Top Vegas Shows for anti-show person?
 

My husband and I are visitng Vegas this July are are being told we MUST see Mama Mia and Blue Man's group... my husband is really hesitant about spending $$ for a show....

We do both love magic and Comedy ( but were dissapointed with David Copperfield)
But my dad (who also was always pretty much anti show) says Mama Mia will blow us away

...do you have any thoughts?

Thanks so much!

ps (We are still trying to decide between Mandalay Bay/THE Hotel/ & Bellagio) :)

If you enjoy comedy, try the Second City improv comedy show at the Flamingo. It's a more reasonable $45 ticket price and a fun show.

We saw the Blue Man Group years ago in Boston. It's a good show but at the time I think the tickets were only $40. My husband didn't care for it. It's zany blue painted mimes. OTH I just saw Le Reve and thought that was worth the price. Fantastic acrobatics, diving and swimming. The staging is so magnificent you might think it took magic. I once took my husband against his will to the Rockettes Christmas Show. He loved it but was mesmerized by the stage. I think he would have liked Le Reve. It contains a little bit of comedy among the audience but in general is not considered a comedy show.

I don't think the Blue Man group is for you. A lot of drum banging. I liked O a lot as did my husband. The swimming pool they jump into is amazingly built and there are a lot of acrobatics involved and the music is beautiful. It is expensive and a bit artsy though. I was disappointed with the Lance Burton show. I wans't wowed enough. My sister-in-law loved Mama Mia, but she is a big ABBA fan.

I'd skip all those hotels and stay at Paris. Great location, great hotel. I've heard the pool at Mandalay can't be beat though. Bellagio wasn't worth it. It has this terrible florescent lighting everywhere.

I have seen Mamma Mia 4 times, but in London - it's a marvelous show particularly if you like Abba music. It's fun, light hearted and it always seemed to me that everyone in the audience enjoyed it thoroughly.

As for magic Lance Burton is good, but again not everyone likes him. You might enjoy Penn & Teller (at the Rio), they are a little off-beat magicians.

If you husband is hesitant about spending $$ for a show I understand that completely. We go to Vegas alot and there are shows we will not spend huge bucks (Cirque de Soliel shows as we do not like them). If, however, you are a Cirque fan Mystere (at Treasure Island) is a good choice, and everyone seems to rave about KA at the MGM. I would not bother with Blue Man but that is my personal opinion.

Since you like comedy check and see who is at the Mirage while you are in town - Jay Leno, Brad Garrett, Ray Romano and David Slade frequently appear (when Danny Gans is taking another one of his numerous weeks off ... as you might guess I do not like him at all).

Blue Man Group is a waste of time and money, IMHO. I thought it'd be hip and fun, but I found it entirely empty.

Mama Mia is o.k., a better choice than blue Man Group, but it's pretty insipid, too.

I've seen Blue Man Group in Vegas & Mamma Mia on Broadway. Between the two, Mamma Mia was definitely better. I'm assuming it's a similar show in Vegas. Blue Man Group was OK, and I think would appeal more to families with teens.

Both Second City and the Improv (at Harrahs) are fun comedy shows. Despite its name, the Improv consists of two or three separate comedian acts, and is not improvisation. The ticket prices are low, and there are lots of half-price deals around.

For a more substantial show, I'd suggest seeing one Cirque show, and making that Mystere. We weren't sure how we'd like it, and found it completely fascinating. We even liked it better than O. It's also more attractively priced than O & KA. Unless it's changed, the prices were $95 for the top seats for Mystere versus $150 for O & KA.

We really enjoyed Penn & Teller, both magic and comedy.

Send him over to "Mystere" and let him spend the next month figuring out what it meant.

I'd tend to agree about Blue Man group not the show for you and hubby. Great for the younger set...I saw Mamma Mia a couple of months ago, and it was really cute...especially if you're familiar with ABBA music. I also heard that Hairspray would be there soon...perhaps it already is. I have to disagree with an earlier post regarding Danny Ganns. We find his show very entertaining...he's so talented. By the way, BlueManGroup is no longer at the Luxor; they've built a new showroom just for them at the Venetian. Good luck..and remember in July, it's reeeeaaaalllly HOT in Vegas!

