wonderful choreography, and it snows onstage at the Smith Center,” he explains. The starring role of Clara is uniquely challenging, so it’s split between two dancers appearing in different performances, Emma McGirr and Betsy Lucas. The role requires strong technique and physical strength, along with exuberant personality and an “ability to connect with the audience through your heart,” Kaiser says. McGirr says returning to the stage as Clara will be both emo-
RETURN OF
‘THE NUTCRACKER’ The beloved holiday tradition launches Nevada Ballet Theatre’s 50th-anniversary season
tional and exciting. “It’s really special,” McGirr says. “I remember learning the part for years before even being able to get to perform it. With a year away from The Nutcracker, you appreciate it even more.” More than just a ballet, The Nutcracker is an event for the
whole family. Attendees should arrive early enough to visit The Nutcracker Wonderland (free with show tickets) inside the Smith Center’s Troesh Theatre. The holiday-themed environment offers photo ops and special readings of The Nutcracker. On December 18, fans can add the Sugar Plum Party
to their 2 p.m. show tickets. To best hear Tchaikovsky’s immortal score, Music fans should visit nevadaballet.org to select a showtime that features a live orchestra. “Tchaikovsky’s score is one of the most amazing pieces of classical music that’s ever been written,” Kaiser says. “I’m always thankful that the music is as great as it is, because we do so many performances. I never get tired of hearing it, and then seeing the choreography with it.” Kaiser also sounds thrilled discussing the rest of NBT’s 20212022 season, thrilled. In February, the company will debut new works created for NBT by talented choreographers Trey McIntyre and Lauren Lovette. “I’m so very excited to have both of those artists here in Las Vegas to create those works,” Kaiser says. In the spring, NBT will pull out all the stops for a major production of Carmina Burana (May 20-22). “This is a very big undertaking for us; it will utilize every dancer in the company,” Kaiser says. The ballet is choreographed by Nicolo Fonte. “Our audiences will remember Nicolo for his production of Bolero, which, ironically, was the last program we were able to perform before COVID.” In addition to dancers, the show will feature a live orchestra and 76 singers who will remain on an onstage platform for the entire ballet. On May 14, NBT will host a special gala celebrating the company’s 50th anniversary. “I think [50 years] is remarkable for any arts organization, but for a ballet company in Las Vegas, it’s a great accomplishment. We’re looking at it as a celebration of the first 50 years and also looking to the next.”
HOME MEANS NEVADA FOR THE HOLIDAYS We live in the state where the sagebrush glistens, and this holiday season is the perfect time to share some shining Silver State spirit. Need some inspo? Check out our Nevada Pride Shopping Guide with inspired gift ideas-from wrappable, made-in-Nevada goodies to mappable, only-inNevada excursions-for foodies, adventure junkies, history buffs, and all the other Nevada-lovers in your life. This year shop small, dream big, and create some unforgettable home-state memories. DiscoverYourNevada.com/Gift
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12.09.21 TODD ENGLISH’S OLIVES Virgin Hotels Las Vegas, 702-6934070. Sunday & Wednesday-Thursday, 5-10 p.m.; Friday & Saturday, 5-11 p.m.
C U L T U R E
Tuna tartare, fig and prosciutto flatbread, rabbit pappardelle, veal Parmesan and charred eggplant at Todd English’s Olives (Wade Vandervort/ Staff)
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Moon Palace’s spicy chicken sandwich (Moon Palace, Mark Mediana/Courtesy)
UNSURPRISING
GREATNESS
F O O D
Todd English’s new Olives brings destination dining to Virgin Hotels Las Vegas BY BROCK RADKE
SLIDING UP TO MOON PALACE n If you’ve been meaning to try David Chang’s quick-serve slider diner Moon Palace (across from his dynamic Majordomo at the Palazzo) but haven’t made it yet, now’s the time. The king of the Momofuku empire has upgraded his menu of tasty beef baby burgers, eggand-cheese breakfast sliders and chocolate-dipped pancake marshmallow Whoopie pies with some irresistible new creations. Basically, you’re going to have to order one of everything. New to Moon Palace’s offerings are a spicy chicken sandwich ($7) that falls somewhere between Nashville hot and classic Buffa-
lo, with creamy ranch and thinly sliced cucumbers; and a prime rib French dip ($8), which makes use of some of that supreme beef from Majordomo plus caramelized onions, Swiss cheese, horseradish cream and a tiny cup of au jus for dipping. Both come sprawled across a pair of sweet Hawaiian buns, just like the sliders, and each of them are big and delicious enough for a suitable lunch, more so if you add freshly fried potato chips ($4). You can’t really say that about a pair of sliders from that other place. But that doesn’t matter, because you have to eat everything, remember? –Brock Radke
MOON PALACE Palazzo, 702-607-3060. Thursday-Monday, 9 a.m.-midnight.
