Thursday, Aug. 7, 2003 | 10:34 a.m.
Just one week before its opening, "Zumanity" has finally had its first full-length performance for a Las Vegas audience.
The Monday night performance of the highly anticipated, adult-oriented Cirque du Soleil production at New York-New York went off surprisingly well, according to some VegasBeat readers who were in attendance.
"Everyone knew about the nudity so it wasn't a huge surprise," one source said. "But what really stole the show for me were the costumes (by famed French designer Thierry Mugler) and the music."
The music was described as "Philip Glass-like." Glass is the famous minimalist composer known for his trance-inducing, repetitive sounds.
Another viewer described "Zumanity" as something you'd see at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, the showcase for cutting-edge music, dance and performance in New York City.
"The whole vibe was very BAM, or maybe going back a little bit, to the Living Theater" -- the influential avant-garde troupe founded by Judith Malina and Julian Beck in 1947. The group was perpetually hounded by the government for a variety of reasons, including tax and obscenity law violations.
"Zumanity" does feature almost complete nudity -- the show opens with two seemingly naked women cavorting in an oversized martini glass and, depending on your point of view, goes downhill or uphill from there.
The show also features dance numbers that include simulated sex acts between various combinations of men and women.
The show opens Thursday with an audience of invited guests and media. The first public performance is Aug. 15. The celebrity, red carpet, national media opening is Sept. 20. Jerry Fink's story about the production is on page 1E of today's Sun.
Buy
QVC is coming to Las Vegas this weekend.
The broadcast and electronic retailer's self-described "jubilee of workshops, makeovers and meet-n-greets" with some celebrity designers takes place in The Rio Pavilion on Saturday and Sunday.
Among those expected to be peddling their wares are Marie Osmond, Nolan Miller, Dennis Basso and Linda Dano.
The event gives potential customers the "opportunity to touch and feel products that have previously only been visually appealing."
Camaraderie
Celine Dion resumed performances Wednesday night after her summer vacation.
Much of her cast and crew partied the night before at Crustacean with performers and crew from "Mamma Mia!" and the breathtakingly creative, percussion-based show, "STOMP," which opened a limited run Tuesday night at the Aladdin Theatre for the Performing Arts.
The theatrical performers' get-togethers -- they happen every month or so now -- are the clever idea of Las Vegas promoter Torrey Russell.
Shopper
Another Michael Jackson sighting: He stopped into Antiquities and Avventura at the Forum Shops at Caesars early in the day last Thursday.
Antiquities features beautifully restored candy and soda machines, pinball machines, jukeboxes and celebrity memorabilia. Avventura is a shoe store.
Neither store would say if he bought anything.
Cool boss
No one could get a table at any of the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group Las Vegas restaurants -- Spago, Postrio, Lupo and Chinois -- Monday night.
That's because he closed them all for the evening and tossed a spectacular picnic for his employees and their families. The event at Sunset Park featured award-winning Chef David Robins and company exec Tom Kaplan manning barbecue grills, softball games between the restaurants, a live DJ and an inflatable water slide for the kids.
More than 1,000 members of Puck's professional family attended.
For sale
Legendary Las Vegas mob figure Frank "Lefty" Rosenthal's old house is for sale. Rosenthal was played by Robert De Niro in "Casino," a 1995 movie based on Rosenthal's experiences.
The sale of the home (which has a listed price of $499,000) on the golf course at the Las Vegas Country Club is being handled by local Realtor Tracey Donley.
As in the movie, Rosenthal survived a car bomb and promptly left town. But in real life he moved to Florida, not San Diego. Rosenthal's wife, Geri (the Sharon Stone character), later died of a drug overdose.
VegasBits
Egad!: The actor who played bespectacled nerd Steve Urkel on "Family Matters," Jaleel White, was partying at the Skin Pool Lounge (Palms) on Monday. He was quite a contrast to another Skin patron, former NBA star John Salley ...
No joke: The five finalists on NBC's "Last Comic Standing" had a farewell party at Risque (Paris Las Vegas) after the finale aired Tuesday night, including winner Dat Phan and host Jay Mohr. Next stop for Phan: an appearance on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" ...
N9NErs: Sitting near one another Monday night at N9NE: Boston Celtics star Paul Pierce, former Milwaukee Bucks coach George Karl and Denver Nuggets GM Kiki Vandeweghe ...
Blue: After four years of doing publicity for "Blue Man Group" (Luxor), Bryce Krausman is leaving to start his own business. He'll open a boutique-catering, event-planning and gift basket business this fall ...
Listen up: VegasBeat is on KNUU 970 AM (K-News) today at 4 p.m. with Andy Vierra, and Friday at 7:30 a.m. on LITE FM, KMZQ 100.5-FM with Tom and Melanie.
From Sun wires
Hollywood legend Omar Sharif was convicted of striking a police officer at a casino near Paris and received a one-month suspended sentence, court officials said Thursday. The 71-year-old actor was also fined $1,700 Tuesday for insults and violence directed at a police officer July 5, a judicial official said.
Mancini stamp planned: Henry Mancini, the late composer of "Moon River" and music for the "Pink Panther" movies, will be honored on a postage stamp next year.
Plea in Seagal case: Jules Nasso, a former business partner of Steven Seagal who was charged with trying to extort money from the action film star, has agreed to plead guilty, a federal prosecutor said. Authorities say Seagal was a victim of a bid by the Gambino crime family to infiltrate the film industry for profit.
archive