You might enjoy Geordie Brown, he performs at the Golden Nugget (downtown) and prices are more "reasonable" then some of the big-name performers. I saw him with a group of my friends and we all thought he was funny and talented. It's a small theater and all seats are good seats.

You might also want to check and see who is performing at the Orleans showroom in July.

Check out this site for show info:
http://www.lvol.com/lvoleg/lvshows.html

Without a doubt Mamma Mia is one of the best shows in town! My DH did not want to go at all, but by the end of the show he was up clapping and he really loved it. I just told me friend that recently moved here to go and they went 2 night ago and had a blast. I have even bought tickets for my parents for Christmas and they loved it. As far as Blue Man Group, the DH loved it, I thought it was good and then it got to repetitious. Good if you really into percussions. I don't think it is worth the price though. When they were at the Luxor we paid close to a hundred bucks a ticket, price has probably gone up since they moved to the Venetian.
Another show that I highly recommend is Danny Gans. We have seen hime about 4-5 times and I will still go again. He is fantastic and good for all ages.
As far as your hotel choices, they are all great hotels. The newest is THEhotel. You use the Mandalay Bay pool which is beautiful, complete with wave pool, topless area (some like this some don't...not my thing, but whatever). Very tropical setting. Not sure about Bellagio's pool, but it is gorgeous hotel.

Lance Burton (magic), Penn & Teller (magic w/some comedy), The Amazing Jonathan (Comedy w/some magic). If you've not been to Vegas before stay @ the Bellagio. I love Mandalay Bay, but due to its location, it may not be the best coice for first timers.

I've also heard Gladys Knight is a great show. I'm not a show person either and would probably go see that one.

We found Mamma Mia to be sort of canned and manipulative. but we seemed to be in the minority.

I like the improv suggestion. At $100 a seat, I don't think it's worth the risk that your husband will like either BMG or Mama Mia. I've seen them both. If you don't at least *like* ABBA, I think Mama Mia could be disappointing for a guy.

As for your hotel dilemma, I typically stay at THE Hotel, the rooms are much nicer (in my opinion) than MB or Bellagio.

Have seen many of the aforementioned shows and would agree in principle. The Cirque shows are great, but I after seeing 4 shows I think enough is enough. However, I am looking for something a little different next trip. Is there a lounge act or jazz club on the strip that anyone could suggest.

For the last poster - you might try seeing Havana Night Club. The cast and music are very high energy. They have been appearing at the Stardust but later this month (or early March) they are making an announcement about where they will be next in 'Vegas. The music is Cuban but you do not need to understand Spanish to have a great time.

Thanks everybody!

We love Improv, so Second City sounds great! My dad is the last person who I thought would like a Musical but he has been to See Mama Mia twice.

I think I am torn between THE hotel and Bellagio... but will propbaly wait to book it until closer on. I jsut wonder if staying at THE hotel is worth the extra price if it basically shares everything Mandalay does

This is our main vacation this year, split with LA and we are coming from Florida. (airfare and 2 nights hotel curtosy of mom and dad... Merry Christmas! :) :) )

Usually we go the Caribbean and papmer ourselves

I'll probably post a California thread soon....You guys are invaluable...

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Hi..
First of all, I would stay at the Wynn Hotel..It's 5 star, new and the prices will be right in line with the Mandalay and Bellagio..New is always the way to go in Vegas..
Second, The Scinta's at the Rio is a great show..
Comedy variety show..no magic but the tickets are reasonable and it is always in the top #10 for best of shows..
I have heard great things about Mama Mia and Danny Gans too..
My friend just rented a suite at Mandalay and said he would never return...$600 a night of peeled paint furniture, stained carpet.. YUK!
Expedia has some great deals for the Wynn..$179.00 a night.
wynnlasvegas.com
Have a great time in Vegas and win lots of money!