D R I N K
roasted half-chicken ($38) served with sunchokes, preserved lemon and Calabrian chili oil. Before you even get to shareable entrées like those, you’ll nosh on some lovely house-made focaccia and crispy lavash with two tapenades and creamy basil ricotta. That hearty snack sets the tone for signature flatbreads like portobello and fontina ($18) and fig and prosciutto ($24). Those pizzas were always among the most popular items at Bellagio, but here the favorite starter is a generous beef carpaccio ($24) with gorgonzola polenta and scallion cream. I loved the wood-grilled squid and octopus ($22) with braised chickpeas and bright, baby heirloom tomatoes. This Olives is bigger than before, designed for a big night out with a big group of friends sharing big plates like classic chicken Milanese ($39)—which I turned into one of the greatest leftover sandwiches of all time the next day—or veal Parm ($58) covered in mozzarella and a rich ragu. You can pass pastas around the table, too, like the mezza rigatoni alla vodka ($27) or pappardelle with rabbit and radicchio ($29). Charred eggplant with miso ($13) is the top-selling side. Go eat at Olives now for the obvious fall-winter perfection of this menu, and get ready to stake out some patio space in the spring. It’s a must on the new-inVegas list.
&
F
amiliarity doesn’t necessarily breed contempt, but it sure can douse you with indifference. When we learned that three of the essential dining experiences at Virgin Hotels Las Vegas would be the well-known Nobu, One Steakhouse (an update of MB Steak) and Todd English’s Olives, it didn’t sound as exhilarating as a casino resort opening with a full slate of fresh restaurant concepts new to the city. But as we’ve sampled Virgin’s food, both new and familiar, levels of excitement are rising, and that’s what you want to see. The latest example is our first trip to Olives, which is less a reboot of the famously successful eatery that opened with Bellagio in 1998 than a new take on the original Boston restaurant that opened in 1989 and set English on his course as a celebrity chef. Located in a former steakhouse space along the southern end of the resort, it’s a swanky, clubby dining room that seats more than 200, boasts a comfy patio space and live music in the lounge and adds impressive service. The food at Olives is still rustic Mediterranean with plenty of Italian accents, but this version has a massive woodfired oven adding some spectacular smokiness to many different dishes, including a showpiece 36-day aged New York steak ($85) and a
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12.09.21
THE POWER OF
PERSEVERANCE Battle-tested veterans Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier top the card for UFC 269
C U L T U R E
BY CASE KEEFER
F
ive years ago, Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier were both lightweight afterthoughts at risk of getting released by the UFC with another loss or two. Oliveira spent the end of 2016 bulking up for a return to the 155-pound division after a failed stint at the 145-pound featherweight class, where he lost four of his final six fights by stoppage. Poirier hadn’t fallen quite as far, but he was coming off a knockout defeat to a sub-.500 fighter (Michael Johnson), his fourth career loss in the octagon. Since then, however, it’s been almost nothing but positive momentum for both fighters, delivering them to the headlining role of the UFC’s annual blockbuster year-end pay-per-view card. Oliveira will attempt to defend his lightweight championship for the first time against Poirier in the main event of UFC 269, December 11 at T-Mobile Arena. “I’ve worked hard to get here,” Oliveira, a native of Brazil, said through a translator in a news conference after beating Michael Chandler for the title earlier this year. It was a massive understatement. Oliveira (31-8 MMA, 19-7-1 UFC) set the record as the most experienced fighter to win a UFC title by capturing the belt in his 28th career bout. Poirier (28-6 MMA, 20-5-1 UFC) wouldn’t quite claim the record were he to
UFC 269 When: December 11, preliminaries begin at 3 p.m., pay-perview main card at 7 p.m. Where: T-Mobile Arena Tickets: $190$10,000, axs.com Pay-per-view: $80, plus.espn.com/ufc Main card: Charles Oliveira vs. Dustin Poirier (lightweight championship), Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena (women’s bantamweight championship), Geoff Neal vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio (welterweight), Kai Kara-France vs. Cody Garbrandt (flyweight), Raulian Paiva vs. Sean O’Malley (bantamweight)
12.09.21
