Live ‘Dancing’ all exhibition, no competition

The Tropicana Las Vegas' showroom was the last bastion of a dying era of Vegas camp. But the camp is prime time now.

Not too long ago, "Folies Bergere" was hopelessly out of touch with mainstream entertainment, playing mostly to stone-faced international tourists and a smattering of retro hipsters who found irony behind every rhinestone.

Now the venerable showroom is back to some semblance of its former glory, with rows of straight-backed chairs sandwiched hopefully amid the old booths to accommodate the crowds expected for a live version of "Dancing with the Stars."

The ABC ballroom-dance contest is as mainstream as you can get these days. And the joke is on the hipsters this time. If all the humor is intentional, there's no irony in host Carson Kressley modeling a showgirl headdress, is there?

Still, the old "Folies" and this limited run through July 7 have a lot in common: costumes rippling with sequins, ballroom couples floating across the stage, a magic illusion with the requisite "Carmina Burana" riff. And some of the dance sequences would have played just fine in "Folies": The "Club Tropicana" ensemble opener, which floats samples of "Viva Las Vegas" into a thumpy Latin dance mix. Or the waltz, in which the female half of the couple floats dreamily into the air on a harness.

The live "Dancing" does all it can to remind you of the connection, short of actual competition. The image of judge Len Goodman lords over the showroom like a giant Oz face: "This time it's Vegas, baby!"

The performances are generously padded by TV video clips, too. But there's plenty of dancing and even a few alumni stars.

Disney Channel's Kyle Massey and N' Syncer Joey Fatone appear to be enjoying themselves the most. Another Disney alum, Sabrina Bryan, gets a bit lost in the shuffle and "Wayne's World" schwing! babe Tia Carrere utters not a word.

As on TV, they are stepped through their combinations by ballroom pros: Lacey Schwimmer, Dmitry Chaplin and stunning ringer Anya Garnis, who, like choreographer Jason Gilkison, is imported from another touring dance show, "Burn the Floor."

The live edition is all exhibition, so you miss the competitive structure that's the essence of the TV show. Even Donny and Marie Osmond re-enact their "Dancing" days with a fake dance-off each night at the Flamingo. Here, the lame substitute is an applause poll of three volunteers pulled up from the audience.

Oh, but if all celebrities adapted to their environment as quickly as Kressley. The basic-cable star stylist may have thought he signed on for 12 weeks, but he belongs in Vegas for the rest of his life.

Liberace and Charles Nelson Reilly had to be coy with the gay jokes. But Kressley's era allows him to openly lust after the male dancers, when he's not talking about the effects of "too much Ambien and a box of Chardonnay."

Still, I wonder if the 2 p.m. matinees for the family crowd reel in the slapstick aftermath of Kressley's "Cirque du so gay" harness flying, in which he and Fatone end up in simulated sexual positions.

If the live show is smart to offer something you can't see on TV, I never would have guessed this would be it.

Contact reporter Mike Weatherford at mweatherford@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0288.