ML - Vegas Magazine

2012 - Issue 3 - April/May

Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.

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photography by beverly poppe (holm es current-day); tibrina hobson/getty images (tomlin); jeff kravitz/filmmagic (clarkson) hOTTEST TICKET don't miss We wouldn't pass up either of these talented ladies on their one-night-only stops in town. LILY TOMLIN Holmes with guitarist Fred Karns at his very first show, in 1969 The show's actual title is, "This Thing Called Love: Cole Porter and Paul Simon." Holmes also plans to perform his tribute to Bobby Short, which drew critical praise during an October 2011 run at Café Carlyle in New York. For his four-piece backing band, Holmes has recruited some of the best players in Las Vegas: music director/pianist Jeff Neiman, guitar- ist John Wedemeyer, bassist Keith Nelson, and percussionist Jess Gopen. But they won't be the only performers accompanying him at Cabaret Jazz. Holmes's vision is to invite some of the best-known Vegas musicians and continued from page 68 The son of an African American jazz musician and a British opera singer (a blend of artistic sensibilities he plays to rich reward onstage), Holmes is always willing to explore new genres and styles. It makes each of his performances unique. "I've been develop- ing tributes to artists I've appreciated over the years and who have inspired me," he says. "I want to bring different shows each month so you can see me in April and come back in May or June and see a different show." As Holmes rehearsed for his Smith Center debut, he was also preparing for a run at Feinstein's in New York. That performance is a tribute to two great American songwriters, although it is something of an odd coupling: Cole Porter and Paul Simon. Rather Acoustically, it's at that level, too." beautiful as any theater I've been in. "This is as than debut the show in New York, Holmes was to per- form it first at Cabaret Jazz. "I first wanted to call it, 'Paul Simon and Cole Porter: It's Delightful, It's De-lovely, It's Depressing,'" Holmes jokes. "Paul Simon can have some dark lyr- ics. But these are two of our finest songwriters, who cut across cultures and generations, and I thought it was a perfect way to start at the Smith Center." 70 vegasmagazine.com vocalists to join him onstage each weekend, among them the vocal group Fifth Avenue and Jerry Lopez of Santa Fe & The Fat City Horns (the band that accompanied Holmes for five years when he head- lined at Harrah's Las Vegas). He also hopes to add a Sunday matinée for families and is pushing the idea of a free-admission "gypsy" show, a midnight performance on Saturdays for Vegas entertainers. "All I ask is that the band get paid," he says. "I am cool to do that, to make it a really fun industry night." With Holmes as the anchor head- liner, committed to the venue for its first year, Cabaret Jazz is filling its schedule with many other top acts. Branford Marsalis was booked the weekend before Holmes opens on April 6–7. Andrea Marcovicci, Suzanne Vega and Duncan Sheik, and the Joey DeFrancesco Trio, round out April, with Holmes returning for his second set of shows May 4–5. "This is not a showroom experience," he says. "It's a chance to have a great hangout in a cool jazz club, a cabaret club. It's exciting and new and different and I'm proud to be a part of it." The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, 702-749-2000; thesmithcenter.com V famed comedienne lily tomlin takes the stage at the smith center's reynolds hall for a one-day stop in las vegas on her spring tour. the emmy, grammy, tony, and mark twain prize for american humor-winner rose to fame on the sketch comedy show Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In (1968–1973); expect appearances from ernestine, edith ann, and a host of other timeless, eccentric characters she first made famous there. With witty observations, skits, and insights, the light, hysterical one-woman show makes for a fun family outing this mother's day. Reynolds Hall, The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, May 13, 2 pm, 702-749-2000; thesmithcenter.com KELLY CLARKSON there's no denying it: kelly clarkson is one of the greatest idols reality television has given us. the sheer power and range of her voice serves the multi-platinum artist well on everything from heartbreaking love ballads to her famous breakup songs, including "Walk away," "behind these hazel eyes," "never again," and "since u been gone." singles such as her duet with jason aldean, "don't you Wanna stay," and the title hit from her newest album, Stronger, show her growth as an artist from the first winner of American Idol 10 years ago to a female anthem singer sure to bring fire to the stage. Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort, April 5, 8 pm, 702-944-3200; palms.com

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