10 greatest ‘Absinthe’ moments in a 10-year Strip run

Note: This is the first of a three-part series of “Kats!” columns centering on this week’s 10th anniversary of “Absinthe” at Caesars Palace.

As The Gazillionaire once said, or didn’t, you can’t spell “ten” without “tent.” Gaz’s peerless production, “Absinthe,” turns 10 this Thursday, appropriately on April Fool’s Day.

As the city’s pre-eminent fictional character, Gaz is getting long in the tooth, metaphorically and in fact. But he’s still a sprightly member of the Vegas entertainment culture. The same is said for the show. “Absinthe” has withstood continued shuffling of its cast, court battles, damage to its Spiegeltents (especially the fabric venue from its original six-month run) and an influx of competing productions across VegasVille.

But “Absinthe” still stands alone.

I’ve seen the show nearly 60 times over the years, charting all the cast changes, anniversaries and re-openings. We hope never to reach the finish line. Thus, I’ve collected the following list of consequential moments during the show’s run at Caesars Palace:

Top 10 “Absinthe” Events

10: Teeing it up with the Las Vegas Raiders: The show was featured in the cold opening of the Raiders-Chiefs game on NBC’s “Football Night in America.” Gaz openly asked if Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes, “A gridiron showman like no other,” could perform as a member of original body balancing team Duo Vector, the juggling act Water on Mars or “Bathtub Boy” David O’Mer. It marked historic coupling of the Strip’s hottest show and the city’s new NFL franchise, played out on national TV.

9. The first “What Would You Do?” act: UFC star Frank Mir was brought onstage opening night on April 1, 2011. As we say, hi-jinks ensued. Mir was invited to perform in a bit originally titled “What Would You Do For a Free Shot of Lucid Absinthe?” because the show was in a promotional deal with Lucid Absinthe Supérieure. Today, the routine is audience members performing lap dances either onstage or (during COVID) in the audience.

But originally, it was anything goes. Mir, happy to play along, stripped off his shirt. Two other audience members (male and female) were also called up. At Gaz’s goading, Mir carried the guy around the stage. The woman grabbed his crotch. Gaz attempted to lick Mir’s nipple, but was pushed away as the group hustled off the stage. The place went wild. It was the moment we understood this twisted circus was something different.

8: They’re committed: “Absinthe” was scheduled to run for six months at Roman Plaza, in its soft-cover Spiegeltent. It signed an open-ended contract in October 2011, and a reinforced, $2 million venue replaced the original tent. The new, current facility is an actual building, signaling the long-term commitment from Caesars Entertainment and Spiegelworld to staying on the Strip.

7. Touring expansion: “Absinthe” developed off-shoot shows for runs in Australia in 2015, and LA Live’s Event Deck in 2017. These limited engagements reportedly sold well. But those performances suggested that the “Absinthe” brand of humor was a better sell on the Strip than elsewhere. As the L.A. Times noted in its review, almost four years ago to the day, “The aim seems to be to shock us with no-holds-barred talk, trading in stereotypes. But the most shocking thing about this material is how tired and dated it seems.” The shtick isn’t for everyone, folks.

6. Fontainebleau stalls: “Absinthe’s” original plans to open in Las Vegas were actually undercut by the city’s commercial real estate collapse in 2008-2009. The show initially was moving toward a residency at Fontainebleau. A gorgeous (we hear), $70 million, custom-designed venue was being constructed for a show with a $15 million pricetag. “Absinthe” would have been the only ticketed entertainment in a 4,000-room resort. When that project stopped, producer Ross Mollison shopped his show to other interests, and here we are.

5. Expansion to 14 shows per week: “Absinthe” took on a schedule hearkening to the golden era of Vegas production shows with two shows per night, seven nights per week, no breaks. A 15th and even 16th show has been added on especially busy nights. “Absinthe” was selling about 8,500 tickets per week, pre-COVID, delivering a consistent stream of revenue for Spiegelworld.

4. Celebrities descend: Such members of Las Vegas entertainment royalty as Jerry Lewis, Siegfried & Roy and Celine Dion all made their way to the Spiegeltent in the past decade. Neil Patrick Harris actually participated in the high-wire act twice (but not in front of audiences), in February 2012 and July 2013, and Channing Tatum took the stage in 2015. The show became a favorite of the Vegas Golden Knights in the team’s inaugural season. Visiting teams were known to hit the late show the night before games at T-Mobile Arena, which the cast credits with helping create the condition known as “Vegas Flu.”

3. Roman ruling: This was great theater, away from the theater.

About six years ago, Spiegelworld and original production partner Base Entertainment were famously entangled in a lawsuit centered on a dispute over ticket rebates issued by Ticketmaster. The show’s lease at Caesars Palace originally expired in October 2016. Spiegelworld saw this provision as an opening to end its partnership with Base and bolt for the Cosmopolitan. In August 2016, Spiegelworld and the Cosmopolitan announced “Absinthe” would indeed move to the former “Vegas Nocturne” theater (where the low ceilings would have KO’d most aerial acts). But Base and Spiegelworld ended up settling out of court, with Base no longer a co-producer. And “Absinthe” stayed at the Roman Plaza, where its popularity only grew.

2. Returning from Pandemic. Mollison laughs off suggestions that he has become a leader in the Las Vegas entertainment community. But he is. He’s served as an integral part of such cooperative organizations as the Vegas Events COVID-19 Committee (VECC), offering insight of a producer of a 10-year hit who also stages shows at The Venetian (“Atomic Saloon Show”) and Cosmopolitan (“Opium”).

The Spiegelworld crew has made every possible provision to return “Absinthe” safely, moving acts from the middle of the venue, installing a new air-filtration system, and even introducing the COVID-killing Grignard Pure stage mist to the venue. “Absinthe” came back to about 150 spectators in October, and even ran at 50-capacity for three weeks after the statewide “pause” in November. It’s not an understatement to say every entertainment professional in the city was watching this show’s return, and relieved to see it could be done.

1. Being onstage for No. 10. We do remember when“Absinthe” arrived a decade ago, with a vague title, no celebrity stars (the show still doesn’t even provide its characters’ legal names), and no track record whatsoever in Las Vegas. In the beginning, the cast felt it wasn’t doing its job unless at least one audience member stalked out because of the offensive humor. I was told to catch the show early, and meet Mollison right away, because the whole crew would be gone by the fall.

Through it all, the show’s incredible physical talent, barbed writing, sharp comedic acting, stage direction, marketing (check out the Spiegelworld YouTube page) and its expert pacing has carried it through to this anniversary. “Absinthe” deserves every measure of its acclaim. No. 1 at No. 10, is its story today.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.