Friday, March 14, 2003 | 9:03 a.m.
The Riviera has "An Evening at La Cage," a show starring Frank Marino and a cast of a dozen or so female impersonators.
The Imperial Palace has "Legends in Concert," which features a dozen or so tribute artists.
At the Stratosphere is "American Superstars," another production with a large cast of impersonators.
Tonight identical twins Anthony and Eddie Edwards will roll all of these shows into one in a singular two-man performance of "Celebrities on Stage" at Sunset Station.
Together they perform dozens of impressions, from Elton John, to Sonny & Cher, to Bette Midler to Neil Diamond.
The Edwardses, natives of Burbank, Calif., might be the only twin impressionists in the world. If not, they are at least rare -- and they for sure are the only twins routinely playing to sold-out houses in Laughlin at the River Palms.
They have created a niche for themselves in the entertainment world by combining their talent to do impressions, vis-a-vis Rich Little or Frank Gorshin, with their expertise in tribute artistry. They could easily take any one of the characters they portray and fashion an entire show around that entertainer.
The 38-year-old brothers launched their act about 10 years ago at the now defunct North Beach Cafe (Decatur Boulevard and Sahara Avenue). From there they took their show to the East Coast and Florida, where they have spent most of their time ever since.
Last October they began a six-month run at River Palms. When that engagement ends they will return to the East Coast for a few prior commitments and then be back in Laughlin in September for a date that will continue through June 2004.
Meanwhile the Edwardses decided to test the waters for a possible future in Las Vegas with a couple of showcases, one last Friday and another tonight.
If you enjoy female impersonators and tribute artistry of the highest quality, you should check out this double bill while the siblings are still close at hand. Otherwise, you'll have to drive all the way to Laughlin, and with the price of gasoline being what it is the trip could be expensive.
The Edwardses do excellent impressions of a wide variety of celebrities.
Before the show begins, they do a voice-over using a series of celebrities to tell the audience not to smoke, take pictures or use recording equipment -- celebrities such as Katharine Hepburn, Dolly Parton and Archie and Edith Bunker.
Eddie Edwards launches the lively production with a vibrant rendition of Bette Midler in a skintight, polka dot dress that appeared to be made of plastic.
He/she sang, danced and joked his/her way through a number of Midler classics, including "Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy."
"I picked this up at Cross Dress for Less," Edwards said of the costume. "It's an Armani -- a Salvation Armani."
Eddie Edwards, who specializes in impersonating female celebrities, made several references to his maleness during his various presentations. Not all of them were printable in a family newspaper.
At one point he took padding from his Bette Midler bra to wipe his brow.
Anthony Edwards then appeared as Neil Diamond and, after a few songs, was joined onstage by his brother as Barbra Streisand.
One of their calling cards is that they do all of their own vocal impressions, usually live but sometimes lip-synced.
Another draw is that their makeup is so good it's hard to tell them from the real celebrities, at least at a distance.
The makeup artistry leads to one of the few flaws in the March 7 show. While most impressionists do snippets of characteristics from any given persona, just enough to quickly awe the audience, the twins present mini-concerts featuring individual artists in full costume.
The scenes are a little too long, but that probably is necessary in order to give the brother who isn't onstage time get into his intricate costume and makeup for the next bit.
A typical show in Laughlin might last an hour and 40 minutes or more (they probably have enough material to go on for hours). Las Vegas audiences are more accustomed to shorter productions.
Given that, the evening is so much fun that time flies and you aren't really conscious of how long you have been entertained.
The Edwardses' mother missed an opportunity to speed up the production -- she should have had triplets.
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