Las Vegas Strip show like no other turns 1
“DiscoShow” marks a year at Linq Hotel on Thursday night. In the show’s promo material, Spiegelworld founder Ross Mollison still asks the musical question, “When people come to Vegas for just two or three days, do they really want to sit in a theater seat for 90 minutes? Maybe some do.”
Enough do to establish a crazy-competitive entertainment market in VegasVille.
However, as Mollison also says, “It seems that maybe, just maybe, enough people are done with the long lines to get into a massive club blasting super-loud music, only to be hustled out of $10,000 for a $500 bottle of champagne. They’re looking for something more from a Vegas night.”
We’ll toast that sentiment, which is the motivation behind “DiscoShow” at Linq’s Glitterloft nightclub. The crowd grooves to the Finnish instructor Ake Blomqvist. The show is the latest to open in Spiegelworld’s portfolio of Strip shows.
It’s been a hustle, to borrow a dance term term, to keep the show’s bottom line satisfactory. Counts are down for all productions shows, and this one is no exception. “DiscoShow” has undergone a rewrite and some tweaking. The adjacent Diner Ross Steakhouse has recently buttressed its steak menu — why “Steakhouse” was added to the name. The bar 99 Prince, leading to Glitterloft’s entrance, has presented DJs since the start of summer.
As it is, “Absinthe” and Superfrico at the Cosmopolitan still provide the river of revenue that sustains Spiegelworld. “Atomic Saloon Show” (with its popular saloon bar) and “DiscoShow” continue to run in residency.
But “Absinthe,” running 16 shows a week (three on Fridays and Saturdays) is the engine.
Spiegelworld’s latsest gem is the magic parody, “Lady Magic.” The show premiered last month at Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and does not have a Las Vegas resort partner. It’s a bold production, hatched in the company’s Nipton circus town. But stability in its ongoing shows is critical for Spiegelworld’s potential expansion.
Entering its second year, “DiscoShow” is a great dance party. But it’s still an experiment. The party needs robust ticket numbers along with its fiery musical numbers, and convince the masses to dance with Ake.
John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on X, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.
