Karaoke singers hitting stage at House of Blues for series

Competitive karaoke moves into the TV spotlight this August with ABC's "Karaoke Battle U.S.A."

And that means Las Vegas returns to the TV spotlight this coming weekend, as karaoke singers converge on the House of Blues at Mandalay Bay to sing their hearts out for an episode of the six-part series.

As the site of the Karaoke World Championships' western regionals, the House of Blues will host 50 to 60 contestants, performing for the TV cameras. (Not to mention host Joey Fatone and judges Carnie Wilson, music critic Joe Levy and 2009 Karaoke World Champion Brian Scott.)

"We knew there were a lot of great, great karaoke singers in the state of Nevada," executive producer John Green says of the decision to make Las Vegas one of the show's four regional bases, along with Houston, New York and Chicago. "A lot of your success depends on the locals and the level of enthusiasm. I have a strong suspicion Las Vegas is going to be dynamite."

The show will tape Saturday and Sunday -- and, once the battle ends, two singers (one male, one female) will head to Los Angeles to compete in the show's final stages.

Though the karaoke circuit was the starting point for recording stars such as Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood, "Karaoke Battle U.S.A." contenders "don't necessarily have fantasies about being stars," according to Green.

"These are real, everyday people," he says, describing them as "people who just love singing karaoke -- and happen to be really good at it."

Lyin' time: After kicking off their upcoming Discovery series last week by staging a stunt at Sam Boyd Stadium, Penn & Teller shift to Players Sound Stage on Thursday to tape "Penn & Teller Tell a Lie."

Or, more precisely, five lies -- because they'll be taping five episodes during the weeklong shoot.

In each show, the Rio headliners will present about eight stories. (Sample topic: Alligators get in the mood for love when they hear a tuba tooting.)

The catch: One of the stories P&T will present in each episode is untrue, and audiences at home can vote, in real time, to determine which is the tall tale after the series debuts on Discovery this fall.

Dream Visions: Production is heating up at Dream Vision Studios, which recently celebrated its grand opening at the Diablo Industrial Center.

More than two years ago, Dream Vision officials had three weeks to move out of their Eastern Avenue location after the building went into foreclosure, recalls Dream Vision president Phyllis Carreon-Taie .

After looking at more than 95 possible locations, Dream Vision settled on West Russell Road with plans to create an entire studio complex.

Among the projects shooting there this week: an AT&T commercial featuring Latin Grammy-winning singer/composer Luis Fonsi , scheduled to debut internationally in six weeks; and the eco-reality show "rECOn ," co-produced by Dream Vision and featuring Scott Cassell, whose two-man underwater sub is suspended inside the soundstage, taking advantage of the studio's green-screen capabilities. (The show also will spend a day on location at Lake Mead, Carreon-Taie reports.)

Quick takes: Gordon Ramsay is expected at Paris Las Vegas' Theatre des Arts on Tuesday afternoon for the final chef's challenge of his Fox "Hell's Kitchen" series. (Check on ticket availability online at www.mytvtickets.com.)

Other shoots rolling this week range from Spike's ongoing "The Ultimate Fighter" to the Canadian reality series "Ex-Wives Rock," about former spouses of rock stars reinventing themselves -- including Sharise Neil, ex-wife of Las Vegas resident Vince Neil. BBC's "Top Gear" was gearing up to vroom onto the Strip and around downtown over the weekend after a trek to Death Valley and Dumont Dunes, while the Travel Channel's "Mysteries at the Museum" was scheduled to wrap a two-day shoot late last week.

Carol Cling's Shooting Stars column appears Mondays. Contact her at (702) 383-0272 or ccling@reviewjournal. com.