Lady Gaga’s appearance at Wynn’s Encore is a cruise along the Las Vegas Strip

Lady Gaga had a confession to make Friday night at Encore Theater.

Of murder.

“I know I shouldn’t say this, but I killed a man,” Gaga said during her grand appearance on the Strip. She directing the comments toward Steve Wynn, seated a few rows from the stage. Then the unlikely jazz headliner sang a sinewy, “Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down).”

The song has some impressive lineage, written by Sonny Bono, sung by Cher and also Sinatra (Nancy, in this instance).

“He wore black and I wore white,” Gaga expressed. “He would always win the fight.”

A fun lyric, but also ill-fitting. Lady Gaga is no loser. Hand-chosen by the esteemed hotelier, she lassoed a plumb one-off on New Year’s Eve weekend at $1,000 and $1,500 per ticket.

By comparison, the Gaga’s starting ticket price two years ago — with Tony Bennett – started at $125 at the Chelsea Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. The two performed more than 30 songs that night; Gaga sang about a dozen in Friday’s 90-minute session.

The night was a roll-out of jazz standards, primarily, with spiced with Gaga’s originality. Particularly inspired was her measured run through “Bad Romance” at the piano – she is expertly trained on the instrument – and the show-opening take of “New York, New York.” That’s the song she performed to punctuate the “Sinatra at 100: An All-Star Grammy Concert” in December 2015 in that same venue.

As anticipated, Gaga was visually fascinating, prancing forth in a dozen costume changes. Her movements were casual as she half-stepped around the stage, often teetering on tall heels in a manner that defied choreography. She donned an array of gowns, highlighted by a spectacular crimson-sequined dress with a train stretching several feet, and also a black-lace number that wrapped her legs tightly as if she were a very dark mermaid.

Typically, an impressive, forceful vocalist, Gaga took on a variety of classics. Shifting gears from “Coquette” near the top, a flippant “Call Me Irresponsible” (which seemed a dare to the audience), and coyly delivered renditions of “Every Time We Say Goodbye” (famous by Ella Fitzgerald) “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered” (from the Rodgers & Hart musical “Pal Joey”), and the Sinatra staple, “The Lady is a Tramp.”

With all the costume changes, Gaga’s stage time was effectively rationed, and at times it felt as if she were a guest star in her own performance. The night’s de facto co-headliner was her longtime trumpet player and leader of his own eponymous quintet, Brian Newman, who led a 20-minute segment at the opening of the show and ably filled the gaps between Gaga’s wardrobe responsibilities.

Thus, the show was not purely a Gaga showcase. Led by ringleader Newman, the band embarked on several lengthy, freewheeling solos —- this was a jazz show, after all (in a loose connection to Las Vegas, Newman was once a member of “Absinthe” performer Melody Sweets’ band The Candy Shop Boys in New York). He repeatedly thanked Wynn for the opportunity to play the stage, and if anyone benefited from this particular gig, it was Newman, often holding the spotlight solo for several segments.

And lest we forget, also worth a nod was conductor Dave Loeb and the “Showstoppers” orchestra, performing their penultimate gig before that show closes tonight. Those topnotch players thrilled in backing a genuine superstar in such a unique moment.

Gaga closed in spirited fashion, with her last number directed to the man who fashioned this unique opportunity. For Wynn, she sang the Edith Plaf version of “”La Vie en rose,” also made famous, over time, by Louis Armstrong, Donna Summer and Grace Jones, among others. She sang the number in French, impressively.

Left open is if this might have been a test-drive of a Gaga residency at Encore, with “Showstoppers” departing and Wynn’s affection luring top performers to the hotel. Garth Brooks’ run started this way, more than seven years ago, during a private show at Encore Theater. That night, Wynn was seated next to Bette Midler, who turned to Wynn and fairly shouted, “Have you booked him?!”

That began a fulfilling partnership at Encore Theater. It remains to be seen if Gaga would generate such attention. She might not have killed ’em, not on this night. But if the idea was to leave ’em wanting more, she achieved that, easily.

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily 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.