Rumors abound of a Bublé residency
IF Michael Bublé ever does perform a residency in Vegas, we should call it, “Well, Duh.” Because he’s that obvious a fit for an extended run on the Strip.
Reports have surfaced from media outlets in Bublé’s home country of Canada, spurred by unconfirmed posts in Las Vegas, that Bublé is set for a run at the Theater at Resorts World Las Vegas. ET Canada posted over the weekend it “can confirm Michael Bublé is heading for a residency at Resorts World sometime in 2022.” An announcement, if there were to be one, is expected this month.
Bublé’s management company, The Feldman Agency, is based in Toronto.
As its lone named source, ET Canada specifies Vital Vegas’ mention this weekend of an impending Bublé residency at the hotel.
We can confidently report that no contract has yet been signed in this purported deal. Resorts World is under an exclusive booking deal with AEG Presents for the Theater. Officials with the company, and also the hotel, have not responded to questions over the past two days seeking formal confirmation or comment.
Bublé is a frequent Vegas headliner, who brings Rat Pack-ian panache and a stack of hits to his performances. Speculation of him performing in a Strip residency dates at least a decade (Josh Groban, Justin Timberlake and Beyonce are other time-tested candidates for a Vegas run).
But the 46-year-old recording star remains a strong draw in arena shows across the country. He most recently performed in Las Vegas on Sept. 24 at T-mobile Arena, prepping for the production at the Thomas & Mack Center.
Bublé also headlilned the Keep Memory Alive Power of Love Gala at MGM Grand Garden Arena in April 2018.
A Bublé booking would help AEG offset the loss of Celine Dion’s dates at Resorts World this year and next. Dion was scheduled to open the venue this weekend. Instead, health concerns have knocked her off schedule. Bublé could, conceivably, take the dates left open by her cancellation from Jan. 19-Feb. 22.
As it is, Carrie Underwood is the first ticketed headliner at the Theater at Resorts World, opening her engagement Dec. 1.
Rock and roll over
We have a sense, and it is merely a sense, that the Kiss residency concept is not entirely expired. Never say never with this band. But a swirl of challenges surfaced in the weeks leading to its series at Zappos Theater. The show was in a tough sales pocket, to open just after Christmas and before New Year’s Eve. The band was reeling after the Covid-related death
Oct. 17 of longtime guitar tech Francis Stueber. Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons had both caught COVID, too, briefely halting the tour.
And, Kiss is headlining its 10th Kiss Kruise, drawing thousands to that ocean event that wraps Tuesday. The band remains enormousy popular on such tours (Simmons showed me several photos of one of these events, slammed with fans). But the band’s availability away from the Zappos residency didn’t help sell tickets in Las Vegas. It might be a good idea to pause performances, generate demand, and come back to the Kiss idea next year. Because it is a good one.
Lio leans in
The supper show experience “Lio Ibiza” has been extended through Wednesday at Mayfair Supper Club. This is the Pacha Group’s blend of Ibiza and Strip entertainment qualities. Mostly, these are sizzling dance numbers, performed alongside your prime rib.
“Lio” is a reminder of the importance of time and timing. The show would have delivered greater impact if it arrived before Mayfair’s own dedicated supper-club production in December 2019. That show, a personal favorite, is on break as “Lio” has taken over. But now, most fans of this genre have likely taken in the Mayfair show, and also Delilah at Wynn Las Vegas. We have been conditioned on the standards for staging entertainment with a fine-dining experience, and they are high.
That said, I liked the performances, on balance. The performers are stunning, and the numbers expertly constructed and executed. Some very inventive numbers, such as hot chocolate-desert scene, was daring and (I expect) delicious. A slow-motion brawl that evolves into a similarly slow-motion orgy was also clever, unique … and the sort of thing that can get you arrested.
The choreography is genius and the dancing tight (just check the tight group efforts on my social media feed). The singing is fine, at the standard we’ve become accustomed to in Vegas. But I am not a fan of going with full backing tracks in a show that could be so clearly enriched with live music. This is especially evident when you have experienced the talented musicians in the dedicated Mayfair production,
and also at such comparable dinner-show clubs as Delilah.
But some ambient singing and dancing, especially from a cast as terrifically adept as this one, should be applauded. More of this please. But next time, when you bring the steak, offer a side of sax.