Lucky Dragon and its lucky number; Susan Anton is ‘home’ at Cab Jazz
The Kats! Bureau at this writing is Pub 365 at Tuscany Suites, where the NFL lid-lifter matching the Denver Broncos and Carolina Panthers glows from the monitors from above and the faint musicianship of “The Rat Pack is Back” can be heard across the way inside the Copa Room.
One thing about “The Rat Pack is Back”: The show burns up the box office. Just about sold out every performance in the month of August. The room seats just a little more than 100, but still, not an easy achievement.
Later, it will be Rockie Brown – a unique and wonderful talent— in Piazza Lounge. Catch her whenever you can. And, still later, we have a date with Mike Tyson and “The Undisputed Truth” at Brad Garrett’s Comedy Club at MGM Grand. Iron Mike is back for his second swing through Garrett’s club, performing Thursdays through Sundays through Oct. 23.
But before any of that, we tee it up and kick it out:
LUCKY NUMBERS
The official number of rooms at Lucky Dragon is 203. I’d seen 204 mentioned, but as developer and owner Andrew Fonfa told me last week, 4 is a bad-luck number in Chinese culture (its pronounced nearly the same as the word for “death.”) So the formal number is 203, including 23 suites, and the property’s opening date is now set for Dec. 3. And don’t expect a delay to Dec. 4.
Fonfa is the owner of the Allure high-rise just behind Lucky Dragon on West Sahara Avenue, just west of Las Vegas Boulevard. Fonfa opened that tower in 2010, and 50 percent of the 427 rooms (can’t escape the “4” there, evidently) were purchased by Chinese investors. Fonfa says he expects Allure to be completely owned and/or occupied by investors from China within two years, with unit prices now ranging from $250,000 to $5 million and for Lucky Dragon to serve as a kind of side-saddle hotel specifically serving Allure.
Fonfa also says he is confident that Resorts World Las Vegas (whose opening has been reportedly pushed back again, to 2019) will eventually open and match the splashy renderings rolled out during the resorts’ ribbon-cutting in May 2015. “When that happens,” Fonfa says, “you will see a new Chinatown in Las Vegas.”
ANTON, FIORILLO BACK AT CAB JAZZ
Several months ago, Susan Anton remarked that Cabaret Jazz could use a few more female headliners. Hard to argue that point, especially when she is one of them.
Anton is back at Cab Jazz at 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday in a show titled, “Already Home.” (Anton does have a residence in Las Vegas).
One of the city’s more inspired music directors and arrangers, Jeff Neiman, leads the band as it rolls through selections from Bob Dylan, Marc Cohen, Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, Joan Osborne, India Arie and John Mayer.
Also worth a look-see at Cab Jazz is the return of Elisa Fiorillo with the Bruce Harper Big Band at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Fiorillo toured with Prince and the New Revolution for five years, and knew the artist for more than two decades. She is realizing her dream in Vegas by performing with Harper and his powerhouse orchestra
K-THOM AND THE COMPOSERS
There is something of an effort mobilizing across VegasVille to find Keith Thompson some work, soon, as the close of “Jersey Boys” at Paris Las Vegas nears. Not that Thompson would have much trouble finding steady employment; we just want to keep him in our airspace. The richly talented and prolific composer and music director of “Jersey Boys” since the show opened at Palazzo in 2008, Thompson co-founded and has emceed “The Composers Showcase of Las Vegas” at Cabaret Jazz for more than a decade.
Wednesday the show is on once more, 10:30 p.m., or “After theater,” as we say. “Jersey Boys” closes Sept. 18, and the future of “TCS” is a bit in doubt. Too much in doubt. It is absolutely one of the coolest shows in this city. Expect performances from cast members of such shows as “Million Dollar Quartet,” “Baz – Star Crossed Love,” “Rock of Ages,” “Menopause The Musical” and a host of other artists who ply their craft on and off the Strip. Count on variety, some extraordinary talent and a high measure of mirth.
RIGHTEOUS. TOTALLY RIGHTEOUS
Great line to open “The Righteous Brothers” return to Harrah’s on Wednesday night: “We had to take some time off. Bucky had to do some jail time.” That, from Bill Medley, directed at his co-star, Bucky Heard. The show soldiers on after the death of Medley’s partner Bobby Hatfield in November 2003. As Medley said, he misses his partner terribly – which is evident in the pain in his voice when he recalls their time together – but the music is too strong to shelve forever.
One of the great moments on a Vegas stage is the video tribute to Hatfield as Medley sings solo on “Unchained Melody.” You can hear sniffles in the audience, and on the duo’s return it was a full house of full hearts.
T-MOBILE SELLOUTS
With the return of George Strait this weekend, we ask, which acts have actually filled T-Mobile Arena in official sellouts? Strait, during his first shows in April (and should be the case again this weekend, with 17,000 tickets sold for each performance); Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay and (coming up Sunday) Drake. The two nights of the iHeartRadio Music Festival on Sept. 23 and Sept. 24 are also sold out.
John Katsilometes’ column runs Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday in the A section, and Fridays in Neon. He also hosts “Kats! On The Radio” Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on KUNV 91.5-FM and appears Wednesdays at 11 a.m. with Dayna Roselli on KTNV Channel 13. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
