Columnist Kate Maddox: No illusion: S&R tickets $100

Kate Maddox

Saturday, Nov. 25, 2000 | 2:50 a.m.

Kate Maddox's column appears Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach her at kmaddox@lasvegassun.com.

Contract negotiations might be in the works for longtime Las Vegas stars Siegfried & Roy. The illusionists have revamped their show schedule, cutting back from 10 shows a week to just eight. Along with the performance change, the Magicians of the Century are also upping ticket prices.

Some close to the pair speculate the changes might mean S&R are making plans to curtail their performing obligations as they seriously begin to consider retirement. One source says, "(This move) might be marking the beginning of the end." However, another insider insists they won't be departing anytime soon since they are said to have at least two years left on their most recently negotiated contract with the hotel.

As for ticket prices, look for the $95 show to soon cost $100.50, still not as pricey as "O" at the Bellagio (with a top ticket price of $110) but certainly holding firm as one of the most expensive acts in town.

Siegfried, 61, and Roy, 56, have yet to make an official announcement regarding their future in Las Vegas, and they are in their 11th year of performing at the Mirage. A spokesman for the magicians could not be reached for comment, but a source at the Mirage did confirm the schedule cutbacks and new ticket price.

So which star would you like to see come out of retirement and take on Las Vegas for a New Year's Eve concert? No, not Barbra Streisand. How about the old King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson?

Entertainment honchos at at least three Strip properties have reportedly been approached by representatives for Jackson regarding a New Year's performance. Jackson himself has slowly been resurfacing in the past couple of months. In October he was Elizabeth Taylor's date at a Hollywood fund-raiser, and just last week he showed up in New York to help launch a new kids' charity.

Jackson's newest album, which has been in the works for quite some time, is scheduled to hit stores in March 2001, and he's been telling friends that he'll be making more public appearances in the coming months. So whatever you might think of the guy, he's coming back, and we should all be prepared.

Chances are the MGM Grand Garden Arena will be the lucky (?) site for the New Year's gig. Sources there admit there have been talks, albeit not in any "official" capacity (whatever that means). Jackson's name has also popped up in discussions at the Rio and at Caesars Palace (although where exactly he could perform at Caesars is puzzling, since there is no longer a showroom there).

Nicolas Cage gets to town Monday for CineVegas festivities. Cage, who made headlines last week with the second announcement of divorce plans from wife Patricia Arquette, will be on hand for the premiere of "Shadow of the Vampire," which he produced. The film stars Willem Dafoe and John Malkovich. The special screening kicks off this year's six-day CineVegas filmfest at the Paris Las Vegas.

Note to self: Next time I get the urge to consider hair salon items column-worthy, slowly count to 10 and take a pass.

Thanks to last week's mention that hairdressers William Whatley and Michael Boychuck are joining the Venetian's Canyon Ranch beauty salon, I apparently stepped into Ego Central Station and I can't seem to get a ticket out. The idle threats, bruised self-esteems, apparent amnesia and overblown ids have made this issue more tangled than my morning bed-head!

Boys, boys, settle down. I'm sure all will work out, and if you didn't want the news to get out, well, you shouldn't have told me then, right?

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