Las Vegas Spotlight: September 2010
Follow the Rivers
(© Tristan Fuge)
With the onset of fall, the curtain is also opening on the new theater season. Las Vegas Little Theatre's Mainstage presents Jaston Williams, Joe Sears & Ed Howard's enduring, eccentric take on small-town southern life, Greater Tuna, directed by Sean Critchfield (September 10-26). Meanwhile, the LVLT's Fischer Black Box has a comedy of a decidedly different nature, David Lindsay-Abaire's Fuddy Meers, directed by Mario Mendez (September 17-October 3). The play revolves around amnesiac Claire, who wakes up every morning as a blank slate.
Nevada Conservatory Theatre presents Sam Shepard's Fool for Love at the Judy Bayley Theatre (September 17-26). The place: a stark motel room in the Mojave Desert. The people: battling lovers May and Eddie, whose volatile and desperate relationship is fueled by passion and dysfunction. And Super Summer Theatre presents Larry Shue's comedy, The Foreigner at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park (September 9-25). Set in a rural Georgia fishing lodge, it tells the story of shy Englishman Charlie Baker who pretends he doesn't understand English and is soon privy to all the secrets and scandals at the lodge, courtesy of the other guests.
As for music, what better way to start the new fall season than with the return of Garth Brooks at the Wynn Encore Theatre (September 10-12). He's the Number One selling solo artist in U.S. history, and he's stepping back into the spotlight for a different kind of show - just one man, one guitar, getting up-close and personal with the fans.
If you're looking for a more "high-octane" Vegas show, there's always the return of Sgt. Pepper Live Featuring Cheap Trick at Le Theatre Des Arts at the Paris (September 9-18). Marrying Cheap Trick's brand of power pop with the music of the ultimate Beatles album, it's a show that you'll still be talking about years from now, when you're 64. And if it's a couple of hard-rocking women you want to see, September has a couple of treats for you. Melissa Etheridge plays the Pearl Concert Theater at Palms (September 4), and Sheryl Crow plays at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel (September 11). In addition to these acts, it's a pretty big month for music at both venues.
At the Palms, "Devil's in the Jukebox" when Ray La Montagne is joined by David Gray (September 3), or you can take your mama out to see Scissor Sisters (September 10). 80s post-punk band The Cult are joined by special guests The Black Ryder (September 16). Alternative rockers (and Grammy winners) Phoenix take to the stage with special guests Neon Indian on September 22, and the eclectic Vampire Weekend bring their unique sound to the Pearl on September 29.