{"id":18512,"date":"2016-07-14T09:42:19","date_gmt":"2016-07-14T17:42:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/?p=18512"},"modified":"2016-07-14T09:42:19","modified_gmt":"2016-07-14T17:42:19","slug":"baz-in-my-bonnet-moulin-rouge-back-in-play","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lasvegasadvisor.com\/stiffs-and-georges\/baz-in-my-bonnet-moulin-rouge-back-in-play\/","title":{"rendered":"“Baz” in my bonnet; Moulin Rouge back in play"},"content":{"rendered":"

Palazzo<\/strong> is currently hosting the second coming of Baz: Star-Crossed Love<\/em>, a song-and-dance mishmash of iconic moments from such Baz Luhrmann<\/strong> epics as Gatsby<\/em>, Moulin Rouge<\/em> and Romeo + Juliet<\/em>. (What, nothing from Australia<\/em>? Awwwww.) There’s even a \"baz-pic\"passing nod to his first — and still best — movie, Strictly Ballroom<\/em>. The good news is that Baz<\/em><\/a> plays better in the reconfigured Palazzo Showroom than it did when shoehorned into Light<\/strong> at Mandalay Bay<\/strong>. The bad news is that it’s afflicted with the same heartlessness and ADHD mania as the movies themselves. For Baz’s\u00a0new iteration, the showroom has been reconfigured with a multi-pronged catwalk that goes into and around the audience. More’s the pity that it’s used without much imagination. An overworked trope has one star-crossed lover, far upstage, addressing another who’s way out in the center aisle. They’re then brought together, with a long, white sheet usually involved. Another much-abused device is to have scenes from two different stories playing out simultaneously. Don’t go in expecting a linear experience.<\/p>\n

There are are one or two\u00a0standout performances, especially from\u00a0Joanna Jones<\/strong> (Daisy Buchanan), but most of them are strenuously overworked, interchangeable Millennials. They’re required to display bottomless energy and stamina, so give them points for that. But most of the ‘acting’ is subpar to what you’d find on your average daytime soap. The costumer deserves top marks and the band an excellent job — this is one of the few Strip shows where the singers aren’t routinely drowned out. But, after 90 minutes of dry humping, it feels like much ado about nothing much.<\/p>\n

* I don’t know how so daffy a project managed to fly under the S&G<\/em> radar but Tokyo Casino<\/strong>, which would anchor the northwest corner of a five block-by-16 block area on the west side of Downtown, got onto the Nevada Gaming Control Board<\/strong> agenda. The casino itself would be modest, starting with 102 slots and subsequently adding a 400-room hotel. (Can they legally do that?) According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal<\/em>, Tokyo Casino backers say they have “other investors looking to build a smaller boutique hotel, several Asian restaurants, a Japanese experience park and block of Japanese gardens.” We’ve got Chinatown<\/strong> and Korea Town<\/strong>. Why not Japan Town?<\/p>\n

Well, money, for starters. The NGCB simply isn’t convinced there’s lucre\u00a0— or enough of it — in the project.\u00a0\u201cI simply can\u2019t make the call right now.\u00a0I still have a lot of questions about the financing,\u201d said Chairman A.G. Burnett<\/strong>, sending Tokyo Casino back for reconsideration. Added NGCB member Shawn Reid<\/strong>, “we have no idea where this money is coming from.\u201d The company’s dismissive attitude toward the Control Board<\/a> didn’t help.\u00a0\u201cThis all seemed rushed, disjointed and injected with nonresponsiveness,\u201d said NGCB member Terry Johnson<\/strong>. Considering some of the\u00a0casino projects that have been green-lit despite inadequate financing, one has to praise the Control Board for its due diligence this time.<\/p>\n