I plan on visiting Las Vegas for 2 nights in early July. Any tips on getting tickets to a inexpensive show that would interest 2 boys, 11 and 13 yr.

Well, "inexpensive" rules out any of the Cirque du Soleil-type shows, and the fact that we're talking about two pre-teens rules out 99.44% of the live entertainment in Las Vegas..... Sounds like we're talking a Magic Show!

Look into:

-- Lance Burton at the Monte Carlo
-- Rick Thomas at the Stardust
-- Mac King at Harrah's
-- Dirk Arthur at the Tropicana

Lance Burton is the "class act". None of these should be prohibitively expensive, especially for afternoon shows. Also check into discounts as soon as you check into your hotel.

And that's about all I can think of. Anyone else?

We had coupons for free magic show at Harrah's, check the booklets in the hotel's lobby. You only had to buy a drink, non-alcohol for children.

There is also a 1/2 price booth near MGM and M&M world.

I would recommend Lance Burton, he is a terrific magician and appeals to all ages. You can get balcony seats for a reasonable price. Just about everything else is pretty pricey and I'm not sure the kids would like it anyway. (Lance does not do afternoon shows, the others the previous poster did, but from what I heard their shows are "not too good" - I can't vouch for that tho). I've seen Lance Burton several times and really would recommend him for family entertainment.

If you are looking for a show that will interest boys I would highly suggest Blue Man Group, however they are not inexpensive, I think we paid about $80 for them when they were at the Luxor, they are probably more now that they haved moved to the Venetian. I think Lance Burton is a good choice as mentioned, we have seen him and he is great for kids, he even gets kids up on stage.

There are two half-price ticket booths on the Strip, and although they don't sell tickets to the big shows (Cirque, Blue Men, etc.) they do have lots of other shows, like the magicians. The booths are in the Coke bottle by MGM and near the Harley Cafe by Aladdin.

Ditto on Lanace Burton. My son was 13 when we went and he loved it.

For this list, must including Mac King for lower costing higher values kids adults show both comedy and magics. Discount tickets finding at front of casino doors from smaller booth near junks selling there. $20 around cost. Must see! Go! So many tricks not seeing other place & without cheesey magicman ala Rick Tomas Velveeta!

http://www.mackingshow.com/

Do seek truth in all your travels and you will never be bored, broke, or barren.

AR

I second suggestions about Lance Burton, but I'd try to get a seat close to the stage. We were three rows from the stage and could not begin to fathom how he was accomplishing his slight of hand tricks, much less the larger illusions. Also, when we were there, he picked a child from near the front to participate in one of the disappearing tricks. For free stuff that might interest the boys, I'd suggest the automobile museum at the top of the Imperial Palace. You can get free admission coupons from their web site. Also, the lions at the MGM hotel are a hoot. You get to walk through their enclosure in a glass covered walkway.