Charles Oliveira (top) (Shutterstock) and Dustin Poirier (AP Photo) (Photo Illustration
RAIDERS Report
n LAST WEEK: WASHINGTON FOOTBALL TEAM 17, RAIDERS 15 A week after upsetting the Cowboys on Thanksgiving Day, the Raiders managed only one touchdown—a one-yard run by Josh Jacobs in the fourth quarter after a penalty-assisted drive—in their last home game before Christmas. The defense wasn’t blameless either, though it played well enough to win by shutting out Washington in the second and third quarters. Washington scored an opening-drive touchdown to take a lead at the start of the game, however, and went up and down the field in the fourth quarter. A dropped interception by safety Tre’von Moehrig that would have won the game for the Raiders led to a 48-yard game-winning field goal by Washington’s Brian Johnson. n This Week: Raiders (6-6) at Chiefs (8-4) When: Sunday, December 12, 10 a.m. Where: Arrowhead Stadium TV: KLAS (Channel 8) Radio: 920-AM, 92.3-FM Betting line: Chiefs -9.5, over/under: 52.5 n Matchup: The Chiefs handed the Raiders their worst loss of the year three weeks ago, a 41-14 blowout at Allegiant Stadium. It was one of the only games this season in which the Patrick Mahomes-led Chiefs looked like the unstoppable offensive force that had advanced to the Super Bowl the past two years. Raiders defensive coordinator Gus Bradley opted to stick to his traditional Cover 3 scheme against the Chiefs; most opponents have switched their philosophy to play deeper, softer coverages to limit big, improvisational plays. It will be interesting to see if Bradley stays stubborn in the rematch or implements some tweaks. Including the victory over the Raiders, the Chiefs have now won five in a row.
n Raider to Watch: Cornerback Trayvon Mullen The Raiders’ starting cornerback is expected to return from a Week 4 toe injury at what would be the perfect time. Alongside fellow outside starter Casey Hayward and slot cornerback Nate Hobbs, Mullen could turn a position that’s been a weakness for Las Vegas into a strength. Competent play in the defensive backfield is a necessity against Mahomes and his speedy top receiver, Tyreek Hill—and a department where the Raiders have been hit-or-miss during a 1-4 stretch since their bye week. Hill had 85 total yards and two touchdowns against the Raiders in the first game without Mullen. –Case Keefer
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Raiders running back Josh Jacobs runs for a touchdown during the second half of the team’s loss to Washington. (Wade Vandervort/ Staff)
S P O R T S
defeat Oliveira, but he would sit second all-time with a breakthrough in his 27th appearance. The two men stand in defiance of the traditional combat sports trope of champions surging to prominence from a young age with an unbeatable aura if not a padded record. There will always be some examples of that career path, but in the modern age of the UFC, battle-tested veterans like Oliveira and Poirier, both 32 years old, rising to the top after years of experience are just as common. “He’s a guy who’s picked himself up off the canvas time and time again, fought through adversity, two weight classes, been in the UFC a decade,” Poirier said of Oliveira in a news conference over the summer. “He’s not just a guy with the belt. He’s earned every ounce of gold he has around his waist, and I respect guys like that. “I don’t know him personally but his work history, I can’t hate on anything he’s done. It’s incredible,” Poirier continued. “That’s tougher to do than, I think, go undefeated, because you never learn things about yourself [when you win]. You learn so much about yourself in those losses and climbing back up to the top and getting motivated again. That’s when you find out if you’re a real fighter.” Poirier, who did win the interim lightweight title two years ago before losing to Khabib Nurmagomedov in a unification bout, knows from experience. Poirier’s growth has been most evident over the past year, during which he has beaten superstar Conor McGregor in the main event of 2021’s two highest-grossing fight cards. McGregor had previously
