Wynn furloughs ‘Le Reve’ workers

Amid uncertainty, move for show seen as a cost saver, not closure

THE cast and crew of “Le Reve,” the signature production at Wynn Las

Vegas since the hotel opened in 2005, have been placed on furlough.

Employees from the hotel’s poker room and shuttered nightclub have also been placed on temporary furlough. Wynn Las Vegas spokesman Michael Weaver confirmed Thursday afternoon that the staffs of outlets not permitted to reopen June 4, which have no reopening date, have been furloughed. Those laid off will reportedly receive benefits through Aug. 31.

According to sources familiar with the show’s operations, resort entertainment director Rick Gray informed members of “Le Reve” on Thursday morning that they would be furloughed. Upward of 275 performers, technicians and ushers are temporarily out of work.

Crucial to this decision: The show is not announcing it is closing. Instead, the move is seen as a money-saving strategy, so the hotel can bring the show back to the stage. Productions are still waiting as Gov. Steve Sisolak implements directives for theater-scale entertainment to return during the state’s COVID-19

reopening phases.

“Le Reve” is in a dilemma shared by many Las Vegas theater and showroom productions, a topic broached during Tuesday’s Gaming Control Board meeting. Board members noted at the time that current state policy is that public gatherings must be for 10 or fewer people, but Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines are for groups fewer than 250. (As Nevada’s Phase Two begins Friday, the public and private gathering limit rises to 50 or fewer.)

“Le Reve” plays to a 1,600-seat theater and probably would not turn a profit in a venue scaled to 250.

Through Thursday, the cast and crew had continued to be paid as Wynn Las Vegas employees through the pandemic shutdown. “Le Reve” stands alone on the

Strip as a production show entirely owned by its host hotel.

Contact John Katsilometes at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @Johnnykats1 on Instagram.

Benjamin Hager Las Vegas Review-journal @benjaminhphoto Casey Ely, top right, flies through the air under the supervision of acrobat and coach Tom Smiela, bottom right, during an Oct. 11 rehearsal of “Le Reve” at Wynn Las Vegas. The cast and crew of “Le Reve” have been placed on furlough.

Benjamin Hager Las Vegas Review-journal @benjaminhphoto Choreographer Danita Eldridge, middle, gives direction to Jakub Dominiak, left, and A.J. Montgomery during a rehearsal for “Le Reve.”