John Katsilometes talks with a ‘Phantom’ actor who brings Broadway credentials to Las Vegas

Monday, May 8, 2006 | 7:23 a.m.

Larry Wayne Morbitt is uniquely educated about the frequently analyzed Broadway-to-Vegas entertainment trend. He's done Vegas. He's done Broadway.

"If any show is going to make it in Vegas, it's this one," Morbitt said Friday morning at Valcom Studios on South Commerce Street, tucked away in downtown Las Vegas. "It's immediately recognizable. It's sung in so many languages, and given that Las Vegas is an international city I think it's a great fit."

Morbitt speaks of "Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular," set to open next month at the Venetian. The opening date for previews has been moved back from June 4 to June 12; the grand opening is still set for June 23.

Morbitt has portrayed Ubaldo Piangi on Broadway for 7 1/2 years, but he also has strong ties to Vegas; he sang with the Las Vegas Opera and the Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra in the '80s, and also served as the minister of music at Trinity Temple - now Trinity Life Center - and still holds a ministerial credential.

Morbitt well remembers the Vegas entertainment scene when he left the city in the late-'80s.

"It's more diverse now than it was then. It's more of an international audience, where English is not always spoken," Morbitt said. "When I lived here, Siegfried & Roy were the really big show ... and 'Jubilee,' come to think of it. 'Jubilee' was a really big show then."

NoteMart

We pulled a quad Saturday - four events in one afternoon and evening:

Star power: The Las Vegas Walk of Fame star dedication ceremony for the late Chester Simms at at Steakhouse 46 at Flamingo Las Vegas was a hit. The event, presided over by dapper Doug Simms, Chester's son, drew a vintage Vegas crowd of between 175 and 200 (including longtime Simms friend Phyllis McGuire). The crowd regaled in tales of Simms, the longtime casino manager at the Flamingo, and took in the Kentucky Derby.

At party's end, Simms told a well-wisher, "Too bad we didn't have more winners today," which drew the response, "I see one big winner right here.'' ...

Good night for Claire: Next stop, the Lili Claire Foundation's annual benefit dinner and "Concert for Lili Claire" at Mandalay Bay Events Center. While walking the red carpet, emcee Jason Alexander noted that he has been approached "several times" to star in Las Vegas production shows but has never been able to work out the scheduling.

Before the concert, which starred Lifehouse, Vanessa Carlton and Everclear, accepting honors for their various contributions to Las Vegas were Councilwoman Lois Tarkanian, Vincent Schettler of Focus Property Group, and longtime Vegas physician Dr. John Rhodes.

In introducing Tarkanian, gifted orator Oscar Goodman, mayor of Las Vegas, joked, "Lois said she wanted to be on the city council because she wanted to learn how to lap dance." Tarkanian was ready with a reply: "All of that lap-dancing occured before my time on the council." ...

Palms Saturday: Palms owner George Maloof welcomed a celebrity-laden collection of VIPs to the opening of the Palms Fantasy Tower. Guests checked out the Erotic Suite, Pink Suite, G Suite, The Crib, Kingpin Suite and Celebrity Suite (nightly rates range from $4,000 to $15,000). Downstairs in the casino, Terrell Owens drew a crowd of gawkers with a spirited game of blackjack (stacks of $500 chips, courtesy of the Cowboys, were wagered) ...

Snoop at midnight: Or, rather, 12:30 a.m., which is when Snoop Dogg took the stage at the concert closing the "Gumball 3000" party at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel. The powerful performance was enjoyed by a wide cross-section of folks, including one guy wearing a "Dukes of Hazzard General Lee" T-shirt ...

Happy hour: Reader checks in with this, on an unidentified SUV: 5SUMWHR.