Review: Cher basks in nostalgia at MGM Grand

Monday, Aug. 12, 2002 | 8:09 a.m.

Cher.

Extraordinaire.

Cyndi.

Awesome.

Fans.

Blown away.

The only empty seats Saturday night at Cher's concert in the MGM Grand Garden Arena were those vacated by rock 'n' rollers of all ages who were inspired to stand and dance. Or perhaps rose just to get a final, up-close look at a spectacular performance by the 56-year-old icon of the '60s and beyond.

"Living Proof -- The Farewell Tour" was wild, raucous, nostalgic; a happening, an event befitting the swan song of one of the world's most recognizable entertainers who shot to stardom in the hippie era with partner Sonny Bono.

Some might consider the dozen or so costumes worn by Cher during the course of the show to be tastelss, vulgar, gaudy, cheap, excessive and flamboyant.

But hey, it was Cher, not Tony Bennett. Similar to Elvis, she grew up in poverty, and so her sense of taste may be different from others -- but Cher has made a career of being different.

That's what her fans expected, and that's what they got.

Actually, they got more than that. They were treated to two concerts for the price of one.

Cyndi Lauper, peri-colored pixie from the '80s, warmed up the friendly audience for the first hour, turning in a performance that pumped the excitement level up a notch or two.

The feisty Lauper started slowly, but quickly built momentum and won over a crowd clearly primed for Cher, who didn't set foot onstage until an hour and 45 minutes after the evening began.

With the volume set at the exploding eardrum level, Lauper's backup band all but drowned her out on a couple of songs, but her voice and her intensity came through on such popular tunes as "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," which brought many in the audience to their feet.

When she sang "True Colors," Lauper draped herself in a Gay Pride rainbow flag trimmed in feathers, another gesture appreciated by some segments of her fans.

There was a 30-minute break at the end of Lauper's set. The break ended when Cher, dressed in a white, fur-trimmed, hooded coat fit for a queen, descended from a jeweled chandelier singing U2's "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For."

"What did you think of my entrance?" Cher asked among wild applause. "It's worked really well, everywhere but Cleveland -- in Cleveland the little thing came down and I didn't. I just sat up there, and all you could see was my little feet and I looked like some kind of drag queen pinata."

Cher chatted briefly with the audience.

"I think this show is going to be good," she said. "This is my last chance, and I wanted to make sure that it was really good. I'm old. I have to give up, you know?"

There was laughter and more wild applause from her adoring fans.

"Give me a friggin' break, OK?" she said. "I've been a friggin' diva for 40 friggin' years.

"All these young girls are coming up, Britney and J-Lo and all those. I'm telling you, 'OK, you've got to give them encouragement. You've got to give them a bar, to set (a standard).' I figure, OK, follow this you bitches. And I mean that with love and humility."

With that, Cher -- clad in red circus ringmaster tails and top hat and carrying a whip -- officially opened her show, which at one point resembled a Cirque du Soleil production with trapeze artists performing on 60-foot-long drapes.

Intermittently through the production there were video montages that covered Cher's career, reminding everyone that she had conquered not only the world of music, but also television ("The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour" of the early '70s) and movies ("Silkwood," "Mask," "Moonstruck" and "The Witches of Eastwick").

A costume change followed almost every song. At various times she was dressed as a ranee, an Indian chief, a biker and other caricatures -- a one-woman Village People lineup outfitted by clothing designer Bob Mackie.

She sang old songs ("All I really Want to Do," "Halfbreed" and "Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves") and new songs ("A Song for the Lonely" and "A Different Kind of Love Song").

And as she sang she paraded before the audience and showed that she may be growing older, but she is not growing old. Cher is a stunning woman who may not be able to turn back time, but at least she seems to have found a way to make time stand still.