Monday By the Numbers: Another shot of ‘Absinthe’

By John Katsilometes

Published Monday, March 23, 2015 | 1:02 p.m.

Updated Monday, March 23, 2015 | 7:01 p.m.

This week, Monday By the Numbers zeroes in on “Absinthe” in Roman Plaza at Caesars Palace. The show celebrates its fourth anniversary on the Strip on April 1.

It is as hot as ever, nearly filling the Spiegeltent for every performance, spawning a touring show and delivering brilliance each time out.

The numbers bear this out. Follow along, stat geeks:

6: Number of months for which the show was originally under contract to be performed at Roman Plaza.

2,050: Approximate number of performances at the Spiegeltent.

9: Number of original cast members who opened the show in April 2011.

9: Diameter, in feet, of the show’s stage.

9! Punch line to the joke told by Penny Pibbets (and now her replacement, Joy Jenkins): “How many Germans does it take to set up the Spiegeltent?”

220-plus: The number of instances where ticket-holders have skulked from the tent complaining of the show’s content, profanity and/or nudity.

12,000: Approximate number of pastie changes by Melody Sweets during the show’s four-year run.

1: Number of times Sweets has lost a pastie during the show.

4.5 miles: Approximate length of top-stick tape used by Sweets to keep those pasties in place.

4.5 miles: The length of the Strip.

3: Number of seconds, approximately, Ivan Chekov-Jones has been frontally exposed during each "mishap" in the “Caesarean Silk” act.

1: Number of shamans who have been pulled onstage during the “What Would You Do” segment hosted by The Gazillionaire.

1: Number of appearances by UFC star Rashad Evans in that act.

1: Number of times Evans won the act’s dance-off and a free shot of liquor.

1: Number of times the pole in The Esteemed Gentlemen of the High Wire Act (since renamed The Frat Pack) slipped free and clocked an audience member.

1: Number of times a woman has been accidentally kicked in the head during the “What Would You Do” act.

11: Size of The Gazillionaire’s golden-painted shoes.

2: Number of “Absinthe” productions being staged — the Caesars show and another touring Australia.

8,156: Flight distance, in miles, between those two productions (the second “Absinthe” production has opened at the Rooftop at Crown Resorts in Melbourne).

$20: Cost per balloon for The Bubble Girl act in the show.

$40,000: Amount of money spent just on balloons over the show’s four-year history.

$40,000: Listed sticker price for a 2015 Mercedes-Benz C-Class C250 Coupe (absent the bells and whistles).

$2 million: The total construction cost of the Spiegeltent.

$70 million: Projected cost of the show’s original theater, which was planned for the ill-fated Fontainebleau resort on the Strip.

650: Total number of seats in the Spiegeltent.

24: Number of times Emily Jillette (wife of Penn Jillette and also a fine golfer) has seen the show.

35: Number of times, approximately, I have seen the show at Caesars Palace.

Follow John Katsilometes on Twitter at Twitter.com/JohnnyKats. Also, follow “Kats With the Dish” at Twitter.com/KatsWiththeDish.