Mash-Up

Las Vegas Weekly Staff

Thursday, Aug. 3, 2006 | midnight

In a development anticipated by industry insiders, Beacher's Madhouse officially shut its doors at the Hard Rock on July 29. Many people credited Jeff Beacher's close friendship with Harry Morton, son of ex-Hard Rock owner Peter Morton, with not only bringing the New York impresario to Vegas but also keeping the crazed variety show running without an eye necessarily fixed on the bottom line (though it has to be noted that Harry was also one of the show's executive producers).

With both Mortons gone and the boutique-managing Morgans Hotel Group in, so too has gone some of the Hard Rock's edgy excitement. One can only wonder if we've also seen the last giant skateboard ramp to be built in the casino's parking lot.

For those in the last night's audience, there was edgy excitement aplenty, however. The capacity crowd filling the Joint's main floor and balcony got more than its share of the madcap lunacy that's made Beacher's show notorious in this town for two and a half years, since its opening on December 30, 2003.

Tables were sprinkled with the oral candy of SweeTarts and the visual candy of copies of Strip LV magazine. Overhead, Cassandra and Anna dangled from long white ribbons of cloth. And all around was the typical array of dancing girls and sideshow acts, including balloon-swallower Tyas Franz, strongman James Thompson and the Madhouse Monkey (yes, a real monkey). Onstage were men leaping several feet into the air, powered by spring-loaded drywall stilts; tumbling and balancing acts; Tara Schaup, who rocks her half-naked body on chunks of broken glass; and Bernie Barker, said to be the world's oldest male stripper.

Conspicuous by his absence was Leonid the Magnificent, the gay Russian who twirls an infinite number of silver hoops from his 6-foot-9-inch frame. It is claimed by Beacher that Leonid Filatov has been barred from performing in Madhouse by NBC in exchange for appearing on America's Got Talent.

After codirector Pete Giovine was carried to the stage from the balcony via wires, the contests began: dancing, fake orgasm (which nearly resulted in a catfight between two contestants) and karaoke. Mötley Crüe's Vince Neil rose to the karaoke challenge, along with magician Criss Angel. After DJ Kevin "Sugar" Shand failed to find a Mötley Crüe track, Neil chose "Born to Be Wild." Unfortunately for him, he only knew the first verse.

The show's finale was an appearance by Kiss satire band Tiny Kiss, with members Li'l Tim, Wee Matt McCarthy, Shorty Rossi and lead singer Big Beth Mara—a reminder to the audience that some of the madness will be reborn at the Imperial Palace as Beacher's Rockhouse.