John Katsilometes talks with Harold Prince, who’s being honored with a Tony

Thursday, May 18, 2006 | 7:31 a.m.

Legendary Broadway producer-director Harold Prince is being given a Tony Award for his work in theater.

He plans to celebrate by working in a theater.

"I'm not going back (to New York) for it," Prince said Wednesday during a phone interview from Valcom Studios on South Commerce Street, the rehearsal home of "Phantom: Las Vegas Spectacular."

"I'm staying right here."

For the past month Prince has been busy working on the 90-minute Las Vegas version of "Phantom," which opens for previews on June 12 at the Venetian. Accepting a Tony Award in New York would only take Prince away from his busy rehearsal schedule.

And he would rather do the work than be praised for it.

"Someone told me recently that, other than a span of two years and two months when I was off doing other stuff, I have been represented nonstop on Broadway since 1954," Prince said. "It takes some sort of egghead to figure that out but it surprised me."

It was announced Tuesday that Prince will be honored with the Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theater. At age 78, he has won a record 20 Tony Awards spanning six decades.

Usually, a Lifetime Achievement Award smacks of an honor marking the end of a career. But not for Prince.

"The perfect expression of receiving a lifetime award," he said, "is to be working when they're handing it out."

Prince says he won't completely sit out the show, scheduled to air from New York on June 11 on CBS.

"Maybe we can work something out at the Venetian to tape my acceptance speech from there, from the theater. That would be a good way to do it."

Prince said Las Vegas' generations-old claim as the Entertainment Capital of the World "sounds like hype, but it's damn close to being accurate. I saw Johnny Mathis the other night and it doesn't get much better than that. I will see 'Ka' tonight ... I am enjoying those elements of the city, which are glamorous."

It promises to be a busy June with "Phantom" butting heads with "Love" at the Mirage. But competition alone does not drive Prince.

"I suppose (I have) a competitive spirit - there is a modicum of it, but that's not how I operate," he said. "I'm on a single track here - I work to direct what I want to see onstage. I basically have been feeding my own needs - to be working on a specific project at a specific time, and fortunately more often it works than fails."

NoteMart

Tony, Tony, Tony: Another Tony Award category has been Vegas-ized: Michael Gill, co-producer (with Myron Martin) of "Hairspray" at the Luxor, is also producer of the Broadway production of "The Wedding Singer," which is nominated for Best Musical. His company, Gill Theatrical Management, handles the management for "Phantom" and "Mamma Mia!" at Mandalay Bay

Hot single: It appears Paul McCartney will be singularly distracted when "Love" opens at Mirage next month. The rumors of his struggling marriage were confirmed on Wednesday, when he and his wife, Heather Mills McCartney, announced they are separating. It is still not certain if McCartney will join in the June 30 opening gala for "Love" in Las Vegas (a fine city for singles, incidentally).

All four shareholders in the Beatles' publishing company, Apple Corps Ltd. (Yoko Ono, McCartney, Olivia Harrison and Ringo Starr), have been invited to the gala and all have toured the theater at the Mirage over the past few weeks. Starr performs the following night, July 1, at the Beach at Mandalay Bay. Cirque du Soleil and Mirage officials are hoping each will take part, but won't say anything official until hotel rooms are booked

More about the show: The latest advertising ploy at the Mirage, which will top the hotel with a giant "Love" wrap, should be finished by Friday

Americans can't visit Mexico! The much-anticipated Nevada Ballet Theatre tour of Mexico has been canceled. The reason given by the NBT is that the sweep through Mexico was spiked because of "the presenter's financial constraints." The 22-city tour was to start today and run through June 20; plans for coverage on Telemundo have also been scrapped

Terribly successful: Celebrating its fifth anniversary, Terrible's Hotel at 4100 Paradise Road is expanding its casino floor, building a hotel tower with luxury rooms and suites, and building a 500-space parking garage. A grand opening for all of this is expected sometime this summer; no word if Sting is going to be a part of that celebration

Laughs at "La Femme": I didn't expect laughs at the artful adult production of Crazy Horse's "La Femme," which celebrated its fifth anniversary at MGM Grand on Tuesday night. But the comic bit starring Micro Jackson - Michael Jackson's Mini-Me, if you will - had me dizzy with laughter. It has to be seen to be believed

Radio, radio: Today from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sudan's ambassador to the United States, Khirid Ahmed, will be interviewed by Dave Berns on KNPR 88.9-FM. Ahmed will discuss the United States' reaction to the genocide in Darfur, Western relief efforts, Bono's push for relief for the region, and the West's view of poverty and life in the Sudan. The show repeats at 8 p.m. On May 31 Ahmed will attend the International Teacher of the Year Awards at the Four Seasons

Auditioning for "Splash"? Making good on a promise made during the annual MGM Mirage Voice Campaign pledge drive, on Friday at 2:30 p.m. Treasure Island President and Chief Operating Officer Tom Mikulich will jump off the mast of the pirate ship used in the production of "Sirens of TI." Mikulich promised this stunt if employees raised more than $200,000. And so they did ...

Two piece in a pod: As summer fast approaches, we note that this year marks the 60th birthday of the bikini. Celebrate tastefully

Add roommates? A guess, and a good one, at the plate spotted on a Lexus RX300 with the plates ADRM888.

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