Pair hope to work their magic at Plaza

What's in a name? Well, good or bad, they get noticed.

The one point of agreement with all concerned is that "Avant Garde" was the wrong title for a magic-variety show hosted by an old-school comedy magician (Michael Finney) in a blazing red suit Santa Claus might wear in the off-season.

Beyond that lies the finger-pointing at why the new show at the Plaza folded Monday, not quite a full week after its media night.

Producer Jon Fondy is out, following the show's original, unnamed investor. The cast is said to have worked for a stretch without getting paid, before voting Monday night to fold and give two of the star magicians, Kevin James and Juliana Chen, a chance to line up new investors and take over as producers.

That move was described as a "mutiny" by those sympathetic to Fondy, who had a background in television but was making his first foray into live Las Vegas shows.

But the change has the support of Anthony Cools, who oversees entertainment at the Plaza (along with performing his own hypnosis show at Paris Las Vegas).

"We're definitely not letting this thing go," Cools says. "We all want it to work."

"We see this as a great opportunity to do something wonderful here in town," James says in an email.

He says he and Chen are "both respected in the magic industry and have wanted to work together for a long time. So we came into the project as hired acts, but we have now become the producers. Kind of exciting."

Cools says the next edition probably will play at 5 p.m., yielding its 7 p.m. time slot to an upcoming production of "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." And yes, it will have a new name.

"People don't get it. They don't understand it," Cools says of "Avant Garde." The problem, he adds, is not confined to the showroom. Cools has to change the name of his Swinger's Club lounge (named for the minigolf inside). "They think it's a real swinger's club." ...

The depth of talent in the cast of "Phantom -- The Las Vegas Spectacular" has been revealed in side projects such as "God Lives in Glass" and the Composers Showcase, which moves into its new home at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts on Wednesday .

But at 1 p.m. Saturday, Nicole Pryor has the spotlight all to herself. Pryor is a "Phantom" chorus member who steps up for one four-second solo in the musical's mock opera. But she has been writing songs since she was 12 .

Pryor does a free concert at the West Las Vegas Library's theater to celebrate the release of her album, "The Long Way Home."

"I've always tried to classify where my songwriting fit in, and in the last couple of years this new contemporary country world has opened up," she says.

Hits by the likes of Sugarland, Carrie Underwood and Lady Antebellum are "really what pop was in the '90s. I always thought I wrote in that genre."

The show will be with a full band, but the album is sparse: "Two voices, both me, and a guitar." Pryor wanted it to double as a songwriter's demo, and already has two meetings lined up with Nashville publishers.

Alas, when "Phantom" closes Labor Day, Pryor won't be among those sticking around. "It's bittersweet," she says of the move back to Los Angeles. But on the other hand, "I didn't know I would last this long in the show." ...

Some of Pat DiNizio's fans may have a hard time staying up until 11:30 p.m. to see him at the Riviera, after he was bumped to the wee hour to accommodate the return of "La Cage." But they might be able to make it to a 3 p.m. performance Saturday at Zia Record Exchange, 4503 W. Sahara Ave.

It's to celebrate the reissue of "This Is Pat," a 2006 album that fits the autobiographical nature of his "Confessions of a Rock Star" show and gives the Smithereens frontman something well-matched to sell at his shows.

"It's all songs I wish I had written," DiNizio says of covering everything from "The Shadow of Your Smile" to "Don't Fear the Reaper."

The reissue is a longer, two-disc version. He is accompanied by jazzy piano on the first disc, and acoustic guitar on the second. ...

Finally, 85-year-old Don Rickles isn't even the oldest comedian working this weekend. Marty Allen turns 90 on Friday and, if it goes according to plan, he will be doing 4 p.m. shows at Palace Station on Saturday and Sunday; Saturday's includes a preshow celebration.

The room's main headliner, Louie Anderson, will be on hand for the festivities. Anderson says the bug-eyed, shock-haired comedian was a major influence on him as a lad.

"A kid like me sees a guy like him and says, 'I could fit in if he could fit in,' " Anderson says.

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