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Luxor Las Vegas Shows
Believe - Criss Angel and Cirque Du Soleil
Criss Angel's Believe show, co-produced with Cirque Du Soleil, is part cool stunts and part crazy illusions. In true Cirque Du Soleil fashion, there is a story, though that story is convoluted, complicated, and impossible to follow. Criss acts out a magic trick that goes wrong and gets transported to the Land of the... what? Bunnies? Dead? Creepy dolls? We don't know. He gets sawed in half, clowns show up, a wedding almost happens, and magic ensues.
An incomprehensible storyline does not usually seem to hinder Cirque Du Soleil. Most of their shows are confusing, and no one cares, because the stunts and sets are so cool. But in Believe, the acrobatics make way for the illusions, which make way for the dancers, which make way for clips from the Mindfreak TV show. There's so much going on, nothing ever seems to stick. It's a mishmash, and we're left clinging to the story, trying to figure out what's happening. And the story doesn't provide many clues.
A lot of Believe is compelling. It's dark, it's creepy, and the music is engrossing. The parts of the show driven by technology work. The awkward moments come from Criss himself, interacting with audience members pulled up on stage. Hes a little stiff, a little unaware. Those who love Criss Angel already should enjoy the show. Others might benefit from a pure Cirque experience like O or Ka, or a pure magic display like Lance Burton.
For the curious, here's a photograph of Criss Angel Smiling. You probably won't see that in the show, but it's such a rarity, we've presented here.
Just wondering, has anyone ever seen Criss Angel and John Stamos together in the same place at the same time? Perhaps this is his greatest illusion...
Carrot Top - Comedy Show
Let's get this out of the way: Carrot Top is funny-looking.
He's not funny-looking the way generation X might remember him from the nineties, with lanky arms and frizzy hair, but funny-looking in a new, more frightening way. He's hugely buff now, muscular like an action hero, and either wears eyeliner or has it tattooed on his eyelids. The hair is the same. Here's an example, but don't click on it. Just don't.
Now let's get to the important part: Carrot Top is funny.
He's still using props, and the props are more hilarious now than they ever were. But props alone don't make the show. He stays current, pointing out what's in the news. He engages with the audience, discovering birthdays and passing out shots. He gives monologues, staying connected to the emotions of his audience. The show is well-reviewed, possibly because of the varied expectations that each audience member enters with. Some expect him to be too strange, or too cheesy, or too whatever, and when he's just funny, raunchy, and energetic, they exit as new Carrot Top fans.
The buzz is this: Carrot Top responds to the audience, for better or for worse. The theatre isn't huge, so he can see them just as well as they can see him. When the crowd is loving him, he boosts his performance through the roof. But when they sit stone-faced, he feels it. Anyone attending should heed this advice: to get the most bang for your buck, give him love. You'll get it back.
Fantasy -Topless Revue
The topless revue at the Luxor carries on the grand old Las Vegas tradition of dancing around mostly naked to popular music.
The show centers on well-known guy fantasies: Girl in a football jersey, girl out of a football jersey. The cheerleader, the cowgirl, the cop. There's a lot of dancing, a little stripping, and overall the performances are tasteful.One of the most impressive and well-received acts is a suspended ribbon dance that merges eroticism, atheletics, and grace. The audience is largely couples, and no one will be made uncomfortable by excessive raunch. Visitors might be distracted from time to time by the obligatory drunk guy shouting stuff, but that's not an experience limited to topless shows. Drunk guys shouting are part of the Las Vegas landscape, like neon, or timeshare salespeople. Even five-star restaurants on the Strip experience occasional drunk-shouting-guy infestations.
Comedian Sean E. Cooper brings the comic relief to Fantasy, impersonating a wide variety of popular entertainers. The breaks are welcome, and the laughs are contagious.
Menopause the Musical
If you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at? Why not these people?
Menopause, the Musical is as clearly-named as it can be. Anyone entering, experiencing, or finished with menopause will find plenty of material to relate to, as will their friends, husbands, and peers. The musical focuses on the changes that happen around 50+, changing the lyrics of popular songs like I Got You Babe and Puff the Magic Dragon to reflect hot flashes, memory loss, and slowdown. It's difficult to make light of serious life issues, but Menopause the Musical does it cheerfully, with tongue firmly in cheek.
The buzz on Menopause the Musical is that older people will LOVE it. Younger folks may not laugh as much, but will be entertained by the music, the great showmanship, and the energy of the crowd of older people around them that are LOVING it.
Luxor Las Vegas Exhibits
Bodies... The Exhibition
A mandatory exhibit for fine artists, biologists, and the curious, Bodies the Exhibition is still intriguing visitors after its move from the Tropicana. In the museum-like showroom, real human bodies are displayed in various states of visibility. Muscles, veins, nerves, organs, and bones are all available to the eye as visitors progress through many different rooms. Detailed descriptions accompany each element, highlighting the purpose, uniqueness, and indispensability of each body part.
This is not a display for the squeamish. Bodies the Exhibition is comprised of real human bodies that once walked and laughed like us. It's impossible not to stroll the halls and wonder who this person was, what that one looked like, and if they would be comfortable in their new role as educational props. Most of the bodies are men, with only two or three women. The cadavers are processed through a lab in China, where plastic is injected and hardened, giving each featrure a toylike, dry look. The preservation is top-quality, and most visitors will find themselves squirming only initially, before scientific curiosity takes over.
The most disturbing parts of the exhibit are relegated to a room that can be skipped, with sign on the door warning visitors about its contents. These include stillborn children with birth defects, fetuses from one to nine months, and a healthy lung next to a lung destroyed by cigarette smoke.
The exhibit now costs $34 per person, so if your interest is low, it might be better to spend the money elsewhere. If you're not already fascinated by the workings of the human body, the price tag will seem exorbitant.
Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition
Among the most well-attended exhibitions in history, Titanic is in a class by itself when it comes to emotionally engaging its visitors. Much of the ship is lovingly re-created, with many original pieces like luggage, floor tiles, a window frame, and a still-unopened champagne bottle from 1900 bringing history to life. Guests pass through the grand staircase, outer promenade deck, and first and third-class cabins.
On entry,visitors are given a boarding pass bearing the name of an original Titanic passenger. On exit, that name can be checked against a complete roster, to discover whether that person lived or died. The emotional impact of the entire exhibit is unusually strong, due to a very pronounced sense of "being there," andconstant reminders that all these personal effects once belonged to someone much like ourselves.
