Big show closings underscore a shift in Las Vegas

So much for a slow December in Las Vegas entertainment. Last week brought the bombshells of two major show closings: The newest Cirque du Soleil, "Zarkana," and the oldest show in Las Vegas, "Jubilee," the last place where the Strip's iconic showgirls have more than a token cameo.

It was no secret that both shows were struggling, or at least discounting heavily to fill seats. And yet the closing of "Zarkana" on April 30 — to make room for more Aria convention space — seems more cut and dried than that of "Jubilee," which sinks the Titanic for the last time at Bally's on Feb. 11.

Granted, "Jubilee" seemed to be limping along, with the cast on a one-year contract and its creative future in question after last year's disastrous reboot. Beyonce choreographer Frank Gatson Jr. was brought in for what seemed a fairly easy task: Update the creaky dance numbers with some fresh music and attitude.

The results were awkward and frequently laughable. Gatson quickly exited the picture with far less fanfare than when he entered, leaving Gene Lubas to begin quietly fixing the damage and putting the revue back into some semblance of coherence.

But the real head-scratcher came with the closing announcement just days after the death of Ffolliott "Fluff" Le Coque, the show's retired company manager. She had overseen "Jubilee" since it opened, until she retired five years ago. She long served as the show's main tie to original producer Donn Arden, who died in 1994.

So was the timing merely tone deaf and in bad taste? A coincidence, as the end of the year is almost upon us? Or, as people began asking, did Le Coque inherit some contractual rights from Arden that lapsed with her death?

But "Jubilee" is now the rare show owned outright by its host, Caesars Entertainment. And Caesars folk insist the timing is coincidental.

That's backed up by a cable TV travel producer who made a routine request for performance footage a few months back, only to be told that if the cable show doesn't air until June, "Jubilee" will have changed significantly enough that current footage would no longer be relevant.

So at the very least, another major overhaul was in the works.

Here's a more likely explanation, suggested by the company stating "the opening of a new showgirl production at Bally's is currently being explored" as part of its closing announcement.

Since "Jubilee" is hotel-owned and its cast on the hotel payroll, Caesars Entertainment could save a ton of money by farming out a new show to an independent producer, remodeling the backstage area and renegotiating a new contract with Local 720 of the stagehands union (the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees).

Producers will tell you without hesitation that "Jubilee" was the toughest stagehand contract in town, with a dozen backstage "departments." Makes sense if you've watched that Titanic sink or Samson bring down the temple. Back in 1981, none of that scenery was automated or computer-assisted, as big shows like "Ka" are today. It was all guys pulling levers and ropes.

No one cared much about this back when shows were loss leaders and "Jubilee" was the most amazing spectacle on the Strip. But if you still have more than 60 dancers on the payroll and huge stagehand costs while depending on time-share pitch incentives to fill 1,200 seats, you can see how it might be possible to have showgirls without having "Jubilee."

I'll miss that "Samson" song, though.

Tickets for next year's final batch of shows are being marked down to start at $34 (before taxes and fees).

The opening of a new production show at Bally's isn't a given, considering the fate of "Zarkana." Unlike "O," it's a proscenium stage show that could conceivably move (to Bally's, perhaps?).

But don't hold your breath. Aria president Bobby Baldwin told the Review-Journal's Norm Clarke, "as important as ("Zarkana") was, the convention space was more important" to the "long-term positioning of Aria."

As I wrote in an online piece last week, Las Vegas entertainment always seems to follow a drift, and the drift is away from production shows to big-name stars in concert "residencies" (ironic, as the showgirl spectaculars once appealed to casino owners for their stability: not having to worry about the demands of big stars such as Frank Sinatra or the attendance dips of lesser ones).

So even though you won't be able to find a show in all of CityCenter, hotel guests there will be pointed south to the new Las Vegas Arena and 5,000-seat concert hall that MGM Resorts is building to compete with the Colosseum at Caesars Palace.

And, as noted in the online piece, "Zarkana" always seemed to be the one Cirque too many, a little too much like "Mystere" and its touring product to show up after the company's more unique ventures using the music of the Beatles and Michael Jackson. ...

Speaking of new arenas and big star residencies ... "Hello." Four sports arenas, plus the Hard Rock and Cosmopolitan if either one wanted to throw down some serious cash, and Adele isn't playing any of them?

The non-"Star Wars" star of the season put a summer tour on sale this week for those who want to wrap tickets under the tree. The August dates include two in Phoenix and six in Los Angeles, but none in Las Vegas. And the Los Angeles dates are in Staples Center, operated by AEG, which is co-financing the new Las Vegas Arena set to open in April.

AEG officials suggest the possibility of another tour leg to be announced later. But I think we all know Adele is a major contender for one of those casino "residencies" and could be following two paths set by Celine Dion: The working mother staying in one venue, and settling into said venue after an exhaustive tour. ...

We haven't seen much action in Planet Hollywood's upstairs showroom since Jeff Dunham abandoned it recently. But Broadway fans could be in for some good news if rumors of a short run of "Chicago" turn out to be true.

For now, though, there's an extremely limited run of an off-Broadway musical called "Happy 50ish!," playing through Wednesday at the D Las Vegas while "Defending the Caveman" is on break.

— Read more from Mike Weatherford at reviewjournal.com. Contact him at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com and follow @Mikeweatherford on Twitter.