knocked out Poirier, in September 2014, after getting in his head with copious trash talk leading into the bout. Poirier was able to tune out all the chatter in a pair of stoppage wins against McGregor in January and July. “It’s just been a long process of years of making mistakes from being too committed and caring too much about everything, things I couldn’t control,” Poirier said. “It’s just the evolution of myself.” Part of Poirier’s path to becoming a better fighter included making the tough decision to leave his hometown gym in Lafayette, Louisiana, to train with some of the sport’s best at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, years ago. Oliveira, originally from São Paulo, made a similar move, joining up with the famed Chute Boxe Academy, formed in Curitiba, Brazil, in 2018. Oliveira hasn’t lost since that camp switch, having won nine straight, but he’s generally less reflective on his journey than Poirier. “I don’t think like that,” Oliveira said through a translator. “That was the past. This is now.” They both still have plenty to prove at UFC 269. There’s another old combat-sports truism that Oliveira must get past—that a fighter isn’t truly the champion until defending the belt. Poirier, meanwhile, wants to be known for more than being the McGregor slayer. Those two fights earlier this year made him incredibly wealthy—he earned a base purse of $1.8 million in the pair of bouts before the more-lucrative, undisclosed pay-per-view bonuses—but an undisputed championship is the ultimate aim for every fighter, regardless of how long it takes to get there. “I busted my ass for so long to put myself in this position,” Poirier said.
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VEGAS INC BUSINESS
12.09.21
TECHNOLOGY
LAS VEGAS’ CONVENTION AND TOURISM ECONOMY A RIPE MARKET FOR PORTABLE PHONE CHARGER RENTAL COMPANY
I
BY BRYAN HORWATH VEGAS INC STAFF
t’s an issue nearly everyone with a cellphone runs into while they travel: how to keep the device charged. Many bring their charger on the trip … and then lose it. Some even pay the heavy price of upgrading their phone to a new model with a longer-lasting battery. June Zhu, an entrepreneur who moved from her native China to the United States in 2013, believes her company has another solution. ChargerGoGo provides phone-charging kiosks for commercial venues. It has a presence at the Las Vegas Convention Center with seven kiosks and at MGM Grand Garden Arena. The service allows a customer to rent a temporary portable battery-charger, which is small enough to fit into a back pocket and comes with universal connector cords that fit Apple and Samsung products. The device charges fully in about 70 minutes and costs a few dollars, Zhu said. Once the device is fully charged, customers return the device to the kiosk. Zhu referred to Las Vegas as a “pilot” market, but the idea seems to be catching on quickly. She’s talking to resort officials on the Strip and with Allegiant Stadium about expanding ChargerGoGo’s footprint. “ I think this type of service will eventually become like Wi-Fi for any type of offline business,” Zhu said. Chris Meyer, CEO of a meetings and trade industry consulting com-
pany, said he’s impressed with what ChargerGoGo offers. “One of the most frequent requests our clients receive from customers is to help them charge their phones,” Meyer said. “ChargerGoGo kiosks enable customers to charge their phones worry-free while they’re at a meeting and events facility, bar, café or any other commercial venue.” With ChargerGoGo, Zhu would like to get to the point where the kiosks are so common in Las Vegas, a visitor wouldn’t have to worry much
about finding a station for a battery drop-off. Zhu moved the company from California to Las Vegas in August 2020 because of tax benefits and because “this city is all about conventions and hospitality. That’s our target market.” For now, the kiosks are geared more toward specific events, such as a boxing match or concert at MGM Grand Garden Arena, or a trade show such as CES at the convention center, but Zhu said they are also good for places like restaurants, coffee shops
and hospitals. ChargerGoGo also had some kiosks available during Electric Daisy Carnival Las Vegas in October. “When you get a few big, reputable clients, you tend to get noticed, which makes it easier to partner with more of those businesses,” Zhu said. “We’re looking at arenas, convention centers, hotels, casinos, nightclubs, all of those types of businesses.” A kiosk station that contains six battery packs costs $390. A 40-pack kiosk costs just under $3,900. Zhu said China is ahead of the U.S. in offering options to charge cellphones, though she’s confident her business can help provide more options for American phone users. “America is a little bit more of a mature market,” Zhu said. “There are some options that already existed in America, such as perhaps USB ports at a restaurant or a charging stand at an airport, though people have to stay there as their phone is being charged. I think we have a lot of room to grow our concept here.”
