Dita Von Teese puts her spin on ‘Jubilee’ tradition

When “Jubilee,” the last of the Las Vegas showgirl spectacle shows, closed several years ago in Las Vegas, I suggested that such productions should be sustained by a public trust.

Lease an existing theater, or build something splendid into the Las Vegas Convention Center’s West Hall. Give tourists — or the 160,000 conventioneers in town this week for SEMA — a taste of golden-era Vegas entertainment. But I seriously doubt there is interest in using public money on an ongoing “Jubilee II” project.

Instead, the call has been for a star to commit to this revival, in a venue built for such a show, backed by a company with deep pockets and ample patience.

We now have all of that with “Dita Las Vegas: A Jubilant Celebration” starring the Queen of Burlesque, Dita Von Teese. The production opened Thursday at Jubilee Theater inside today’s Horseshoe, which is yesterday’s Bally’s and the day-before’s MGM Grand. The show runs at 9 p.m. on select Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays; and also Dec. 28-31.

At the top, the investment of imagination and resources in this genre is to be applauded. To see the old Jubilee Theater illuminated once more is a beautiful feeling.

This is by design a burlesque production paying homage to such showgirl productions as “Jubilee,” which closed in February 2016 after a 34-year run. Von Teese has full run of the aged venue, her pick of its set pieces, and also that show’s fabulous Bob Mackie- and Pete Menefee-designed costumes.

She might not own those specific items, but Von Teese does own the confidence of Horseshoe owner Caesars Entertainment and concert behemoth Live Nation, the show’s co-producers.

Von Teese is more than a fan of “Jubilee.” She is a historian. Glamorous numbers pepper the show. The burlesque star cruises along the stage in a golden carriage. She rides a blazing-pink mechanical bull. She performs with her signature champagne and martini glasses, a five lined up on stage in the same number.

Von Teese opens and closes behind new versions of “Viva Las Vegas,” a great touch. She revives the spirit and imagery of Liberace, with a mirrored Rolls Royce and caped chauffeur, looking like that show’s groundbreaking production at Las Vegas Hilton.

There is even a dancing/stumbling marionette, operated by one of the many “showboys” in the cast (and the male dancers are wearing some of those original, customized “Jubilee” costumes, with no consequential outcry).

But if you don’t have any recollection of Liberace, this is simply a stylish scene absent of nostalgia. This outlines a larger issue in “Dita Las Vegas.” The show threads the needle by evoking memories of a show whose audience was dissipating for years prior to its closing (choreographer Frank Gatson’s attempt to modernize the show only hastened its fate).

But if you do remember the grandeur of “Jubilee,” with its cast of 65 singers and dancers onstage at a time and a stage laden with grand set pieces (a dizzying “Titanic” revival and famous tribute to Samson & Delilah among them), “Dita Las Vegas” is comparably sparse, its stage drawn down to accommodate two dozen quite-talented dancers.

The show does bring back its high-overhead platforms, where Von Teese opens with an orange-and-red flourish on floating stage. And the platforms on the wings are in play; that’s where we first observe the great guest star Dirty Martini, whose helicopter tassel-twirl must be seen to be a appreciated.

This is where we mention “Dita Las Vegas,” in burlesque tradition, is a strip-to-pasties experience and not topless. Not a serious consideration as you watch the show live. But “topless” is a persuasive term in marketing adult revues across a city where such topless shows as “Fantasy” and “X Burlesque” have run for more than two decades.

Von Teese goes to great effort to keep the show classically appointed. But she employs modern technology in one scene, using video mapping in a projected striptease. Her video costume slips away in a very sexy, stylish number, the only one of its kind in burlesque shows. Von Teese sells this number in a way that makes it clear why she has amassed an international following.

It’s an impressive moment — more so if you haven’t seen how Strip productions make humans appear out of thin air in the middle of the theater. Or employ any variety of hologram figures.

Las Vegas is a hugely competitive entertainment destination, is the point. Fortunately for this show, Von Teese is a cool customer, certainly in no rush on or off the stage. Her show is scheduled to run into April 2024, time enough to develop a niche. “Dita Las Vegas” is as close to “Jubilee” as we’ll see in Las Vegas, or anywhere. If you miss these feathered productions, opportunity knocks. These shows don’t last forever.

Cool Hang Alert

On the topic of classic entertainment, piano great Wes Winters plays at 6 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays at Grandview Lounge at the South Point. No cover. Stage at the front, bar in the back, 21-and-over.

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 X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.