Cher: Still There. Still Cher.
With Bette and Elton gone and Céline's return 10 months away, Cher is the only Diva-In-Residence in Las Vegas and last night she celebrated her second anniversary at the Colosseum at Caesars Palace. Much of her 90-minute show is as it was two years ago. And Cher herself seems timeless. She remains much the same as she was 45 years ago when she started. Still, there have been additions to the show that really stand out.
She enters stage left, 65 feet up in the air in a kind of basket-y contraption she refers to as a "death-mobile." Once on solid ground she ruminates about the possibilities of a fall; of she and the basket landing on audience members below. "It would be on CNN," she says, "on the crawl at the bottom of the screen. 'Cher dies.'" Then, what she called "the best part — CNN would mention 'the nameless, faceless people who also died.'"
OK. Time to get down to business.
The first scene — both scenery and costumes — sets the tone for the entire show. The Colosseum is a gorgeous, spectacular theater. Huge, but with a great floor plan and outstanding acoustics, it provides audience members in just about each of the 4,300 seats with an unobstructed view of the stage and the ability to hear every word clearly. It's a wonderful venue. Like the venue, Cher's show is gorgeous.
First up is her rendition of Bob Seger's Fire Down Below. The backdrop is 1940s urban — neon signs, men in zoot suits. Designer Bob Makie and his muse, Cher, still make beautiful music together. In fact, although the set designer is uncredited (at least I couldn't find the designer's name) that person deserves great applause. The stage is breathtaking through all the show. Against that one backdrop, Cher has two costume changes and, thus, sets the tone for the show during which she wears 14 costumes and as many wigs.
The songs she does — Believe, Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves, Dark Lady, Half-Breed and, my favorite, Walking In Memphis— cover her solo songbook and, via some excellent video, her Sonny and Cher days get equal time. The stage is shared with a band, two back-up singers and a Cirque-worthy group of dancers and aerialists whose routines are choreographed by Doriana Sanchez. They fill the ample time Cher is offstage very well.
Of course, when she's on the stage, Cher glitters. In great shape, she looks terrific and it is a lot of fun to hear the songs. The only odd note is her inclusion of Y.M.C.A. Couldn't quite figure that one out. On the other hand, the audience was totally into it, doing all the right moves.
In fact, as Deadheads did for the Grateful Dead, as the Fanilows do for Barry Manilow and the ToJo's for Tom Jones, it seems Cher's fans — Cher-holders? — are frequent audience members. And, at prices of more than $250, that is quite a tribute to Cher and the loyalty of her fans. For the entire 90 minutes, the people in front of the auditorium do a series of coordinated dance steps and hand motions that can only come from frequent visits to the show.
Many of the people around us were bothered that the end of the show seems somewhat abrupt. She sings Believe and leaves the stage. The audience, some said, deserved a "thank you" or a "good night." I have no feeling about that one way or another. I do feel — actually, I do believe — that Cher is one of those singular only-in-Las-Vegas entertainments, as are Cirque's Love and KÀ or example. And, if for no other reason than that factor, it is worth seeing. Of course, if you have good feelings about her music, that is really a good reason to see Cher at Caesars Palace. But, whatever your reason for going, you'll have lots of fun.
Tickets to see Cher are $95 to $250, plus taxes and fees. For information and to order, visit the Caesars Palace website.
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