New Year’s celebrations bring new nightclubs, plenty of celebrities

Good luck deciding which nightclub to go on New Year's Eve. It will be a madhouse everywhere. Meanwhile, the club scene on the Strip will get a shake up, since 1 Oak, RPM and Hyde are all opening.

The new 1 Oak debuts Saturday at The Mirage, where club Jet used to be. Singer Fergie rings in the new year and performs. It's run by Vegas gurus at Light Group and the people of 1 Oak in New York.

1 Oak's space has been remodeled into two club rooms, with a DJ booth in each, VIP booths, large wall art, curtains and dark wood interiors. The fact Fergie is opening-weekend host suggests 1 Oak will regularly put stars on red carpets, possibly sidestepping celebrity DJs. In fact, Saturday's DJ is un-famous New York scenester Jesse Marco.

Mary J. Blige appears at the new RPM club Saturday at the Tropicana, in the space where Club Nikki opened then shut down in 2011. Can RPM succeed where Nikki failed?

RPM added 15 VIP booths and remodeled the inside and outside pool areas. Like Club Nikki, there are gambling tables for impulse customers. Unlike the Miami-parented Nikki, RPM really will be guided by the hotel itself.

The new Hyde at Bellagio doesn't publicly open until Sunday, when Paul Oakenfold spins. Saturday night, Hyde is invite-only for corporate insiders.

The New York Post claimed Hyde originally planned to have Justin Timberlake and Diddy appear together Saturday, for $200,000, but the deal was scotched because Diddy and Timberlake are paid endorsers of competing brands of alcohol.

If 1 Oak is spiritually New York-y, Hyde is L.A.-esque, overseen by sbe Nightlife Group , known for Hollywood and West Hollywood clubs, such as the Abbey and Hyde Lounge. Hyde Bellagio aims for a boutique-club feel, featuring living room motifs and a patio view of the Bellagio Fountains, since Hyde gobbled up the hotel's former Fontana Lounge space. Hyde plans to bring both big-named DJs and celebrities.

As for the other clubs:

■ Fergie's band mate in the Black Eyed Peas, will.i.am, DJs at Surrender at Encore.

■ Singer Bruno Mars performs with a nine-piece band at the Bank at Bellagio. The Bellagio is nowhere near the Hard Rock, where Mars was busted on cocaine charges last year.

■ Kaskade DJs at Marquee at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Marquee was the buzz club of 2011. But Vegas is all about the new. So how will it fare in 2012 while competing against three new clubs on the Strip, not to mention ever-popular Surrender and XS?

■ Paul Oakenfold DJs at Rain at the Palms.

■ Aggressive singer Chris Brown appears at Pure at Caesars.

■ LMFAO will be at Haze at Aria. This seems somewhat odd, since LMFAO's Redfoo has been a contracted DJ at rival Marquee nightclub throughout 2011.

■ Singer John Legend appears at Moon after his concert in The Pearl at the Palms.

■ Singer B.o.B. performs at LAX at Luxor.

■ Steve Angello (one-third of Swedish House Mafia) DJs at XS at Encore.

■ Iyaz raps at Beatles Revolution Lounge in The Mirage.

■ Samantha Ronson DJs at Lavo at Palazzo.

■ Benji and Joel Madden of Good Charlotte DJ at Chateau at Paris.

■ Playboy Mansion DJ Laura Cavender spins at Deuce lounge at Aria.

■ Actress-musician Taryn Manning DJs at Tabu at MGM. So does Kid Jay.

■ Rappers Tyga and Bobby V perform at Crown at Rio.

■ Pamela Anderson (club queen 1.0) struts her stuff at Studio 54 at MGM. Studio 54 is in its last days. It closes Feb. 4.

■ Kim Kardashian (club queen 3.0) appears at Tao at The Venetian. (Paris Hilton was club queen 2.0. Where is she?)

■ Kourtney Kardashian and Scott Disick appear at Chateau.

■ Rob Kardashian will be at Tryst at Wynn.

■ Miss Nevada 2011 Sarah Chapman takes some beauty pageant friends to ghostbar at Palms.

■ Various Playmates appear at Playboy Club at Palms. They won't be naked.

■ Holly Madison appears at Gallery at Planet Hollywood. She won't be naked.

■ Playmate Laura Croft goes to Posh in Crazy Horse III. She won't be naked, but Crazy Horse III is a strip club, so.

Doug Elfman's column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Email him at delfman@reviewjournal.com. He blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.