June Zhu, founder of ChargerGoGo (Christopher DeVargas/Staff)
VEGAS INC BUSINESS
12.09.21
VegasInc Giving Notes City National Bank partnered with Foley Family Wines and the Vegas Golden Knights to donate $10,000 worth of food to families of students attending Lincoln Elementary School in North Las Vegas. The donation event included volunteers from the three organizations, including Deryk Engelland, helping to distribute food to the families. City National also donated $22,000 to 11 nonprofit and community-based organizations in Southern Nevada, including Animal Foundation: Best in Show, CARES Complex, Fraternity of the Desert Bighorn, HELP of Southern Nevada, HopeLink of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas Natural History Museum, Nevada Charter Academy, Operation Homefront, Rape Crisis Center, Vessels for Veterans and Zieter. Move 4 Less announced a third cycle of its Moving Our Community initiative, which helps local families who must relocate. Applications are available through February at move4lessnevada.com. UNLV announced its partnership with TheDream.US to provide scholarships for immigrant youths. The scholarship
is for Dreamers who are first-time college students or community college graduates attending UNLV. The award covers tuition and fees of up to $33,000. TheDream.US and UNLV expect to award scholarships to about 10 eligible students for the 2022-23 academic year. The application deadline is Feb. 28 at thedream.us/scholarships/ national-scholarship. Clark County School District teachers can earn a $1,000 classroom grant and two complimentary Vegas Golden Knights tickets as part of the America First Credit Union-sponsored VGK Game-Changer Program which honors and celebrates teachers who go above and beyond in their classrooms. This season, four honorees will be recognized at a VGK home game in the Fortress and will receive $1,000 to improve their classroom. Nominations will be accepted until Feb. 11 at nhl. com/goldenknights/community. The Nevada Mining Association donated $65,000 to Spread the Word Nevada to support the “Mining for Books” program in rural Nevada, in addition to beautifying and prepping 500 donated books for distribution to
with Walker Furniture to provide 20 beds, frames, mattresses and protective covers to Share Village, which provides affordable housing and services to military veterans and their families. Another lodge donated sheets, pillows and comforters.
underserved local schools and their students. Spearheaded by Denise Dixon, founder of the Cosmetology Institute of Las Vegas, the beauty school donated 20 wigs by students and completed several complimentary beauty makeovers to Dixon local breast cancer survivors during its fifth annual “WigA-Thon’’ event in November. Additionally, 18 women received on-site mammograms at the event from the Nevada Health Centers Mammovan, a mobile medical 3D mammogram station stationed at the institute during the Wig-A-Thon.
The Folded Flag Foundation, which honors America’s fallen heroes by providing their families with financial support for education, announced City National Bank as the newest member of its corporate partnership program. City National donated $100,000, with 100% of it directly benefiting Gold Star families. To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, Latin-inspired restaurant and craft coffee house Makers & Finders partnered with Chicanos Por La Causa to raise money for the local nonprofit. Makers & Finders presented members of the organization with a check for $2,500.
The Goodie Two Shoes Foundation and Encircle Family & Youth Resource Centers each received a $25,000 donation from Cox Charities, the fundraising arm of Cox Communications, Las Vegas. The donation was made possible by the support of sponsors for the annual Cox Charities Golf Tournament, which was not held due to pandemic precautions. Several sponsors elected to provide their sponsorship support regardless and Cox contributed as well.
The Salvation Army Southern Nevada partnered with Zappos for Good, the charitable arm of Zappos.com, Allegiant Stadium and the community— which donated turkeys, side dishes, fresh produce and nonperishable items—to provide holiday food boxes for families experiencing challenges that threaten their well-being. The Gobble for Good drive-thru distribution event supported 1,000 families and provided over 13,000 pounds of turkey.
After receiving a $10,000 national grant, Elks Lodge #1468 partnered
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