Rita Rudner, Spartacus, and Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons

Another hat trick!

That’s another three-show weekend with different venues and vastly different acts.

Rita Rudner celebrated her one year anniversary at the New York, New York Hotel & Casino with a specially attired and treated media VIP crowd. We were given drinks and a bright pink feathered wraparound neck piece. "You look like an audience of Gabor," Rita said. A reception and gifts followed to make a lovely evening.

What a bright and fresh stand up act this is! Somebody is really thinking and writing, and it is Rita Rudner. She writes her own material, of course, and has done the ad-lib writing for the last two hosts at the Academy Awards. Rita is not new, but she is improved at a constant pace and displays exemplary talent. She makes you feel good and entertains, she is inoffensive yet insightful. Overall, her act contains some very perceptive thoughts and observations. SHE IS DOING 7 NIGHTS A WEEK, two shows on Friday and Saturday, which is nine a week at $46. 450 mostly sold out seats with a quarter of million tickets sold and going strong. We are dealing with top of the line talent here. One memorable quote: "My husband and I either going to buy a dog or have a child. We can’t decide whether to ruin our carpet or ruin our lives." 101 A+ better than the best.

I wish I could have stayed for Rita's full act but Spartacus waited.

The Grigorovich Ballet of Russia, touring with their full production of Spartacus, closed out the Vanda masters series program at UNLV’s Artemus Ham Hall. It is hard to beat this for us ballet lovers. This was my first time for Spartacus and it realized the potential I had hoped for with lots of war, orgies and action. Three different dancers were listed for the four leading roles and it would be hard to imagine anyone better than the ones we got. Two acts, nine scenes, a full cast, perfect costumes and the absolutely perfect music of Aram Khachaturian. It doesn't get any better than this. Nice crowd but they couldn't have been ruder with non-stop interruptions of applause.

There is some good news, however. The current smutz who was holding the title of Director of UNLV Performing Arts Center is leaving; whoever is next will have to be better and might just return a phone call. Another 101 A+, outstanding.

"Big Girls Don’t Cry, they don’t cry." Boy for sure the legend lives on. Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons closed a four-day run at the Orleans and they were sensational. Valli has been at it for over 40 years with lots of changing of the Seasons. Amazingly enough he is at his peak at the end of his Hall of Fame career.

I have seen this show ten or twelve times and the current show is the best I have seen. Obviously this is an opinion, but it's my column and my opinion. After taking off two years and re-thinking his career, Valli has produced his best show. All the oldies, no medleys, four new seasons, a perfect sharp 10-piece band, and a polished well-rehearsed act that brought out all the old memories in their purest form. I especially like the Seasons who could all sing, they danced a little and looked like they were having fun. How many black suits can you sell in one shot? At least 15 is the answer as everybody on stage had one. The Orleans showroom is absolutely perfect for this show in terms of size, sound and stage. They seat 827 and can do 900 on a big night. This was a good Sunday night crowd with lots of white hair in the largely local crowd.

"Big Girls Don’t Cry," "Sherry," "Walk Like a Man," "Grease," "Dawn," "Rag Doll," "Swearin’ to God," "Working My Way Back To You," "My Eyes Adore You," "December of 1963," "Can’t Take My Eyes Off You," "Let's Hang On," "Rag Doll," "Candy Girl," "Ronnie," "Silence is Golden," "Save It For Me," "Bye Bye Baby (Baby Goodbye)," "Let's Hang On," "I've Got You Under My Skin," and "Tell It to the Rain." A pretty nice songbook, eh? We are talking Elvis, Neil Sedaka, Lennon and McCartney levels here. Frankie Valli did all these and more and did them in their entirety. Thanks Frankie, it's good to feel good.

The Orleans was very happy with their short-week run of shows and have pretty much booked 2002. That’s good for everybody. Another 101 A+ over the top, how blessed I am to see all this great stuff in my hometown. Sammy Davis Jr. is still the standard we judge them all by.