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Iliza Shlesinger leaves baby at home for her Aces of Comedy shows in Las Vegas

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Iliza Shlesinger
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Plenty of people are coming to Las Vegas these days for the first time in a long time. Iliza Shlesinger is coming for the first time as a mother.

The comedian behind five Netflix stand-up specials—she’ll film her sixth next month at Connor Palace in Cleveland—along with the Ask Iliza Anything podcast and the pandemic-era web series Don’t Panic Pantry (with chef/hubby Noah Galuten) gave birth to a daughter in January. And yeah, things are different.

“Yes, it’s my first time in Vegas as a mom, said no one ever during bottle service,” Shlesinger cracks. “She’s only five months old and she’s got her schedule and routine, so I don’t bring her [on tour]. People think performers bring their kids along, but that’s like Beyoncé level. [My daughter] goes to bed at 6:30. My goal is for my baby and I to share the same bedtime, but someone’s got to make a living.”

Shlesinger returns to the Mirage as part of the Aces of Comedy series, a steady mix of established headliners like Daniel Tosh, Kathleen Madigan and Jim Jefferies, and up-and-coming comedy names like Jimmy O. Yang, Trevor Wallace and Nurse Blake.

Shlesinger falls firmly into the former category, and after the Fourth of July weekend shows, she’ll be back October 14-15.

“Vegas is such a great stop, because it’s one of few cities where you’re going to see native residents but also you’re constantly getting a new audience from people flying in,” she says. “I’m honored to be in a place in my career where the Mirage keeps having me back along with these heavy hitters.”

Shlesinger is strategic with her material. Live, her energy and delivery feels fresh and spontaneous. It’s all part of the plan. Most of the material you’ll get at the Mirage and all of the stuff she’ll use during the Netflix shoot is road-tested and ready to go, honed to hilarious precision during recent tours and gigs. She says the set primed for the special is the best she has ever written.

You’re likely to hear some new mom jokes in Las Vegas, too.

“One thing about motherhood, whatever strategy you think you have, throw it out the window,” she says. “I apply that to being an artist. If the mood strikes, I’ll talk about that, but she’s not at the phase yet of ‘kids say the darndest things.’ I’m really just excited to bring this super-energetic, hilarious, thoughtful hour to crowds that have just lost all their money.”

Next up is the fall release of Shlesinger’s second book, All Things Aside, a collection of personal essays she describes as “fun for anyone who is frustrated with the way the world works.”

Writing in that other format requires a different set of tools, she says. “The books I leave for things I want to say that are a little more nuanced and serious, when I don’t have to have a punchline every few seconds. I enjoy both and having different things I want to say that belong in different mediums. It’s like the difference between singing lyrics and saying lyrics.”

ILIZA SHLESINGER July 1-2, 10 p.m., $50-$180. Mirage Theatre, mirage.mgmresorts.com.

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Brock Radke

Brock Radke is an award-winning writer and columnist who currently occupies the role of managing editor at Las Vegas Weekly ...

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