Hypnotists keeping patrons from getting sleepy

The day may have passed when Las Vegas hypnotists could get away with folding chairs and a boombox to provide their trance-inducing mood music.

First came "Dirty -- Rock Hard Comedy Hypnosis," the new weeknight attraction at the House of Blues that pairs hypnotists Terry Stokes and Michael Johns with a rock band.

Now get ready for the Hypnotic Hotties. The dancers, thus billed in a press release, come to Harrah's Las Vegas on Aug. 10 as part of "Marshall Sylver Presents: The World's Funniest Hypnotists." Though the title suggests Sylver has bowed out of performing the show in favor of producing, Harrah's officials say that's not the case.

They're still not sure exactly how much Sylver plans to perform versus how much he will rely on other hypnotists, billed as "some of the most amusing ... from around the globe." They have time to find out, because the first month is considered a "soft" opening.

Sylver incorporated female dancers and even magic illusions into the show when he performed at the Sahara and Stratosphere in 1996 and 1997. His name popped up more in the news pages than the entertainment section in late 2003, when a jury trial considering charges that he had bilked customers for a financial self-help program ended in a mistrial. ...

Ivan Kane made retro burlesque a hot trend a few years ago with his Forty Deuce clubs in Hollywood and at Mandalay Bay. But not everyone's into nostalgia and besides, you can't sit still in the nightclub business. Ivan Kane's Royal Jelly debuted at the Las Vegas location last week as a Thursday night attraction, with Aug. 30 considered the grand opening.

Royal Jelly replaces back-alley strip-joint jazz with classic rock and appropriately trashy dancer attire. The vocals from the original rock tracks are blended with live guitar, bass and drums. ...

Since "America's Got Talent" made good use of several of producer David Saxe's acts, the NBC series surely won't mind if he rips them off a little. The Vegas' Got Talent Search on Aug. 17 will offer a spot in Saxe's "V -- The Ultimate Variety Show" to the winner of an open audition inside the theater at the Miracle Mile shops at Planet Hollywood. ...

I've made a running bit in this column about a couple of shows I'd like to see here. No news that they are getting any closer, but there is at least related news.

In lieu of Pink Floyd maestro Roger Waters staging "The Wall" as a resident production, the album will be performed in its entirety as part of the "Classic Albums Live" series at the Hard Rock Hotel on Sept. 1.

Mel Brooks' new Broadway-bound musical "Young Frankenstein" is the example I use when carping about Las Vegas casinos rolling over for shopworn titles -- i.e., Brooks' first Broadway hit, "The Producers" -- instead of fighting for an early claim to new titles that obviously would work on the Strip.

Casino producers allowed "Young Frankenstein" to go to Seattle for its pre-Broadway engagement, but audiences there at least get a taste of Vegas-style pricing. The new Mel Brooks musical that opens Tuesday has orchestra seats priced $124 to $305.

When the musical moves to New York in October, weekend tickets will set a new Broadway record of $450 for the best seats. Let's hope Elton or Celine don't notice.

Mike Weatherford's entertainment column appears Thursdays and Sundays. Contact him at 383-0288 or e-mail him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com.