World City Guide

Culture

Culturally speaking, Las Vegas is not exactly the world capital of high-brow art. True, it possesses a fine philharmonic orchestra and a ballet troupe, but these do not draw the visitors in nearly the same numbers that popular entertainment does. The city, however, continues to attract some of the biggest names in show business with live theatrical shows, magicians, circus acts and dance. There is one major venue, the UNLV Performing Arts Center, Cottage Grove Street and Maryland Parkway (tel: (702) 895 ARTS/2787; website: http://pac.nevada.edu), which contains various auditoriums, including the Artemus Ham Concert Hall and the Judy Bayley Theatre.

Most major hotels offer concierge services and can order tickets for the more popular cultural events. Visitors can go online to Ticketmaster (website: www.ticketmaster.com) to order and pre-pay for tickets. Events at the West Las Vegas Arts Centre, 947 West Lake Mead (tel: (702) 229 4800) are free.

The best place for visitors to go for cultural listing is online. One website that holds a master list of all Las Vegas cultural and community events is the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce site (www.lvchamber.com/calendar/index.htm). Visit their Calendar of Events page for more details.

Music: The Las Vegas Philharmonic (tel: (702) 258 5438; website: www.lasvegasphilharmonic.com) performs at the Artemus Ham Concert Hall at UNLV Performing Arts Center (see above).

Theatre: As with virtually everything in Las Vegas, the casinos offer the bulk of the stage entertainment. The Luxor (tel: 888 777 0188; website: www.luxor.com) is home to the Pharaoh’s Theater and the Luxor Theater. The 1,200-seat Luxor Theater hosts theatrical productions, while the Pharaoh’s Theater offers a topless revue, as well as comedy acts. The MGM Grand (tel: (702) 891 7777 or 877 880 0880; website: www.mgmgrand.com) is home to the Hollywood Theater, hosting a variety of performers, including Chris Issak, Tom Jones and David Copperfield, and the 1,700-seat EFX Theater, which is currently showing EFX Alive, which showcases musician Rick Springfield. At Caesars Palace, the Celine Dion Theatre in the Colosseum features the Canadian songstress in the entrancing Dragone-created production A New Day as well as Elton John in The Red Piano. The two artists alternate schedules through the year, so check the website for show dates and ticket details (website: www.caesarspalace.com).

The Las Vegas Little Theatre, 3844 Schiff Drive (tel: (702) 362 7996; website: www.lvlt.org), and the Actors’ Repertory Theatre, Summerlin Library and Performing Arts Center, 1771 Inner Circle Drive (tel: (702) 507 3863) are two of Las Vegas’ newest small theatres. Both put on more serious theatre than the hotel–casinos, be it the classics, modern playwrights or even musicals.

Dance: The Nevada Ballet Theater (tel: (702) 243 2623; website: www.nevadaballet.com), founded in 1972, is one of Nevada’s larger cultural institutions and performs many of its productions at the Judy Bayley Theatre at UNLV Performing Arts Center (see above). Many of the revues and touring shows incorporate or are devoted to dance.

Film: Mainstream cinemas in Las Vegas include the United Artists – Showcase Mall, 3769 Las Vegas Boulevard South (tel: (702) 222 FILM/3456) and the Century Orleans 18, 4500 West Tropicana (tel: (702) 227 3456). Seating is normally done on a first-come, first-serve basis. Tickets are sold at the box office on the day of the performance. There are no exclusively arthouse cinemas in Las Vegas, although the Regal Village Square, 9101 West Sarhara Street (tel: (702) 221 2283), features two to three independent films per week. IMAX enthusiasts can get their fix at Brenden IMAX, 4321 West Flamingo Road (tel: (702) 507 1525; website: www.bigmoviezone.com), located inside The Palms Hotel and Casino; admission is US$9.75. The average cost for a film in Las Vegas is US$9.

Las Vegas is almost as famous a location for films as it is for casinos. Popular movies based in the city include Bugsy (1991), about the infamous gangster’s move from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, and Casino (1995), telling the story of mob-ruled casinos in the 1970s. Leaving Las Vegas (1995) is an emotional story documenting the damage and pain inflicted by alcoholism. The cut-throat and sleazy world of topless revues and Las Vegas nightlife was given an airing in Paul Verhoeven Showgirls (1995). Andrew Bergman’s romantic comedy Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), starring James Caan, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicolas Cage, pokes fun at Vegas wedding culture and features the astounding Flying Elvises. More recently, the ambitious celluloid version of the late and lamented Hunter S Thompson’s cult classic, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), starred Johnny Depp as the seriously spaced-out ‘gonzo’ journalist, and the remake of the classic Rat Pack vehicle Ocean’s Eleven (2001) directed by Steven Soderbergh and starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts.

Cultural Events: Las Vegas’ growing population has opened the door to new cultural and musical events, with springtime events such as jazz festivals in April and May, a folkdance festival in May and Mardi Gras in April. Of course, there is also America’s national day of Independence, July 4, which is celebrated just as fervently in Las Vegas as anywhere else. Although it is not, strictly speaking, a cultural event, Hunter S Thompson famously reported on the off-road racing in these parts. Las Vegas has become somewhat famous for revving engines, clouds of dust and, of course, arguably the toughest off-road race in America, the BITD (Best in the desert) Nevada 1000 (website: www.bitd.com). This 1,609km (1,000-mile) race through the heat and dust of Nevada sets off from Las Vegas on 6 July, returning five days later. Dates for this event change yearly, so visit the website for schedule information.

Literary Notes: More than one book has managed to get behind the flash of Las Vegas’ bright lights to explore its deeper, often darker themes. Not surprisingly, numerous mystery and crime novels are set here. Best known among these are Mario Puzo’s The Last Don (1997), which follows a crime family’s move from Las Vegas to Hollywood, and Michael Ventura’s The Death of Frank Sinatra (1998), which weaves a literary web of crime and intrigue in early 1990s Las Vegas. Many of the movies that made Las Vegas so famous began their lives as books. Casino (1995) was based on the Nicholas Pileggi book Casino: Love and Honour in Las Vegas (1995). Leaving Las Vegas (1995), by John O’Brien, was made into the eponymous movie and recounts a dark, sad tale of a suicidal alcoholic’s finding true love with a prostitute. Perhaps the most influential literary work associated with Las Vegas is Hunter S Thompson’s pop-culture classic, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998). The bizarre, true-life tale follows the journalist Thomson and his attorney’s drug-addled journey through Nevada.